A little while back, Earth Fare asked if I wanted to give a $50 Earth Fare gift card to one lucky (Green)Grounded reader.  With a landslide of holidays coming, a $50 gift card is exactly the stimulus package we each could use!

A happy Earth Fare gift card, valued at $50, is waiting for your happy, warm wallet.  I would love for each of us (myself included) to receive one, but only one winner for this giveaway.

So how do you win?

1.)  Leave a comment with your favorite tip for living green in a grounded way.  You know… how do you live a little greener without feeling a tremendous pinch?  A tip that perhaps someone else could use as they and their families are heading into this holiday season.

Me?  I started buying hand soap in the refill pouches and bottles instead of always getting the pretty little container to go by the sink.  Now I just refill the cute soap bottle and keep the giant refill stash under the sink.  Less packaging is a great thing, plus it saves me money!

2.)  Want a second way to enter?  Twitter fans have the advantage here.  All you have to do is tweet this (or something similar):

Living greener & tastier is easy with a $50 @EarthFare gift card giveaway via @AshleySue at http://idek.net/eQa!

Then, come back and leave a second comment with your Twitter @ handle.

One comment on being green = one chance.

One comment on being green + one separate comment about your tweet (with @yourname) = two chances.

I cannot wait to hear all the different ways you live greener and more grounded!

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

(Contest runs Tuesday, 10th November 2009 at 930 A.M. EST until Monday, 16th November 2009 at 7 P.M. EST. Winner will be selected on Monday, 16th November 2009 at 7 P.M. EST.  Winner will be contacted via email.  Once winner acknowledges winning and replies with physical address, gift card will be sent via USPS.  Winning comment number will be selected via Random.org.

Also, many of your comments may be held for moderation.  Do not worry, I will daily approve comments, so they will appear within 24 hours, and in the order received.  Thank you for your patience as I fight spammers.)

Have you met The Greenists?  In case you missed it, the previously known “Allie’s Answers” blog grew into “The Greenists” ~ which means we get even more quality info from more eco-loving, ultra interesting friends!

Two of my favorite recent posts include one on crayons and one on shopping for dinner at your house.

Remember when you were a kid and you loved opening a new box of untouched, unbroken crayons?  The colors were just so perfect, and they were shaped so lovely… OK, perhaps I was just geek enough to feel that way.  Do you also remember at Vacation Bible School when they would pull out the shoebox of broken crayon ends, most missing their paper wrappers and all of them hobbly and rounded on the ends?  They were not as exciting to play with despite working just as well.

Melissa found a way to make those knobbelled over crayons fresh and exciting again, not to mention the absolute perfect shape and size for tiny hands.  Plus, the process of making them “new” again is fun for your own creative side!

Also, Noelle realizes how much we all tend to throw out insane amounts of food.  For instance, I have a box of unopened prunes sitting in my fridge from over two years ago, purchased in a cloud of delusion where I thought I would enjoy snacking on them if I had them.  Noelle knows that times are tough, and frankly, each of us could probably do the grocery shopping for our week’s dinners right in our own pantry.  Go ahead.  Give it a try.

Sincere thank you to Allie for continuing to share her love for life and living with all of us, as well as introducing us to a whole new gang of friends ~ The Greenists!

Sustainably yours,  Ashley Sue

About two years ago, someone I consider a friend (a new friend albeit, but long-time acquaintance) accused me of secretly eating meat and denying it.  I scoffed.  Anyone who knows me – at all – knows I have not eaten any semblance of a land animal since 1996.  When she persisted she has seen me eat a sausage, I was livid.

The truth is she was hammered at the party where she says she witnessed me devour the piggy.  I know the party, I remember the instance, and others back me up:  she saw me eat a soy brat.  She refuses to believe it wasn’t pork, and made it quite obvious she gloats at the opportunity to rip me apart a little bit.  This explains why we had been long time acquaintances and not friends:  I had always felt she wanted chances to tear me down.

I hashed all my frustration out on my MySpace blog back then, but since then, I have a better grip on the situation.  After all, “friend” or not, my ultimate lesson is to remember I have no control over what other people choose to think or say about me.  I can only decide I know the truth and move on.

Why do I share this story?

Marc pointed out to me last night that I am a meat-pusher.  Though I will not eat it and witness for what going veg can do for you and how misunderstood the diet is, I apparently do not embrace that same wonderful philosophy when I feed others.

I recently returned to Raleigh to straddle the state as I seek my next career move.  After living solely in Asheville for several months with Marc living alone in our Raleigh apartment, we are finally under the same roof again.  Hence, I have been happily cooking dinner for Marc in the evenings.

