Earth Day 2008

Once again, it's Earth Day.

Earth Day was first celebrated in 1970. 38 years later, it seems to have finally found its way into mainstream culture. Everyone from HGTV to my Grandmother is promoting environmental consciousness of late. Thank goodness; it's long overdue.

National Geographic Channel recently ran a special: Human Footprint. If you haven't seen it, do. It's an interesting and surprising depiction of our consumption and the trail of waste we leave in our wake.

We've all heard some of these common Expert Tips to lessen our impact on the planet:

• Replace incandescent light bulbs with Compact Fluorescent Light [CFL] bulbs.
• If every household in the United States, alone, swapped one single incandescent bulb for a CFL, it would reduce pollution equivalent to taking 1MM [that's 1 MILLION] cars off the road. Think about that for 1/2 a second...
  
• Just be sure to get a "warm" CFL as CFL bulbs tend to give off a "cool" coloured light.
  
• Plant a native garden.
  
• Native gardens - those plants, shrubs and trees that are indigenous to your geographical location - require less water and maintenance than demanding that Magnolia tree thrive in Maine.
  
• Buy Energy Star labeled appliances.
• The Energy Star label on new appliances indicates a potential savings of up to 30% on operating costs and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
  
• Instead of a plastic or paper bag at the grocery store, carry reusable bags with you.
• They don't have to be fancy or cute - but they can be if that's your bailiwick - and many of the market bags available are made from recycled materials.
  

How about some ideas that may be less well-known and super-effective:

• Reuse corrugated boxes when moving or shipping your gifts and products.
• For every 2,000# [one ton] of paper reused, 17 trees are left standing. We all know the value of trees, right? Not to mention all the oil, energy, and water required to make new boxes. The 3 cu. ft. of space that ton of boxes takes up in the landfill adds up quickly, too.
  
• Use 100% Biodegradable packing peanuts when you move or ship.
  
• Those Polystyrene peanuts will be in the landfill for who knows how long. Cornstarch peanuts aren't really biodegradable. They require an additive - acts much like Alka-Seltzer (R) - that leeches into the water table when the product breaks down. 100% biodegradable peanuts are nothing more than grain and water. No additives. They'll break down, when wet, in 3-5 days from naturally-occurring bacteria. I've tossed them onto the lawn when it rains and ... voila... they're gone.
  
• Donate your old clothing, shoes, linens, and drapery.
  
• Not only will you get a tax-deduction and clear out your closets, but you will divert these items from the landfills. Despite what you've been told, even torn clothing has a second [or third or fifth] life in it. Textiles are re-processed into new materials & products. Don't forget to donate your undergarments. Yes, you read that correctly. Donating your unwanted clothing, shoes, and textiles also creates jobs in your community.
  
• Find your nearest recycling center.
• It might not be under the auspices of your county or city government but there are sure to be recycling bins located around your community. We don't have curbside pick up so we found recycling bins in several locations near our home. Since we started recycling plastics, glass, metal and corrugated from our home, our weekly trash pick up volume has dropped by HALF. That's 50% less material headed to the landfill.
  
• Don't put your old appliances out at the curb.
  
• Take them to a metal recycler if they don't accept appliances at your local recycling center [many don't]. The metal yard will pay you. Not a huge sum of money but they'll give you cash for the thing. Metal is a precious commodity with value! No wonder the big box appliance stores will remove your old refrigerator - they're selling it for scrap on the back end. Some will come to pick up. If they pick up, they won't likely pay you but you can be sure the appliance will be recycled instead of plowed into the landfill.
  

We:
Donate old clothing, shoes, linens and drapery
Recycle our plastic, glass, metal and corrugated on the way to work
Are holding on to that washer and dryer for now
Replaced all our incandescent bulbs with "warm" CFL bulbs
Picked up a couple of SIGG bottles at EarthFare to use with our reverse-osmosis water system
Use textile napkins instead of paper
Compost our food & yard waste

There's more we can do, absolutely. We're looking for every opportunity to reduce our footprint. Most of the changes we've made, we don't even notice a difference. There's been no negative impact on our lifestyle. Even if there was a change to the way we live, wouldn't it be worth it?

Give me some ideas!

Happy Earth Day.

The Cobblestone Candle Company

I'm a burner... of wax melt tarty things. I like the fragrance - when they're quality tarts - and am a bit dangerous with flame. I forget a candle is burning when I head off to dreamland, that sort of thing. I place candles too close to flammable objects. Not on purpose, mind you, but that's where they seem to end up. *shrug*

I'm on the endless search for the *best* tarts I can find. What makes a great tart? Well, for me, it's strong throw [scent] both cold and hot, lasting fragrance, & trueness of fragrance.

