Styrofoam CAN be recycled - but it's not easy.

So tonight as I was cleaning up from another put-it-together project, I was trying to cram the Styrofoam packaging into the trash because "everyone knows it can't be recycled and it's just a sad fact, and save the tears for the whales"...right? WRONG!

After much searching it seems everyone is in search of a recycling center that accepts the static-y white stuff. Lo and behold I found The Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers! And they are located in my home state of Maryland!

And the excitement stops there.

It seems the Alliance with all their muscle can't even get a drop-off location for Styrofoam recycling IN the state where it's located.

They offer some nice suggestions for mailing the packaging material to the centers that accept it by mail. But I can't image the cost for the box and postage for the huge chunks of Styrofoam...even if they weigh less than a pound. Plus, it seems silly to mail shipping material. I should just hold onto it until that next fragile package - right?

Plus, some of you live nearby a Styrofoam drop-off location! To see if you do check out the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers website and download the .pdf file. And then take advantage of it!

Lost in the foam,
Janine

A New Sniffing Sensation

First was the laundry detergent. Now I've found Clorox GreenWorks dish soap and again...I'm WOWed by the scent! These GreenWorks folks have it down when it comes to smelling good. I'm sure there's science behind that, or maybe it's as simple as things that are natural smell good. Either way, I find myself sneaking sniffs of the stuff.

Switching to natural cleaners is a perfect way to transition into being greener. But it's hard to switch when we often have brands we've used for years. For me, as a Clorox user, I was willing to try the GreenWorks dish soap without putting up too much fuss.

The real test came when I used it in my sink on foods that are notoriously "tough" to scrub off....peanut butter, baked on cheese, burnt veggies (I'm green, I never claimed to be a good cook). Clorox GreenWorks dish soap passed with flying green colors!

Try it and let me know what you think...about the dish soap, not my weird smelling obsession.

And thanks to Mom Central for introducing me to Clorox GreenWorks!

Janine

One way to keep leaves out of the landfill

I'm really a city girl and because of that have always loved the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair that comes through every August.

I get my fill of animal smells, Wrangler jeans, and 4H, while my kids get their fill of games, and rides.

This year we explored the outer regions of the fair where I came across a booth that had information about a county-wide compost program that seemed only too good to be true.

I realized that all those brown yard bags filled with grass, leaves, and trimmings don't just get emptied into the local landfill, or burned. They are brought to a large compost facility and transformed into products called Leafgro and Compro.

Whomever thought that one up gets a LilGreen pat on the back!
If you live in Montgomery County, Maryland, click HERE for more information and to find locations where Leafgro and Compro are sold.

Janine

The "Tide" is changing!

My house was always a die-hard Tide house. Nothing did laundry like Tide, and if it did, we didn't want to hear about it.

And then I went and decided to get green.

To Mr. Green's dismay, I switched to Seventh Generation natural laundry detergent...and fell in love!

It's 2x concentrated so you can use less per load.
And the smell...ooooh the smell. So yummy and clean and refreshing!

My choice is white flower and bergamot citrus and if I cared to do my homework I'd look that up but I don't - I just like how it smells....a lot!

It makes my nose tingle in a good way and I...get this...look forward to doing laundry!

Who knew I'd ever put that in writing.
Janine

Don't Trash those Broken Crayons

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.
I recently found out about a crayon recycling program called Crazy Crayons.
But...
How many broken crayons have I tossed into the trash?
Hundreds? At least.



This program takes old and broken crayons, with the wrappers still on, and recycles them into mixed-color crazy crayons.

One woman, LuAnn Foty, is to thank for developing this program and "saving over 34,000 lbs of unwanted crayons" according to the website. And, buying Crazy Crayons helps the program continue, and make great gifts!

Lil Green tip: shipping one large box uses less material and will cost less than shipping lots of smaller boxes.

Ship crayons to:
CRAYON RECYCLING PROGRAM
LAF Lines, Ltd.
721 Village Road
Pelican Lake, WI 54463

I'm already thinking this would make a great school, scouting, or family recycling project. It's easy. It's little. But it will make a big difference.

Janine

To Market to market with my new Envirosax

I'm headed off to the farmer's market with a little green gift from my eco-friendly mom. It's an Envirosax and it's waaaay cute, very functional, and green!

