Gift Cards Are Not Green

I went shopping on December 26th and I learned a very valuable lesson - and it was not that I should not go shopping on the day after Christmas, although that was a lesson in itself.

What I learned is, gift cards are not green.

I went to Wal*Mart.
I used my gift card. I was asked if I wanted to keep it or if I wanted to trash it. I asked if I could reload it, which I was told I could not. So I asked, "well, what do you guys do with them, recycle them or something?"Image by Getty Images via Daylife to which the clerk just stared slightly confused and finally she answered, "naw, we just throw them in the trash hon'."
Are you serious? All of those plastic gift cards that people give back to Wal*Mart and they don't even reload them?? (Okay, later I found out some are re-loadable, but not others) And they don't even recycle all of the ones they get back? They just toss them? Craziness I say!
This must just be Wal*Mart and more of their crappy practices, it couldn't apply to everywhere!



Or could it?

I went to Starbucks.
My husband had given me a $5.00 gift card - and I won't even get into how he thought $5.00 would be enough to suffice for me - so back to the card.
I bought my tall, green tea latte and handed my gift card over to pay and it was recieved with a, "Would you like to reload this?" Well, of course I did! Just not with my money, so, I guess the answer was really a "no". But before I let the answer slide I had to find out so I asked, "what do you do with the card if I don't reload it?" and the reply? "throw it away". Seriously? Even Starbucks? You know, the Starbucks that advertize that they make their cups out of 10% post recycled consumer something-or-other??

This really must be just a weird, tear in the universe, kind of thing - how could this go unnoticed? I mean, do you realize how many gift cards are bought and used and thrown away every year? I don't know either, but I bet it's a lot!

I'm on a mission. I'm going to write letters. I'm going to recruit friends and family and urge them to complain. I mean couldn't these cards be used for something else? I keep my cards now and I let my son play with this as his "credit cards" but now I'm just teaching him to rack up credit card debt, so I will make this a mission to have someone change this "toss the gift cards" oversite that so many businesses are using!

So, join me in my mission!! Write Wal*Mart and Starbucks and explain to them about how wasteful they are being and how they could better use their resources and recycle their gift cards!

One Bag Of Trash And A Parchridge In A Pear Tree

Until this year, our Christmas's ended quite the same way, with an overflowing trash bin on the curb with piles and piles of trash bags around it, filled with paper and ribbons and bows. Next to that is a mountain of cardboard boxes stacked as high as the car.

Not this year.

This year, we are including our Christmas waste in our Recycling Program!

It turned out easier to do and we got a better result than I could have ever imagined!

As we unwrapped, instead of just piling everything into 1 gigantic, stretched, almost-ready-to-blow trash bag, we split our wrappings into 2. One for paper and one for plastic (from the toy packaging) and any boxes get broken down.
It took an extra 5 minutes after we were finished to break the boxes down, however seperating the wrapping from teh plastics was just as fast.

The result?
2 bags of trash in our trash bin and a few boxes broken down, laying nicely next to the trash can. We were the only house on the block who didn't look like a gigantic wrapping factory blew up in our driveway.

What can I say! It's kind of cool!

Merry Christmas!

Image by Road Fun via Flickr

Merry Christmas to all of my friends! I hope everyone has a wonderful christmas!

Don't forget to recycle that real tree (if you have one) by doing some of the following:

• As your pine needles fall, add them to your compost!

• Donate them to help restore sand dunes, wetlands, and fish habitat.

Or just check out Earth 911 to find a recycling program that will take your tree and chip it up for you!

All Around Goodness - Vinegar

Vinegar and water is a great solution to clean with. It's a deodorizer and a disinfectant without all the harsh chemicals.

-- Windows, crystal clear.
-- Coffee pot, you'll never be afraid of what your drinking.
-- Counter tops, will take the smells off!
-- Garbage disposals, no more weird smells when you run it!
-- Crock pots, remove that soap and calcium buildup.

See! Good stuff!

Ok, so I'm sure more experienced Eco-friendly cleaners, or even those that just brought the habit down from their parents are reading this going, "Yeah, we know"!

But did you know that vinegar mixed with hydrogen peroxide can help cure fungus infections? If you want all the details on my personal experience you can read all about it here, or you can just take my word for it and head my advise that soaking your jewelry in a 2-part Vinegar and 1-part Hydrogen peroxide mix for 24 hours will not only totally disinfect them, but it will make them super-sparkly!

So, add jewelry cleaner to that list and save a bunch of money!

Work that Pumpkin!

Now that the night of spooks and ghouls is done and all the costumes and decorations are being put back into the attic, what do you do with that spook0tacularly carved pumpkin of yours that's still sitting on the front porch?

