Green Paige

It’s election year and we are all thinking, talking and worrying about who the next president of the United States will be.  Before you step up to the ballot box, know where the candidates stand on environmental issues.  Here are some resources to help you make an informed decision on election day.

• The Daily Green - Check out their Green Your Vote 2008  page.  Read about Senators’ Barack Obama and John McCain’s energy plans.  Send your friends and family a  Green Your Vote E-Card to remind them to research the candidates’ stand on environmental issue and to vote green.  Take the Presidential Candidate Quiz and find out which candidate thinks like you when it comes to energy and environmental policies.

• Grist:  Environmental News and Commentary - Check out their How Green Is Your Candidate  page with information about and interviews with Ralph Nader, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and John McCain.

• Mother Earth News - Their article, “Where Do The Presidential Candidates Stand on Environmental Issues,” includes the League of Conservation Voters  Ratings.  See how each candidate rates.

Co-op America, a national nonprofit at the forefront of creating the green economy for 25 years will be changing it’s name to Green America on January 1st 2009.  

Best known for it’s directory of businesses that are screened for their responsibility towards the environment, individual workers, communities and consumers, this 100,000-member organization has been helping customers and businesses adopt environmentally-friendly and socially responsible practices since 1983.

Executive Director Alisa Gravitz announced, “After 25 years of leadership in creating the green economy, we feel now is the time to bring the word “green” into our name.   As more people embrace “green” we want them to know we are a resource and authority on building authentically green lives and businesses.  For Co-op America, and its over 100,000 members, creating a green economy always means social and economic justice along with community and environmental health.  As Green America, we’ll have the same mission with a new name and even greater outreach and impact.”

Gravitz added:  “In our first 25 years as Co-op America, we helped put ‘green’ on the map and encouraged millions of people and businesses to seek out green products, investments, and solutions, stated Gravitz.  “In our next 25 years, as Green America, we’ll introduce millions more people and businesses to the green economy and help them build an economy that is authentically green.”

Entry #6 

I had another minor accomplishment with my bicycle commute today.  I took my daughter to school in the bike trailer, then made my normal commute to work.  It doesn’t sound like much but I estimate that I accomplished four things:

1. Both my daughter and I had a relaxing ride in the fresh air which is a wonderful way to start the day. 
2. I saved fuel.
3. I saved time.
4. I saved my sanity by not having to deal with traffic or finding a parking space.

Much like my commute to work, I discovered that the route to her school via the bike and trailer involved only one traffic light when we left the bike path and crossed the street.  When we take our car it includes eight traffic lights, congestion in the parking lot since spaces are limited and far more stress.  What a difference.

The highlight of the journey came when I was escorting my daughter into class.  As I held the front door open for a mom and three preschoolers, one of the young girls stopped and looked me over head to toe.  I was dressed in my new, highly reflective  safety vest  and helmet.   Looking puzzled she asked, “Are you a fireman?”

I smiled and explained how I commute to work and school on a bicycle and that while I am riding, I want to be sure that I am highly visible to the people who are driving their cars and trucks.  I was waiting for her to ask, “Does it work?” but she never did.

Fortunately, I have not had any “close calls” as of yet.   I assume this is because:

• I use the city bike trails most of the time.  We are fortunate to have well maintained bike trails throughout our city.
• I make sure that I am wearing highly visible clothing like my safety vest.   
• I am a careful rider obeying all the traffic laws. 

If the only downside of this is that 3-year olds mistake me for a fireman or a member of a road construction crew then I am a pretty lucky man.

Happy riding.

- BaBa

I just become an aunt  - for the first time.  My daughter is thrilled to have a new baby cousin and the rest of us are excited to have baby Adam in our lives.

When you learn that a new baby is on the way, there are so many things to do and think about.  Setting up a nursery might be far down on your priority list but creating a healthy, natural environment for your child to thrive in could be the most important thing you do.  Here are five tips to help you get started.

• Tip 1: Pick low VOC paints.  If your nursery is a blank palette, decorate it with paints that have no or low VOCs - volatile organic compounds.  Solvents that most conventional paint manufacturers use to improve resilience and make their paints more functional are VOCs.  These compounds produce a breathable gas that diminishes air quality and can be hazardous to your baby’s health.  Ask for paint that has a VOC content of less than 50 grams per liter for flat sheen or 150 grams per liter for non-flat sheen.  For our youngest daughter’s nursery, we are using Freshaire Choice.  Read my post Good Paint Hunting for non-VOC paint comparisons and a review of Freshaire Choice.

