‘Tis the season for butternut squash

I made a New Year’s resolution in 2009 to eat more seasonally and locally (in addition to mainly organic) to reduce my diet’s carbon footprint and to support local farmers. I originally thought it was going to be too much of a challenge for a picky eater like me, but little did I realize that seasonal, local food is often cheaper (have you tried buying Chilean berries in the winter?). Plus, seasonal, local food tastes better because it’s fresher.

Adventures in insulating

All I wanted was lower heating bills and a warmer house in the winter. Instead, I found myself embroiled in complications with electrical wiring, fire hazards and formaldehyde.

In 2008, my husband and I took advantage of the falling home prices and bought our first place – a charming 1950s ranch in San Bruno, a city known for its often chilly, windy climate. If you buy a house in Sunnyvale or Concord, you worry about air conditioning. If you buy a house in San Bruno, you’re concerned with ways to make your house warmer, even in – no, especially in – July.

Hanging with the natives at Woodside’s Yerba Buena Nursery

The common misconception is that all California’s native plants look like weeds. And while I agree that some natives do (I’m looking at you, deer grass), a day at  the Yerba Buena Nursery on the Peninsula will change your mind. You’ll see ferns, shrubs, trees, flowers and more – all of which are native to California and don’t look like weeds you want to pull from your garden.

Your (wallet) guide to eating organic

You already know the benefits of eating organic – pesticides pollute the environment, harm the health of farm workers and have undetermined, but potentially dangerous health effects on consumers who eat conventional, non-organic foods.

The problem with plastic bags (and the solution)

Thora Birch’s boyfriend in American Beauty found beauty in a plastic bag blowing in the wind, but plastic bags cause such significant damage to our environment that I can’t see any good qualities in plastic bags.

What’s the problem with plastic bags?

A greener way to wash your car

Did you know that washing your car in the driveway or in the street pollutes the ocean? Heck, I certainly didn’t, until I started working in the environmental field. The water you use to wash the car picks up oil, grease and chemicals from your car, the driveway and the street and trickles down the storm drains until it eventually ends up in the ocean, if you’re a resident of a coastal state.

That New Shower Curtain Smell

In June 2008, media outlets were buzzing with the story that a scientific study found vinyl shower curtains release toxic chemicals into your home – including some chemicals that are known to cause cancer. A few weeks later, the New York Times printed an article rebuking the earlier story, questioning the science behind the study and its conclusions. So should you replace your vinyl shower curtain or not?

Cheers! Raise Your Glass to Going Green

Plates, bowls and cups made from recycled glass give new life to old glass and bring unique style to your home. These recycled dishes are a much prettier way to use an empty Coke bottle or an old window than throwing them in the landfill.