There's quite a few things you can do with them, so take your pick!

First, call your local zoo and see if they take pumpkin donations! By donating your jack-o-lantern you can give an Elephant a Halloween treat! Yeah, I didn't know they liked them either, but apparently love love to stomp on them and then eat them.

Second, If it's not all saggy and soft yet, spin it around so the "spooky face" you carved is facing away from view and fill it with soil and a big, full mound of mums! What a beautiful fall flower pot!

Third, you can do what I will be doing and cutting it up into small pieces and adding it to my compost bin. Between the pumpkin and the fall leaves I should be composing like crazy!

Or, finally if you just feel a little lazy, throw it in with your yard waste for trash men to come pick up. Don't throw it in your regular trashcan, it won't be put to good use.

So, there you have it! A way to recycle that pumpkin this year!

Handmade Soap

I wanted to share Peace, Love & Soap, which I posted about on my main blog with my blogger friends.

I found it while strolling through the Greenville open market last Saturday morning. I thought I was going to leave disappointed, until I ran across her booth!

Seriously, must get some.. so delicious smelling, so soft, and really an excellent product!

Another Thing to Recycle!

As I was perusing the internet for fun, greenie ideas, as I commonly do, I came across Nike’s ReUse A Shoe Program and I have to admit, I was shocked that I had never heard of it before!

You haven’t either?


Well, Nike, in all their shoe splendor has decided to start and athletic shoe recycling program. They accept your old athletic shoes (and not just Nike!) and they recycle them with partner organizations to create this stuff called Nike Grind (which is rubber, foam and fabric), which is then used to make sports surfaces such as outdoor basketball and tennis courts, indoor basketball courts, running track, playgrounds and even mini or full soccer fields.

Pretty cool, huh!

So, of course, I’m going to be talking to friends, family and co-workers to see about collecting some old athletic shoes. Because, I have a pair of shoes, seriously, that I’d feel terrible donating to goodwill because although they aren’t torn up, I ran in them… a lot… and frankly, if I were someone else I’d be afraid to get within smelling range let alone put my feet in them.
But that’s not the topic at hand!

So, interested in getting rid of some old athletic shoes and want to make a difference? This is how! And yes, there’s even a list of recycling drop off’s in your area or an address to which you can mail your shoes to. But I guess they didn’t include a scripted apology note to your mail person who must handle your stinky shoes, maybe I should suggest that? Or maybe it’s just me with the stinky shoes?

Well, since my rain barrel project has been put off once again, it looks like I may be starting this one up! Join me? Want to send me your shoes?

Composting Composition

Composting isn't just as easy as it sounds, you don't just throw stuff in and then *viola* get great compost soil later. It really is a science, the products you put in affects not only what you get in return but how long.

Learn from my mistakes:
1. Water your compost!
       We've had a drought and to help conserve water, I've not watered my compost bin and it's        made a huge difference in how long things are breaking down.
2. Green to Brown ratio
       Make sure you put equal parts green (household food waste) to brown (yard waste) - it will
       definitely speed the breakdown process and it gives your compost much needed    
       nutrients.
3. Stir often!
       I got kind of slack and didn't turn it, again... speeds up the breakdown process.

So, now I'm back on track and hopefully will see a better turn around. The very bottom layer is looking hopeful but not enough to really use in my planters yet.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

A Rain Barrel Would Love Me

If only I had one!
With all of this lovely rain we've gotten recently, a rain barrel would no doubt be full. But, alas, I have no rain barrel.

I have a super, cool, energy efficient washer though!

Next project.. rain barrel, for real!

A Washing We Will Go!

So, the washer has been bought! A Maytag Epic 4.0 cubit foot high Efficiency Front Load Washer. What does that mean? It means I no longer need to beat the crap out of my washer to get the lid to properly latch right to start the cycle and it means that I will also be saving some water and energy when doing my laundry. Right now, honestly, I'm more excited about not having to box the washer into submission.

There's quite a few features that I really like about this washer, including the multiple settings I have to optimize and make my washing a lot more effective, including having a much faster spins cycle to keep my dryer from having to work harder. Which, by the way, we'll be getting the matching dryer next month. Also, another small feature, which no one but me seems to care about is the fact that the detergent compartment (which holds powder, liquid, fabric softener and bleach) is self-cleaning after each load! I mean hello, am I the only one who had a stained bleach container on their old dryer?

The price is a really good deal for a front loader in comparison to others out there. Granted, I don't have the Cadillac version of a washer but I would rank this up there with maybe a BMW.

The real question now is, how do I save MY energy by getting something that folds and puts the newly washed clothes away?!