The Garden.....It's Alive!!!!!!

Also written on Monday....

I am so happy that the garden at home is coming to life quite well. Amber's done an amazing job with it. Potatoes, swiss chard, different peppers, onions, tomatoes, and green beans are all coming to life. That translates intO:

- no packaging for consumer-side products (minus the seed packets mostly)
- truely local produce
- mostly organic produce****
- no resources are consumed in aquiring the produce other than food for our bodies
- food for the coming months will be provided == less money & other resources spent at the grocery store
- time spent outside in the sun promotes Vitamin D production in the body, leading to happy moods and better natural calcium absorption
- the feeling that growing your own food provides
- self-sustainability


**** we had to spray the peppers...it was out of control. Plus, no soil testing was done prior to planting so it is a possibility due to whatever reasons that the soil wouldn't be 100% chemical free. But fuck it...it's our yard.


I will upload some pics when I get them....

Falling behind...catching up.

I originally wrote this on Monday....and finally am getting it online.







Since last Thursday, I have thrown away more styrofoam containers (Thursday, Friday, today) than I have in probably the last few months. The cafeteria here at Charter does not use silverware OR "standard" plates/bowls. I'm all about supporting the workers down there since they do a darn good job, but the burrito I ate today + the waste I have made is making me choose a different, more effort-laden path.

There is a Trader Joe's just down the road from my hotel that I will be visiting after work. I plan on bringing my lunches for the rest of the week, and I might even see what they have that I can eat for dinners. I figure $30 at TJ's will be not only cheaper than eating here for lunch, but it will also be easier on the packaging and waste. Plus, as a major factor in food decisions, I will eat healthier than the burrito lunch for today. I immediately felt my body kick into "oh shit...prepare for war" mode about half-way through it. It's not that it tasted bad or anything....but I thought it would have much more ingredients than shredded beef, cheese, and CHILI!

I've gotten back into some better eating habits as of last week and today's lunch was definitely a step backwards. I sat at a football game on Saturday and watched kids guzzling Mountain Dew and other sodas, while their parents did the same while chowing on soft pretzels and nasty-as-shit cheese for dipping. The only plus I noticed was the plates and bowls the concession stand used were paper, not styrofoam. Not a huge plus, but at least there's one positive, if one can even call it that. My nalgene bottle has been a great purchase, as I find myself paying more attention to the amount of water I drink. My guilty pleasure as of late has been blueberry pie, which I've managed to consume quite regularly. Damn it's good stuff!!!!!






As for the whole Compact idea....well, I can say I've been doing a great job of sticking to it. I did, however, manage to make a purchase today and it will be interesting to see the style and amount of packaging for it when it arrives. My MacBook Pro is quite honestly a bitchin' laptop. Where I go, it goes. If only I could do that with Lizzie (cat), but that's another story. I've had concerns with keeping it cool as it's aluminum design is a "passive" heat-dissipation system. In other words, there are no loud vented fans underneath or in the back-side of it for cooling. The internal fans work when needed. It is designed so that the underside will get quite warm as it takes heat away from hot areas, and it sits slightly off the surface so there is space between the bottomside and surface to allow some air to travel.

Anyways, long story short, I purchased a laptop stand/cooler for it. I've researched a ton of different models and styles and decided on this one: http://www.raindesigninc.com/ilap.html It doesn't require a USB connection for power, a bit plus considering my MBP only has 2. There were some that required USB for power, but also had 4 built-in USB ports which was a great idea...but I didn't care too much for the build quality or the design/ergonomics. So that's my purchase...call it a birthday present to me. I consider it something that aides in the life and longevity of my MBP. I wouldn't spend that much money on something unless I really felt like it would be beneficial.

"Would you like cream with that?"

Ok. Little things tend to piss me off. Mostly because my own personal ideals see things sometimes as completely unnecessary, or leaving lots of room for improvement. For this installment of what I'm calling "Um, is this even necessary?", I'm going to pick on something we all have experienced.

I'm sitting in a coffee shop right now and asked for a ceramic cup for my coffee while I sat and enjoyed some free Wi-Fi. I go to the cream counter and there they are...fucking teeny-weenie cream containers. You know...the kind for "to go" people I guess. Why in the world does a coffee shop have these and not the steel thermoses? Why? I can't see it being a price justification as a box of creamers might MAYBE cost less than buying 1/2 gallons or gallons of half & half or milk. Seriously, I just threw away 10 of the things. I experienced this also in a cafe in northern Michigan. I just don't understand it.

If anyone can think of why it's better to have the little creamers, please chime in on the comment section.

