What pattern is your brain?

Your Brain's Pattern

You have a tempered, reasonable way of thinking. You tend to take every new idea in, and meld it with your world view. For you, everything is always changing. Each moment is different. Your thinking process tends to be very natural - with no beginnings or endings.

What Pattern Is Your Brain?

Gotta love a silly quiz now and then.

Your Heart Is Blue

Love is a doing word for you. You know it's love when you treat each other well. You are a giving lover, but you don't give too much. You expect something in return. Your flirting style: Friendly Your lucky first date: Lunch at an outdoor cafe Your dream lover: Is both generous and selfish What you bring to relationships: Loyalty

What Color Heart Do You Have?

Haha!

Oh my goodness, this is exactly how I feel sometimes! Granted, I'm too addicted to cheese to be a vegan, I'm just a vegetarian but I've heard every question and every vegetarian joke in the world.



If the "play" button doesn't pop up in the middle, here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOInuaZh-v4&NR

Weekly spending:

Weekly spending:

Monday: $0 (woohoo!)

Tuesday: Home Depot (4 dowel rods to make into knitting needles, outlet insulators) - $6.36

Wednesday: Matt's cigarettes (aagghhh!!!) - $4.50, Joann Fabrics (Sharpies and stuff for Dani's prize for last month's spending challenge and Lindsey's b-day gift) - $12.19 - This is amazingly low, really! I didn't buy ANYTHING that wasn't on my list and I had lots and lots and lots of temptation. Not to mention that Kristi and I went to several stores and I didn't buy anything but the stuff I set out for. Go me!

Thursday: Raley's (Matt bought 3 boxes of cereal, at supermarket prices. We could have bought 4 boxes at Target for this price. Oh well. Now he knows.) - $12.84

Friday: Michael's (beading needles) - $3.53, Target (toothpaste and All Free & Clear Small & Mighty - love that stuff) - $4.42 b/c my toothpaste was free! I emailed Crest and told them I hated their new toothpaste and they sent me a coupon for free toothpaste!

Saturday: Benicia Knitting Circle (needles, darnit, again) - $25.61

Sunday: Parkside Cafe (3 ice creams, 1 med. fry, 1 veggie burger - shared w/ in-laws - MIL is on the veggie burger bandwagon now!) - $12.00

Total = $81.45

Well.... only about $18 was entirely unnecessary. I bought a LOT of knitting stuff ($45! More than half the total...) but they were all for projects that I had committed to - Mom had asked for a hat that needed to be done and shipped to WA by the 16th, Dani's prize for last month's spending challenge is still in the works, and I wanted to get started on Lindsey's birthday present. Hmmmm... Well, I'll do better next time. Sooner or later I'll have all the needle sizes. ;-)

Remodeling Sources and Ideas

Hi everyone,

I had a request for green remodeling info (Congrats on the new home, Ann!), so here it is:

Maintenance Ideas:

• Replace all the light bulbs in your house with CFL's.

• Install dimmer switches.

• Install a motion activated light switch in places where the light is often left on unnecessarily.

• Avoid heating/ cooling areas that don't need to be comfortable - such as closets, pantries, etc. Seal the rooms by installing weather stripping and a door sweep under the door, and shut off the heater vent in that room.
  

• To seal around windows, carefully remove the trim (first cut the paint attaching it to the wall with a knife), then spray Great Stuff Window and Door Formula (the regular formula will bow your jambs!) or DAP Tex Plus (which is easier to clean up) into the gap between the wall and the window jamb. Trim off excess with a knife and reinstall the trim. Warmer windows!

• Seal up the garage and basement. That cold gets into your house!

• Check for leaks in ductwork and seal them with aluminum tape (NOT DUCT TAPE) on straight ducts and pure silicone caulk on joints.
  

• Hate to be a party pooper, but fireplaces are one of the biggest leaks in a home and when lit actually suck warm air out of the rest of the house! When you're not using it, fill a plastic bag with insulation and stuff it up the chimney. Just be sure to take it out before lighting a nice cozy fire, haha!
  

• Tune up your heater.

• Clean your air conditioner.

• Put a "jacket" on your hot water heater and foam sleeves on your pipes.

• Install low-flow showerheads.

• Plant an organic veggie garden, if you have room. Doesn't get any more "locally grown" than that! And considering an organic red pepper is $4, that could save a lot of money!
  

• Vacuum behind and under your fridge to keep it efficient. Fridges account for over 15% of energy usage in homes. If you're considering upgrading, click here.
  

