I'm at the library, and have just picked up David Suzuki's Green Guide (by David Suzuki & David R. Boyd, published 2008). How could I not know this book existed?
I think David Suzuki is the best. Although I'm young enough to have grown up with cable, I didn't because I lived out of the service area. Therefore, I was lucky to get three channels growing up, and The Nature of Things with David Suzuki was something that always came in clearly.
Recently, he's been showing up on green commercials, telling Canadians to get hip with things like clotheslines, fluorescent bulbs, and one very cute one of a guy who's been infested with penguins because he's kept his fridge door open too long.
Suzuki & Boyd's book dedication:
"This book is dedicated to every person worried about the Earth worried about the Earth who has ever wondered 'What can I do?'"
Can't wait to get home and tear into this...will offer highlights when done.
P.S. The Nature of Things will be looking at climate change at 7pm (Eastern) on Saturday, June 20. Check with your local listings to see who's carrying it in your area.
Not JUST for the girls...technically this post could also be for the boys who think they might like to convince their girls to use a menstrual cup. I don't recommend recommending ANYTHING to do with menstruation to ANY woman though. That is, if you're a guy. I'm not, and I'm speaking from experience, so I'll have my say.
Why are we talking about this?
First of all, let's just state why this is even on a green blog to begin with. Hugely on the "Pros" side of the argument, menstrual cups are reusable, taking years to end up in a land fill. Take a look at it this way: The average cycle is seven days. Assume that you're using a combination of at least two tampons and two pads per day, that's 4 x 7 = 28 things to end up in a landfill. Now multiply that by all the women on your block. Or all the women you know. Or hey, all the women in Canada. Yikes.
Next, take a look at a menstrual cup.
The instructions say that they should be replaced every twelve months, but I have a feeling that's got something to do with Health Canada requirements, because in many places on the internet you can read that they're good up to TEN YEARS. Yep, 10 years. And even if you do change it every 12 months, you've saved the planet from at LEAST 336 items in the landfill, assuming our two tampons, two pads estimate. Playtex, with their plastic applicators, can bite me.
Speaking of plastic, the Diva Cup in particular, isn't. It's silicone, which makes it hypoallergenic. It also makes it comfortable to wear, as the silicone softens with body heat as you wear it, making it contour to your shape.
Let's do this in a simple way:
PROS
- Reusable, for a long, long time.
- Since they are not up near the cervix like tampons, no risk of toxic shock syndrome.
- Comfort like a tampon.
- Easy to care for.
- NO LEAKS. This one is huge with me, so I'll say it again: NO LEAKS.
- Can be worn up to 12 hours. After twelve hours, remove, dump, rinse, and repeat.
- Cheaper in the long run.
- Now easier to find locally, which saves on shipping. (Store Finder)
- Husband is much happier taking that garbage out at that time of the month.
CONS
- A little tricky to get the hang of at first.
- Initial expense might be prohibitive for some. (Approx. four months budget in one shot.)
That's it. All the cons I can think of. Give me time, and I might come up with some more pros.
In case you hadn't noticed, I didn't go into a lot of detail about how the Diva Cup works or anything. For that, I suggest you head over to their website, where they have a fantastic FAQ that will answer all of your questions from "Ew..isn't that..." to "How do I...?"
I do hope this starts to catch on. Take some time and think about it, and remember that the small steps we take have a big impact. In this case, what we teach our daughters today can make for a better world for their own children.
Oh, how green I am - until I see a bug. The sight of a creepy crawly just about drives me to dig around in the back of my cabinets in search of the Raid that I know is still kicking around back there.Raid, for Roaches, no less. I've seen cockroaches in Kingston only twice, and one of those places ISN'T my current residence. But hey, if it'll kill a cockroach, it'll kill anything. That's my theory.Except that now I'm not supposed to use chemicals. I'm trying to be as green as I can and teach my children well...So, today when I was sitting on the deck, watching the kids play, I happened to catch some movement out of the corner of my eye. Right there, right at eye level, was a swarm of baby red spiders, looking like they had just been newly hatched - on my barbeque.UGH.Breathe deeply.(oh shit, oh shit, eeeeew)Leap from the deck, and breathe again.Think about the Raid, and then give self a mental slap on wrist.Call the kids over to have a look while running inside to get the spray bottle with dish soap and water.Squirt the hell out of the little bastards, while explaining to the kids that, "Yes, the spiders are outside, and that means they should be allowed to live...but they are on OUR DECK, which is an extension of our house. Therefore it's okay to kill them, unless one of you would like to pick them off. No takers?" (squirt, squirt)You heard it here. Dish soap kills bugs, apparently by suffocation. (Here's to hoping the karma has a loophole for bugs and phobias.) A spray bottle filled mostly with water and a couple good squirts of dish soap will do the trick. If it's an adjustable one, that's better - use the spray for little creepies and the stream for bigger ones.No guarantee this will work on cockroaches. We don't have them around here, but just in case, I'm keeping my bottle of raid at the back of the cabinet. (Sh.)
