I'm taking green baby steps by trying to utilize our pool water. Last year I dumped Grace's used pool water into the grass without a second thought.  Now that I have a garden and some flowers it feels foolish to dump it out and not use it. After brainstorming here are 5 ways that I can use our old pool water this summer: 1) Water Garden & Flowers - This is the most obvious answer for me.  If I'm going to be watering these plants anyway, I might as well use this water. 2) Water House Plants - How hard is it to carry some water into the house instead of using it from the tap in the kitchen?  Apparently, it is pretty darn hard … [Read more...]

A lot has changed in my garden.  Last time I mentioned that I was uncovering a sidewalk.  I was not impressed. I complained about my poor soil quality to my neighbor, Ernie.  It didn't take long before he swooped in and saved the day. A couple of weeks ago Ernie told me that he had some extra plants that I could have and he would even plant them for me.  He planted 3 zucchini plants and 3 tomato plants in my small garden.  It wasn't what I was planning on planting, but I was still thrilled. I was hoping for 1-2 zucchini plants, some green beans and a couple of pepper plants. I hate tomatoes. However, when your semi-retired … [Read more...]

I love the idea of taking green baby steps because they can really make a big difference over time.  The family in the documentary No Impact Man did a lot more than take baby steps.  I would say they jumped off a cliff. Over the course of one year, this New York City family made it their goal to make zero impact on the environment.  Zero folks.  Eating local, no public transportation, no elevators, no electricity! Here is a blurb about the film from the No Impact Man documentary website: A guilty New York liberal decides to practice what he preaches for one year.  Turn off the electricity.  Stops making garbage.  Gives up TV, taxis … [Read more...]

Gardening feels like one of those things that I should do.  It feels like I should enjoy gardening and do it well.  Right now I hate it and I haven't even planted anything yet! One of my insane goals for this year was to start a small garden.  You could even call it my sample garden.  I just want to get a taste for gardening and see how it goes.  So far it is going horribly. First I started weeding my soon-to-be garden plot.  Not only do I have weeds in this area, but I have ground cover weeds.  That means I'm pulling out 1-2 foot long pieces of root.  These weeds spread like wild fire and my temper over them does too! After getting … [Read more...]