1. Reuse boxes and packing materials. These represent energy already expended to manufacture the materials. Extend the life of the materials by reusing them. 
2. Before you buy new boxes, even those made from recycled materials, reuse corrugated cardboard boxes made from virgin material. Inquire at stores for boxes they will discard.
3. If you can't remove the labels or tape from a box, turn it inside out. Break open the bottom seams and the side seam, which you can see inside the box. Refold the box inside out and secure the seams with packing tape.
4. Use the smallest size box necessary - you'll need less packing material. Larger boxes can be cut down to a smaller size.
5. Use old bubble wrap, packing peanuts, tissue paper, boxes, crumbled newspaper and magazine pages for packing material.
6. Make the packaging part of the gift in the case of towels or a scarf.
7. Use reusable containers like Tupperware to send food.
8. Buy Used Cardboard Boxes (UCB) before you buy new. UCB buys used boxes from large manufacturers and distribution centers and sells them for less than the cost of new boxes. If you absolutely must buy new, buy corrugated cardboard boxes made from recycled fibers.
9. If you don't have packing materials that you can reuse, try biodegradable packing peanuts, made from potato or corn startch.
10. Resist buying new bubble wrap or styrofoam packing peanuts. They are a petroleum derived product and can't be recycled. Moving companies use newsprint for packing material, which can be recycled.

Recycle:

1. We take our unwanted packing materials to a locally owned shipping store. They've even taken the molded styrofoam that our lights arrived in and reused it to ship pots.
2. Clean, unwanted polystyrene peanuts are accepted at 1,500 packaging stores around the US. Call the Plastic Loosefill Council’s Peanut Hotline at 1-800-828-2214 for the names of local businesses that accept them. (UPS is one of them).
3. If you need help finding a place to recycle your shipping materials, Earth 911 can help you out.

Shipping Green:

According to Climate Counts, the following shippers are listed in order of their scorecards.

1. DHL - 45
2. USPS - 43
3. UPS - 39
4. FedEx - 28

Climate Counts rates companies from 0 to 100 and ranks them against their main competitors. They score companies using 22 questions that determine if they’ve: MEASURED their climate footprint; REDUCED their climate impact; SUPPORTED (or blocked) progressive climate policy initiatives; and made their climate protection efforts PUBLIC and TRANSPARENT. Download their handy pocket guide for reference.

Resources:

• Climate Counts
• Earth 911
• Plastic Loosefill Council’s Peanut Hotline
• Used Cardboard Boxes

Related Posts:

• Company Scorecards - The Best and the Worst 
• Moving Day 

Enjoy this post? Get more like it. Subscribe in a reader or by Email.

"Jadi, pilih saja daging yang digantung. Kalau ada air yang menetes berarti daging gelonggongan. Cara lain mengenali dari warna daging yang asli masih merah segar dan serat-serat di dalam daging juga tidak menggelembung," katanya.

Harga yang tidak wajar juga merupakan pertanda. "Harga daging yang wajar itu Rp46 ribu perkilogram, nah kalau harganya lebih murah dari itu berarti patut dicurigai sebagai daging gelonggongan," ungkapnya.

Kalau daging ayam, bagaimana cara mengenali daging dari ayam yang mati?

"Daging ayam yang masih segar itu berwarna agak kekuning-kuningan, kalau warnanya putih bersih justru dimungkinkan dari bekas ayam mati, apalagi kalau ada warna biru seperti bekas memar serta bau sangat amis," katanya.

Bahkan, katanya, ada pula daging ayam yang direndam formalin agar awet. "Kita dapat mengenali daging ayam berformalin dengan menekan atau mendorongnya dengan jari telunjuk. Kalau keluar lendir atau air berarti pernah direndam dengan formalin," katanya.

Namun, katanya, formalin dalam makanan juga dapat dihilangkan. "Caranya, makanan yang mencurigakan itu direndam dengan air panas sekitar 30 menit atau dipanaskan dengan oven bersuhu 121 derajat tiga menit. Kalau ikan dapat direndam dengan air cuka 5 persen selama 15 menit atau direndam air garam selama 30 menit untuk ikan asin," katanya.

