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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19413126625221724602014-11-26T19:35:35.154-08:00The Green Phone BoothGreen Beanhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-78306274277175914302014-11-26T10:46:00.000-08:002014-11-26T10:47:32.297-08:00Mindful Mopping and Sweet Sweeping Mindful Echo gets swept away.

A little while ago I was complaining to one of my nearest and dearest about my struggles to keep up with the never-ending mounds of fur that accumulate on my floors. The combination of cat and dog fur reveals itself in new piles MOMENTS after I've dusted, swept, mopped, or vacuumed. I turn around and it's there. ALL THE TIME.

Guiltily I'll admit that I often succumb to the ease of disposable cloths, rags, and wipes in many of these cases. It hasn't been for lack of effort - my purchases of reusable devices have proven fruitless either by virtue of inferior product design, poor manufacturing, or ease of use.

So, hearing my complaints, I was gifted with a no-more-excuses kit that will allow me to maintain my hardwood without piling on disposable purchases.

Behold, the All Purpose Wipes and Swiffer Wet Kit:

It couldn't be more simple.

Items Needed:

Plastic container

Several facecloths

6 cups water

4 cups vinegar

Dash of dishwashing soap

1. Fill the container with the water, vinegar, and soap.
2. Place the facecloths in container to soak
3. Use as needed.

With some minimal effort on the front end, having these rags handy eliminates virtually any reason to go the disposable route. The best part is that the cloths actually fit perfectly as Swiffer wipes too. When the cloth is dirty, just toss it into the wash with the rest of your laundry. Replenish the vinegar/soap solution and cloths as needed.

In my opinion, this is one of the best gifts I've ever received. A good friend empowers you to live the life you strive for. For me, it's about living gently upon the earth while NOT being covered in dog fur. But, you know, to each her own.

Happy cleaning!

Mindful Echohttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-69932606127635394352014-11-24T07:00:00.000-08:002014-11-24T07:00:03.984-08:00November's Green Good News

Eco-novice highlights this month's happy eco-news.

Sometimes being green is a downer. You can't buy this, you don't want your kids to eat that, you go ahead and use this but you can't help but think about the toxic whatsit it contains, and don't even get me started on climate change! While I'm a full believer in knowledge, transparency, and facing the cold hard facts, our brains pay more attention to the negative, and in the high stakes world of carcinogenic toxic chemicals and slow-motion planetary suicide the doom and gloom can become downright paralyzing! So here is some green good news for y'all. If you enjoy this post, please leave a comment. I'm thinking of making it a monthly series.

Uncommon tactics (DentonRC.com)

How Texas activists beat the well-financed oil and gas industry to pass a fracking ban. By far my favorite story, and proof that ingenuity and wit can trump money in politics! Let's all take a page from their play book, shall we?

"A behind-the-scenes look at the anti-fracking campaign reveals how a relatively tiny group of combatants relied on creative tactics and political gimmickry to outmaneuver pro-fracking forces that outspent them 10-to-1. Their arsenal included puppet shows, flash mob-style improvisational dances and coffin races...The strategy worked. Voters approved the ban 59 percent to 41."

New York Plants Curbside Gardens to Soak Up Storm-Water Runoff (NYTimes)

Got a citywide problem with storm runoff? Just plant some flowers!

"Any aesthetic benefits from the gardens are effectively seen as a bonus, though officials from Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration noted that plots would be placed in many neighborhoods with a dearth of trees and above-average rates of asthma among young people."

Valley farmers return to open-air turkey production

A return to the past as demand for free-range natural poultry increases. It's wonderful to see consumer choices making a difference in land use and animal welfare. What kind of turkey are you eating this Thanksgiving?

"They're happier birds," said Showalter, who raised poultry in confinement before moving to free range turkeys. "You can tell it in the sounds they make and in their body language."
...
"There is no doubt in my mind that anyone who tries a free range turkey will never go back to a store bought turkey," said Ciarrocchi, who has gotten his Thanksgiving bird in Mount Solon for the past several years. "The flavor is so much better. Anyone who eats one of these turkeys at my house will get one next year."

Got some Green Good News to share?

Add it in the comments below! We'd love to hear it. Or email it to me during the month at betsy (at) eco-novice (dot) com and I'll add it to next month's list.

 photo credit: marcusjroberts via photopin ccBetsy Escandonhttps://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-20774315949276604262014-11-21T00:15:00.000-08:002014-11-21T12:40:48.937-08:00Extending the Harvest with Covered Hoops
Queen Composter hopes for cold season gardening success.

Last year I began experimenting with extending the growing season and harvesting fresh food through autumn. In fact, I was able to harvest backyard veggies for the last time on December 1st! After that we had an unseasonal cold snap and early snow (I live in the moderate pacific northwest where we are increasingly finishing winter with little to no snow). Luckily some of my cold resistant veggies bounced back enough by late winter that I could start harvesting them again in February and March.

But one of my faults as a backyard gardener is that I often forget to harvest the veggies before they bolt (go to seed) in the summer or freeze in the winter. I'm always disappointed that I didn't pick something when I thought of it instead of waiting just that one more day or week. Hardy plants like kale did well with limited frosts and bounced back quickly, but my turnips, carrots, and cabbage were turned to mush in the freezing temps and never rebounded.

Through the summer, after doing more reading about fall and winter gardening, and weighing the pros and cons of cold frames versus covered hoops (an excellent discussion here), I decided to try covered hoops this year. Sometimes plastic covered hoops made with flexible tubing are called low tunnels, and the taller variety are called poly tunnels. I guess mine are a hybrid (not low but not tall enough to walk in).

My wonderful neighbour (really, he's amazing) built my covered hoops once I'd cleaned up the fall garden and mulched everything for warmth and moisture retention. Unfortunately we'd already had a frost, so there has been some damage to the lettuce and Asian greens, which I'd hoped to avoid.

With the sides down for full protection.

With the sides up for moisture in warmer temperatures.

So how well do the covered hoops work to protect my plants?

We've had about a week of below freezing temperatures (which came rather suddenly after unseasonably warm temperatures) and today I went outside to raise the sides to allow some rain in now that the forecast says warmer temps for the next while. I was pleased to see that the kale is rebounding nicely (however, the uncovered kale is in the same condition).

The three varieties of kale can be harvested again (one hidden in photo).

As mentioned, the lettuce is pretty much done in, so time to start growing inside with my growing light for some fresh greens. The Asian greens (bok choy and sui choy) looks to be in rough shape but I'm crossing my fingers that they may rebound as it appears to be mostly the outer layers that are damaged.

The lettuce has turned brown.

The swiss chard looks inedible, but there is some new growth in the inner centre of the plant. The broccoli and cabbage looks good (I'm growing for an early spring harvest so I'm pleased they haven't been damaged yet).

I was most happy when I pulled back the layers of mulch to see big, beautiful purple turnips still happily growing.

The real test of the covered tunnels will be when (or if) we get some snow in January and February. My hope is that the tunnels are strong enough to withstand the weight of the wet, slushy snow we get here and protect the kale so that I can harvest fresh greens through the winter.

I'm also hoping to use the covered hoops as protection for an early spring garden. I usually try to have my seeds started indoors by February or March and perhaps next year I can transplant the seedlings outdoors earlier than usual.

More information about cold weather growing with covers:

Are Mini Hoop Tunnels Worth The Effort?

Cheating Winter

Quick Hoops: Use Low Tunnels to Grow Veggies in the Winter

Have you tried covered hoops or cold frames to extend the harvest? Please share your tips.

Christyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-52233773883046488472014-11-19T09:50:00.000-08:002014-11-19T10:26:09.468-08:00Green(er) Gifts for the Gardeners on Your ListGreen Bean looks toward the holidays with a shovel in hand.

It is that time of year again. While I am all about less gifts, less consumption, more experiences, if you really want to buy me or any other gardener a present this year, here is what people with dirt under their nails appreciate:

1) Sharpened Tools. Every winter, gardeners tuck away their tools - dulled from months worth of snipping and maybe a bit rusted from being left outside in the first rainstorm of the season. Some gardeners are organized enough to have their tools "winterized" - sharpened and cleaned - or do it themselves. For the rest of us, this is an ideal gift! It has no carbon footprint, extends the useful life of our tools and is a service readily available at most locally owned nurseries. You can also bring clippers to almost any knife sharpening service.

2) Seeds or Plants from Your Own Garden. If you have your own garden, what is more thoughtful than carefully saved seeds or propagated plants. Bonus: inexpensive and low impact.

3) Coupon for a Project: Last year, my dad rigged up my bat house in the absolute perfect location (not that the bats have appreciated it yet but someday...). The year before, my husband built me a potato condo. This year, I'm hoping for a raised bed cover for keeping heat in and bugs out. Hint, hint, honey!

My bat house.

4) Coupon for a Work Day: This is a gift even kids can give. What gardener wouldn't welcome a willing pair of hands to spread mulch, turn the compost, pull weeds?

5) New Gloves: Unlike tools which can be refreshed year after year, a well worn pair of garden gloves probably will only last a year or two.

6) A New Fruit Tree: Know your gardener well with this one, but if you have someone who has recently moved, expanded their garden or embarked on the hobby, a new fruit tree might be just the thing. My mother-in-law gave me a lemon tree our first year in our new house. It was the perfect gift as I had been lamenting leave our old lemon tree behind.

