Gratuitiously Green

Gearing up for Groceries

2009-04-10T17:10:00.001-07:00

A big way to green up your life is to make better choices about what you buy. But to get the full effect, you need a bit of pre-planning.

When green shopping, I recommend the following gear:
- Reusable shopping bags (for size and convience, I use Envirosax)
- Mesh bags for produce
- Smart phone/Blackberry - most grocery stores have tools where you can email yourself your grocery list and carry it on your phone. This means you can cancel your flyers through Project Red Dot, and still have all the sale info you need - in ultra portable form. Extra cudos if you power it with a solar charger.
- Reusable cup or water bottle - just in case you are tempted by Starbucks - everyone likes coffee, no one likes disposible cups!
- A big, trendy, leather free purse to carry it all. Treat yourself to something high quality in a classic style so you won't be tempted to trash it after 3 months.

Now you're ready to leave the house. Hopefully you'll take a buss or walk to the store. If that's not possible, group all your weekly errands together, so you are making one trip uptown, not six.

Once in the store, divide it into sections. As most people know, the key to healthy eating is to shop the perimeter, and avoid the stuff in the middle. Same goes with eco-shopping.

Produce:
This is where those mesh bags come in handy. They are great for storing food, weight very little, and will keep your food fresher for longer than plastic. Pick local produce where possible. Buy food that are in season where you can. If the fruit has travelled to more exotic locations than you, do the responsible thing and make a choice with a lower carbon footprint.

If you buy salad dressing, go for the ones in glass containers, and they are easier to recycle. Avoid 'processed' veggetable products, as they require more handling, and thus, have a higher foot print then just buying lettuce, washing it and cutting it up instead.

Protein:
For my family this is tofu, soy, chick'n, nuts and lentils. If you eat meat, ask yourself why. With food borne illnesses on the rise, and the huge environmental toll of factory farming, its not a green choice. In fact, livestock farming is responsible a huge amount of environmental damage. It creates air, water, and soil pollution. It is seriously nasty.

If you can't or won't eliminate meat from your diet, try to limit it by choosing meat free meals at least once or twice a week.

Grains:
Buy locally made breads. They are local, fresh, and so much better tasting its ridiculous. The loaves are smaller, which makes them an effective way to limit carbs. You can chose from many varieties, which can also lead to healthier choices. They also contain fewer preservatives and chemicals then 'name brand' bread. Don't believe me? Check the ingredient lists sometime - most pre-packaged breads contain many scary things, including formaldehyde.

The Middle Isles:
If you have to shop these, remember the following:
-Look for foods that are local
-Try not to buy things that are over packaged, or packaged with materials you can't recycle
-Limit what you buy frozen - it tastes nasty, and powering a freezer takes way more electricity than its worth.

I love Canadian Tire

2009-03-24T19:11:00.000-07:00

I love Canadian Tire.

I always have - I mean, it has home stuff, car stuff, gardening stuff. Its Canadian. It has Canadian Tire Money. And over the last year, it has become an amazing resource for everything 'green' you could wish for.

On the weekend, I poped by for some small things and found that Canadian Tire now has a better selection for natural cleaning than some independant specialty stores I've been in. And as its a nationwide chain, this products are now available to people who previously had to make their own or do without.

My favourite finds:
- Household brushes by "Quickie" that are made of post-consumer and post-industrial wood and plastic fibers.
- Washable microfibre sponges, also by Quickie (these work so amazingly well!)
- Washable microfibre mophead - again, by Quickie. I'd never heard of this company before, but I'm starting to really love them!
- Some of the best brands of pre-made green cleaners on the market, including Nature Clean, Bright Green, and Attitude. I tried the Attitude bathroom cleaner for mold and mildew, and it does an amazing job. Plus, the essential oils make the room smell good, without polluting the air with fragrance.

Rocking the Solar

2009-03-24T18:01:00.001-07:00

So, I recently bought a small, flexible solar panel. Its nothing huge - but it can be attached to a backpack, the saddle bags on a bike, or the dashboard of a car. It makes about enough electricity in a day to charge my cell phone, ipod, and camera.

Its little, it wasn't that expensive, and it cuts my carbon use. Too much fun!

Hooray for European Electric Producers!

