Tuesday, June 27, 2006

I Guess You Can't Take it With You.


To paraphrase the wit and wisdom of Lloyd Dobler, (and I guess we have to thank Cameron Crowe as well): "I gave him $31 billion dollars, and he gave me a book." But I guess it is the thought that counts. (Especially because I'm pretty sure Warren Buffet has at least glanced at "The Wealth of Nations" in his illustrious career.) But THIRTY-ONE BILLION DOLLARS is just an inconceivable number—how exactly do you thank someone for that? And while I know little about Gates' ability to run his charitable foundations, it seems like it might be a good place to park some cash you've got lying around. He's got grand goals (wanting to see the end of AIDS in his lifetime is one of the more noble ones), but importantly, he seems utterly commited to them (stepping down from MicroSoft to focus more time on charity is a start) . I think if anyone can do it, he might be the one. Gates Foundation.org

Monday, June 26, 2006

Link of the Day

Okay I'm secretly very jealous of this new site a friend turned me on to, mostly because it's everything I want my own work to be. For a fun sassy daily dose of eco-wisdom check out Ideal Bite. I highly recommend the daily emails that provide bite-sized, easily digestible info delivered right to your inbox.

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Simplicity & "What's that Smell?"

I had begun to take for granted the LA smoking ban, until of course 2 days ago when a new neighbor moved in below me. During that 48 hours, I thinking he's consumed a carton of cigarettes and each one of them has wafted up to my apartment and now resides in all of my belongings. Interesting that in that short time, the clean and fresh smell of my apartment (that I also took for granted) has been obliterated. I went from loving my apartment and tolerating my other crazy neighbors to hating my apartment and looking for boxes to pack and move out this weekend. Just a learning experience of how important clean air is and how easily and quickly it moves from one space to another. Also one of my favorite scary stats: if you can smell it, you're ingesting particles of it. Grab your painter's masks kids, it's gonna be a long weekend.

Monday, June 19, 2006

A little Monday morning smog


Who can find the Hollywood Sign in this picture? It's there, I swear.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Wish List: Create Your Own Energy with a Bike Trainer


Imagine what it would be like if you had to expend personal energy in order to watch TV or use your microwave or light your bathroom. I imagine a world where health problems and waistlines have decreased. Where seratonin levels and sales for bicycles have increased. And where the skies are cleaner and fresher. According to RealGoods.com (the alternative energy superstore) "Most adults can generate a steady 75 to 150 watts with spurts of double that power." A laptop computer uses about 15 watts of power, (another reason to switch from the desktop models). Who's going to start mass marketing these devices? When can we finally say "get on the bike, y'all"? Until then, I'm trolling the internet looking for plans.

Monday, June 12, 2006

I love Al Gore (& I don't care who knows it.)


Finally got out to see An Inconvenient Truth last night with the peeps, and it was every bit as shocking as it was watching Gore's presentation live and in person. Though I do have to admit, my love for the man has grown. Now everyone should realize this film isn't Democratic propoganda; global warming is not a political issue. Global warming is a human rights issue and Gore is one of the few people to stake his professional reputation to try and scare the public into action. The facts are indisputable. For us to ignore the information now would be irresponsible. We are all contributors to the problem, but we can all work together to fix it.

I am fortunate, living in California, one of the few states that understands the need for regulation (we're still far behind where we should be, but at least the ball is rolling.) The thing that saddened me most is that people in California and Oregon and Massachusetts and Vermont will see this movie and say, 'okay, I'm ready to make a change...' but will the documentary be received in say Boise? or Des Moines? or Little Rock? or one of the thousands of small cities and towns across the country where going to Wal*Mart is a pilgrimage, where fast food is daily meal, and if it's disposible it surely makes life easier?

This film clearly has the makings of changing society as "The Jungle" did for the meat packing industry in the early 20th century and "Unsafe at Any Speed" did for the auto industry in the 1960s. Will the world take the challenge?

To learn more about what you can do to stop global warming, check out www.climatecrisis.net.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Daily Pop Quiz

The best adjective to describe American culture is:
a) Disposable
b) Instant
c) Plastic
d) Throwaway
e) New
f) Easy
g) Convenient
h) All of the above