Wisdom in truly unlikely places

In these first days of the new year, I’ve been taking stock – as I’m sure many of you have been doing – of what is important, what my priorities are and about what I want to achieve. I’ve already shared with you a few of my own personal health resolutions, but my biggest priority again this year is to become a greener, more eco-conscious person. Although I’ve made many progresses over the last year, there is still much room for improvements.

In my reflections, I realized that I had started wondering about the “whys” more then the “hows”. We are creatures of “hows”: How can I be healthier? How can I make more money? How can I be better? But how about asking why? Why am I not as healthy as I would like to be? Why do I not make the kinda of salary I wish I had? Why am I not the best person I can be?

I started thinking about going green and doing all these things. Asking the “Hows” was a bigger focus of my year in 2009. But last night, I surprised myself with a question I couldn’t fully answer:

Why do I have to make all these adjustments and changes in order to save the Earth?

Where did this questioning come from? You’ll never guess: From a Vancouver 2010 Olympics commercial. As they were talking about the site and environmentally sounds planning and developments surrounding the event, I was intrigued by a quote from the narrator:

“Treat the earth well: It was not given to us by our grand-parents, it was lent to us by our children.”

There is definitely beautiful awareness to be passed on from such a statement, but it also frustrated me a bit because the earth, and the shape it’s in, does have to do with our grand-parents and everyone that came before them. I’m not saying they necessarily knew how all of this would come to be, but it is very important to know where the problems come from in order to understand what we need to do and why.

Where am I going with this?

I’ve decided to make my first few posts of the year about understanding our past so we can better save our future. Over the next few weeks, I will be posting articles on movements, pioneers, scientific phenomena, theories and all kinds of topics related to the birth of our modern environmental conscience.

I hope you’ll come and read as I post them. If you have suggestions on topics, feel free to write them here. I’m hoping to make this year one of learning and information. I hope you’ll take the journey with me.

A new year …

Happy New year everyone!

I know I have been missing in action since the end of our 100-mile challenge, but time, circumstances and health (nasty carpal tunnel) kept me away from you all.

But I’m back and will try to stay focused and in touch as much as I can. With a new year come new inspirations and resolutions. Keeping this blog current and interesting is one of mine.

WHAT ARE YOUR RESOLUTIONS FOR THIS NEW YEAR?

My husband and I decided to sit down and really think these through this year. We wanted to start out the year with resolutions we knew we had a chance of keeping. There is nothing more frustrating than establishing goals knowing that there is a 50/50 chance you won’t be able to achieve them. So, we decided to be generous with ourselves and set them large enough that they would be forgiving, but tight enough that they felt rewarding. So, aside from the continuing efforts to become as green and eco-friendly as possible, here are the 4 resolutions we decided to work on this year:

• Be more active everyday! I know, not very inspiring, but we decided this year that instead of saying things like “We’ll go to the gym 3 times a week” or “We’ll start running every morning”, we were going to be honest with ourselves and set goals that are more fit to our habits. So, we promised ourselves that we would participate in a form of activity or another everyday : Whether it be a 20 minute walk, a trip to the public pool or simply taking 30 minutes to stretch and do sit ups at the house, we were going to do a little something everyday!

• Only drink coffee on the week-ends! That, to us, will most likely be the hardest one. We want to switch to tea and herbal teas for health reasons of course, but also to improve our sleeping patterns. My husband and I both suffer from restless sleep and we have noticed that on those mornings we don’t drink coffee, we sleep better that night. I know some people are more sensitive to stimulants and we may be some of them. Plus tea has so many health benefits such as :

Anti-cancer properties
Immune system boosting properties
Cardiovascular health properties
Reducing risk of strokes
Increasing metabolic rate and helping with burning fat
Antidepressant properties

And those are just a few that I found. So, although we love coffee, and we wouldn’t want to never drink it, we decided to keep it as a week-end treat.

• Try a minimum of one new recipe a week! One of the daily places where you can get stuck into a routine easily is food. Before you know it, you are eating the same 10-20 foods over and over and that just becomes very boring. So we have made it a point to start looking through cook books (when it’s time to grocery shop) and picking a recipe every week for which we will by all the ingredients for and cook! I look forward to sharing new recipes with you!
  

• Figure out what our absolute target weight is and try to stick to it! That will require finding out from reliable sources what that target weight is, what my body mass index and fat ratio are and working on getting myself fitter and healthier. It also will mean buying a scale! (Which I’ve never owned LOL!)

So there you go!

I would love to hear from you and know what your personal goals are for this year so please share!

Change the World Wednesday Challenge - How recycled is your stuff?

Hello to all.

It's wednesday again and time for another Small Footprints "Change the World Wednesday Challenge" for you :

For this week's challenge:

Each time you shop for a non-food item, look to see whether a recycled version is available. If feasible, buy the recycled version. If there isn't one, but it's a category such as paper where you know recycled versions exist, ask the store to start carrying a recycled version.