2009-03-24T16:22:00.000-07:00

European electric producers have vowed to go carbon neutral by 2050! The plan is pretty detailed, and involves use of carbon sinks, alternative sources, carbon offsetting, and carbon capture. You can read about it here.

Really? This is who we're idolizing?

2009-03-18T15:04:00.000-07:00

So today I was home sick, and fell asleep with the tv on, (and yes, I will be turning off electronics for the rest of the week to make up the extra carbon use) and I wake up to TLC's circus freak line up. You know, the one where there is 7 hours of shows with people who have WAY too many kids, trying to convince you that they have dreams beyond making the screaming stop with the cold embrace of death...

Anyhow, I'm drugged and out of it, so instead of changing the channel right away, I watch. And to my horror, it was John and Kate + 8. For those of you who haven't seen it, these people had twins, and decided they wanted 1 more, so they implanted 6 embryos and got 6 more kids(yes, the same amount at Octomom...only curiously, people don't think they're monsters. Anyhow, they were talking about how she is 'one of the best and GREENEST mom's on earth' because she has 8 kids AND she manages to recycle.

They have curbside recycling pick up, a full time nanny, and a housekeeper. How freaking hard could it possibly be?

They went on to say how "healthy" she feeds her kids, in an episode where they ate hotdogs, and a whole bunch of red meat.

How low is the standard for "world's greenest mom" when recycling and eating red meat (which causes more pollution per year than all the vehicles in North America) are our only examples. Oh, thats not true. She was also 'seriously considering' using greener cleaners.

Frankly, I know regular women, who work and have kids, have NO nanny, NO housekeeper, and live where there is NO curbside recycling pickup who are doing a hell of a lot more than that.

Red Dot Campaign

2009-03-13T16:18:00.000-07:00

Tired of getting reems of junk mail? Join the Red Dot Campaign. Its super easy - you put a sticker on your mailbox, and Canada Post stops delivering it. Less crap for you, less waste in the environment. AND hopefully it will send a message that junk advertising just doesn't work.

http://www.reddotcampaign.ca/

People who Don't Recycle

2009-03-12T19:40:00.000-07:00

On the list of things you can do to 'green' your life, recycling is step one. Its the simplest, cheapest, easiest thing you can do.

And yet there are people who actively don't.

I've tried to be nice about it, tried to be understanding, but its 2009, and I just don't get it. Why is throwing something into a garbage bag 'easier' than throwing it in a recycling bag? I have seen grown, educated people throw out bottles not 5 feet away from a recycling bin. Just because its 3 more steps.

How much harder is it to buy a producted made of recycled materials than it is one made from "100% New Materials"? 100% New Materials are running out, and cause more trauma to the environment to produce. Plus, recycling saves resources, energy and water.

The numbers are staggering. Climate change is happening. The consequences are on our doorstep. Take 5 seconds out of your day for your future.

Hummer vs. Toliet Paper

2009-03-12T19:35:00.000-07:00

So I was reading the news today, and someone did a study: Which is worse for the environment - Hummers (as a symbol of high emissions vehicles) or thick, fluffy, toliet paper.

The winner? Toliet paper. If you are using 3 ply, ass caressing, aloe filled shit to wipe yourself every time you flush, you are a bigger problem than the guy with the SUV down the road. Here's the good news though - while buying a more efficient vehicle is a 'hard fix' in that it costs a lot of money, changing your toliet paper is quick and easy.

Look for a brand that is made of 100% post consumer waste. Cascades and Superstore Brand Green are my favourites. While you're at it, switch to recycled paper towel and kleenex too. Or better yet, use some rags, and Hankettes!

Electricity Monitors at Canadian Tire

2009-02-17T19:19:00.000-08:00

I'm a huge fan of Canadian Tire, and they gave me a new reason to be with this week's flyer. The company is 'greening' their inventory as part of a new business strategy, and has some amazing deals for the eco-conscious consumer.

These include solar panels, wind generators, CFL's in pretty much every shape and size you can imagine, enviromentally safe cleaners, and 100% post cosumer waste toliet paper!

My favorite though is the electricity monitor - you strap a little device on your power meter, and a display inside tells you how much electricity your home is currently using. As a bonus, you can program in the current rate you are being charged by the electric company and it will estimate how much you're use is costing you per day, month, and year!

