Thanks to you, the viewer, we’ve got some awesome ways to easily go green in today’s episode…
There are a bunch of ways to go green, but most people (and I agree) need to start small. Over time, habits develop and then you “just do” whatever it is that was hard for you at first.
A lot of these ideas, have the raw foodist (or health nut) in mind, since they involve food, health and things that usually include a lot of vegetables! LOL 
Take a look…
Your question of the day: Which one of these green ideas can you commit to?
Click here, scroll down to the bottom of the page and leave your comments now!
BTW: You now can get one of those AWESOME “Nutrition Facts” T-Shirts in time for the Holidays! It’s a great gift for a family member or friend (or yourself!). Here’s where to go… www.RenegadeHealth.com/
Here are the Top 12 all spelled out…
Top 12 Easy Ways To Live More Green
12. Ann and Kev – Use cloth bags at the grocery store… get 10 of them and keep 5 in your house and 5 in your car.
11. A bunch of you – Compost!
10. Idapie – Shower with a bucket for gray water or even use your gray water from washing veggies.
9. Rees – Harvest your neighbor’s stash. Ask, then take fruits and veggies from neighbors that would otherwise go to waste.
8. Betty – Take all your veggie Trimmings, add water feed to your plants.
7. Kev – Don’t use the plastic bags to put your fruit and veggies in at the supermarket.
6. Daystar – Refill your water bottles.
5. Koa Sky – Turn off the water when you lather in the shower.
4. Veronika – Reuse your ziplocks.
3. Connie – Use plastic containers for winter sowing or starting your plantings when it’s cold out.
2. Carolina – Feed scraps to the animals. Dog, chickens, worms, or yes… humans!
1. Andi – Get goats great for mowing lawns! (Silly, but effective! LOL!)
Live Awesome!
Kev
6:12 pm on November 3rd, 2009
The video acts like it is trying to download but its not.
Also keep a bucket in the shower for the cold water before it turns hot and use to water the plants.
6:13 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Hi Everyone!
I want to share my experiences to help you all with the cravings and temptations that are around every corner. I too, get tempted by many things. But I have found tools that help me work through them instead of falling victim to them as I have in the past.
1. I collect recipes and trade them freely. Have one to share, and want some in return? My email is: luannagustin@gmail.com
2. I attach negative connotations to the most tempting things as I’ve also realized that, that which calls to me and tempts me the strongest, is usually something that is most damaging to me. IE: food allergies or sensitivities. Maybe this goes back to the original “Garden” and the “Forbidden Fruit”. I don’t profess to “know”, I just “use” it to help me. Case in point: I found I was lactose intolerant, my arteries were severely clogged, I was gluten (glutton, heh… ) sensitive. For those of you that mentioned pizza cravings yesterday. I too, had those. Now, I imagine that ooey, gooey melting cheese blocking the insides of my arteries; that hot, steaming pizza dough clogging my veins like the kindergarden PASTE that it is. By attaching a negative association to something, it seems to take away it’s power. Yes, you may not be able to enjoy that former so-called food that is killing you by degrees, but the trade off is truly better. A much healthier, happier, longer, truly aware life.
3. I keep a file on my computer called “Health Toolbox”. In it I put anything that motivates me, and keeps me on track. Many of Kevin and AnnMaries shows and tips are there.
4. Green Smoothies saved me. I couldn’t eat a vegetable to save my life until I learned that I could stuff many servings of Dark, Leafy Greens into my blender and drink them down painlessly with the “MAGIC” of Green Smoothies. Bless you Victoria Boutenko!
5. Don’t give up. Fall off the wagon? Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and get back on again. Don’t beat yourself up over it. It is part of your learning process. Learn your triggers. Avoid them. DON’T go to that restaurant where you lose all control. DON’T go into that gas station where the sodas and candy bars call out your name. Pay at the pump. DON’T walk by that coffee shop or bar where everybody “knows your name”. It will lure you inside. Make new habits and start new hobbies that support your new lifestyle. Make new friends that do that, too.
