Sorry, Oprah, but it's called "Green Washing".

It is inevitable. As the popularity of something increases so does the risk that the unscrupulous will join the parade without integrity. What am I yakking about? Greenwashing.

Looking around I have mixed feelings when I see Clorox touting their care for the earth and little, sweet frogs in particular. Yes, it definitely better than the alternative; standard clorox fills the earth with chlorine. Somehow though I am still left wishing that I could believe it was more than financially motivated.

Of course, it is better to have mainstream greener choices available. Yes, even though I can't imagine shopping there, it is a good thing that Wal-Mart wants to make a name as the Green Retailer. But sometimes these types of green movements are exposed for exactly what they are, attempts to capitalize on the attention given to the real issues of the environment to stay trendy and topical.

Case in point. Oprah had an Earth Day episode this week, of course she did. Now I need to pause here and say that I generally like Oprah. I find that even though her passion for spreading personal empowerment and positive action can be extremely sappy, it is generally a good thing. Yet, I was very dismayed to find O exposing herself as a faux environmentalist on Earth Day. Here's the poop. Oprah had Julia Roberts on, along with the author of Gorgeously Green to discuss the importance of composting. What you won't find on her sanctioned site is her saying things like "that is completely disgusting, I'm not going there with you." in response to the compost bin. You also won't see her "compost queen" screaming when she opens the lid to the worm farm to find (GASP!) worms. Of course, those telling tidbits won't be seen on the Oprah web site, but they were there if you saw the episode. Sad. I found it to be the perfect example of doing the right thing for the wrong reason. What is the effect of Oprah declaring composting "icky"? Seeing how see influences behavior it might have canceled out the entire show! Bummer.

Who is your most favorite faux-environmentalist?

Sometimes The First "R" is Forgotten

Yes, reusable shopping bags are a great idea. They save the planet in numerous ways. Less plastic blowing about mucking up wild life and eventually circling around in the Pacific in the plastic soup I still can't truly, truly fathom. Less energy used in creating and hauling whatever non-reusable bag you would receive, etc...

However, what about "REDUCE, reuse, recycle?" Yes, buy reusable bags, but do you need to spend ridiculous amounts of money to do so? OK. I have to admit, I like cute stuff. I have a reusable bag I picked out specifically because of its super cute blue color and nifty little attached bag. However, it cost me $5 (By the way, I think it looks an awful lot like the over-priced versions).

I don't get it. Get a fun bag. Definitely get something you find appealing. There are plenty of choices, but really, don't pay more than a sack of groceries for it.

Lady Bugs to the Rescue!

Spring is here and with it the tender red shoots of the roses stretching into the sun...not far behind are the aphids. ICK. Nasty, gooey munching machines, the aphids have been trying to take over my front yard for the past few weeks.

I had been washing them off with a mixture of earth-friendly soap and water. Swishing the infected shoots in the soapy water every few days rewarded me with a bowl full of bugs and pest-free plants, but it was labor intensive and required me to get very personal with the aphids.

In come the lady bugs! To keep my flowers happy as well as the planet we planned an aphid genocide. Little Man and I picked out what appeared to be the very best tub of lady bugs and set the stage. Carefully watering the garden right before sunset we waited until dark to start the battle.

We dumped the lady bugs at the base of the roses and wished them luck. In the morning we were treated the lovely view above - lady bugs congregating on all the little shoots gorging themselves on the nasty little aphids. Success!!!

Not only will the ladies help the pests, they have proven to be quite the interesting science lesson. Discussions of the food chain, parasitic relationships, unintended consequences of chemical uses, and other interesting topics have risen for discussion. Can't believe that at one time I might have used some chem! This is much more fun and a much better choice for Mom-Earth.

It's a family affair

What does this sweetheart to our left have to do with my family? More than one might think. First, I received this picture from my maternal unit, so it originated with family. But more, I am referring to my little version of a nuclear family; this bear has become a bit of an environmental mascot for me and mine.

I've discovered that much of my journey to greener living has been a confrontation of some of my less-savory habits. For example, laziness can be an environmental hazard - feeling like doing the better thing is just too difficult, time consuming or neurotic. That one was pretty obvious to me at the start, and happily, it is one that is often more of a myth than a reality. But I digress...