Electricity conservation has always suffered from it being an 'invisible' commodity. Anything that helps people 'see' the money and resources they're using will make them more aware of the little (and not so little) things we all can do to create real change.

Cutting Cubic Meters

2009-02-17T19:09:00.000-08:00

One of my New Year's resolutions was to cut back on the amount of water our household uses. We did this in a couple of ways already stated here. The big ones were:
- 5 minute showers (taken with a timer to keep up honest)
- collecting the 'cold' water usually wasted when waiting for 'warm' water and using it on houseplants
-limited use of dishwasher to 3 times per week by reusing cups, glasses, and non-gunky plates
-limited use of washing machine to 3 loads a week (1 load per person, and an extra one for linens)
-flushing only when needed

Well, our first bill since the changes is in, and I think we're doing pretty well. In two months we used 12 cubic meters of water. That's 3 cubic meters per person per month. The 'average' per person amount in our community is 18 meters...putting us well below average.

The really crazy thing? Reducing the water extremely easy to do, makes a huge positive impact on the environment, and saved us over $100 over two months!

De-cluttering

2009-02-08T16:59:00.000-08:00

So I'm in the process of redoing my basement. Basements are wonderful things...but they have a tendency to accumulate a lot of crap. It's even harder to toss when you are trying to live a 'green' existance. But at a certain point it needs to be done.

Here are the goals we are currently working towards to make this less stressful for the planet:
1. Make sure everything possible is recycled.
2. Make sure anything that can't be recycled is given/donated to someone who can use it.
3. Make sure everything that can't be recycled or given away is disposed of safely.
4. Make sure that once its clean, step are put in place so you never, EVER get to this place again.

Yeah...4 is kinda the kicker. So far ~60% of our junk has been recycled. ~20 was given to charity, or to friends who could make use of them. 20% was garbaged.

omg PC bpa free!!

2009-02-08T16:52:00.000-08:00

BPA caused a big cuffufle early last year when the government put regulations in about it in products for babies and toddlers. Originally created to be used in Horomone Replacement Therapy, this chemical became widely used as a preservative. The 'bad' thing about it, is it still can act like a horomone, and has been linked to certain cancers, birth defects, and even younger ages of puberty in girls.

Getting rid of it is quite the task, as the stuff is in everything from plastics to aluminum cans. My husband and I chose to switch to a plastics free kitchen last March, and it has taken almost a year to fully achieve this. But we got a big hand from Superstore!

Superstore now has glass containers with locking plastic lids that are BPA free. They are safe for the microwave, the freezer, and the dishwasher. Better yet, the locking lids ACTUALLY STAY LOCKED. Something that our tupperware and gladware never did.

Oh...and they are ridiculously cheap. Seriously, you need to try these things.

WORMS!!!

2009-02-03T20:00:00.000-08:00

I'm super excited right now! Last year I got a couple dozen of the best pets money can buy - red wrigglers. Yes they are worms, and OMG are they awesome!

In case you don't know, these worms can be used for vermicomposting. You get the worms, you make them a happy little nest in a rubbermaid container, and you start feeding them your compost. These little babies are absolutely amazing - they are clean, they produce no odor, they yeild high nutrient organic compost, and they allow people in small spaces or who live where it is too cold to outdoor compost the ability to significantly reduce their waste. Red wigglers can eat approximately their own weight every 48 hours.

Last summer, my worms suffered some pH issues while I was on vacation, and tragically, I lost them all. BUT I just found someone who is selling them - I pick them up the last week of February!!

Busy days

2009-02-01T16:44:00.000-08:00

It happens to everyone - you get a day that is so busy that you feel like you're starting to fall apart. Some people I talk to use this as an excuse to abandon some of their 'green' goals. I've heard a lot of friends say things like "I really don't like my kids to eat processed/high sugar foods, but I just don't have time to make their lunches." Or "I'd like to do more 'green' things in my life, but it's just too hard."

Like most things, it is hard when you start, but then it just becomes a part of your life, like anything else. Here's an illustrative example, using what I did today to show how 'easy' it can be.