• Step 2: Choose healthy flooring.  Your baby might be a tiny, cooing bundle of love right now but in the time it takes to blink an eye, your little Speed Racer will be zooming around the nursery on chubby hands and knees.  Make his or her launching pad a healthy one.  The Healthy Flooring Network recommends natural linoleum, cork, sustainably forested hardwood or bamboo flooring that is treated with non-toxic sealers.  Carpets made with recycled materials or natural fibers like wool, cotton, sisal, sea grass, jute or hemp are a better choice than synthetic carpets that can off-gas a VOC called 4-phenylcyclohexene (4-PCH), a byproduct of a latex binder used to secure tufted fibers to carpet backing.  VOCs are released over time and can continue long after that new carpet smell has faded. For more information, visit the Healthy Flooring Network and The Carpet and Rug Institute’s  indoor air quality testing program. 

• Step 3: Select solid wood furnishings.  Pass by the canopied cribs with the mega-mobiles and the reclining rockers with heated seats and cup holders.  Choose furniture that is simple, natural and solid.  Most cribs on the market are made with engineered wood which is manufactured by binding together the strands, particles, fibers or veeners of wood with formaldehyde adhesives to form composite materials.  These adhesives that are holding your baby’s crib together can off-gas formaldehyde.  When shopping for a crib or other furniture for your nursery, choose solid, sustainably harvested wood that has a natural oil or wax finish.  Furnish your crib with an organic cotton or wool mattress and bedding that is free from petroleum derived chemicals used in fire and stain retardants.  Visit the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission website for crib safety guidelines.  For organic bedding options, check out  The Natural Sleep Store or let your mouse do the walking through Co-Op America’s National Green Pages. 

• Step 4: Research your diaper choices.  The debate between cloth diapers and disposables has raged since 1947 when Valerie Hunter Gordon developed the first two piece disposable diaper in England.  Now days, parents have a third option to the diaper dilemma, g-Diapers.  These hybrid diapers have a cotton diaper wrap on the outside, snap-in liners made of polyurethane coated nylon and a flushable insert created from soft, fluffed wood pulp that comes from sustainably managed forests.  To absorb wetness, they use a poly-acrylate gel in their inserts which the people at gdiaper.com claim has been proven safe in over 400 studies.  It is the same substance that the FDA removed from tampons in the mid-1980s because of its link to toxic shock syndrome.  Whether you choose to stock your nursery with g-Diapers; cotton, hemp or unbleached paper diapers or go diaper free; do your research and make the healthiest choice for your baby.  For more cloth diaper info, visit  The Real Diaper Association.  For diaper comparisons and reviews, check out TreeHugger and type in diapers. 

• Step 5: Buy BPA-free bottles.  The best choice for nursing your baby is breast feeding.  If that is not an option, choose to supply your nursery with BPA-free baby bottles.  Until recently, almost all plastic baby bottles on the market were produced from #7 polycarbonate which is made with bisphenol-A (BPA), a chemical invented in the 1930s as a synthetic estrogen.  BPA is a hormone disruptor which simulates the action of estrogen when tested in human breast cancer studies and can leach into food as the product ages.  Whole Foods Market claims that they are staying on top of the latest academic research regarding substances like BPA.  In January of 2006, they stopped selling baby bottles and sippy cups made from polycarbonate plastic because of the emerging scientific evidence on their risk.  They now carry Born Free brand bottles that are free from BPA.  Glass bottles are also making a comeback with the addition of non-toxic nipples and a silicone sheath that slips over the bottle to help prevent breakage.  For a product report on baby bottles, visit The Green Guide or search NatureMom’s Blog for BPA-free and glass baby bottle reviews from parents.  

For more ideas on how to create a healthy and natural nursery for your baby, visit The Green Home Guide  and search for nursery.    

I am sad to see summer go this year.  I will miss the fresh vegetables from our tiny garden.  Fortunately, we are still harvesting green tomatoes, zucchini, crookneck squash and eggplant.  Here are a couple of recipes that freeze well and will extend your late summer harvest into the fall and winter months.

Cream of Green Tomato Soup

This recipe is my own modification on my mother’s green tomato soup recipe.  My daughter, the picky eater, loves this soup so much she will eat two bowls at a sitting.  In our family, that’s a big recommendation.

Ingredients: 

2 lbs. green tomatoes - chopped

5 cups chicken broth (low sodium)

2 large baking potatoes - cubed but not peeled

1 yellow onion - diced

2 cloves garlic - chopped

2 sticks of celery - chopped

1 bay leaf

1/2 lb. Black Forest Ham - chopped 

1 tsp. white pepper

salt to taste (if needed)

Optional:  1 c. sour cream - added before serving or as garnish

1. Combine tomatoes, broth, potatoes, onion, garlic, celery and bay leaf together in a large soup pot.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook until potatoes are tender.  If you are using a crockpot, cook on low for 5 to 6 hours or until potatoes are tender.
2. Remove bay leaf and add ham. 
3. Blend the solids from the soup in a food processor or blender until smooth.  Return the puree to the soup pot or crockpot.  Stir in the sour cream and season to taste with pepper and salt. Warm over a medium heat for another 30 minutes.  Use high heat if  you are using a crockpot.
4. Serve with pumpernickel bread.

