Tragically beautiful - where did the water go - underground, outer space? WHO can doubt that we might make 'Mars rise again' as a life sustaining planet ? Its called terraforming. Time to do it, folks. What about a nice atmosphere?.. but bring your under-johns, Mars is further from Sol than we are!

When did science become a dogma? When did it become dogmatic? When did our scientists become political prophets demanding repentance?
Science is about data. Give us the data. Then give us several different interpretations of that data and let us listen to the debate that ensues. That is what science is supposed to be !!!!

O.K. I admit we bought "Lady in the Water" on his name, alone, but we are checking this time. I've believed Mr. Shyamanlan has been going down hill since "The Villiage" simply because that movie was so unbelievably contrived & unrealistic - they had be receiving goods from the outside, as an example. Now he makes a true stinker of a movie.. it's not even a "Popcorn" movie ! What is it about Hollywood, do they think, seeing there is no God (according to their philosophy.) that they must become our consciences, Priesthood & aristocracy ? Stop, stop preaching to us, Hollywood , please get back to good old story telling !!!!!!!!!!

In a way I find their decision wise, but I am not convinced that the planet is going towards the horror they see. Is this 400 AD with barbarians at the gate or is 1400 with 1450 and Renaissance on the horizon?

I do not hide my conservative philosophy nor my Gnostic beliefs and neither do I hide that I live a frugal life. Oddly, being frugal (my husband says cheap ) happens to be, also, often environmentally wise. I thought I would share some my thoughts on how to live in harmony with the environment in this weird, often crazy century.
 First, for those of you who won't be reading this because your lights are out... you are being very silly ...  I do not have the liberal fascination with the pre-industrial past - the past was a hard, painful place to live, often, life was short and just hard work. I love technology - have you ever tried to write by candle light? I have. Bad for the eyes. Don't even try to make lace, you will go blind.

Our house is only 1000 sq. feet. It is a small house. We have gas heat and burn wood only when we must, 1 toilet (my only complaint) & a small kitchen. The first step in both frugality and environmentalism is to have a smaller foot print on the earth. Having a small house keeps your footprint small, naturally --a  large house that demands more energy to heat, more water, more of everything - you even buy more stuff to fill it, don't you? - and then pay for security to guard all the things you have accumulated.

We do not use chemicals on our lawn - the weeds grow happily, which makes the birds and bugs  happy. I mow during the spring but I allow the lawn to die in the dry summer. We don't live in a wealthy neighborhood - I would guess it could be called lower Middle Class so no one complains. It saves the effort of mowing and the lawn mower pollutes. I do water my herbs, potted plants, flowers and roses. I use no chemicals on my herbs and flowers but I do use some on my roses.

I work at home. This saves an immense amount of money. I do not spend money on my hair, clothes or on a second car (Each car you own costs you many hundreds of dollars each year.)  My clothes are either handmade or bought at Walmart,and, sometimes, T.J. Maxx.I stay away from Malls.  My 'style' is American typical, I have fashion sense, of a kind, but at my age I don't try to impress people with my looks, such as they are. (I am losing weight for health reasons.)  I rarely buy fabrics or yarns that can not be washed. Dry cleaning is not only bad for the environment, it is an expense that is mostly unnecessary, with today's lovely fabrics. I also knit, crochet, tat (lace-making) and do bead-work - I would claim I am an embroiderer but I try to tell NO lies - lets say my embroidery is after 'a fashion' and leave it, there. I make most of the gifts we give to our friends at Christmas, which both saves money and is good for the enviroment, I suspect.

We have only one vehicle which my husband drives, a 250 Ford truck. Owning such a truck enables us to save money shopping at Costco, buying large amounts of certain supplies. (which is also good for the environment. ) I have smaller containers for some these supplies that I refill.  I do not drive. (never quite got the hang of driving, I like day dreaming too much.) He uses the truck  to go to work. We use it for chores, shopping far from home and for one pleasure trip a week, on Saturday morning, usually, to go out to lunch. I usually only see the inside of the truck ONCE a Week ! We run all our errands all at the same time, consolidating  them, and then park the truck until Monday morning. I get all my groceries locally - I live in a small suburban town and a nice but not fancy neighborhood - everything else I need I either buy on line or go for a walk. (walking is good for my waistline, also.)