Morning: I went shopping, but before leaving made a list, both for what I needed, and the stores I would go to. This is important because it allows me to take the most efficient route when I drive, cutting my carbon impact. This is only the second time this week I will use my car.

At the grocery store, the first section I go through is organic produce. I get everything on my list that's available. Then I go through the rest of produce to fill in the gaps. For the rest of shopping, the rule I follow is: look for organic, local or fair trade, and only buy things in packages that can be recycled or reused, and/or have minimal packaging to cut down on waste. Case in point - rather than buy 'name brand' bread, I buy it from the bakery counter because it is organic, produced locally, and comes in a simple brown paper bag which is minimal and recyclable.

At the department store I was buying gym clothes. Everything I bought was produced with organic or sustainable fibers, and was made in Canada.

Lunch was rushed because I had little time between putting away the groceries and getting to the gym. So, I relied on my secret weapon - hard boiled eggs. I make about 4 at a time, and keep them in the fridge. If I ever sleep late or are in a rush, there is a quick, organic option ready to go. Don't kid yourself to think you won't want convience food. Just change what is convient.

Then I went to the gym. I walked to cut down on carbon output - this also cuts down on time in the gym as my warm up and cool down are part of my transportation time. At the gym I use machines that are 'human powered' rather than electric, and use a reusable bottle.

Back home, we made supper using a small grill which uses less energy than our oven (and does an amazing job!) Dishes go into the dishwasher, but we don't turn it on because it is not completely full. I hand wash the bamboo products and knives that are not dishwasher safe using a brush, phosphate/phlate free dish soap, and about 3 inches of hot water. Afterwards I reuse the water to wash down the kitchen with a cleaning cloth.

Evening is when I start laundry - cold wash only. Phosphate/phlate free, triple concentrated detergent. Instead of 'bounce' we use reusable cloth static sheets. Everything is fragrance free.

While that is going, I make an apple crisp for lunches for the week (sounds fancy but it takes less than 10 minutes to prepare). Then I make the menu for the week, make my lunch for tomorrow, and do the prep work for tomorrows dinner. By this time the laundry is ready to bring up and fold, next load goes in.

By 7pm tonight, my work will be done, and I'll have time to relax before the week starts.

Watts?

2009-01-29T17:30:00.000-08:00

So as part of my current health freakout I've been going to the gym, and the other night I noticed something interesting. In addition to giving me my heartrate, speed, distance, and incline, there was one truly interesting stat.

Watts generated.

Could the answer to America's obseity crisis be the same as the answer to our energy crisis? What if a gym hooked all their cardio machines up to a generator? The gym I go to has about 50 cardio machines of various types, and they are in use about 80% of the time for 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Times that by all the gyms in Canada...

Ok, this is starting to feel like math, but seriously, at the very least, the gym could be electrically sustainable, saving money and the environment, all while shrinking asses.

Thats what we call win, win, win.

My EX-Boyfriend

2009-01-26T20:51:00.001-08:00

You know what used to make my day every night at 10pm? George Stroumboulopoulos would look into my eyes from the magic of the tv screen, and say, "Good evening everybody. It's your boyfriend!"

And it used to make me feel all tingly in my warmness. Because deep down inside, I'm still the 13 year old girl who watched Much Music 10 hours a day, and freakishly devoured pop culture trivia in the insane hope that, if anyone cool ever talked to me, I'd have something so incredibly awesome to say that they would stop thinking of me as a shy little spaz and realize how hardcore I really was.

I'd watch his show, and I'd turn off my mind whenever he said something stupid, because, gosh darn, he's pretty in a way only a Canadian semi-celebrity can be. But it started cracking this summer. The problem is, there is a big difference between 'smart on Much Music' and 'smart in the world.' Jesus...just look at Rick the Temp whoring it out on ET Canada. Or Erika Ehm's acting career. I digress...

So first he endorsed that stupid Hockey theme challenge - I tried to pretend that it was just contractual, and that the cbc was making him do it. Then he called the coalition 'unlawful', and the social studies teacher in me cracked right open.

The final blow was 'One Million Acts of Green'. Don't get me wrong, I love the idea and the program, but his commercials for it are so stupid in makes my ears bleed. "If we all do just one thing we can SAVE THE PLANET!!!"

