Dandy-Lion Fun

Noxious dandelion killing sprays are for lazy people.

For just $3.67 (cost of the cheapest digger tool at the Depot) and 5 hours of my time, I dug up all the brilliant yellow flowers I could find on our yard. Sure, I'm sunburnt and tired, I have a little blister on my thumb and I'm probably going to have to do it all again next weekend thanks to the dandelion farm my neighbors are apparently growing in place of their lawn, but there is a certain amount of satisfaction that comes from plucking each of those little buggers up from their cozy little spot in my grass.

As I was crouched in the grass with my little digger tool, I started wondering why restaurants/grocers charge a premium for gourmet dandelion greens. Maybe I should start a dandelion farm. Even I could make that grow.

The Miracle Worker

I'll admit it. My shower can get kind of gross. I despise scrubbing the tile walls and I let it get pretty bad before I'll get down and dirty with the cleaning.

Today, however, I discovered a miracle shower cleaner that will keep my rain locker bright, shiny and funk-free without scrubbing (or toxic smells). I sprayed Seventh Generation Bathroom Cleaner (natural citrus scent) on some of the darkest spots on my tile grout (don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about) and without the slightest bit of elbow grease, the gunk was gone!

I sprayed this sweet smelling cleaning product all over the shower and within seconds everything was white and gleaming. Did I mention there was no scrubbing?

Best of all - it's make without chlorine, petroleum based solvents, glycol ethers, phosphates, acids, caustics, dyes or perfumes. no unpleasant fumes, no harmful residues and is safe for the environment (biodegradable).

It's not often you can get excited about cleaning.

Cold Pizza

Friday night at the Angelo's typically means stepping out to the local brewpub - Coopersmith's for a beer and some relatively healthy fare.

Last night I enjoyed a wood-fired pizza (they do this great thing with crushed peppercorns in the crust) but after 3 pieces, I was ready to pack it up. Tyler (the server) brought me an over sized Styrofoam box (plastic #5) to serve as my doggie bag.

A simple piece of tinfoil would have sufficed and it makes me wonder why restaurants still insist on utilizing environmental evils such as these take out boxes. Is it really necessary to encase your half a pizza in a bomb-proof clamshell box? But rather than bemoan the restaurant take-out industry, I will learn to ask for tin foil when it's necessary ... or weigh the cost of leaving those slices behind rather than add to my trash pile with a hard-to-recycle item.

After all this pondering ... I forgot the box on the table, anyway.

Mercury Is On the Rise

Did you ever do that experiment in high school where the teacher would break open a thermometer and let you push around the balls of mercury? Ah, the good old days.

Today, scientists are uncovering a host of health issues related to mercury contamination - including attributing the rise in autistic kids (1 in 150 is now diagnosed) to environmental toxins, such as mercury.

So - I started to do some research to find where I might be getting my mercury from. The biggie for me is fish. Here's a nifty calculator to figure out the amount of mercury you might be getting from your sushi: http://www.mercuryexposure.org/index.php?page_id=36.

General rule of thumb is to eat fish lower on the food chain - salmon, rainbow trout, oysters, striped bass (farmed), pollock, flounder, sole, Alaskan king crab, perch, clams, scallops, shrimp, catfish, haddock and tilapia are all good to eat. These fish typically have loads of healthy Omega-3s and Selenium and piddly mercury levels. Canned tuna is saddled with mercury ... which saddens me because I just got this great wasabi canola mayonnaise that would make for excellent tuna sammies.

I also discovered this list of Sources of Mercury on www.mercuryexposure.org.
Here are some highlights:

Flu vaccines (you can ask for a mercury-free flu shot): http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table.htm
Latex paint
Laxatives
Mascara (a lot of cosmetics were on the list, but no brands ... further research needs to be done on this one)
Tattoo pigments
Cleaning solvents, including: Ajax, Comet, Lysol Direct, Soft Scrub, Dove soap, Ivory and Joy dishwashing liquid, Liquid Murphy's Oil Soap. (I have no doubt at least one of these products is in our cabinet).

It's Not Lucky Charms, but ...

... discovering Organic Honey Bunches of Oats at Target today was a real score. Taste testing revealed a deliciously crisp, lightly sweet cereal - although I'm pretty sure they skimped on the honey nut clusters in the organic version and replaced them with more wheat flakes. Regardless - it made for a tasty before-bed snack.

