Give God’s earth a break, give up something for 40 days

By Naomi Yaeger

Commissioned Earthkeeper
(United Methodist Church)

Ash Wednesday is March 6. Traditionally some people give up something for Lent.

When I became a commissioned Earthkeeper in 2016, each of those in the class picked a theme. My is “Duluth

Doesn’t do it Dirty.” My goal is to educate others, to meet you where are, and see how you might increase your ways to keep God’s earth beautiful. Hope UMC’s pastor, Rev. Lawton is also an Earthkeeper   FUMC also has Earthkeepers Chuck Campbell and Carol Donahue – they have chosen a different missions.

Lent is a good time to see what you might give up or do for 40 days.

Could you give up plastic cutlery for 40 days? It takes some planning ahead if you eat lunch at facilities that use plastic cutlery.

Plastic cutlery is used because it is cheap and doesn’t need to be washed. Unfortunately, it wastes a lot of resources and is rarely recycled. Most plastic cutlery is made from a type of plastic known as polystyrene. Polystyrene or expanded polystyrene is more commonly referred to as Styrofoam. Styrene is currently classified by the National Toxicological Program’s 12th Report on Carcinogens as reasonably anticipated to be a carcinogen, workers involved in the manufacture of polystyrene foams are at the most risk of styrene exposure.

It is estimated that serval million tons of Polystyrene is produced each year.

My bamboo spork

Most cities cannot recycle styrene. Keep metal cutlery at your office or in your purse. I have a bamboo spork that comes in handy. As soon as I use it I wash it and place it in a waxed paper porch in my purse. Or if you are going for fast food to bring it back to your home or office, ask them to skip the plastic cutlery. Maybe you have another way you’d like to be more friendly to God’s Earth. Try choosing something you can do from Ash Wednesday until Easter. Anything you can do for 40 days is a start.

According to the United Methodist Church Statement on the Environment:

God is the owner of the land (Lev. 25); thus it is a gift in covenant which involves the stewardship of keeping and tending the land for present and future generations; as God's creation, land has the need to be regenerated that it may sustain life and be a place of joy. It is a common gift to all of life requiring just patterns of land use.

(Originally published in Duluth First United Methodist Church's newsletter and Duluth's Hope UMC Church newsletter)

United Methodist Women
UTENSILS M3534
$9.95



Carry your own utensils with you, at a church event or a take-away meal without adding plastic-ware waste to the environment. A fork, spoon, knife and a pair of chopsticks are held in a zipper pouch with the United Methodist Women logo and a reminder to Be Just. Be Green. Excellent gifts for family and friends and a great conversation starter.

Don’t Throw It Away—Take It to the Repair Cafe*

* I'm inserting other blogs in to keep it interesting this is from the citylab.com blog The Eco-cowpokes continue to travel. I hope to have their interesting environmental photos up soon.

Linda Poon

Jul 17, 2018

Charlie Goedeke demonstrates how the

 motor of the fabric shaver works. Linda Poon/CityLab

This series of workshops aims to keep broken items out of the landfill, and it might help you save a few bucks, too Read more here:

Enjoying camping at an awarding winning KOA

This is the Arco, Idaho KAO that the cowpokes stayed at while on their way 

to Craters of the Moon. Look at the Mountains in the background. 

From the KOA's own website: This award-winning campground sits at the edge of the Lost River Range and Mount Borah (Idaho's tallest mountain). The campground is only 19 miles from Craters of the Moon National Monument & Preserve, where you can explore vast lava flows, cinder cones and lava tube caves created by ancient volcanoes. Discover mountain lakes and hot springs or watch for deer, antelope, elk and moose. Ride your ATV up a volcanic dome or on the many trails in the valley - some city roads even allow you to ride to the trails. Then quietly relax at your spacious site shaded by mature trees, enjoy the heated pool or frolic with your dog in the pet playground

Eco-cowpokes explore the heart of North Dakota:McClusky - the city with a heart

McClusky is the geographic center of North Dakota, or the Heart of North Dakota.
Here Matt has cleverly framed Rebecca between the sign and the large heart.