Um...are you kidding me? ONE thing? So if we all buy one freaking lightbulb, global warming will be off the agenda? Nice try George. Shoulda stuck to interviewing Simple Plan.

Rock Out with my Chalk Out

2009-01-22T18:35:00.000-08:00

According to my favorite David Suzuki commerical, there are enough holes in your house that, if combined, they would make a indentation the size of a basketball.

Solution? Rock out with your chalk! Seal up those cracks. Plug those holes. Lay down that weather stripping.

Sounds pretty freaking hot, huh?

Edmonton Idling By-law

2009-01-22T18:27:00.001-08:00

Edmonton recently proposed, and then all to quickly shelved, an amazing by-law on car idling. It was going to state that there would $200 fine for peoople who idled their vehicles more than 3 minutes, unless the temperature is below -10, or the owner is with the vehicle clearing it of an obstruction.

This law would have the potential to save tons of greenhouse gases, and set an example of responsible vehicle ownership. The reason it's been nixed? People were upset, because at -30, cars need to be run in order to warm up.

Anybody see the logical fallacy here?

Paper Towels

2009-01-22T17:56:00.000-08:00

One way to green up your life is to get rid of anything that needs to be thrown away. Paper towels are particularly bad for the enviroment, as they take tons of chemicals, energy and resources to create, but are useful for only seconds before being tossed.

Solution? Take some old t-shirts, sheets, pillowcases - whatever. Rip them up. Put them somewhere handy. TADA- you have rags!

Added bonus - they work way better than paper towel.

And please don't think that they are 'bad' because it takes water and electricity to wash them. The amount of water and electricity needed to wash rags is WAY less than what it takes to make paper.

I want to suck your watts

2009-01-20T19:12:00.000-08:00

Wanna save money quick? When you are done using something, turn it off.

Wanna save even more? Plug your major appliances into a power bar and turn it off when you turn them off to stop them from sucking power in 'standby' mode.

See? Economic crisis isn't so bad. You can save money every month, just by doing what your mom always told you to do.

Ethics of the 5 Minute Shower

2009-01-17T09:27:00.000-08:00

Why do we treat water like we have a never ending supply? Sure, our planet is mostly water, but only a very small portion of what we have is fresh and drinkable. In most countries on the planet, water is a rare and precious commodity. And yet people here in Canada treat water like the supply is never ending.

Part of the problem is that a lot of communities still don't charge (or, don't charge enough) for water usage. When we moved into our house and got the first water bill, both my husband and I knew that things would have to change - both for our wallet and for the enviroment. So we started doing some simple things. They didn't hurt, they didn't cost much money, and they are saving us about hundreds of dollars per year, and conserving the resource most precious to life.

1. Buy an efficient dishwasher. Our's is Energy Star rated, uses less water and electricity than washing by hand, and does a much better job than we ever could. Once you have your dishwasher make sure you aren't rinsing before you put your plates in - buy a $1 spatuala and scrape the food off instead. If your dishwasher can't make dishes clean, then why the hell are you using it?

Also, make sure you use a biodegradable, phoshate and phylate free detergent - Ecover tablets are the best for your money.

2. Install a low flow shower head and a shower timer. Showers are not a place to frolic, they are a place to get clean. If I can get in and out in 5 minutes, so can you. You'll save thousands of gallons of water per year. In the summer, try a sailor shower - wet yourself, turn off the water, lather up, then rinse. Its even sorter, and cools you off much better than a regular shower.

3. Get two buckets; one for the bathroom and one for the kitchen. When you are running water to 'heat it up' collect it in these. Then use that water for things around the house, like filling the kettle, filling your water pitcher, brushing your teeth, watering your plants, boiling water for cooking or whatever else you do that requires fresh water.

4. Make use of 'grey water'. Ok..you make some pasta and boil a pot of water. What do you do with it after the cooking is done? Instead of wasting it by throwing it out, use it for watering your plants or garden. Even dumping it on your lawn is better than pouring it down the sink, because it will return to the natural water cycle, rather then going to the sewage plant.

5. Dye check your toliet to make sure its not running. Just take a pack of kool-aid and dump it into the tank. Check back 30 minutes later. If the water in the bowl has changed colours, you have a leak, which is costing you money and wasting water.

