Green Options

Or make several thousand aluminum flowers…

or 250 Aluminum Can Granny Square Tote Bags…

or 1000 Aluminum Can Maracas for your kids, because music can help fill the void in your financially depleted soul…

or you could smelt all of it into molds to make mod lawn furniture.

The possibilities are endless. Bottoms up, my crafty friends!

Image courtesy of sandossu

Letterman weaves a spirited diatribe through the intricacies climate change, alternative energy, gas prices, cutting carbon levels, riding bicycles, and most enthusiastically, the absence of political leadership that’s yet to help us get out of this mess.

David Letterman once thought climate change was for “treehuggers” and “kooks.” In this clip from a September episode, the Late Night show host introduces Thomas L Friedman’s new book Hot, Flat, Crowded with an emphatic reversal of this opinion. Despite Letterman’s trademark cynicism, there’s a lot of optimism here. Letterman mentions alternative energy and the crowd goes wild.

Via: TheGreenMiles.

“Thanks to global warming, we’ve almost defeated the iceberg menace!”

Fine Fueling offers a pointed and ironic take on fuel prices (and takes a couple of political jabs at a couple of recognizable figures as it does so), by presenting bottled varietal fuels and offering capsule reviews of them. For example,

A zesty, full bodied, thermal cracked desert fuel, with wonderful balance. This fuel totally over-delivers on our hedonist’s meter.

This petro-oenophile’s version of fuel choice includes such [...]

From our friends at ZapRoot this week: Arizona tests artificial CO2 filtering trees. Sarah Palin loves oil. We help you find ways to get rid of your junk mail.

Five Funny Reasons to Love Mosquitoes

I’m a mosquito hunter. If you’ve seen the Monty Python sketch, then you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t, just scroll down. For me, there’s nothing more maddening than the high-pitch whine of a mosquito in my ear just as I’m drifting off to sleep. On any given night during mosquito season, you can find me prowling the house under-shorts (Shh! Don’t tell.) stalking my prey.

However, this morning I had an epiphany. It took one particular mosquito buzzing in my ear at 6:30 on this particularly beautiful early fall morning to make me understand that mosquitoes aren’t really all bad. Like Cat Stevens before the Qu’ran, “I think I’ve seen the light.” Now, I’m not saying I won’t ever smack another skeeter. But I might also start a new amnesty “catch and release” program in my household because I now have five reasons to love mosquitoes.

Unless he or she is “just not that into you,” the mood has been set. Now it’s just all about where and when.

Your bed will make all the difference; a naked romp in a verdant meadow isn’t your only green option. Invest in an organic comforter set. Don’t worry—if you are living off a writer’s salary, you can get these luxurious items at an artist’s price at Target. Organic mattresses come at a slightly higher price, but are great long-term investments. An organic Natura Sunshine Mattress sells for $660.00 (Organicsleepproducts.com). Always make sure to wash your sheets with environmentally friendly soaps and softeners (like Sun and Earth Deep Cleaning Detergent) before the fun! You may even want to spritz your sheets with organic perfume, like Dream Tarts’ home fragrance in Midsummer’s Night.

Hopefully by now both (or more!) of you are ready for business. Never ever sacrifice a condom in the name of the environment; it’s just another excuse not to use one (listen ladies!). Given the right conditions, latex condoms should always decompose. However, if you are allergic to latex and use polyurethane condoms you have no choice but to throw them away (it’s the only situation where it’s not a good idea to recycle!). You cannot recycle the condom wrapper, but you should always recycle the box it came in. There are also many organic lubes to choose from. UK-based company Yes Pure Intimacy offers a great selection of water or oil based lubes (www.yesyesyes.org).

Finally, something both parties can agree on. We need to integrate green living into every aspect of our lives: a single stinky compost heap isn’t enough (it may also be a mood-killer). They may say that “politics makes for strange bedfellows,” but this three-part miniseries will teach you how to get over your differences and save the environment one orgasm at a time.

PART ONE: FOREPLAY

Set the mood right. Instead of going on a long drive down a backcountry road, opt for a walk on the beach or in a secluded garden. You will (hopefully) admit negligible amounts of carbon gas. Don’t live near a scenic getaway? Find interesting things to walk to in your neighborhood: your partner will get to know more about you when he or she see s how you interact with your environment. Although cliché, a tandem bike is also a good option because it’s environmentally safe and promotes close physical proximity.

We know that Mr. Smokey Bear has been the face of the U.S Forest Service since 1944, but we need a more modern representative.

Teenagers have been arrested in a state-wide methamphetamine bust in Denali National Park.