Why I Keep Fighting

Before I begin discussing a matter that affects us all, I want to thank my Econesting followers for supporting environmental issues.

OK, deep breath...

As many of you know, I'm concerned about pollution. Air, water, land...you name it, I'll fight for it. Clean air is a complicated issue made messier and mushier by politics. It shouldn't have to be that way, but it is.

I get that we need jobs. I get that we need power.

What I also get is that we need healthy people to create the jobs that create the power.

Here's the rub: sacrificing jobs for health is not the issue. We can have jobs and breathe clean air. And history has proven that our politicians can make nice and come together on an environmental issue that the majority of people want...clean air.

The Clean Air Act was signed into effect in 1970 by a bi-partisan Congress. In 1990 President Bush called for the EPA to address mercury and other dangerous air pollutants. The rule to eliminate this poison has been in the making for 21 years. Now the polluter lobby is pressuring the White House to weaken, or add gaping loopholes to the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards.

Mercury is a terrible neurotoxin. Our littlest creatures: infants, toddlers and even our pets are especially vulnerable to mercury poisoning.

Where does the mercury come from? Coal-fired power plants emit half of all toxic mercury pollution in the U.S. and over 386,000 tons of other hazardous air pollution every year.

The Mercury and Air Toxics Standards rule is one of the most important clean air regulations to ever come out of the EPA. It would reduce mercury, arsenic, acid gases, and other hazardous air pollution from America’s oldest and most polluting coal-fired power plants. Such a great regulation that uses American engineering, and creates jobs—without harming the economy. The Mercury and Air Toxics Standards would prevent 17,000 premature deaths every year.

Why do I keep fighting? Because they are not going to stop...the polluters. A handful of coal utility companies, armed with powerful lobbyists, are urging the clean-up be delayed. They would like to ditch the EPA and weaken clean air standards for the most toxic pollutants.

Can we ask our lawmakers to take off the gloves and not pollute our natural resources? Yes! They must, and we must continue fighting for our children because they deserve a future with clean air, water and land.

Please tell President Obama that you support the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards.

Photo used with permission: Chris Scott Snyder

Keep The Peace With A DIY Peace Wreath

As someone who blends holiday traditions, believe me, peace binds it all together. The universal message of peace is always in season. Throughout the holidays we sing of Peace on Earth and Good Will Towards...Men!?!

OK, here's a good place to start.

Isn't it about time we ditched the men-only lingo?

Now that we have that straightened out...

What do you do about family members who don't exude peaceful, easy feelings?

Embedded in my Steps For Creating Peace...Someday post is one of my favorite holiday songs -- Stevie Wonder's, Someday At Christmas.

Don't you just love that song?

Becoming Minimalist addressed the gift of creating overdue family peace...

5 Steps To Create Peace At Home

1. Determine to be responsible for your attitude, not others. (I'll let the over 90 yr-old relatives off the hook on the...Good Will Towards Men-thing.) 2. Embrace humility and forgive. (Not touching this.) 3. Accept disagreement and put it behind you. (Easy. Done.) 4. Take the first step. (Here you go...) 5. Create a Peace Wreath.

Let's share peace, even with those who push non-peaceful buttons. Create a handmade spin on the traditional holiday wreath.

DIY Peace Wreath

What you need:

4 wire hangers or a wreath form floral wire wire cutters pliers evergreen branches

What to do:

1. With the pliers straighten two coat hangers and form them into a circle. 2. Hook the ends together by twisting the wire. 3. Bend the other hanger wire into a circle making sure it is about 1″ smaller than the first one. 4. Hook the ends together, forming a circle. 5. Take the fourth hanger and cut and wrap it to form a peace symbol in the inside circle 6. Cut branches to 4-6″ lengths. 7. Gather the branches into bundles. 8. Secure the bundles with the floral wire. 9. Lay a bundle on the form and tightly wrap it with wire. 10. Without cutting the wire, add another bundle so that it overlaps the bottom half of the previous one. 11. Repeat around. 12. Cover peace symbol in the same overlapping manner. 13. Make a wire loop on top or use the hanger hook to attach.

Don't forget to add a note and include one of these quotes:

“Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means at which we arrive at that goal.” Martin Luther King, Jr. “When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.” Jimi Hendrix “Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace is its own reward.” Mahatma Gandhi “All we are saying is give peace a chance.” John Lennon

Seasonal Gratitude: Take The Test

Did you know feeling grateful or appreciative of someone or something in your life can actually attract more of the types of things you want?

