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

Funnytime: Portlandia’s “How to Recycle Everything”

I was raised in the great state of New York, but as a teenager in the 90′s, I totally idolized the Pacific Northwest – everything from the music (Temple of the Mother Love Bone JamGarden!) to the clothes (plaidplaidplaid) to the beer. I even thought the guys from there were cuter. (The fact that my boyfriend today is from Oregon is no random thing – when I first heard about him via our mutual friend I remember being really excited about the detail that he was from the Northwest).

In the last year or so, I’ve gotten to travel to Portland and Seattle, and it’s pretty much as awesome as I was expecting. (I even had a ‘dream achieved’ joy-meltdown in a bar in Eugene, OR). So I was really worried when I first heard about the IFC show, Portlandia. I knew and liked Fred Armisen, and I thought I recognized co-creator Carrie Brownstein from somewhere….. but I was concerned the show would be stupid and everyone would laugh (or, not laugh, I guess) at it.

How wrong I was! While not every sketch is full of unicorn-popsicle-awesomepower, many of them are fall-off-the-couch hilarious. Both my grew-up-near-Portland boyfriend and I enjoy it muchly. Watch it!

A fun Eco Chickie-ish sketch below about recycling will whet your palate. (Oh, and Carrie Brownstein? She was the lead singer for Sleater-Kinney, a band I have been listening to, on and off, since I was 17. She must be the coolest girl in the world, sigh.)

Barefoot Walking and Running: Best of Both Worlds with Vivo Barefoot Sneakers

My Viva Terras. Cute on the trail or off.

Last summer, I was walking up from the beach at Gay’s Head on Martha’s Vineyard. (They’ve renamed the place Aquinnah, but I’m sticking with the original name, thank you very much) and then headed up the steep dunes, and over the top. When I got to where the sand meets the more rocky soil, I stopped to put my Chakos back on, but then decided to go barefoot instead.

As I walked up the path, seagrasses waving in the setting sun all around me, I could feel what was beneath my feet change. It started more sandy, and warmed from the sun, then small pebbles cropped up, and as I went around a bend, I felt the ground cool and dampen and the pebbles recede into the soft, more claylike walkway. As I headed up another rise, warmth again seeped between my toes, and as I reached the road to wait for the bus, the concrete burned my feet and I put my shoes on.

On that ten minute walk, I remembered something I knew as a child, which is that you miss tons of information from the earth when constantly wear shoes. I used to spend entire summers essentially barefoot (I grew up at the end of a dirt road in the Hudson Valley) and when I was 8 I could have told you how long it had been since rain from the viscosity of the mud that pushed between my toes since I spent hours I playing in the wetland next to my house. I don’t know if I could tell you that now, though I’m certain I could learn again.

Men’s Vivo Barefoots at the Terra Plana store.

So when a couple months ago I heard about the barefoot running movement, and the new book, Born to Run, I was intrigued. The premise is that our fancy $200 uberpadded sneakers are actually BAD for our bodies when running, and can actually cause or exacerbate injury. Which makes sense if you think about the fact that we have only been wearing such contraptions for about 20 years (flat, unpadded Converse All Stars were the sneaker of choice for basketball players for years). So I went hiking with a friend in Connecticut and took off my sandals and did a bit of trailrunning with naked feet, which was fun as long as I was careful (and this forces one to focus on each step, which is interesting). And then…

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Humor in Global Warming? Yes.

From the August 24, 2009 issue of The New Yorker

Starre Vartan to Speak at "Plugging Into Green" Panel in Brooklyn

P.S. 107 Kicks off its 5th Annual “Readings on the 4th Floor” Series by Plugging into the Green Movement Leading writers from the frontlines of “green” discuss life and community-changing strategies.

Why in a city with the cleanest water in the country do the mass of New Yorkers cling to their chemical-infused bottled water? Is “reduce, reuse, recycle” a livable reality for most families?

Leading writers on all issues green will gather to sort through the facts from the garbage at the 5th Annual “Readings on the 4th Floor” series which kicks off Wednesday, January 21st in Park Slope, Brooklyn at 7:30 PM.

