Thank you for the beautiful works of art that you have carved and created all over this beautiful planet of ours.
I've been so fortunate to see your works of art on six different continents and with each place I go, I never cease to be amazed at your inspiring creations... many of which are literally just in my backyard.
Thank you for these works of art that I have been able to experience through my five senses and thus has nourished my soul. If I listed all of my favorite places and all of the magical things I've seen, heard, touched, smelled, felt and experienced, I would be writing non-stop for years!
For each of you reading this, go to a place where YOU have been... a place on this lovely earth where you have seen incredible beauty... NATURAL beauty. And take a moment to reflect and be grateful of our home, Earth.
Today I'm going to indulge my crazy habit for collecting vintage kitchen wares. I'm drawn to them because of their unique, colorful and retro designs. I justify the purchases because I believe that by RE-USING old stuff, it's a way of recycling. Plus buying this old "junk" from garage sales and thrift shops is often inexpensive.
Remember Pyrex from the 60's and 70's? OK, maybe you're not old enough, not to say that I am :-) But one of the things I have collected is vintage Pyrex glass. Not only do they make the table fun and bright, but they are immensely useful for baking, storing leftovers, preparing food and many other uses! Bringing food in these dishes to parties is always a hit.
Check out all of the fun and wonderful ways people use their vintage Pyrex in this Flickr group called Pyrex in Action. It's really inspiring! Do click on the link, I think you'll enjoy it.
Can't we just re-use the old stuff? It's a sad reality that we need to keep manufacturing new stuff that people buy to keep our economy going. But I also imagine a world where we can re-use as much old stuff as we can before sending them to our landfills. I'm so glad the retro design movement is popular right now... I know I'm not the only one acquiring old junk. :-)
To celebrate Earth Day, I'm thinking about having a contest and give away some vintage Pyrex. I'll decide later... come back soon!
April 22nd is Earth Day and it's awesome that during the whole month of April we see a lot of media coverage promoting activities and good practices to help keep our environment clean and healthy.
I too will dedicate the most of this month's blog entries to being good to our planet and environment.
I try my best to tread lightly on this earth. I'll admit that I don't do everything I know I should or should not do (for example, I do drive a car), but I believe that even the smallest daily practices help. For example...
1. CLOTHES LINE IN MY GARAGE I try to hang most of my laundry, especially larger items like towels that soak up a lot of water. Yes, sometimes, I put those items in the dryer for about 10 minutes when they're still a little moist just to soften them up a bit, but at least I dried 90% of it without the use of the dryer.
It's also more gentle on clothes and makes them last longer. It seems like a lot of trouble but actually, once you get in the habit, it doesn't really take that much time - you don't have to hang it perfectly. I learned this from my parents so I've been practicing this my whole life.
2. WALKING TO THE GROCERY STORE I'm lucky enough to be a 10-minute walking distance to a supermarket so when I don't have too big of a load to pick up, I walk over with my canvas bags. Luckily my bank/ATM and the post office are also in the vicinity so I run those errands at the same time.
I know, I know... life is very busy and who has time? For me it's only 20 minutes round trip by walking, but even if it's 30 minutes, it's a good way to get a little exercise (walk fast) and get away from the phones and computer. It's amazing what it can do to your mental state to stop the frenzy. I just make a choice to give up watching TV or reading a book for that amount of time. Sometimes the trade-offs aren't that easy, but the point is that I TRY to do it when I can. :-)
What small (or big) things do you do on a regular basis to help our environment? Please do share.
About the photo This amazing photo was found on Flickr.com - click on the image to see the full credits.
On food, eating, cooking, gardening and experiences that nourish the body and soul. Photos featured are taken mostly by me - this blog is mostly a visual diary of my food (and some non-food) adventures.
I'm curious about sources of nourishment and food preparations. Simple food is best - fresh, highlighting the natural flavor, easy to prepare and healthy for us and the environment. Hope you enjoy learning with me.
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