OR

If you already buy recycled items regularly (or cannot afford to do so at all) then write a blog post about products made from reclaimed materials.

Now I have to say we do the best we can. We already buy recycled paper towels, toilet paper and tissues (when we can cause not everywhere has them!) but besides that, I'm more about buying the recyclable things than the recycled thing.

So I'm up for the challenge!

Over the next week, I'll be making a list of al the stuff I buy that I find that is made from recycled materials and post them next tuedsday!

Hope you'll jump in... What is some of your favourite recycled stuff?

Change the World Wednesday Challenge - Walk with a purpose!

Back (a few days late) with another great CTWW challenge from my friend Small Footprints :

Put on your walking shoes because this week we're going to walk ... not just idle walking ... we're going to clean as we go. Yep, this week, please go for a walk ... at least once ... and pick up litter as you go. If you're feeling ambitious, go every day. Once you've got your bag of litter, recycle what can be recycled before tossing the rest in the trash bin.

Do you have an idea where to start?

I've decided make it a week-end plan. Here is what I'm commiting to doing :

• On saturday, we will be going to our community garden and taking down our plot for the coming winter. I will walk up and down the aisles and pick up any trash laying about. Unfortunately, our community garden being near a very busy walkway, a lot of people think it's nice to walk through... most of them thinks it's just as nice to drop trash and cigarette butts. Blerk!

• On sunday, we are going hiking in a provincial wildlife sanctuary for snow geese. I will bring a bag with me and pick up the trash people seem to find it's okay to leave on the trails!

What will you do to make your part of the world a little cleaner?

Change the World Wednesday Challenge - Say NO to Styro!

So here we go for another challenge! Thank you to my readers (TC and Daisy Soap Girl) that stopped by and shared their eco-friendly ways!

So this week's CTWW challenge is as follows :

For one week, say "NO" to polystyrene foam (commonly known as Styrofoam). This means ... don't buy it (no Styrofoam coolers, cups or toys), don't use it and don't buy anything that comes in it. At restaurants, should you have leftover food to take home, ask the server to put it in something other than Styrofoam. At fast-food establishments, refuse to buy any products which come in it. Just Say No!

Or ...

If your life is already Styrofoam free, then write a post about why Styrofoam is so bad for the environment.

Although we are living pretty much Styrofoam free a lot of the time, the one time it's really hard is when you are eating out. Just last night, we took home leftovers and Tada! we have a nifty little Styrofoam plate in our fridge. Leaving on vacation in just 2 days, this week's challenge will definitely be a challenge, but we are ready.

So why is Styrofoam so bad for the environment and for us?

• Well first, of course is the obvious : It does not biodegrade. It will stay in landfills for hundreds of years.
• What about the ones with recycling symbols? Well, most of them carry the number 6 symbol which is very rarely recyclable by municipal facilities. So people put them in the recycling bins thinking they are doing a great thing. But they will end up in the incinerators and release ridiculous amounts of toxins into the atmosphere.
• Polystyrene leaches which means that food and drink in contact with it will absorb toxins that we then eat and drink.
• Styrofoam is very light which means that as it breaks down into small pieces; it gets blown away into water systems and the ocean. It costs millions in clean-up for cities and kills fish and marine wildlife who see it floating and eat it, thinking it is food.

Here are a few facts I found on canada.com :

" According to the French ministry of ecology, more than 14 million tonnes of polystyrene are produced every year around the world. Given its light weight --Styrofoam is 95 per cent air -- the volume it represents is huge.

Americans throw away an estimated 25 billion Styrofoam cups every year, or about 82 cups per person.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says of the three million tons of polystyrene produced in the U.S., 2.3 million tons end up in landfills, with much of the remainder finding its way into waterways. "

Will you take the challenge? So sounds off here! How do you say no to Styro?

Change the World Wednesday Challenge - Let your computer sleep!

Back with another great CTWW challenge is our friend Small Footprints :

"This week, put your computer to sleep or set it to hibernate when it's not in use.

Or ...

Typically, if you're already doing the first part of the challenge, I ask you to write about it on your blog. This week, however, we're going to do something different. If you are already in the habit of putting your computer to sleep or turning it off when you're not using it, look around your home and identify one other "sneaky" area that uses electricity. Come back here and, in the comments section, tell us what it is and how you'll either eliminate it or reduce it."

So share your thoughts and ideas with us!

Where do I save energy in the house?

• I have all my aquariums on timers so that they turn off automatically when we are not home to do so.
• As I take my shower, I gradually reduce the hot water so that the temperature gently decreases and I use less energy heating my water tank.
• When we have smaller stuff to cook and bake, we use the more efficient toaster oven instead of the conventionnal oven.
• Before the computer even goes into sleep mode, we turn off the monitor because the monitor takes up even more electricity than the computer does.