The Eco-cowpokes checked out the heart of North Dakota on their way to Utah. This photo was taken over a week ago.
According to the City's website the population of McClusky in 2010 was 380. In 1940 the population was 924. The town, as any Dakota town, boast beautiful sunsets. And if fishing and hunting are your thing visit this N.D. Fish and Game website. For those of you who love outdoor adventure without hunting or fishing, the town has a swimming pool and is close to the North Country Trail.

Learn more from the town's website: 

 "McClusky is the Sheridan County seat in North Dakota, United States of America.

McClusky is the closest town to the geographical center of North Dakota, which lies about five miles to the southwest, thus its nickname "Heart of North Dakota."

Located on Highway 200, McClusky is approximately 70 miles NE of Bismarck, and 90 miles SE of Minot.

Sunrise by Steve Haux

We invite you to visit us, to enjoy our parks, swimming pool, Hoffer Lake and local events. The town has a friendly, welcoming atmosphere, plenty of clean air. quality schools, healthcare, business opportunities, and a variety of recreational activities.

Sunrise at Hoffer Lake by Jessie Meckle

Eco-cowpokes visit a violent past ...erupted lava

The Eco-cowpokes had a great time at Craters of the Moon.
It is a national monument and preserve in Idaho.

From the website 

Craters of the Moon formed during eight major eruptive periods between 15,000 and 2000 years ago. Lava erupted from the Great Rift, a series of deep cracks that start near the visitor center and stretch 52 miles (84 km.) to the southeast. During this time the Craters of the Moon lava field grew to cover 618 square miles (1600 square km.).The smaller Wapi and Kings Bowl lava fields also formed along the Great Rift during the most recent eruptive period (approximately 2000 years ago).

A Violent Past, Calm Present, and Uncertain Future...

Craters of the Moon is a vast ocean of lava flows with scattered islands of cinder cones and sagebrush. We invite you to explore this "weird and scenic landscape" where yesterday's volcanic events are likely to continue tomorrow. 

Every poo counts

This post is a one minute read

By Naomi Yaeger-Bischoff

with comment from the Eco-Cowgirl, Rebecca Yaeger-Bischoff*

Eco-cowboy, Matt, grins while standing beside this sign along a trail in Bozeman, Mont. 

Those Eco-cowpokes were in Bozeman, Mont. a few days ago. In this photo is a nature trail actually in the city that connects up to the hospital. 

The sign says, How far do you go to scoop? Off trail, in the bushes, light years from the waste station. Every poop counts.
Did you know that picking up your pet's poop is not just a matter of courtesy, but a matter of public health. Lots of people think, Well, animals poop in the wild so why can't my dog or cat? 
The reason is because we humans own so many more pets in cities that per capita it's more than there are wild animals in nature. If their poo is NOT properly disposed of it runs downstream into our drinking water. 

(You know what they say about all X*$# runs downstream.)

If you’re thinking that’s what the water treatment plant is for, well, that’s putting a lot of extra work on what is probably a municipal treatment plant. i.e. You are paying for this treatment.  (Every year Duluth Minn. has trouble with there beach being too full of fecal matter to be safe for swimming.) This fecal matter is from pets and gulls.

If you want more information about how dog poop hurts the environment read
Dogs' use of outdoors as bathroom affects our water

*Thank's for reading: This blog is authored by the Determined Yaeger-Bischoff Women, determined to make a difference in protecting the environment. 

Wild horses

That Eco-Cowgirl is traveling again. Last time I posted about the Eco-Cowgirl she and her grandmother were traveling in the southeast of the U.S. This time she and her beau are traveling through the western states. You know the Cowgirl loves horses, well, she got to see wild horses in Medora, N.D.
Some sources say that the horses that got fenced into the national park are actually descendants of Chief Sitting Bulls horses. Sitting Bull was forced to surrender all his horses when he surrendered at Ft. Burthold on July 19, 1881 (Ft. Burthold is in northwestern North Dakota and is not a "Sioux" reservation. Standing Rock is the Reservation that Sitting Bull's people were sent to. It straddles the North Dakota/South Dakota border. The Sioux Nation was and is comprised of three major sub-divisions: including the Dakota, Nakota, Lakota. I'm guessing that's where the Nakota horse got its name.  There is another group of people who are calling the horse from Theodore Roosevelt National Park the "North Dakota Bandlands Horse."