Then, Marc pointed out he has eaten significantly more meat since I returned than he did for the period I was gone.

What?!

As he pointed out, when he fixes his own dinner, his concern was not to incorporate a meat.  His focus was always to create a healthy dinner.  A few nights a week, that would also include chicken or deer, but most nights it was a vegetable combo.

Ahhh… student in now teacher.

I had to realize that all my years of vegetarianism, and yet, I was afraid that he would not consider dinner a complete meal unless I added a meat to it.

Now, I know better.  So tonight, he ate salad, wild rice with a great herb seasoning, and quesadillas.

Think about what is important to you and what life you want your decisions to support.  Then, think about if you are living your life consistently.  The truth may surprise you.

Now you have a starting place to move forward… and forget what anyone else has to say about it!  You can NOT please everyone, so live to fully please yourself.  Then you draw people to you who appreciate that and do the same.

Sustainably yours ~ Ashley Sue

No, Amber Valletta is not looking for a green-hued ocean, but by teaming up with Oceana.org (and the likes of Ted Danson), she is advocating a healthier environment and healthier eating.

Back in May, Valletta began speaking out and campaigning against mercury exposure.  Now a mother, the cover girl is using her face as spokesperson for change.

I had no idea she (nor Danson) were using their celebrity to talk about this under-campaigned mission until my sister told me a couple days ago.

Enjoy the video, and enjoy something yummy, nutritious and responsible for dinner too. And if you by chance catch yourself yearning for that less-than-environmentally-friendly Yellowfin Tuna tonight, don’t beat yourself up. You’re aware of the situation, and you can make a positive impact in another capacity today… avoid the TV tonight to save energy. Or sleep with only a sheet over you instead of running the AC.

Just don’t make a habit out of shirking your eco-stewardship when reaching for your plate.

Back when I enjoyed eating seafood (who’s kidding me?  I will always love and miss seafood), I would chow down about any fish, not worrying for a second what environmental impact it may have.  Fish flesh was just too good.

Things have changed a bit in my world, and now I only consume of any fauna flesh once a year:  during a summer getaway weekend.  In those lusty moments of leaving the world’s cares and my daily duties behind, I make sure to enjoy one dinner with crab meat, my all-time favorite of anything I have ever eaten.

Indeed, I am a vegetarian (minus the annual ritual) that drools over the sight of a crab running along the beach.  I want to pick it up and begin feasting right there, Darryl Hannah-style circa the movie Splash (forgive me, Ms. Hannah, as I know you are a devout veg*n, and acting out the lobster scene strongly disturbed you ~ and I respect you for that).

Back to the point, I clicked to my MSN homepage today and saw two articles on 10 Eco-Worst Fish and 10 Eco-Best Fish to Consume, as defined by the Environmental Defence Fund.

Topping the worst list?

Atlantic Cod (a.k.a. Gadus morhua, rock cod, codling, scrod cod), Chilean Sea Bass, Orange Roughy, Atlantic Salmon, certain imported fish and shrimp, Tunas, and Shark!

On the other hand, if you just cannot stave off your desire, these are a few topping the eco-friendliest list:

Anchovies (pizza and worchester sauce, anyone?), Mackerel (one of my own favorites), oysters, Wild Alaskan Salmon, Sardines (I’ve never eaten one yet have so many memories of them), Rainbow Trout, Albacore, and Mussels.

Notes on standards the Environmental Defense Fund used to establish eco-worst from eco-best: 

These standards included endangerment to the species; overfishing of the ocean that disturbs the natural ecosystem; pollution, harm to the fish and damage caused farming; and pollution, health problems and mercury-intake in humans.

There are so many reasons to give up seafood in order to live healthier and promote healthier life for our Earth, but in my own opinion, if you are going to eat meat at all, be responsible and informed with the choices you make.  Choose healthier and less endangered animals that are hunted more sustainably than the chicken and burgers so many Americans normally eat for dinner.

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

Gas prices have nixed my willingness to order delivery food any longer.

Last Thursday, Marc and I decided I would order myself chinese food for dinner, which thrilled me, as I rarely get to eat the stuff… Marc hates it.  It was convenient, however, for we were travelling that weekend and wanted no mess to clean up for the next day.

I ordered food from a place I know has decent food (I have yet to find really great Chinese food around North Hills… I should check with North Hills Buzz…) and paid for my meal via credit card.  By the time my delivery guy got there, I had my tip ready to hand over:  three dollars.