Where do you save energy?

Our adventures are going 100 mile...

Hello and good morning to all!

In the process of getting back into the swing of things, one thing we have been working hard on is rescheduling our 100 mile challenge diet. Having to put it on hold because of medical issues, we are now in full swing again and preparing for it.

Our new dates will be September 15th to November 15, 2009.

Why those dates?

1. We will be out of the country for 2 weeks early September and bringing the 100-mile challenge with us 100% would be a little hard. Plus, we will be staying with friends and we wouldn't want to impose. (Although we are looking forward to trying to find local delicacies while we are out and about over there.)
2. The growing season being a whole month late here because of the horrible weather we got June and July, so we are expecting to have nice fresh produce well into October and a farmers market full of good 100-mile stuff!
3. We will have time to do a lot of the canning. We do tons of preserves and such come late summer and early fall and those will keep us well fed and supplied in November when we become dependent on our reserves for the rest of the challenge.

So we are completely committed again and getting more and more ready for it…

I’ll be back later this week to share with a few 100-mile preserves recipes and tips so I hope you’ll check back in!

What local foods have you been enjoying this summer?

Change the world wednesdays - Go meatless for a day!

Hello all.

As previously started, I'm sharing my blog friend Small Footprints "Change the World Wednesday Challenge" with you :

• If you eat animal products, then for one full day eat only meatless meals ... go vegetarian. Dairy products & eggs are permissible ... but no other animal products.

• Or, if you are vegetarian full time ... then, for one full day, eat only vegan meals. No animal products whatsoever.

• And finally, if you are vegan, full time, write an article about why meatless meals are good for the planet and perhaps include your favorite recipe.

So everybody shime in : Share recipes, share meal plans... share your thoughts and ideas!

Being ovo-lacto vegetarian, I'll be choosing a day with my husband and we will be back to write about our lovely vegan day! Hope you will all join in!

Green Living: Improving Health Today and Tomorrow

I’m very honored today to have a guest blogger, Mr. Bill Hawthorne, who represents maacenter.org, a leading web resource for asbestos exposure and mesothelioma cancer information. This organization is dedicated to increasing awareness of the terrible health consequences of asbestos exposure through the distribution of the best informational materials and public outreach efforts.

Green Living: Improving Health Today and Tomorrow

Much attention has been paid in recent years to what seems to be a growing environmental conscience in the United States. Going green used to be considered expensive and a luxury for those who could afford the trend. Now it appears that we are learning that not only is adopting more environmentally conscious attitudes good for our economic situation, but also our….health? Yes, if we dig a bit deeper we can see that dirty industries and backwards policy is actually harming the health of the earth for our children and the health of her inhabitants today.

How Does Environmental Policy Affect Public Health?

There are two levels of health consequences associated with dirty industry, both direct and indirect. The direct consequences are examples like increased asthma rates in areas with high smog indices. Chlorofluorocarbon release into the atmosphere has shown to decrease the filter of direct sunlight on the planet, resulting in more concentrated ultraviolet light reaching the surface of the earth. Perhaps it is no surprise then that in countries with depleted atmospheric gas, skin cancer rates are among the highest in the world.

The indirect health consequences are harder to see immediately, but closer examination reveals that these are, in fact, perhaps the most hazardous. Bi-products of dirty and backwards industries, such as coal and oil processing, include cancer causing substances like asbestos and benzene. A U.K. study conducted in 2002 indicated that coal and oil industry workers are at a much higher risk of developing mesothelioma (associated with asbestos exposure) and leukemia (traced to benzene and heavy-metal exposure). Dr. David Sugarbaker among many other doctors who specialize in this area understand that these are substances that can be directly traced to antiquated pre-regulation equipment in industries whose environmental hazards are even more inherent.

Can we really afford to continue on the path we were on before? Investment in clean industry means not a healthier planet for our children and grandchildren, but also a healthier place for us to live today.

--June 8, 2009 Written by Bill Hawthorne with the maacenter

The 100 mile diet… or our own variation : Part 3 – Continuing with our preparations

Good evening to everyone!

Thought I would stop by and give you all an update on our preparations for our challenge starting on July 1st.

Of our list of staples, it seemed to me that the hardest thing to find in my area would be grains. So I decided to contact local mills and find out if any of them milled purely local flours. Unfortunately, although they do take quite a bit from local sources, they also import grains from the Canadian prairies and from the Midwestern USA. *Sighs*

As I was widening my perimeter (never exceeding 167 kilometers – 100 miles – of course), I was lucky enough to find a mill right on the edge of our area (155 kilometers) that mills buckwheat that is all from local sources!

Le Moulin seigneurial de la Carrière prides itself in producing local grown and milled organic buckwheat flours that are not only produced in our challenge circle, but have even more local (downtown Quebec City) sell points. So we will not have to drive to get it! I am planning on doing research on recipes for buckwheat breads and muffins. This will be very exciting!