The Nokota Horse Conservancy believes that the wild horses in North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park badlands descend from horses surrendered by Chief Sitting Bull in 1881. Park officials disagree --- See story by Ryan T. Bell headline, "Sitting Bull’s Lost Horses?"   Read more here

Read about the Nokota Horse Conservancy here https://www.nokotahorse.org/ 

Here is a close up of a colt in the south unit of Medora, (Theodore Roosevelt National Park) in western North Dakota.

How many horses do you see in this ravine. I think I see eight. But I would have never guessed that there were baby horses in these scenes until I enlarged the photo in PhotoShop.

We are the Determined Yaeger-Bischoff Women and wild horses couldn't get us to stop caring about the environment. 

Picnic

Tonight we joined our friends at Brighton Beach for a picnic. I brought our everyday dishes and cutlery.

I brought food scraps home to be composted.

A friend talked about a picnic she had been to for lunch, which had a lot of food left over. They were wondering who they could donate the food to. The homeless shelters did not pick up the phone when they called.  I urge you to think ahead if you are having a big gathering with lots of food, please phone some homeless shelters and find out if they will take the food and exactly where and what times they will accept food.

Below is our picnic. Can you find items which are not waste free? 

How to host a zero-waste July 4th party

By Naomi Yaeger-Bischoff,

We hosted a zero waste party on July 4th. It was fun. You can do it too. We used a colorful tablecloth, real dishes and cloth napkins.

( This is a less than a 4 minute read)

Michelle and Greg with real glass with paper pinwheels.

Decorations add to a festive ambiance. To greet our guests, the front of our house featured red, white and blue cloth buntings, and miniature flags lining our sidewalk. I purchased 20 of these little flags at a thrift store three years ago. We use them every year. At the grocery store I purchased a bouquet of flowers from Duluth Flower Farm, (an offshoot of FarmerDoug). I chose their bouquet because brown paper, not plastic, wrapped the arrangement.

Flag-colored paper pinwheels with tiny wooden clothespins that attach onto the top of glasses were another craft store goody.  Also, I purchased little paper flags on wooden toothpicks to stick in our red, white and blue cupcakes.

Julia blows on the paper pinwheel. Click the arrow to see a 3 second video

Guests often ask if they can bring anything. Esther brought some daisies and buttercups. I tasked Michelle with helping me string up colorful lanterns. They were made of paper with LED bulbs.(At a previous party I put red, white and blue crepe paper in our archways. (And for my husband’s birthday party, I purchased a felt “Happy Birthday” banner” we can use again for his and mine — if he remembers!) We also had real cloth napkins. 

Using my parents' crystal cake plate to display the  cupcakes
Notice the cloth tablecloth and wooden toothpick paper flags.

Julia brought a nice glass bowl and fixings for a salad.

Bruce and Jeanne have been bringing their specialty rhubarb daiquiris for a few years now. This year they arrived with the special rhubarb mixture, their blender and the alcohol in canvas bags. The first year they brought their rhubarb specialty, they also brought red Solo “beer” cups. I had a bunch of tumblers and cocktail glasses ready for them. And they didn’t bring the disposable one-time-use cups this year.  

We ate blueberry and strawberry parfaits out of crystal parfait glasses. The parfait glasses had been a wedding gift to my parents. A lot of people don’t like to use china or crystal because you can’t put it in the dishwasher, but my husband actually prefers doing dishes by hand. The crystal gives our parties a special feel. At first I was a little nervous, but then I figured, “What the heck, better the crystal be enjoyed and used, and if something breaks, so what?” It was my parents, and it’s over 61 years old. 