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, the virtue of giving thanks is an expression of gratitude. This means more to me than just being thankful. It's an acknowledgment that evokes empathy...and expresses kindness.

I like the word gratitude.

Maybe because being thankful is associated with those round table discussions about what we are thankful for -- my kids smirk -- so trite. In response to being grateful, I've had recent reflections about gratitude in a few articles...

This Moms Clean Air Force post about my meeting with Josh Fox, director and narrator of the landmark film about fracking, Gasland, fuels the kind of activism that inspires hope. He says, "If you don't feel hopeful, you're not doing enough." So true.

In another MCAF post, I thank the EPA on Thanksgiving...

Do you think it's off the wall to thank a government agency? READ how the EPA has my gratitude. Oh, I almost forgot to mention this post includes 3 of my favorite things: tea, chocolate and wine.

“A growing body of research suggests that maintaining an attitude of gratitude can improve psychological, emotional and physical well-being.” ~ Wall Street Journal

• Adults who frequently feel grateful have more energy, optimism and social connections.
• Adults who feel grateful are less likely to be: depressed, envious and greedy.
• Adults who are grateful are more likely to earn more money, sleep more soundly and have greater resistance to viral infections.
• Kids who feel and act grateful tend to be less materialistic, set higher goals and feel more satisfied with their friends and families.

Want to find out how grateful you are? Take the TEST.

I took the test right before my kids arrived last night from Boston. Here's what I learned:

I don't need a test to tell me I'm grateful for their love.

Food Rule Backlash

"Do all your eating at a table. No, a desk is not a table.”

Guilty.

Ted says the illustration above is of me. It's not, but it could be.

How many food rules do you break? Michael Pollan has added 19 new rules in his latest book, Food Rules: an eater's manual, and they’ve been brought to life by the fabulous illustrations from artist, Maira Kalman.

I just read an interview with Michael Pollan by writer, Sarah Henry of Civil Eats. The interview digs into how his collaboration with Kalman came to be. When asked during the interview whether or not Pollan feels our interest in the food movement has peaked, he expanded upon why he keeps pushing food:

“I do feel a sense of urgency to keep writing about food. We’re just beginning to see the impact of our food choices on health care and insurance costs—obesity, diabetes, and heart disease are soaring—and we need to keep the pressure on the government and corporations for change.”

I mostly like Pollan’s rules and abide by this one:

“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

This rule has been my food mantra for years:

"The fewer the feet, the better the meat”

…minus the feet.

More and more I’m noticing that I have conflicting issues around food--but they're the opposite problem than those who eat too much meat have. For years, my family has chided me to loosen up on my no red meat rule. Friends I’ve known my entire life can’t seem to remember that I haven’t eaten red meat since college. When I'm invited to dinner, they still ask,

“What is it again that you don’t eat?”

Why don’t I eat red meat? I can’t remember. I do know I’ve lost my taste for it. A part of me wishes I could find a reason to bring a little meat back into my diet because I’m getting increasingly paranoid about all the mercury in fish. I'm told, the cute cows I can hear mooing from the farm behind my backyard are the best meat around.

I want to live the life of a locavore. Yet, I can’t eat red meat...and I can’t remember anymore why I hold on tight to that food rule.

Pollan says to those who want to know if they need food rules:

“When you eat real food, you don’t need rules.”

Oh no, this one doesn’t fly with me because I have food rules and I eat real food. Anyone else have this food rule backlash problem?

Food issues are complicated, and the act of eating should be part pleasure, part communion with a hefty dose of healthy nutrition.

Maira Kalman’s illustrations are poignant, funny and sad all at the same time, which just about sums up my latest food feelings. Her art adds a large dollop of cream to Pollan’s book.

http://youtu.be/fugCMaPp0mY

If you’re in mood for a little humor, Pollan brings his food rules to Stephen Colbert’s plate. Watch the funny exchange here.

Main image: Maira Kalman for Food Rules

Bike Right: 3 Reasons (video)

Ride a bike...

1. Because our children know what's best for their future.

Greenhouse gases emitted by cars causes climate change, which will affect our children's and their children's future.

2. Because car commuting costs an arm and a leg.

The typical American family spends almost $8000 a year to own and operate a car. A decent bike can be had for a few hundred dollars, last for years, and cost almost nothing to operate.

3. Because this is your life.

Pollution from cars causes lung cancer, respiratory problems, smog, and acid rain.

http://youtu.be/QDmt_t6umoY

Photo: Paul Newman via Rides A Bike