7) A Greenhouse: Yes, I said it. They are big and expensive and this might be many gifts rolled into one. My husband gave me a greenhouse a few years ago. It was my birthday present, my Christmas present and our anniversary present and it has changed the way I have gardened every since.

My greenhouse! And one of my many rain barrels.

8) A birdbath: I have recently waxed on and on about the importance of birdbaths for the garden. Homemade or second hand (think estate sales or Craigslist) are fine here. If you buy new, emphasize quality. A well made cement birdbath can last generations. One that I got new, I have had for eighteen years.

The robins enjoy my eighteen year old birdbath - a gift from my parents for my first garden.

9) A birdhouse: Speaking of birds, who doesn't want more in their garden? They provide beauty and keep pests at bay. Avoid painted birdhouses and look for ones that are plain wood. If you have kids or are crafty, a handmade birdhouse or a birdhouse construction kit is another great option. Birdhouses and birdhouse kits are readily available online, at Home Depot and at birding stores.

A woodpecker checking out a birdhouse I picked up at the local thrift store.

10) A rain barrel: Two years ago, I installed my first rain barrel. I am up to five and I cannot believe all the water I was wasting in years past. Rain barrels are wonderful ways to reuse oak wine barrels (Beware, the water will smell like wine. Not necessarily a bad thing!) or food-grade plastic shipping containers. Bonus: in some areas, like my drought-stricken home of California, you can get a rebate for buying a rain barrel.

11) A compost bin: If your gardener does not already have a compost bin set up, I highly recommend one. You can purchase them (sometimes with a rebate from your local garbage company) or you can build one. We currently have one that I hired a handyman to build. I get tons and tons of high quality compost every year from what would otherwise go to the landfill.

12) A Garden Bench or Chair: Your gardener may already have plenty of these but most of us don't. Most of us gardeners are so busy gardening, that we do not take the time to sit down and drink in the beauty and life of our gardens. I have two benches in my main garden and I am still angling for another seat on the other side.

13) Gift certificates to your gardeners' favorite local nursery, seed store or online garden supply store. Peaceful Valley Organic Garden Supply is my favorite for all around garden supplies.

What other gifts can you add to the list? If you garden, what are you hoping for this year?

This post is part of the Homestead Barn Hop, Backyard Farming Connection, Maple Hill Hop, and Green Thumb Thursday.

Green Beanhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-15013344149768983692014-11-17T12:28:00.000-08:002014-11-17T12:28:18.996-08:00Beware the Pod: Why I Opt for Non-Toxic Laundry DetergentLaundry pods may be pretty, but the Climate Crusader discovers their ugly side.

One of the hard parts of green living is finding replacements for the unsustainable, toxic products you know and love. For instance, it took me years - and taking matters into my own hands - to find a "green" deodorant I like. I faced similar struggles with dish soap, all-purpose cleaner and dishwasher detergent. It was only recently that I found a laundry detergent that both my husband and I agree works well, that doesn't cost an arm and a leg, and that I feel good about using.

Photo credit: Mike Mozart on Flickr

About a year ago someone asked me why I don't just use Tide. The argued that it's cheap and it works. And with those snazzy Pods it's as easy to use as can be. I mumbled something about toxins. But this past week I heard a news story that underscored why I spent all that time and energy looking for a non-toxic laundry detergent.

It seems that laundry pods like Tide Pods pose a serious risk to young children. A study published in the journal Pediatrics found that 17,230 children under the age of six had unhealthy exposure to laundry pods in 2012-2013 - or about one every hour. About half of those children got sick, some seriously so. In fact, a seven-month-old baby died after eating a laundry pod in 2013. It's no joke.

Of course, laundry detergents in general need to be kept out of reach of children. So what makes laundry pods so unsafe? In the first place, their bright colours and soft textures are very attractive. They even resemble candy. I know my own kids have seen them in the store and suggested I buy them because they thought they looked pretty. However, it's more than that. If a child bites a pod they can receive a concentrated squirt of detergent in their eyes, mouths or throats, which results in more serious injuries than when kids get their hands on traditional laundry powders and liquids.

Yikes.

My own children are six and nine years old, so they're old enough now that I can generally trust them not to eat the laundry detergent. Still, I have to admit that the idea of keeping products around my house that can injure or kill young children makes me uncomfortable. And the idea of washing my clothes with those detergents and then washing them down the drain where they can end up in streams, rivers, lakes and oceans doesn't feel good, either. Certainly these cleaners can't be good for fish and frogs, even if they are diluted.

As I mentioned up front, the journey towards greener cleaning isn't an easy one. I believe it's worthwhile, though. If you need some help getting started, check out the Environmental Working Group's Guide to Healthy Cleaning. And keep those laundry pods out of reach of children!
Amber Strocelhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-75408568217746463922014-11-14T12:48:00.002-08:002014-11-14T12:48:52.889-08:00How to hang clothes to dry over the Canadian winter monthsEcoYogini officially accepts the end of Autumn... but not the end of hanging clothes on the line...

As I sit here typing there is a gorgeous white fluffy blizzard happening outside my window. It's technically the second snow of the season, but the first one was so tiny and brief, a few flakes really, it doesn't even count.

Autumn and Winter are the reasons why I am so glad I live in a place that has four seasons... and a coastal city that actually gets more than rain rain rain (although... we do get out fair share of foggy rain, snain, and slush...) and yellow leaves in the fall (if you haven't experienced Nova Scotia, the gorgeous autumn colours in reds, oranges and yellows are the BEST way).

That said, despite how excited I am for this beautiful softly falling snowflake weather, today was my day off... and we had saved a bunch of laundry in case it might be sunny out. It was our laundry MO for the entire summer and fall- I hoarded our laundry like a crazy lady for weekend sunny days where we could solar dry the crap outta our clothes.

"Hanging clothes on the line" sounds so boring- when really it's SOLAR DRYING. Sigh, very hipster of me, I know.

In any case, today I had to accept that the dryer was inevitable. But I am determined to hang clothes on the line as much as possible throughout our snowy, cold, Canadian winter. Is it possible? My mom says it is... and she knows everything so it must be true. (hah, no really, it's a mom thing right?).

I already have a few tips from recent cold weather solar drying experience but before we get into that maybe you don't really understand the appeal of it in the first place...

Reasons to continue hanging clothes on the line throughout winter:
- Decreasing energy usage for drying: ok this one was obvious. As the dude at Home Depot told us when we bought our energy efficient washer and dryer: "It's not the dryer that makes these machines efficient, it's all about how little energy the washer uses and how well it rinses the clothes out so it takes LESS time to dry in the dryer". In other words- no matter how "efficient" your dryer is, it isn't.

- The clothes smell better: For years we've been hang drying on dry racks our shirts and work clothes. Unfortunately, hanging up two loads of work clothes next to each other in a room with no air circulation has resulted in some icky, mouldy smelling clothes when they get wet. Since we don't have the money to buy a whole new wardrobe, we still wear them. Nothing was working to get that smell out- hot water, fancy detergent, baking soda, vinegar. You know what did work? SOLAR DRYING. No really, after a few afternoons of hanging out in the sun our clothes no longer smell gross. Not even when we hang them inside. It's magical. I am NOT giving that up.

Last weekend we had a gorgeous, albeit a bit cold, sunny day. I managed to hang clothes on the line with (relative) success! So- here are a few tips given to me by my mom and that I figured out on my own...

1. Check the weather... and not the crappy app on your phone but the government weather forecast. In fall and winter months the weather can change... and there's a lot more precipitation than in summer months. It's important that even though it might be cold, that there be sun (and no snow, rain, fog or snain) for the day. When it gets below freezing you don't want clothes that are frozen solid... so a bit of wind (not too much!) will be handy. (Trust me, maritimers are experts when it comes to checking the weather (particularly fishermen daughters), the phone and "weather network" apps suck. The government weather forecasts are where it's at.)

2. Winter drying means considering sunrise and sunset. Currently in Nova Scotia the sun rises around 7am and sets by 5pm (4:47pm today to be exact). The sunsets earlier and earlier right up until the winter solstice. The sunset time is obviously important since it tends to get dewy and misty closer to sunset (or foggy) which is bad, BUT you also need to consider the BEST hours for optimum sun exposure time. For myself, I was averaging on getting the clothes on the line around 10:30-11am (weekends) and even got away with 1pm. Not in the winter. (Quick science blip: in the winter the earth tilts on it's axis away from the sun, meaning it has a lower trajectory across the sky).
- Hang your clothes during the prime, sun zenith to maximize drying power.

3. Make sure you choose the best spin cycle. Delicate, low spin cycles might not be great for below freezing drying. Think about it... frozen solid shirts...

4. Don't leave your clothes out close to sunset: as previously stated it can get foggy and misty closer to sunset hours. This applied in the summer too, (which I noticed a few times I waited too long to bring them in), but the difference is the earlier sunset time. On the weekends we do stuff in the afternoon. I'm not staying home to babysit my clothes. This means that we just need to either be a) home in time to bring the clothes in or b) be aware that staying later will mean sacrificing dry clothes.

5. Once you bring the clothes in, leave them in the basket for a bit to warm up before making any decisions. The reality is that they will likely still need to go in the dryer, it will just be for a lot less than if you hadn't hung them outside to dry. That said- cold clothes can feel wetter than they actually are. Let them warm up a bit before deciding just how damp they still are.

And there you have it- being all cool and hanging your clothes on the line over the freezing winter months! I'm also accepting that I won't get in as many days as I will over the spring, summer and early fall, but some days will hopefully help with energy and smell issues. (hah).