But you don’t have to get fancy and use china or crystal, just use regular everyday dishes and put them in the dishwasher.

A good time was had by all. I gained 3 pounds, but no guilty conscience that I had soiled this nest we all live on, our earth. Walking around our neighborhood picking up trash laying in the storm sewer grates on it’s way to the Lake Superior is a good way to work off those pounds. Or a trip to clean the beach at Park Point would also do it.

Next time you plan to have guests, look for some simple ways to eliminate unnecessary plastic from your party. If you tell your guests what you are doing, perhaps they, too, will make earth-smart choices in deciding what to bring.

Won’t you please join me and pledge to a Plastic Free July at #plasticfreejuly.

Reusable cloth "flag" announcing that this is the house where the celebration is taking place.

If you are planning a party and need some earth-friendly ideas, please free feel to contact me at:

sun_dog_press@yahoo.com or (218) 591-5277. (I am a commissioned Earthkeeper with my church at the national level. I need to donate 10 hours of my time helping others become more earth-friendly, so please contact me.)

Working on the "Such a Pretty Face" speech

"Such a Pretty Face: how cosmetics impact your health and the environment," is the title of our speech for the AAUW Minnesota State Convention on April 30 in Duluth.

Rebecca takes notes as she re-reads "Not Just a Pretty Face"

"Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry" by Stacy Malkin

Anyone who uses soap, male or female is using what the FDA considers a cosmetic or beauty product. Most of us use several everyday. You most likely use a health and beauty product to be clean and presentable. You want to look good, but sometimes the use of the products can be unhealthy for both our bodies and the environment. 

Acne plagued me as a teenager, I used all kinds of special soaps and facial scrubs. Invented in the 1970s, I may have been an early microbead adopter using the special acne scrubs my dermatologist prescribed. It wasn’t until recently the microbeads became a popular product in many facial scrubs and toothpastes. Microbeads are extremely small spheres of plastic that act as exfoliating agents, they are so small — about the size of a grain of sand — that when they pass down the drain and onto the water treatment plant, the treatment plant is unable to filter them out and then the microbeads get dumped into our waterways and lakes. There are about 300,000 microbeads in a tube of facial scrub. Once in our lakes and rivers these little particles act like a sponge soaking up toxins, such as pesticides, heavy metals, and phthalates. Phthalates are hormone disrupters. Birds, fish and other marine animals mistake the plastic for food. And we in turn eat the fish. Microbeads have been found in tuna and swordfish.

In 2015, researchers estimated that more than 8 trillion microbeads entered our waters everyday. That’s enough to cover the surface of 300 tennis courts a day.  

Image by Sara M. Kross, from "Scientific Evidence Supports a Ban on Microbeads"
published in Environmental Science & Technology

In December 2015 Congress passed the Microbead-Free Waters Act. The use of microbeads in personal care products will be banned beginning June 2017. Now many companies are phasing out the use of microbeads. 

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin, Superior, including assistant professor of chemistry Lorena Rios-Mendoza, are credited for sparking the discussion of the prevalence of microbeads in the Great Lakes. She made headlines in the Duluth News Tribune in August 2013. And soon there was a buzz in the environmental world about these plastic beads. 

Rios-Mendoza is not only a researcher she is an advocate and is tackling the problem you could say one grain of sand at a time. According to the Duluth News Tribune during a press conference she reminded people of the three R’s of sustainability -- reduce, reuse and recycle -- when it comes to plastics.

"But I have a fourth one:” she said at a press conference. “Refuse.”

This is a story of hope. Environmental advocates have been concerned for years about these tiny spheres of plastic. The research and subsequent laws pertinent to the use of microbeads in health and beauty products can serve to inspire us that tackling environmental problems and big companies is not hopeless. Our voices matter and large companies listened. 

Many years ago lipstick contained lead and the ingredients in mascara blinded some women and led to the death of another. In our Such a Pretty Face speech, we are not here to alarm you. But we will make you aware of some harmful products you may be using every day.  

