I recently attended a Realtor convention in Washington, D.C. and stayed at the Washington Hilton.  When I arrived in my room, I noticed that the thermostat had a motion sensor.  Initially, I thought that this was a great idea.  There is no need for the AC to be running in my room when I am not there.  Go Hilton!  The only problem is that when you are sleeping, there is no motion hence no AC.  The room would become stifling hot and I would have to get up in the middle of the night and do a little dance in front of my thermostat.  I do applaud the Hilton for trying to save energy but maybe there are better options.  Some hotels have a card slot as you come in the room that you put a key card in and it turns on the electricity in the room.  When you leave, you take out the card and no electricity will be used while you are gone.  This seems like a better nights sleep to me! :D

Great tips on how to keep from using pesticides and ways to keep from having to water your garden as much!

I promise this will be my last post on composting in honor of National Compost Awareness Week! :D

Here are some great tips to decide the best composting system for you whether you have a yard or not!  Happy Composting!

Have you been thinking about composting but not sure it is for you?  With this thought, you don’t want to buy a composter or have a pile of compost in your back yard?  Well here is a great way to ease into composting and decide if it is for you (which I am confident you will!). 

Keep a container in your refrigerator and put your leftover, uncooked food scraps ( potato skins, washed egg shells, onion skins, etc) in the container.  When it is full, put the scraps in a blender and puree.  You may need to add a little water to help this process along.  Once you have it all pureed, dig a little hole next your plant and pour the mixture in and cover it back up with dirt.  Very easy to do and the best fertilizer for your house plants, garden plants, herbs etc.!  Happy composting!

Here are some interesting things that you can compost in honor of National Compost Awareness Week!

Not long ago I posted a story about challenging builders to use American made products when building new homes.  The notion behind using American made products (faucets, nails, etc) would create so many jobs!  Here is an update on the astounding effect that this news story made!  Builders everywhere need to read this story and watch these videos!!

I was so excited to hear that a Gleaning Program has finally made its way to Memphis!  Volunteers go to farms and Farmer’s Markets and collect left over produce and fruit to donate to food kitchens that are drastically in need of food, especially fresh produce.  From this article in The Commercial Appeal, they have gotten wonderful response from the farmers that were/are more than willing to donate any leftover produce to help feed the hungry instead of feeding their compost piles.  I think this is a fantastic program and am so excited that Memphians are backing it with exuberance!

The Commercial Appeal had a great article in today’s paper about Farmer’s Market and CSAs.  For those of you that don’t know, a CSA is Community Supported Agriculture.  Basically, you pay the farmer in advance for the crops that they will grow for the year.  This helps the farmer’s get what they need to start the crops, and guarantees you yummy, fresh vegetables from that farmer.  It is a fantastic program!

I have joined the Whitton Farms CSA for the last 3 years and absolutely love it!  I pay them in January for 28 weeks of fresh veggies!  Every Wednesday, I go to the Botanic Gardens Farmer’s Market and pick up a huge bag full of fruits and vegetables.  It is like Christmas every week!  My CSA starts tomorrow and I couldn’t be more excited!

Check out your local farmer’s market and see if they have CSAs.  This is a fantastic way to eat locally grown foods and support your local farmers!

You can have a great vacation and still be eco friendly!

I recently got married and had my honeymoon in Mazatlan, Mexico.  I left the travel planning to my husband because he loves being the travel agent.  He knows how passionate I am about trying to be as eco friendly as I can and chose our honeymoon spot accordingly (he rocks!).  We stayed at Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay which is a beautiful resort in Mazatlan.  I didn’t realize until we arrived that he had chosen a resort that partners with Green Globe, an environmental conservation specialist and have won awards for efforts.  They have recycling programs, compost centers, flora and fauna protection programs, etc!  How fantastic!  This shot of our room with the door open is a simple way that the hotel tried to conserve energy.  If your patio door is open for more than 5 minutes, the AC in the room automatically shuts off so that you are not wasting the cool air.  There was also a card at the front door that you had to use to turn the electricity in the room on and you could remove it when  you left and all of the electricity would shut down while you were gone. 

I know that traveling can be hard on our environment, but every little thing we can do is helpful!  Safe and happy travels!