Without Fear

Wow, I've been putting off writing this entry for so long! People are starting to whine at me about it, so I figured I couldn't procrastinate any longer.

I'll start with a (brief) recap of the conference...

It was pretty awesome. Even though I didn't get to attend a single session, I learned some valuable lessons:

• Cute shoes are not worth having 10 blisters and blood everywhere (...or are they...?)
• Remembering to eat is important to survival
• My natural instinct to shower and go to bed instead of staying up socializing can actually pay off
• That "how is it possible to feel like I can't stay awake when vital information is being given" feeling does not go away after college
• People are not so bad...not this group of people anyway

Plus an array of work related lessons to take away for planning next year's conference, but let's not talk about that.

As far as accumulating trash, that isn't really happening. I did get food poisoning and thought Goldfish crackers sounded good during recovery, so I bought them without thinking...the bag is paper/foil, so that had to be thrown away. Other than that, not much. I changed my oil the other day and thankfully was able to use part of a shop rag instead of repeating the paper towel fiasco. I've also cut way down on my "out and about" purchases, so the materials accumulating in the car are pretty minimal. 

A couple things I'm doing that I forgot to mention previously...

- Dryer lint. Didn't think about that, did you?? Turns out if you fill empty toilet paper/paper towel rolls with lint, they make great fire starters. Bring it on, summer!

- Cloth napkins. My mom is an RN, so she's very germ conscious. I finally convinced her that it would be ok for me to reuse a cloth napkin with my meals for a week...(I do this with my bath towels too, she hates it). I've also started yelling at her if she gives me food on a paper plate...I think she might just stop giving me food.

There are some other things that have been brought to my attention I am not dealing with due to circumstances:

- Household crap. Meaning: I don't own a house. So furnace filters, paint, drywall, garage accessories, etc, are not my concern. I'm totally ok with this, but I realize it makes this project unrealistic to those that do own a house. However, I would like to point out that there are outlets for recycling or re-purposing those items I listed above, so the project is actually not impossible. 

- Feminine hygiene. Ewwwwww. I'm really not interested in handing out TMI here, but I'm on a certain medication that rids me of the need to think about use or disposal of these products...thank you, science!

- Restricted space. Even before I moved back in with my parents, I had plenty of space for recycling and composting...but not everyone has that freedom (and I hear some people don't want it...crazies). I'm a firm believer that you can recycle, compost, and grow gardens even if you live in a van down by the river.

Aaaaanyywhoo, I do have an announcement that may or may not throw a wrench in the plan for this project, again. I'm headed to Wisconsin from June to July to serve with a WisCorps conservation crew. This potentially makes my project difficult for a month because I will be backcountry camping the entire time. Pack in-pack out is the general policy;  I'll have to be careful about what I pack in. I don't want my bag to be full of Clif bar wrappers on the way home, but I also don't know what kind of recycling is available in Wisconsin...so we'll just see what happens. The trip is, of course, technology free, so I won't be able to update you until I get back. 

A couple weeks after that, I'll be headed to Costa Rica for 10 days- just for fun. I have no idea if recycling even exists in Costa Rica...but most likely I'll be eating out for all my meals so hopefully I won't directly generate too much waste. Otherwise, I'll be explaining to US customs that I don't intend to make bombs or transport drugs with all the empty plastic containers inside my bag on the way back into the country.

I'll update before I leave and when I return from my adventures! 

"The purpose of life is to live, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience."

         - Eleanor Roosevelt

Talkin' Trash

Happy Earth Day!  

I'm celebrating by giving you a look inside my trash can. Sounds like fun, right? This is the approximate volume of stuff:

I just eye-balled it, really, but I think it's pretty close to accurate.

This is what's inside!

So far, it's mostly packaging. Paper-lined foil, foil-lined paper, and other silly combinations of materials that can't be separated. Hot cocoa packets, lint roller sheets, casing from heartworm medications, etc etc etc. I've limited my use of these things to avoid putting them in here, but sometimes you just have to have some hot cocoa!

I've been able to feel less guilty about eating snacks like chips and protein bars because we've started collecting them to send to Terracycle. However, I still consider the crappy packaging as a reminder not to eat that stuff anyway, so it's working out in my favor twice. 

I think there are probably some small things I can pull out to be recycled or reused, but I'm going to wait until I have more exciting trash.

