May the Force be with you

America’s Best Idea

I can’t wait to get to Sequoia National Park & get my hammock up!

Want some inspiration to get to a National Park yourself?  Watch Ken Burns’ series on the history of America’s National Parks currently streaming on Netflix.

The National Parks: America’s Best Idea

May = National Ride Your Bike Month

Have fun & be safe riding your bicycles out there.

Don't have a bike!?!?  Go buy one ASAP.

more on cycling love
stretch it out after your ride

Earth Day 2012

Earth Day is a yearly reminder to connect to nature: its cycles, seasons, the sun & moon, water…

Practicing respect for the earth’s beauty & abundance can teach us compassion & gratitude.  Compassion & gratitude lead to happiness.  Love & peace are happiness.  Happy people equals a happy planet.

I've been pondering, what if humans turned towards our mother earth instead of god (our father…) for guidance?  Worshiping ecology, balance & the unity between all things.   Could we all agree that the goal is to create the best world for ourselves & future generations?  That would be nice.

Composting

I noticed that last Earth Day I did a post on composting, dirt, here is a follow up:

One year later I am both composting & vermiposting.  We have been composting by digging a hole in the ground (large, 3' x 3' x 3' is ideal, ours are usually smaller) & throwing cut up kitchen & yard scraps into the hole.  We water & turn it approximately every 2 weeks, adding carbon-containing material (dry leaves or straw) if it starts to be too wet or begins to rot.  

It’s amazing how quickly raw compost breaks down.

After a hole has been added to for some time, a few months perhaps, we retire that hole & start another.  After a few more months that hole will be finished & the finished compost or humus added to soil & potted plants as an amendment/fertilizer.

When cooking we keep a large bowl or container on the counter adding eggs shells, peels, cores, veggie/fruit parts, dryer lint, etc. to the bowl.   The very best of the scraps go to the worms who get fed three times a week or less (I have gone a week or two without even looking at them), the remaining scraps get cut up a bit smaller or not & thrown into the compost when we get around to it. 

Knowing what I know now, I recommend vermiposting for apartment dwellers, the hole in the ground method for people with limited space & the ability to dig the hole (a loving husband in my case) & repurposed recycle/trash bins for those who have the space.

There are many other methods & options of course, large woodbins can look nice or you can just use a large plastic storage bin you may have laying around.  Check out what your city offers, they may have free or discounted containers or if you are super lucky your city already collects green waste along side trash & recycling.

So compost, please, create your own nutrient rich soil amendment while reducing the volume, carbon dioxide, methane & nitrous oxide in our landfills.  

The Age of Empathy

Ever wonder how to make the world a better place?   Simple answer: Service

The more individuals that take problems into their own hands, teaching, sharing, helping, engaging, connecting, supporting, doing something instead of waiting for someone or some government the better.

An encouraging read: Arianna Huffington on the Rise of Empathy in America

Yes, please

tentsile

Gratitude

Louie Schwartzberg TED talk
Wings of life

RIP Mindalin Grado Surakus

My cousin Mindy passed this week, she was only 32 & leaves behind a 3 year old son.  


From the time I was very young I loved Mindy.  When she moved to Alaska I dedicated this song to her,  "I see the moon, the moon sees me, the moon sees the one I loved to see. So god bless the moon & god bless me, & god bless the one I'd loved to see.  It seems to me that god above created you for me to love, he picked you out from all the rest, because he knew I'd love you the best."

I always think of Mindy when noticing the moon & I always will.

Wow

See more here

Smart Design

Green Leaf, an enormous new “sustainable garden city” will integrate architecture & nature to provide low-energy, high-density housing is currently under construction in Dhaka, one of the most crowded & polluted cities on the planet. 

Love it!

Read more Green Leaf & Co.Exist.

Inspiring

Happy New Year

These ideals of Ma'at are pretty nice & made me think of New Year's resolutions.  

Best wishes for 2012!

Guerrilla Grafters

Guerrilla Grafters are splicing fruit-bearing branches onto city trees in SF!  Super cool.

Read the whole story here: http://www.fastcoexist.com

Buzz

We need to respect bees, especially the Queen Bee.  Come on humans, we can do better.  
Support holistic beekeeping practices. 

Happy America Recycles Day!

So fall, so good.

Autumn is officially here & I am loving it.

Off to do some camping this weekend & thought I’d share this Prayer of the Woods. 

Meeting my sweet baby nephew

Nancy brought Evan to California. Needless to say, I loved him.

It's World Water Week!

Water use it wisely and drink lot's of it too.

Time Exchange

I keep hearing more & more about Long Beach Time Exchange & found that Time Banking, exchanging skills & services for Time Dollars, has been a model with roots back to 1980. 

The concept is simple: One hour equals one time dollar, regardless of the service given, so there’s really no bartering involved. From dog-walking to graphic design, community organizing to tutoring, cooking lessons to massage therapy, everyone’s time is valued equally.  When someone helps you, they earn a credit that they can spend with any other member on any of the services in the network. It’s a powerful idea that helps to grow stronger communities.

Sounds like a good idea to me.  As someone who has thoroughly enjoyed the service of volunteer work, the idea of having time dollars credited to me would make the experience even more rewarding. 

Links: 

Long Beach Time Exchange

Time Banks USA
Time Dollars