We do not go on vacations. Again, this is to save money but it is also environmentally wise. We go out to lunch, make meals at home, 'hang around' and enjoy each other. Our vacations rarely cost more than 300 dollars. I see no reason for vacations and I love being home with my husband and cats. I do my crafts those weeks and enjoy the sweetness of  life - give me a crochet hook and some yarn and I need little else to relax.

We have been using the compact fluorescent light bulbs for many years, since they first came out ! They are less expensive to use and last a very long time. I just threw out our first generation of bulbs 2 years ago. Try them, you may find you like them better than the traditional ones. There is talk now of mercury in them... I need to research this subject, so I won't say more.  Try the Ott light if you do crafts and needlework, they are wonderful. The L.E.D. bulbs are still very expensive and not practical because of cost, quite yet. I suggest keeping an eye on their price and that you should try them when you find them on sale. We already are using them for our Christmas decorations but I am not quite fond of their cool colors and dull luminosity, so far - they are at least part of the answer to lighting cheaply. I love a tree bathed in the warmth of the mini lights of the past. I may experiment with mixing the two kinds in the future. (Note : did this Christmas 2007 and liked the results very much!) They are very cheap to use (after the original cost) and they will improve as all technology does, this also saves energy.

Christmas note: do not use colored flocking on your Christmas tree. Natural trees are the best, Recycle them with the season is over. Recycle your wreathe, also. You may want to make your decorations, so many are badly made imports that are made in China. I have used recyclable gift wrapping paper over the years but to be honest, I like the glossy kind that can not be recycled - but I am considering making my own cloth bags for Christmas 2008 - I can decorate them and make them part of the gift, particularly for my dearest friends.

Wash your clothes and dry clothes in the late evening and the very early day. This prevents the need to build more power plants - my local power company tried this for awhile and promised a rebate, but the idea fell through, few did it - I was one of the ones who did. Peek time for energy is in the mid morning and early evening when people are making breakfast or dinner.

Home cooking is not only tastier, it is less expensive and is, also, better for the environment, and better for the family. Prepared foods fill our land fills with waste plastics & containers. I personally LOVE cooking and it is a great hobby. Eat LESS meat and less take out - I tried vegetarianism and couldn't do it. But less meat is good for you. My husband suffers from Gout and has to eat less meat. (reason for less meat is green house gasses coming out of cow butts, sorry, can't clean this up...

We turn the temperature of the house down during the day and in the late evening - usually to 60 degrees. We have gas heat and use our wood stove for emergencies only.

We walk everyday, at least a half hour - its for our health and I joke that our doctor gave us the choice to walk or die, so we chose walking but it is also a very environmentally friendly thing to do. We walk to the local stores, the library and some of the local restaurants. We buy fresh vegetables and meat every day at the local grocery stores. Anything that we can carry and is sold near by our home - neighborhood living is almost out of style but it is a style of living that is very good for the environment.

My husband owns a motorcycle - a Harley. He uses it to go to work in the summertime. It saves money and GAS to do so.
I've already given you a list of recycling solutions.

So why do I choose this kind of life: frugal, simple, conservative ? It is because I believe that materialism of all kinds is wrong-minded. Frugality is another name for saving money. I consider it a spiritual discipline. I don't need things to be happy. My husband, my cats and my crafts and hobbies are the foundation stones of my life, they give me joy, pleasure of the best kind and a chance to create and serve others. I need nothing more in my life.