If you have other tips for winter solar clothes drying- please leave them! (I'll need them!)Eco Yoginihttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-31588868457428030722014-11-12T05:18:00.000-08:002014-11-12T05:31:04.977-08:00Mindful ConsumerismMindful Echo is consuming mindfully.

When I first moved into my flat a couple of years ago, I was thrilled to have made a deal with the previous owner to buy the large German schrank that resided in the dining room.

"Fabulous!" I thought. "Now I'll have some great storage for all my stuff!"

As I've mentioned in previous posts, my 800 sq ft flat accommodates two adults, one dog, and two cats. It's big enough, but we definitely have to make wise decisions about the space and make use of vertical storage and other space-saving tricks.

So, for the first year, I took advantage of the big ugly schrank. I filled it up. It held wine glasses, serving dishes, kitchen appliances, tablecloths, books, boxes of old photos, papers, office supplies, old flyers, coupons, receipts, some cords, odds and ends, and on and on and on.

By year two, I thought that maybe I could hide the fact that it didn't suit my style whatsoever by covering it in something that does: books. So, the shelves were adorned with beautiful old hardcover copies of The Swiss Family Robinson and Anne of Green Gables.

Still, the hulking monstrosity didn't fit. Next I tried removing the front leaded glass door. I painted the centre compartment white. Better, but not great.

"But it's so much storage! I have to make it work." I wrestled with my gut. I mean, yeah, it was taking up a a third of the small dining room. And, yeah, it blocked an entire wall-long heater. But the STORAGE. I needed it for all my STUFF.

Finally, it struck me. My lightbulb moment. The schrank wasn't providing me with storage potential; what it was doing was giving me permission to consume.

As long as I had the hideous unit, I had space to store stuff: important stuff, unimportant stuff, all the stuff. I could buy whatever my heart desired, whether I needed it or not, because I would always have a place to put it.

A couple of weeks ago, in one of my bi-annual purges, I finally cut the cord. I listed the schrank on kijiji and found a buyer willing to pack 'er up and haul 'er away.

I bought a reasonably-sized hutch that covers a third of the wall space. I donated all the unwanted dishes and books and cords. What was left actually fits nicely into the new hutch.

I cut my dining room stuff by a third and, truthfully, there's still room for more stuff if I need it.

By limiting myself, I'm forced to be intentional with my consumerism. I'm not going to buy cute seasonal dishes just because they're on sale. I'm not going to get another teapot for "just in case." These items aren't necessary for my comfort. I already have much more than I need.

At the same time, it's not going to be about denying pleasures. I still love antiquing and thrifting and finding good deals. Who doesn't? The difference now is about being intentional. I have to ask myself, "Do I need it?" and "Do I love it?"

My other strategy is "one-out/one-in." If I find the most perfect pink depression glass serving bowl that I've ever seen and it's a bargain that I just can't resist, well, then I say farewell to one of the three bowls that I already own that fit that description.

I have to say, it's working so far.

What ways are you mindful with your consumerism and consumption?

Mindful Echohttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-77446098760315559862014-11-10T09:50:00.001-08:002014-11-12T11:05:42.473-08:004 Green Solutions for All Those Autumn Leaves

In which the Parsimonious Princess deals with the not-so-fun part of her favorite season. (Who am I kidding? I kind of even like raking leaves. Hooray for autumn!)

I love every season. Truly, I do. But there is just something about fall that makes my soul happy. The crisp air, the gorgeous colors, the spicy smells of cinnamon and clove, the harvest, canning, Halloween, pumpkin everything. Seriously, I could go on and on.

One drawback to autumn for many people is raking and cleaning up all those fallen leaves. Don't get me wrong, having leaves scattered all over the lawn is fun and the love kids playing in them, but eventually you have to face reality and clean them all up. Often, people will rake, bag up all their leaves, and toss them in the garbage.

I don't know if it's the gardening geek or the eco-friendly part of me that balks the most at the idea of throwing leaves into the trash. Fallen leaves totally have a second life in your yard and garden!

Autumn is still in full swing here (though there is snow in this week's forecast) and we still have plenty of leaves to rake up and still more that have yet to fall. Here are four ways I put all those fallen leaves to work in my yard:

1. Compost, compost, compost.
Every fall, my compost bin in the backyard is full of brown leaves. Like, overflowing. But by spring, sure enough, the leaves have broken down a lot under the weight of winter snow. Leaves make for great compost because they're full of trace minerals that the trees have drawn up from the deep soil.

Do you have more leaves than you can fit in your compost bin? Save them for your compost bin later. Seriously, stash a couple bags away for the spring. Without getting into too much composting detail, basically the goal with a good compost is to have a balance between green and brown material so it'll break down. In the fall, it's pretty hard to get that green-brown balance; you're just going to have an excess of brown in autumn. However, if you save some of your leaves, all that brown material will be great for spring and summer time when your compost bin is full of green material from weeding and deadheading, especially since brown material is a little hard to come by in spring and summer.

2. Make leaf mold.

I learned about making leaf mold earlier this year when I read The Edible Garden by Alys Fowler (a fantastic book -- highly recommend it) and I've been so excited to try it ever since. Leaf mold is a really great soil amendment; it's even been called "nature's substitute for peat". The great thing is that leaf mold is super-easy to make: just bag up your leaves in a black garbage bag, poke some holes in the bag, and leave it alone for a year. The moisture that will get into the bag via the holes will get the leaves to rot. I've got my leaves bagged up and next to my garbage can. You can read an article from Alys Fowler for more information about leaf mold here.

3. Mulch with them.

In the fall, I cover my garden bed with mulch with straw, cover crops, and leaves to protect the soil from the harsh winter elements. Leaves are a great mulch for frugal gardening -- I have to buy seeds for cover crops and I have to buy bales of straw, but autumn leaves are free. As you can see in the picture above, I've got some green cover crop (annual rye) in my garden bed, but most of the mulch I'm using is leaves. Leaves work really well to insulate and protect my garden beds, plus they break down and help my garden later on.

4. Leave them where they fall.

This is the easiest solution of all -- no raking, no clean-up! Granted, this doesn't work for the leaves covering your lawn, but it's definitely one you can use for other areas of your yard. The picture above shows what it looks like under the pussywillow tree in a corner of my yard. I've never rake under that tree. I just let the small leaves break down and work their way into the soil. They also mulch some of the perennials that grow around it. I do the same with my lilac bush in one of my flowerbeds and with the quaking aspen in another corner of my yard.

So, yeah, having trees in your yard can mean a mess in the fall, but it's a mess that keeps on giving. Save those leaves from the trash and, instead, put them to work!Heatherhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-55604153210329723662014-11-07T15:12:00.000-08:002014-11-07T15:12:17.543-08:00Lush Charity Pot: Ethical issues with supporting Shock Value OrganizationsEcoYogini considers the value of donating through consumerism...

Today I bought a Lush Charity Pot. It won't be my first. I will admit that I am a periodic Lush consumer and have a pretty decent love/hate relationship with Lush. Basically- I love that they are transparent in their ingredients, I love some of their products and I hate that they don't have 100% clean products and some of their Charity campaigns make me uncomfortable.

Alright, so beyond my general ambivalence towards Lush itself, I'm suffering from some hardcore dissonant thinking with their Charity Pot concept.

First things first- I have some firm misgivings about donating to charities via consumerism. I'm a pretty staunch believer of "if you want to donate to a Charity, just do it. Don't purchase more junk and have a non confirmed portion of the proceeds go to said Charity." The Breast Cancer campaigns of pink washing each year completely solidifies this stance as well as charity giving recommendations I've read and heard over the past few years.

How do I really know that the money is going towards what I want? For Lush's Charity Pot, in any case, they have a pretty clear and simple giving paradigm that's used and a quick internet search reveals some reputable companies on the receiving end that provide some clear numbers of how much the Charity Pot raised for their campaign.

So that's good.

I also really like how generally Charity Pot raises money towards local community initiatives chosen by store staff. This is fabulous.

Some of the funds make me uncomfortable. I am definitely weary of PETA and other organizations that use shock-value and (and often misogynistic) protest methods/campaigns. I am anti-animal cruelty, but I'm not anti-animal hunting. Since that statement right there could be a whole other blog post, let's just leave it there and say I really really really don't like animal activists using women's bodies protrayed in a sexualized (and often violent) manner to "sell" their agenda.

Today's Charity Pot is to raise funds to stop the fur-trade, and for myself in Nova Scotia, the mink/fox farming is of particular interest. The girl at the store was delighted to share "Did you know..." facts about mink/fox farms... until I informed her that I grew up in rural Nova Scotia, in the middle of the mink/fox farming "belt" and was all too aware of their environmental impact. Afterwards she proudly informed other staff of my "legit" status... and was in awe that I saw first hand the impact of river run offs, lake pollution, cages and smells and sounds from the road.

I felt it was important to share that most rural Nova Scotians (who aren't mink/fox farmers) are quite against the practice. Now, maybe not necessarily from a "animal cruelty" perspective- most rural Nova Scotians have a more realistic and respectful relationship with animal husbandry and although would acknowledge it's cruel, may not necessary be moved to act for that reason alone... (note "most"). No, it's more the very real and lived impact on their local environment that is of increasing concern. We're not actually rednecks who hate the environment ya know.

