Don't Call Me a Martyr

But I sure do make some sacrifices for my new green life.

You might remember how I gave up my beautiful Saturday for the plumber to come fix our leaky shower. And it wasn't even MY shower that was dripping.

Today, I opted out of a free trip to Chicago for a conference on how to better utilize our online sale flyer. My reasons for RSVP-ing "no" include (in order of importance):

1. I was going to be getting on a massive United jet twice in just two days - making the carbon pollution from taking a plane seem absolutely ridiculous. And I don't think Wild Oats reimburses for carbon off-setting purchases.

2. The conference seemed kind of like a waste of time - what with less than a full day of events.

3. Chicago in August?

4. I'm probably not even going to be employed here in August.

Mr. Rooter to the Rescue!

Did you know:
A pesky faucet leak can waste serious water! Just one drop per second can add up to 165 gallons per month.

I have no doubt the drip-drip-dripping shower in Marc's bathroom was flushing this much water, or more, down the drain each month. So, a couple weeks ago I made the ultimate enviro-sacrifice. While Marc went on a mammoth 6 hour mountain bike ride with a group of other pyschos, I spent my beautiful summer Saturday at home ... waiting for the plumber.

Three visits from Mr. Rooter, a new shower head, a hole in the wall of the linen closet, some sort of new valve on the pressure thing and $500 later, our bathroom is leak free!

Thrill of the Grill


Marc and I are firing up the grill four out of five nights a week now that the umbrella is perched and our summer deck is in full swing. I'm putting away at least a full onion (grilled to sweet perfection) each week and Marc has mastered the art of creating a marinade out of virtually nothing for his organic chicken habit.

But today I read a little post on Lime.com about how grilling can be toxic for the environment. Can it be true? Is my beloved Aussie 4 grill (with the unmatched ability to move from charoal/hickory chips to gas in a single motion) wronging Mother Nature? I did some research to find out.

Here's what I uncovered:

• Backyard grilling with gas is more energy-efficient than an indoor oven, since ovens take time to preheat.


• Natural gas and Propane are hands-down the most eco-friendly (chalk one up for the Aussie's easy lighting propane function)


• Both charcoal and wood burn dirty, producing tiny soot particles that pollute the air and can worsen chronic heart and lung problems (take one off for the Aussie when we throw in a couple hardwood brickettes to smokify the chow)

Looks like we'll be able to grill on guilt free for another day, as long as we save the use of the hardwood smoker chips for extra special events. Like more beer can chicken.

Please note: A beer can was not actually shoved inside this chicken. A Blue Sky All-Natural Jamacian Ginger Ale can, filled with Sam Adams Holiday Lager, was used instead. The can was reused from the recycling bin and the beer has been waiting to serve a higher purpose as it was not consumed at the last TWO Angelo Christmahanukwanzaa parties.

Death of a Tree

Those damn neighbors are back at their environmental evils again!

As if washing the pavement wasn't bad enough, they opted to cut down one of their shade-providing, oxygen-producing, carbon-dioxide-absorbing trees from the front of the house! What a travesty. I noticed the tree was ground down to a 3" stump, leaving behind a lonely looking ring of well-placed landscaping rock.

I can only assume that the tree was removed because it was causing two small brown spots in the lawn. Which wacky Mrs. Manager had a sprinkler going full boar on for over an hour. I don't think I need to mention that half the spray was going down the gutter.

When I came out front to move my own spot watering sprinkler tonight (aptly placed to not sprinkle any unnecessary spots, I might note), they were standing in front of my driveway, examining the "shape" of the beautiful Locust tree in their front yard. Of course they quickly scurried back across the street without making eye contact or responding to my "hi there!" quip.

I can only imagine what that tree will look like tonight. I'm going to send Marc out today to get a picture before they destroy it. Maybe he can even catch the act. Stay tuned ...

More Antics from Crazy Neighbors

Good thing I live in suburbia, otherwise, I might run short of content for the blog.

There is a couple who live across the street that we only see on the rarest of occasions. Once in awhile they trek to the mailbox in the light of day. They park both cars in the garage, so we mostly see the dad (yes, they have a kid) behind the wheel of the super stylie mini-van, presumably on his way to work as manager of Bed, Bath and Beyond (the reason I know this is not because I've actually had a conversation with these people, but because the super-friendly, know-it-all neighbor catty-corner from us seems to have gleaned this information from an unnamed source).

The exception to this routine is Saturday morning. Each week,The Manager ventures out in non-descript yard clothes for his mowing ritual, which culminates with a marathon driveway washing session. For this, he stands on the driveway and gently hoses away all the pesky grass clippings that have blown onto the pavement. After about 20 minutes of this water-wasting fest, he moves on to the sidewalk in front of his house for 10 minutes more (see photo). He seems so relaxed when he's doing this "chore" I'm certain it's his way of unwinding after a long week of folding towels and organizing shelves of "as seen on TV" kitchen gadgets.

Why he can't pick up a broom at BBB with his wicked manager discount and sweep the clippings away, I will not know. But, it appears that my picture taking, although I was stealthily hiding in my garage to get the paparazzi-like shot you see above, has driven him to take on his OCD driving washing on Thursday afternoons. I've seen him on those days I "work from home."

Which Is Worse? Fertilizer or Extra Watering.

As we Colorado folks enter the dry, dismal days of summer in the high desert, we are faced with browning lawns and the tough decision of what to do to salvage the remnants of our Kentucky Bluegrass patches.


Now, the obvious eco option would be to not have a lawn at all. Tear it out, replace it with xeriscaped native grasses and let nature take its course. But, I have not gone that far just yet and thus have to deal with keeping our lawn up with the Davis'. Or at least looking better than the aforementioned dandelion farm next door.


So the question today is: Do I fertilize the lawn with chemicals that can leach potentially toxic substances into the ground water with the belief that said chemicals will refresh the lawn without extra water - or, do I forgo fertilizer and simply water the lawn more often?

The Scott's brand Weed 'n Feed fertilizer bag would have me believe that making my lawn green is "earth friendly" because "green grass is providing more photosynthesis." But, as I carried my bag of Weed 'n Feed around the Home Depot, its acrid smell burned my nose and carried with it an incredible sense of guilt. Nearly driven to tears, knowing this was not the right choice for our yard, I came across a section of green-er lawn alternatives. After reading labels about a product made up of worm poop, I went with Scotts Organic Choice lawn food. Unfortunately this is not a vegetarian product (which strikes me as weird, but explains Affrey's interest in nibbling the pellets) as the protein ingredients are all “non ruminant” and are derived from poultry (primarily) and swine byproducts.

This stuff is made from primarily protein ingredients derived from Hydrolyzed Feather Meal, Meat Meal, Bone Meal (bovine-free), Blood Meal and Sulfate of Potash.

• Nitrogen: derived from feather meal, blood meal, meat meal, bone meal
• Phosphorus: derived frm bone meal
• Potassium: derived from sulfate potash, which is a mined mineral from the Great Salt Lake

While not exactly as green as the worm poop would have been, I feel it was a good compromise. My lawn is getting an extra dose of natural nutrients, but without the chemical weed killers I can do without (my trusty digger is still fully functioning). A bonus is that this product was designed for use in organic farming and has been approved by the FDA.