Eye Opener: Junk on the Brain

Antiquing- going out and shopping or looking for antiques in a variety of locations.  Antiques can be found in many different locations such as estate sales, garage sales, special shops, and flea markets. Many people enjoy the thrill of seeking out valuable objects and restoring them. 

Junking- The art of searching or shopping for bargains, anitques, collectibles, or any concievable kind of dust collector or garbage.

flea market- A flea market or swap meet is a type of bazaar where inexpensive or secondhand goods are sold or bartered. 

Thrift store- A shop that sells used articles, especially clothing, as to benefit a charitable organization.

Upcycling-Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.

resale shops- all shops that sell gently-used goods 

1 These terms above all describe environmentally friendly alternatives to buying new products.  By purchasing items that have already left their ecological footprint, the demand for new products to be created will decrease. 

2 antiques- Antiques Off Broadway Mall, 103 Avenue C Cloquet, MN. 218-879-5284,  http://www.manta.com/c/mm0b3sz/antiques-off-broadway 

   junking- Guilded Salvage Antiques. 4430 Lyndale Avenue North. 612-789-1680

   Flea market- Post Road Flea Market, Hwy 5 Minneapolis. http://www.tagsellit.com/flea-markets-directory/Minnesota

   Thrift store-  Ragstock http://www.ragstock.com/  Superior Street. 218-722-1201

   Upcycling- http://www.snowmanhill.com/2010/08/farm-junk-repurposed.html   

   Resale shop- Plato's Closet.  http://www.platoscloset.com/locations/list/MN  5115 Burning Tree Road Suite 315C Duluth, MN 55811

218-733-9455

3.  I occasionally shop at thrift stores and resale shops.  They usually have good products that are much cheaper.  I also do a bit of Upcycling.  If there is a possibility I could reuse something at a later date, I will keep it.  Because I have limited living space, and no house of my own, I don't do much antiquing, junking, or flea market shopping.  When I do purchase my own house someday I hope to mainly decorate with previously owned items.  

Read 'n' Seed 5

     1.  The chapters covered for my final Read 'n' Seed were pet care, cleaning and household pests, and gardening.  

     2.  The main theme of the pet care chapter was to introduce the idea of holistic veterinarians and feeding pets healthy food.  The concept behind the cleaning and pest chapter was to  propose the idea of more using natural and less harmful chemicals.  This idea flowed into the gardening chapter by suggesting organic gardening.  

     3.  Out of all the chapters in the book, these three were my favorites, and are slightly more relevant to my life.  After reading the pet chapter, I would love to start feeding my dog more natural foods.  One quote from the book I appreciated was, " our pets reflect our own health in these inorganic times.  A hundred years ago a dog that lived on a farm would have eaten table scraps and supplemented by whatever it caught in nature.  Because the food was wholesome, both thrived."  Nowadays animal food is created from every part of (bones, feathers organs, etc.) diseased, disabled, and dying livestock unfit for human consumption, full of pesticides, and may contain barbiturates used for euthanasia of the animals the food includes.  Because my dog lives at home and not with me during the school year, I don't have control over the food she is given.  When I am home, I decrease the amount of dog food she gets, and supplement with healthier options.  For more information check out these two links for facts on dog and cat diets. WebMD and Huffington Post 

      In the Cleaning and Pests chapter, I learned about a ton of alternatives to harmful chemicals that are found in many household cleaners.  An interesting fact I learned is that when you drop your clothes off at a dry cleaners, your clothes are being doused with a chemical called perchloroethylene that is linked to liver cancer.  I also learned that EPA testing is not as through as many people believe it is.  The book reports that many of most of the millions of pounds of chemicals produced are never tested to determine toxicity.  There are six tests needed to determine a chemical toxicity level.  93% of these lack at least one test and 43% lack all of the tests.  This statistic alone is enough for me to go home and properly dispose of all chemicals I own.  Seventh Generation, Ecover, Bio-Kleen, Orange-Glo, Citra-Solv, and Bon Ami, offer safer products.  To make your own cleaning products, this website offers great solutions: Networx.  This site offers tips for chemical free pest control: Greenliving       

      I really enjoyed reading the gardening chapter.  I built my first garden box four years ago, and loved reading the books helpful tips for organic gardening.  Making your own compost is an excellent fertilizer and sends less food to the landfill.  Instead of spraying chemicals, dip your hand in soapy water to get ride of aphids, drown slugs in small dishes of beer, and sprinkle cayenne pepper around beds to keep neighborhood animals out.  I found more some information on www.gardeners.com/      

     4.  These chapters could have an enormous effect on society.  If more pet lovers knew about what they were feeding their animals and decided to make a change, pet food manufacturers wouldn't be able to continue in the state they run now.  Someday when I am able to have my own dog, I refuse to feed it conventional dog food.  Getting people to stop using toxic cleaning products, pest control chemicals, and pesticides in their garden, would be a difficult task.  Our society has learned to trust brand names and are now dependent on them.  Personally, I use the website provided earlier to make my own cleaning products.  It is cheaper, smells better, and works equally as well as a name brand cleaner.  I also use organic fertilizer and compost in my garden.  If everyone who gardens were to use natural products they would save money.  Healthy soil needs less maintenance and yields more produce than a chemically dependent garden.  