So I bought a pot. And, maybe should have waited. I looked up what a previous Sea Shepard/Lush anti-seal hunt campaign supported and saw photos like th
ese: (Lush employees)

(from SeaShepherd)

Ugh, violent mockups of women scantily clad. Yeah, that really has all to do with the seal hunt.... disgusting and extremely disappointing display of using women's bodies (violently) to "sell" something.

The Charity Pot currently supports "The Association for Protection of Fur-Bearing Animals"- which their website doesn't have any shock-value, misogynistic displays/campaigns but reads like it could.

I just don't feel so great anymore about my purchase or confident that by buying a Charity Pot I made the best investment with my money to help stop mink/fox farming in NS in a mature and profound way. The Ecology Action Centre might have been my better bet....Eco Yoginihttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-30899130253806002562014-11-05T00:01:00.000-08:002014-11-06T13:55:11.402-08:00Is the Art of Repair ObsoleteFrom the bean of Green Bean.

Image source.

"You are in luck," the voice said on the other end of the connection. "They don't make the part any more so we will just give you a new washer."

I guess it is lucky. A new washer is better than one that does not work but what happened to repairing products? To replacement parts? To high quality items that would last and last and last? At 4 years old, our washer is not exactly ancient yet, apparently, its manufacturer has left it in the dust - or more appropriately the landfill.

It is not just appliances and its not just businesses. Our society as a whole views most things as disposable or transitory. When my iPhone 4's screen cracked, I got it fixed. Everyone and their mother asked why the heck I didn't just get the iPhone 6. I mean, iPhone 4s are so totally two years ago.

Visit any thrift store and you will see that our collective lack of interest in repair touches on anything that is broken, torn or stained. Just last month, I picked up an Athleta hoodie that was like new - except the zipper sticks some time. I also scored a white collared shirt with a cracked button.

I'm not one to judge, though. I've got a pile of clothes that needs to be patched and another of Nike socks (everyone is wearing them, please mom!) that need to be darned. I might eventually get to them ...

Just as I am ready to throw my hands up, I noticed a gaping hole in my Patagonia parka. I vaguely remembered hearing something about Patagonia repairing their products and gambol about the internet. I find the company repair page, send in my jacket and wait. Ten days later, a package arrives from Patagonia Repair Department. My sassy black jacket is inside, patched up, nearly undetectably, for free! Now that is the art of repair!

How regularly do you repair items? Have you ever tried one of those repair clinics that are popular in Europe and showing up more in big cities? Are companies like Patagonia the wave of the future or a denizen of the past?

Green Beanhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-80590702788043230412014-11-03T00:00:00.000-08:002014-11-03T00:00:15.927-08:00The Green Police Have Left the Building The Climate Crusader is thinking about public displays of environmentalism.

"Did you just put that apple core in your reusable bag?"

I was sitting in the staff room of the school where I'm volunteering and eating my lunch. The school has recycling for bottles, cans and paper, but no compost and no recycling for other materials (that I have seen). And so, I have been bringing my compostables and recyclables home with me. It's not a lot of effort, and I feel better knowing that my green waste isn't ending up in the landfill where it will create greenhouse gases.

On this day, though, someone else noticed what I was doing. I decided that it wasn't a big deal and said that yes, I was bringing my apple core home to compost. The questioner looked surprised and told me that I was very green. I brushed it off, saying that my house has green waste collection so it really isn't all that hard. So why did I feel the need to downplay my actions?

One of the things about making visible green choices is that sometimes, other people notice. And when they notice, they have their own reactions and feelings. This is totally fair. Sometimes they respond positively, and talk about the steps they're taking towards sustainability. Sometimes they respond curiously, asking how or why I'm doing what I do. And sometimes they respond defensively, giving me reasons for why they can't do it themselves.

In real life, I'm a fairly low-key person. I don't particularly like being noticed. And the handful of times that I've been noticed for doing something green and faced a negative reaction have been pretty uncomfortable. For example, I once blogged about my commitment to drinking tap water (rather than bottled water) whenever possible. A couple of weeks later when I was at someone's house and they offered me a range of beverage options including bottled water I replied, "Plain tap water would be great." This person had read my blog post and said, "Oh, you must think I'm terrible, drinking bottled water."

Awkward.

I've been on the other side of this equation, too, meeting people who I think of as super-green in person for the first time. I know that when I'm in their presence I suddenly start thinking about that bag of non-organic chips wrapped in plastic that I just finished, or the shirt I'm wearing that I bought on sale at Target that was presumably manufactured in deplorable conditions overseas. I worry that the person I'm meeting will think less of me because I'm not as green as they are. It's natural, as people, to want others to like us. We don't want to be found lacking. I get it. However, I don't think that worrying about how other people may view our environmentalism, or lack thereof, is all that helpful.

I can't speak for every single environmentalist, but speaking purely for myself I can say that when I do something like opt for tap water over bottled water or bring my apple cores home to compost I'm not looking down at people who do things differently. I am not the green police, and I don't want to be. In fact, I'm not sure I would qualify. I'm not perfect - far from it. I'm just doing the best I can, in a way that works for me. If you don't want to carry around your old apple cores, I'm not judging you. And I hope you won't judge me for my shortcomings, either.

We don't need to police each other's green living. And we don't need to be afraid to let our green sides show, either.Amber Strocelhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-12117127599016068252014-10-30T03:59:00.001-07:002014-10-30T03:59:20.256-07:00Gluten-free, Nut-free, Homemade-free? Options for Halloween Parties at School

The e-mail request on the surface seemed simple enough. The room mother still needed treats for the goodie bag for the class Halloween party.

And then I got to the end of the message.

Also, please make sure none of the treats include peanuts (SEVERE peanut allergy) and 2 kids are gluten free!

Wow. That moment gave me pause. Because while I've learned to adjust to my child's friends' food allergies in real life (play dates, parties, etc.), I had no idea what to do in a classroom setting. And it was even made worse by a school rule that said no homemade treats.

At one of our local stores, I scoured product after product for ideas that might satisfy both requirements. I learned quickly that there is no labeling standard for nut-free or gluten-free products. I even asked a store employee, who asked two other employees for ideas. They just looked at me sadly.

If you're in the position of searching for last-minute party bag treats as I was, here are some ideas to get you started:

Gluten-free candies: A list of many gluten-free and gluten-friendly candies. So apparently not all candy is off the list.

Non-food items: Personally, I'm opposed to spider rings, stickers, plastic toys and any other item that can clutter up my home. But think about pencils, glow sticks for trick or treating, Play Dough or other ideas.

Carmel apples

Mandarin orange fruit cups decorated with a jack-o-lantern face on the top.

Rice Krispy Treats

Popcorn balls

Clementines decorated as a jack-o-lantern

Grape "Eyeballs"

Have other ideas for gluten-free, nut-free celebrations? Please share them below!

Robbiehttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-21412760503367620612014-10-29T04:57:00.000-07:002014-10-29T04:57:31.773-07:00Here's a Scary Story About BatsMindful Echo has the scariest story of all: bye bye brown bats.

Happy Halloween, Boothers!

Everyone have a good costume ready? Something scary? Maybe a vampire? Or a bat?

For a long time we've saddled bats - the sweetest nocturnal critters ever - with a decidedly undeserved reputation as ghoulish, creepy, and evil. I suppose we can blame Dracula, or the fact that they sometimes live in cold, dark caves, or maybe we can say it's because they're creatures of the night.

Regardless of their stigma from days past, I think we all know that, in reality, bats perform a formidable service for our ecosystem. Primarily insectivores, bats feast on my least-favourite pests like moths and wasps (the real villains, if you ask me). Truly, bats are the best!

Here's Where it Gets Spooky
The scary truth is that we're remarkably close to losing another species of these dark-winged devils altogether.

In New Brunswick, Canada, a once robust population of brown bats has been decimated by a fungus known as white-nose syndrome, which grows over their faces while they hibernate in the winter. Headlines have declared that we've lost over 99 percent, dropping the numbers from 7,000 to only 22. (source)

7,000 to 22. 7,000 to 22.
If those numbers don't give you nightmares, I don't know what will.

Scarier still is the fact that the fungus appears to be moving westward with predictions that it will inevitably appear in the Prairies before a solution is found. (source)

It's both sad and terrifying to watch our list of endangered animals grow and grow. I get chills down my spine whenever those animals are later switched to the extinct list. It's so disheartening.

Bat populations are being affected across North America. In Canada, the Canadian Wildlife Fund is currently promoting efforts to help bats but please look into your local, regional conservation efforts. Whether you can adopt a bat or build them a house, just remember that these furry fellas aren't the evil creatures they're made out to be - they're darlings, not demons - and they need our help.

Mindful Echohttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-42259505860844869002014-10-24T15:04:00.000-07:002014-10-24T15:04:03.856-07:00An Honest PostToday is my day to post...

But after the events of this week in Ottawa, I'm really at a loss as to what to say.

I'm not even ready to really share my thoughts on what it means to have a Terrorist attack our Canadian parliament, or against our national military forces, by individuals who were BORN and raised Canadians. Or how I feel about the loss of a personable and approachable (relatively) political space.

So. This is what I'm sharing with you, boothers. An honest tidbit: I really don't feel very hopeful at all; I actually feel pretty darn conflicted.

I am not a fan of warfare. I'm pretty much a leftist, tree hugging pacifist that feels we should be investing more in our education, health systems and less in military fighter jets and air strikes. I don't believe in paranoia. I feel extremely uncomfortable with the fact that in Quebec they shot and killed the man who ran over those two soldiers with his car when all he was carrying on his person was a knife.

