Stirred Coffee
By Brenda Sweet

  My family has grown up watching me wash off and flatten out aluminum foil, cut tops and bottoms off every can before peeling the labels and stomping them flat. They've even seen me rinse the corn starch peanuts after testing them in my mouth to be certain they aren’t made of Styrofoam.

  Those who know me have gotten to see this side of me from time to time, and either shake their heads or ask me to tell them more - those are the ones I seek out.

  I think it can be very easy to believe and follow an environmentally friendly lifestyle practice at home, and then have that all fall by the wayside when you are at work or driving on the road. It's just so easy to think “disposable” and “convenient” rather than consider managing what you consume and dispose of at work the same way you would in your own home.

  I have gotten into the habit of bringing my lunch carried in a canvas bag - washable and sturdy. And I always, always use a cloth napkin rather than made of paper. Anything that I bring into work that can be recycled always comes home with me that same day. Soup cans, yogurt containers, aluminum cans or foil, they all get rinsed off and packed up.

  My sandwiches are wrapped in waxed paper rather than plastic wrap, it stays just as fresh. And bringing in a ceramic or insulated mug rather than reaching for the ever-so-handy Styrofoam cup is a must.

  Oh, and those little stirrers for the coffee, I can’t tell you how many people I see grab about 15 or so, stir their coffee about 3 times and then chuck them all into the garbage. I think I might have actually swatted at the last person I saw do that.

  My employer recently eliminated the purchase of hot chocolate to save some money. When I add up the cost of those stirrers and garbage removal, we may very well get our hot chocolate back in lieu of the stirrer expense!

  During a recent conversation with a co-worker, who thought that his plastic yogurt containers were being recycled at work after he threw them into the big blue recycling can, I revealed that the only thing being recycled from those containers were the 5 cent deposit soda cans, everything else went out with the trash.

  We can’t assume that our employers are truly recycling items just because the big blue can is typically used for that purpose. People watch people, and just by talking about what you can do to help reduce waste in your everyday habits will get people thinking. If you’re lucky they’ll ask you to tell them more. And if we’re all lucky they’ll take the first step in throwing one less waseful thing into the garbage can every day.

  Pass the recycling movement on to your friends.

  Now, put that in your coffee tomorrow morning, and stir it.

The Vine and the Good Neighbor
By Michael A. Cellini, 2006 (ed. Alan G. Cellini, 2007)

  This is a simple story about a homeowner and her relationship with a vine that was growing on the building’s south facing facade. Many of us who try, and live a more environmentally aware lifestyle, know that a south facing wall can help capture nature’s free heating source – the Sun.

  Sometimes, the Sun is not a good thing, like when it’s baking your walls under the heat of summer. That’s when you need the benefit of shade enabling vegetation. 

  However, in the winter, capturing the sun and taking benefit from its free energy, is a most wonderful thing. It can help keep you warm all day.

  Hence the story of the vine and the good neighbor is being told.

  A good neighbor friend of mine, I’ll call her Flora, was subjected to the ill advisement of a neighbor ignorant on the benefits of solar design - I’ll call him Ignatius. Iggy, managed to convince Flora, to remove the ‘messy’ ivy on her house because the leaves were covering his lawn and he was afraid the dead leaves would kill his grass – most likely soaked with pesticides that kill much more than the intended pests.

  Flora succumbed to the lack of wise advice from Iggy and cut back the ivy from the facade shading her domain. As summer rolled along she noticed that not only did the breeze that once ruffled the ivy leaves creating a natural wind chime sing no more, but the Sun’s heat, radiated through the brick building into the living space called home - now a hot home.

  With her natural shading source removed, Flora experienced first-hand the affects of what bad design techniques can have on a home’s interior environment. Fortunately the type of vine that grew on her siding is fast growing and will be back soon, covering the home in a relatively short period of time - forgiving the actions of following Iggy's bad advice.

  While Ivy is not good growing on all homes, because many varieties of ivy can actually harm siding and even damage weight baring walls because it is invasive; some varieties are siding friendly and won't even dig into brick mortar, leaving your castle to remain healthy and standing for years to come. 

  Whether it’s planting good Ivy or any shade producing tree that looses its leaves after the warm seasons have passed, you can enjoy both benefits of shade and the ability to let the sun shine warmth upon your home as the seasons pass. 

  Remember, some vines like neighbors, can give good or not so good - advice.

  Where is that pesticide when you really need it?