My Animal Empathy Goes Beyond Not Eating Them

What's wrong with this turtle?  Oh, it's dead.

When I was in third grade I remember pulling a book off a school library shelf about the Exxon Valdez oil spill.  I didn't really understand what had happened, other than the pictures of oil coated sea otters, black, dead birds and other creatures conjured up a mix-mash of third grade thoughts on cruelty and hell.  

I'm usually late to pick up on the news, but it's impossible not to follow the worsening daily reports of the recent oil disaster.  It's easy not to think too hard about coastal environmental disasters in the landlocked states of the US, (I know Texas isn't landlocked, but Arkansas was, and I'm still pretty far in), but the recent pictures of brown, iridescent water, fishermen enlisting to help with clean-up since they can't fish anymore or earn money, birds with stained brown feathers being force fed, and debris collecting barriers lining beaches are all I need to see to make my stomach turn.  

There's a great article with a time line of the events of the spill and a "what you can do" section at Planet Green.  If that's too hippie for you, Time, CNN, the New York Times... all have stories on the oil spill as front page news.  Just don't listen to Rush Limbaugh, who says "oil is natural, like water."  So is poison ivy and I wouldn't walk in it. 

Here, this is pertinent: 

People interested in volunteering in Alabama can call the Alabama Coastal Foundation at 251-990-6002; the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program at 251-431-6409; or Mobile Baykeeper at 251-433-4229.

I wonder if I could get excused from work for this...?  Now I'm really regretting not being a teacher with a summer break.  Put me in rubber wading pants.  I'm ready.

Spelunking at Whirlpool Caves

On Monday, I got to take kids on a field trip at Whirlpool Cave with Green Teens, our environmental program sponsored by Keep Austin Beautiful.  When I first heard "caving," I pictured a large hole in the side of a hill.  

So I was a little surprised when we pulled up and saw this:

Helmets, elbow pads, knee pads, headlamps... my muscles started squeezing at the thought of what these supplies signified. 

Our caving guide explained to the kids the preservation efforts taken to keep the caves safe from the highway that was built over it, and how to put on a helmet properly.

Carlos and I are ready to go.  Although, once in the cave I realized I hadn't followed instructions right, as my helmet kept falling forward over my eyes every time I bumped the ceiling - which was often.

Emily (both Green Teen's leaders are named Emily) helps Anita with her knee pad.  I will forever associate these things with "army crawl" now.

The opening to the cave is a narrow metal door.  We went down in daylight and came out at night.

Kids lined up in one of the rooms of the cave.

The rooms were connected by narrow passages that had to be crawled through, literally, like a salamander, one of them is even called "the birth canal."  In order to take my back pack and camera with me I had to sling it front of me as I crawled.

That's 40,000 year old red clay on my nose.  The rest is just dirt, from eating it, essentially, as I maneuvered around.

The kids got to draw "war paint" on their faces with the damp clay.  Most went for whiskers. 

A set of feet disappear up one of the passageways. 

Both of the Emily's and I with a few of the kids before we crawled out.  We spent an hour or two underground, but had to leave before getting to the large Travis County Room because it was bordering 8 p.m. already.  The kids, who were scared to go down, didn't want to leave!  The adults, who were scared to down, were quite ready to go up.






I took a short video of the kids in the cave.

We took a normal group shot, then everyone turned around to show off their dirty bums.  I'm glad I wore sturdy shorts and a t-shirt!

I'll call this "spelunking" chic.  I went to HEB on my way home to get some food for dinner, and felt like a TOTAL badass walking in all dirty and with my super-boots caked and coated in cave mud.

Vermicomposting

The day before it snowed, it was warm and chilly, necessitating a light cardigan.  The day before that, it was warm enough for bare legs and short skirts.  What up, Austin? 

In anticipation of what seemed like an impending onslaught of spring, I wore a thin cotton dress with a bright cardigan to ward off the wind.  I also got to bust out my brand new, thrifted (thr-ew!) "F*** yeah, America!" belt from Thrift Town in Dallas.