I don’t want to give away our whole speech on this blog, and you may have already heard of the microbeads issue. On April 30, you can expect to learn more about cosmetic safety and ways to reduce your exposure to dangerous chemicals.  

We are not out to strike fear or panic, you but to give useful advice so that you can make your own decisions.

Footnotes:

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/19/us/8-trillion-microbeads-pollute-water-daily-irpt/

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/content/plastic-polluting-great-lakes-1

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/education/3673838-backed-uws-research-plastic-microbead-bans-spread-nationwide

http://beatthemicrobead.org/images/pdf/RED%20UNITED%20STATES.pdf

http://conbio.org/images/content_policy/03.24.15_Microbead_Brief_Statement.pdf

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1021/acs.est.5b03909

Naomi recommends you read this great memoir revolving around sustainable, healthy eggs

Locally Laid: How We Built a Plucky, Industry-changing Egg Farm - from Scratch by Lucie B. Amundsen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Lucie Amundsen’s Locally Laid: How We Built a Plucky, Industry-changing Egg Farm - from Scratch took me on a roller coaster of emotions. From frustration to happiness to sadness to pondering about what will be around the corner. I’ve “read’ it twice on Audible. Kate Reading narrates it and does an excellent job. The only glitch I noticed is that Kate Reading mispronounced Shakopee, but that doesn’t affect the story and only those familiar with the Minneapolis/St. Paul suburbs would notice.
Full disclosure: I am Lucie’s alley neighbor.
This book is memoir and a how-not-too. The writing style is casual, easy-to-read (listen) and interspersed with self-deprecating humor. Sandwiched in between humorous paragraphs and yarns of the struggles of her family, she gives a mini-education in economics, sustainable food and agricultural businesses. However, Amundsen teaches economics in a palatable manner. I eat a plant-based diet, so I don’t eat eggs, but that doesn’t stop me from supporting the Amundsen's for trying to make a difference in America’s food supply. The Amundsens ARE making a difference. And they caught the public’s attention by naming their business Locally Laid rather than Amundsen Farms.

The printed version includes footnotes to cite the information on economics, agriculture and food.

One of my favorite lines is, “Americans tend to be put off by evidence of where their food comes from.” Amundsen wrote this when explaining the egg washing process, something that is not done in Europe. Today so many americans don’t understand the origins of their food. They want it wrapped up and sanitized and whether a plant-eater or a meat-eater, Americans don’t want to know the nitty gritty details of food production, but they should because our health and economy depends on this knowledge.

I have many favorite parts, here are some of my favorite scenes:
-Their friends helping them build chicken coops during “freezing drizzle punctuated with the occasional driving hailstorm: this is springtime in the Northland.” The reader feels their cold physical struggle along with the warmth of their friends.
-The chickens’ arrival. Nine-hundred chickens sweltered in a semi-truck on the Interstate before reaching the farm. Lucie and the children were shocked at the treatment of the chickens. The chicken supplier grabbed the limp, the overheated, chickens and threw them into coops.
-Lucie’s trip to Maine for a class to dissect chickens, While there she learned about chicken anatomy and experienced an epiphany moment when she figured out why their chickens internal clocks were screwed up.
-The Amundsen’s mixing with cultures other than their own, like their visit to Amish famers; and the visit from glitzy California PR to the egg farm.
-I related to the scene where Lucie stood up for her own dream, which included living in town close to the children’s schools and her off farm employment, not out in the country. I could see myself in that scene. Mothers tend to become courageous when realizing the need to role model strong behavior for watching daughters.

There isn’t a chapter I didn’t enjoy. And I plan to listen again.
Anyone who likes to eat should read this book. It would be of particular interest to  locavores, the environmentally conscious, and those with a commitment to sustainability.

