Wordless Wednesday 7-25-12 What's Wrong With This Beach Vacation Picture?

Wordless Wednesday is a day for me to share an image from my green living life with you along with just a few words...or so

Saying goodbye to our puppy, cheers at Tommy Bahama's one of our favorite vacation restaurants, the walk to the beach, sandy toes and what is wrong with this beach vacation picture? 

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P.S.- People always ask me where I get my organic food and personal care products and I love to tell them about The Green PolkaDot Box! Backed by the Organic Consumer's Association and EnvironmentalBooty.com, you can easily buy NonGMO organic groceries, including Harvest Fresh Organic produce, at wholesale pricing online.  It's like a Sam's club but focused on products for green, healthy living! You can even shop by dietary restrictions like gluten free, vegan or diabetic and it all comes right to your front door. Enjoy!

Learn How to Go Green and Live Bottled Water Free with Laura Newton, The Water Filter Lady

Sponsored post by the Water Filter Lady

Want to Go Green and Learn How to Live Bottled Water Free?  Meet The Water Filter Lady, Laura Newton and Get Her Top 3 Tips to Stop Using Bottled Water

The Water Filter Lady, AKA Laura Newton, knows a thing or two about safe, pure, clean water.  Not a huge fan of bottled water, she can help anyone learn how to live bottled water free. Laura is dedicated to providing consumers with better water, better health, and a better lifestyle.

Laura tells me that the good news is that drinking bottled water is not as popular as it once was, "These days there is an awareness by consumers that bottled water is not the best thing to purchase for many reasons."

Today's consumers have a true desire to live more sustainably.   Those environmental concerns, along with health concerns, spurred by social media and news reports of chemicals leaching out of the bottles and into the water, are now becoming commonplace discussions among consumers.  

You can link up with the discussion on The Water Filter Lady's Facebook Fanpage or on Twitter

To build on consumer awareness of the negative side of bottled water, Laura suggests that consumers watch the mind-blowing movie Tapped.

"Tapped examines the role of the bottled water industry and its effects on our health, climate change, pollution, and our reliance on oil. The documentary is well structured and presents an overwhelming amount of evidence which will change the way anyone thinks about bottled and municipal water." - Laura Newton, The Water Filter Lady 

If Watching the Movie Tapped Doesn't Get You Ready to Live Bottled Water Free, Here are The Water Filter Lady's Top 3 Reasons to Stop Using Bottled Water:

1. Plastic bottles take up to 1000 years to bio-degrade! The Container Recycling Institute says that plastic water bottles are disposed of (not recycled) at the rate of 30 million a day. 88% of empty plastic water bottles in the United States are not recycled.
2. Save Money. Bottled water is expensive. If you are still drinking bottled water because your tap water is unsafe, the solution could be as simple as purchasing a quality home water filter.  You can check out an easy comparison of water filters on my site. 
   
3. Bottled water is no safer than filtered tap water. Some bottled water is simply tap water bottled and sold.  A study conducted by the Goethe University at Frankfurt found that a high percentage of bottled water, contained in plastic containers, were polluted with estrogenic chemicals. Although some of the bottled water contained in glass were found polluted with chemicals as well, the researchers believe some of the contamination in the plastic containers may have come from the plastic containers themselves.

You can watch the full length version of the must see movie Tapped, find out how you can test your water for contaminants and enter to win a Multipure Aquadome water filter at The Water Filter Lady's Blog.

How to Travel Green? 5 Easy Ways to Green Your Overseas Trip to Europe

Nestled in a valley wide and green, between sea and mountains,  Graine & Ficelle offers its natural, grown in the organic garden goodness, as well as educational workshops, tours of the farm, birthday parties, a bed and breakfast, cooking classes and more...all to the delight of children and their parents.

1. Green Your Travel with a Eurail Global Pass - If you want to travel in the most eco-friendly way possible throughout 22 countries in Europe, Eurail is the way to go.
2. Take an Organic Cooking Class in the Organic Food Capital of Europe - Germany has long been one of the largest producers, as well as one of the biggest markets, for organic food products in the world. At KETAO, in Frankfurt, Germany, the focus is on creativity, technique and taste accompanied by loads of fun and music.
3. Make a stop in Italy, the main producer and exporter of organic wine in Europe, for a wine tasting - Stay for a few hours or linger for days at "La Spinosa".  Find the ultimate in peace and tranquility at this organic winery as you are encouraged to kind of "shut down" in what is known as the "Valley of Silence".  I could use some of that right about now.
4. Vacation on an Organic Vegetable Farm in The French Riviera - Book a stay at an eco bed & breakfast in the Riviera with a spectacular view of the valley and the sea. Perfectly situated in the region of Vence at the foot of the Baou of St Jeannet you will find “Graine & Ficelle”.  Don't blame me if you never want to come back to the States.
5. Reduce Your Waste - Just because you are traveling overseas, don't think it means you have to ditch your reusable water bottle!  Bring your favorite stainless steel, BPA free water bottle with you in your carry on or pack it in your luggage.  After you pass through security at the airport, you can fill your bottle and never buy a "plastic" (PET), single use water bottle while on your trip.