I'd heard about The Cobblestone Candle Company from a friend who also burns tarts. She'd led me to other worthy tarts in the past so I gave The Cobblestone Candle Company a whirl.

The site. The Company:
Pleasing design & clean. Dark background, which I don't usually prefer, but still legible. Site loads quickly. Easily navigated.

Their website states: "Hand Poured in Charleston, South Carolina".

Apparently shipping on tart orders is at no charge. Unfortunately, I couldn't see that information because it is in small red text against a black background. Maybe you'd have noticed it. Alas, I did not. Nice perk for tart orders.

However, not seeing the 'notice', I emailed the company to be sure my checkout total was correct as there wasn't a line item for shipping. I received a very nice reply from the Christopher, the owner.

I'm in the same state as The Cobblestone Candle Company. I ordered late in the morning on a Friday, my order arrived on Monday.

One bit I always look for on a web site prior to placing an order is the contact information. The company address is not listed anywhere on the site although there are a few mentions that they are located in Charleston, South Carolina.

The phone number is listed in the "Policies" section. Not easily found.

In this case, I went against my better judgment and ordered from this company despite the lack of contact information.

The product:
Tarts are soy wax - nice, clean melt. Eco-friendly. Soy holds fragrance well. Tarts are 1 oz size. $1.50/ea.

Packaged in poly bags. Can smell the fragrances through the packaging. Nice, professional labels.

My order:

Pomegranate:
Cold throw: Sweet more than tart. Doesn't really smell like pom to me but it's pleasant.

Hot throw: At hour 13, this one turned very powdery to my nose. Not a repeat purchase for me.

Pumpkin Crunch Cake:
Cold throw: Quite Spicy. Pumpkin is faint. No scent of cake at this point through the packaging.

Caramel Apple:
Cold throw: Lots of caramel - creamy - and apple - tart. Seemed to be a winner.

Hot throw: Did so-so. Fairly true initially. Meh on the throw - or maybe it's my nose at this point? - but it did last about 7 hours or so. Would order this one again, maybe.

Banana Pudding:
Cold throw: Nice banana nose. Creamy. A hint of sweetness beyond the fruity sweet of the banana.

Hot throw: The Banana Pudding tart started out like gangbusters - very strong banana, sweetish, a bit creamy, not much vanilla to it. After an hour or so on the burner it mellowed and smelled softer, a bit more vanilla emerged.

Four hours into the melt, this fragrance turned powdery. Did not last all that long, imVho. I expect a good 8-12 hours/tart. Maybe that's unrealistic but I've gotten it from some companies and not from others.

Mojito:
Cold throw: Not sure on this one. Smells a bit powdery to my nose. A bit of mint. Maybe some citrus in there, hard to tell.

Hot throw: Nothing at all. I sit ~6' from my burner. Took the vessel off the burner and it smelled faintly of mint and powder. Not much else. Burned for nearly 3 hours. Another one I ended up tossing. Do not recommend this fragrance.

Vanilla Hazelnut:
Cold throw: Very nice co-mingling of both Hazelnut - more dominant - and Vanilla. The Hazelnut smells quite true. The Vanilla is creamy with maybe a hint of butter note.

This was a big disappointment. Great cold throw but hot, I got nuthin'. Gave it ~4 hours to get some scent from it. Finally trashed it. Do not recommend.

Pina Colada:
Cold throw: This is nice. Complex. I get a bit of coconut, some tropical fruitiness [maybe mango, pineapple, something else] and a background of vanilla perhaps? Another one that will burn beautifully, I imagine.

I ended up gifting this to a client of mine who saw it and went wild for the fragrance. Sorry no hot throw review for you.

Buttercream:
Cold throw: Very buttery. Quite subtle note of maybe nutmeg? I am a very picky Buttercream addict & love this one.

Hot throw: Burning it now. Will update when it's lived its life. *wink*

French Vanilla:
Cold throw: Nice smooth vanilla, not so buttery as the Vanilla Hazelnut. Definitely creamy. There's a background of something - coffee? almond? - that makes this one subtly sweet and more sophisticated than the other predominantly vanilla fragrances I ordered. Another winner.

Was very much looking forward to burning this one. My same client drooled over it so I let it go to her. Hard to say no to a client...

Cappuccino Hazelnut:
Cold throw: Lovely coffee and hazelnut notes, equally strong in this one. A hint of cream and vanilla in there, too, smells like.

Hot throw: Did better than most I tried from The Cobblestone Candle Company. At hour 3 it was going strong, true and no powdery finish. Lasted approx. 10 hours. This is one I would re-order.