This week has shaken that resolve (not squashed it) and for the first time in this long battle against climate change, sexism and right wing political leanings I feel tendrils of fear that perhaps we won't get a happy future. I have a better (not even close to complete) understanding of my American neighbour's reactions and subsequent cultural shift in 2001.

Yes, this is dramatic. But it's my birthday and... yep... I'll dramatize if I want to.

How do you carry hope?Eco Yoginihttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-89814058981401709642014-10-20T19:18:00.005-07:002014-10-20T19:18:55.856-07:00Overcoming Green Living FatigueThe Climate Crusader is battling green living fatigue.

I have a confession to make: sometimes I feel tired of being an environmentalist. Sure, I carry around reusable bags and reusable water bottles and reusable cloth napkins. I do my best to pack a litterless lunch now that I'm volunteering in a local school three days a week, and I bring my compost and recycling home with me so that I know it doesn't end up in the landfill. I walk my kids to school and buy organic.

I try to do my part. I really do.

Sometimes, though, I feel discouraged. It seems like in spite of the efforts that ordinary people like me make, big institutions like governments and corporations aren't pulling their weight. I read about climate change and toxic chemicals in our environment and species extinction and I feel powerless to do anything. Some garden pest has eaten the little lettuce sprouts I so carefully planted and tended, and there's nothing I can do about it. And on top of that I crave a Diet Coke and a bag of completely non-organic chips. Or maybe a meal from a fast food restaurant.

So, what's an environmentalist to do when it all feels pointless and overwhelming? Here are four things that have helped me.

1. Look for Good News Stories
There's plenty of bad news, we all know that. Amidst the doom and gloom, it's easy to overlook the good news, but it's there. When you're feeling discouraged, seek out some good news. If searching online is too overwhelming, ask your friends or family. Put the call out on Facebook. Or look here, I've gathered a few to get you started.

Blue Whales of California Back to Historic Levels

The Ozone Layer is Recovering

Orangutans Gain from Eco-Friendly Shifts in Palm Oil

Reduce Global Warming for Fun and Profit

2. Let Go of Something
If you feel like you're carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders, it's easy to become overwhelmed. No one person can save the world on their own. If you can relate, let go of something that isn't feeding you. It's okay to say 'no' sometimes - and in fact, letting go of obligations that are sapping your energy can free you up to do more in areas that are meaningful to you. Even a day out doing something you enjoy can make a world of difference to your outlook. Speaking of which ...

3. Get Out in Nature
Spending time in nature can be very healing. Whether you're feeling stressed out about the state of the planet or work or pretty much anything, the great outdoors can provide a great antidote. Getting outside in all seasons is also a good way to re-connect with the environment that sustains us. It may also help you to renew your commitment to sustainability.

4. Make Connections
It can be easy to feel alone as an environmentalist in your day-to-day life. There are countless other people out there who are also doing their part to protect our planet, though. Making connections with them can help you beat your enviro-malaise. Plus, isn't it great to make friends? This is one of the things I love about the Green Phone Booth, in fact - the way that different bloggers come together to share. There are online groups, blogs and organizations you can connect with, as well as local groups. You can choose whatever works best for you.

How about you - how do you overcome green living fatigue?Amber Strocelhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-23472598853863125692014-10-17T10:13:00.000-07:002014-10-17T11:04:57.727-07:00Overcoming Nature AnxietyQueen Composter needs your help.

I am passionate about gardening as a way to connect us to our food, and I enjoy spending time in the outdoors, connecting with the plants and animals that live amongst us. I believe that this may be the only way to have people truly care about protecting the environment and see that our well being is tied to a healthy planet. I also believe in the power of modelling and education to shape children's perceptions and behaviours. The best way to desensitize children to the "ick" factor and sensitize them to the diversity of life around us is to spend time in nature.

My daughter mistakes any flying insect for the stinging
variety, even harmless flies.

However, I am also aware that children often come out with their own fully developed personalities and temperaments, and this has been one of the most challenging aspects of parenting for me.

This past summer I struggled with a daughter who does not want to spend time outdoors; "I've had enough fresh air, can I go inside now please?" She has always preferred indoor pursuits, but in the past has been willing to engage in outdoor play with some encouragement (usually because her sisters are outdoors and she wants to be with them). She is a sensitive person who can have strong sensory reactions to situations. This past summer a series of events occurred that affected her deeply (multiple insect bites and stings), and she refuses to go outdoors. When she does, she constantly scans the air and ground for insects, and imagines insects crawling on her when she feels an itch or breeze on her skin. While her anxieties are understandable, it presents many challenges.

The dreaded wasps. This variety is especially aggressive.

I have continued to encourage her to spend time outside in our backyard and at parks. Together we read information in books and on the internet about insects, animals and plants that we see in our backyard garden. We have talked about the important role that each insect plays in the ecosystem. I make sure to limit her exposure to situations where I know she will be stressed (and made the decision to cancel a camping trip because of her extreme anxieties). We have also limited eating food outdoors because of the insects that food attracts.

Many insects are hibernating or dwindling
for the colder seasons, but the sight of this
sends my daughter into fits.

When we find insects in the house I make sure to remove them in humane ways. For example, despite pleading on her part to squish any spider we find, I use a glass to capture them and put them outside. As I do this I take the opportunity to make observations about the spider with my girls (all while squelching my inner desire to scream and run away). Already I have seen spin-off benefits from this; my oldest daughter has taken on the role of spider whisperer when I am not available, and I am so proud of her. Incidentally, overcoming my fear of spiders began when I had children.

You know a spider is big when you can see the stripes
on its back. We find these inside all the time.

My fearful daughter has made some growth and occasionally will join me in my garden for very brief periods of time, but I fear that if I don't help her, next spring and summer will continue to be torturous for both her and me.

So I turn to you now for some suggestions to help me help my daughter overcome her fears and begin to enjoy time outdoors again.

Have you overcome a fear of creepy crawlies? What has helped you? Do you have any suggestions to help me?Christyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-11713591178344458012014-10-14T08:30:00.000-07:002014-10-14T08:30:56.787-07:00Service Projects for Kids?From the bean of Green Bean.

It was a cool and foggy September morning. I knew which day it was. Saturday, the 20th. I had had this date marked on my calendar for months, even a year.

Still, I ignored the calendar entry. There were so many other things I could do on a quiet Saturday morning. The kids could be sucked in by screen time, forbidden during the week. I could work in the garden, plant seeds for fall, lay down sheet mulch for spring. Hit the Saturday farmers market instead of the Sunday one. The possibilities were endless. And yet, I had wanted to do this since last year. Or at least thought we should try it.

Pick up other people's trash.

I loaded the kids and hubs into the car and headed West, to the beach, to join in our first ever California Coastal Cleanup Day. When we arrived, the parking lot was an empty. A single gentleman surrounded by empty trash bags and paperwork waved us over, set us up and we were off.

Creeping over invasive ice plant and down along the kelp washed up on the shore, we scoured and picked, like a treasure hunt. One son proudly found a Starbucks cup and straw. The other, not to be outdone, located a full beer bottle amongst the seaweed. "I saved a sea turtle, " shouted one, waving a deflated balloon. "I saved some fish," bragged the other, holding a straw overhead.

By the time we had reached the end of the beach - our bags full of Styrofoam and plastic, we turned to head back. Apparently, we were just the first of many volunteering that morning. The shore crawled with a boy scout troop, twenty-somethings on a "girls day out", a 4H group, and a number of others aiming to make the world - or at least our little sandy corner of it - a better place.

We left invigorated, excited about the prospect of having made a difference and without having found a single plastic bag - thanks to our county-wide bag ban that went into effect over a year ago. My family cannot wait until next year to pick up more trash. (In fact, we may not wait).

But in the meantime, what our service projects would you recommend for children? How, as the holidays of overindulgence come roaring around the corner, can we keep that sense of giving alive? What service projects have you done and how have you liked them?

Green Beanhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-56523610997368814092014-10-06T12:35:00.004-07:002014-10-06T12:35:58.560-07:00Do Carbon Taxes Work?The Climate Crusader looks into the results of a carbon tax in British Columbia, Canada.

I live in British Columbia, the westernmost province of Canada. Much like the US, Canada's west coast is associated with left-leaning liberal hippies. Here in Vancouver you'll find an abundance of vegan bakeries, food trucks, craft breweries and community gardens. This city was the birthplace of Greenpeace, and it is the home of David Suzuki. We're far from perfect, but it's fair to say that the number of environmentalists per capita who live here is at least a little higher than average.

Here in British Columbia we've had a carbon tax since July 1, 2008. The rates started out low but increased to their maximum in 2012. When it was introduced prices for gas, heating and so on rose. There was also a lot of public debate. Some people argued that it would create an unreasonable burden on businesses, who would pass those costs along to families. Some people argued that it wasn't significant enough to change behaviour. Others argued for different systems.

Six years on, though, you don't hear too much about it. We've gotten used to paying it - and I'm happy to report that I haven't noticed that my cost of living has skyrocketed as a result. But did it work? Has it made a difference? I recently went online to find out. Here are some highlights from a 2012 progress report:

Sales of gasoline, diesel, natural gas, coal and oil decreased by more than the Canadian average after introducing the tax.

This decrease happened at the same time as the population grew by five per cent, which was also above the Canadian average.

The province's GDP growth was above the Canadian average, including during the global recession. And the Canadian economy performed better during the recession than the US economy.

