A "Green" Valentine's Day

Move over pink and red! This year I'll be focusing on having a "green" Valentine's Day! This time of year, people are purchasing loads of flowers, chocolate and wine. Sadly, many flowers are imported from other countries and are treated with harmful chemicals and pesticides. One way you can keep the environment in mind while still having a special day with your sweetheart, is to choose certified organic and fair trade chocolates and flowers. Believe it or not, ecologically sound wine is even on the market today. Biodynamic winemaking, a holistic approach in vineyards, is on the rise. This approach encourages winemakers to examine the winemaking process as a whole-including the soil, compost and vegetation in order to create beneficial and harmonious relationships while delivering excellent wine choices to the consumer.

If you're tired of the old fashioned chocolates and flowers approach, there are plenty of other options and ways to stay "green." Maybe you want to plan a romantic evening at home or just want to try something completely different this year. Here are a few ideas I'm contemplating for this year:

1. Cook a romantic dinner at home. Choose to save some cash and create your own romantic atmosphere. Break out the champagne flutes you haven't used in years or set the mood with candles (remember to choose soy candles-they are more eco-friendly!). If you do decide to book a reservation, choose a restaurant that offers local options and help support your local gardens, farmers, etc.

2. Speaking of dinner, set up an indoor picnic. Lay out some warm blankets and turn down the heater a few degrees and give yourselves a reason to cuddle! (Plus turning down the heat a few degrees lowers your electricity bill and saves energy!)  If you are lucky enough to have nice weather on Valentine's Day, venture outdoors. Enjoy local parks or hike the trails or better yet, if you have a roof or balcony, enjoy dinner under the stars together.

3. Venture back to your elementary school days and make each other homemade cards. Not your thing? Buy used couples' quiz books and test your knowledge of each other and start coversations that are sure to be interesting. Host a game night for just the two of you or for you and other couples. Enjoy organic chocolate and wine with your conversation and remember why you fell in love with this person in the first place. When you're finished, make sure to recycle any paper used.

4. This option is best for guys to plan: set up a homemade spa day for the girl in your life. Some of the most common and simple household ingredients make the best body scrubs and facials. If you need recipes check out this site: DIY Spa Treatments

5. Create memories and experiences together. Go see that play or theatre production you've been waiting for, make dinner together, check out a yoga class or try out these fun DIY Gift Ideas. If it is warm enough and an appropriate season where you live, consider planting a tree together or a garden. The project itself will give you both something to share together and home gardens provide healthy food options. If it's not warm enough where you live or if you don't have a yard, try a window garden instead.

6. Try antique shopping together or check out the local thrift stores. Second hand stores often have some of the most unique and interesting items. Buying used helps eliminate waste and helps prevent good quality items from ending up in landfills. Treat the experience as a treasure hunt and maybe you'll find an incredible piece of vintage jewelry, a decades old pocket watch or even trendy art pieces and decor for your home.

Looking for great gift ideas? Check out these sites to browse unique gifts meeting environmental friendly standards:

The Daily Green

TreeHugger

Uncommon Goods

EcoFabulous

Have a great Valentine's Day! Comment and let me know what you did this year!

Sustainable Fashion



Photo Courtesy: www.eco-age.com  

The red carpet is going green. Last week, Bradley Cooper was spotted at the Golden Globes wearing an eco-friendly tux designed by Tom Ford. Cooper's tux was remarkably made from low-environmental-impact wool and was designed as part of the Green Carpet Challenge project, led by designer Livia Firth.   This wasn't Ford's first experience designing green clothes for celebrities and according to the NY Times, Ford created a recycled velvet dress for Julianne Moore just last year.

Photo Courtesy:
www.kkwestdesigns.com

Hollywood isn't the only place experiencing a boom in green fashion. Up-and-coming "green" fashion designers are cropping up all over the place. Upcoming KK West Designs out of Atlanta, Georgia and created by Katie Sanborn Daker and Kristie Eshleman, has truly emerged as a creative and unique partnership designing "wearable art." KK West specializes in the design and creation of mosiac belt buckles, pendant jewelry and leather cuffs. All of their creations are designed using everyday materials and result in unbelievably beautiful fashion pieces at affordable prices.