Lain halnya cara mengenali ikan basi. "Kalau ditekan justru lembek, warna insang tampak merah tua, atau mata ikan justru terlihat bening, maka cirinya ikan itu basi atau diberi formalin. Paling mudah ya beli saja ikan yang masih ada tanda-tanda hidup," katanya.

Caroline juga menyarankan agar masyarakat jangan membeli makanan kaleng yang kemasan kalengnya sudah penyok.

"Kaleng yang penyok akan mengubah konsentrasi di dalam kemasan, karena kaleng penyok dapat mengandung racun akibat adanya kandungan botulimun (bahan dasar kosmetik). Kalau mau aman ya dipanaskan seperti ikan atau dibakar agar racunnya mati. Biasanya, supermarket justru memberi diskon," katanya.

Untuk snack (makanan ringan) yang banyak disukai anak-anak, katanya, justru perlu dilihat komposisi zat warna-nya dan nomor registrasi. "Kalau warna-warnanya mencolok atau tanggal produk-nya kadaluarsa justru berbahaya," katanya.

Styrofoam robot made of computer packing pieces. Awesome.
I forget where I found this.

For breakfast, I finished off the last of a large bag of raisins. The raisin bag isn't recyclable, so I put it in the trash. Luckily, I compost the coffee filter and the grounds from my morning coffee.

While dressing, I put the plastic dry cleaner bag in a bag to take to Publix for recycling. The wire hangers I'll take back to the dry cleaner. The safety pins I keep and reuse. Any paper generated from the dry cleaning goes into the paper recycling bin.

I needed a new roll of toilet paper. I recycled the cardboard tubes and the paper wrapping around the new roll of Scotts Tissue. No, the used toilet paper is flushed away. I'm crazy, but not that crazy.

Before lunch, I discarded a CD at work. Is there anything we can do with CD-ROMs? At lunch, I used three paper towels (something I have eliminated at home) which added to the trash. Parts of the tomato I was eating was thrown away. At home, I would have put the inedible parts into the compost.

I also trashed the tea bag that I used at work, while at home this would have gone into the compost bin. We can't compost at work because our office in an office building. It's a miracle that some office paper is collected and recycled. When I suggested setting up plastic and aluminum bins for recycling, I was rejected. Personally I use my own cup, dinnerware and flatware at the office. I refuse to use the styrofoam offered by my employer.

Through the afternoon, I added to the trash bin gum and an apple core (again, something I would add to the compost heap at home). After a trip to the ladies room at work, I realized that every trip there added two paper towels (as well as that unusable toilet paper) to the trash heap today.

After working late, at home I found a mound of mail, both junk and necessary. Fortunately, all is paper, and all will go into the recycling bin.

While preparing dinner, any vegetable scraps went into the plastic tub for the compost pile. We don't eat meat, so we don't have fats and bones to discard.

I throw away and accumulate less "trash" at home. I'm not sure if I collected 4.5 lbs. of trash today, but I realize now that I generate more trash that I thought. I'll be traveling Friday through Sunday. It's very hard to be green while flying and staying in a hotel. Everything is disposable.

I suspect that the 50 tons may be underestimated, since more disposeable items are available now. Someone born in 1980 will definitely produce more trash than someone born in 1940. In 1940, there were no disposable diapers. Unfortunately that person born in 1940 might wind up in disposable diapers afterall.

10. Recycle, out your car door window - why should the concept of littering keep us trapped in trash cans?

9. Fill your china cabinet with styrofoam cups and paper plates - you will never have to do dishes again!

8. Drive your car to the mailbox at the end of your driveway - you never know what kind of people might attack you in the shadows of the night.

7. Take a trip to the Amazon Forest and light it on fire as a dare - nothing is funnier than committing arson under the influence.

6. Go on a pillage of bees' nests and massacre the inhabitants - those little bastards deserve it.

5. Pick one of these methods! - sometimes I think one of these options would be the best way for the world to go out...

4. Have as much unprotected sex with as many dumb anonymous strangers as you can, and then join the religious right's war against abortion - Mike Huckabee says that if we allow every aborted fetus to grow up and join the workforce, then we won't need Mexican labor anymore, so we can kill 2 birds with one stone!

3. Buy as many new technological devices as you can afford, especially plasma TVs and cell phones - those people in India don't need water anyways.