6. DO reward yourself with non-food treats. That self-help book you’ve been wanting, that new pair of running shoes that caught your eye, etc. Make it something that works to your advantage in your new lifestyle not your old ways and habits.
I’ve experienced some of the damages to my body because of the temptations and cravings. I’ve had a couple of strokes. I’ve had cancer. I’ve had heart disease and high cholesterol. I’ve had diabetes.
Note: I said “had”. I had a wake-up call. I thank God every day that he chose to give me a second, (or third) chance to re-invent my life. At 48 years young, it wasn’t “EASY”, but guess what? I found out the hard way. “DYING” is much “HARDER”. The SAD (Standard American Diet” is nothing but “slow motion suicide”. Some people say “Moderation” is key. For me “Moderation Kills!” Cravings and temptations can be a slippery slope and I’ve been down that path too many time to count.
I’m now 51 and intend to be around and aware for quite awhile.
Now I choose “LIFE”.
6:34 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Here in South Australia free plastic bags at the supermarket are banned so we have been using environmentally friendly ‘green’ cloth bags for a while now – soon got used to it- they go everywhere with me. Also we are in a drought – water restrictions every summer – saving grey water is a great idea – I keep a smaller plastic bowl inside my sink – wash veges in that & then tip the water onto the plants outside instead of down the sink – works well.
7:11 pm on November 3rd, 2009
You are within a few hours of Saint Simons Island, Georgia…awesome history and tons to see & do….the Lighthouse, Christ Church, Bloody Marsh, Fort Frederica, ghost tours, dolphin tours, trolley tours, sailing, catamarans, canoeing, kayaking, biking and campgrounds!It is part of the “Golden Isles”. You could also take in Sea Island, Jekyll Island, Sapelo, Little Saint Simons and Cumberland which is one of the last nesting grounds for the loggerhead turtles.
7:15 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I love all of these tips…I’m going to stop using plastic bags for produce at the health food store. My funny green tip is: When washing my hands in a public restroom, I dry my hands on my hair instead of using paper towels!
7:26 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I could definitely turn the water off in the shower when I lather up. All of these are great ideas though, I especially love the one about the goats!
7:27 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I will definitely buy make a more conscious effort to use cloth bags – I always end up buying the plastic ones (5cents each in Toronto Canada :S) , when I have a few cloth bags at home, but I keep forgetting!
Also this whole idea of “grey water” is totally new to me! I will definitely be saving more water in a bucket or bowl, and re-use whenever I can! And we have a green compost bucket, but we never use it! Composting here I come!!
I just wanted to give BIG PROPS to the Renegade Health Show! I just discovered this site a few days ago and I’m BLOWN AWAY by the info you present and I think what you guys are doing is AMAZING! I am a brand new raw vegan, trying to lose 60lbs in a year – and I feel like this is an excellent website to keep me informed and up-to-date on the “greenest” and healthiest way to live! Thanks for all you do!
7:27 pm on November 3rd, 2009
My parents married during the depression. They did a lot of those things you mentioned all their lives – into their 80s. They didn’t use cloth bags, of course, but they use to keep a whole bunch of paper and later plastic bags around for other uses or “just in case”. Use to drive me crazy.
I am one of those who bought a couple cloth bags and then forget to take them in the store even though they are in my car. I will try to remember to use them.
7:33 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I already use cloth bags instead of plastic ones for grocery (and general) shopping – took a while to get into the habit of remembering them, but now it’s second nature – and re-use ziploc / plastic bags when I have them. I also pass along “not so fresh” fruits and veggies to my horse. I could really do more in terms of conserving water though.
To people who are using disposable plastic water bottles: DO NOT re-use / re-fill them. The plastic breaks down and is toxic. Please buy a safe water bottle and do not buy bottled water. Get a filtration system or a water system that re-uses plastic jugs.
7:34 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Be sure turn off the water when you are brushing your teeth as well as when you are shaving.
7:43 pm on November 3rd, 2009
How do you compost in the house?
8:04 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Shower with a friend to save water…Hub and I have been showering together for over 26 years.