Photo Courtesy:
www.olsenhaus.com

Even though it is still cold and snowy, Spring 2013 collections are cropping up all over the place, especially trendy shoes for the new season.  OlsenHaus, founded by Elizabeth Olsen in 2008, serves to eliminate any use of animals or animal materials in her collections. As a vegan herself, Olsen created OlsenHaus centered on ethical business practices and fair trade to demonstrate the idea that animal cruelty and fashion should never go hand in hand. Her designs promote consciousness and awareness involving her opposition to the leather industry and aiding in the understanding that style need not involve the cruel treatment of animals. Her cruelty-free, vegan line of shoes serves a pioneer for other shoes designers desiring to eliminate the use of animal fur/hair, wool, etc. in shoes and also a demonstration that her lines are indeed still very fashionable. OlsenHaus shoes can be bought from retailers such as Amazon and Nordstrom or online at www.olsenhaus.com. For the average woman, OlsenHaus shoes may fall outside their spending budget but options are available to buy online on sites such as eBay for as little as $20-$50.

KK West Designs and OlsenHaus are only two of many emerging fashion designers passionate about the bottom line: creating sustainable fashion. And they are both doing so with amazing results.




The Secrets to Living Longer

"I try to mentally check to make sure that I haven't hurt anyone, that the people around me are okay. I take time each night to think about the people around me, and think about what I eat, and what is important to me. I also do this during dinner. I take time to reflect. I'm not chasing the carrot any more." -Sayoko Ogata

This excerpt taken from Dan Buettner's well-known book, "The Blue Zones," really struck a chord with me. Buettner describes our fascination with the mythical "Fountain of Youth" and discovering the long lost secrets to living forever, happily. While no such magical source has ever been found, this book might have some of the most valued secrets to date.

According to the text, only 25 percent of how long we live is determined by our genetics. We are not doomed to a shorter life because our grandparents died at a younger age. In contrast, we also cannot simply expect to live to be 100 just because someone somewhere in our family tree did at one time. It takes practice and requires a listening ear to those who understand how to live long and happy lives.

This book explores Buettner's quest to better understand the world's "blue zones," areas where the population of 90-100 year old people is unusually high and provides a way to scientifically study cultural patterns, habits and viewpoints and how it relates to living longer.

I've been curious about this book for quite some time. The Cedar Falls and Waterloo communities have been working toward becoming certified "Blue Zones" areas through pledges and Actions. In order to become certified, a community must 20 percent of its citizens sign up with project and complete one Action. Twenty-five percent of schools and 25 percent of locally-owned restaurants and businesses must also become certified. Actions include such things as, "I will buy a bike and helmet to use," or "I will stock my kitchen with smaller plates to avoid overeating." Today, approximately 2,200 Cedar Falls citizens have pledged and completed an action in the ongoing project.

Having become aware of the project in my own community and hearing about it on national  news, I needed to read the book. Before I began reading, I surfed through the website and completed the Vitality Compass portion. This tool is the most accurate life estimator and bases your life expectancy on eating habits, exercise decisions and outlook on life, etc. My results showed by maintaining this lifestyle, I can expect to live to approximately 91.6 years old, 75 of them without major disease. My biological age (the age my body is based on my lifestyle choices) was 20.2 years. I was pretty pleased with this considering my actual age is 22.4 years! But I noticed I have areas where I struggle, particularly concerning the areas of life outlook and how fast I push my life's "gas pedal."

I have barely delved in and already notice ways I can improve my own quality of life. It's easy for me personally to eat right and exercise. I have always enjoyed vegetables and have constantly exercised. As a track athlete for the University of Northern Iowa, I have an advantage when it comes to daily exercise as it is scheduled into my day. Upon graduation, the available time and enjoyment of exercise in my life may change, an area I may need to be concerned about in the future. But my personality and lifestyle has always revolved on doing the "right stuff"-eating right, exercising and sleeping well. What about belonging, outlook and pushing too hard, too fast?

I may be missing out on months or even years of my life due to some of my choices. I'm  not a casual or relaxed person. I have Type A personality beyond what even seems possible sometimes. I push and push and push and eventually crash, sometimes crying due to stress and feeling overwhelmed. My perfectionist attitude has led me to great successes but often I find myself unable to shut down my over thinking,  my self-abusing attitude and thoughts that, "If I quit now, I'll never be the best. I'll never be first. I'll never just get...done." But I'm realizing now that always pushing to the "destination" and how to get "there" is just sometimes the complete wrong approach. I've always been so focused on getting ahead that by the time I should be ahead, I'm focusing on what's next, never really enjoying a break.