I’ve also found local growers of fall wheat (which could be great for the end of the challenge), spelt and rye. They are organic and within 30 minutes drive. They will de-shell the grains for us no problem, now to find the mills to make it into flour…

And we did!
Les Moissoneries du Pays is an organic flour and grain producer. Now, although many of their grains are local, they could not promise that all grains were. To supply the demands, they do also import grains from Ontario and the Prairies. But they did say that if we brought them organic grains, they could transform them for us. They also grow organic garlic flower and garlic that you can self pick starting in July. So we decided to make it an adventure at the beginning of the challenge : Get some grains, take a drive, and pick some garlic while they mill our flours! The ideas I’m getting for homemade breads, cereals, breakfasts bars… My head is spinning!

Last but not least : We are lucky enough to have within our 100 miles the only 100% Quebec grown and produced organic sunflower oil! La Ferme Champy is a unique Quebec enterprise that produces cold pressed, organic, non-transgenic, oil and they have a counter right here at the downtown farmer’s market. We will be checking them all out in the next few weeks.

So if I go down my list of staples so far this is what we have secured for ourselves :

• All the fresh local veggies and fruits we want
• Dairy (milk, butter and cheese)
• Local organic small farm raised meats (for my husband)
• Oil
• Flours
• Maple syrup
• Honey
• Vinegars
• Herbs
• Eggs
• Local wines and ciders (okay… not a staple, but still fun!)

I think we are doing pretty well! And with one month still to go, we will keep searching for those little treasures!

Hope you all have a great evening.

Please share with us your thoughts and suggestion to help us in our challenge!

Painting our new home : Choosing non-toxic paints

Good morning.

We are only a month away from moving to our new home now and my husband and I went shopping for paint colors yesterday. One of the things we had promised ourselves with our new home was that we were going to paint with eco-friendly, non toxic and VOC (Volatile organic compound)-free paints. So off we went to find such a marvel!

I had done a bit of research on them before, especially after posting about plants and the way they can help purify the air we breathe indoors, and was shocked by the amount of negative impact one can of traditional paint could have on your health and environment.

According to Eartheasy.com, there are many benefits to using non-toxic paints :

• Health : Reduced toxins benefit everyone, including those with allergies and chemical sensitivities.
• Environment : Reduces landfill, groundwater and ozone depleting contaminants.
• Effective : Low-VOC products perform well in terms of coverage, scrubability and hideability (covering flaws on previous coats).
• Water-Based : Easy cleanup with soap and warm water.
• Little or No Hazardous Fumes : Low odor during application; no odor once cured. No off-gassing. Painted areas can be occupied sooner, with no odor complaints.
• Not Deemed Hazardous Waste : Cleanup and disposal greatly simplified.

Their section on non-toxic paints is WELL WORTH A LOOK and offers a great and extensive list of Natural, Zero-VOC and Low-VOC options. The natural paints even included soy and milk protein based paints. I thought that was simply wonderful! Until I tried finding such brands here in Quebec and hitting my head to a wall. The only one that was anywhere near me was Benjamin Moore and up here, they are so expensive, I couldn’t even imagine buying gallons over gallons. Plus they are in the low-VOC category and I wanted VOC-Free.

So back to square one, my husband and I headed to Home Depot and SURPRISE! We found one!


C.I.L. Dulux, a long standing paint manufacturer from Canada, has come out with their own line of 100% acrylic, VOC and solvent free paints that are eco-friendly and practically odor free. It also comes in eggshell and semi-gloss finishes. The best part is that, any color in their color swatches that is white-based (symbol W/B) can be made from this paint. Now, I understand that adding color pigments may compromise a bit of the “pureness” of the paint, but the solvents and VOCs will still not be there.

So I was pretty happy and cannot wait to start decorating our new home! I will keep you posted on the progress when the time comes.

Have you looked around for ways of reducing harmful materials in your home? Please share!

The 100 mile diet… or our own variation : Part 2

Good morning to all of you.

So as I mentioned a few days back, my husband and I have decided to go for a summer attempt at the 100 mile diet challenge. Well the challenge date has been set : July 1st! On that date, we will start a 2 months 100 mile challenge in the hopes of living a simpler life this summer, finding ways to lower our carbon footprint and getting to know the place we live in and the local growers and businesses that make it work!

Why July 1st? Well first, we will be moving into our new home that day so what better time to start on a new challenge. Second, we will already be playing the “empty out the fridge and cupboards” game to try and not have too much to move so we will need to restock anyway. And third, everything will be in full swing here for the Quebec growing season so all the farmer’s markets and food stands will be out and ready for us.