8:32 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Hi Kevin, I have to say I live in Mexico border (to Roma, Texas actually) and the things I do are:
1. I go to the grocery store with my green bag (and yes people stare at me like I’m crazy) (and I walk to the store)
2. I compost and grow my own vegetables and herbs
3. I make my own clothes (I’m advocating to reduce consumerism in the world, my family and friends think I’m crazy thou)
4. I barely cook, actually only for my husband and sometimes for me
5. I buy bulk seeds, grains and seasonings (turmeric, cinnnamon, all that)
6. I use ecologic soaps
7. I clean only with vinegar and water
8. I use the broom (not the vacum cleaner)
9. I dry my clothes in the sun
10.I have three green parrots (and a grey one)
8:32 pm on November 3rd, 2009
American taste for soft toilet roll ‘worse than driving Hummers’. Extra-soft, quilted and multi-ply toilet roll made from virgin forest causes more damage than gas-guzzlers, fast food or McMansions, say campaigners. More than 98% of the toilet rolls sold in America come from virgin forests. In Europe and Latin America, up to 40% of toilet paper comes from recycled products. Greenpeace this week launched a cut-out-and-keep ecological ranking of toilet paper products. — guardian.co.uk, Thursday 26 February 2009.
i use a good-quality, soft-but-strong recycled bum paper here in australia. when i visited my mum in florida, i wasn’t impressed with the recycled stuff from WholeFoods or Publix. shop around and get the best quality and stick to it. buy in bulk so you never run out. [of course, even better than this is to set up a humanure system -- Composting Human Manure. see http://www.jenkinspublishing.com ]
8:48 pm on November 3rd, 2009
coolness and ummm yea I am totally green and do green coaching for one of my businesses guess I should really go update http://www.thegreentipoftheday.com huh?!
now off to preorder a shirt
8:48 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Hey Kevin,
I work in the Whole Body Department. If Anne Marie hasn’t been to the Martin Luther King Jr. exhibit, be sure to take her! It is free. I use my reusable grocery bags, and if I forget them, I reuse the paper bags for trash bags for my house. I post things on freecycle that I do not use anymore so someone else can get some enjoyment out of them. I buy a lot of my clothes second hand. Have a wonderful week!
So glad you are enjoying this beautiful weather in Atlanta! I so wish I could go here you both speak next week, but I have a work function that night. If you happen to be in Sandy Springs, come to Whole Foods Market and say hi
Samantha
9:01 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Use soap nuts to wash your cloths they are natural and cheaper then any other type of soap, also use the old soap nuts boil them and wash the floor
9:03 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Sprouting is green! Grow food instead of shipping food.
Candles are beautiful, lights are piercing.
Buy used clothing, kitchen appliances etc.. from value village instead of shipping new ones from china. I have found so many great salad bowls there for pennies.
Use biodegradable safe products cleaning and in the shower.
Vermicompost! Its so easy I started mine today, I can keep composting throughout winter. In this manner there is very little being shipped off to recycling/waste centers, only the plastic we buy. All paper and food products can be composted!
9:08 pm on November 3rd, 2009
When we were first married (almost three decades ago–yikes!), my husband would shave with the hot water at full blast all the time. I totally got on his case about it. He was able to correct it and now the water goes on for a second and then off.
Now I continue the process of going green. I keep most of my cloth bags in the car. I started collecting bags from different places, and so far I have one from Nova Scotia, one from Holland, and a couple from Montreal along with the ones the local stores are selling.
I hired a lawn care guy who uses organic solutions and methods.
One thing, Kevin, I seem to have been dropped from your emails that give the link for the current show. I thought you were taking a break from it, but finally checked your website. I have been looking for an email address to ask you about it, but haven’t been able to find one. (I am not the most savvy computer person) Thanks for checking on this.
9:31 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I may have missed this in a previous episode but since we’re on the topic of ‘green’, what do you do with fruit & veggie scraps when you’re traveling in an RV?