There was a 48% increase in sales in the clean technology sector.

The tax was designed to be revenue neutral, so increases in the carbon tax were offset by decreases in other taxes.

Something else that is worth noting is that British Columbia has a large resource sector, including coal. We mine billions of dollars in coal every year in this province. This is not a place where we all grow organic kale for a living.

Given all of that, it was with interest that I read an article in The New York Times about President Obama's failed bid for a carbon tax in the US. Senator Mitch McConnell is quoted as saying:

President Obama's war on coal won't have any meaningful impact on global carbon emissions. What it will do is ship American jobs overseas, raise the cost of living substantially for middle and working-class families and throw thousands more Kentuckians out of work.
Of course, the experience in one place is not necessarily going to be repeated in other places. However, it is a good starting point. Given what's happened here where I live, I can say that the carbon tax fear-mongering hasn't played out. The cost of living hasn't skyrocketed. People in the resource sector haven't been thrown out of work. And carbon emissions have gone down. It seems that carbon taxes can work, and that the downsides can be mitigated.

It is my fervent hope that the world does put a price on carbon. It's past time to act. We're all in this together, and we need to pull together to create real change. And based on what's happened here, real change can happen. That's the good part. Now the only question is whether or not we'll rise to the challenge.Amber Strocelhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-76140199196275919622014-10-03T09:29:00.001-07:002014-10-03T09:41:23.898-07:00Kitchen Scraps Garden Part Two: Carrot SeedsQueen Composter has been doing some gardening experiments.

Most kitchen gardeners grow carrots, and I am no exception. My daughters love eating them, and generally I find them easy to grow. While seeds are not overly expensive, I find I go through a great deal of them each year because of having to sow so many then thinning the seedlings to allow for adequate growth.

I have been experimenting with growing food from kitchen scraps, and I saw a post somewhere about planting the tops of carrots to produce seeds. As a novice gardener I am delving into seed saving, which has so many benefits. This seemed like a perfect fit.

In the early fall last year I did just that and I was excited to see what would happen in the spring. Carrots require several weeks of exposure to cold, or vernalization, for the flowers to produce later in the year, and planting them at this time was one way to do it.

Carrot flowers: Image source

Carrots are biennial plants, meaning that their life cycle is over two years. In the first year the carrot root grows, which is the part that is the most familiar to us. In the second year, if left to continue to grow, the carrot flowers and produces seeds.

In the spring I forgot about the carrots and when I was tilling my garden beds I pulled up many of the carrots, which had started to regrow. In the end this might have been a good thing as I had an entire area overgrown with flowering carrot plants.

The carrot flower buds are fascinating close up.

Over the summer I was impressed with how many pollinators my carrot flowers encouraged, and I spent many happy hours watching the insects and taking macro photos with my Olloclip lens and iPhone.

A soldier beetle hunting for food and pollinating my flowers.

By early September the flowering tops had dried sufficiently enough to cut and save. This is the part that I found the most interesting. Using gardening gloves, I rubbed the dried tops between my palms to release the seeds. What I found resembled an alien insect more than a seed because I wasn't expecting the spiky chaff surrounding the individual seeds.

A quick google search informed me that commercial seed companies remove this for packaging purposes, but it was fine if I left it on them.

The seeds are now stored in a paper bag in a glass jar in my refrigerator (to control for humidity).

Another thing that I learned about carrot seeds is that if they are planted near Queen Anne's Lace they will cross pollinate and not produce true carrots. Also, if the seeds are from hybrids they will not produce carrots either. I planted a variety of hybrid and heirloom carrots last year and because I did not know that hybrid seeds will not produce and I do not know which kind of carrot tops I planted last fall, I do not know if my seeds will produce carrots next growing season. In the coming weeks I will be sure to only plant my heirloom carrot tops.

So the carrot seed experiment will continue.

Christyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-61357965909018831642014-09-30T16:55:00.000-07:002014-09-30T16:58:37.067-07:005 Fall Garden Tasks To Save Money in the SpringFrom the bean of Green Bean.

Cosmos seeds just begging to be saved for next year!

As the sun wanes and the vines die, most of us turn our attention away from the garden. Pumpkins beg to be made into pies, apples to be dried or sauced. I typically think of the garden again come New Years, with the rush of the holidays behind me and seed catalogs piling up.

This year, however, I want to make sure I hit a few important garden tasks that will bring big yields in spring.

A California native sunflower that I planted for the first time this year. Loved it and am saving the seeds for next year. Left several seed heads up for the birds and squirrels to enjoy.

1) Collect Seeds from Flowering Annuals and Vegetables. Many flowers tapering off now - their seeds drying on the stem, begging to be saved for next year. I often leave quite a bit for the wildlife to make it through winter but now is the time I start collecting seeds for next year. Some, I admit, I haphazardly toss about the garden to self seed while others are stored in glass jars to await spring. Still others can be given as gifts for the holidays. Beans and squash are among the easiest seeds to save amongst the edibles. Cosmos, sunflowers, scabiosa, blanket flower and other annual seeds can just be gathered off the stem.

2) Divide Perennials.  Think of it as free plants! Most perennials need to be divided every 3-4 years but a few like yarrow benefit from being divided every 2-3 years. Rather than buying more plants to fill in bare spots, this fall, I will just divide up what I have. Here is a great resource of dividing perennials.

3) Relocate or Add Perennials.  Looking around my garden this year, I have noted that a few plants are not happy. This one needs better drainage, that one more moisture and this one less water. In years past, I might have simply yanked the poor plants and tossed them in the compost pile. This year, I plan to save some resources by playing musical plants.

4) Mulch, mulch, mulch. Adding organic material to the soil increases its ability to hold water. For folks who live in drought-stricken regions - like myself - this means it is a perfect time to add more mulch. Moreover, mulch will help protect plants where it snows and keep plants from drowning in too much rain. Fallen leaves, straw, cardboard, newspaper, grass clippings and so on make great free or low cost mulch. Bonus - insects and the birds they attract will thank you for the extra leaf litter.

5) Plant Cover Crops. Finally, fall is the perfect time to add some extra nutrients to your soil by planting cover crops - which also help keep weeds at bay, provide food or forage for people and animals and a nice overwintering spot for beneficial insects. Peas and fava beans are great cover crops that can be eaten. Clover is wonderful for pollinators. I consistently see better vegetable production in beds that had cover crop the previous winter.

This post is part of the Homestead Barn Hop, Backyard Farming Connection, Maple Hill Hop, Green Thumb Thursday and Tuesday Garden Party.

Green Beanhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-82362159397853722882014-09-26T17:34:00.002-07:002014-09-26T17:34:31.886-07:00How My Parents Buying a Hybrid Is a Sign Of HopeEco-Yogini reflects on hope...

The last few years I've found it so difficult to have hope when it comes to... well... most things. I suspect it's something to do with why it's always a certain demographic each generation that protests and speaks out and rages against the machine. It's true that as I've gotten older I've become more cynical and I feel a bit smaller in my ability to affect change.

I think some of this perspective and knowledge is important. There's only so much you can take on for so long before it becomes overwhelming and exhausting. But it's also a bit sad. To lose that piece of rebel.

And then. There are moments where I think: "Holy Goddess, we ARE changing after all". There IS hope.

One such moment happened a few days ago when I got a text from my mom with a picture of a black car. With the word "HYBRID" clearly written on the front windshield. And in case I didn't get that, she sent another picture of the "hybrid" fuel label of the actual car itself.

My parents bought a Toyota Camry Hybrid. Before we did.

You might think: "Why is this a big deal? I know lots of people who own hybrids".

Yes, but do you know a lot of rural, fishermen families who still occasionally burn their garbage, traditional, left-conservative voting families who own a hybrid?

I love my parents. They are the most loving, kind, giving and selfless people I know. I am thankful each and everyday for being fortunate enough to have them as parents. They have taught me so very much and made me who I am today.

But they are most certainly not environmentalists. Oh I think they mostly believe in climate change and pollution. It's just that it doesn't really affect them. They don't have the greatest things to say about local "treehuggers" come from the city to protect natural reserves from local use ("What do those damn hippies know about anything anyway?"). I've accepted long ago that they are proud of me, respect my choices and smile and shake their heads at their strong independent daughter's crazy hippy actions.

The fact that they purchased a hybrid vehicle made me stop and reconsider. I think maybe they have quietly been changing... while I wasn't looking.

After some further thought here are all the things my parents now do:

My mom now uses vinegar and water to clean as well as a "green" cleaning supply brand.

All of their light bulbs are CFL (including LED Christmas lights)

My mom hangs all her clothes on the line (although this isn't new... she's always done this. Even during the winter months when there's snow on the ground.)

My mom uses my home made soap and body lotion

My parents each homemade preserves instead of buying them pre-made and for the most part they pick the fruit and vegetables themselves, locally.

My parents have started purchasing food from local sources and have started to visit local farmer's markets.

My parents recycle all plastic and paper AND compost (this is mandated by law in our province, but still- considering most of the capital city struggle with compliance in this, it's a huge accomplishment).

When repainting their house and kitchen cabinets this year they purchased low VOC paint.

My parents bought a hybrid vehicle.

What we truly need as a society is to make polluting and wastefulness not socially acceptable. David Suzuki wrote "A Sacred Balance" how he remembers that only 50 years ago it was socially acceptable to spit in public on the street, in stores and in public transit. He wrote that we need a complete social shift on what we value as a society in order to necessitate the amount of change in attitudes and perspectives with regards to the environment and our planet. And his spitting example was how such a radical paradigm shift IS possible.

