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I know I’ve said this before – and it’s the whole message of my book and many of my talks – but it bears repeating:

Consumer spending is the backbone of the economy. In the USA it’s something like 70%.

We the everyday people can either choose to exercise the power of our wallets, or we can continue to be dependent on mountains of “stuff” from large distant corporations that don’t care about us or the planet.

It’s a lot of fun to get creative about reuse and upcycling. It’s also really fun to support our neighbors and local businesses.

Non-consumerism also helps undermine the war machine.

Photos of our little porch, and part of our rainwater harvesting setup, for the i’ll geaux rhythm!!

Our rainwater collection system just got augmented with the addition of a barrel. Perfect since we have been having such extra juicy weather lately! (A couple days in a row I woke up to find 3 inches of rain in the rain gauge. One or 2 inches on multiple other days recently.)

I also moved a couple of the mini tubs from up front to stack them here in back as supplemental catchment. The front side of the house, water runs downhill (away from the house, and into the poofy voluminous sponge of native plants & trees), whereas the backside is the place where water needs to be caught and managed. Mini tubs in front are not strictly needed.

This is the first year I had thought of doing this. Noticing that the rainfall oscillations seem to be getting more extreme, and that therefore additional capacity is needed in the rainy season on the “rain side” of the house.

When dry season comes, I’ll put those couple of mini tubs back in the front where they come in handy for collecting water in case it gets super dry and even the native plants could use a refresher.

#Rainwater #heatmitigation #floodcontrol #Skyjuice — And our skin loves rainwater!

See pix here. BTW I will be covering the barrel with the same black mesh that covers the others that aren’t already black. For both aesthetic reasons and also to cut down on algae.

It may seem small, but every product we can make out of used stuff instead of buying new, helps the planet & our wallets.

Some of the best dish scrubby’s have been ones that I made from cloth, or from these plastic mesh vegetable bags. I can’t remember if I found this red mesh bag on the beach or if one of my housemates brought it home from the grocery store. But I espied it in my “upcycle department” of my garage this morning, right when I was wanting a new dish scrubby.

The kite string I found discarded on the beach.

In addition to helping the planet and our wallets, finding ways to create everyday household items by DIY upcycle also helps us feel less vulnerable, less dependent on distant corporations.

And also can become the basis of a small local cottage industry. I knew a lady who sold scrubby’s that she had crocheted out of materials that were otherwise destined for landfill.

Description: Red mesh produce bag, which probably contained something small like garlic or new potatoes. Bag is folded over multiple times, and then the layers are bound together by crocheting with kite string. The ends of the kite string are extremely prone to fraying so they are sealed with flame from a lighter.

#HomeEc #upcycle #BeachTrash

Pix here on my DEEP GREEN Facebook page.

This post on the Facebook page prompted the question: “What’s your stance on microplastics?” I responded:

My stance? They are damaging to the environment and to people and ecosystems. (It’s especially disgusting to me that the self-indulgent trash of a tiny, spoiled rich minority of the world population ends up washing up on faraway shores, afflicting poor communities all over the planet.)

However, I feel like we in the rich industrialized world can help offset the damage by at least upcycling plastics to the extent possible. And to the extent that we are willing. Not everyone is willing. But many many of us are very very much into it. And from what I can tell, the number is growing.

And for those who are not willing to tangle hands-on with upcycling as a way to deal with the devastating impact of single-use plastic, you might look into purchasing a Terracycle box with your school, church, neighborhood, or other community. Supposedly just about anything can be recycled.

Sure I would love it if companies would stop producing this stuff. And if the manufacturers and retailers would stop shoving it down our throats.

And I have been pushing for that for many decades now.

However, the stuff still exists.

Despite the fact that I will not drink bottled water ever (well one time in 2020 volunteering at an event I got dehydrated and could not find a faucet so I accepted a bottle of bottled water even though I felt terrible about it), despite the fact that I never accept plastic bags at the store etc. (and never accept paper bags for that matter). A person can only do what a person can do.

That said, We make a mistake if we limit our efforts to the individual and personal. All of us can make a difference even if it’s just by sharing a social media post or a comment in the neighborhood group. Myself, as a career eco activist I have been engaged in extensive education and outreach efforts through my book, blog, public talks, classes, and more.

BTW I recommend Annie Leonard’s series “the story of stuff” if you haven’t checked it out already. She has a book now too apparently.

Back to the sponge – I probably would not have thought to make this if I had not come across a discarded mesh bag, and discarded kite string. I tend to use cloths, or my bare hand and baking soda etc.

