No Impact Man, The Movie

Has anyone got a chance to watch this movie on the big screen, it looks awesome! It amazes me that someone who lives in the high consumption city of New York would be brave enough to take on such an earthy, natural living project - even if he might have just started it as hype. I would consider New York to be a hostile environment for sustainable living, the difficulty and temptation to slide would be tremendous. It made me compare my own sustainable environment to his- I am living in the opposite lifestyle, completely rural with every opportunity to be as "no impact" as he is (except with health challenges it makes it harder). He does have some advantages that rural living doesn't present, like easy to walk to farmers market & more money. But I have soil and land to grow and raise my own food.
Watch the trailer and tell me what ya'll think about it!?!!

XoXOooo

Freeplay Indigo Lantern (Hand Cranked)

It's like Christmas in the summer! My mom had given me some gift cards to Gaiam last holiday, and I had horded them like a secret treasure waiting to reveal itself, until this month. As much as I resist actually liking Gaiam at times (cause their organic panties smell like a chemical dump & alot of their stuff appears to be made in china), their products came in the most minimum and eco packaging I have ever seen- the packing peanuts were the kind made of corn starch and melt in water and nothing was wrapped in extra plastic!!! I wanted to review each of the items over time (except the snake bite kit, I don't really want to know if it works or not...) and I am going to start with my most favorite thing I got...

**The Freeplay Indigo Lantern.**

This lantern is the ultimate - it comes with a charger you can plug in, and once it's charged it goes for many hours with super bright light. So bright that I turn it on next to my bed and read a book till I go to sleep. The other way to charge it back up is there is a hand crank on the side. You spin it round and round and can get different amounts of light depending on how much you charge it. A little green light shows up on the side to let you know it is in fact actually getting a charge too, so you don't have to guess whether you are cranking enough or not.
Another amazing feature it has is a spotlight/flashlight on the front- which uses way less charge but puts off a powerful beam. The amount of light coming from the flashlight is not adjustable like the lantern light itself, but just as intense. IN fact... it's so intense it came out looking like Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon! (See below)! ;)

• 60 sec. of winding powers cluster up to 2 hrs. on nightlight and 2 min. at maximum brightness; powers directional light for 12 min.
• Rechargeable NiMH battery powers light cluster up to 70 hrs. in nightlight mode and 2.5 hrs. at maximum brightness.
• Compact lantern features a cluster of 7 LEDs; dimmer switch lets you adjust from area lighting to nightlight use.
• LEDs are nearly indestructible and provide as much as 100,000 hrs. use.

XoXo

Using The Wonder Wash

Ya'll, I love my Wonder Wash! It uses no electricity, you can take it anywhere you travel, it does up to a 5 lb load, it builds good arm muscle and really does get clothes just as clean as the modern energy sucking machines. I could go on and on about how great it is but instead I thought I'd just show you how it works... The design is quite simple and relies on pressure to clean the clothes. You just shove your dirty laundry into the hole at the top and fill it up with water. On the directions it says to fill it with water first but I never follow directions ;) BTW- if you use soap to clean your clothes now's the time to add it in.There is a pressure lid that is screwed on tightly - it keeps the water in and creates the air tight cleaning power. Once you have the lid on you spin the crank for the clean cycle - it is suggested to spin it between 1-2 minutes but I usually go for a little longer just to make sure (I am a dirty girl who is hard on my clothes!).The easiest way to dump the water is to then attach the tube that drains the dirty water directly out the bottom. You can also tip the washer over and pour it quicker out the top while holding onto the clothes by hand.Fill the Wonder Wash one more time with water for the final rinse which is suggested to be spun for 30 seconds, but I always work it for another 2-3 minutes. If you are lucky enough to own a hand wringer, then you don't have to do it by hand like I do (pictured below). The clothes will be very wet because there is no water wicking cycle like in an electric washing machine.
Hang dry out in the fresh air and have the earth friendliest, cleanest, best smelling clothes ever!

PS- If you have a big family and alot of dirty laundry and the size of the Wonder Wash makes you feel like there is no freaking way you are going to wash by hand, check out the 17 gallon capacity James Washer! It's the washer of a earthy girl's dreams!!!

Graph Jam: Saving Energy On Your Screen

This graph is from the super funny Graph Jam website, which has plenty giggly off the charts humor- especially recommended for those who spend alot of time in cubicles.

Non Stop Green Light

Now this is amazing good news on the lighting without electricity front - you remember glow sticks don't ya? Those wild green cylindrical orbs you carried around at Halloween, parties, raves, clubs, or maybe like me during Mardi Gras!?! Well, the glow stick company has come up with a lighting solution that has fabulous implications for the future : a light that glows for over 12 years after exposure, which needs no sun or electric till that time has run out- then recharge. Whoa. Yes, this is unreal super sci fi news... and although I agree with some that the odd creepy green light may not be what we want 24/7 there are many applications & implications for this invention.

"Litroenergy is a patent pending designed light source material that emits light for 12 plus years- without electricity or sun exposure!
Our development/design of long-life, self-luminous micro particles called Litrospheres (non-toxic) emit light continuously for 12 plus years (half-life point) without any exposure to a light or other energy (not effected by cold or heat). This extremely low cost material offers 24/7 light, which can be injection molded or added to paint. It is 5,000lb crush resistant, stable and constant light source (gives off no U.V. rays). It is designed to give off almost any color of light desired. Our goal is to mass produce this material and supply OEM’s.
Litroenergy has potential to save billions of dollars in energy costs world-wide. Litroenergy surpasses all known available lighting options for cost/durability/reliability (12+ years) and safety. The uses are unlimited as the imagination; however we predict the safety aspects to be the front runner in application (light safety tape, lighted life rafts/flotation equipment, light safety markings/equipment, etc.). Supplemental light source will be second as the material is bright and one can read by it, if you have some Litroenergy lighting you will not need to always turn on a light source that requires electricity. The use of Litroenergy in toys, sports/camping equipment, bikes and novelty uses will be close in applications.
The fill rate of Litroenergy micro particles in plastic injection molding material or paint is about 20%. The cost to light up 8 ½ x 11 piece of plastic 1/8” thick is about .35 cents.
We appreciate this opportunity to introduce our patent pending designed Litroenergy light source material to the world. "

How would you like to see this lighting solution used? Porch lights, flash lights.....?