9:41 pm on November 3rd, 2009
You don’t have to compost just to avoid throwing out veggie/fruit scraps. I live in an apartment and don’t have a place for compost, but I still throw all the rubbage that will decompose into the woods beside my building. Since going raw, that accounts for the majority of my garbage. My can only goes out to the curb for pick-up once a month. Typically it’s only half full. I also recycle Everything I can. Consequently, my recycle bin has to go out every week!
10:11 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I jotted down the numbers of all the ones that I already do, and it’s all the even ones. I’ll try to be more odd from now on.
10:35 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I go to the thrift shop for mason jars and most items I need. Use the park and ride bus. Use the city compost, we have a bin next to the common recycle that food scraps go into and they pick it up! I go behind teens and hubby and pull toilet paper rolls out of the garbage and other items that they just cant take down the hall! (grrrrr)
I love the varied topics you have on here and always look forward to you and Ann Marie!
hugs from Seattle (the 10th livable green city);)
10:46 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I have been re-using my ziplock bags for years, now.
And since we moved in a more rural environment, I throw out scraps for the birds and squirrels. 
I too forgot my grocery bags even when they are in the car and have to run out to get them. lol! The 2 I really like is putting veggie scraps in the Vitamix for my plants and trying out composting.
10:49 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Thanks for green tips. I started blending and watering my yard with it. I was digging up cuttings before, but blending I think is faster working way to compost. We can not get the goats though, because our house in CA is not zoned for keeping this kind of animals.Also goats will eat all greenery around and even tree barks-trouble for fruit trees.
10:49 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Am I missing the link? I do not see it.
(
Thanks
10:58 pm on November 3rd, 2009
I should be able to stick with 4,6,8,9,11, and 12.
For the winter, I might be experimenting with growing leafy greens indoor using LED’s for photosynthesis. I heard plants generally prefer a 5:1 ratio red to blue.
You could also use the blue LED as an inexpensive light box. You will need a lamp with can swivel. The price for a screw in 120 V 3 watt blue LED’s are $8 each. Just shine on a white surface or wrinkled foil and treat it as a light box during breakfast. They are supposed to reset your circadian rhythm, increase alertness, and improve sleep.
11:29 pm on November 3rd, 2009
Where is the link!? Thanks for all you guys are doing!
12:30 am on November 4th, 2009
I’ll buy more cloth bags to put in my car! I think it’s better to bike there though…
In Japan, grocery stores don’t give you free plastic bags anymore either. It’s been like this for like 5 years I think. So, if you forgot to bring your own bag, you have to pay to buy a plastic bag lol.
1:54 am on November 4th, 2009
Many good tips – but do not reuse your plastic bottles! They are made from cheap plastic that is designed to be used once. If you keep reusing them – and washing them out with hot liquid the lovely chemicals that make up the bottle will leach into your water and body – not good. Do reuse glass bottles or buy a bottle that’s made to be reused. Also, instead of plastic baggies best to use glass – doesn’t leach and more earth friendly.
I really liked the idea of catching the water that you use to rinse the veggies and reusing it. I will start doing that – Thanks!
1:57 am on November 4th, 2009
Composting FAST veggie tip…..
Save space and time if u BLEND UP your scraps (small batches not to burn up ur blender)before working it into your compost pile …It turns to compost so much quicker..
I mix the juice scaps with my wheatgrass ,sunflower and pea grean mats….
In the summer can have usable compost like within a month.. starting seperate piles and turning them regularly..
2:32 am on November 4th, 2009
I love the idea of using the leftover “stuff” from juicing, mixing it with water to create a plant food..perhaps this will be the answer for my brown thumb…Lynda
5:48 am on November 4th, 2009
Hey guys,
We feel really famous. My name is pronounced ” Jah-nee-ka”, it is a Dutch name, and is pronounced differently there of course…
Here’s some more super smooth green tips from New Zealand:
Have your compost bin slightly uphill from your vege garden so that the nutrients leach out and down towards it.
Work from home instead of commuting. Research shows job satisfaction is higher the closer you are to your home (sorry, I don’t have the link), so I guess working from home = excessively high levels of satisfaction.