The cats have successfully been transitioned to 100% corn litter, which is super cheap and breaks down easily in that poop pile we have going. I'm pleasantly surprised Sabian is actually using it...he's usually very particular about what touches his paws (I'm rolling my eyes as I type).

As far as updates go, that's about it. Once you get into a routine, things flow pretty easily. 

I do, however, have to plug the conference while I can...it's next week!! If you or anyone you know want to go, check out the program and registration on our website. Even if you don't have any fun or learn anything new (doubtful that you won't), you'll at least have a good time watching me awkwardly interact with crowds of people.

On Earth Day, and most every other day, I'm so glad I was an agriculture and natural science student. Sometimes, understanding and appreciation make all the difference. I hope you got outside for a little while today before you sat down to read this. If not; stop reading and get out there now!

“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”  

     -Jane Goodall

Situation Normal....

Everything is so much fun! I'm in a particularly good mood today, so this post may be a bit more enjoyable to read. Maybe it's all this sunshine and warmth at 7:30pm...

I was going to say I've run into a couple of SNAFU's, but when you break down that acronym I'm not sure it's entirely accurate. It's pretty vulgar, and my life isn't that bad.

Firstly: I cleaned my car. Ugh. I've been trying not to generate much in there- it was mostly tissues and crumbs, but there was the occasional candy or protein bar wrapper I had to decide what to do with. Seems easy; just throw it away like normal. However, I got into a lonely debate with myself about whether or not I had to. What I mean is, I'm measuring the amount of waste I generate at home, in my kitchen trash. When I cleaned my car before this project, all that stuff went into the garage or gas station trash bin...so where does it belong now? I decided I will count it as "home" waste and try to minimize it in the future.

The real challenge came when I changed my oil. It's easy and fun until it's time to clean up. Usually I wipe up the funnel and drip pan with an old absorbent t-shirt or some type of rag, and then that gets thrown away. There were none of those laying around this time, so I had to use multiple paper towels. My hands were kind of tied here...I couldn't compost, burn, or throw them away in the house because used oil is just bad for everything, so I had to put them in the garage trash. I'm not quite sure how to remedy this situation...insert guilty conscience here. 

Another problem: I'm addicted to dog toys. Well, I'm addicted to buying them, for my dog. She just gets so happy when there's something new to chew on! The issue here? She literally chews up everything...so in the trash it goes. Maybe one day I'll catch on.

The MRC puts on all kinds of cool events (yep, I'm plugging a little here), and last week we had our first Materials and Recycling Management training session, which I attended. Since I clearly radiate confidence and a love of public speaking, our trainer made me get up and talk about this very project. During my spiel, I admitted I was thrilled that individually wrapped candy had been provided, because I'm not allowed to eat it at home (can't recycle the wrappers). This begged the question from one of the attendees: "so you're allowed to throw things away when you're out and about?", which stopped me a little. I save recyclables and take them home, but I haven't thought about saving my trash to take home and throw away. Mostly because, well, that's gross, but also because it's not fair. Sometimes it's not possible for me to decide what I can throw away and what I can recycle. Sometimes recycling bins aren't even provided. Sometimes my drink is served to me in a really stupid, half foam/half paper cup, and there's nothing I can do. So, I've decided that bringing home anything recyclable and making smarter decisions about what I purchase while I'm "out and about" are just part of the project. Yes, I'm generating waste outside of my home, but I had no way to measure that waste before this project and the same problem exists now. Maybe next year I'll have this dilemma solved and perfected, but for now, "it is what it is".

The last thing I'd like to say is that I have the most wonderful, supportive, amazing parents. Anything that is important to me becomes important to them. Of course, they recycled as much as possible before I invaded their home a month ago, but they are striving to do even more now that I'm here. My dad is looking into ordering multiple Terracycle boxes, and my mom put a really heavy plant on top of my garbage bin. I'm not sure if it was on purpose or if it's her compulsive need to cover every flat surface, but either way the thought of having to lift the plant just to throw something away horrifies me. Anyway, they are just awesome, and I wouldn't be where I am today without them, and I just thought they deserved some recognition and love on here. You guys rock!

Ok then, until next time!

Challenges.

This entry is about new challenges, and I'm thinking as I sit here that it will probably be a challenge to write, so bear with me.

Kyle and I decided a few weeks ago that it was time to separate. Nothing terrible happened, it was just time. So about a week ago we made the decision final, and since I'm having so much trouble finding a place to rent that's safe, has enough room for the dog, and is in my price range, I'm staying with my parents.