2. Try to use an entire roll of toilet paper every time you go to the bathroom - it's really the only way to stay sanitary, and Charmin says we deserve the best...plus you can leave the empty roll for the next person!

1. Vote for McCain/Palin in '08 - our oil interests need that refuge land more than the arctic wildlife, and she is way hotter than a polar bear.

The Photo Credits

001 | HALLELUJAH :: Dear & the Headlights
002 | IN OHIO ON SOME STEPS :: Limbeck
003 | FIRECRACKER :: Steel Train
004 | INSIDE OF LOVE :: Nada Surf
005 | THIS WHEEL'S ON FIRE :: Guster
006 | WISH I COULD FORGET :: The Weepies
007 | QUIET HOUSES :: Fleet Foxes
008 | NOW :: Mates of State
009 | INNI MER SYNGUR VITLEYSINGER :: Sigur Rós
010 | WALKING :: The Dodos
011 | FOR EVERY DROP :: Sonya Kitchell
012 | BLUE EYES :: Timmy Curran
013 | FOR EMMA :: Bon Iver
014 | WELL WORD HAND :: Editors
015 | WILLOW TREE :: Okkervil River
016 | LEAVE :: Glen Hansard
017 | AS TALL AS CLIFFS (LIVE) :: Margot & the Nuclear So and So's
018 | PART ONE :: Band of Horses
019 | MY NEXT MISTAKE :: Styrofoam [ft. Jim Adkins]

enjoy.
hallelujahdear.zip

Bring a refillable water bottle. Fill up the bottle with a water from the water cooler or the tap. They even sell water bottles with filters so if you really do not want to drink the tap water at your office you can still drink it.

Leave a coffee mug at work. Stop using the Styrofoam or paper cups that your office supplies. You can easily clean the mug out each day and store it in a drawer.

Bring a full set of utensils, plate and bowl. Rather than using paper plates and plastic utensils use your own and just wash it after each use.

Use the back of paper. We all print stuff out that we do not really need, accidentally print it twice, print the whole document rather than the one page you needed... I could go on... just put it back in the printer to use again when you want to review a draft of something or print anything that is not the "official" version.

Recycle. Most offices are recycling paper and plastic but most do not have a receptical in every office so make sure that you bring your recycling to the appropriate bin in your office.

Shut off your computer. If you are not going to use your computer over night shut it off. Plain and simple.

Shut off your lights when you leave. Even if the cleaning people are going to come in and turn it on again they may not be coming for hours so shut it off.

Unplug all your un-used chargers and other unused devices. This needlessly uses energy... maybe you will save enough energy that the bills go down and you get a raise ;)

Do you have any good office tips?

After searching the web, I have come up with 5 tips that will help you become a better recycler.

1. Know Your Plastics. Not all plastics are made the same. Even though it is sometimes hard to read, the little number that goes with the recycle symbol is really telling you something.

One of the best links I have found to explain the differences between the numbers is below. This website has great pictures and tells you what can be done with the item after it’s been recycled.

Go to:

http://www.thedailygreen.com/green-homes/latest/recycling-symbols-plastics-460321

1. Rinse Your Containers. This sounds simple but it really helps out the recycling world!

By rinsing your items correctly, you will be removing all impurities, including food scraps, that must be separated from the glass, plastic, tin or aluminum to ensure a high quality material that will be used in a new product.

1. Recycle your Styrofoam. Yes, it can now be recycled. I had no clue until I started doing some research on it. Styrofoam is some of the worst stuff on earth. Just think about how much space it takes in the landfills.

I found a site that has a list of recycle centers you can download.

Go to: http://www.epspackaging.org/info.html (under locations download PDF)

Don’t forget most of the neighborhood shipping centers like (UPS Stores) will take your clean shipping peanuts.

1. Get money for Computers (E-Waste). Everyone has to have the fastest, best new gadget right! I am very guilty of this and always want the new model. Until recently I would just sit on my old stuff or sell it on an auction site. But now I have started to trade it in.