I always believed it would be generational change- with those current elders staying in their ways.

My parents are quietly and most certainly already on that path of environmental change. And that gives me enormous hope.Eco Yoginihttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-90221391546860886222014-09-23T05:00:00.000-07:002014-09-23T15:35:26.279-07:00Wanted: Tips for Happy & Healthy Family Dinner

Eco-novice wants your help turning a picky eater into an enthusiastic one.

In my house, we have some picky eaters. Probably my fault, but let's move past that. The point is, a little while ago I decided I was tired of preparing multiple meals (the real meal, plus what my 7yo and 5yo would actually eat) each night. I made my kids a deal: one meal each night, and they had to try it, but then on Fridays I would make them anything they wanted.

This sort of works, except that trying whatever I make often involves eating a microscopic amount preceded by many minutes of weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth. I think I would be OK with my kids only trying a little bit of what I made, and then filling up on fruit and grains or going to bed hungry, if I didn't have to listen to all the whining and complaining about the meal I just spent close to an hour preparing.

So here is my question for you, oh wise Booth readers. How does family dinner work at your house? Do you make kid-friendly meals that you know your kids will like? Make whatever you want and expect your kids to try it? Do you make meals you know certain of your kids will not eat, and if so, do you let them eat an alternative?

And here is perhaps the even more important question: how do I transition my picky eaters to adventurous eaters? I can find plenty of information about how important it is that I not be a short order cook and prepare one (not kiddy) meal that the entire family can enjoy together. But how do I get there from here? And live to tell about it. Because, seriously, the whining is really getting to me.

If your family dinner time is a happy experience, or if you have successfully transitioned a picky eater to a not picky one, I feel it is your duty to share your experience below. Thank you in advance.Betsy Escandonhttps://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-15604634575294636522014-09-19T00:15:00.000-07:002014-09-19T08:34:26.970-07:00Why I Gave Away My Books
Queen Composter reflects upon efforts to simplify her life.

Before I begin, please let me unload my baggage.

I love my stuff. I am constantly fighting my ego's urge to own more things. One of the things that makes me deliriously happy is books. Not only do I love reading (I often stay awake into the wee hours of the morning to finish a book), I also love the physical being of books and I have a visceral connection to them. I am the type of person who, upon purchasing a new book, likes to open it up and smell the pages. Please tell me I'm not the only one who does this.

Back in the day when good, local book stores actually existed, my idea of a good Saturday night out was to spend hours browsing the aisles for books. I have even been asked to leave a book store because I sat down on the floor and started reading some books (before book stores became a destination with coffee shop and couches). It doesn't help that I am a teacher, and we are famous for spending a great deal of our disposable income on books.

My obsession with owning books received a turbo boost when my future husband became a manager of a big box book store for a time. Hello employee discount! Every available space in our home had stacks of books, some beloved books, some perpetually on the "to read" list.

When we moved to a larger home and had to go through the effort of packing up and transporting the dozens of book boxes, we realized we had a problem. We made the difficult decision to deal with our problem and sorted our books into approximately seven piles as we unpacked: favourite books we reread, books we are positive we will read in the near future, resource/information books that we use on a regular basis, books we want to save for our children to read, books we have read but will not read again, books we have never read and do not see reading in the near future, and university textbooks. We promptly loaded the books in the latter three piles back into the moving boxes to give away.

Some thoughts on giving away our books:

The internet has done away with the need for insane amounts of How-To books and information books. We kept some pretty and informative coffee table books, but otherwise we borrow from the library or look it up online.

Our home is less cluttered with books everywhere. Now to tackle the other areas, like craft supplies, toys, and DVDs.

I visit the library more now. I can always buy a book later if I fall in love with an author or book. This has encouraged my daughters to read more too. Win-win!

Many organizations are happy to have donated books. We discovered that our local food bank accepts books and we even received a tax deductible receipt.

Used book stores are another way to reduce the amount of books you have, but I have found that they are quite picky about what they will accept, and they generally do not like to take donations, for space issues. But if you have good quality, popular books it is always nice to get a bit of money for your efforts.

We have now made a commitment to avoid big box stores as much as we can, partially because of the impact upon diminishing local, independent book stores. As a result, we are not as tempted to spend money, and we put more thought into our book purchases.

Another idea my daughters would like to try, which is becoming more popular, is to make a free library for the end of our driveway for books they would like to pass on to someone else.

Now that we have dealt with our book fetish it is much easier to keep new books from entering our home. I like to buy books for my kids for Christmas presents (something they want, something they need, something they'll wear, something they'll read), and I buy books by my favourite authors, but otherwise I try to borrow from the library or a friend now.

Have you simplified any aspect of your life? I'd love some more thoughts and tips.

Christyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-83407629420942297602014-09-17T00:01:00.000-07:002014-09-17T15:13:35.398-07:008 Ways to Save Water in Your GardenFrom the bean of Green Bean.

I live - and garden in - one of the most parched regions of the country - northern California. Indeed, my region is classified as Exceptional Drought, one dusty, dry step past Extreme. I cannot remember the last time it rained. I really cannot.

Even surrounded by this lack of water, my garden continues to bloom - a lush, verdant green. This summer, I harvested pounds upon pounds of blackberries and pumpkins erupt across the chocolate brown soil. Hummingbirds battle over the California fuchsia and finches stop to sample cosmos gone to seed.

How do I justify my large edible and ornamental garden in the midst of such thirst? By adhering to the following steps, I've managed to cut my water use in half - all that while having my tomatoes and eating them too!

The chart from my latest water bill shows how I'm continuing to use less water.

1) Add organic material to the soil.  It's always a good idea to add organic material to your soil - compost, leaves, pine needles, straw, newspaper, what not. Not only does improve the fertility of the soil but it also increases the soil's ability to retain water.

Straw mulch around the base of a drought tolerant hyssop.

2) Mulch. Piling straw around the base of a fruit tree or oak leaves scattered through a native plant bed will help keep water from evaporating and reduce the overall need to irrigate. Non-organic mulches are also available and equally effective.

3) Switch to drought tolerant ornamentals. While my garden's footprint has exploded over the last couple of years, I have mostly planted are drought-tolerant plants. Succulents in pots and native plants elsewhere. Even the few non-native (but pollinator friendly) plants I have added are low-water. Last fall, I converted an entire planting bed to California natives. Because those plants are newly planted, they require weekly watering - far less than the three times a week I watered that bed last year. Moreover, next year, I can skip to twice-monthly watering and the year after, as they become more established, monthly watering.

My new, native plant garden, comprised of butterfly larvae host plants, is mulched with oak leaves and watered once a week. A few non-native annuals that have made their way into this bed but I leave them if they can survive the low water allotment.

4) Collect rain water and greywater. While restrictions on collecting rain water exist in some places, more and more municipalities are permitting, even encouraging residents to collect rain water to use in their gardens. (Check out this great resource on US state rainwater harvesting laws, hat tip to Eco-Novice). Last year was the first winter that I collected rainwater. What have I been missing! Free, untreated water straight from the sky? I loved it so much that I ordered two more rain barrels for this winter for a total of 5.

I used up the last of my rain barrel water in July.

Greywater is an equally great way to supplement garden irrigation. I have yet to jigger up some fancy system for our showers or, at least, the laundry to landscape thing. Now, I just haul out water from washing vegetables for irrigating ornamentals and refilling the bird baths. It is amazing how much you can water with what used to just run down the drain.

5) Pay attention to how water moves through your garden and plant accordingly. For years, I struggled with new plantings. Why did the black elderberry thrive in this location but not that one when sun exposure was the same? I finally realized that one, planted in a bit of a gully, received run off from my neighbors' garden. The other was in a quick, draining mound and did not retain much of the water. I have learned to pay more attention to where water collects in the garden and where it dissipates. I now group plants with similar water needs together and consider whether a plant will reap the benefit of run off. If you like this concept, check out swales and other permaculture-based ideas for using water in your landscape.

6) Add perennials - both ornamentals and edibles. The water needs of perennials and annuals has become crystal clear this dry summer. While perennials - like blackberries, grapes and fig trees - flourished, our annual flowers and vegetables were often wilted, requiring more frequent mulching and irrigation. As a result, I plan to convert one annual flower bed to primarily perennials this fall and to add perennial edibles in the form of an asparagus bed, artichokes and sunchokes to the garden next spring.

7) Water long and deep. You can coax deep roots from your plants by watering them less frequently but for a longer period of time.

8) Minimize or stop watering the lawn. After years of cutting back water to the lawn or over-planting with clover and other drought tolerant options, I finally did it! I turned the lawn sprinklers off completely. How can I justify watering when our local streams are dry and my state burns with wildfires? Because my kids still play sports on the lawn, I am not ready to replace it completely with a native meadow or other low water use alternative. The brown lawn is not as soft when you fall as green grass but it is serviceable for soccer and football and keeps the water bill low. That said, I'm open to any lawn replacement ideas...

How do you save water in your garden? Have you felt the drought's impact where you live?

This post is part of the Homestead Barn Hop, Backyard Farming Connection, Maple Hill Hop, Green Thumb Thursday and Tuesday Garden Party.

Green Beanhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-1941312662522172460.post-47019360841579309522014-09-15T00:30:00.000-07:002014-09-15T00:30:00.829-07:00Making Your Own Ice CreamThe highest form of food preservation is ice cream, according to the Climate Crusader.