The American culture, in my opinion, is fixated on pushing so hard and so fast and worrying about our lives later. We don't have time to enjoy the food we eat, the yards we play in (if we do play at all!) or the music we listen to. Everything is a process. I'm eating breakfast quickly so I can get to work. I have to hurry up and walk the dog so I can do the dishes. It's never-ending. Everything we do is purpose driven and must lead to some end, the end we never truly find.

Having started this book and contemplating my own life and outlook, I have some work to do. This week I want to focus on my food. Isn't it crazy that we have this amazing power of taste and barely notice our food? Half the time I'm shoveling food so quickly into my mouth, it's barely enjoyable! I really want to savor my food, taste it and feel the texture. Secondly, I want to be truly aware. Instead of sitting down and reading a book for enjoyment while thinking about everything else I have to get done, I want to be truly present and really read the words. I want to take in the vocabulary, engage my curiosity and consider how I am personally involved with the text. I want to be aware of how soft my bed is, how warm the water from the shower feels, how beautiful the snow really is.

Finally, like Ogata said, "I try to mentally check to make sure that I haven't hurt anyone, that the people around me are okay." Wow, I realize how selfish I really am. I don't ever think about anyone else besides what I need and where I need to go and do. This week I need to be about the people around me. When they speak, I must listen. And truly listen, not just think about what I am going to say or respond with next. That is such a horrible habit I have. I barely hear the words others say, I'm only concerned about what witty, clever or funny thing I might say next. I think about how disrespected I would feel if I knew others "listened" to me in that way. Listening is one of the most important gifts you can ever give to someone. And that means putting my cell phone down too. Talking with the people who are next to me and not pretending like they don't exist and my phone is so much more engaging.

Ok, so be aware. Really listen and take time to care about others. It sounds so simply when you say it like that.

-Scotti

P.S. Check out the "Power 9" on the Blue Zones website- this is Buettner's collection of nine common denominators from people who live the longest.

Who Are All These Recyclers?!

Welcome to my blog! I am a new blogger so bear with me! My posts will center on my own curiosity and creativity regarding the "green" movement as I hunt for the latest and coolest ideas and trends.

Recycling is just about the coolest thing any college student can do. Like, totally. No, seriously it is! When you really start to think about it, it's amazing how many college campuses are deciding to make efforts toward sustainability. I have yet to walk on a college campus and not see those lovely bins full of plastic bottles and piles of computer paper. Recently, the University of Northern Iowa invested in BigBelly Compactors and Recyclers, which are self-powered receptacles utilizing solar energy. The best part? BigBelly compactors can operate for an entire week on the energy equivalence of brewing one cup of coffee. A solar compactor within the receptacle senses when the bins are full and communicates this information back to a command center, thus eliminating crews making unnecessary trips to empty the compactor.

Speaking of recycling, the whole idea is relatively new to me, crazy as that may sound. Growing up in a small town and on a farm in the country, my family was not a recycling one. What we had was called a "burning barrel"-an old metal barrel which served as a collect-all for all our trash and also any recyclable materials. Cardboard boxes? Put it in the burning barrel. Plastic bottles? Yep, the burning barrel. The only thing that didn't find an eternal home as ashes in the barrel was soda cans and bottles; you get paid to recycle those! I've always been a little bit ignorant about which materials can be recycled and where to take them. The little never-ending recycling triangle on the bottom of plastics finally has meaning for me! If you still aren't sure how/what to recycle, (don't be embarrassed  I didn't know either!) check out this link for helpful tips: Recycling Tips.

Returning to my original point about how cool recycling is, I actually really believe it is a strong value for today's students. College students seem to be very concerned about their own personal impact on the environment which is definitely an admirable quality for young people. You can walk around high schools and college campuses and typically discern who your jocks, cheerleaders, popular kids and nerds are. Adding to the cliques and groups are the "greens," or so to speak. It really is cool to be green and that means being socially responsible as well. Students tote book bags with solar battery chargers, proudly display their TOMS shoes and choose to bike rather than drive. If you don't believe students are changing their attitudes or identifying as "green," check out this funny clip from "21 Jump Street." If that isn't proof, I don't know what is.

-Scotti