Super Eco

Photo credit: ifindkarma at Flickr

I'm all about the multitasking. Having four kids and working from home simply requires it. So anytime I can do more than one thing at once, chances are I'm interested. I even brush my teeth in the shower. Try it! It saves water and time. When I read about Krista Colvin's approach to eco-organizing, I was very interested. She combined two topics dear to my heart—organization and being ecologically responsible. I'm in.

Here's some good advice I got from Krista's interview in feelgoodstyle.com:

1. Keep your stuff organized. That way, you'll know what you have, and you can use it before buying more. Conservation and reducing waste are eco-friendly and go hand in hand. This also applies to creative combining. Partially used soaps can be mushed together into one usable bar. Different leftovers can be combined into a flavorful fried rice or wrapped in flour tortillas for burrito night!

Sometimes making rules is required. With four kids and a busy household, rules can help. Here's one of our new ones: "All open shampoo stays in the shower caddy until it's gone."  Here's another one: "The toilet is not a place to play." Well that's a rule for the two year-old. But sometimes we all need reminders.

2. Give away what you don't use anymore. This applies to everything from gifted body lotions to clothing you haven't worn in a couple years. I see it as a double plus to give it to someone who could use it and get it out of my way. Check it out: I'm applying methods of reducing waste and reusing at the same time! See? I can even multitask the good stuff.

Photo credit: joyosity at Flickr

It's the "Lime in the Coconut" song. The one where the singer put lime and coconut together and drank it, and got a belly ache. So he calls the doctor, who tells him the remedy for what he's got is putting lime and coconut together and drinking it. The guy is really confused and just sings that bit over and over again. When I read about green algae blooms being thought of as a remedy for global warming, that song started playing in my head and I can't get it to stop.

UK scientists discovered that some melting polar icebergs have been releasing tiny iron particles. These particles stimulated algae to grow in large clusters called blooms. The algae blooms absorb CO2 and then sink to the bottom for hundreds of years. It got people thinking. What if more algae blooms were created to move more CO2 to the bottom of the ocean? They want to find out.

The UN gave permission for several tons of iron sulfate to be released into the ocean waters off the British island of Southern Georgia. This is intended to stimulate the growth of green algae blooms and remove many tons of CO2 from the atmosphere. The experiment is set to take place later ithis month.

The lime in the coconut comes in from the people who argue that algae blooms prohibit sunlight from getting to the sea life, acidify the water, and cause problems when they die and re-release the CO2 into the air. Ecosystems are fragile and unbalance throws something else off. Suggesting a solution that causes more problems is like putting the lime in the coconut.

Photo credit: Greg_Reser at Flickr

"Turn off that light. We're saving electricity!" I repeat incessantly to my kids. But how much electricity are we saving? I really hadn't a clue until now! There is now a gadget available that can monitor and display household energy consumption in real time. This thing shows changes every time a light bulb is turned on or off, or a vampire appliance is shut off. It's accurate to 2%, which is close enough for me. Just having that display around can give a graphic representation of actual energy usage, and make everyone in the house completely aware of the impact of our habits. This is what we need so I can point out exactly how much energy we're saving.

The gadget is called T.E.D. It stands for The Energy Detective. There is an international version called Efergy. It's easy to install. It clips onto the energy line going to your meter, and the wireless display unit can go wherever you want to put it. It's programmable, so you can even calculate exactly how much money you're saving by turning off that bathroom light. The basic T.E.D. device costs about $140. How long until it pays for itself...well that's up to you. I think I'll tell my family that once we've saved enough electricity to cover the cost of the device, I'll use the savings to buy them something really great...as long as it doesn't use electricity.

Photo credit: superhua at Flickr

I'm setting the example here for green living in my family. That means I learn about ways to save the planet, and translate them into New Rules for the House. Sometimes they make easy sense. Turn off the light when you leave a room. Don't run the water while you brush. Sane, logical, and we all feel good about doing our part. But then there are those little grey areas. I'm talking about the rules that leave me wondering if they're really helping or I have them all wrong. Mom can never be wrong. It's Rule #1. So I have to be sure I'm right.