Todd is an acupuncturist and I’m a homeopath and we use our sunroom to treat people from. (Obviously very green (/holistic) forms of health care.. prevention being more efficient/healthy than cure)
Also means we get to do more shared-parenting of our two smalls.
When are you guys gonna pump up your RV tyres enough to float you over to NZ?
We have a yard you can park in, the chickens love visitors…
J+T
7:20 am on November 4th, 2009
We have been using the green bags for about a year now, composting for nearly 2 years which reduced our waste by at least a bag a week. We also have chickens who get lots of scraps my Mum swaps eggs for sweetcorn, although the girls get to eat it lol. I am starting to work from home but when traveling to work I use public transport or cycle.
I think what I could do is not fill my bath up so much saving lots of water, I have a tendency to like it deep. Also put another jumper on instead of putting the heating on.
K
7:46 am on November 4th, 2009
We have been using the green bags for about a year now, composting for nearly 2 years which reduced our waste by at least a bag a week. We also have chickens who get lots of scraps my Mum swaps eggs for sweetcorn, although the girls get to eat it lol. I am starting to work from home but when traveling to work I use public transport or cycle.
I think what I could do is not fill my bath up so much saving lots of water, I have a tendency to like it deep. Also put another jumper on instead of putting the heating on.
K
Sorry… forgot to say great post – can’t wait to read your next one!
8:29 am on November 4th, 2009
I reuse glass bottles for water bottles. Also I like the stainless steel water bottles, though they are sometimes pricey and reusing glass is clean and free. I like the idea about growing sprouts in the clear plastic salad greens containers. Someone said that these containers are bapa free. I want to start composting in a bucket. Does anyone do that? I also plan to use the bucket in the shower idea and the bowl in the sink idea. This summer I grew all kinds of peppers and have colleced seeds form each one for next year so I don’t have to buy plants. I am trying to keep some of my pepper plants alive over the winter so I can have fruit all winter. I smoked my own jalapenos on the grill, dehydrated them and ground them up so I made chipotle seasoning. It’s hot!
10:57 am on November 4th, 2009
Just curious as to where you are going to be speaking in Atlanta? I didn’t see it under your schedule. Would love to see you guys! If anyone could let me know I would appreciate it, Thx!
11:00 am on November 4th, 2009
I think its important to recognize that even recycling plastics and paper is not ‘green’
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/02/canada-ships-recyclables-to-china-and-then-ships-them-back.php
Ontop of the ‘cost’ of the waste trucks and facilities.
12:10 pm on November 4th, 2009
Reusing plastic bottles is a really bad idea. Overtime the plastic breaks down and the chemicals leach into the water you are drinking. Buy a stainless steel bottle and use that to carry water.
12:34 pm on November 4th, 2009
I am pretty good on about everything on your list except re using my water . Its time I give that a go. Thanks
2:25 pm on November 4th, 2009
I bring my own bags for all shopping – I have for years and usually have to bag for myself because most cashiers look at it like it’s a foreign object. Hopefully as more people get on board it will be the mainstay.
I found these mesh bags at a dollar store that work great for produce. I have purchased them for many family members and friends. What a great feeling not using any plastic bags at all.
We compost.
We use a battery charged lawnmower and let the clippings fall for free nitrogen.
I hang laundry out to dry.
I rarely buy new clothes – second hand and consignment shops are a great way to recycle clothes.
We filter water and refill BPA free bottles.
We use pots and containers that nurseries or garden centers are throwing out for container gardening.
Rarely use plastic bags – reuse other containers or jars to store things in or carry for lunch.
The things I will start to do is to shut off the water while I’m showering and only use it to rinse as well as collecting water while washing produce.
Thanks for all the postings.
2:32 pm on November 4th, 2009
Hi Kevin
I do about 2/3 of those top green things.
One idea I think most poeple could adapt to is grow your own foods on your window sill.
I now do Purple radish sprouting seeds,Lentils,bio snacky mix,wheatgrass, and cress. Use a small thin layer of compost and get about 3 cuttings from each sowing I do.Only need daylight better to have cool or north facing.