The link below is for a company Costco works with, and they will pay the shipping for the old product to their warehouse. Based on the estimated value they will give you a Costco gift card for that amount.

http://costcotrades.greensight.com/Common/equiptypes.aspx?SiteXfrMsg=0

Another recycle program is at Game Stop

Game Stop will trade in your old games and systems. Just bring your old systems/games to them, and they will give you money towards a new system. My daughter just got a new Nintendo and I was surprised by how much she saved by trading in her old one.

http://www.gamestop.com/

1. Recycle your Clothes. Think of all the stuff in your closet and your kid’s closet. How much are you really wearing? What fits? What doesn’t fit? When you start to think about it most people wear about 35% of their total wardrobe.

There are many different ways to recycle clothes:

Trade them on sites like www.uanditrade.com. This site is the best site for parents to trade their families’ used items. I say this because I am the Co-Founder of the site. Trading items with other people online is great because your network of available items is that much greater. The site is free for members to use, and no money is ever exchanged between members.

Another option is to donate your clothes to a woman’s shelter. They are always in need of clothes for moms and children. Most moms come to the shelters with only the clothes they are wearing.

Other options include putting them on consignment, donating them to a thrift store, or giving them to a friend. Whatever you do, just make sure they go to someone who will use them.

I hope you find this information helpful and useful for your day to day recycling habits. If you have any comments or suggestions, please send them my way!

The Japanese have come up with the latest in cool houses: Styrofoam Domes. Already approved by the Japanese Government, these $30,000 buildings snap together in just days and will not rust, rot or emit toxic fumes in a fire.

And they are typhoon resistant.

Now, we spent 6 years on the island of Okinawa, Japan and we loved every minute of it, in spite of the typhoons. Super typhoons have sustained winds of 150 mph+, and we sat smack dab in the middle of several of them. Rarely is there a death related to these storms and there is very little property damage – very little. The Okinawans have been dealing with these storms for centuries, and they build things in concrete.

Houses are concrete, roofs are concrete, seawalls are stone and concrete - because concrete can stand toe-to-toe with the baddest that Mother Nature brings and endure. So, if the Japanese are switching to these, put my name on the list, and I’ll go ahead and buy my beachfront property in Florida! :)

Now, as the date looms just 5 weeks out, a sudden calm has washed over me. Wedding, schmedding - who needs to plan? It's as if a lull has overcome my perfectionist thinking and I finally relented the need to control every last little detail. This is a good thing...right?

But instead of relishing the quiet inside my head, I've noticed that it's a little too quiet in there - crickets might as well be chirping in the background. This unnerves me because it's not as if I have everything done; au contraire, the long list of DIY projects is still awaiting my attention. The invites went out two weeks late, I still haven't picked what kind of veil I want (let alone ordered it), I never found the perfect shoe, the bridesmaids dresses aren't in yet and the favors have yet to be ordered.

I want to get stressed, mad, determined - I want to get the sudden urge to hurl myself back into planning mode and take on all those DIY tasks. Instead, I find the thoughts of unfinished items bobbing up gently in my conscience, and my conscience allowing them to softly sink back down into oblivion. It's so unlike me; the antithesis to my obsessive-compulsive, detail-worshiping self.

My only hope is that, while there's still enough time left, my blase brain revs up for one final push. Because the wedding will march on whether I finish those little details or not. Guests will arrive and gather, and I will be married to the man I love and was meant for. But I can't help thinking that it wouldn't hurt to have 35 handmade tissue paper pom-poms twirling gently in the breeze, or a wish table with two oversized dandelions backbreakingly constructed from Styrofoam and bleached baby's breath... or beautifully designed programs... or oversized, calligraphied signs with complimenting black and white striped ribbon...

I have to wonder: Is is just me, or does every bride-to-be have a stressfully unstressful moment?

So, from Co-op America, lists of what not to buy, and good alternatives. (Click on the link to read more details.)