The theme of the first reading is “Plug Into Green.” The reading and discussion will feature:

Elizabeth Royte, author of Garbage Land & most recently Bottlemania
Helen Coronato, author of Eco-Friendly Families
Starre Vartan, author of The Eco-Chick Guide to Life

The discussion will be moderated by Graham Hill, founder of Treehugger, the internet’s leading green news portal.

Each of the authors approaches different aspects of green. Coronato has produced a hands-on guide for families that want to adopt eco lifestyles.

Royte is an investigative reporter devoted to uncovering the truth behind topics like the marketing of bottled water and the disposal of trash in America.

Starre Vartan is determined to prove that green can be fabulous, fashionable and not too expensive.

The unifying tone of the panelists is one of levity and humor toward a crucially-important topic: Green doesn’t have to be dull or scolding.

Plug into Green will be held on the 4th Floor of PS 107, which is located at 13th Street and 8th Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

Tickets are $15 online at www.ps107.org or $20 at the door.

All books will be available for sale.

This esteemed topical literary series continues to raise funds for the newly renovated fourth floor library/art/performance space of P.S. 107 and has featured everyone from Pulitzer prize winning authors such as Jumpha Lahiri, Interpreter of Maladies, to leading journalists including George Packer of The New Yorker.

The series this year will continue through the spring with evenings devoted to making theater happen in New York and Brooklyn nov

Green Gifts: The Top 5 Regifting Don'ts

It’s the day after Christmas. Aside from feeling fat and hungover, you’re probably wondering how you’ll get rid of all the terrible gifts you’ve collected–the gizmo you’ll never use, the book you’ll never read, the sweater you wouldn’t be caught dead wearing. Rather than toss that hideous scarf or Ricky Martin album in the trash, take a moment to think . . .there’s got to be someone with an upcoming birthday and terrible taste.

Yes, I’m talking about regifting, the act of taking a gift you received, but don’t want and giving it to someone else. Although the practice pre-dates the green trend, regifting is one of the most environmentally responsible things you can do over the holidays.

By regifting you’ll eliminate the need for new gifts, whose production requires the unnecessary dissipation of energy and extraction of natural resources. Regifting will also prevent items from ending up in the landfill or incinerator. According to the EPA, each American throws away an average of four pounds a day. That’s a total of 210 million tons a year. Garbage cans everywhere should now read, “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle . . . Regift!”

Even Emily Post–Madame Manners herself–was a regifter. According to Post, good etiquette doesn’t require you to keep anything. Good etiquette simply requires you pretend you like the gift upon reception.

So there you have it! Regifting is neither tacky, nor cheap. Best of all, it’s good for the environment. But first, a few cardinal rules to keep in mind. Follow these tips and you’ll be sure to regift with finesse and tact.

1. Avoid Perishables.
Next Christmas, that food basket will be a collection of moldy crackers, rancid cheese, and outdated muffin-mix. Unless you’re going to claim it’s vinegar, best to avoid beverages with a funny smell and inch of sediment on their bottle’s bottom.

2. Avoid Out-of-Date/Extinct Products.
Unless your giftee is an avid collector, avoid articles of clothing, music and electronic gear of decades past. Chances are your recipient will know you originally received that home BETA video recorder in 1988.

3. Avoid Dead Giveaways.
Certain regifts are a plain and clear message that a) you’re regifting and b) you’re an idiot. For example, never regift monogrammed items . . . unless you have a plan to explain why your initials should be emblazoned on their bathrobe. Promotional items from your company’s “fun day” are also poor choices.

4. When in Doubt, ReWrap (with recycled or “green” wrapping paper, of course).
Gifts should always be in their original condition (i.e. unused and in box). If you’re not fortunate enough to have “an original-condition situation,” then make sure your gift is covered in non-tattered or faded paper. Nothing says this has been sitting in the bottom of my closet like disheveled wrapping paper.

5. Take Notes.
If you are going to regift, be sure you know who gave you what. Keep track in a notebook or computer file. Yes, it’s nerdy, but you’ll be happy you did. Nothing is quite as awkward as regifting to the person who gave you the gift in the first place, especially if that original giver is a grim-faced and resentful relative. You know, the one with a sense of humor akin to a dead fish?

Check back for more tips on living the green life from Olivia Zaleski every Wednesday on the Huffington Post’s Living Now Page.