So, mental and emotional challenges aside (because that's not what this blog is about), here are some of the other challenges I am facing regarding my waste project:

1. THE CAT. He's always a damn problem. He used the recycled paper litter just fine, by the way, until we came here. My parents have a very old cat that uses regular clumping clay litter, and Sabian is ignoring his own litterbox for hers. Although it seems like this doesn't pose a problem because technically I'm not doing the throwing away of the litter, my cat's bathroom habits are starting to make me feel very guilty. I think I'll replace the old cat's litter with the recycled paper once my parents have run out of the regular stuff, but she might die before that happens. Who knows.

2. The dog. Not as big of a deal. My parents live on quite a bit of property and the dogs run off leash. Basically all this means is I have no idea where Roo poops to go and pick it up, but it also means that it doesn't really matter where she poops. If I can find it, we just throw it in a big pile out back anyway.

3. Meals. I still buy my own groceries, which means I can still do my "green scan" at the store (The other day I found a HUGE package of store brand, pre-sliced cheese that wasn't individually packaged! Win). However, more often than not, my mom makes dinner for all of us. This is wonderful and she's awesome, but it also means I don't know what ingredients she used and where all the packaging ended up. My parents recycle almost everything anyway, so I'm not too worried about it, but I hate to think that some of the waste generated is indirectly mine. 

4. Waste. At first I didn't know how I would continue to measure my own waste but it turned out pretty simple. I have my old trash can and keep it separate from my parent's trash can. Anything I use that needs to be thrown away is put in my own can. Composting has been easy too since my parents also compost whatever they can. 

So far these are the only challenges I've run into, but I've only been here for a week. I don't plan on being here for very long...but let's be honest, things haven't exactly gone according to plan. Hopefully I'll be on my own soon and this project can get back on track!

Some good news is I think I effectively altered Kyle and Dane's behavior. Kyle asked to keep the recycling containers and says he is going to continue recycling as much as he can. I'm not sure how he'll do it though, without me constantly pointing out what goes where... =P

Shenanigans

Still surviving.

Last week we had an incident where I didn't think I would, though. 8 AM: making my lunch in the kitchen. Boyfriend flushes toilet upstairs. Kitchen sink fills with sewage, and it starts spewing all over the laundry room...
Needless to say, I let the landlord deal with that one. Unfortunately, the landlord and the plumber don't quite know about this project of mine. I came home after work to holes in the wall and yard...and drywall dust in our trash can.
After some research, I found that drywall can be composted, and some people till it directly into their gardens. Since I'm not sure what type this was, I decided to put it in the poop composter just to be safe. Do you have any idea how hard it is to move drywall dust with your bare hands, in blasting winds? Turns out it's not easy. It stuck to everything that was already in the trash can. Eventually I got out a satisfactory amount and gave up on the rest.
We also had a rug casualty due to this incident. Our laundry room carpet suffered serious complications from it's exposure to raw sewage, and had to be removed permanently. Kyle rolled it up and took it to a dumpster. I'm not sure if that counts as cheating or not, since the rug was at least twice the size of a 13-gallon trash can. I'm going to count it as an emergency disposal, and continue on with the rest of the project. Fair?

Then, this happened:

6 years old!!

This little guy turned 6 years old this past Saturday. For those who don't already know- Dane is Kyle's son, and I met him when he was 15 months old, wearing only a diaper. Now he doesn't even let me in the room when he's changing his clothes...(sigh). Anyway, we accidentally "planned" a party to take place on Saturday. My shopping for party supplies went pretty well- everything had an afterlife recycling or composting plan. Most everyone who came reads my blog, so they also knew to ask before they threw anything away. When it came time for dessert, I pulled out the cupcakes Grandma brought and realized a. these are going to be delicious and b. they have wax paper wrappers. I'm not aware of a recycling facility in the area that takes waxed paper covered in chocolate, and I'm getting mixed answers in my research about composting them. Anybody have a good solution for me?? They are still sitting around the house waiting for a proper resting place. 

The rest of the party went smoothly. I was able to save all the tissue paper and bags from presents, and will be reusing the wrapping paper somewhere, somehow. 

My dad also came up with a good idea for that ceramic plate in the trash- crushing it up and using it to fill holes in the driveway. I'll probably do that when the driveway isn't covered in snow. (Isn't it awesome that I'm taking more stuff out of the trash while hardly adding to it?!?)

