Once Again My Love With Preserve Continues

So I went to good ole' Target last night to get some toiletries, and I came across the new Preserve toothbrushes. I luckily was in the market to buy I new one so I picked one up. Actually I picked up the exact color and feel below (green...of course, like you would expect anything less). And look at the new packaging! It is the self-address, pre-paid mailer. So today (one day after I bought my new brush) I stuck my old toothbrush in this package and put a little tape on it and threw it in the mail. That simple!

Currently, Preserve is running a special where they are paying for postage for the first 250,000 toothbrushes sold then it will be up to the consumer to put a stamp on it, but still, how simple is this. You don't even have to wait on the little mailer anymore, or drop it off at Whole Foods.
Let's just say I am pretty stoked about this.

Has anyone started using Preserve products? If so, what do you think?

The Easy Way to Go Green on St. Patty's Day

Got this article from Re-Nest.

This list of 5 household items that should always be recycled was compiled by RecycleBank, a recycle rewards program in 24 U.S. states and the United Kingdom.

1. Electronics: Desktop computers, cell phones, PDAs, and any other home office electronics may contain toxic materials including lead, mercury and arsenic. These materials can be salvaged and or used in other places. See our list of electronics recycling websites.

2. Rechargeable Batteries: Rechargeable batteries from cordless phones, power-tools, digital cameras, etc. can also be reduced to usable metals to make new batteries and steel. Try Earth911 to find drop off locations or order a box (for $34.50, including prepaid shipping) from Battery Solutions and send them up to 12 pounds of alkaline and/or rechargeable batteries for recycling. IKEA also accepts used batteries.

3. Compact Fluorescent Bulbs: You know compact fluorescents (CFLs) reduce your energy expenditure, but you may or may not be aware that they contain small amounts of toxic compounds like mercury. Be sure to recycle them at local resources such as IKEA or Home Depot.

4. Plastic Bags: Even the best of us forget to bring our reusable bags every time. We use ours to cleanup after our dog, but you can also take them into retails and drop them off in their bag bins where they're turned into new bags or plastic lumber. Since they're made from petroleum, a non-renewable resource, they take a very long time to decompose.

5. Anything You Think Can Be Reused: Prescription glasses, unexpired medications, and other working items should always be given instead of thrown away. There are a number of resources available on the web including Freecycle, Craigslist, One Sight or the Health Equity Project.

Picture from http://www.thefilevault.co.uk/img/recycling.jpg

Online Banking: Making Your Money a Little Greener

What I realized early on in our relationship is that the Mr. and I were raised quite different when it comes to money but ultimately it created the same result. We watch our cash pretty closely as to never get ourselves in too much trouble. I have never had a late fee and only one overdraft charge when I was in Europe and my mom couldn’t make a deposit quick enough. No biggie and it was waved.

The Mr. was raised in a cash only family. He didn’t even have a credit card until after we were married. He was slightly fearful of them, but I explained that if he wanted to start a business someday then he needs to build credit. Also, if we ever want to buy a house, a car, or anything else.

I, on the other hand, was raised in a cash/credit family. If you had cash on you then you paid with cash. If not you used your credit card which you treated like cash. If you didn’t have the money in the account you didn’t use the card. The first thing my parents made me do after my high school graduation party was to go to a bank and set up a checking account with a credit card attached. I made sure to always pay my balance each month (never just the minimum) and watch my cash flow. I was a pro by the time I got married.

I actually started online banking back in college because I was notorious for not balancing my check book and wanting to know what was in my account at a moments notice. I haven’t looked back since I started using it. I now online bank at both of my banks, and I love the convenience of it. I get online statements and can pay my credit card off as well. I could also set up online bill pay for my electric or car payments (which I will probably do here soon). I can check my account balances and transfer money without ever walking into a bank (especially a competitor’s bank now that I work for a bank).

Online banking has made our life so much simpler. I need to transfer $100 from our joint to my individual account. Online banking. I need to pay the credit card off. Online banking. I want to see a copy of the check that I used to pay my electric bill. Online banking. I want to see my transactions for the last month. Online banking. I never have to leave my house or take off my polka-dotted pajamas to do it. It is awesome and green.

It is green because the bank no longer has to send me monthly statements. I get it in an e-mail instead. I never get credit card statements or bills. Everything is done online. I don’t have to waste the gas to drive to the bank to look to see if something went through or to transfer funds. On top of everything, it is FREE. If you have a checking account most banks allow you to bank online for free.

Life is grand with online banking. I still hate paying bills but hey, that is another story.

Do you bank online? What are some things that you wish you could do online that isn’t possible yet? Have you ever heard of text banking or mobile banking?

Picture from http://www.heritagebanknevada.com/ContentImageHandler.ashx?imageId=2047

The Reason for the Car

Even though we have been an one car family for a year and a half now, the time finally came for us to be a two car family. I have a job that requires me to commute a different distance everyday. The jeep that we own isn't exactly fuel efficient so it wasn't going to make it the long haul. (Nevermind the fact that I was tired of running the Mr. back and forth from work everyday. I told him I felt like I was living with a teenager. "Can you take me here? Can you drop me off there?" Geez.)

So after months of research and numerous test-drives, I decided on the Ford Focus. There are a few reasons for my decision.
1. It gets great gas mileage at 24 in town and 35 on the highway.
2. It is small and efficient.
3. It is a US owned car manufacture.
4. Ford didn't take any money from the bail out.
5. It is green for Pete's Sake.



I will be talking more about my car purchase as time goes on, but I hope you enjoyed the photos for now.

Any big purchases over the weekend? What do you look for in a car?

Photo Fridays

Looking for a new car this weekend. Wish me luck!
It may not be THIS green though.

HGTV: Green Home 2010

While the weather is crummy out right now I thought I would look at some greener pastures, or lawns shall I say.

The house above is HGTV's Green Home for 2010. What a beaut. It is located in Plymouth, Massachusetts and is overall a gorgeous home with a lot of great green features. But really, how "green" is it?

It has low-maintenance landscaping. (Good, but is it planted with plants native to the region?) It has a drip irrigation system. (Good choice.) It has large trees that we transplanted from another site in the area. (Wait, how was that a good idea? Isn't it very unhealthy it take grown trees and move them?) It has 9 solar panels on the roof. (I didn't have to pay for them so it sounds like a good idea to me.) The wrap-around porch is made from a PVC-product that is impervious to moisture and insects. ("Building materials which contain PVC account for more than 70% of all PVC usage. The Green Building Movement is one of the fastest growing aspects of the environmental movement. The extreme potency, global nature, and disproportionate hazardous impacts of dioxin relating to production, use, and disposal of PVC have already influenced many in the building and construction industry to plan for a phase-out of PVC. The use of PVC compares unfavorably with other building materials in: air quality, embodied energy, recyclable and lifecycle toxicity impacts." -The Alliance for a Clean Environment...'Nough Said"

That is enough of that. I am just being picky. Overall, it is a beautiful home, all 2,100 square feet of it. For the average American this is way more eco-conscious than they would expect (or do themselves) so I do give HGTV mad props for that. (Yes, I am pasty white and said "mad props". Deal with it.)

Anyways, what is your idea of a "green" home? What ways are you making your home greener now?

Picture from www.hgtv.com