The harvest season is just reaching its high point here where I live. Farmers' markets are full to bursting with local fruits and veggies. If you're a locavore - or just toying with eating more local food - this is the time of the year when you might find yourself doing a lot of food preserving. And while I enjoy canning, drying and freezing, in my mind the pinnacle of food preservation is homemade ice cream.

Ode to my Ice Cream Maker
Years ago, I used to eye ice cream makers with envy, but I didn't buy one. For one thing, they're not exactly super-cheap. For another, I wasn't sure I would actually use one. I really do love ice cream, though, and I had concerns about a lot of the ingredients in the ice creams on store shelves. Modified milk ingredients. Artificial flavours and colours. Gums and pastes and words I couldn't pronounce.

Yummy? Not so much.

Of course, there are organic ice cream options, and natural ice cream options, and some of those are fabulous. They're a real splurge, though, and I have two little kids. The result is that I was eating less ice cream than I otherwise would. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it did make me a little sad. All of that changed, though, when a friend who was moving across the country gifted me with her ice cream maker.

Now that I have an ice cream maker of my very own, I can make sweet frozen treats with ingredients I choose. Real organic milk and cream. Fresh, local fruit. Ice cream sweetened with honey or maple syrup instead of sugar. Ice cream made with coconut milk instead of cow's milk. Fruit sorbets. And of course, lots and lots of chocolate ice cream. Nothing icky or surprising or unpronounceable at all. You can even store it in glass containers if that makes you happy.

Making ice cream is pretty easy - I would say it's similar in effort to making cookies. You mix it up, set the ice cream maker, and come back in 20 minutes. The ice cream maker is a little noisy and the bowl takes up space in my freezer, but the end product more than makes up for it.

Generic Fruit Ice Cream Recipe
Getting back to my discussion about food preservation, I thought I'd share my generic fruit ice cream recipe. You can use berries, cherries, peaches or even cooked pumpkin (in which case I'd definitely add some cinnamon and cloves). Store the bounty of the harvest in the best possible form: dessert.

Ingredients:
3 cups fruit
1 1/4 - 1 3/4 cups sugar, to taste (the more tart the fruit, the more sugar I use)
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups milk
1 tablespoon vanilla

Preparation:
Wash your fruit, and pit and slice it if required (I don't slice raspberries or blackberries, I do slice cherries, peaches and strawberries). If you're using pumpkin, cook it and allow it to cool first. Add the sugar and stir well, then let it sit for 20 minutes. You can also leave them in the fridge overnight if you're not feeling too impatient.This will draw out the juices, and allow the sugar to dissolve nicely. Once the fruit and sugar have had a chance to blend, mash it or run it quickly through a blender or food processor. Add the milk, cream and vanilla, stir well, and freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Yield: Approximately 2 quarts of ice cream.
Amber Strocelhttp://email@example.com


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189 results for "sandy hook"
Career Arc: Jim CarreySteven Hyden
In June, Jim Carrey took to Twitter to publicly disavow his association with the action-comedy Kick-Ass 2, which enters the dreary summer of 2013 blockbuster sweepstakes on Friday. "I did Kickass a month b4 Sandy Hook and now in all good conscie...Blog | August 14, 2013
A new normal for Newtown youth sportsIsabelle Khurshudyan
A summer basketball camp gives kids a chance to just playStory | Conversation | August 14, 2013
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OTL: Athletes And GunsMarch 22, 2013
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Yanks honor Newtown victims, familiesMatt Ehalt
NEW YORK -- The Yankees are hosting "Newtown Day" on Sunday, as approximately 4,000 residents of Newtown, Conn., are attending the game as guests of the team. The 26 victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting were listed on the center field...Blog | July 07, 2013
Yankees, Red Sox honor Newtown victimsKieran Darcy
The Yankees and Rex Sox dedicated their Opening Day game to the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, along with their families and the community of Newtown, Conn. Both teams are wearing a special patch on their uniforms, and there...Blog | April 01, 2013
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Major League Baseball will honor the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting during the opening games of the 2013 season, including a father who will throw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Texas Rangers.Story | Conversation | March 22, 2013
Sox, Yanks will honor Newtown in openerAssociated Press
TAMPA, Fla. -- The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox will honor the community of Newtown and the memory of those killed in the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School when the teams play opening day April 1 at Yankee Stadium. Pregame ceremonie...Blog | March 20, 2013
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The Yankees and Red Sox announced they will jointly dedicate Opening Day to the victims of the Sandy Hook school shootings. Pregame introductions will honor guards of the Newtown police and fire departments. They victims' names will be announced and ...Blog | March 20, 2013
Newtown parents carry on child's memoryMarty Smith
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Bruins bring smiles to Newtown, Conn.Scott Barboza
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The Super Bowl has overtaken American cultureJeff MacGregor
While you weren't looking, the NFL became our national metaphor for everything. From Sandy Hook to Camp Courage, the measure of America is football.Story | Conversation | February 04, 2013


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As the book industry becomes increasingly electronic, the UCSF Library continues to build its ebook collection.
Looking for digitized versions of historic books? Try searching HathiTrust. HathiTrust is a partnership of major research institutions and libraries, including the University of California, working to ensure that the cultural record is preserved and accessible long into the future.
Join the UCSF Library as we participate in the fifth annual Open Access Week from October 24-30. Learn about the benefits of open access publishing, which provides peer-reviewed journal articles free of charge on the web, making them easy to access, share, and use in subsequent research. Open access is an alternative to the traditional subscription model, which burdens the university as costs keep rising.
The UCSF Library is extremely pleased to announce that the Mission Bay FAMRI Library in the Rutter Community Center is expanding its hours.
Effective October 15, 2011, the Mission Bay Library will be open on Saturdays from 10:00am to 6:00pm.
In addition, the computer lab (CC151) directly adjacent to the Mission Bay Library has recently extended its hours for UCSF students. The computer lab is open all hours that the Rutter Center is open. Access during non-library hours requires a valid UCSF student ID card.
On October 11, the UCSF Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) will host a day of workshops, tours, and other opportunities to explore the TLC in depth. Learn how to take advantage of the resources available to you!
Register for free skills development workshops in:
Every fall, the UCSF Library reviews its journal subscriptions as part of the renewal process for the upcoming year. Due to the severe UC budget crisis, the rising cost of electronic journal and database subscriptions, and the demand for electronic access, we must identify savings through the reduction of print subscription costs.
For 2012, we are nominating 141 print journals for cancellation. With the exception of two print-only subscriptions, only the print versions would be discontinued -- all would remain available online to the UCSF community.
The Library is pleased to present a new set of online guides, designed to help you discover the best databases, books and journals, and strategies for your research topic. Save time by accessing only the most relevant resources, hand-picked by your UCSF librarians!
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The UCSF Library is thrilled to announce the installation of a three-story sculpture by acclaimed artist Sarah Sze in the Parnassus Campus Library's south stairwell. This dynamic piece has been described by the artist as a "suspended spinning metropolis" and can be experienced from the exterior or interior of the building.
The UCSF Library is pleased to announce the opening of additional off-hours study space on the Mission Bay campus for UCSF students. Effective immediately, the computer lab (CC151) immediately adjacent to the Mission Bay FAMRI Library will be open all hours that the Rutter Community Center is open: Monday – Friday, 5:30am to 10:00pm; weekends and holidays, 7:30am to 8:00pm.
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text:
Thanks for including our CEO's response!
It's the middle of summer and you'd really love to have some extra time to enjoy it, but nobody told that to your ever-growing workload. So, how can you maximize your time at work, improving your productivity and efficacy, so that you can get out there and enjoy some summer fun? I have asked the CarolRoth.com contributor network of business owners, experts, advisors and entrepreneurs to provide their best advice for maximizing their time during the work day. Their answers are presented below in no particular order.
You may notice some similar ideas, but I kept them separate, as something in the way one is framed may resonate differently with you.
Do you have another tip to maximize your work time? Please share it below. And as always, many thanks to everyone that contributed to this article!
And if you would like to become a part of the CarolRoth.com contributor network and find out about opportunities to contribute to future articles, sign up here: http://www.carolroth.com/carolroth-com-blog-contributor-sign-up/
Thanks for including our CEO's response!
Its really good collection of Maximize work time or we can say a time management. It is truly inspirational. Thanks - http://onevacancy.com
It is an honor to be in this group of professionals! Thanks to all for the great tips!
So thrilled to be featured here Carol (#89) and to see all the other great tips people have shared. I feel more productive already!
Thank you for including my tip (#63)! Great people, great tips!
Thank you for including mine (#91).
I'm already practicing several good tips (just started #93), and there are so many more fantastic ideas all on 1 page.
Thank you Carole.
Thanks for including mine (#83). I also especially like #34, 56, 70, 75, and 93.


text: Don't Mess with the 93d View full-size image < previous next > Is this photo a winner? "This photo was taken after our spouses played laser tag. We try to meet monthly as a way to socialize and just get away from the daily stresses of being military spouses. We had a great time playing against the other squadron, and even captured a "prisoner." " - 93d Flying Peggys (Dec 12, 2012) Share this photo on: Twitter Facebook Pinterest Similar Photos: fun | laser tag | military | military club | red | social | spouses | support | military spouses | military clubs Feeling inspired? Visit the CustomInk Design Lab to start your own group order. Design Your Own