So, unexpected trauma aside, January is still going well. 

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without" 

12 down, 353 to go...

Time seems to fly until I think about how much more there is to go...BUT I think we're doing pretty well!

The recycling bin is spewing stuff all over the kitchen! Unfortunately, "Snowpocalypse 2014" kept me far, far away from the recycling drop off center...even though it's only 5 minutes away. 

However, the garbage bin is sitting nice and quietly, keeping it's lid shut for the most part. The biggest contributor so far has been a broken ceramic plate- no way to recycle that. I might pull it out in a few months when I'm feeling crafty and want to make garden stones or something. Yes...I've been pulling things out of the trash. Not only am I used to it from being on the Be Spartan Green Team, but it's habit to toss things in (even I do it)- and someone has to get them out. Guess who the only volunteer is for that job...

Oh, that's me!

It's been pretty easy to convince Dane, who is 5, that paper towels and tissues could go into the compost; I even got him to start using a handkerchief! His neighbor friend was a bit more difficult though...his family doesn't even recycle. 

The compost seems to be doing well. Although I can't really tell what's happening in the poop bin since it's well, full of poop, it's wonderful not to have to throw plastic bags full of kitty litter into the trash every week. The food compost is still taking it's sweet time. I'm sure the sub-arctic temperatures didn't help generate any heat, either. 

So far, we haven't had to alter our behavior all that much. Since we already recycled before, we just put a little more thought into what goes where and it all works out. The biggest difference I'm noticing in myself is my thought process- before I even pick an item up off the shelf my brain does a little "green scan"- what is it made of, what is it packaged in, and what will I have to deal with when I'm done with it? I find this little trick helps me save the earth and save money too, since almost everything is unsatisfactory after I force myself to think about it. 

Having my goal in mind keeps me on my toes, but what really forces me to be conscious about my actions is YOU! I have no idea who my readers are outside of my friends and family, but the thought of disappointing any of you keeps me from slipping up when I'm having a bad day. So I suppose, I should thank you!!

If you want grown-ups to recycle, just tell their kids the importance of recycling, and they'll be all over it. -Bill Nye

New Year, New Life!

January 1st! It seems like the older I get, the faster time goes...ugh.I didn't anticipate getting ready for this project and the holidays at the same time, so I'm feeling a bit behind. 
I think everything is ready overall though..

Here's a bit of what I've done so far:

Compost! I built my food composter in late November and have been adding to it since then. It ended up being bigger than I pictured, so our waste in a month hasn't even begun to compost that I can tell. I invited the neighbor to put hers in as well- I like to share. 

The pet waste composter was built a little later....and by that I mean we did it today. So, it doesn't look very pretty yet but the idea is that it will eventually be painted like an outhouse...just for fun.

Doesn't she look excited?!










What I'm struggling with the most here is kitty litter. There are all kinds of awesome natural and compostable products on the market now. The issue is my cat- he won't use anything that isn't in small granule form. I stood in the litter aisle for so long I think people were starting to think I was "that" lady...but I eventually decided on Cat's Pride Light and Fresh 100% recycled paper litter. It may or may not be satisfactory for him...we shall see.

Then I bought all kinds of fun stuff:

• The green containers in the preserve box are little tupperware made from 100% recycled #5 plastic. They are working out great for putting applesauce and yogurt into single serve portions for lunch. 
• The little brown box is especially exciting for me- earth rated poop bags! I don't take the dog out on a leash much anymore, but when we do go for walks near other people's yards, these poop bags are completely compostable. 
• The white ceramic container is my kitchen composter. Cute right? It matches my appliances.
• I bought 2 of those collapsible food containers and have already used them- the waitress looked a bit confused but eventually took her evil styrofoam containers away from me...
• I have some paper towel alternatives on order from Amazon- we still have a few regular rolls left from the last purchase so I'm saving them for especially yucky stuff in hopes of composting them.

I realize that I didn't really include Recycling in my last entry- "the plan". We recycle everything we can already, so I didn't think about it- but I assure you, that is one of the biggest components of the plan! I just took the recycling back today so we're starting fresh.

That's it for now! Since this just started, I don't have many results to share. I'll keep updating as we go, and am completely open to suggestions if you have any. 

ps-
GO GREEN!

I think the environment should be put in the category of our national security. Defense of our resources is just as important as defense abroad. Otherwise, what is there to defend?

-Robert Redford