From Co-op America has a list of
Ten Things You Should Never Buy Again:

1. Styrofoam cups  (Alternatives: Recyclable, compostable paper cups; Best: reusable mugs or cups.)
2. Paper towels  (Alternatives: Recycled, non-bleached; Best: dishtowels or rags.)
3. Bleached coffee filters  (Alternatives: unbleached paper filters; Best: reusable filters.)
4. Overpackaged foods and other products (Alternatives: minimal or reusable packaging; Best: buy in bulk and user you own containers)
5. Teak and mahogany (Alternative: Forest Stewardshiop Council; Best: reuse wood, buy furniture/products from used/salvaged wood.)
6. Chemical pesticides and herbicides  (Alternatives: organic pest controllers; Best: Plant native plants; integrated pest management; flowers and herbs as natural pesticides.)
7. Conventional household cleaners  (Alternatives: nontoxic, vegetable-based, biodegradeable cleaners; Best: make your own with vinegar, water and castile soap.)
8. Higher octane gas than you need  (Alternatives: Buy lowest-octane gas required; Best: Take public transit, bike, walk.)
9. Toys made with PVC (#3) plastic  (Alternatives: #1 or #2 plastics or sustainable materials; Best: tell manufacturers to stop using PVC plastics.)
10. Plastic forks and spoons  (Alternatives: User compostable utensils; Best: carry your own utensils and food containers.)

 Five More Things You Should Never Buy Again:

1. Farm raised salmon  (more toxins in farm-riased than wild salmon)
2. Rayon  (manufacturing process is wasteful and dirty; wood-based fiber contributes to deforestation; poor labor practices in many countries; needs to be drycleaned)
3. Beauty/Body care with phthalates and parabens  (research indicates harmful)
4. Cling wrap (made of #3 PVC; DO NOT HEAT OR MICROWAVE)
5. High VOC Paints and Finishes

This dude from Antwerp, Belgium isn't doing anything new. He's all about poppy, electro, indie, synth beats, and apparently he's been doing it a while now as this is his third album. But, all that being said, he does it well. His newest album "A Thousand Words" is a great Summer-into-Fall CD to play in the backyard while feeling the heat subside and cooler nights creep in. It's catchy, sentimental, happy, a bit introspective. The perfect background music when you finally say, "Summer I am so over you. Hello Fall, my old friend."

AMERICAN CONSUMPTION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Biggest drop in U.S. oil demand in 26 years

ANTARCTIC MELTING: Antarctic ice shelf breaking up in dead of winter: Experts surprised that cold hasn't frozen trend, now expect quicker demise

BIODEGRADABLE: Green Earth Technologies, creator of organic engine products, has released their new automotive lubricant to its G-Oil line, a 10W-30 that has set a new biodegradability standard

CATTLE GRAZING: Federal rangeland managers said continuing to allow cattle to graze on the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument is harming the rare plants, fish and wildlife the monument was created eight years ago to protect

CHINA: Plight of the Little Emperors: Coddled from infancy and raised to be academic machines, China's only children expect the world. Now they're buckling under the pressure of their parents' deferred dreams.

CLIMATE CHANGE: Cattails could be agents of climate change (The good kind)

CRYPTOZOOLOGY: Vampire hound caught on film?, Farmers claim they have seen the “Dracula dogs” sink their teeth into the necks of terrified livestock

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Mitsubishi’s Electric Car Will Be Released in 2009 for $37,500

ENERGY: Honolulu to air condition buildings with seawater, $21 billion Alaska energy plan proposed: RENEWABLE AND ALTERNATIVE: Inclusion of coal in projects leaves some lawmakers less than happy, Utah four day work week environmentally friendly

ENERGY MIX OF THE FUTURE; SOLAR: How a giant solar tower could power the future

EXTINCTION: Wildlife extinction rates 'seriously underestimated'

FISHERIES: Groups deliver 150,000 comments to Bush Administration calling for withdrawal of proposed rule that would undercut environmental review, stifle public input in oceans & fisheries management, Ocean fisheries protections to be weakened: Bush plan would give industry greater power over fishery management decisions, Since the Parties to the Nauru Agreement signed a Third Implementing Arrangement which among other measures include restricting fishing in the high seas and 100% observer coverage of purse seine vessels, there has been a lot of talk in the media about a new wave in regional fisheries management., Three crew members of the trawler Atria: accused of fish dumping, and the master is accused of failing to record catch correctly

FISHERIES OBSERVER: Fisheries program graduates its first two observers

FUEL ECONOMY: Teen drives on one tank of gas for entire summer

GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOODS AND ORGANISMS: Prince Charles warns GM crops risk causing the biggest-ever environmental disaster

GEOTHERMAL ENERGY: Geothermal energy will help power Anaheim, California

GLOBAL WARMING: Schwarzenegger confirms link between global warming and wildfires, hits Bush for not believing the science

GREEN: The world's first eco-disco, Surya, opens for business, Using carbon dioxide as an ingredient in plastics could help reduce the use of fossil fuels, and be another market for waste CO2.