Why 2 months? Because as I have mentioned before, I’m really worried about the fact that I don’t eat meat and my husband eats very little. Quebec is not exactly the grain and legumes growing capital of the world. What does this mean? So far, our only protein sources would be eggs and dairy. We can’t exactly start eating a pound of cheese a day so we may have to get awfully creative.

First step : MAKING A LIST AND CHECKING IT TWICE!

We decided to start making a list in the next few weeks of staples, foods we would want to KNOW where to get before the diet starts. What prompted this is that we were walking around the farmer’s market (although it’s more a flower market right now) and came upon a stand for a local winery that was having a tasting of all their other wine and fruit derived products.


Vignoble Le Petit Pré is only 20 minutes east of downtown and not only has award winning wines, but a selection of preserves, non-pasteurized multi-flower honey and a line of traditionally crafted vinegars. See, vinegars like balsamic, red wine and white wine are things I use almost everyday in my kitchen and I never even thought of “where” I would get them once the challenge started! We also bought a jar of their honey and were floored. Such an amazing product and only a few miles away since their stand will be open, only a few minutes walk from our place, for the whole summer.

So it is a start!

As I am discovering hidden places in my area for little 100-mile-treasures, I will share them with you. Hoping to inspire you to go out and discover the little local delicacies your corner of the world has to offer!

Do you have favourite local spots?

Our garden – Year 2 : Our perennial patch!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Saturday morning!

As I had mentioned in my previous post about turning over and preparing our community plots, we are lucky enough this year to have two separate plots to which we have decided to give two very separate vocations.

We decided during the holiday week-end (last week) to turn last year’s 10 X 12 sq.ft. plot into a perennial garden. The idea of having one patch that would not have to be replanted every year was very nice and since we do not have a yard of our own yet, having our own little flower area seemed like a wonderful long term project!

WHY PERRENIALS?

Well, aside from the fact that half my favourite plants and flowers are perennials (including hostas and hemerocallis – commonly called daylilies), there are quite a few reasons to go for perennials. Even though at first look, perennials are more expensive then annuals, they will cost you less and less every year as they multiply and spread, making your garden lush and green. Also, good ground cover perennials like sedum, wild thyme, and many alpine plant varieties, once they spread, will help keep the soil shaded and cool which means less watering! And that alone is a good reason for me!

A few things to keep in mind when buying plants to start a perennial flower bed is to take good note of your hardiness zone, of the sun exposure of your patch and of blooming times. Most perennials have shorter blooming seasons then annuals, and even though their leaves are lovely, if you want to insure a presence of flowers throughout the whole growing season, pick species that flower at different times.

So everyone knows of the traditional perennial ground covers such as clover, sedum, hostas, certain grasses, but here are a few plants you may not know are perennials :

• Lavender
• Daylilies
• Daffodils
• Tulips
• Thyme
• Rosemary
• Asparagus
• Garlic
• Marguerites
• Sage
• Marigolds
• Irises
• Lobelia
• Bluebells
• Primrose
• Bleeding hearts
• Columbines
• Poppies… just to name a few!

Plus, if we stick to the basic definition of perennial which is really any plant that lives more than one year, vines and shrubs are great additions to any perennial garden patch! Also, depending on space, try adding fruit bushes! We’ve decided to go with hardy kiwi vines and blueberry bushes.

This is the picture of our plot when we started this season :



And this is what it looks like now :



I know it may look a little empty, but considering most of our plant choices will triple in size in the first year, we think the “bare look” will be worth it to have our garden come back in force next year!

On a side note : All our plants, vines and bushes came from local sources! Look around and find nurseries that grow plants in your area. Plants that have been imported mean more of a carbon footprint and more probability of species that are not well adapted to your climate! You may pay a little more, but you will get quality plants that last!

Please stop by and share your plans for a garden this year!

Rethinking recycling – When you move, donate goods and share resources!

Good morning to you all.

As I have mentioned before, my husband and I are on the verge of moving to a new apartment. When looking for our new place, we came to the understanding that we would have to sacrifice space for location in order to be happier and greener :

• Moving to a better built and more recent building meant less energy wasted through unsealed windows and outdated heating.
• Closer to work and our community garden meant less of the car being driven.
• Walking distance from the farmer’s market and our favourite local stores for food and fun meant the same.

But in this process, we lost 160 sq.ft and no longer have a basement storage unit. (Not that I’m complaining because we have now an underground parking spot so no need for de-snowing and idling the car in winter.)

So, we decided this would be the perfect time to really reassess what we were actually going to move and what we were getting rid of. Hard and long process, but a satisfying one to say the least! So I thought, since we are probably not the only ones doing massive spring cleanings or getting ready to move, I would share some ideas on items you may not have thought of donating but that are great to share and give away.

Toys and clothes :

That is an easy one! Everyone knows that they have local clothes banks and toy drives. No surprise there, but still, a reminder is always good. Toys can also be donated to daycares, children’s hospitals and shelters.