     5.  I loved this book, and I learned a lot of valuable information from it.  

     6.  To pick just three significant facts from it was a difficult task.  The first fact I learned was from the food chapter.  I had never heard of fair trade coffee  and chocolate and was unaware of the exploitation that goes into growing the beans.  Now I will only consume fair trade coffee and chocolate.  The second item I was educated about was the Hypercar.  I wrote about the Hypercar in a previous post, and am still fascinated with the idea of it.  Finally, I attained more information about composting.  I feel this whole book contains valuable information for making your life better, bettering the world you live in, and bettering the lives of those you do not know who pay the price for your decisions. 

     7.  I would recommend this book to anyone.  It is easy enough for many reading levels to understand, and has attainable tips for a greener and healthier life.  

Eye Opener: Environmental Working Group

I typed all of my cosmetics into this database to find out how toxic each was.  The product I chose to write about was my Cover Girl mascara.  I was happy to see that one of my favorite cosmetics was scored at a four and not higher, but it  still worries me a little.  It has a higher risk of cancer than many of the other products I looked at.  It says there is a high risk of endocrine disruption, persistence and bioaccumulation, and organ system toxicity.  It's scares me to think that I use something everyday that raises my chance of getting cancer.  The next time I go shopping for makeup or other beauty products, I will search them out on this website to find items with low risk.  This website is a great resource and I will be sharing it with friends and family! 

http://www.covergirl.ca/en_ca/prodimages/prof_super_thick_mascara_1.jpg

Read 'n' Seed 4

1. This weeks chapters were Money, Credit, and Investing, & Shopping
2. The main subject from the first chapter was investing money wisely.  The second chapter was thinking globally, acting locally.  
3. Because I am a poor college student, the money and investing chapter was more of a guide for the distant future. The book shared that if you are going to invest in the stock market, you should pay attention to factors such as if the company uses animal testing, cares about global warming, and condones child labor.  Your investments do make a difference, and it will be beneficial to invest in a quality company even if the investor cannot see direct effects.  The shopping chapter provided a great amount of insight.  The book explained the negative effects chain stores have, and briefly discusses clothing, toys, and cosmetics.  One disturbing fact I learned was that cotton is grown on 3 to 5 percent of the world's land and is sprayed with 25 percent of the world's pesticides.  One company that refuses to follow this is Maggie's Organics.  Bena Burda, Maggie's Organics president, is proud that their company doesn't exploit workers, gives to charity, promote quality of life in developing nations, and be environmentally sustainable.  As for toys and cosmetics, there is an extensive list of dangerous chemicals found in both.  Toys that are PVC-free should be purchased to avoid the chemical phthalates.  Companies that manufacture cosmetics, hair care products, toothpaste, lotions, etc., are allowed to use chemicals such as DEA, TEA, bronopol, padmate-O, ethoxylated alchohols, formaldehyde, and many other chemicals that are believed to cause cancer. For more information about these chemicals check out the Natural Skincare Authority
4. Whether we as American consumers see the damages of purchasing cheap items from a chain store, or choose to ignore it because it isn't in our town, someone's life is being affected.  Buying products from locally owned stores, purchasing objects from garage sales or thrift stores, pay a few dollars more for a natural product, investing in companies who care about their workers and the earth, and voting with your dollar, could make someones life better.   

Read n' Sead 3

1.  For this weeks read and seed, I covered two chapters:  Energy and Water, and Communication. 

2.  The Energy and Water chapter covered information on the problems with electricity, fossil fuels, renewable energy, water, and household appliances energy use. Communication talked about paper use and telephones. 

3.   The first chapter gave brief, but precise information on the greenhouse effect ozone depletion.  For more information and visit Dosomething.org. One interesting fact this chapter gave was in one day the sun hits the earth with more energy than the entire population could use in 27 years.  Sadly the United States has not taken advantage of this incredible power as only 1% of the total electricity consumption comes from solar-power.  Wind and water power are also greatly underutilized in the United States.  Tons of helpful tips were given to reduce energy use and costs.  Use rechargeable batteries, use compact fluorescent lightbulbs, use outdoor solar lights, shut off refrigerator ice makers, unplug toasters, coffee pots, VCRS and other devices not used constantly, hang clothes instead of using the dryer, and only wash full loads of laundry.  If you are shopping for new appliances, look for the "Energy Star" sign to save on energy and water.  