• To make your dryer more efficient: Replace flexible ducting with 4" rigid metal duct, with as few bends as possible. Lint can't clog a nice smooth straight duct. Install a 4"x4" vent hood rather than the standard 2 1/2" - this is the equivalent of shortening the ducting by 6 feet - a great thing. Vacuum out the lint chute yearly. Scrub the lint screen with a brush and soapy water yearly, especially if you use fabric softener. Softener clogs the mesh, which means less airflow and slower drying. Also, vacuum the area under the drum inside the motor once a year - not only does this make it more efficient but it will make your dryer last longer and reduces the risk of dryer fires.

• Check for air leaks around your home. I've heard that if you added up all the tiny leaks in your house you could drive a truck through it! Yikes! It's wonderful to have an energy auditor come and check out your home with an infrared camera (oooh!) but that costs $250-400, and for that price you could fix a lot of little leaks in common places. Walk around your house and feel the floor, walls, windows, recessed light fixtures, attic access door, and exterior doors for cold spots. 35% of air leaks are in the attic, 18% doors and windows, 17% floors and basement, 13% walls, 10% ceiling. Adding more insulation (check Certainteed for insulation suggestions), outlet sealers, weatherstripping, caulking indoors and out... Crawling around in the attic to add more insulation is not a pretty job, but somebody (coughyourmancough) really needs to do it. Just don't do it on a hot day!!!

Very important: When you seal up your house nice and tight, you MUST invest the $20 to get a carbon monoxide detector. A well sealed home keeps you comfortable with less electricity, but also will help hold in carbon monoxide. This is imperative!

Remodeling Ideas:

• Use low/ no VOC paints. Most major paint stores (Kelly Moore, Rodda...) carry them, and your local environmental home store has them, too.

• When replacing the flooring, use rubber, bamboo, cork, reclaimed wood (which can all be fixed rather than replaced when need be), or marmoleum (one note- to clean solid floors, use the swiffer-style mops with washable microfiber covers, not an actual Swiffer. Waste of money and landfill.) Carpet is not only a germ and dust magnet, but it has to be vacuumed (which takes electricity), and even when it's recycled carpet it will still need to be replaced in a few years, and will probably end up in a landfill. Matt is a total diva about carpet and flat out refuses to put it in people's homes. ;-)

• Install radiant heating.

• Obviously, buy Energy Star appliances when it's time to upgrade.

• Research any materials you might use. There are a lot of great options out there. Educating yourself can save you money and give you a very "green" and beautiful home.

• Countertops come in amazing materials - paper (really!), quartz, recycled glass... It's best not to use natural stone. Yes, it's beautiful, but impractical for daily life and quarries are bad news for the environment.
  

• If replacing a toilet, check this site and click on "CWWA Maximum Performance Testing of Popular Toilets Reports".

• When doing any demolition, contact a building materials recycler, and freecycle or craigslist any useful stuff you don't want any more.

• Check out salvage shops for beautiful high quality materials with history. Not always money saving, but good for the environment and kinda exciting when you find a one of a kind piece that calls to you.
  

• Check local classifieds and Craiglist for used materials. We've gotten brand new double pane vinyl windows for next to nothing (or actually nothing) just by doing our homework.

• Consider quality. It's better for everyone if your purchase lasts a very long time and looks great doing it.

• Refinish cabinets, or if necessary, replace the doors if the cabinet layout is good but the cabinets are ugly. This goes back to the big picture of Buy Less Stuff.

• Go for timeless beauty. Trends are fun now, but in ten years you'll be dying to remodel again because it's so "outdated". Stay contemporary with paint colors - cheap, fast, and easy. On the big ticket items think about how well it will blend with changing aesthetics. That doesn't mean it has to be boring! Just classic. Again, saves you money and saves the world. They're connected so often!
  

Links:

• Seattle Environmental Home Center

• http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/

• http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/

• http://www.greenerchoices.org/

• This website is still pretty new, but I have high hopes for it

• Even Martha Stewart is going green!

• A link with fantastic links

• http://www.moderngreenliving.com/

• http://www.lazyenvironmentalist.com/

• http://www.verdantmag.com/

• http://www.sustainablestyle.org/

Of course, in ten years when Matt and I build our Zero Energy Home development, you can just buy one of our houses! ;-)

The Most Terrifying and Inspiring Movie I've Ever Seen:

We watched An Inconvenient Truth last night, and, frankly, I'm alarmed. The scientific data behind global warming is undeniable. Of the 928 scientific studies published on the subject, not a single one has denied its reality. The "controversy" we all hear is just spin put out to confuse the issue so businesses can continue doing things their own way without changing for the better. It's exactly like what happened when the Surgeon General announced that smoking causes lung cancer. As much as we want to ignore it, it's the truth.