But some of the people who share my home with me like a dish-scrubbie, and this actually at least helps them not have to buy a new one. Which helps the planet also.

PS. If you know of any movements or initiatives that seem to be making progress eliminating the production of plastics and micro plastics, please feel free to share them here.

A question that popped up on my social media. Some people answered that they can’t even afford to move across town, let alone move countries.

Some people said they have a sense of caring and responsibility and not wanting to abandon their communities.

I said:

1) Plus, I’m sorry, if too many of us (esp us Boomers) move to any other country, we’re going to wreck that country’s culture and ecosystems in short order. We actually already have, a bunch of countries.

2) And yeah, how about that sense of caring and responsibility and not wanting to abandon! Let’s have some more of that. Especially us boomers and older.

3) And, if anyone moving overseas is just thinking they’re going to casually jetset back-and-forth (as opposed to probably never seeing your family again, like so many refugees), then hey, guess what, you’re obviously not actually in danger! Plus you’re obviously wealthy. So stay put and help the people who need help.

At this house, we have a top-priority mission of supporting people to achieve their dreams and goals. Be it freeing themself from a “job” and making a deeper livelihood, working on a health goal, doing some inner work, using the quiet pared-down atmosphere to recharge, or whatever.

There is no work requirement here; a person’s “job” is to move forward with their own stated goals and dreams, intentions, plans. That is what we are here to support.

That said, oftentimes people do want to help with daily chores or special projects, and it can be beneficial to the person as well as to the house. In my previous post I made a list of the most repetitive tasks around our house that anyone can do.

Here, I’m starting a list of our household tasks that require a little bit more knowledge and practice.

• The main extremely repetitive task is managing the rainbarrels and tubs. The rainwater is used in various ways around the yard, including watering plants and also putting water on concrete for evaporative cooling. In the wet season, water needs to be used steadily and deliberately in order to make room in the barrels and tubs for more rainfall. In the dry season, water needs to be stewarded carefully in order to tide us over til the rains come. In general, I like taking care of this. It’s good exercise and allows me to keep a handle on the quality and quantity of our water supplies. But there are times when help would be great.

• Another repetitive task is trimming vines and other vegetation around the perimeter of the property so as to avoid encroaching on the sidewalk.

• Setting out the solar oven, turning it to noontime sun position.

• Melting down old candle pieces and making into new candles w fresh wick.

• Repairing/replacing bamboo lattice, outdoor shower walls, and other outdoor privacy structures.

• Refilling outdoor hand-wash / foot-wash stations with fresh rainwater.

• Sweeping and mopping the house’s beautiful, easy-care white tile floors is a steady daily thing (and in winter, shaking out and airing the scatter-rugs we put down for warmth), but (other than appreciating help with keeping the entryway halls swept and entryway rugs shaken out), I like taking care of that myself because it’s good exercise and allows me to check on things in each room that might need attention.

• Keeping the books arranged neatly on the Little Free Library shelves. And helping to stock new books (books are available for free or cheap at the public library, some local bookstores, and some thrift stores).

I’ll add others as I think of them.

It can be useful, if you are in a communal living situation, to create a list of really basic simple repetitive house tasks. Not only to reduce the workload of the person “in charge,” but also because people genuinely want to help and contribute.

Now, first and foremost: At this house, we have a top-priority mission of supporting people to achieve their dreams and goals. Be it starting a business, working on a health goal, doing some inner work, or whatever. There is no work requirement here; a person’s “job” is to move forward with their own stated goals and dreams, intentions, plans. That is what we are here to support.

That said, sometimes people genuinely want to help, and it is genuinely beneficial not only to the house but also to the person. Accordingly, here’s a list of some of the most frequent repetitive tasks around our house. Most are very simple and can be done by anyone. In a later post, I’ll also be sharing a list of a more difficult tier of tasks that some residents might be willing to — or even actually want to — get involved in.

BASIC DAILY REPETITIVE TASKS at Starshine House / Trailhead 501

• Rinse out bottles for recycling bin. It should only take a couple ounces of water. Could be rainwater or well water if available. Put it in and swish it around and then turn the container upside down and let it dry in the recycling bin. Put the lid, if there is one, on top of the upside-down container. It’s particularly important to rinse out milk bottles, as they get smelly and the presence of solid matter reduces the likelihood that the container will get recycled. In the case of juice bottles and soda cans, turning them upside down in the bin is usually enough; the ants will find them and clean them out.

