Happy Earth Day!

  *Disclaimer - The views here are not the views of all parties in this house…..some of us who shall remain nameless are not believers and I wouldn’t DARE have others believe otherwise.

We’re Going Green (ish)!!!

  Jeff does not believe in Global Warming as I do so when I say we’re I really mean I. Today is Earth Day and a start to our going green (ish). I add the ish because there are some things I can’t or won’t do to help Mother Earth such as, get rid of my SUV, not use paper towels, and take shorter showers. The things I will do if I’m not already doing them - recycle, change my lightbulbs to CFL, buy trees (each tree is only $1.00 at www.Americanforests.org), unplug all items when I’m not using them, and use all non toxic cleaners.

  When I was pregnant Jeff didn’t want harsh chemicals around the house so now we use Seventh Generation cleaners which are non toxic, no fumes, no phosphates, no dyes or perfumes, and hypo-allergenic. Other cleaners that are non-toxic to you and your children are Meyers, Shaklee, and Method. If you go to www.Shaklee.com you can get 33% off the Shaklee Get Clean Deluxe Kit and save 15% off all purchases through next month.

  For recycling in the Las Vegas area you can visit http://republicservicevegas.rtrk.com/ to find out the pickup dates in your area - your republic services bill has your recycling route code.  According to the EPA, each person in the United States creates about four and a half pounds of trash every day. One way to reduce that number is by recycling anything and everything you can. Put out your red, white, and blues and help our earth!!

• Red Basket: Aluminum cans, tin cans and plastic bottles. Empty all cans and plastic bottles. Aluminum cans can be crushed and tin cans should be rinsed out. Remove all lids from all plastic soda bottles and milk jugs. Make sure your plastics are recyclable by looking for the recycling symbols that have a 1 or 2 inside the triangle. 
     
• White Basket: Newspapers, telephone books, and magazines. Please remove all strings and rubber bands. 
     
• Blue Basket: Glass bottles. Please rinse bottles. Remove caps. Do not break glass. IMPORTANT: Keep all glass jars and bottles separate from other recyclables. DO NOT include mirrors, plate glass, chinaware or ceramics. 
     
• Corrugated Cardboard: Flatten cardboard boxes and place them next to the recycling baskets. 
     
• Used Motor Oil: Pour motor oil into a one gallon plastic container with a secure lid and place at the curb next to the recycling baskets. LIMIT: Two 1 gallon containers per recycle pickup.
   

    Regular lightbulbs use 80-90% heat and put carbon into the environment.  If every family replaced one bulb with a CFL (Compact Florescent Lightbulb), it would be like reducing carbon emissions from 800,000 cars.  A CFL is 70 to 75 percent more efficient than other bulbs and these bulbs can last 8 to 10 years!
     GE Energy Smart bulbs use 70 to 75 percent less energy than incandescent lightbulbs and last up to 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs. For example, by using a 26-watt compact fluorescent lightbulb—equivalent to a 100-watt incandescent lightbulb—users can save up to $59 on energy costs over the life of the bulb. Saving energy saves money and is better for the environment

    This Sunday on the Discovery channel they are airing all of the episodes of Plant Earth as well as two new episodes. If you have not yet had a chance to see this amazing, wonderful, eye opening show you should watch it. It is so, So, SO good!!!!

 The following are links to help our environment, our world - the world that we are leaving to our children and our grandchildren.  
 

 American Forests
The average person is responsible for emitting 94 pounds of carbon dioxide every day. It takes four trees, which act as natural air filters, to offset the carbon dioxide each person generates in a month. For each dollar donated, American Forests plants a tree. For more information and to plant trees, visit www.americanforests.org
 Earth 911
Find information about environmental services and events in your community, visit www.earth911.org
  Engines Off
Lynn Romanek from Glencoe, Illinois, has organized parents at her childrens’ school to turn off their cars instead of idling in the parking lot. Idling 10 minutes less per day can keep 550 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the air every year. For more information visit www.enginesoff.org
  Greendimes
A group that reduces junk mail and plants trees. For more information or to sign up, visit www.greendimes.com
 Treehugger
For ideas on green living, visit www.treehugger.com
 Stop Global Warming Tour
Learn more about what you can do to find solutions for global warming. Visit www.stopglobalwarming.org  
 The Green
Simran Sehti hosts The Green on the Sundance Channel. Visit  www.sundancechannel.com/thegreen
 The Green Book by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas Kostigen
Simple things you can do to save the planet. Find more at www.readthegreenbook.comHelp save Mother Earth - Get Green!