Bedding, towels, wash cloths :

You can donate all kinds of linens to homeless shelters and women’s shelters around your city. Towels and blankets can also be donated to local animal shelters to be used as beds in the cages.

Dishes, utensils and cookware :

Soup kitchens and shelters always have a need for extra dishes and things to cook with. Or, you could simply ask a friend if they need them! I’ve made so many starter kits for friends, I lose count. It’s always a great way to share.

Pet supplies :

Animal shelters need everything from litter boxes to food dishes, food, leashes, bedding, toys, carriers… if you use to have a pet (or like us, have pets that have outgrown their first litter boxes and carriers), then take them to your local shelter. You can also donate old hamster, bird, rabbit cages or aquariums to local grade schools to use in classrooms.

Books and magazines :

Local public libraries, high schools, grade schools, clinics, hospitals (long care units can use the books) and even local detention centers and prisons, will gladly accept donation of reading materials.

Shampoos, conditioners, soaps and other toiletries :

We all have in our home leftover bottles of shampoo, body washes, soaps, etc. that we have gotten on a whim and not used fully. Places like women’s shelters, were women and their families come in with very little in their possession, need things like that to help out.

So as you are going through your old things, please think of how they can be reused.

I hope you have a great day!


What do you share and donate in your community?

The 100 mile diet… or our own variation : Part 1

Yesterday, while driving to our favourite local nurseries for flowers and bonsai materials, we decided to get off the highway and take the scenic country roads back home. Since it was raining madly (only two crazy gardening and bonsai nuts would have gone shopping for open field grown hostas and hemerocallis in such a weather), we were driving extra slowly and got the time to look around a bit more than we usually would have. I was very surprised to find a local farmer that specialized in all kinds of potatoes!

Coming from Canada, potatoes for me are a Prince Edward Island thing. When I’m at the grocery store, it is my first thought : “Are they from P.E.I.? Then they must be good!” But now, I must admit, I will probably check his stands out when the growing season is here because he is local and because he is about 20 kilometres (15 miles) from my house.

After noticing him, I started looking more closely : Within those 15 miles until we got home, I found a local cheese maker (that uses milk from local milk farms), a few apple orchards, blueberry and strawberry fields, two organic farms and one apple cidery. That was when we decided to check out the 100 miles challenge website!

100 miles = 167 kilometres

The first thing I did was to figure out what my 100 miles was. Living mainly in metric, for me, 100 was not much. But after the conversion and seeing it on the map, the idea of living locally started to get more and more appealing.


Am I ready to take the challenge yet? Not quite.

What is holding me back?

• First thing is that I’m an ovo-lacto vegetarian. A lot of the recipes and ideas for living locally come from eating local meats which is fine. At least most local small farms are not chopping down thousands of acres of forests to raise their cattle. So even though I eat eggs and dairy, it is not my main source of protein and through my research, I’m yet to find a local producer of such legumes as chickpeas, soya beans, lentils, beans in general, which are a staple of my diet. Now, I do try and buy Canadian grown legumes and grains that come from our prairies, but that is DEFINITELY more than 100 miles.
• Second thing is that the growing season in Quebec is very very short. We live in a hardiness zone of 3 to 4, which means that we get 3, maybe 4 (if we are lucky) growing months a year. So you can imagine how scary it is to me that I may have to go so long without a variety of foods that I consider necessary to stay healthy.

So what to do?

For now, we are ready to take one pledge : From the moment the local farmers open their stands at local markets and along local country roads (which is usually late-June to late October), we will eat all local produce, milk and cheeses and drink local wines and ciders.

It will be hard to give up some of our favourite foods such as citrus fruit, bananas and tropical fruits. Also, what is Mexican food without guacamole? But I think it will be an exercise in creativity and we hope to be able to tough it out.

I will keep you updated on the exact date we will start and plan on doing more research into incorporating more local finds as we get ready for it.


What are some of your local favourites?

Purifying your home with plants - Volatile organic compounds and how plants can help!

So in an effort to help with making my home a better and safer place, I've decided to join 2 of my greatest passions (Horticulture and Green living) and write about plants and their ability to purify your living space.

According to studies conducted by NASA and the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) in the early 70s and 80s, researchers found more than 300 VOCs (volatile organic compounds) that we breathe in everyday. The scary part is that these VOCs were found outdoors and indoors. Not only have these toxins been known to cause allergic reactions, but they can also be linked to illnesses such as cancer.

I had already started looking into in-home toxins and their sources when I wrote one of my first blogs about PVC shower curtains. But after attending an expo where someone was passing out flyers about the top purifying plants to have in your home (which I will get into later), I decided to do more research on how they do it and how to make them work for me. Here are a few things I found out.