• For cans and jars that have sticky matter such as peanut butter residue, beans, etc., turn them upside down in the designated organic cleaning area and let the ants and other friends clean them out. This happens surprisingly quickly, like within 24 hours a lot of the time. Once they are clean, stick them in the recycling bin. I also remove the paper labels and put those in the area of the garden where we put paper trash.

• Keep the well-pump primed. Usually this happens naturally if somebody uses well water at least once every 24 hours, but that doesn’t always happen so we need to check it. If you test the pump and it’s not pumping, pour some water into the pump – it should only take a few ounces – and then try again. It should suction properly and dispense water without much difficulty.

• Paper and cardboard trash (pizza boxes etc.): Tear into smaller pieces and put it into the designated area of the garden where we put paper trash. Usually this is a large planter container.

• On extra hot sunny days in summer, draw the shades on the patio to avoid allowing sun into the house. Usually around eight or 830 is a good time. Once the sun has passed, usually around 10:30 or 10:45, open the shades again.

• Toilet: minimal maintenance is required, as we do not put toilet paper into the toilet unless we are immediately flushing it down.

• Bathroom sink: If people are using it for shaving, periodic maintenance may be necessary. (Pouring hot water down the drain every few weeks; cleaning the gunk out of the drain trap with a square of TP and putting it in the trash, etc.) Otherwise not much water is going down that drain other than when we wash our hands.

• Kitchen sink: This is used only for refilling water bottles and kettles, adding water to a cookpot, etc. And sometimes a quick wash of the hands. Since we don’t do dishes indoors, minimal water goes down the drain. Very occasional maintenance may be required. The sponge in the sink is there for scrubbing the sink and keeping it clean, dry, and not attractive to bugs. For doing dishes, there is a dishpan and water sources outdoors. Use your sponge, brush, or other cleaning implement of choice. Dishwater is dumped in designated areas of the garden.

• Mail: Check mail — It usually comes in the afternoon.

• Refrigerator: When the cloth used to absorb water drips gets saturated, swap it out for a dry one. You’ll find the dry cloth either on the line, or already dried and folded up on top of the fridge. Hang the wet cloth outside on the line. Sometimes water pools below the vegetable crisping area. Use rags to soak it up, then dry them on the line.

• Keeping entryways clean: Take entryway mats outside and shake them out. Sweep up any sand, leaves, or other debris from the entry area, and empty the dustpan outside or into one of the little indoor trash cans.

As you can tell, none of these tasks are urgent (except maybe rinsing out the milk bottles, because of the smell and spoilage); they are simply constant and repetitive. However, they are a great contribution to reducing the workload, and any willingness to help is much appreciated. Performing these routine tasks on a daily basis reduces the likelihood that urgent situations will occur.

Construction noise yay!!
No actually I really mean that! Not being sarcastic! This is good construction. It’s a house being built on the lot next to me — A lot that has been vacant for a long time.

I live in a dense historic neighborhood of a city. 1/10-acre lots. Every time I see a vacant lot, my thought is the same: This vacant lot needs to be a house, an apartment building, a public fruit forest, or a stormwater sponge / wildflower meadow.

For some years now, I have been hating the noise of loud lawn appliances of city contractors hired to keep the grass buzzcut on that empty lot. What a waste of resources. Plus compromising heat mitigation and stormwater sponge capacity.

By the way, the construction noise is loud, as one expects construction noise to be. They’re cutting into concrete for utilities and such. Interestingly enough, it’s NOT louder than those industrial edgers and ride-on mowers and leaf-blowers. That should really give us pause, when our landscaping is that noisy (and fume-producing).

It’s really ironic that respectability politics nudged cottage businesses out of neighborhoods because they were “too noisy” or whatever. (Or maybe not so ironic.) And meanwhile we have these giant tanklike machines rolling around the neighborhood like a grascist brigade, conscripted to stamp out nature’s life and color. Together with their equally noisy (or more noisy) little helpers the edgers and blowers. It’s actually painful to the central nervous system. And the fumes!

And meanwhile we need another flood study … NOT!!

So anyway — YAY construction noise! Actually doing something, pun intended, constructive!

Every empty lot that gets filled in an old dense urban area makes it more likely that we will see growth of a healthy shopping street nearby. Our Main Street is showing signs of trying to revitalize, with year-round businesses as opposed to just itinerant festival vendors, and I am all about it!

(And yeah, I am not a fan of construction when it involves flattening forests and leveling wetlands for suburban sprawl.)

On a related note, several families with children have bought houses in the neighborhood in the past couple of years. That’s always a healthy sign. I was able to introduce some of the families to each other earlier this summer. It was totally the highlight of my week.