GREENWASHING: Nice jugs part 2: Green packaging or greenwashing

NEW SPECIES: 21 new species of livebearing fish named, British scientists have found new species of oral cavity bacteria which contribute to various mouth problems such as tooth decay, Bird species result of climate change?: A group of scientists are scratching their heads this week as they try to figure out how a new species of bird came to be, way up in the mountains of Vermont

OFFSHORE DRILLING: Navy opposes VA offshore drilling. Period. End of debate., Pelosi indicates openness to offshore drilling vote

OPEC: Opec income hits record as oil prices soar

ORGANIC MARKET: A capitalist dream: Company designs and maintains organic garden in your backyard

PLASTIC BAGS; STYROFOAM: Seattle’s ban on plastic and styrofoam

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION: Levitating train from L.A. to Las Vegas gets boost: Bush signs law freeing dollars for levitating train from Disneyland to Las Vegas

SALMON: NORWAY: Farmed salmon in hot water

SCIENCE: Science close to unveiling invisible man, A new BBC series makes use of satellite technology to create stunning images of Britain from above, you can also see how everything has become so traceable with the use of GPS technology, Amateur astronomer spies gassy "cosmic ghost", Bionic bra: Victoria's circuit: Looking for a better way to charge her iPod on the go, Adrienne So had an idea – could she invent a bionic bra to harness the energy of her bouncing breasts?

SOLAR: New, cost effective solar energy devices from MIT, GM to build world's biggest rooftop solar station in Spain: US automaker General Motors said Tuesday it will equip the roof of its factory in Zaragoza in northeastern Spain with solar panels to create the world's largest rooftop source of power from the sun, 90% of Israeli homes solar hot water equipped, Hawaii first state to require solar water heaters, Solar energy creating economic boom for Nevada, U.S. allowing new solar again, Times Square gets solar-powered billboard, India launches climate change plan focusing on solar power, Community solar power, Dyeing to boost solar efficiency by 50%: MIT has perfected a dye technology that could change the solar world as we know it

SUBURBIA: What is the future of suburbia? A freakonomics quorum

UPWARD MIGRATION: Pacific species set to invade warmer Arctic, Atlantic waters

WAVE POWER: Giant rubber snakes to capture wave power?

WHALING: Japan says we are witnessing the death of the International Whaling Commission

WIND POWER: Village of Mackinaw City wind turbine generators: They went on line the day of the ribbon cutting, December 3rd, 2001. In their first 4 days of operation they produced enough energy to power 9 homes for a year. As of the Fall of 2003 they produced over 4,000,000 kWh of energy.

This project has received many positive comments from residents and visitors alike. The residents voice their pride in being part of such a project that brings renewable energy to the region. The visitors are impressed with the way they look. Some go so far as to call them kinetic sculptures., Argentina will produce massive wind power turbines, While U.S. off-shore wind industry struggles, Germany announces 30 new wind farms: European nation sets ambitious renewable energy goals, Debate flares over wind power in Texas

So, the Cladmate is now finished on the exterior. That’s really neat, I’m quite happy about it – when you see that go up it just makes you feel good. Particularly on the window detail because the nailing flange of the window goes over top of the Styrofoam, so there’s a really nice thermal break where there’s a lot of bridging on the studs. Even though it’s less than R4, it still plays quite a dramatic role in keeping energy in the house.

We won't get around to doing the wiring before the winter, so we can’t insulate the studs, and yet I think the house will still be usable. The roof is done, the basement walls with the Eco blocks are done, so now it’s just the walls that need to be spray foamed. But having this three quarter inch Styrofoam on the outside should make it pretty livable. I’m going to go up there when the weather gets cold and see how it performs as it is now without the insulation in the walls. It’ll be interesting to see.

In other news, during my last game of golf I got two birdies and two pars on the front nine! But... on the back nine it all went to pieces.

