Do You Need a Reason to Go Barefoot?

going barefoot

Soles4Souls announced that National Barefoot Week is stomping ground again next month, June 1-7, 2010. I have been a fan of Soles4Souls and their efforts for a few years now. Disasters don’t stop happening and people always need help even if it is just receiving a pair of shoes to wear on their feet.

A little closer to home in Nashville where Soles4Souls is based, they have already started responding to the needs of their immediate community by providing shoes and other items of necessity to help people who are still trying to recover from the storms they were hit with earlier this month.

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Plastic in the Dishwasher

In my last post for 5 Minutes for Going Green I explored the environmental impact of using the dishwasher vs. washing dishes by hand. You may recall that there was not a clear winner, but as someone who hates washing dishes, I declared that I would continue using the dishwasher myself. When the answer isn’t clear, I tend to make the decision based on personal convenience.

After that post went up, one of my friends got in touch and asked me about washing plastics in the dishwasher. She has been debating the topic with her husband. I didn’t know anything about the safety of plastic in the dishwasher myself, so I decided to look into it.

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GreenMyParents

GreenMyParents is a new kid led movement to inspire kids to work with their parents to help save the planet, the economy and earn money at home through simple actions.

It’s based on the book “Green My Parents” which will come out later this month. It’s also a twitter, facebook and social media campaign. They host public “workshops” all over the country, as well.

Right now they can use your help by going to Pepsi Refresh and voting for their project. They can win $250,000 which will go a long way in helping them really get this project going.

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Organically Grown

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Around here, spring is finally in the air…which has me scrambling to find warm weather clothes for my kids!Are you ready for spring and summer fashion? Hand-me-downs and second-hand finds are a godsend, but when you need to fill out that wardrobe with new clothes, where do you shop?

Recently, I was fortunate to become accquainted with Organically Grown, a clothing company who believes in offering affordable, safe, stylish, high-quality organic clothing to consumers.* Why was I interested in organic clothing? I was shocked to learn that an estimated 170 million pounds of pesticides and one-quarter of the world’s insecticides are used in the production of conventional, non-organic cotton.

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Dish Washing Debate

Chores are no fun. Not for me, anyway. All the same, there are some chores that I don’t mind that much, and some that I really hate. The household task that I loathe above all others is washing dishes.

More dishesWhen I was young and single and still in university I did not have a dishwasher. I often resorted to tactics such as washing a single bowl because I wanted some cereal and all my bowls were dirty. It wasn’t pretty. So when I got married one of the requirements that I had for my first apartment with my new husband was that it must have a dishwasher.

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Staying on the Green Bandwagon

You know how the easiest way to stick to a diet is to not bring ‘problem’ foods into the house in the first place? Well, I’ve found I do the same thing with keeping to a ‘green’ diet. There are certain (decidedly un-environmental) conveniences I simply can’t resist if they’re easily accessable, so instead I don’t purchase them at all.

Maybe I have the will power of a knat, but I find this works for me. Out of sight, out of mind! The following are non-green items I try to avoid like the plague (because if they’re in my house, I’ll gladly use them!):

Do Not Enter sign.svg

Paper towels and napkins.

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Free Green Family Entertainment

Tomorrow, April 21, 2010, PBS will broadcast Food, Inc. If you haven’t already seen it, now is your chance! Grab a bowl of popcorn, a few of your favorite drinks, gather around the television and have a family movie night.

Produced by Robert Kenner and Eric Schlosser, Food, Inc. ” lifts the veil on our nation’s food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that has been hidden from the American consumer” and is, obviously, a film near and dear to my heart.

Check your local listings now and after you’ve watched, let me know what you thought in the comments here.

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Revolutionizing Food

Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution is a huge sensation. The TV program is airing in the US right now, and Jamie’s philosophy of cooking real food from fresh ingredients is hitting home. I live in Canada, but even here people are talking about what’s happening each week on the show. They’re trying out new recipes and re-considering their approach to what they feed their children.

What is Jamie saying that is spurring people to action? On his website, he writes:

Knowing how to cook means you’ll be able to turn all sorts of fresh ingredients into meals when they’re in season, at their best, and cheapest!

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Second-Hand Shopping

Lovely teacup
Thrift store teacup

There was a time in my life when I never darkened the door of a thrift store. I had a variety of reasons – I thought it took too much work to find something really good, I thought second hand stores smelled bad (they sometimes do), and I didn’t really like the idea that some stranger had worn that shirt or eaten off this plate.

Things have changed. These days I love second hand shopping. When I had kids I discovered that children’s clothing can get really expensive, really fast. This is especially true when they’re super-tiny and they grow through clothes at an alarming rate.

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Going Shampoo-Free

Day 2 shampoo free

Last month I decided to try no poo. It’s short for ‘no shampoo’, and it means that I’ve ditched my traditional hair cleaning products. And I am not alone. No poo’s following is growing, and people choose it for a variety of reasons.

Why did I choose to give up shampoo? Modern shampoos typically contain artificial colors and fragrances, and a variety of ingredients that haven’t been specifically tested for safety. Shampoo and conditioner come in plastic bottles, and there are problems with recycling plastic. Also, as compared to the more environmentally-friendly organic shampoos and conditioners I was using, this solution is super-cheap.

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