Three dollars isn’t much, and I always feel like I should tips something more like five, but for a $10 order, I guess a $3 tip isn’t bad.  I’m all about decent tipping.  Ask about anyone who really knows me.

As soon as I got my food and the very nice man left (I confused the sweet Asian guy when I said “Have a lovely night”… next time, I shall stick to “Have a good night” instead), I started unpacking my less than eco-friendly-wrapped cuisine and started analyzing my tip even more.

Then it hit me.

Energy prices are still rising.  Granted, gas prices have dropped, but still, what is the difference between $4 a gallon and $3.70 a gallon? 

So, essentially, my tip did not cover even a single gallon of gasoline for my nice delivery guy.  Who probably doesn’t get paid enough as is.

Dang!  That guy used a gallon of gas to drop off my food for me, and my tip still means he is losing money on that delivery.

Of course, I’m thinking out that he could make a lot of money if he was delivering to many people in the same area on that trip, but I have my doubts.  A Thursday night and at least nine other local oriental restaurants people could order from?  Nope.  I was likely a single stop trip.  A trip where he is losing money.

So… for energy costs, for natural resources, for humanity for this guy trying to make a living, I guess I can’t order delivery anymore unless I can tip that driver the monetary value of at least two gallons of gas (my own arbitrary decision). 

And frankly, I can’t justify giving someone an $8 tip on a $10 order.

So maybe I should just cook more afterall, right?

A colleague of mine recently had me meet Pete Pagano of Green Planet Catering here in Raleigh, NC.

NBC 17 covered the company recently, and though the catering company has only been catering for about half a year, but the concept has been growing much much longer.

I have to admit, the “greenie” in me is deeply suspicious anytime someone mentions to me a business claiming their “greenness”. I agreed to meet and told myself I would keep an open mind, but truthfully, I expected very little as we met at Tir Na Nog’s “The Cottage” room.

Pete quickly wowed us, however, with sharing that Green Planet Catering uses as much local and/or organic produce as possible. They use spudware and compostable materials. They create their own bio-diesel and work with a farm, headed by Ben and Charles Keefer here in Raleigh. “We work to be as sustainable as possible,” Pete says.

Green Planet Catering, a team comprised of six members with over a 100 cumulative years of restaurant experience (at least a decade under each of their belt’s), also collaborates with other area partners for composting events. Partnerships for composting and events they’ve covered include Burt’s Bees (headquartered in Durham), NCSU, UNC, Matchbox 20, the Cary Wine Experience, Southern Energy, weddings and private parties.

While the company is already taking impressive strides to show their dedication to a healthy environmental philosophy, Pete’s own education and passion is what sold me.

Referencing Native American philosophy, the Weston A. Price Foundation and movement toward traditional food and knowledge of pesticide and chemical use in mainstream American food industries, I found myself enthralled with Pete’s passion and mission. And I liked that he was not one to put down other companies and their efforts, or arrogantly praise all of their own implemented environmentalism. He is about encouraging the movement by spotlighting positive steps of each company.

Pete explained the importance of educating yourself and making your own decisions for your health and beliefs, saying that eating better and taking care of the environment can go together beautifully. “You’re not twisting your arm. It’s not a New Year Resolution. It’s a way of life.”

“Some people say ‘green’ is a fad. It’s not a fad. It’s a necessity,” Pete says. “We have to do something. We have X amount of resources, and we have a growing population.”

Pete furthers his point, explaining “Seventy-thousand new chemicals have been added to our daily lives in the last 50 years.” Put that together with dramatic increases in unexplained diseases such as autism, ADD and Alzheimer’s, and I myself am asking (more…)

I visited Twig this week, a unique store here in the Triangle (Chapel Hill) that sells sustainability, community and eco-awareness at sustainable prices, and this weekend (May 17) they are partnering with local non-profits, but more on that later.

I loved talking with the staff. The owner shared that everything in the store has a story, and the staff will enthusiastically share the stories with you.

Some items are practical, like the smart strips that reduce phantom power usage in your home, the LED lightbulbs that will one day replace CFLs, the Envirosax for fun and stylish shopping, stainless steel water bottles and Dynamo rechargeable radio and flashlights.

Some items are beautiful, such as the garden tools, the Bambu kitchenware, the Reinbarnation pieces by Roger Dinger, a Chatham County Artist, and the salt rock lamps from the Himalayans that help reduce allergies.

Some items are child friendly, like the cooperative games (lets play together, not against each other), organic and locally-made baby clothing and USA-made wooden toys.