Dress: $8 at Forever 21
Cardigan: Ann Taylor Loft
Jeans: Citizens
Flats: Target
Necklace: Buffalo Exchange
Belt: $5 at Thrift Town

I feel patriotic just looking at this belt.  It would probably be appropriate to wear it the next time I visit my dad at Ft. Hood.  Or go to a rodeo. Either/or. 

Also in anticipation of spring, my birthday worms (thanks Dad and Carla!) finally came in the mail, and are set-up and munching so that I can hopefully have grow a hearty tomato and jalapeno plant on the back deck.

I never would have known what vermicomposting was if our Keep Austin Beautiful / Green Teens rep, Emily, hadn't brought one of their worm bins into school to show our kids.  The teenagers might not have taken away an urge to compost after the worms visited, but I certainly did!

The worms came when I was in Little Rock, and no offense to Lennon, but I don't think he set them up quite right according to the instructions.  But hopefully it will be ok. 

The "kit" is handy but seems simple enough to construct yourself.  I found this one on the City of Austin web page, and put it on my birthday wish list.  They are living in the closet under my stairs right now, but when it's warmer I will probably move them out back, although I'm worried about ants getting in and messing with my beloved worms. 

Anyway, I hope you all are having a lovely day!

Water Wars: Part Two! + A Little Eco-DIY For Fun

If you know me, you know I have a thing for fish.  Pictures next to this dive shop mural were inevitable.  Lennon has once again bumped our Dallas aquarium trip back - so now instead of going on my birthday (two weeks, oh my goodness I'm old) - we're going over Valentine's weekend.  If he flakes, he's going to fry like fish in a pan!  Or maybe that's a bad simile to use in front of my gilled friend...

Our beautiful Sunday morphed into a chilly Monday.  But Sunday was prime for a puppy walk and bike ride.  I was dying of thirst the whole day.  Hm, I wonder why after Saturday night's escapades on Sixth Street?

Shirt Dress: Si Style
Leggings: Charlotte Rouse
Shoes: Converse All Star
Fishy Mural: I'm 98% certain the name of this place is Royal Scuba

Speaking of fish, thirst, water... I read an interesting blurb in Vegetarian Times about a town in Australia that has voted to ban all sales of bottled water.

One of the major concerns of the residents of Bundanoon, Australia, was that the water company would fill their city with trucks and other evidence of excavation, suck up all the water, drive it north to Sydney, bottle it there in a large plant, then drive it all the way back to sell it to them.

I call this post "Water Wars Part Two" because I mentioned the controversies of polluted ground water in the US, as well as stolen water for bottling and soft drinks in rural India a few months ago.  It made me go out and buy a Brita tap filter, which promptly blew off the sink nozzle when water pressure was applied.  Back to Target it went.  Now I just toughen up by drinking my water straight from tap to Eco-Canteen, (super cheap at Walgreens!).

The New York Times also wrote about Bundanoon's 99% unanimous decision to ban bottled water, but quoted "industry groups" saying (whining?) "It is unfair to single out bottled water when many other consumer goods — like disposable diapers and imported produce, cheese and wine — have an equal or greater impact on the environment."

Here is my answer to that:

• Disposable diapers?  Try reusable, sewable nappies from LuckySprog.com.  Oh, and that adorable baby in the pink nappies?  That's my high school friend Adrienne's daughter, Charley.  Adrienne is living every American girl's dream: she studied abroard in the UK, married a handsome red head with an accent, and now lives overseas with hubby and baby.  (At least that was my dream!)  And she DIY's her own Earth-saving nappies and sells them all over the world.  Pretty cool.  She also gave me the first beer I ever had.  That gives her prominence in my catalog of life changing events.
  
• Imported produce and cheese?  Say hello to your local CSA.  I hear rave things about Johnson's Backyard Garden.  I'm joining as soon as I have the extra bucks saved up to pay for the four weeks in advance ($32/week).
  