Chocolate Zucchini Nut Bread

This recipe makes three 9×5 loaves - two for freezing and one for eating right away.

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

Dry Ingredients:

6 cups of all-purpose unbleached white flour

2 tsp salt

2 tsp soda

2 tbl sp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg (freshly grated)

1/2 tsp. baking powder

Whisk together in a large bowl.

Wet Ingredients:

12 organic egg whites - beaten to a light and foamy consistency

1 cup canola oil

3 cups brown sugar

4 cups grated, unpeeled zucchini

1 12-oz pkg semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup walnuts - chopped

1/2 cup pecans - chopped

4 tsp. vanilla

butter - to coat pans

1. Combine the first four wet ingredients and beat well with an electric mixer.
2. Combine dry ingredients and wet ingredients with chocolate chips, nuts and vanilla.  Stir with wooden spoon until blended.  Don’t over-stir. 
3. Pour batter into three loaf pans which have been coated with butter.  
4. Bake for about one hour or until a cake tester inserted into the center of each loaf comes out clean. 
5. Cool on racks.  Freezes well. 

Entry #5

While I was riding to work this week, I began to notice something strange.  About a third of the riders I encountered had wires protruding from their ears.  Some of these devices were tiny ear buds and at least one that I saw was a pair of full noise canceling head phones that airline passengers wear.  I imagine these wired bicyclists were plugged into iPods, MP3 players or maybe even FM radio.  I couldn’t help wondering what they were listening to - NPR? Obama’s nomination acceptance speech?  The audio recording of “Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows?”  Something must keep their attention and interest or were they simply looking for an alternative to listening to…silence? Nature? The world around them?

Not being sophisticated enough to have my music loaded into an MP3 player,  I go for the natural preference.  On one commute this week I listened, carefully, and this is what I heard:

• Wind  -  The simple, soothing whisper of wind rushing by my ears.  No beat or lyrics but it was nice none the less.  It changed in volume and tone as I moved faster, slower or turned my head.
• Wild Life  -  The stereophonic sounds of crickets singing, the occasional quack of a duck and the caw of the crow.
• People  -  Friendly greetings from an older woman with over-sized, white glasses and a large brimmed orange hat, the occasional “on your left” of other cyclists in much better shape passing me by…on my left, kids laughing as they play on the school’s playground and the musical “tings” of a neighborhood wind chime.
• The City  -  Occasional industrial sounds: a jack hammer, a car in desperate need of a new muffler and the hum of traffic as I cross a busy intersection.  The first dry leaf of Fall that somehow ended up in the street, rustles behind a car as if pulled by a invisible string.
• Dogs  -  “Conversations” of the dogs in the kennel that I pass.  I imagine what breed of dogs are barking to each other. What are they saying? I will need to watch “Lady and the Tramp” to brush up on the language of barking .

I have discovered that with a stressful job and a busy home with children, it helps to wind down with the silence that comes from my morning and afternoon commute.  Silence peppered with the sounds I have described.  Time to think and relax.  All I need is to tune my ears to the silence and the sounds and of course make sure my batteries are charged.

Do you wear headphones?  Do you feel wearing headphones while you bike commute is a safe practice or do you worry that your tunes might be blocking out the warning honk of a turning car or the siren of a speeding emergency vehicle? Let me hear from you.

Thanks,  Ba Ba

BaBa’s Bike Journal

Entry #4

My bike commute last week was disappointing.  Between work expectations that require that I drive my car and the in-laws visiting for Labor Day weekend, I only bike commuted one day.

My newest challenge seems to be finding balance.  I am not talking about literal balance but finding a good balance of time that allows me to ride everyday.  I have a job that requires me to get out to visit other locations at least once, if not twice a week.  This can be challenging, although not impossible, to do on a bike.  I am discovering that it takes planning. 

“Plan your work, work your plan.”

Oh, if our modern lifestyle were that simple.  Yet I try this practically daily.  I also find the earlier I get up, the better my day goes because I have time to plan my time.  So maybe there is some wisdom around

“Early to bed, early to rise…helps to get a bicycle commuter out the door and on his/her way,”

or something like that.

How do you balance your desire or need to ride and still get everything done?  Please comment and let me know.

-BaBa