These lightweight, water-proof, reusable bags fold up into a tiny pouch that fits easily into my purse. I'm already a fan of the reusable grocery bags and I leave a stash of them in my car. But there are often times I forget to grab them and they certainly don't fold up this small.

My Envirosax will come in handy at the market,
at the fair (to carry all those horrible prizes my husband likes to win),
at the pool (to carry home wet suits),
just about anywhere!

There is a line of kids bags too. How cool!

Janine

What Every Kid Needs

A wind-up flashlight!

I know these have been around for awhile. But it's got a new use for me. Every time the power went out it was a struggle between my kids wanting to feel comfortable by having their own flashlight,
and me wanting to save the batteries because this could be "the big one" - you know, the one power outage that lasts days and there's a run on C and D batteries and flashlights.

And then I found these. Originally a gift for my husband (who can NEVER find a flashlight when he needs one), they quickly turned into toys for my kids. They love it when the power goes off now. They love playing in a dark basement (saves some electricity for me!). They love to crank the handle and charge them up.

And I don't fret about the batteries.
It's a win-win. Only my husband loses...his gift is no longer really his.
But now I know what to get him for his birthday :).

Janine

Hooray for butter and margarine tubs!

OK, not your typical cry for joy, but it's the little things that make me happy.

My county NOW recycles butter and margarine tubs among other items that we all thought were recycled but really weren't.

For years just about everyone I know who recycles has thrown in all kinds of plastic items including peanut butter jars, yogurt containers, mayo jars, salad bar plastic containers, and margarine tubs...all of which were NOT accepted.

So what happens to all that stuff? Some poor soul is tasked with pulling it off the conveyor belt at our local recycling center. I only learned this when I volunteered to do a recycling contest at my children's preschool. Once I started telling people, I realized not one person actually knew that there were things that couldn't be recycled!

So while everyone thought they were doing a good deed tossing in all that plastic, in reality, they were creating much more work for someone.

Today, all that has changed. I saw not one, but several small ads promoting the fact that those items previously mentioned (and more) can be recycled.

So a little green pat on the back to to the person in Montgomery County government who recognized there's a lot more plastic coming in, and finding a way to recycle it.

If you aren't sure what your local recycling center accepts, check their website. Need help finding a recycling center or a place to take "unacceptable" items? Visit this site: earth911.org for a very cool recycling search tool!

Happy sorting,
Janine

Cha-ching! The $ound of Tra$h

WAIT! Don't throw that out! It could be worth money!

This is the new saying in my house. This past spring I participated in my neighborhood yard sale and made about $200. And now I take a second (and third) look at just about everything to determine if it has any value.
That old toddler swing? Sold on CraigsList for $10.
The Little Tykes playhouse...brought me $100, cold, hard cash. I didn't even have to help take it apart. (Little Green Tip: do a little research before you post your stuff. I included photos, and retail pricing so potential buyers could see the savings right on my post).

But sites like eBay, CraigsList, and others aren't just making people money (and conversely getting people deals), they are helping people to reduce, reuse and recycle that valuable thing called stuff.

And a really cool place for stuff that doesn't sell is Freecycle.org
I'm almost shocked at the stuff people have taken from my driveway.

Old broken fishing rods? Someone else wanted to fix them. A baby swing that only moves back and forth? One lucky person got that and I threw in the batteries too!

I didn't make money on these items (on Freecycle everything is free). And yet I was grateful that I didn't have to experience the green guilt that comes with putting stuff out in the trash.

So next time you tackle that garage, attic, or closet, don't be so quick to toss things in the trash. Consider that someone may just want what you don't...and they may be willing to pay for it.

Janine

I Drive 55

I consider myself a New Yorker. I haven't actually lived in NY, but I grew up in Connecticut and NYC was what I referred to as "The City". I now live outside of Washington, DC but "The City" will always be New York City to me. DC is DC.

That said, I drive like a New Yorker...at least compared to people around here. I plow up to the front of a merge lane and push my way in. I peel out from a light and slam on my breaks at the next light. I weave in and out of traffic trying to find the best lane of the beltway...much to my husband's dismay.

