Brummet's Conscious Blog

-- Quote of the Day -- “…So there is no perfect choice… take peat for instance - a natural product harvested in Canada and Europe (and a few other places)… and when starting seeds it prevents damp off disease ( a fungus) …it is technically renewable – yet we consider it as a non-renewable product since it takes about a thousand years for a peat bog to grow a single yard of peat. …so we’ve come up with other things like coir – made from the outside of coconut shells, and rice hulls – But then you get people talking about the fact there is machinery used to harvest and convert these. …The better thing would be to not take things out of nature and hope that it gets replenished. Coir and rice hulls are things that we would have thrown away, so they are good alternatives to look at. ”   ~ Chris McLaughlin Today's quote was excerpted from a Sunday Gardening episode that featured Chris as a guest - She offered some fantastic advice about composting and greening...

 -- Quote of the Day -- "What is objectionable, what is dangerous about extremists is not that they are extreme, but that they are intolerant. The evil is not what they say about their cause, but what they say about their opponents."  ~ Robert Kennedy -- Conscious Living Events -- Here are a couple of conscious living events happening this weekend to watch out for in California (USA): Zero Waste San Diego will be hosting a Reuse and Repair Fair for the San Diego Community in conjunction with the California Resource Recovery Association Annual Conference . Location : Loews Coronado Bay Resort  When : July 31st, 10am -4pm Info : Zerowastesandiego.org GRRN 2011 National Zero Waste Activist Conference Location : San Diego Urban Corps in San Diego, California (USA) When : July 30 Info : I have no info on this event other than it being a one-day of environmental training and networking opportunities   Find Dave a...

 -- Quote of the Day -- "Look not back in anger, nor forward in fear - but around you in awareness." ~ Ross Hersey -- Positive Eco-News -- We hear a lot of bad news about the vehicle industry - but there are a lot of in-house changes going on in vehicle manufacture operations to celebrate.  While there are likely many other vehicle manufacturers offering green options and green in-house activities, I'd like to highlight one that I read recently about in the Recycling Product Newsletter that a Volvo Truck can have as much as 1/3 of it’s weight in recycled metals. Some of the best and usable parts are sold, others are separated in bins for iron, aluminum, plastics, copper, brass and the like. They say that not one bolt or piece of wire, not one scrap of a used truck goes to the landfill when it hits their recycling centers. In doing so they’ve been able to refine the manufacturing of new trucks to eliminate time or labor issues involved in ...

-- Quote of the Day -- “…I started tutoring kids when I was in college and I found that I just enjoyed being involved with them. …My first teaching job involved working with a class of 5 year olds and I got in trouble for being too creative with the kids. – And my attitude was ‘Why cant we teach them organically as things of interest comes up?’ I had to do the exact same thing with them every day and they were bored out of their minds. …For me, the one-size-fits all in education just doesn’t work, because nobody is the same. …[Teaching them] how to learn, instead of what to learn – and they will know how to learn for the rest of their lives. …Honoring who the kids are as people. ”  ~ Kristen Johnson Today's quote originates from the May 10th interview titled Arts & Youth .  *Access the archived Conscious Discussions Talk Radio show at your convenience by clicking on the hyperlinked show title. -- Positive Eco-News -- Now here is so...

-- Quote of the Day -- "Happiness grows at our own firesides, and is not to be picked in stranger's gardens." ~ Douglas Jerrod -- Brummets in the Media -- Check out the prerecorded interview (recorded back in June) published yesterday: about starting a business for less than $1,000. The Brian and Lee show helps listeners think smarter, minimize risk, and learn the basics of business start-up.  Via: http://BrianandLeeShow.com   - check out the prerecorded interview published on July 25th, with Lillian Brummet:  http://brianandleeshow.com/the-brian-and-lee-show-episode-14/   -- Listener Feedback -- A member of our audience wrote to share some more tips for green business and green transportation in particular - they suggested the possibility of a business using an electric or hybrid car fleet, or the possibility of using old oil from local fast food outlets, cafes and restaurants for vehicle fleet fuel. Great ideas ! Thanks for sharing, An...

  -- World of Writing -- As many of our readers are aware we like to have occasional interviews with other writers, who can offer interesting insight into the career. Today we have Susan Ross - a former elementary teacher. She has self-published four books: The Great Bellybutton Cover-up. Say Please to the Honeybees, The Kit Kat Caper, and The Rose and the Lily . Susan writes with a sense of adventure, with a humorous edge – but also with a legacy in mind; her passion is to leave special life messages within each book. For instance in the latest release, The Rose and the Lily , Susan shows that character is more important that physical beauty. She lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband, Nathan, and a menagerie of animals. Visit her anytime at: www.susanross.ca   Q: Tell us something about yourself.  I have a great sense of humor (slightly dark). I am an animal lover. I presently live with a teeny, tiny dog, a bunny (which was dumped at the side of th...

-- Quote of the Day -- “… I like to water in the morning, because the water has a chance to soak in the soil, and if the leaves or stems get wet – they will have a chance to dry off before the cool of evening sets in. …Succession crops involves planting the same crop a week or two apart to allow for succession harvest – it allows you to extend the garden, grow more. …and you have more ability to go with the seasons. …It is just a great way for gardeners to harvest what they can eat that week, without being overwhelmed. ..and it is really good if you are doing open-pollinated plants and  you want to save the seed because you can stagger the crops so that they flower at different times – keeping the seed pure .”  ~ Sheri Ann Richerson Today's quote originates from the May 8th Sunday Gardening episode featuring Sheri Ann Richerson as our special guest. -- Reusing Plastics -- An assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at ...