Caramelized Pralines:
Cold throw: Lovely caramel. Deep. Rich. Secondary bloom of pecans. Don't smell any sugar. Definitely butter in there with vanilla way in the background, I believe.

Hot throw: This one performed well. Caramel was strong as was butter. Pecans emerged softly along with the vanilla. I would purchase this one again.

Freebie: Clean Cotton: Smells soapy. Or like a favourite t-shirt laundered in a bit too much detergent. Not for me but I can see how if one likes the smell of clean clothes, they'll probably really enjoy this one. It's packed up to send along to a friend who will appreciate it.

Overall, the product is nicely presented both on- and off-line, the site easy to order from and complete a transaction. The tarts look great and many of those I ordered have decent cold throw. Unfortunately, the majority of my order either underperformed [per my expectations] or simply did not smell true to the fragrance name or site description. There are a couple fragrances I would consider re-ordering.

And then there were two...

Babies that is. Two beautiful, perfect, gorgeous, magnificent twin girls. Born 02 April 2008. Healthy. Finally named. Meira & Reina, so I've been told. Will meet them in a few months as they live quite a distance. I'm still jumping out of my skin over these wonderful little girls.

Happy Birthday!

Boy, can I talk

Last week was the industry conference where I spoke about economic development. Sounds pretty dry, I'm sure. It was not. The session was dynamic, exciting, invigorating, and just plain great. I was well-received, thankfully. Being a newcomer to this particular professional conference, I was a bit uncertain.

Fortunately, the night before the session, I'd gotten some great news about a pilot program launched in January. I was able to share our progress and next steps. I get goosebumps thinking about how exciting it is and while not revolutionary in the life-cycle of the product, it will make a meaningful difference for my state.

Other than that, not much happening. Just need to get my updated professional bio to the powers that be sometime in the next couple of weeks. Shouldn't be too difficult.

How's by you?

Obsession

I'm completely obsessed with Scrabulous. Online Scrabble play. Sure, there are other interfaces out there to play Scrabble but I am digging the one at Scrabulous. Hasbro, for good reason, doesn't have a full-fledged game available online.

Someone stop me!

Your truth or mine?

When I ask you how you feel about something, no matter how great or small, it's your responsibility to be truthful. Maybe you aren't comfortable to be truthful with me about it; that's ok, really. If you're not sure of your truth, say as much. There are few situations that require an immediate answer. Without a doubt, you surely need to be truthful with yourself.

What you don't get to do is to punish me for your inability to know what you need, what you desire, what you can tolerate. You have every right to change your mind ipso facto; if it's at all possible, we'll change course. If it's too late and the deed is done, all I can do now is know it's an issue the next time this - or similar - comes up. I can't take it back. It's out there in the ether. It's done. O, and here's that example where "can't", which usually means "won't", just means "is unable".

And now you're sulking? Taking a sharp tone with me? I was momentarily bewildered by your shift in posture until I "got it". Once I did, I was a bit irked.

Right about now, I'm frustrated. This is not a good situation for either of us. It cannot continue this way. I'm sure I'll be tasked to be the adult and work the resolution.

I didn't ask to take this journey. You wanted it. From the beginning you wanted to explore this opportunity. It sounded like fun so I clambered onto the bus. For the most part, it's been a great ride. A couple of bumps. No mechanical breakdowns. We seem to navigate the traffic well together. No surprise there, we're a good unit and the closest of friends. You are my best girlfriend, after all.

I'd just really appreciate it if you could be more honest with yourself about these things.

Pinnacle of Laziness

I'm childless. By choice or laziness, take your pick. In my 20's as my friends were aching to have babies and could hear nothing save for the droning tick-tock of their biological clocks, I heard silence. Rooms full of silence. I assumed my clock was digital and went on about my life.

I've never been a woman who had an ache to have children. It's not that I wanted to have children or didn't want to have them. I assumed I'd have kids at some point. I just never got around to it. When I met The Good Mr. he was very upfront with me that he did not want any more kids. That was fine by me and I nary gave it another thought.

Well, now the battery's been removed and the more time passes, the more I find I have a need for our grandchildren. As much as they are a joy to me, it is a bittersweet feeling to watch his children create new families and move through the 'normal' stages of life. Stages and rites of passage that are foreign to me. As much as I love them, I catch a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes when she hugs me or when I hear his clear and strong voice.

Children are miraculous. Doesn't mean I have to have one of my very own. I am good just enjoying someone else's child. I like the option of being able to give the child back to her rightful caretaker when I've reached my limit.