 The money we save is being invested in our retirement funds. So many today seem to think that a bigger house, more things will make them happy. It isn't true. They work, work and work, spend time away from each other needlessly and wonder why they aren't happy. Things do not give happiness. They just fill up your house and your heart with things.  Possessions and wealth will never bring true happiness. Happiness comes when I live a meaningful life:  Service to others, Love, friendship, kindness, simplicity, lack of desires (a hard thing to achieve!) and creativity are all  what makes me happy.
Although, friends, I would really, really like a bit more space and a second toilet ! We've talked about it and will wait until we retire. I would like to move some place drier with more of a  real summer - as you know, I love astronomy, yet never see the stars hardly, here, Part of the problem are the city lights - but part of it is the cloud cover of the northwest - I want stars and warm, beautiful summers, again, and oh, yes, two toilets, please, oh, Lord! will I be happy without these things - Sure - happy, now, people ! (just not warm, it snowed again today.)

 These old joints aren't getting any younger ! (God, I sound like my mom, now!)

So any and all who read this ... think about my words and see if you can include these ideas into your life.
I apologize for all the smiley faces - sometimes I just have to be a bit silly. It keeps me young, or nearly so.

A great deal of this list has less to do with adding Co2 to the atmosphere and more being just a good, conscientious person in the 21^st. century and many reflect other desirable results, less pollution of table water, less waste in landfills etc. Living a simpler, kinder life.

1. Recycle everything you are able : cans, glass, paper, newspaper, garden waste, tree limbs, (no flocking) Christmas trees. Contact your waste and garbage disposal company. In my locality they supply large plastic containers for this purpose.

2. We make the cutting up of tree limbs fun, doing it together. Also, we cut up any boxes, together. Make it fun.

3. Make sure you know the rules and post them in your kitchen. Things to look for : which plastics are recyclable, they vary. Some examples of rules : anything with food still on it. (example: Pizza cardboard boxes) Broken bottles. Check the website of your recyclers every so often for news, recently the changed the rules on shredded paper in my locality.

4.On the bottom of most modern plastics you will see a symbol that looks like a triangle with a number or a set of letters or both - check which ones are recycled and check everything you use to see which ones can be and which can't.

5. I wash all cans and bottles when I wash dishes and throw them in plastic bags which I later place in the containers outside.

6. If your locality do not recycle garden waste and tree limbs, check around. There may be private companies that recycle garden waste which they grind into mulches and fertilizers. {Recently kitchen wastes were added to this list.}

7. You can start your own recycling of green waste, vegetables, grass clippings etc. by setting up a compost heap. There are plenty of books about this subject. I used to keep one going but I haven't gardened for awhile.

8. Large items such as TVs & monitors (traditional kinds have lead shields), refrigerators (has damaging chemical), Computer hardware, car oil, hazardous chemicals and paints should be recycled. Again, check with your local disposal company, first and then look for local private companies. Be willing to pay a few dollars if you use a private company. Even my local disposal company charges something for larger items when they have one of their special recycling events.

9. Computer hardware presents a special problem. We have had problems in the past finding a reasonable way to recycle them. Check with friends, your Church, local schools, even the library. Make sure, if you do give the computer away, to reformat the disk with a program that fills the memory with ones and twos so no private information is available to others. Check on the net for such programs, I believe they are usually free.

10. I do a lot of crafts. I use old bottles for my herb rack and for my homemade bath salts and teas and various other crafts. I recycle yarn from old wool sweaters. Use old blue jeans to make bags and other things. Investigate quilting. I look for ways to have second, third and even fourth uses for things. Don't demand the most recent fashions. Wear clothes until they begin to fall apart and then look for ways to recycle them. Make your own rugs.

<<< Always follow the instructions of your recyclers or things may just bounce back>>>>

Other Notes :

prepared dinners, fast food containers and frozen dinners are not good for the environment and should be used only in emergencies--- Their plastics cannot be recycled because they have too much food waste so they end up in landfills.

Repeat: Make recycling one of your habits and hobbies. Educate yourself about your local opportunities. Call city hall and your disposal company if you have any questions. Even the library may be able to help you. Be willing to take the time. I suspect I spend an average of 3 hours a week, sometimes more.