Partner(s) in crime

For the lone one or two people who actually read this, wanted to link over to my partner in crime in the battle of the compacts. Check out Tom's efforts here: Tom's Compact Blog/.

I also need to mention that my other "partner" in this whole thing would be the lovely Lupe. She may not blog about it, but she's damn good at keeping us compact! LU

Traveling.....

Well, I hate to say it but while my current job consists of me traveling from Sundays through Friday nights, it's impossible to not consume on an as-needed basis. I'm pretty good at being conscious about what I eat and consume, but I'm not trying to make any points with that right now.

Yes, I go to coffee shops (no Starbucks unless I'm in dire need of a coffee and I'm on a time schedule and no time to research the area, etc etc) and yes I drink iced coffees in the summer time. It's easier on my stomach, and, well it's fucking hot outside. So I have to accept the fact that I'll be getting a plastic cup every single time. The only way I can currently combat this is by saving each cup and bringing them home to put in the recycling container. The rental car was pretty full of cups, a few cans, and Vitamin Water bottles when I pulled in the drive last night. That's about the best I can do outside of not buying anything while driving. Now, this job I'm in requires 2, maybe 3, sometimes 7 hours of one-way driving almost every day. I bring my water bottle with me even when I fly somewhere, but sometimes I just need that extra something while driving those long hours. In this manner, I guess I treat my body as the compact.

Today, I traded in my 8 year old plastic Rubbermaid bottle for a new Nalgene bottle (the Rubbermaid one went in the recycling bin). I know I didn't "need" to spend the money as the container was functional with not really any faults. But I take the bottle literally everywhere I go and with the recent studies linked to Bisephenol A, combined with the fact my now-old bottle didn't fit in a single cup holder anywhere, I consider this $9 purchase more of an investment in functionality. We ate lunch in Normal, and bought a delicious cup of joe from the micro-roaster on the east end of town. Considering I had to drive to Bloomington to return my rental car and we didn't get a chance to eat anything at all before leaving the house, we are doing just fine in my book. Amber also picked up a pair of sweet Teva hiking shoes that were 50% off. She didn't have anything really for camping/hiking and would have to buy something anyways when we go this fall. I consider that a damn fine deal.

Off to Nebraska and southern/western Missouri starting tomorrow. Will see how it goes....

Great Reasons To Portion Your Meals While Eating Out

Everybody has seen the Quizno's commercial combatting Subway's "5 Dollar Foot Longs" campaign, right? More meat! You can't get that at Subway. Well, why do I need more meat? Quizno's gives you enough bread for an entire day with their subs, so more meat? Come on!

I ate at a Chili's yesterday for lunch because there wasn't anything but fast food joints around. I got the fajita quesadillas, knowing that they give me enough for two meals. So I had the intention of taking the 2nd half of the meal with me to eat later on for dinner. Nevermind that I left it in the office. DOH! Something occurred to me though. I ordered a meal knowing that I would take food home. I see two problems with this:

1) Why not order something more portioned?
2) Taking food home almost always means taking styrofoam home and tossing it out later.

So I intentionally created waste, basically. Got me thinking....if people ordered something at a restaurant that is better portioned, they won't over-eat. Also, it saves on packing and waste created with today's to-go containers. On a personal note, I absolutely HATE IT when people drink multiple sodas at a meal, and then ask for a refill in a to-go cup. HATE IT HATE IT HATE IT. And I'm not exagerating. That's all for now I think.

First Post

My first post. This site may be hosted somewhere else soon....but for now, this will do. Me and a buddy are testing the waters in compact lifestyles. Personal ideologies leading the way. As much as I hate that people are driven by ideologies and they push them onto others....here I am with mine. So for starters, I'm in Alpena, MI right now and have to drive to Negaunee, MI in a few hours. Here's where I'll be heading for you maps people:


View Larger Map


I'll most likely be heading to a coffee shop nearby before I go. And yes, I'll be getting an iced coffee to go. I don't have my coffee travel mug with me. (-5 points to start). And I'll most likely be pit stopping a few times to piss and probably indulge in one of the two travel-vices I have: Doritos and Twizzlers. But already did that this week so will do my best to refrain today. So, a good day to test the waters with this whole thing -- a nearly 6 hour drive in a rental car. However, one thing stays true that has been this way for years now: I have all my containers (coffee, aluminum, plastic) and paper products (receipts, envelopes, newspapers, magazines, packaging) in the car and will be heading home with me to the recycle bin. Yes, I'm THAT guy. So enough for now....must get back to work. More to come.