• Wine?  Make your own damn wine!  And yes that is the (switch wine with beer) motto of Austin Home Brew supply.  Lennon's beer is fermenting in our closet right now.  Expect photos soon.
• And while we're on the subject of eco-friendly, I want these Skoy cloths, a less hokey ShamWow which would solve our roommate dilemma of who's turn it is to buy the paper towels next.

Back to the water, I understand that not every city has drinkable tap water, (after all, not every geographic location can be Arkansas...), but the city of Bundanoon plans to put in filtered fountains throughout the city that people can fill up giant, reusable jugs with.  This is not an odd proposal to me, as I used to visit Hot Springs, Arkansas frequently and people were always filling up jugs at the natural spring fountains all along the main drag.


I suppose my number one motivation for being concerned about the planet's well being is selfish, in that I want to have kids, raise them, and then see my grand kids all grow up to enjoy fireflies in summer (hard to even find one in Little Rock now, so depressing), golden leaves in autumn, and not worry about the coastlines collapsing into the sea.  I don't like fish that much.

It's also important to note how cool it is that a small town stood up for something they believed in, gained national attention, and kept a corporation from mowing over their streets and water supply, (now if only we could help India have that same voice when talking to the Coca-Cola company). 

We are all a bit riled up in this apartment about the Supreme Court decision to take away spending limits on corporations, and Lennon has already brain stormed ways to make a case and sue the Supreme Court on several occasions for infringing on the individual rights of actual humans over corporate entities.  While this is all talk, (mostly), change and recognition all has to start somewhere - look at Bundanoon.

Like a true Aquarius...

"Read with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other" -- Karl Barth

The Sunday School class I attended yesterday is a new and refreshing concept: rather than a regular read a couple verses then talk about it Bible study, the moderator brought in the New York Times and let everyone select a story to read out loud, (or part of it, as it was over two full print pages long), and then discuss it both with a secular and theological perspective. While I'm too shy to interject among people I don't know, it was still interesting to be in the room listening.

The article selected was Clean Water Laws are Neglected, at a Cost in Suffering, an expose feature on environmental crimes being committed against our clean water supply, and the people who directly suffer for it, as well as highlighting the inevitable consequences for all the rest of us. Several of the statements were frightening, especially such sobering statements as "In the last five years alone, chemical factories, manufacturing plants and other workplaces have violated water pollution laws more than half a million times. The violations range from failing to report emissions to dumping toxins at concentrations regulators say might contribute to cancer, birth defects and other illnesses."

The human interest element of the story revolved around a family suffering rashes, burns, tooth decay, and other grievances caused by a nearby coal company's waste saturating the ground. The stump question of the round table discussion was the obvious - how could any person or persons operating within the entity of a corporation knowingly allow such harmful and unethical practices to occur? I never took a business ethics class, but apparently there's an alternate ethics system that encourages umbrella thievery on a rainy morning before an important meeting in order to insure that one does no damage to the potential for a successful transaction. Can pardons for such small transgressions grow to allow justifying the damage of entire communities? Or are people so capable of compartmentalizing, that mass ecological destruction can simply be left on one's desk to return to tomorrow morning? I usually just leave my calendar and a few broken pencils, but that's me.

I suppose the compartmentalization question is easily answered by taking a look at common contributing products to water problems around the world, something I never knew till pointed out by a seminary student present in class. My conscious is clear because I spurn soda, but apparently Coca-Cola is not a very welcome presence in India, taking water for drinking and farming from the ground in gluttonous amounts in the name of industry. I'll stick to milk, thanks. Guess that means no more cuba libres, though.

Of course the bottom line question is always - what can we do, and the answer, (especially if you're raised Protestant... ), seems to be to feel guilty, about everything. I think this is a by-product of promoting social "awareness." I know awareness of issues is important, but it seems pointless in the face of actual action. I know I'm not going to stop the global water crisis. My showers are way too long. So I choose to rephrase the question as: what can I do right here right now. Actually, I still come up short in regards to an answer. My initial response was to go buy a Brita water filter for the tap, but after it exploded off the spout several times when the water pressure was increased, I gave up on that. Now to use more gas to get back to Target for a refund. Luckily though for me, (for now), Austin's water quality is not-bad. Which isn't good, but it won't give me rashes or deform my future fetus, (I'm sure I'll take care of that some other way).