As far as I know Good Will and Salvation Army are countrywide organizations but there are also a lot of small charities,also. Contribute any machine that still runs, clothes you don't want and just about anything else that takes up space and has outlasted its usefulness. Videos, DVDs, CDs are also good things to contribute. Craft supplies... well, you get the point. It hardly needs to be observed that your 'junk' may be someone else's treasure. Check with the charity before hand about their limits and rules. I seem to remember that neither takes computer hardware but accepts software.

The traditional American "Garage sale" is an alternative and makes you money. I've never had one but I would think they are great fun. Also: libraries are an excellent way to recycle books, videos, DVDs and magazines. We contribute to ours often. Most libraries will sell what they add their collections so please check!

Offer things to friends when you don't  want them any longer. I sent friends my old videos as we switched to DVDs.  Don't be shy but be honest and Don't wrap them up as gifts. (Bilbo Baggins would certainly approve of your mathoms!) Also, offer extra things you don't want when young people etc. are getting their first house.

Motor oil: never, never pour it down a drain. Check your local auto shops of various kinds and repair shops to see if any of them will accept your used motor oil, also check see if your locality offers hazardous waste recycling and some auto stores (the kind that sell oil, filters and the such) allow you to recycle oil at there.) so call around and find the ones that do.

I wanted to make a very clear list of everything I know about this subject. I have been doing all this for a long time and it comes naturally. Its just the way I run the house.

It is my opinion that if you are a good housewife you will do everything to make sure your house runs smoothly and that you save money. This is my intention with this list. I do these things not only for Mother Earth but to save money and to make things better for us. :

                   Two really weird things I am considering doing this year - make cloth bags for Christmas gifts. I love the look of Christmas gifts and the glitter, ribbons etc, but the paper  isn't good for the enviroment and the paper they say that is, doesn't do a thing for me... what about making bags? I could even put beads on them and use them for multiple years... been thinking about this for a long time and I think I will this year.

Learning to paint and draw so I could decorate and embellish with more skill, all manner of things has been on my mind, also for a long time.

                  

This is enough for now. As I said before, it's not the most entertaining thing to write about. Don't live a life full of guilt and depression... People like Al Gore are trying to scare you death, don't let them. I left guilt behind in my youth. Do what is right because it is the right thing to do. Live a brave life. Do your best with this information - I tried to make it short sentences so you can take it a piece at a time and adopt what is practical. Not everyone will be able to everything, obviously!!! Don't let fear rule you - Al Gore is blowing this natural event into a big problem, compared to the END of the last ice age, a few degrees one way or other isn't that big of a problem.

Rich guys with too much power want us to return to the dark ages, have fun, join the new age. Go ahead, folks, I am keeping my lights on.

I wish this was  a better Picture... but, alas. OK, people - get out the sun glasses and the short dresses, the ice tea and the grills,  its global warming time brought to you by the great Northwest !! Wait -- wait, wait... "Captain, I think we have a problem."

" Dave, I am cold, I am very cold, Dave... Daisy, daisy ... I am co.... l...dddddd, Dave."

Its snowing in the very low lands of the Northwest. I guess we will have put off our global warming show for another day ! Its March 26th. The flowers are blooming and its still snowing and its not even night. And yes, I am writing this and its still snowing.
Maybe the weather is more complicated than any computer program, mind you, the climate.
I will believe in global warming when they can get my weather right two days in a row. How's that for obstinacy?

Weather Channel founder has a sane, rational argument against man-caused global warming. I agree, though I don't approve of suing anyone. I think this global hysteria is going to be one for the textbooks in the future.

Well, well - I've been using cloth bags for decades because of the hysteria about them - now? no threat, move on, folks. I will probably still use them, because they are kinder to my hands when walking but heck, folks, get the science right, please!