What's most remarkable is that we can do SO MUCH to reduce the effects, but as a general public, we just don't care. It's time to care. It's time to educate ourselves on what exactly is happening and how to change it. We fixed the hole in the ozone layer, we can change this too! We just have to choose to. Politicians are essentially just salesmen, and they will sell us what we ask for. If the voters are saying "We want policy changes made to fix this", it will happen. We need to vote for leaders who care about the future, we need to write letters, we need to make conscious buying decisions. In the business world, we vote with our wallets. Vote for environmentally responsible businesses and products.

Most of you reading my blog are in the 20-30 year old range. We will soon be entering into the time of our leadership. It is also the time that many of us are raising and educating the new generation. Will we create a volatile environment that our great-grandchildren may not survive? Or will we change our habits and take charge of this crisis? We need to not only tell them but show them our responsible actions, and they will follow in our footsteps. Now is the time to change the world for the better. If enough people care, it will happen.

I realize this is a bit of a rant, but when you see this movie, you'll want to rant too. Everyone, please watch this movie. Then go to these websites and see what you can do to help. Also, below the links I listed some very simple starter ideas on what we can do.

Links

http://www.climatecrisis.net/

http://www.fightglobalwarming.com/

http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2005/10/26/faqs/index.html

http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2003/11/25/consumption/index.html

http://www.greenerchoices.org/

http://www.thegreenguide.com/

http://www.wearewhatwedo.ca/index.php

http://www.mtv.com/thinkmtv/environment/


Ideas

(free and often money saving)

• Buy Less Stuff!!! This one is major. Everything we buy has to be manufactured, shipped, and displayed in the store; and then we drive to the store to buy it, then someday it'll be thrown out. Stop shopping as entertainment and start only buying what you truly need.

• Buy secondhand when you do need something. It's already gone through the process of being made and shipped. 10 Things You Shouldn't Buy New.

• When you need new clothes, buy classic, quality pieces, preferably from a responsible manufacturer.
  

• If you're just going down the street, walk. Save the world, gas money, and your figure. ;-)
  

• Don't circle the parking lot looking for the "best spot". Just park and walk the few extra feet. Think of the cumulative effect of all the people across America circling parking lots. Every little bit adds up.

• Turn off the tap while you’re brushing your teeth or shaving — every minute the water flows wastes up to 2 1/2 gallons, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Run full loads in washing machines and dishwashers. Water plants in the early morning to ensure that the water goes into the ground instead of evaporating. And use a bucket to wash the car, hosing it off for a quick rinse, to save 90 gallons of water per wash. For more conservation tips, go to the California Urban Water Conservation Council site, at www.h2ouse.org. Savings: $189 a year, or nearly 40 percent off the average U.S. household’s annual water bill of $476, according to a 2003 study prepared for the National Rural Water Association.

• Freecycle the things you don't need any more rather than throw them out.

• Buy recycled toilet paper and use cloth napkins (more elegant, anyway)

• Bundle up/ strip down rather than adjust the thermostat.

• Wash your laundry in cold water, and line dry whenever possible (your clothes will also last much longer). When you line dry, hang your clothes inside out so the sun won't fade the colors.
  

• Unplug all electronics you're not using at the moment. They often use almost as much energy when off than they do when in use. An easy way to do this is to plug it all into a power strip you can switch off, or even set up your outlets to turn on/off with a light switch.

• Join the do not mail list, and even call the catalogs you receive and get off their mailing list. Junk mail is more than just annoying, it uses lots resources to get to your mailbox.

• Turn off the TV and enjoy spending quality time with your family instead.

• When traveling to another state, consider taking the train. Same price as flying and takes more time, but greener, more fun, you get to see beautiful scenery as you travel, and it's great one-on-one time with your travel buddy.

(Invest less than $10 - and often save much more)

• Buy locally grown food whenever possible. On average, food travels between 1,500 and 2,500 miles from the farm to your fridge. A farmer's market is a great way to do this, and if you go at the end of the day you'll get a lot for your money 'cuz they don't want to pack it back up and bring it home.
  

• Install outlet sealers on exterior facing walls. It'll cost $2 for an eight pack at Home Depot/ Lowe's and you just need a screwdriver and ten minutes. Outlets and light switches are one of the leakiest spots in exterior walls and these little guys can go a long way in keeping in precious heat or A/C. Also, of course, weatherstripping doors and windows goes a long way too.
  

• Buy (and actually remember to use, haha) reusable grocery bags. The ones at Whole Foods are $1 each and are 1000% more pleasant to use than plastic bags. Five trillion (geez!) plastic bags enter the market every year, and most of them end up in landfills, not to mention the energy and resources used to make and ship the bags in the first place.

• Use a reusable lexan/ nalgene water bottle rather than disposable water bottles.

It's all in the baby steps!

