Brummet's Conscious Blog

-- Used oil and its effects on the environment --   * Today's article was written by: Greg Chapman of Greg Chapman Motors - a knowledgeable and leading provider of used cars, trucks, and SUV’s. Since 1959, Chapman Motors has supplied reliable used cars in Austin and the surrounding . For more information please visit www.gregchapmanmotors.com .   Motor oil leaked from individual vehicles—or outright dumped by homeowners and commercial garages inevitably finds its way into local water bodies. Topsoil and natural vegetation would ordinarily filter many of these pollutants out, but the impermeable pavement that covers much of the surface where these pollutants originate carries it right into storm drains and into streams, rivers, lakes and the ocean where it can poison marine life—which we might eat—as well as entire riparian or coastal ecosystems. This pollution also finds its way into underground aquifers that supply our drinking water, s...

-- Quote of the Day --  “I was on an airplane once and one of the engines blew up – there were flames on one side of the plane, but the flames were put out and the pilot came back and said we lost one of the engines, the fire was put out and they are going back to land and do repairs. …The thing was that it was not a catastrophe – the pilot knew how to deal with that kind of stuff, because they had trained for it, even though it is a very rare thing for engines to blow up on planes these days. …People too need to test out and train for things in a safe environment before real lives and careers are on the line. …There are these other things that are constant presences in our lives trying to tell us what to do, what we have to do is to consciously choose which of those things we want to welcome in our lives and what we want to do with that. …When we learn from what other people have done – who we choose to look at makes a difference.” ~ Mark Chussil ...

-- Quote of the Day --  “Regardless of the new technologies that come and go, strategy is the one thing that will remain constant and knowing how to formulate, create a strategy that is long term – not just something that generates income in the short term. …Researching demographics and buying patterns and knowing who the audience is and being able to pinpoint who a potential customer may be  …[Todays] marketing really is so much more than just putting an ad together it has to take into consideration the features and benefits of the product, the pricing strategy, how it is being distributed.  ...A common definition of work ethics – a trainable set of values and behaviors – The seven values and behaviors are: positivity, reliability, professionalism, initiative, integrity, respect for authority, and gratitude ” ~ Joshua Casto Today’s quote originates from the Conscious Discussions Talk Radio episode titled: Busines...

 -- Quote of the Day --  “…My activism, politics and writing kind of merged. I worked for newspapers for a number of years and was always interested in the human-interest stories – the good things they’ve done. I became a freelancer for a while, worked for a few magazines. …These stories need to be captured and kept and archived so that they can be there for the next generation – they can kind of stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before them and continue the work for peace and justice. …The nice thing about a book – it is a permanent document to share people’s stories. One of our goals is to get people to share their stories because that can break down barriers and create a better community.” ~ Burt Berlowe Today’s quote originates from the Conscious Discussions Talk Radio episode titled: Compassionate Heroes   (*Click on the title to access the full discussion)   - 10 Tips to Save On Your Heating Bill This Winte...

-- Quote of the Day -- “If you go in as a therapist without knowing a thing about {their situation}, but go in as an expert - what you are doing is converting them to your way of thinking, making them little “you’s” and the horror of that is they have to stay with you for the rest of their lives. …The real goal of therapy is to make yourself useless to the person, where they will no longer need you – because you are not {a therapist} for yourself. …Abuse is when someone takes away the power of another, often without that person being aware their power is taken away… or they give it away willingly... One person stealing power from another… There is a deception going on, the person is convincing the victim that their actions are for their own good. …they not only hide it, but when it comes to the kids they make excuses for it. …It often starts with a trained dependence on another. There are all kinds of abuse, but emotional abuse is the most prevailing.” ~ Milton Trachentenburg ...

-- Eco-Event ! -- Save The Frogs Day - April 28th, 2009 http://savethefrogs.com/day Frog populations have been declining worldwide at unprecedented rates, and up to 200 species have completely disappeared in recent decades. In an effort to raise awareness of the plight of frogs, the scientific community has declared April 28th, 2009 the 1st Annual ' Save The Frogs Day '. Please get involved and help spread the word! Save The Frogs Day is a perfect time for teachers and students to focus on amphibian conservation, learn about amphibian extinctions, and discuss ways that we can all contribute to amphibian conservation efforts. http://savethefrogs.com/day -- Conscious Discussions -- Today's episode focuses on Eco-Vacations & Clean Green Spaces : Sheryl Kayne – is a syndicated columnist, radio & TV personality, travel workshop facilitator & consultant and the author of 4 books. Today we will be learning about Leave No Trace ethics to employ when enjoying green spac...

-- Quote of the Day -- “…Writing has always come so naturally to me. I’ve been writing since I was ten years old. It always made me feel really good. …Writing has always consumes my time – You know, I have 4 published books, but I also have 4 self-published books and I have written a movie and I have, like, 4 other books that I am writing… My grandmother was so supportive and every single teacher at every single level at every single school I went to have encouraged me to pursue writing. …I wanted to be many things when I was growing up - I wanted to be a doctor and a classical pianist, but writing always came up. …When I was first looking for a publisher I looked at the Canadian Directory of Publishers - because I know that there are so many people who do horrible things online to take advantage of people.” ~ Ali Marsman – Jan 29, 2009 The quote above was taken from an interview on the Conscious Discussions radio program with Ali Marsman that aired on Jan 29, 2009. You can easily a...

-- Quote of the Day -- “…New wood stove technology uses a secondary combustion system that burns off unused fuel, this is the secret. Old air tight stoves sat there and smoldered away and mostly the fuel would go up the chimney and if you were unlucky it would condense into creosote in the chimney and cause all sorts of issues from there. …So new stove technology means that you will use much less fuel, getting more BTUs out of each piece of wood …and polluting less. …Get your firewood in the spring, or the year before, let it dry over the summer - and don’t dampen those stoves down. …Get a thermometer, which will show you a range of temperatures you should be keeping your flue gas at in order to avoid creating creosote and pollution. ” ~ John Vere 11/20/08 This quote was taken from an interview on Conscious Discussions talk radio with John Vere, an environmental advocate, who explained how to burn wood as a fuel for winter heat more efficiently. Learn how to reduce emissions, burn wo...