My email alerts have stopped do you know why?
xoxo
3:49 pm on November 4th, 2009
I really want to start composting again. I live in an apartment, and our city doesn’t allow compost bins for multiple-unit buildings.
My neighbors who live in houses have compost bins, so I wonder if they would let me use theirs. Anyone else have ideas for composting in apartments? What to do with scraps if there are no backyards or woods?
Thanks!
4:42 pm on November 4th, 2009
These are some really great tips. Some I have not heard of or thought of before.
12. I make my own or buy the canvas ones from the craft department. I still forget them at times though. In our area the stores are promoting the use of the green bags and giving discounts to the final bill if you bring your green bags. One store puts your name in once for each bag you use for a $25 gift card every week.
11. I have been composting for 14 years.
10. I We built our home with the plumbing designed to collect the gray water.
9. This one would be kind of hard for us being as we live out a ways. Great idea for when you have neighbors near by.
8. I am going to start doing this one.
7. I was thinking about this the other day. I need to start doing this as well.
6. I refill my glass bottles, mason jars, or the BPA free bottles that came with my water filter.
5. I used to do this and I got lax. A good reminder to pick the habit back up again.
4. I have been doing this for about two years now.
3. I have been wanting to grow micro greens in the house. This sounds like a great way to do so.
2. I do this as well.
1. Goats are fantastic for mowing the lawn. I have bad ragweed allergies, both airborne and contact. My yard was being over run with ragweed, and we could not get rid of it. Goat love ragweed. They ate it down and even dug up the root and ate it as well. No more ragweed. Anytime we have a sec. of the garden that the weeds start becoming harder and harder to control we section it off and let it rest for a season. Then we turn the goats loose in it. They even will eat the roots.
A few more things we do.
a. I make my own scrub sponges for cleaning. Like the Scotch brand scrubbie sponges only mine last about a year.
b. I am dropping the shampoo and switching to baking soda and water wash and vinegar and water rinse.
c. I shop at the thrift stores, for clothing, kitchen supplies, office supplies, or just about anything I need around the house. The freecycles are great as well.
d. I re make a lot of clothing. I am turning two tiered skirts into dresses for my niece and my daughter. Use old shirts, t-shirt etc. to make diapers, rags, dust clothes etc.
e. We let ourselves acclimatize as much as possible before turning on the AC or the heater. We have yet to run the heater this fall.
f. We are building a large green house to grow the majority of our produce year round. We will be using composting to keep the temperature warm.
g. We use clothes lines for drying clothing summer and winter. That is easier to do in Texas.
5:45 pm on November 4th, 2009
I do a lot of them except I am a big water waster so that’s a good idea.
Ditto on blending veggie scraps in the Vitamix – no big rotting chunks to worry about
The bunnies eat rabbit safe veggies scraps and get recycled newspaper in their litter boxes which then goes into the compost.
Thrifting is always good too!
7:30 pm on November 4th, 2009
Kevin,
I plead to give LuAnn Agustin (response #2) a special gift for her outstanding contribution!
Alone she took the time to share her grave experiences with us and give some of us the very hope to get one’s act together. Thank you!
9:46 pm on November 4th, 2009
Hahha funny the goats are pretty much the only thing that we are not doing!!!
We are looking (seriously) into goat not for mowing lawn (but it would be a bonus) but for their milk, our kids and I are allergic to cows milk but fine with goat milk, cheese etc… But it’s is not legal over here for farmer to sell them on the open market so you have to know the farmers and get it from them personally.
So ya, baby next spring after baby #3 is born we would look into having a few goats.
Ps we do raise our own chicken and we use their dry eggs shells (dry them up and grind them finely) and put it into the scraps of food that we feed them (They need calcium so they would not eat their own eggs)That way we save of chicken feed and our eggs taste very yummy
5:06 pm on November 5th, 2009
Great blog topic, Kevin!
