Eco-Chick · The modern girl's guide to living green & fabulous.

Ode to Autumn

This is my favorite season, a time of apple-picking, knit scarves and hats, pumpkin carving, colorful leaves and cool, sunny days. It’s my favorite shopping season, the best time to climb a mountain, and if you’re a little tough, you can still swim too (the water stays warmer longer than you’d think!) I feel transformed and reborn every fall, because it’s when I feel fresh again, renewed, and ready to face the ice and snow to come, the holidays, and in the darkest days, the passing of another year.

It’s autumn’s allure that means I will probably never live anywhere without defined seasons; it would break my heart to only have two when I could have four, especially one that rains leaves the color of a bonfire.

I am so happy that I live in New England where I can enjoy the beauty of watching the Earth prepare for her winter slumber.

The Complete Organic Pregnancy

I just finished reading newly released The Complete Organic Pregnancy (Harper Collins) by Deirdre Dolan and Alexander Zissu and loved it. Since I am currently nineteen weeks pregnant, I have been soaking up a lot of information lately on all things revolving around pregnancy, babies, and organics. There are plenty of baby and pregnancy books that give laundry lists of what could go wrong, what could be wrong, what to do when it goes wrong, etc. It is great to find something straight forward that avoids being alarmist. Also, there are not a lot of books out there that cater to the individual who is looking to live as holistically as possible without getting mired down by doom and gloom or stymied by Western medicine. It’s funny to me that sometimes when we talk about being proactive when it comes to eating whole foods, avoiding toxins, and living mindfully, others claim this approach “negative.” I guess it’s that classic body snatcher thing, wherein the heathen or she who goes against ‘the norm’ must be chastised.

This book does a fantastic job of being informative, well researched, and fun. Sometimes the pregnant, nesting mama can get a bit overwhelmed with the plethora of information out there and these authors do a fantastic job of creating a concise, convenient tome that is easy to read and peruse anytime. It covers everything from those ubiquitous, often toxic beauty products to how to reduce back pain in the third trimester. I highly recommend it to anyone thinking about conceiving, already pregnant, or who has kids. Thanks to Alexandra and Deirdre for taking the time to compile this caring and thoughtful work.

five and a half. handmade, recollected

five and half‘s recycled handmade journals are by far my favorite journals. Made of interesting, recollected papers, the journals are a really great and inspiring twist on the traditional journal/sketchbook while also being environmentally friendly. five and a half was started by eco-chick, Judy in Brooklyn and has since taken off, with her journals selling online at her store and at various stores in New York City, Chicago and Berkeley. The journals come in 2 sizes— “pocket” and “large” (I personally love the large) and the prices are really reasonable ($16 and $22) for a handmade journal. Although the store will be closed until November 15th, they reopen just in time for the Holidays to buy journals/sketchbooks for your favorite eco-chick!

Dumping once again

 

 

This morning I read this article about toxic sludge being dumped by a tanker in the ocean and washing up on the shores of the Ivory Coast. The kid in the picture above has sores on his body from exposure to this stuff. People have gotten ill from exposure and inhalation of the pollutant and some have even died. Efforts are underway to clean-up and dispose of the waste. But, once a dumping action happens, it is so hard to contain and clean it up. Heinous events like this are inexcusable and I cannot believe more cannot be done to prevent them.

Companies and corporations have a great ability to damage our planet and need incentive to act responsibly. There is a serious need for a global environmental body of law and team of enforcers to make sure that the law is enforced. Where are the regulations we really need to make sure that things of this nature cease? We cannot keep dumping in our oceans and think that the waste will just disappear.

Whatever someone does in one place, in one country, in one moment, will impact the world.

I am reminded of a research trip I took to the island of San Salvador, located far east in the Bahamian Islands. While I was there, I took a trip out to the almost completely uninhabited eastern shore and hiked down to the beach from the road. I came around a bend in the path and was shocked at the site of garbage; garbage as far as the eye could see in all colors of the rainbow. Anything that floats and large pads of petroleum waste were polluting an otherwise pristine tropical beach. I was told that this garbage washed in from cruise ships and whoever else happened by and decided to dump their waste in the water. In investigating the waste, I found languages from around the globe including Japanese, Russian, and English. There are laws against this. 

I remember when I was a kid in Connecticut, they shut down the beaches because medical waste was washing up on the shore. 

There is not one place on the planet that has not felt human presence in the form of pollutants. Even in Antartica, coke cans sometimes wash up next to the penguins…

I am also reminded of images of sea birds covered in oil from the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska, back in the 1980s. This tragedy prompted Congress to pass the Oil Pollution Act in 1990, tightening regulations on oil tankers.

I hope that the same will come out of this recent careless act in Africa.

 

Chicks with Picks

Photo Chris Gills

Chicks with Picks, which offers ice climbing clinics for women (led by women) just announced a scholarship fund in memory of Karen McNeill, a guide who disappeared near the south summit of Alaska’s Mount Foraker last May. According to Chicks, “Of special significance are [Karen's] myriad of all-female first ascents, including the Cassin Ridge on Denali. To us at Chicks with Picks, “Curly” McNeill will always be remembered for her sparkles, her flair for fashion, a love of fine chocolate, sense of humor, and her gentle spirit.” The scholarship covers full tuition for one woman to attend either “The Sampler” in Ouray, Colorado or “The Teaser” in North Conway, New Hampsire. Both clinics are in February and the application deadline is November 15.

In addition to getting women out of the kitchen and onto the ice, Chicks with Picks has a strong record of giving back to the communities in which the clinics are held. To date, the group has donated $93,800 to local women’s shelters and is looking to break the $100,000 mark in 2007.