Let’s start with sources of VOCs in your homes and how to already take a step towards lowering your exposure. According to the EPA, main sources for these compounds are everyday household products such as paints and solvents, wood preservatives, aerosols, cleansers and disinfectants, bug sprays and air fresheners, stored containers of fuels, automotive products in your garages, hobby supplies such as glues and dry-cleaned clothing to name a few. If you are like me, venturing to be green, you have long since given up toxic cleaning products under your sink and you choose to hand wash and air dry your finer garments. But all of us have painted walls, varnished furniture and some super glue somewhere in case of breaks. We can't exactly start ripping apart our home, so what can we do?

Plants are a great way to help balance everything out. Now all plants can contribute to cleaner air in a home by the simple photosynthetic act of absorbing CO2 and releasing oxygen. But certain plants are actually also particularly good at absorbing some of the most common VOCs like :

• Formaldehyde - found mostly in plywood and press wood products, glues, paints, etc.
• Benzene - found in solvents and paints.
• Ammonia - found in many cleaning products.
• Trichloroethylene - found in solvents.
• Pentachlorophenol (PCPs) - found in wood preservatives and some disinfectants.
• Carbon monoxide - naturally produced by the human body, but found in excess due to wood and gas burning stoves and fireplaces, car exhaust (when starting your car with the garage door closed), furnaces, water heaters, generators.

So what are these super plants? According to Gilles Pelletier, indoor horticulturist, (whom I’ve already quoted in my post on home made bug repellants) here are his top plants to have in your home :

• Ficus – To help with neutralizing formaldehyde.
• English Ivy – Very efficient at removing benzene from the air.
• Palms – Many of the dwarf palms have the ability of removing both ammonia and formaldehyde from your in home air. Recommended for kitchens and bathrooms.
• Ferns – Great for most VOCs.
• Chrysanthemums - Are great for trapping trichloroethylene. A must for any freshly painted room.
• Spider Plants – a great purifier for removing formaldehyde and carbon monoxide.
• Philodendrons – Great for removing trichloroethylene and PCPs.
• Pothos – The super plant! Can remove 90% of excess carbon monoxide in 24 hours.

Now keep in mind that having one or 2 plants for your home will not be enough. While doing research on this, I found multiple sources that recommend an average of 15 to 20 plants in order to have a clean and healthy home. If you are like me, that isn’t much… I have plants on almost every elevated surface of my home (so the cats won’t eat them!). But if this seems like a lot, than concentrate on a few good ones and take the habit of airing out your home. But on a side note : Studies have shown that people that have lots of house plants in their everyday environment are more relaxed and productive, so maybe having lots of plants would be a great way to improve not only your air quality, but your quality of life in general!

Hope this was informative and I look forward to reading your thoughts and comments.

What plants to you generally keep in your home?

Our garden –Year 2 : The first days of work…

I hope you all will humor me; this will be a life blogging moment instead of one of my usual tips and ideas ones.

The temperature in Quebec City jumped 18 degrees Celsius this week-end and we went from early spring to “feels like summer” weather! So my husband decided that this was it! We were starting the gardening season. Of course, we meant prep work (we will still be getting nights of frost until the end of May) but we worked hard, making our garden plots ready for planting.

On Saturday, we went to my parents for dinner and my dad and husband diligently worked on our new composter. We went all around the home improvement stores and all we could find, in our price range, were plastic compost bins. Now, with trying to create a greener life for ourselves, as much as I understand the durability of the plastic bin, we just could not get ourselves to buy one. So with the price of the pre-made wooden bins, we decided to use all recycled natural pin wood we had here from an old bonsai growing shelf we had built and voilà! It turned out wonderfully.

By the way… Making a compost bin is super easy! Just make sure that you always use untreated-unpainted-unvarnished wood! Any treatment on wood will contaminate the actual compost!

Now today was the really hard job! We only had a 10 X 12 ft. plot at our community garden last year and were able to square away a 10 X 24 extra one this year! But the people that had it before us did not tend to it very well last year so we knew we had a day ahead of us. But as you can see it all went wonderfully.

Our goal is to be at least 75% self sufficient for vegetables this summer. Here is a list of what we will be planting :

• Tomatoes (7 different varieties)
• Cucumbers (3 different varieties)
• Onions
• Shallots
• Peas (3 different varieties)
• Beans (3 different varieties)
• Collard greens
• Lettuce
• Spinach
• Brussels sprouts
• Zucchinis
• Herbs
• Asparagus (which we will not be able to eat until next year unfortunately)

For the rest of our veggie needs, the organic farmers market will open here in just 2 months and all will be well.

I hope all of you had a wonderful week-end!

What veggies, fruits and plants are you growing this year?

My last sign in : HAPPY EARTH DAY EVERYONE!

Since one of our Earth Day activities is to have a electronics-free day, I will sign off until thursday.

I wish all of you a wonderful day. I look forward to reading about all the ways you celebrated!

Lets really make EVERY DAY EARTH DAY! And lets start with tomorrow as our new beginning.