I still don't know what I can do to be a better eco-citizen in my own neighborhood, but for the moment I will sit smug in my vegetarian, cola free diet.

Oxymorons: Eco-terrorists

"By definition, an environmentalist cherishes all life - including greedy, thoughtless people." - John Hanna, founder of the (original) ELF

On CNN today, an article titled "Homes Burn in Act of Terror" caught my eye. Apparently, burning $2 million dollar homes (and subsequently wasting resources and threatening any and all surrounding wildlife) advances the cause of both eco and animal rights warriors. Do they really think people in position to enact substantial enviornmental changes are going to listen to violent temper tantrums? Perhaps extremists groups succeed at being intimidating, but they also excel at being aggrivating and discredited.

In my definition, a true eco-warrior would practice ahimsa, or extreme nonviolence, rather than extremist guerilla eco-warfare.

Prior to today, I have never heard of (save in passing) ELF or ALF, let alone the results of their terroristic tactics. Who have I heard of? Rachel Carson, Henry David Thoreau, Jane Goodall, Gary Snyder, William O. Douglas... etc. Does the public sit up and listen to these guys? A good lot of them, and that's a start.

Perhaps the members of ELF and ALF could channel some of their negative energy into the motivation to do something that would actually give their fellow conservationists eco-loving compatriots some credibility in the public eye.

And for my own little tirade - I'm quite sick of meat-eating-if-I-don't-see-it-then-it-didn't-happen people dissing on Peta. As long as they aren't blowing any one up while forcing people to face the ugly truth of their meat loving ways, then let them demonstrate without the feminist/decency/etc. attempts at denouncing them. If you can't face the truth about your food, then stop eating it.

Enjoying the Academy Awards in Sweat Socks

I would like to thank...

Green initiatives by the higher ups, and the Hollywood set for keeping in mind that they maintain the power to both influence and sway the American public’s mindset and actions - and every now and then do something positive in that respect. The president of Global Green USA, Matt Petersen is quoted saying "The Oscars is one of the most highly watched events around the world, and we want to use that lens to shine the light on environmental challenges and their solutions."

I’ve read a lot of articles that all seemed slightly disappointed at this year’s green initiatives in comparison with last year’s An Inconvenient Truth’s inspired fervor, but I’m still impressed that the extra effort of going green hasn’t been dropped for being inconvenient in itself. In the present state of affairs, it does take a little extra work to change the status quo of large carbon footprints , and I’m glad to see people making that effort.

It is also exciting to hear the news that at least one celebrity – Nancy O’Dell – was dressed by Linda Loudermilk, famously known for her mergance of couture design with an ethical mindset. I’m yet to find a picture of the dress, but I hear it is made of sea weed and vintage pieces. If I could afford to support ethical couture, I’d be all over that. Let’s vote for teacher’s raises and maybe it will happen.

At this point in the Oscars we have not made it to best picture, but Jon Stewart did just make a joke about hybrid air planes – which I hope is more prophesy than gest.

After watching all of the red carpet entrances, I want to put on all of my costume jewelry and my 4.5 inch pre-anti-leather Cole Haan pumps to go to work tomorrow. It seems glamorous in theory. In my opinion, pajamas and hospital scrub pants are the ultimate in high fashion – I wear them whenever given the opportunity. For now, I’ll continue watching glamour from my arm chair and hope that if and when I become a Hollywood screen writer – Jon Stewart’s opening joke concerning writers being invited to fancy swag parties as a sign of respect will again be a fulfilled prophecy.

Seriously – who’s idea was it to give all the best stuff to the richest people for free!? As an advocate for change, I would happily attend a gifting suite on behalf of people who don’t make a million dollars a month. That’s something I’d be thankful for!