Post enthusiastically features it's other "sensible solution" food items on the side of the cereal box:
Select Apple Cinnamon Harvest Cereal - Organic
Grape Nuts - Organic
Kraft Macaroni & Cheese - Organic (I wonder if it's still neon orange)
Oscar Mayer Smoked Uncured Beef Franks - Natural (whatever that means) with no Nitrate or Nitrites Added

You Grow Girl

I wouldn't say I have a "black thumb" ... but it's far from being green. My parents have the innate ability to make anything grow. They sprout tiny little rosemary shoots from virtually nothing. My herb garden is like harvesting the dried spice aisle at the grocery store. So, try as I might - growing my own basil and tomatoes in the backyard is a dream I will probably never realize.

So, what's a girl to do if she wants to eat organic and buy locally, but the Farmers Markets are, well, shall we say - less than satisfying? Join a CSA (Community Supporting Agriculture)!

CSA is a relationship between local farmers (producers) and community members (consumers). Consumers pay an annual fee to help cover the costs of the farm. In return, they receive a weekly share of the harvest. This arrangement provides fresh healthy and nutritious food for the consumer while guaranteeing financial support for the grower. Members also share with the farmer the risks and rewards of working with the verities of nature.

I found a CSA right in FC ... about 2 blocks away, as a matter o' fact. For $350, we can get our share of farm fresh fruits, veggies, herbs and more once a week from May - October. And best of all, we can ride our cruiser bikes to pick it up. Reduce fossil fuels, eat seasonally, support local growers. It doesn't get much better than that. Or, does it? ...

By volunteering just 3 hours a week of my time in the garden, I can get a $150 discount on our produce! Happy Heart Farms here I come!

Another Good Reason to Eat Organic

Less chance of getting funky stuff in our food supply.

This whole pet food recall situation is getting bigger by the day. 100 brands of the “cuts and gravy” style food have been recalled by Menu Foods of Canada, including popular labels sold at Wal-Mart, Kroger and other large retailers. I just checked the MenuFoods website for the list of recalled brands ... and Affrey's old food (Iams) is on there! http://www.menufoods.com/recall/product_dog.html

Last Friday the FDA announced finding melamine as a contaminant in wheat gluten from an unnamed source. But what does that mean to the average consumer? We know how to read labels on the back of an Adams Peanut Butter jar - but dog food? That's when I'm extra glad that we feed Affrey organic dog food from Pet Promise.

Pet Promise (like a lot of organic dog foods) uses NO wheat gluten in any of their products - so it's safe for Affrey to munch (in moderation, she IS on a diet afterall). And no, that was not a paid advertisement ... although if you're reading Pet Promise, sending a coupon my way wouldn't hurt!

Sure, organic food has its share of issues. I don't need to remind anyone that the e.coli spinach thing of last year was traced back to Earthbound Farms. But at least you know it's all natural weird stuff ... not rat poison.

Plastic Bags Home On the Range?

On my commute to Boulder, I drive by lots of great scenery.

One of my favorite spots is on the edge of Loveland: across the street from a horrible shopping plaza with a giant King Soopers, various fast food joints, Walgreens, gas stations and a Starbucks (natch), is a small reminder of how things used to be:

a big green field where a small herd of cows graze and generally spend their days loitering about.

It's such a peaceful scene, and because it is juxtaposed with the busy streets of commerce, its impact is even greater on me (for those 5 seconds when I'm driving past anyway).

Yesterday, though, my serene cow pasture was spoiled - literally. I noticed there were some colorful blobs out in the field ... and as I looked closer, I realized these weren't some new tool for feeding cattle - but hundreds of plastic bags. The fence was layered with them. Wal-Mart, Target, King Soopers ... all those seemingly harmless light plastic bags were hung up and blowing about in my peaceful little picture.

I'm not sure what happened - maybe someone didn't have their load covered on the way to the dump or maybe the cows made a run for some T-Bell. The point is, if you look - you'll see these plastic bags all over the place! There's one in a tree behind my house. Just last night I saw my neighbor pulling Safeway bag after bag out of the back of his SUV.

The average American uses about 900 grocery bags per year. Less than 1% are recycled. Now, I'm no saint. We definitely have our share of plastic shopping bags stuffed under the kitchen sink for Marc's lunch sacks and poop pick-up, but I'm making it a personal commitment to rid ourselves of plastic bags by July 1, 2007. You heard it here first.

That means accepting those "she's a crazy hippy" looks when I stroll into Target for tampons with my canvas Wild Oats bag. But that's the price I'm willing to pay to clean out that mess under the sink, and in the cow pasture.

You can pick up a canvas bag at any old natural foods store these days. But if you'd prefer to go logoless, here are some things I found:

EcoBags
LL Bean (classic)
Timbuk2 Cargo Tote
Sherpani Urban Bags