P.S.- I am really glad that you stopped by our Environmental Booty Blog and I hope you have learned or shared a thing or two.  I hope that , now that you've found us,  you won't lose us!  You can "Like" us on our new Facebook fanpage, join our green living online community, subscribe to our posts,  download our community toolbar or Tweet with me on Twitter to stay in touch!  - Shane*

Sources: Graine & Ficelle Greenopia,GreenBiz.com , Avignon-et-Provence.com,TeatroNaturale.com, GermanFoods.com, KETAO, Organico,

Now Available...Susan Freinkel's Newest Book! Plastic: A Toxic Love Story is an Empowering Must Read to Add to Your Green Reading List

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pub Date: 04/18/2011
Retail Value $27
Buy it Now for just $17.30!
Plastic: A Toxic Love Story 

I just finished reading the Introduction to Susan Freinkel's newest book, Plastic: A Toxic Love Story and I feel empowered.  Susan Freinkel's new book, Plastic, is a must read to add to your green reading list.  Let me rephrase that, Susan Freinkel's newest book is a must read to add to ANY reading list!  No matter where you are on your walk on the path to green living, just starting out or already far along on your adventure, you can feel empowered to create change too.

How to Live a Greener, Healthier, BPA Free Life? 5 Easy Ways to Protect Yourself and Your Family from the Harmful Health Effects of BPA Exposure

Eden Foods does provide BPA free cans and manufacturers will certainly follow with pressure from greenies like us.

Did you know that BPA is one of the most widely used chemicals of all time?  In fact, it is probably circulating through your body right now.  It is found in the cord blood of newborns and present in 93% of 2,517 Americans age 6 and over, tested by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Researchers have linked developmental exposure to BPA to reproductive harm, increased cancer susceptibility, and abnormalities in brain development and fat metabolism. Although a total reduction of BPA is impossible, there are things that you can easily do to live a healthier, greener, BPA free life.

Just How Green is Your Bottled Water? Where Does it Come From? Is it Pure or Contaminated? EWG Bottled Water Scorecard...How does Your Brand Rate?

Download the Full Report PDF

I make no secret of the fact that I HATE bottled water.  I mean where does it come from and is it really pure or is it contaminated?  Now it wouldn't be so bad if everyone knew what the greenest brands to buy and made it a habit to toss all  their water bottles into the recycling bin, but that just doesn't always happen.  Folks are on the run when they are drinking their bottled water and there just aren't enough public recycling options.  So into the trash they go, making a final stop in our landfills, waterways and oceans. 

Now You Can Always Have Safe, Filtered Water at Home and On the Go with Water Geeks Environmentally Friendly, Colored, Stainless Steel, Filtered Water Bottles

 

Water Geeks environmentally friendly, BPA free, food grade stainless steel bottles come in red, pink, green and blue

 

You probably have seen a ton of choices in stainless steel water bottles being sold everywhere from bookstores to  supermarkets but have you been introduced to the Water Geeks?  The Water Geeks

How Can I tell if my Plastics are Safe or Full of BPA...and What About Canned Food?

I have gotten the BPA (Bisphenol-A) question so many times from readers, that I thought I would try break it down and make it super simple for you to decipher plastics and the BPA question.

When buying new plastic items, look for BPA free on the label. In my opinion, you should try to avoid buying plastics as much as possible and stick with glass or stainless steel containers.  When looking at your old plastic items at home, you will find your answer as to what is safe to use posted right on the bottom of your plastics.

5 Ways to Go Green Today

I don't know about you, but life seems to move very fast these days.  I seem to never have enough time in my day to finish all the things that I would like to. Trying to fit in a green lifestyle, though, doesn't have to  be time consuming.  Here are 5 ways to start greening your life today...with very little effort.

YEAH! Obama team seeks eco-friendly coffee cups and water bottles

Published on UPI.com : March. 23, 2009 at 5:17 PM
WASHINGTON, March 23 (UPI) -- White House officials said despite the eco-benefits of the coffee cups used by the previous administration, they are seeking an even greener alternative.
Christine Glunz, a spokeswoman for the White House Council on Environmental Quality, said President Barack Obama's administration is seeking to replace the current paper cups, which were adopted seven years ago and feature a biodegradable coating of insulation, with something even more environmentally friendly, the Chicago Tribune reported Monday.
"We're currently reviewing other cups that might offer those same benefits but have a higher percentage of biodegradability," Glunz said.
She said officials are also seeking alternatives to the plastic bottles or water supplied to White House meetings.
"We're also taking steps to minimize the use of plastic bottles," she said.

Who knew?

For more information on how to turn your organization's logo green go to Environmental Booty.