July 6th, 2010
We knew that something was going on with the neighbors across the street.
One of those large storage cubes, which sat in their driveway one weekend, was filled and hauled away the following Monday. Then, an advertised three-day estate sale—though both owners were alive and well—seemed successful, as folks arrived from 10-5 each day, most leaving with all sorts of goodies…furniture, lamps, lawn mowers, ladders, tools, exercise equipment. Purchases that were too large to carry away on-the-spot were tucked into the far end of their driveway for pick-up at the buyer’s convenience. That same week, people came to look at one of their two cars, and within a couple of days, it, too, was gone. Then, this past Saturday, the forty-something couple hoisted bulging suitcases into their already full car and hit the proverbial road, and we haven’t seen them since.
Wow, we thought. Did they just do what we think they did? Did they execute a major downsizing, selling almost all to move on and forever escape the upkeep of a single family home…maintenance, cutting grass, raking leaves, cleaning gutters? Have they possibly moved out-of-state, to someplace bereft of humid summers and freezing winters? Someplace where they can ride their mountain bikes year round? Wherever they are, they definitely seemed to have had a plan, and we wish them well. And that plan is sounding awfully tempting…
And the household items that had no takers? They were left alongside a garbage can on the curb at the end of their driveway…an uninteresting chair, a broken umbrella, an overpriced walking stick, a laundry basket, a kitty’s scratching post and…a full size leather sofa. What? The leather sofa I’ve been pining for, but wouldn’t spend the money on even if I had it? The leather sofa that would replace our 15-year-old tuxedo style one with its shifting cushions, impractical fabric and ill-fitting slipcover? That leather sofa? I am a die-hard dumpster diver and love a good find, so, being about 99.9% certain that it was left for trash pickup, we took a chance and shamelessly shuffled it across the street to its new home. Despite some scratches and claw marks, mostly on one arm (from their kitty, I assume) and a broken brace that caused some sagging (which W has since fixed), it is perfectly fine and quite nice.
A new beginning, hopefully for the neighbors and most definitely for their sofa.
April 22nd, 2009
What better way to celebrate Earth Day 2009 than to involve a child?
The world’s children are going to be saddled with solving the environmental problems that we adults have racked up for decades. Teaching children early on about the benefits of recycling and its effects on the environment can lay the foundation for good green habits that they will carry with them throughout their lives.
Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug, released by Worthwhile Books, is the latest children’s book featuring the publisher’s green-caped crusader, Michael Recycle, who debuted in 2008. Written by Ellie Bethel and colorfully illustrated by Alexandra Colombo, Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug is a big, entertaining picture book that will capture your child’s imagination, as well as teach him/her the importance of recycling and a green lifestyle. Follow lazy and wasteful Litterbug Doug’s trash-strewn trail throughout his clean, green town as planet Earth’s green-caped crusader attempts to show him the error of his ways. Will Michael Recycle succeed in reforming Litterbug Doug? Find out!
Michael Recycle Meets Litterbug Doug, 32 pages, 10 3/4 x 11 3/4, is available through Worthwhile Books and Barnes & Noble.
Happy Earth Day!
January 7th, 2009
It’s just like me to come out with a holiday post, post-holiday. Flawed by procrastination (and a few other things, I’m sure), I put off tasks, often to the point of losing the moment altogether. But I digress.
I have one more week to put the Christmas tree out on the curb for Fairfax County’s pickup and recycling. Yes, as much as I care about Earth and all her creatures I still buy a fresh tree for the holidays. I know, shameful. A few weeks before Christmas I was faced with the dilemma of whether to 1. go with the usual 6-7 footer, 2. reluctantly downsize to a tabletop, 3. hold my nose and go “fake,” or 4. chuck the idea altogether. W and I needed to leave town for the holidays earlier than expected and that would leave little time to enjoy it anyway, so I was leaning heavily toward door #4. What nagged me, though, was all of those vintage ornaments and lights living in their own little Christmas village in the basement waiting for their once-a-year debut. Could I really move through the holiday season without seeing them? Uhhh, no. That said, I decided on the tabletop—it would be easier to trim and the price was right—and I wasn’t ready for an impostor. (For a fleeting moment I actually considered that killing a small tree might be less non-eco-friendly than killing a big tree—how is that for a lame rationalization? I sometimes baffle myself.) The poor 4-foot victim took only one string of lights and was trimmed with just a fraction of all our ornaments. I wondered if I had possibly offset the despicable act of choosing a live tree with the energy savings from using four less light strings. Probably not. As far as eco no-nos go, I’m pretty sure that killing a tree trumps using minimally more energy.
So, for Christmases 2009 and beyond, the vintage ornaments will stay and so will the tree—in the ground that is. I resolve to not only spare the trees, but to replace them with something cool enough to showcase the 40-year-old ornaments in a way they deserve.
Now, I have one more week to enjoy the twinklies before I put off taking the tree to the curb.
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