Getting religion when it comes to environmentalism is a little like getting religion in any other form, its great as long as you don't become inconvenienced and you can do keep to your habits most days. I am not a modern environmentalist, in fact, I don't want to any where near those people. They are one and all, well, to be honest : a LITTLE MAD. I don't buy end of the world scenarios when they are in scripture and I buy them even less when they become a form of entertainment - and don't ask me what I think Mr. Al Gore - I have a hard enough time being nice without trying to edit those words. But I do take the environment seriously, and, yes, there is a chance that climate is in a state of flux - its not surprising  - its often been a state of flux. Look at the Little Ice Age. Look at the dust bowl of my parent's generation ... I would rather it go into warm period, though, than a really cold one - the little ice age brought on such delights as the Plague and Witchcraft mania (i.e. The persecution of little old ladies and their cats.). A warm age could come with both good and bad results - not all bad. Cold - especially a real honest-to-goodness ice age scares me.  I personally suspect - and this is because I was alive and reading the news magazines in the 1970's that this panic about a warming up of the climate is about as real as the ice age the scientists were warning us of back then. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do smart things that help save resources and lower the amount of wasted energy and natural resources... it means that we should have Both --- an advanced technological civilization and the work to improve it and our use of our planet's resources.
Above you see one of the simple things you, yourself, can do for the environment - just googled it and found an illustration - they are out there. Its a little thing and there are no government subsidies so don't look for them  --- but it does help. Plastic shopping bags can be recycled but it takes a lot of energy do it and most of them go into the land fills. Cloth shopping bags are now available at many stores, they are extremely cheap - sometimes only 99 cents. I bought a rather nice one (of cheap fabric ) at Wal-Mart, black with  bright green letters "Plastic? Paper ? Neither!" this week and I have several from my local grocery store that I use every day - I've been using cloth bags my entire adult life and they last decades if treated correctly. I am discouraged about the ones I bought recently - the design is similar to that picture I found on the net but the cloth isn't going to last very long and already the grocery bags are wearing on on the bottom where I sometimes drag them walking home. Time to get out the sewing machine and some of my old fabrics. I think I will make the flat bottom bag after measuring the ones I have bought.
AS the bag says, Paper? Plastic? --- Neither !
and thank you very much. and Do it and don't worry - little drops of water can make a mighty ocean.
The truth is that the government isn't going to save the world - each person who does smart things in better ways will do the saving.

Rat island : rats rule, birds die.

Most of the following isn't what I would call recycling. Instead, its doing familiar things in a slightly different way. I would, again, insist that you do not listen to the rich fear mongers who want everyone else to live in the Middle Ages, without the benefit of modern luxuries,while, they, themselves live like queens and kings. Instead, integrate these suggestions into your everyday life as the "new normal way of life" and don't live in fear. Whatever happens in the future, live with courage and do your best. Don't make environmentalism a religion, make it a deep down way of life that encourages simplicity, frugality and wisdom. I do not belong to any environmental organization and I have been running my house like this for decades. I dislike the modern tendency to hate mankind and thinking of ourselves as a blight on the land. AT the very least, mankind is the universe's mind made manifest, we are the universe reflecting back and thinking about what it means to BE , to exist ----
-I believe that we are the children of God and have potential for great goodness, wisdom and mercy and the earth was not better before mankind evolved - it was a planet without a mind and heart, a planet that was, itself,solely, an animal. We have given the earth its soul.



1. Use paper bags or cloth bags when shopping. This will get you a lot of odd looks for awhile but people will get used to you. It is very hard to convince people they don't need to give you a plastic bag, but do your best. Recycle the plastic bags at the local grocery store or with your recyclers, if they accept them. Some stores even offer cloth bags with their logo.
(Don't worry about the odd looks - life isn't a popularity contest!)

2. Use the new florescent bulbs. They have their problems but the technology is improving and the shapes now fit into most outlets. I don't seem to notice some of the early annoyances like the buzz I heard with the first ones. OTT lights are a subset of this suggestion... very good for people who need to do detailed work or work with variations of colors. Ask for the OTT lights at your local needlework store or shop on line. Joanne Fabrics carries them.