If you're remodeling your home, there are tons of options too. I can give you guys an idea list or links if anyone is interested. :-)

I'd love to hear everyone else's great ideas and suggested links, too. Now let's go save the world!

Weekly spending:

Monday: $0
Tuesday: Matt's cigarettes - $4.50
Wednesday: Stamps - $7.80, Target (cereal, envelopes, etc.) - $14.91, Raley's (top ramen) - $2.00, Burger King (veggieburger) - $2.84, Benicia Knitting Circle (needles) - $9.13, Michael's - $7.51, Walmart (8 pack of Valentine cards) - $4.01
Thursday: Tix to Kodo at UC Berkeley (our Valentine's gift to each other) - $54,
Knitpicks.com (replacement yarn for Mom's hat... long story. Also 4 stitch holders and shipping) - $13.92 (btw, knitpicks.com is AWESOME - very soft, great colors, unbeatable prices)
Friday: Water and juice - $4.00, Kodo DVD/CD set plus shipping - $14.09
Saturday: Post office (10 3 cent and 10 cent stamps) - $1.30
Sunday: Matt's cigarettes :-( - $4.50

Total = $134.51

Not such a great way to start the month... Next week I'll be really good though. And I learned how to make my own knitting needles on knittinghelp.com, so that should save me some money!

HGTV's 25 Biggest Decorating Mistakes

I caught HGTV’s 25 Biggest Decorating Mistakes on TV tonight and it is so so true! It’s very important to be surrounded by beauty and have harmonious space to call home, and most major mistakes are free or cheap and easy to fix! Here’s the list:

#1: Fake Flowers

#2: Too Many Pillows

#3: Knickknack Overload (Hissss… oh, nothing bothers me like excessive knickknacks)

#4: Fear of Color

#5: Ignoring Windows

#6: Pushed–Back Furniture

#7: Tacky Couch Covers (does anyone actually have couch covers?)

#8: Frames Hung Too High

#9: Improper Lighting

#10: Floating Rugs

#11: Too Many Colors or Patterns

#12: Furniture That Doesn’t Fit (I'm guilty of this - we have this amazingly comfortable but MASSIVE sectional that swallowed our old living room whole -but our next living room will be just the right size for it.)

#13: Following Fads

#14: Everything Matches

#15: Lack of Traffic Pattern

#16: Uncomfortable Dining Chairs

#17: Too Formal

#18: Keeping Something You Hate (Just because it's a gift doesn't mean you need to keep it. But please oh please don't buy anyone knickknacks as a gift, 'cause then they'll have to keep it or feel guilty tossing your gift. Stop the cycle! )

#19: Lopsided Furniture Arrangements

#20: Outdated Accessories

#21: Out-of-Place Themes

#22: Undressed Cables

#23: Ignoring the Foyer

#24: Too Many Photos

#25: Toilet Rugs

For full explanations, here’s the link.

One handy tip they mentioned was to take a photo of your room, then evaluate how it looks. It's so much easier to be objective when looking at a photo, and it really clearly shows what's wrong. When you're standing in your room it's like, "Oh, it's not bad", but if you pretend like you've never seen it before and look at the photo you see "Eww, the table looks awful there!"

Just trying to spread beauty around. :-) After all, being a personal organizer/ designer/ contractor, I am qualified to be a design snob... just kidding, just kidding. Kinda. ;^)

Kodo

Matt and I went to see Kodo at U.C. Berkeley's Zellerbach Hall tonight as an early Valentine's Day (since MIL wants us to spend real Valentine's Day "as a family". Sacrilege! But, she's had a HARD 6 months so it's fair to give her V-Day this time.) It was absolutely amazing!!! It's an ancient Japanese style of drumming, often called "samurai drumming". Samurai is right! These guys (and two girls) were KILLING their drums, throwing everything they had into pounding massive drumsticks into enormous drums. It was an incredible sight (and sound). They were amazing athletes too, holding exaggerated lunges and sit up positions while throwing their weight into drumming for so much longer than anyone should be able to hold that position. At one point they wheeled out a drum about 5 feet long and 4 feet in diameter (cut from a solid tree trunk!) and this guy POUNDED on that thing with drum sticks that looked wide enough to be rolling pins.

This night inspired Matt and I to start budgeting in a $60 "culture allowance". We'll just buy cheap seats or buy tickets the day of the show from one of the half price ticketing agents once a month, and think of the amazing shows we'll experience! Our two tickets plus the processing fee was $54, and it was an experience we'll remember for years. If you really think about it, how easy is it to blow $60? Two movie tickets and dinner, a night out dancing and drinking, entry for two to the zoo plus parking and lunch... And ultimately, which experiences do you keep longer and affect you more deeply?