Yanic

Produce and pesticides : What to buy organic if you can't buy it all

As I’ve mentioned before when I started this blog, I know how hard it is to try and make all the changes needed for a greener lifestyle. Sometimes it can be very overwhelming and trying to do it all at once can just be frustrating. Not to mention that suddenly buying everything organic can mean a major adjustment to the grocery shopping budget and going at it gradually can help you slowly incorporate smarter, healthier choices, without breaking the bank.

But where to start?

I’ve decided to start with produce. I did a little research and came upon quite a few varying resources for produce and their high or low pesticide ratings. So I considered the sources themselves and decided to compare them and it seems like many sites seem to agree with the EWG's (Environmental Working Group) Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides – Dirty dozen and Clean 15.

According to the guide, here are 12 fruits and vegetables that you should buy organic :

1. Peach
2. Apple
3. Bell pepper
4. Celery
5. Nectarine
6. Strawberries
7. Cherries
8. Kale
9. Lettuce
10. Grapes (Imported)
11. Carrot
12. Pear

And here are 15 fruits and vegetable that are lowest in pesticides :

1. Onion
2. Avocado
3. Sweet corn
4. Pineapple
5. Mango
6. Asparagus
7. Sweet peas
8. Kiwi
9. Cabbage
10. Eggplant
11. Papaya
12. Watermelon
13. Broccoli
14. Tomato
15. Sweet potato

For a full listing of all tested produce, click here!

Now, I list these with some reserves. I have found some contradictory information on other sites. The same main culprits are often there, but they sometimes have different rankings. I guess the first steps for all is to really start reading labels and packaging. Study what is available to you, look for healthy alternatives.

In the best of worlds, we would buy everything from organic sources, but if you can’t, try and concentrate on the ones that are most damaging and go from there.

Shop smart and be healthy.

Which produce do you already buy organic?

Green beginning: My introduction.

Hello and welcome to my first blog.

I always thought of myself as a pretty socially conscious person. I've been a vegetarian for going on 14 years, been buying cruelty-free body products, been recycling everything I can, been going for the fair-trade coffee at the grocery stores, etc. But the thought of going green hadn't really hit me until just a few years ago.

I live in Quebec City, Canada. Not too small of a town, but not too big of a town either. What I love mostly about my city is the efforts that are generally put into making it a nice place to live. In the last few years, Quebec City (like many other cities around Canada, North America and the World) has taken many green and eco turns that have made me rethink and revisit a lot of my day-to-day habits. Everybody's always about buying the compact fluorescent bulbs and the Energy Star appliances, but what does it all mean really if you leave the lights on all day and you use non-biodegradable soap in the washing machine?

So I started reading every bit of text and joining every online green community I could find. I subscribed to so many newsletters I was getting lost in my own inbox.

The first thing my husband and I did was easy : We exchanged every cleaning product in the house for biodegradable, non-toxic products. Products were readily available in our local grocery store, they were within our price range and we have kept at it really well. That made us feel good...

Then, I got overwhelmed with horror stories of petroleum products and parabens in my make-up and body products (which I thought I was doing good with, considering all the cruelty-free natural stuff I was buying) and stopped using them. This time, replacing all these things for organic stuff became harder. The reality of it is that organic, a lot of time, means more expensive and "trying stuff out" is not always possible on a middle class household income. I can't afford to be the girl with 60$ worth of deodorants under the bathroom counter that were used only 3-4 times.

That is when I realized that going green was going to be more complicated than I thought and it would take some work and dedication.

I have decided to lay down a 3-step plan to achieve my dreams of a greener life.

My first step is to stop feeling guilty everytime and effort was made that doesn't pan out. People out there need to know that if everyone made a real effort at least part of the time, the world would be a much better place. So every little action counts. I know that everytime I use a reusable plastic container in my lunch instead of a ZipLock bag, I'm doing a bit of something real... I will deal with the toxins from the plastics later. Breaking down a two step (or more) process into single steps does not diminish the impact of these said actions.

My second step will be to commit fully to my actions when they do generate success. Now that I've been using earth friendly cleaning products for over a year, I will not go back. I will never again buy clumping cat litter for my kitties. I will continue to recycle even if it means I live in a neighborhood that does not have front door pickup. (That is what the local center is for and really, it takes only 2 minutes to get there from our apartment complex.)

My third step will be to share my experiences and knowledge, successes and failures, triumphs and frustrations, but without judgment or condescension. This is why this blog is being created. Partly for myself, to have a real record of my progress and downfalls, but also because I refuse to believe that I am the only one out there who is sometimes struggling in their efforts to provide themsleves and their community with a cleaner healthier world.

My blog will most likely be eclectic. I have a curious mind and an insatiable appetite for random facts and tidbits. Hopefully, some of my power of retention may help others in exploring the joys of cleaner living.

I really hope a lot of you will share in this journey!