Sunday, August 23, 2009

FOOD WASTE IN THE KITCHEN


Yes, try as we may we still have lots and lots of food waste that comes from the kitchen. It seems as if I am always pulling out another bowl, tupperware, or empty container to host the ever accumulating piles of leftover food. And, to make matters more complicated I have to separate cheese, oils, and meats into different container from the plentiful vegetable matter. Old apples, leftover salad, carrot tops, banana peels, watermelon rind, it all adds up. Even more problematic is the fact that the ants LOVE THE STUFF... so piles of composting stuff amounts to piles and trails of ants everywhere. Kitchen floor, table, counters- it's too much!!! So, today, since I had a bit of time while the kids are away I ORDERED some AIR TIGHT, odor preventing, (and, hopefully ant impermeable) KITCHEN COMPOST CONTAINERS. Yes, I splurged and got two as the need is great.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

A World of GARBAGE

People ask me what got me started on my BE GARBAGE FREE challenge...

Well, it was easy, I just became aware of the immensity of the garbage we as a species on the planet are creating and that I was personally creating a huge mound of it!!! Just simply a moment of conscience. Yikes!!!

Here is the FACT that shocked me and got me motivated....

Did you know that there is a floating garbage patch of plastics in the ocean TWICE THE SIZE OF TEXAS and up to 90 feet deep, in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and California???


check these links out:

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/oceans/pollution/trash-vortex?MM_URL=http://oceans.greenpeace.org/en/our-oceans/pollution/trash-vortex

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch

  • 70% of the garbage in the ocean is on the sea floor. This means that the island is only a fraction of the garbage problem.
  • 90% of ocean garbage is plastic.
  • The plastic doesn’t break down chemically, it only breaks into smaller and smaller pieces. Eventually, the pieces become small enough to move into the food chain.
  • Most of the garbage that ends up in the ocean comes from land. It’s simple, really: trash travels over land, into the streams, and out to the ocean. Our garbage - yours and mine - is ending up in the ocean.

Making your own YOGURT!!!


We have been having a hard time finding food without packaging. Yikes... I am definitely hungrier these days. Now that I am thoroughly motivated I'm going to start making my own things FRESH. I know it seems like a lot of work but I think that once I get going with it the process will streamline, be more enjoyable and nourishing for my family.
Looked up 'making yogurt' today.
This sounds like a good recipe: http://www.thefrugalgirl.com/?p=90
Planning on trying it out sometime this week.

Drip irrigation hoses: WARNING!!! they leach lead and other chemicals!!!


Apparently, many popular drip irrigation hoses leach lead and other chemicals into the soil. Yech! We checked the labels on our recently bought hoses and it is SO!!! They even say it on the label... I've heard that people are trying to ban those 'chemical leaching' hoses from California. I went out and bought white 'safe for drinking' boat hoses along with two sprinkler systems and a timer. My oldest daughter and I had a lot of fun getting them set up to water the entire garden in the right places. The straw saturated with water that we put underneath the beds will help encourage the roots to go deep as well as keep things continually moist. Right now we are watering twice a day for 15 minutes. Fresh, soft, safe water for those precious plants... yummy.

God's Garden

What a heavenly result from this garbage free challenge:
a gorgeous, food giving garden right outside my kitchen!!!


We don't have much quantity yet but what is there we have enjoyed so much: basil, tomatoes, green beans, and strawberries. WOW I would never have suspected that we would get such results so soon. The garden being in the courtyard makes beautiful conversation for visitors and get lots and lots of daily, loving attention. Taking a bit of an afternoon nap in the sunny parts of the hay between garden beds has become a dip into the bliss. WOW WOW WOW