Dubbed the “habitat for the 21st century,” the Dome House is an igloo-shaped structure built from snap-together wall sections made of 100% expanded polystyrene foam (styrofoam). It might seem like an odd choice of material for a house, but the company lists a number of advantages that styrofoam has over traditional materials. Unlike wood and metal structures, for example, the styrofoam Dome House does not rust, rot or attract termites. It is also highly resistant to earthquakes and typhoons. In addition, the walls, which are treated with a flame retardant, emit no toxic fumes in a fire. (link)

Fleet Foxes :: Fleet Foxes
released 03 June 2008

.

.

.

Bon Iver :: For Emma, Forever Ago
released 19 Feb 2008

.

.

.

Sigur Ros :: Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
released 24 June 2008

.

.

.

Vampire Weekend :: Vampire Weekend
released 29 January 2008

.

.

.

Coldplay :: Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends
released 17 June 2008

.

.

.

Death Cab for Cutie :: Narrow Stairs
released 13 May 2008

.

.

.

She & Him :: Volume One
released 18 March 2008

.

.

.

The Weepies :: Hideaway
released 22 April 2008

.

.

.

Mates of State :: Re-Arrange Us
released 20 May 2008

.

.

.

Born Ruffians :: Red, Yellow and Blue
released 4 March 2008

.

.

.

Cat Power :: Jukebox
released 22 January 2008

.

.

.

Radiohead :: In Rainbows
released 01 January 2008

.

.

.

Sun Kil Moon :: April
released 1 April 2008

.

.

.

Timmy Curran :: Word of Mouth
released 22 July 2008

.

.

.

Styrofoam :: These Thousand Words
released 10 April 2008

.

.

.

The Dodos :: Visiter
released 18 March 2008

.

.

.

Emiliana Torrini :: Me and Armini
released 9 September 2008

.

.

.

Kings of Leon :: Only by the Night
released 23 September 2008

.

.

.

Okkervil River :: The Stand Ins
released 9 September 2008

.

.

.

The latest video off In Rainbows. Created using multiple 3D imaging scanners to haunting effect.

This technology is also used by model makers to record exact dimensions of objects before carving massive, laser-cut, identical duplicates out of styrofoam. Enjoy.

[from infosthetics.com]

Initially, caterers were handling the meal, but just as we got there, they ran out of food. Everyone still in line just sort of lingered, unwilling to believe there was no food. And we were rewarded. Out of nowhere, relatives of the groom wheeled in giant containers of home-cooked meat, rice and beans and tortillas wrapped in foil. The people who'd already eaten the catered meal got in line again because it all smelled so good.

photo credit

Sightline Daily | Northwest News That Matters

Top Picks of the Day

1. It's In the Bag for Seattle Disposables - Seattle Post-Intelligencer 07/29/2008

2. Battle of Bottle Redemption - Eugene Register Guard 07/28/2008

3. Western States Summit Talks Cap-and-Trade - The Tyee 07/29/2008

4. BC Grizzly Population at 'Great Risk' - Vancouver Sun 07/29/2008

5. Food Costs Trim Fat from Grocery Budgets - Portland Oregonian 07/29/2008

6. Hybrid Trucks Coming To Fleets - Seattle Times 07/29/2008

7. Lawmakers Agree to Ban Toxins in Children's Items - Washington Post 07/29/2008

8. Reinventing America's Suburbs - USA Today 07/29/2008

9. Fuel Prices Force Schools To Weigh Cuts - USA Today 07/29/2008

10. Views: Living the Alternative Energy Dream - Los Angeles Times 07/29/2008

I do want to make some comments about my hospital stay and the environment... I drank out of a Styrofoam cup the entire time I was there and it completely creeped me out. As you know if you are a regular reader my most famous post is about the health effects of Styrofoam so here I was sick and drinking out of a Styrofoam cup. To be fair I never asked for a different one, I was more concerned about them giving me good care than thinking I was crazy so I let it go.

Plastic... it has a very valuable place in healthcare. My IV bags, tubing, the vials they took my blood in and almost dropped on the floor (I would have died if they took more that day so thank god for plastic). There are so many positive things I can say about plastic use in the medical field. Plastic was invented for a good reason we just over use it in our everyday life.

So I swear I will go back to the way it was a month and half ago where I actually posted regularly. I watched the 11th Hour documentary the first night I felt sick so I will have a post about that soon!!!

Again sorry I have been behind...