One of my big issues is that people use too much plastic – much of which is either not recyclable (esp grocery bags) or just not recycled at all.
Heard about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? Its basically the worlds largest landfill – located in the North Pacific Ocean. This particular oceanic plastic dump is TWICE the size of Texas state.
This makes me cry, – look it up..
I was actually reading about the whole goat thing the other day cause i stumbled across this: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/10/rent-a-ruminant-goats-clearing-brush-photos-before-and-after.php?campaign=TH_rotator
Made me giggle.
As you said in #7, my fruit market uses colour coded bags for each produce (regarding to price and quality of it)- this is TERRIBLE, i try to steer away from this, which makes then angry sometimes… I’ve been thing about for a long time to write a letter to the local council about it and i think i just might.
Thanks, Kevin, im sure this was enlightening og refreshing for all of us!
5:20 pm on November 5th, 2009
I’m going to stop using the produce bags at the grocery store and instead bring my own Debbie Meyer bags! thanks!
8:52 pm on November 5th, 2009
I’ve been wanting to compost for a while, this was a good reminder to just go ahead & do it.
Thank you guys for all the information you put out there! I watch your show every day, love it! You guys are aweseome
9:31 pm on November 7th, 2009
#10 and #5 (and the water in #8 and #6) refer to showering, as do crow, ang and heather early on. Raye Ann speaks of bicarb (baking soda) and vinegar washes/shampoos; my experiments so far suggest these can eliminate the shower altogether, just as Jenkins’ book shows how to eliminate the flush toilet.
Humans tend to get smelly in the underarm, under breast, and crotch areas, and if obese in a few others. Depending on amount and kind of food fats and proteins, this can be a small or big problem, but scrubbing with bicarb and vinegar rinse works. Even long oily hair yields to them, and may yield to daily warm water rinses alone, the water then going to feed plants. As with any change, there’s a transition period, often of some weeks, till the body adjusts to the new ways. Then you both reduce washwater dramatically and can use the diluted result on plants, sometimes after wash/rinsing dishes.
Diluted 5-20 times, urine too is a fine plant food, sterile unless your genitourinary tract makes you too sick to garden anyway.
For gardens, Eliot Coleman has removed excuses for New Englanders to import produce etc, with his unheated greenhouses and coldframes. Apt dwellers have windowsills, often a stair or balcony, quite often unused ground or rooftop, beside sprouts and greens from seeds. Kefir grows indoors too.
Bicycle where you need to go and/or use what little public transport you can find, learning the virtues of ‘exercise’ (activity! not bought from a gym or spa) and patience.
When you vote with dollars, euros or pounds for a well-wrapped product, leave the wrapping at the store, which favors wrapping to reduce theft, if you can’t think how to reuse it (and of course, how to do without the product). You vote for leaders, who often mislead, every few years, for your political economy daily or weekly.
Learn, then teach how to SHARE THE WORLD!
4:32 am on November 8th, 2009
Just another point about cravings; a question I find helpful to ask myself when I’m tempted by unhealthy food is “how will I feel when I’ve eaten it?” – that’s usually enough to stop me having it! Now I shall also add, “what could I have instead?” Thanks Kevin.
Romaine
7:06 am on November 8th, 2009
My bathroom is so cold that I haven’t stop the water during washing in the shower. I am going to be brave and give it a go.
FLorence
8:38 pm on November 8th, 2009
I compost in the summer using my compost bin. When the weather is cooler, I bury the veggie, fruit, hair, coffee, tea grounds, leaves under the ground. My garden is composting all winter long. The soil is richer and I plant many vegetables May through November.
Marlene
3:54 pm on November 10th, 2009
Thats so funny. I am thinking about getting goats next year and making my own raw goat cheese.
I already do a lot of these things but I like the idea of blending up the scraps and feeding it back to my plants.
4:03 pm on November 17th, 2009
I was sort of thinking that putting plastic containers into the soil is a really bad idea, if you want to be green! – what is the difference between this and dumping plastic carbage in a landslide? And btw. use glass bottles for water, thats way healthier for you, than plastic or metal!