The 'No-Garbage' Garbage Day

Last Wednesday before heading over to exercise I did what I do every week: pull the garbage can to the curb (like above). When I lifted the can, I noticed that it was pretty light, so I looked inside. For the first time in, say, forever, it was empty. So I went back inside to gather up our garbage and discovered that there wasn't enough to even take out. Hmmmm....

We have been heading in this direction for a while. We have always recycled newspapers and things in the plastics/cans category, but in recent years we've stepped it up a bit. Now, every bit of unuseable paper (and believe me, we use it till it's unuseable) gets recycled. I even keep containers upstairs for paper and plastic recycling lest I'm tempted to take the easy route and throw them away rather than cart them downstairs. It also helps that our recycling center, SOCCRA, now allows all plastics, not just 1's and 2's.

Then we got better at keeping things that were not curb recyclable but could be taken to SOCCRA, such as batteries, paints, coated paper milk and juice cartons, plastic bags, etc. So about once a month we go to SOCCRA and get rid of what we've collected. And you'd be amazed at the number of people who are doing likewise -- it's always crowded when we're there.

The final nail in the garbage coffin was our most recent adaptation to composting. This is something that takes a while to get used to, but once you do, you simply cannot put food scraps into plastic bags any more, thinking of them fermenting in landfills when they could be useful in your garden. We have refined our composting methodology over the past year for maximum benefit (best idea: keep a nice composting bucket on your counter - you will use it).

So there you have one way of becoming a 'no-garbage' garbage day household. As you can see, it just kind of evolves. And just like me, you'll really enjoy not taking the garbage out.

Cold frame gardening

I wanted to share with you some of the cold frames we have come up this fall. The one above is a hoop frame that fits over a lasagna garden. It is made of a 2 x 4 wood frame base with heavy aluminum wire for the hoops, and a medium-weight plastic sheeting as the cover. Pockets were sewn into the plastic (using some fabric for stability) to lace the hoops through, but you can put the plastic over the hoops in many other ways.

The one below is a wood cold frame that is modeled on one the Brennans saw in Williamsburg, VA. It will be placed over a lasagna garden on a south wall. The windows were obtained from the Architectural Salvage Warehouse of Detroit and are hinged for opening.

We are going to experiment with them this winter and see if we can get anything to grow. We hope to see full benefit from them, however, early next spring.

Voting the green way

Yesterday, along with record numbers of others, we voted in the presidential election. It was a historic election for a variety of reasons - our first African-American president, our first post-boomer president, the first real grassroots election utilizing social computing technologies - and all of that was exciting. But for us it also represented a first: the first time we biked to the polls. Amazing! But the weather was unusually warm (70) so we said why not?

In the picture you see me in post-vote mode. Part of the fun of the day was the free stuff that was offered to voters, and I was determined to take advantage of it. After voting we biked a few more miles over to Olga's, who was offering triple coupons for voters. And right nearby was the Starbucks, who offered free coffee to voters. I passed on the free Krispy Kreme doughnuts and free Ben and Jerry's ice cream - after all, there's only so much biking I can do to work off all this free stuff.

Best voting experience ever. And biking in November - priceless.