It's an awesome responsibility, in the truest sense of the word, to raise and guide another human being through all the stages of life. Hell, I can barely manage to keep our dogs well-behaved. People? Oy, makes my head spin...

I have tremendous respect for women who have children. I can't imagine how they do it no matter how many times I visualize all that comes with it: working, living, raising a child, sustaining a loving marriage, nurturing friendships, being a good citizen, having time for myself [and I require lots], grocery shopping, endless piles of laundry, and pursuing my own dreams. I think I'd need a Nanny, a full-time Housekeeper, a Cook, a Chauffer, a Personal Assistant and very frequent solo vacations. See, not a good match between me and motherhood.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a pretty groovy woman. I'd have been a good Mother. Albeit quite likely a very frazzled one but a good Mother nonetheless. I have much to offer. I am loving. My life experiences would guide me in parenthood, I'm sure. Patient, not so much but I guess I'd learn that by default. I'm about to get a pair of nieces so I'll just have to turn the hose on with them. I'll be a good Auntie.

The people most curious of my childlessness have always been children. It's an awkward moment when I look into the face of a child who has just asked me The Big Why. I don't have a stock answer for a youngster. One more than one occasion, I've lied. Not my proudest moments - lying to a child - but ones I've chosen nonetheless.

As one can imagine, my circumstance has created sadness for my parents. They have so desperately wanted grand-children. My Grandmother wants a great-grand-baby. She's about to get a pair of them but not from me. As her only grand-daughter, I sometimes feel I've failed her. As her only daughter's only daughter, I sometimes feel I've failed both women. My feelings of failure occasionally linger, snuggling in under the covers with me like little girls at a slumber party.

The message was always that girls grow up to be Mothers. We might also grow up to be doctors, President of the United States, scientists, lawyers [not a popular one in my family full of physicians but still an option], police officers, etc. ad nauseum. For sure, there was an underlying melody that having children makes for a complete and fulfilling life.

Ummm... ok. But I opted out. Now what?

I don't know what I'm doing here in this life... I surely haven't learned my life lessons... I've no clue what it all means except to try to do the next right thing at every opportunity. And if, at the end of my life, that's all there is... then so be it. I'm powerless to change the grand plan [if there is one].

What I know in my heart is true: I am loved. I have known great love. I have given love. I continue to seek to love deeper and wider today than I did yesterday - every today and every yesterday...

And that has made me whole despite being childless...

I wanna...

I wanna write. I've wanted to write since discovering I have a voice. Imagine not knowing one has a voice. Seems ridiculous, doesn't it?

What do writers write about? I guess here's as good a place as any to dribble the meandering thoughts in my head. A place to start. A place to figure out what I have to say at this point in my life. A place to cannoodle my mind into mush, most likely.

I've been through hell and back more than once, mostly of my own doing. Isn't there something in that abyss to spark a writing frenzy? Or at least an urge? If I don't have an urge... well... does it mean I have nothing to say? Maybe tickle a twinge? It'd be nice to figure that out once and for all.

Lord knows I've spent enough time posting to personal interest forums .... rambling .... venting... spouting my opinions. We all know what opinions are worth. Surely there's gotta be something left to say.

I guess the idea of writing publicly just seems so self-indulgent. Or to write about writing or the angst of writing.

I gotta get my act together and figure out what I can respond to in my life to get me to write.

See, navel lint. First installment of navel lint.

Looks around...

Seems comfortable enough. Nice furniture. Like the wall colour & the artwork. Ample seating. Looks to be a nice selection in the bookcase. Lighting is more than sufficient, thankfully. The Abusson is perfect. Warm. Relaxed. Not bad.

Think I'll sit here a bit and see how I like this club chair and ottoman. O, it was my Grandmother's when it was ugly [sorry Celia]. It reminds me of her even now though I've recovered them in a washed denim with leopard corded trim.

So, the question of the day must be: What the hell is dohdeeliciousness?

First off, read the sub-head: For one low, low price, you get: mental masturbation, navel contemplation, generalized kvetching, maybe some Hello Kitty or other kwaii eye candy and perhaps a titch of sundry sexiness.

Hopefully that's enough to draw you in and I'll come up with some content to make you want to stay.

I still need to figure out what I'm going to blog about, though.

In the meantime, help yourself to a seat. Maybe try over there?

Coffee's on, kettle takes but a minute to heat up, there's juice & soda in the fridge, check the liquor cabinet for any alcohol - though I'm sure there's a meager selection - and the water cooler's in the laundry room. If you'd like any snacks other than what's out, you'll have to bring your own. Hopefully, I'll be a decent hostess... we'll see.