Wednesday, February 25, 2009

I'm really not an angry Hippie

So a friend of mine who read my last post (and didn't leave a comment) said she's worried I've become an angry hippie. She thinks I need some yoga, which isn't a bad idea anyways!

All kidding aside...
I do get angry sometimes reading about how big corporations and the government are just messing with our food and other things my son comes into contact with on a daily basis. I was reading today that the FDA is having another meeting about BPA. This chemical has been proven in study after study to mess with hormones and reproductive systems, but the FDA is still listening to the industry telling them it's really just fine. Other countries have already banned it's use and retailers have removed it from their shelves, but the FDA says it's still just fine...

but anywho...on to what I'm not angry about. Since I've started on the Green Journey there are tons of things that make me happy!
  1. Cutting our trash down to a not-full-bag a week
  2. Venturing out and eating way more vegetables than my parents ever thought I would
  3. Making my own laundry detergent
  4. Local food!!
  5. Discovering wonderful handmade items
The best thing? Hearing my son talk about keeping the Earth clean, not wasting electricity and gas, recycling, and about organic ('ganic) food. Just today, he was talking about keeping the Earth clean. It just makes my heart full to the brim.


Thursday, February 12, 2009

Things I can't stand...

So, a few weeks ago on a bulletin board the question went around "what can't you stand". I didn't think about it again until tonight while watching TV.

I've noticed that I have a problem watching all those ads that are trying to sell us things we don't need and are horrible for the us and/or the environment. (This includes a stupid ad on Facebookfor Tide that won't go away) What set me off tonight was the new Soft Scrub scrubby pads.

They are pre-loaded with Soft Scrub and you get them wet, then scrub away on your appliance. In the commercial, the woman is scrubbing away while the stove makes suggestive sexual comments. But that's not what bothers me. No, what bothers me is that once she is done molesting :) the stove she just THROWS AWAY the scrubby. And that's what the website says to do, "just throw away when the job is finished" GRRR!

Beyond the fact that I don't think you really need to use the cleaning chemical, can't you just buy the bottle and use a scrubby pad that you don't just THROW AWAY?



I've included some other things that really annoy me.
  • Trash day and having to drive by all the houses with literally dozens of trash bags full of stuff that could probably be composted, recycled or freecycled
  • Plastic packaging that can't be recycled - just make it recyclable people, it can't be that much different!
  • Every time my MIL talks about how we don't have paper towels - I KNOW she didn't have them growing up, why are they necessary NOW?
  • Having the cashier search for the UPC on my reusable bag that I just pulled out of my purse, and then asking if I know what this is and how much it costs