Recently I found myself thinking back to an episode of Planet Earth where the plight of the polar bear was there in my face in HD (but on an LCD, which is, in general, the best of worst in terms of energy efficiency in home monitors.). The thought of these beautiful animals swimming until they drown, sometimes more than 60 miles, is heart breaking to me. The guilt began to rise in my chest as I thought of how my driving habits likely contribute to the problem, both by needing oil and by expelling green-house gases. I'm a rather rush-to-a-stop sort of driver, the worst kind for fuel efficiency. I decided I had to try to change.

In comes the cutie pie snuggling in the ice. I printed a copy of the picture and put it on the sun visor of the car (thanks to my sweetheart who didn't think I'm a kook for doing such to our shared vehicle). I swear, it has helped me ease off the accelerator. I see that bear just outside my main field of vision and I simply don't think of stomping on the gas as hard. Lot's of only good things can come of this, so thank you polar bear, from me and the entire citizenry of San Francisco. So Mr. Bear is my mascot.

Mr. Bear is also my Little Man's reminder, too. On the way to school earlier this week I was asked about the picture by my 6 year old son. I explained the idea behind having the picture in the car and he was quiet for a moment, contemplating. A bit later he declared that he felt he should cut down on playing video games a little bit, just to help save a little more ice. Funny, that comment seemed more likely to melt ice to me, but you get the idea. ; )

We <3 polar bears!

Exciting new curbside battery pick-up!

Even though it has only been a short time that throwing batteries into the general waste stream has been illegal in San Francisco, for years I have been collecting used batteries in an old latte bowl and when it is full, I've hauled them to work where I could safely dispose of them. Well, no more I say!

San Francisco is now instituting a curbside battery collection! Once again the Green City is making it easier than ever to do the right thing and pull more batteries from the landfill. The new program is being phased in by neighborhood, so you'll want to call your sanitation company to find out when your neighborhood will be included. Both Sunset Scavenger and Golden Gate Disposal are participating. In participating neighborhoods you can collect your old batteries in a zip lock bag and place them on top of your black refuse cart for collection. How easy is that?!

Here is the interesting part. I learned about the program through an information card mailed to my home. There is no mention of the program yet on the website for either company. I've put in a verification request and I'll update when I receive confirmation, but for now I am choosing to believe the snail mail announcement. Stay tuned and start bagging your old batteries!

Feeling like an outlier...

I am currently away attending a professional meeting that I attend each year. For the first time since I joined the association and began to attend the annual meeting I am noticing the horrific impact such an activity has on the planet. I am finding it so distracting that I have been making notes on the things that could easily be done to improve the situation that seem to simply not have occurred to anyone doing the planning.

The result is that I am wandering about wondering if I am a freak. Have I taken my concern for my effect on the globe way beyond the norm? Example, last night I was having a very lovely meal with two colleagues and a person I had not met previously who was a friend of one of my friends. The topic of my vegetarian diet came up and the person I did not know asked me what started me on that path. Before I could answer she said with a tone, "I would never do something like because of the planet or anything else like that!" [insert eye roll here]. I was a bit shocked. As it happens, I did not initially take that step for any reasons other than meat didn't appeal to me any more, but the thought that considering the impact of such things was silly struck me as very odd and a bit insulting, to be honest. I suppose you had to see the facial expression and hear the tone to understand. It was if I was suddenly patchouli-soaked, hairy and hugging a tree at the table. To be very fair, I do consume seafood from time to time, but when I do, I do not chose over-fished species. I have loved Chilean sea bass in the past, but I simply cannot order it knowing what I do. I do let the health of the world weight in on my dietary choices. Am I a freak?

I would really like to see the association make an effort to chose more sustainable options where possible. What kinds of things would I suggest? For one thing, I would banish the plastic bottles of water on every single speaker's table and provide a durable pitcher and glasses, or if the costs were reasonable make a statement by using compostable water bottles. Who needs to use the petroleum for the bottle, the shipping, etc? This is especially important given that the recent figures on plastic bottle recycling is low. I would ensure that all the handouts (thousands at this meeting) were at minimum printed DOUBLE-SIDED! Better, I would encourage presenters to make their materials available electronically - most of us throw those things away anyway. I would look into the feasibility of using recycled paper and soy-based inks for the meeting materials, and I would definitely provide recycling for those materials at the of the meeting. I'm sure there are tons of other things that could be rather easily done and implemented if there were interest, these are just off the top of my head. (I'd love it if you would comment on other ideas!)

Can't wait to get home to the bosom of good ole tree-hugging San Francisco. I might even pretend to throw something recyclable into the trash to illicit a friendly reminder from someone to remind myself I am not alone. ; )