Take, for instance, power strips. I bought a bunch for my house and plugged in those "vampire appliances" that drain energy constantly unless their power is cut off. The TV, cable box, computer, and printer all now have their plugs nestled together like peas in a pod. The switches are turned off when we leave the house and before bed. "But mom," my creative 7 year-old argued, "aren't these things using power too?" I had to find out. My credibility was at stake. The Green Lantern website says that power strips use less power than the appliances would. So I'm right. Ha.

Then there's used tissues. Flush them? Toss them? Recycle? (Eww!) Throw away? (Waste!) Use hankies? (Ewww again!) What's the rule? After another research stint online, I learned that tissues are too dense for flushing to dissolve them and so that's out. But get this: in Malaysia, used tissues, even the snotty gross ones, can be recycled. The paper pulp is all boiled so the germs are killed. But I've hit my gross-out limit here, and my community doesn't go for that. Instead, I'll buy the softest possible post-consumer recycled tissue, and our new rule is: toss it into the trash after use.

Photo credit: Dirvish at Flickr

It's a little daunting to make a list of all the things that I feel I should be doing to make my home more "green." The list goes on and on, and I also know I haven't thought of everything. I need an expert. I need someone to find me the green products to buy that don't cost too much more than the toxic alternatives. I need someone to tell me which insulation is best, how to seal my windows from the winter drafts, the most energy efficient light bulbs, thermostats, and habits to adopt. I need an Econcierge. 

According to Ecopreneurist.com, "Econcierges are firms and services dedicated to helping households go green in any possible way." Otherwise known as an Eco-Living Consultant, this is an expert who can walk through my house and turn it green, and most of all, generate savings. I've heard that a few strategically-placed solar panels can help consumers generate more electricity than they use, and sell it back to the power company! Now that's a thought. Where can I find one of these eco-experts? From what I've heard, this is the new hot profession. Companies who want to save costs and be more efficient are turning to these mavens.

Advice on choosing your college major: if you want to make some good green, go into a green profession. And then, come over to my house!

Photo credit: nttrbx at Flickr

Imagine the restaurant of the future, where all of the food is grown, produced and prepared right there. Not only that, but it's all made from the same food source:  microalgae. Sound tasty? Maybe not at first. Or second. But think about this—the revolutionary ideas of molecular gastronomist Homaro Cantu could be the start to ending world hunger. That got my attention when I read about what Cantu, who is also a chef in Chicago, is doing.

He's using inkjet printers, liquid nitrogen and industrial lasers as cooking tools—actually, transformation tools that make algae into food and also into plastics, fuel, Styrofoam peanuts (edible) and more. I can't tell yet if I'm grossed out or interested in making a reservation when I get to Chicago next. Probably I would try it out. It's too much of an adventure to pass up.

According to Cantu, one acre can produce 10,000 to 30,000 gallons of algae, which has eight crops per year compared with corn's single yearly harvest. The algae can be grown in fresh or salt water in a wide range of temperatures. Admittedly, I had a vision of scooping the edges of the fish tank and making...breakfast. Oops, there's the gross-out factor interfering with my greater eco-sensibilities again.

He's an innovator though, and his ideas could grace our kitchens in the not too distant future. He even has energy-saving hand-size ovens that heat in the microwave and eliminate the need for the big gas oven that heats the whole kitchen.  Heating only the space you need is the idea here—it's worth exploring!

If there's a cheering section, I'll be on the squad. Go, Cantu! Can-do, Cantu! Rah!

Photo credit: mikewade at Flickr

I care about the environment, and do my part around the house in daily life. I have to admit though, I hadn't given much thought until recently about going green...ahem...down there. A little article on CreativeCitizen.com alerts women that it's possible to think green when taking care of business during that time of the month. I might have considered such advice rather intrusive. But I took notice when I saw that conventional applicator types of fem products contain pesticides, herbicides, plastic and fragrances—all of which are bad for you internally...where they're placed of course. 