Some of the toys (like the cars in the slideshow below) are for the kid in ALL of us… or the jewelry, which is fun, sustainably made and sophisticated.

Mainly, I walked away KNOWING that Shawn Slome (the owner) and his staff know that sustainability is not a catch phrase du jour. It isn’t about carrying all “organic”, or all “local” goods. It isn’t about novelty. And it certainly isn’t about being a crunchy granola or extravagantly priced. Sustainability is about supporting your local community through a harmony of ideals. That’s pretty amazing.

Check out the invitation to you all from the owner:

Dear Friends and Associates:

I would like to invite you to a Fundraising Festival “Twig” is launching on Saturday, May 17 to benefit local non-profits. For those of you who don’t already know, Twig is the Triangle’s new eco-friendly shop focusing entirely on sustainable, organic and fair trade products.

The Festival is a celebration of our community and particularly of the many organizations that work to protect our environment, nurture our children and make our community a safe place for everyone to thrive.

The event will take place at Twig from 8am to 8pm:
Village Plaza (next to Whole Foods)
99 S. Elliott Rd. • Chapel Hill 27514
(919) 929-8944

Most of our non-profits will be on hand with information tables so you can stop by and say howdy. Twig will donate to our partners 20% of the revenue generated from the event.

We will have live music for most of the day, several door prizes and some tasty snacks provided by Whole Foods.The list of participating non–profits:

Eno River Association NC
Museum of Life and Science
Haw River Assembly
NC Audubon Society
Piedmont Wildlife Center
Triangle Land Conservancy
Toxic Free NC
NC Community Shares
Rainbow Soccer
Bonjour Africa
The Abundance Foundation
American Civil Liberties Union
Orange County Rape Crisis Center
PTA of Chapel Hill
Emerson Waldorf School

I hope you can join us in the fun and make some connections with those that contribute so much to our quality of lives. I would appreciate it if you can help spread the word about this special day.

My advice… check out Twig this weekend. You will LOVE it. Trust me.

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

A press release today told me a giant shopping cart with a Chevy engine on it is back, racing around the Triangle this month.  It’s the “Got to Be NC Big Cart”, which I remember seeing at the 2007 N.C. State Fair.

This cart is showing off for the NC Dept of Ag “Got to Be NC” campaign, which is the first official marketing campaign of “Goodness Grows in North Carolina” (like the pretty sign at the Fairgrounds animates).

Apparently, this giant Chevy-powered cart is “an effort to support NC farmers and food producers by increasing consumer awareness about the availability and benefits of buying locally grown or produced foods”.

Is anyone else as confused by the sponsorship as I am?

What in the world does Chevy have to do with locally grown foods?  I mean, I know they have all their commercials about having the first hybrid SUV and longer running electric cars, but is this all about the money of sponsorship, or am I missing a link somewhere (which is possible)?

Just humored, and honestly, slightly annoyed.  But aren’t most of us “treehuggin’ liberals” considered cranky pants cynics anyhow? 

Well, in case you’re in need of seeing a gigundo shopping cart with a big honkin’ car engine, check it here and then.  If you want to question the sponsorship tie-in, email the NC Dept of Ag.

May 9 – Wal-Mart in Zebulon @ 11:00 am
May 12 – Durham Bulls @ 10:00 am
May 16 – Kroger in Apex @ 11:00 am
May 23 – Whole Foods in Raleigh @ 11:00 am
May 24 – Carolina Railhawks @ 4:00 pm
May 30 – Food Lion in Garner @ 11:00 am

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

So, last year when I found out that Raleigh (nor anywhere else in the Triangle) recycles yogurt cups despite being #1 in the little recycling triangle, I was skeeved.

Yes, it seems that much of NC will not recycle recyclable plastic ~ not unless it is shaped like a bottle and thus has a “neck” smaller than the body.  Not even plastic peanut butter jars will be recycled.

But, thanks to We Love Durham NC, I just found out that the Museum of Life + Science IS taking yogurt containers, drink pouches (remember Capri Sun) and even energy bar wrappers.

So, get an extra container or bag and chuck your washed out yogurt cups, foil drink pouches and empty wrappers in it.  Then you can drop them off (or mail them) at the Museum of Life + Science who in turn will send them to Terracycle who will donate money to the museum in return!  Now if only I could find WholeSoy big containers of yogurt again… Silk yogurt bites, and I hate buying a bunch of teeny yogurt containers.

Everyone wins!  I am so excited to recycle my yogurt cups again… no thanks to NC government.