3.Do research on LED light bulbs. They are extremely costly but are slowly becoming cheaper and more popular. I actually saw some at the local grocery store last Christmas. Flash lights with LEDS are now available. This one isn't just good, its cheaper. .. they last longer and are cheaper to use. (I am not totally enamored of the Christmas application and I am tending towards using a mixture of the two kinds.) OH> its better, strangely to leave them ON. ( I don't!)

4. Use your power-down switch on your computer at night. Turn off your monitor before you go to bed. Turn off lights you are not using.
Do energy intensive jobs, like the dishwasher and drying clothes, during the late night and early morning when use is at a minium.

3. don't use a lot of fertilizer or any other chemical on your lawn, don't over water the lawn. I let mine die back during our few weeks of dry summer weather - its less work for me. Check with local experts about how to water efficiently.

4. Use a paper shredder for your bills and anything with personal information. The shredded paper is a natural for recycling. (This suggestion has a lot to do with security)

5. Eat less meat. (this one's good on several levels, particularly, if you are over 50!) The list of why this is environmentally sound is long but I wouldn't carry it too far. We eat less meat because my husband has gout. Gout is caused by the breakdown of proteins into purines in the blood. Long story, there. My suggestion is make a few days a week "meat free" and add a few meatless favorites to your list of dishes. Our favorite is Pasta with my homemade tomato sauce, bean enchiladas and my vegetable stew. (I may post some of these someday.)

6. Don't insist on new things - ignore fashions - both house fashions or clothing fashions. Instead, make or buy things that are classics and will last a lifetime. Don't fall for the 'Martha Steward' mindset. We are not as rich as she is and we can't afford to change our living room to suit her expectations.
I only break the Classics rule when there is no other choice and I can't afford better. Plastic containers seem to last a longer time than I originally thought, I have some from the 80's.

7. Be practical about things and don't buy fads that will end up at Good Will once you or the person you give them to tire of them. Fads are silly, expensive and environmentally unsound. .. pet rocks, Chia pets & Talking Elmo dolls are both silly and useless. Buy or make gifts of real worth.

8. This one I don't really do ... sorry --- but its on the list. Don't buy fancy Christmas gift wrapping paper. Instead, sew bags in colorful colors, decorate them and use them year after year. For friends, make bags for their gifts that are part gift, themselves. (something they might use as a purse, or to store things.) Don't buy paper that is metallic, it can't be truly recycled. (I admit it - I have never been able to resist handsome fancy papers !)

9. I save any packing materials - like the peanuts and plastic bags full of air and reuse them when I mail away Christmas gifts.

10. Think about reusing, making due, second and third uses for things. Think like they did back in the 18o0's out here in the West when things were expensive and everything had to come either by boat or over land and long distances made nice things rare and expensive.
Questions like: Can I reuse this?
Do I really need all my towels to match?
If I wash out this bottle could I use it for storing herbs?
If I cut this up could I make 6 kitchen rags with it?

Note : you can buy cork or rubber stoppers at the local hardware store.

11. Buy large amounts of every day practical things ... soap, frying oil, olive oil - all those thousand and one things that are used every day and then fill smaller containers for use. I do this will all hand soaps, oils for cooking, dish washing liquid - the idea is that you are putting one large plastic container in the land fill or recycling instead of 20 small ones - it is, also, far cheaper to buy large. (Costco, even Wal Mart (only the rich can be proud enough not to shop where the prices are the best!) are good places to look.

12. Use paper toweling sparingly. Use cloth for most things. I use Paper toweling for Hair Balls and for dealing with oil spills in the kitchen and not much else. I tend to 'fudge' on this rule, sometimes.

Well, life goes on. I read a sad & funny article on the net... some crazy NY family isn't using toilet paper because it is' bad for the environment'. OK Guys, you have just gone off the deep end. I will not go back the unsanitary Middle Ages and I am not washing my butt every time I go to the bathroom! Don't go crazy, dear people, just get smart and enjoy life ... Please?! God save us, what a crazy time this is!