What does the article suggest? Thank goodness, the recommended switch is easy and doesn't require a big change of personal habits. Use the plain cotton applicator-free type, and don't forget to recycle the cardboard box when it's empty. If you're darn committed to doing your all to save Mother Earth, (and a little brave, let's face it), there are reusable shield-type products and organic cotton clothing protective products that eliminate the need to toss anything out. So the real question is: Are you green below the belt? 

Photo credit: tarotastic at Flickr

Glowing in the darkness of the underwater deep, 770 meters down, lives a sea creature called Siphonophore. Though it is actually a colony of zooids, which are jellyfish-like invertebrates holding on to each other and functioning as one unit, it looks like one giant glowing monster of the deep. The Siphonophore zooids wave their flashy tentacles, which emit light and color, and attract fish. They sting the fish and consume them.

Imagine being on a deep sea dive and running into (okay, swimming into) this 40-foot long glowing phenomena. You'd think you were in a sci-fi movie and swim away, screaming into your scuba mask. Okay, that's what I would do.

They're quite graceful, though, as they move through the water. There's something to be said for a perfectly organized community that works in harmony for the survival of the group. Maybe we should take notice of their behavior; I know there's a lesson here for my kids. The next time they start to bicker, I'm going to show them the picture and tell them that I'll feed them to this guy if they don't stop it. But let's face it; the threat will have more impact than the community lesson will.

Photo credit: Schwarzerkater at Flickr

I'm the type that wants to have it all. I want to be lazy and claim that I'm actually being very planet-conscious and eco-friendly. Then I want to look at the person who accused me of being lazy and say "What's your excuse?" But my reasons have to hold water, so to speak. That's why I simply loved the section in Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings (New Society Publishers, 2007) called "Using a Dishwasher for Maximum Energy Savings.”

Get this: putting scraped—not rinsed—dishes into the dishwasher saves water! That's because most dishwashers can handle the work and you don't have to waste the water of rinsing them before the dishwasher does! Instead of doing dishes all day, just load 'em in the racks and run the dishwasher full. I pride myself on having saved all the water from a day of rinsing. Modern dishwashers going through a wash and rinse cycle use 3 -10 gallons of water. Hand-washing several times during the day or only pre-rinsing in the sink adds to the water usage.

If your family is smaller than mine and it takes you a few days to fill a dishwasher, run the rinse cycle alone each night. The 2-3 gallons of the rinse will still save water, and your dishes will get clean on the day you run the full cycle.

There's even an advantage to not emptying the dishwasher right away when it's done. If you avoid the heated dry cycle, you allow dishes to air dry. It takes longer, but uses less energy. Now I have an excuse for letting the clean dishes sit while I put my feet up and watch my show. I'm saving energy!

Photo credit: scottfeldstein at Flickr

I love potato latkes. When my Grandpa Lloyd was with us, we would have a latke eating contest every year and he would win, though I still don't know how he always managed to eat just one more than my boastful eight or nine. He was an applesauce guy, but I'm sour cream all the way. Topping differences aside, our Chanukah contest was legendary at the family celebration.

Now I make the latkes.  As a mom who's trying to maneuver vegetables into my oh-so-picky toddler, I decided to mix it up a bit. I discovered that it's possible, and even wonderful, to jazz up the latke recipe.

Potato latkes have five basic ingredients: potatoes, onions, eggs, flour, salt and pepper. Grate the potatoes and onions, mix in the rest, and fry in canola oil, flipping once. Simple. Since I grate the potatoes in a food processor, I started my veggie quest by throwing in half a zucchini. It was good! But I wasn't done yet. The next batch included a few select pieces of broccoli. Though these were suspiciously green-flecked, the kids still ate them up and asked for more. Vegetarian latke success!

Next I turned my attention to the potatoes. Idaho potatoes are traditional, but sweet potatoes have more vitamin A. Not quite traditional, but worthy. This batch included half sweet potatoes and half Idaho potatoes. I also used half an onion, two carrots, and added a pinch or two of cinnamon to the batter. The result was delicious with applesauce or plain. I didn't miss the sour cream either.

The bottom line is: don't be afraid to mix it up this year. With so many varieties, why not make latkes all year round?