The book starts in 2012 and flashes back to 2010, the year we moved near the Amundsens. When we became neighbors the Amundsen’s had a chicken coop near an alley we share. We knew that Jason had lost a job and felt really bad for him. But I didn’t have much sympathy for him when he greeted me in the alley and told about some land he found to rent to raise chickens. He told me to be sure and tell my husband. (My husband was raised on a farm.) I figuratively threw cold water on him saying, “You know my husband could have been a farmer, but he chose not to. It’s hard work.” I thought Jason was crazy.
And this is how the book took me on a roller coaster ride. Lucie has a cheerful, fun personality and Jason is sincere. As I read, Lucie’s vivid writing showed gave a glimpse of hard they worked. Of course I already knew that farmers work damn hard, but yet reading the book I felt bad for not be more supportive of the family. I thought that they were romanticizing the farm life. Later as I read, I had an I told-you-so feeling. But by the middle of the book I was cheering this family’s passion and commitment to healthy food, local economy and animal welfare. I came to admire understand their tenacity.

 

I am grateful for families like the Amundsens who work to bring us healthy, sustainable food. And for writers like Lucie who use their craft to explain its importance in an entertaining manner.
Locally Laid: How We Built a Plucky, Industry-changing Egg Farm - from Scratch

View all my reviews

Fresh blueberries for breakfast, and chipotle black bean and veggie burger for lunch

I was thrilled to see Hotel 340 include fresh blueberries and cantaloupe 

For three and one-half years I have eaten a plant-based diet.  I've taken vacations and attended conferences, and I have been able to navigate my way around cafes, restaurants and banquets.

My "hobby" while traveling is to see where I can get a good vegan meal and a nice pool to swim laps. 

It has been a fun challenge and goal for my travels to see if I can stick with my vegan and environmentally-conscious commitments. Most recently my husband and I traveled to Chicago via Amtrak. We live in Duluth, Minn. and boarded the train in St. Paul, Minn. after staying overnight at a hotel near the depot. I packed a bag with oranges, apples and peanut butter sandwiches for the trip to St. Paul.    

The real china dishes was a plus. I hate using disposable dishes. 

The first night my husband wanted to walk around downtown St. Paul to see what he could find to eat. He isn't vegan so it's a lot easier for him to find something to eat. I wanted to stay in at the hotel because it had an elegant Art Deco lap pool that I wanted to swim. I swam and then came back and ate the apple and one of the peanut butter sandwiches.

In the morning we tried the hotel's complimentary breakfast. It included fresh blueberries and cantaloupe.   

Eating in the dining car is fun. 

On the train the next day, I made sure to keep my bag of goodies near my side, but was curious if I could find something vegan on the dining car. Seating on the family car is "family or community style," meaning if there is empty space at your table you sometimes end up eating with people you don't know.  We joined two women from Chicago who had attended a "One Direction" band concert in St. Paul. This was a fun experience for us.

To my surprise a chipotle black bean and veggie burger was on the menu. I ordered this as did the two women from Chicago, though they weren't vegan. They said they just liked these burgers. My husband ordered the cheeseburger. (The waitress asked him if he wanted bacon on it, "Geez, are you trying to give him a heart attack," I wondered.)

I was also pleased to see the vegetarian entree, but since it included feta cheese, I didn't order it.

And though I eat vegan for my health, I ordered a Pepsi and chips instead of salad, which I know is a lot of extra sugar, oil and salt that I don't need, but I figured we were on vacation and I could splurge. I know some vegans who don't follow their vegan diets when they vacation, but I do.

This is my chipotle black bean and veggie burger. I garnished it with ketchup and mustard.

This is hubby's cheeseburger. He ordered iced-tea for a drink. 

Water was offered free of charge.
Note Amtrak's environmental logo.

While I was pleased with the service of our Amtrak waitress and with the quality of the food, I was disappointed that the Amtrak uses plastic plates. I asked the waitress if they washed the plates and reused them, but she said the plates are disposable and thrown out after one use. When hubby and I took the train a few years ago ceramic/china dishes were used on the dining car.  If you look at the logo on the water glass and the coffee sleeve, Amtrak uses a leaf and the tagline or motto, "Rail consumes less energy than cars or air travel." Our waitress said the switch to plastic, disposable plates happened two years ago and there was a big discussion about it. "I don't like it," she said, "It's wasteful."