The second chapter from this weeks reading was a bit shorter than other chapters.  The title, Communication, refers to all of the paper used in communication.  Books, newspaper, magazine, and mail all come from trees.  The most interesting fact I learned from this chapter was that only the label "100 percent postconsumer" guarantees that no trees were cut for the making of a certain product.  If an item is labeled simply as recycled, the product was made out of scraps lying around factories.  I also learned that all of the Harry Potter books were printed on 100 percent postconsumer paper.  The author warns readers to print things with caution because five hundred sheets of printer paper uses up six percent of a tree.  Printing many documents also uses up ink cartridges quickly.  Tips for reducing paper use are purchase recycled paper, opt out of junk mail at www.optout.cdt.org, view magazines and newspapers online, recycle all paper and ink cartridges, and recycle old cell phones instead of throwing them in the garbage. 

4.   If the United States stepped up to the plate on going green, we would be a much healthier country.  The European Union has been much more successful at curbing emissions, following the Kyoto Protocols. Europe has demonstrated that it is possible to treat the earth better, now it is time to follow their lead.  The ozone layer wouldn't deplete as rapidly, and we would be less dependent on disappearing fossil fuels.  

The communication chapter stated that Americans throw 130 million cell phones in the garbage each year.  To reduce this number in landfills, phones can be sent to the Wireless Foundation, or left in company drop boxes.  Lastly, I learned that one ton of 50% postconsumer printer paper saves 12 trees.  If postconsumer paper were to become more popular, the United States could save dozens of trees.                                                                

Picture from: http://www.newmansownorganics.com/images/book_guidegood.jpg 

Eye Opener: CSPI

For our second eye opener, I decided to take the "Score Your Diet" quiz.  My grand total was 62 which is in the excellent range.  The highest number I got was a 33 in the fruit row.  I love fruit, and now that apples are in season I have been eating 3 or 4 a day.  The lowest number on my score card was a negative 14 in the milk and yogurt row.  Organic Greek yogurt is one of my favorite foods and one of my main sources of protein.  I am a vegetarian so the yogurt and milk are important for me to get essential nutrients.  I also am at risk of osteoporosis, so I make sure to get enough calcium and vitamin D through these two sources.  I would like to improve on the environmental score.  By eating more organic foods, I will be able to get a lower score.  I was happy to score in the excellent range because I try my best to eat environmentally and animal friendly, while still taking care of my health.  

Read 'n' Seed 2: First quarter of "The Newman's Own Organics Guide to a Good Life

1.  The two chapters I covered this week are called "Food" and "Transportation."

2.  The titles of the chapters are self-explanitory to what each chapter is about.  The first chapter gave information on what organic food really is, the history and consequences of pesticides, what genetically modified foods is, farming lifestyles, and helpful tips on what you can do.
       Chapter two provided interesting information about the Hypercar, or the future of automobiles.  Hybrids, and tips for conserving fuel were also mentioned.

3.  Both chapters presented me with new facts.  I learned a ton about types of pesticides, and how they affect animals, farmers, and humans.  The author tells about the the time she took a blood test to check for stored pesticides in her body when she was studying the affects pesticides in birds.  The test came back positive for DDT, PCBs, and chlordane.  At the time, the author was 30 years old and had eaten mostly organic for many years.  The chemicals used can remain in bodies for years.  I also learned about fair-trade coffee and chocolate.  I didn't know what horrendous conditions these plants were raised in, but from now on I will only be purchasing coffee and chocolate with the fair-trade label.  I also learned about the the Hypercar.  I had never heard of the Hypercar before, but the idea of them is that they will be made of carbon fiber which is a lot little than cars now.  They will look like normal cars, not SmartCars, and will get three hundred thirty miles on seven and a half pounds of hydrogen.

4.  Firstly, I think everyone should read this book.  It is very easy to read and understand.  This book makes going organic and being environmentally friendly seem like feasible task, rather than an unattainable goal.  It has small steps to eating organic that will benefit organic farmers.  A list of Hybrid cars is also provided if someone needs assistance car shopping.  

Eye Opener: Ecological Footprint

For the first eye opener assignment we took quizzes to determine our ecological footprints.  I was shocked and slightly horrified with my results.  In order to support my activities, the IUHPE quiz informed me that I would need 3.9 planet Earths to provide enough resources.  When broken down into a pie chart, 51% is services, 20% is for food, 14% for shelter, 5% mobility, and 11% for goods.  I try to be as environmentally friendly as possible, so I can't imagine how many planet Earth's a person who doesn't try would need.  I read the FAQ on this site and it said it may be impossible to keep yourself within the limitations of one planet.  It scares me that most of the services are societal and ones I have very limited control over.  Another quiz I took was titled Carbon Independent.  This compared your households total CO2 usage to the rest of the world.  My families use was 7.23 which is much less than the USA's average of 20.  This number made me feel better than the 3.9 Earths did.  To reduce my footprint I will try and buy products with less packaging, buy more locally, and wait as long as possible before turning the heat on.