That all came to a screeching halt when gas hit the $4 mark.

I decided I'd try driving the speed limit on the highway just to see if it made a difference.
(Lil Green Tip: ease into this. you'll go nuts driving 55 if you're used to doing 75-80 on the highway. Start at 70. Next week set your cruise control at 65. The following week go to 60 mph. You've got to give yourself a chance to get used to people passing you. Deep breathing, Howard Stern, or books on tape are good distractions.)

And as uncomfortable as I was having everyone pass me by, I did notice a tank of gas was lasting longer!

Of course I started doing a few other recommended things:

1. I've started easing out of a stop instead of gunning it.
2. I drive close to the speed limit even on back roads.
3. I combine trips as much as possible.
4. I try to telecommute for work an extra day a week.

And the result is for the past 3 weeks a tank of gas has lasted me one, whole week*!

So another Little Green pat on the back for me for having the patience to slow down.

Janine

*note: I don't drive on the highway everyday and I don't have a long commute.

Rain, rain, stay and play!

In the past few years in the DC area we've had periods of tremendous rain in the spring, followed by periods of drought in the summer.

I've experimented with ways to collect the rain we DO get during those droughts and for all my efforts the only thing I collected, in any large quantity, was funny looks from my neighbors (and guffaws from my husband) as I run around my house with trash cans and a baby pool in the middle of a storm.

And so one of my first real efforts at turning a little MORE green will be installing a rain barrel.

Rain barrels have been around for ages and if you're like me, you might think of the old western movies where the bad guys fall (butt first for laughs) into a wooden barrel filled with water.

Well rain barrels have come a long way. Just see these rain barrels!

I'm just trying to decide if my less-than-green husband will help me, or if I should just pay someone. I'm also wondering if my home owners association will care.

So if you have tips, tricks, or connections to a discount rain barrel guy, let me know! (Rain barrels cost anywhere from about $150-$300 depending on the size you want.)

Janine

Ban the sandwich bag.

When my twins started preschool, I started making lunches.
At first it was just 2 days a week. Last year it was 5 days a week and if it weren't for pizza Fridays I would've had a nervous breakdown trying to come up with a variety of foods that were nutritious, fun, and can hold up in a lunch box.

I also started to feel a sharp pang of guilt every time I grabbed another one of those plastic baggies which seemed so perfect for sandwiches, crackers, cookies, veggies and everything that I wanted to pack separately.

And then I found Glad and Ziploc containers in a variety of sizes that not only fit in a lunch box, but also open up my food options to include hummus, salad, and dip for their veggies.


They even make these little ones that I can use for yogurt and applesauce. That means I get a little green pat on the back because I buy larger containers of yogurt and applesauce which cuts down on packaging thus reducing waste. And not to mention the number of baggies that will stay out of a landfill.

Janine

In Case of Emergency...

I know what I want for Christmas.

It's a portable (you can fit it on your back) solar power pack that would be great to have when the power goes out. A little "ray of light" on a dark night...and green to boot!



In a pinch I bet it would run a space heater in the winter, charge a laptop, charge a cell phone, maybe even run a portable DVD player for my kids the next time my car breaks down on the Jersey Turnpike (cause you know I'm not lucky enough for that to only happen once!).

I've read the folks at National Geographic took it with them on an expedition - so it's got to be good, right?

Anyone else want one? Maybe we can get a group discount! Although $419 seems like a small price to pay for a little piece of green that can help in an emergency.

Janine

Small Expectations

I've always been one to recycle, turn the lights off, and turn the thermostat up/down a few degrees to save energy. But I can't say I've recycled EVERY can and bottle. I practically live in my car. And my first thought when I consider solar panels is if they'll interrupt my satellite service.

However, I can't open the paper without reading an article about the ice caps melting, and at over $4 a gallon, my car is no longer an ideal second home. I really am becoming concerned with how I can make a difference for the environment AND, let's be honest, SAVE money.

I have very small expectations for myself in terms of turning a dark shade of green. I know I won't be making any major adjustments in my life soon. But this space will give me the opportunity to catalog all those cool sites, gadgets, and ways to be a little green. And maybe a little here and there will add up to a lot.

Baby steps.
Janine