6. While we're on the toliet, get one with a smaller tank. The new ones with the 'flush or half-flush' option are good. Only flushing when there is a reason (aka. bowel movement) is better. Seriously, pee is sterile, and if you have anything close to a healthy diet has little to no colour and no smell. This cut $40 per month off our water bill. That means, we were literally pissing away $480 per year. I don't know about you, but I could use that money on something better than pee.

7. Stop buying bottled water. Look around. No one carries plastic water bottles anymore. Why? Well, other than the fact that the bottles themselves leach a plethora of nasty chemicals into your 'healthy' water (BPA anyone?), the disposible nature clogs landfills, and they take 7 times as much water to produce as they give you. So, lets say you have a water cooler that holds 4 gallons. It actually took 28 gallons of water to produce, process and transport that. (lets not even get into the green house gases emited by the trucks that ship them, or the factories that produce them).

Save some money and the planet - buy a decent water filter and some steel bottles (Kleen Kanteen and Sigg are our favourites). Another added bonus? Steel bottles keep your water cooler, and taste much better than the plastic ones.

Cracking the Code

2009-01-15T18:55:00.000-08:00

Ever wonder what those numbers on produce codes on your fruit and veggies mean?

Ok...well probably not. But maybe you should, because they can tell you important information about the food you're about to put into your body.

Lets say you have 3 bins of Gala apples in front of you, all with different prices. What's the difference?

The one that starts with a 4 or 3 is 'conventionally' grown, which means that it is grown on a farm using traditional methods, which can include pesticides, horomones, etc. They also might not have been grown with these, but the lack of certification creates uncertainty.

The one that starts with an 8 has been genetically modified in some way. What have they done to it? You don't get to know. But they've done something. It could be relatively benign like crossing it with another fruit to avoid pesticide use, or it could be more controversial, like using animal proteins. This can be a huge concern, especially for vegetarians, people with allergies, and people who are generally conscious about consumption.

The one that starts with a 9 is certified organic. No crazy fish proteins, no pesticides, no horomones, but sometimes a considerably higher cost. Personally I find that some organic products (including apples, yams, almonds, and milk) taste considerably better than the other stuff, especially if it is from a local producer.

Knowing what the codes mean can be very helpful, as produce is not always put in the right spots in the store - more than once I've found 'organic' food in the regular section, and genetically modified food in bins clearly marked for organic.

The Great Bag Debate

2009-01-15T18:45:00.000-08:00

I am an unappologetic fan of reusable bags.

They're handy. They're cute. They hold way more stuff and are more comfortable to carry. They don't turn me into a walking billboard when I'm walking around the mall. I have a favourite brand (Envirosax) and I look forward to the release of their new designs like children await Christmas. They are such a part of my life that I bought a different purse JUST so that I can carry more of them around with me.

I can't even remember the last time that I accepted a plastic bag. I even use mesh bags for produce. I'm unappologetically passionate about my bags.

The problem? My husband won't use them, because they feel too girly.

What the hell is this? Why does having a bag with you = feminine? Most of the time he doesn't do the shopping, so the damage is minimal, but my GOD its embarrasing to see those white filmsy things all over the basement.

Tip toe through the windchill

2009-01-13T20:01:00.001-08:00

There are days when being 'green' is more difficult than others. Today, my personal challenge was the walk to work. When my husband and I bought our home 3 years ago, we bought close to where we work to cut down on the amount of driving we do. In the past year, I've probably driven to work less than 10 times, and for the most part its a great experience; I get to spend time out doors, its cheap exercise, its cheaper transportation, and finally, significantly reduces our family's footprint.

The issue then? I live in Northern Alberta, where, for the past month we have faced -30 to -40 windchills.

Being from Vancouver, I had no conception of what -40 would even feel like until we moved here. Lets just say it is painful in ways you can't even imagine. This morning my eye lashes froze together, which feels kinda neat at first, but then stings like you don't want to know what. It didn't help that everyone that I passed looked at me like I was a lunatic. Its hard. It hurts. And yes, I would rather be in a toasty warmed up vehicle.

But I truly believe that the things we do now will have a significant impact on the generations that follow us, and when compared to the dangers of climate change, a little bit of windchill doesn't seem like a big deal at all.