Fun and Perspective

Fun and Perspective

What the Frick is Fracking?

Fracking.  Ever heard of it?  It's the hot-button issue in the natural resource world.  We believe that however your opinions end up, before you exert your opinion, your purchasing decision or heaven forbid, your vote, then you should know a little about the issues at hand.
The issue with fracking, which apparently is a form of, a part of, or the actual process of, drilling for natural gas, is that it may be contaminating ground water.  This is an issue because we drink water from ground sources (in case you didn't put that together).
The oil and gas industry will tell you it a highly regulated industry and process that is as safe as anything else ( like the BP oil disaster?  Sorry; couldn't resist).  Environmentalists will say it is a process that is detrimental to our health, contaminating water and air.
We could write on and on, citing different points of view, but our real goal is to educate and allow the reader to decide for themselves what they believe to be the truth - which often lies somewhere in the middle.

Check these links for additional information and remember, true power lies in the power of knowledge.
http://ow.ly/6pj3E 
http://www.gaslandthemovie.com/whats-fracking
http://ow.ly/6pj7w

Is that a Feather in your Hair?

Ahhh, those feathers!  They look so cool, so rock-and-roll!  But did you know there is another side to those feathers; one that not many folks around the water cooler are talking about:
Where did those ultra-hip feathers come from?  Not many of us stop for a second to ponder where our fashion originated so let me do the work for you on this one: Roosters.  "Duh!", you may be saying.  No kidding they come from roosters.  Let's go a step further:
Here's how they do not come from roosters:
They do not "pet" the feathers off.
They do not "just fall out".
They are not living happy little rooster lives waiting to give us feathers for our hair.
From all accounts that I've investigated, these cocks-of-the-rock star world (bird joke) are living in crowded, dirty, inhumane conditions for about one year until they are killed just for their feathers.  By one estimate, one of the largest factory farms in the U.S. is killing 1,500 roosters per week.  My understanding is that this is only for feather production, so let's not fantasize that we're utilizing these birds for any other grand purpose, like feeding the hungry.
Why be a kill-joy?  Because being a B.A.B.E means going that extra step & considering what effects our purchases have.  In this case, there are alternatives to the standard feather, many companies & salons offer faux feathers that are every bit as cool, every bit as fun.  You can curl & straighten them, all the things that you can do with your hair.  This bit of info has nothing to do with being a vegetarian (which I'm not), but rather an issue of what is right, compassionate and earth-friendly.  Aside from the animal cruelty issue, this kind of agriculture is dirty, dirty, dirty, spewing all kinds of crap in the surrounding waterways.
My daughter asked me once why I have to be so particular all the time.  My response?  "If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything".  To truly Be A Better Earthling, my hope is that we stand up for the actions we know to be wrong and open the door for educating our friends so we can all be B.A.B.Es & keep our world headed in the right direction.

The Green Thing—what a crock.

This was sent to me by a couple of friends...how true it is!  We should all stop & think about our day-to-day activities; interesting:

The Green Thing

 In the line at the store, the cashier told an older woman that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.

The woman apologized to him and explained, "We didn't have the green thing back in my day."
The clerk responded, "That's our problem today.  Your generation did not care enough to save our environment."He was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.
Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over.  So they really were recycled.
But we didn't have the green thing back in our day.
We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks.

But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day.
Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throw-away kind.  We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry the clothes.  Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that old lady is right; we didn't have the green thing back in our day.

Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana.  
In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us.  
When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.  

Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power.  
We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she's right; we didn't have the green thing back then.
We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water.
We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But we didn't have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service.
We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances.  And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.
But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?

Making your Dreams Come True

Ever wonder how people get to do so many things?  Your friends get new furniture, go on super-fab trips, etc.  Feel jealous?  Maybe just a little?  Well, half of those people - probably over half -are charging all those things, so don't be jealous of them.  The other half plan.  They save.  Wow!  What a concept, huh?  We have become a culture of "I want it NOW" and we don't wanna wait!  This writer, included!  Although, there came a certain point in my life - after a divorce, selling a business, ending up with awful credit and a slumping economy (2002) that I decided I had had enough.  I then became a saver and a bigger planner & my world opened up & I became less stressed.

Maybe you noticed that you haven't seen much blogging going on lately from B.A.B.E (really, you probably didn't, but humor me!).  Why?  Because this B.A.B.E went to Borneo!  Yahoo!  It was as fabulous as I had hoped and went as I had planned.  I am a rainforest buff, so from time to time, when I can afford it, I go visit & explore an area of rain forest.  Absolutely exhilarating.

Why bring this up?  Because, we each- hopefully - have passions, interests and things that make us happy.  Many of those take money to enjoy.  The key to achieving and truly enjoying thee things, with no negative repercussions, is to plan & save.  Here is a simple equation:  $40 per week = $2,000 year. Good amount of cash.  $80 per week = you guessed it - $4,000 a year.   You can go most places in this world with $4,000.

How to get this money?  Unless you are literally living on fumes & among the working poor (I am being serious, not derogatory) this can work.  Here are thoughts, bullet pointed & to the point:

• cut out your Starbuck's
• eat IN one (or two) more days a week
• start an online savings account (look for the ING Direct ad on our web page)
• Have your money automatically deducted from your account
• Do not touch said money in above account
• Do this faithfully - like your life depends on it.
• Enjoy the fruits of your labor.

No kidding, it can be that easy.

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Weight gain caused by small habits | MNN - Mother Nature Network

Time to re-think those daily habits if you want to achieve your fitness goals.  FATTY FOODS: Foods that added most to weight gain over a four-year period included daily consumption of red meats, processed meats, potato chips, potatoes and sugar-sweetened beverages. (Photo: Liao Ming Chen/Flickr)

Weight gain caused by small habits | MNN - Mother Nature Network

Organic Lawn Care is it for Real?

It's that time of year again - we play in the yard, tidy up the yard, let our digs run around in the yard.  But what's in your yard?  Rather, what's on your yard?  If you are like 75% of U.S. households, you use herbicides on your lawn or other forms of pesticides for a variety of unwanted pests and things in your lawn and around your home.  4.4 billion applications a year.  WOW.

Well, being environmentally-focused gals, we can't help but to spread some info about pesticides, a.k.a. poison.  Seriously, that's what pesticides are: poison.  Now, we don't particularly favor dandelions in our lawn, ants in our cupboards or prickly grass.  For us, there was a point in time where the light bulb went off & we asked ourselves "at what cost is our lawn nice?"
Points to consider:

• When it rains heavy, all the pesticides - poisons - from your lawn run off into the storm drains.  Most neighborhoods have a retention pond where some folks fish, ducks gather, your dog drinks after a long walk.  Now think - what's in that water? You guessed it!  Everything that went down the storm drain - including your lawn pesticides.  
• Pesticides have been linked to asthma, learning disabilities, birth defects, diabetes, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, and cancer.
• There are tons of companies that now offer organic lawn care if you're not up for doing it yourself.
• Consider watching Chemical Reaction ; we venture to guess it will be a game changer.  It was for us.

There are lots of statistics that we could throw your way from how many birds die each year because of pesticides (60-70 million - just in the U.S.), to almost 70 million pounds of pesticides are thrown on U.S. lawns each year.  But, in the effort to hold your attention, here's a nifty link for more info: http://www.organiclawncare101.com/

Take a few minutes and see if making one slight change this month can make a difference in your health and that of the planet.