Dust to Dust

Ya'll may not know this about me, but I can be a morbid sort of person.  I sometimes think about my own death.  Not in a creepy or suicidal way, but i do recognize that death is an inevitable part of life and i'm okay with that.  I think about how i'd like it to go (i'm a super planner, after all).  I wanna die peacefully in my sleep.  Old, but not so old that my faculties have started to decay.  Pipe dreams, I know.  We don't get to choose our own death.  We do, however, get to have some input on how we are laid to rest, or so I thought.  When a burial request comes to my mind, I make it known to my husband.  I figure he'll be in charge of planning my funeral (did i mention that i wanna pre-decease him?).  I realize that, looking back on what I just wrote, I must sound kind of creepy but this isn't a regular occurrence in my house or anything.  Maybe 4 or 5 times ever.  My two biggest requests are to be buried in a specific cemetery in my hometown where most of my family and friends are buried and to "be treated like compost".  I just wanted to stay chemical-free and be buried in a something that’d decompose; nothing terribly crazy, and still respectful and fairly traditional, but also low-cost and green.  Hanging out at the funeral home last month (mostly an observer of other's grief), I realized that it probably wouldn't be that simple.

Not all GNC’s are Created Equal

Until i started this green little experiment, I had never set foot in a GNC.  It seemed like a place for the muscle-bound and gullible.  I probably would have never set foot in one, except that I read around the interwebz that GNC sell essential oils.  The only GNC I was *consciously* aware of in Washington, was the on in the mall.  I went to the GNC in the mall, and it was exactly as i expected.  A body-builder store with a grand total of 4 varieties of essential oil.  I didn't think any more about it until Nick & I went to Giant Eagle at midnight this weekend and, as we were driving by, I spotted the big red lights of an (obviously closed) GNC.  I knew it was there.  I drive by it a couple times a week, and I never thought about it.  This GNC was a whole 'nother planet! It's walls were lined with the usual vitamins, but front & center was basically an organic pantry!  All sorts of stuff, some of which i was having a hard time finding, right in front of me, not to mention probably 30+ varieties of essential oil. It wasn't all food either, there was also a very nice selection of personal care items.  Guess who has a new customer?!?!

Extra Bonus: Pictures of my newly moved laundry room. 

BEFORE

Basically, an empty mud room with cupboards at the end. 

AFTER

Once Sadie is old enough, her crate will be replaced by a bench & coat hooks and an elevated shoe shelf (since I'm not sure she'll ever outgrow her love of shoes!  That's why they're on the counter)

Products I Like: Feminine Hygiene

Needless to say, I won't be plastering this post all over facebook.  If you're a guy and the title didn't scare you silly, I recommend you quit while you're ahead.  Nonetheless, as a woman, menstruation is something we have to deal with.  Regularly.  There are about 85 million menstruating women in the US, each of whom will use approx. 17,000 disposable products in her lifetime.  Each of those products is chemical-ridden, wrapped in plastic, and, in the case of tampons, comes with an applicator as well.  Holy garbage!  Not to mention that, when disposed of "properly", they fill our landfills with bio-waste, and, when flushed, clog drains and septic systems.  75% of all blocked drains are caused by flushing sanitary products. 
I've always been a tampon girl and *sheepish admittance* have always been a flusher (sorry about the pipes, mom!) .  I was just so grossed out by the alternative, it was bad enough to have the applicator & wrapper in the trash, having to cover it up like my mother taught me to ( I stopped doing that at home pretty quickly, it seemed silly).  Like so many things in my life lately though, they had to go.   The create a TON of trash, usually contain dioxin and who knows what else (they don't have to tell you) , dry you out, cause TSS, and they're expensive.  
First I looked into sea sponges.  Not my thing.  They're very natural (and historic), but they require a LOT of care and washing, if you choose to install a string it can rip them, and they need to be replaced every 6 months. 

Then I looked into menstrual cups.  They hold the flow in a cup, instead of absorbing it, so there is no risk of TSS and no drying out.  For the same reason, they only need to be changed every 12 hours, except during the heaviest of flows.  You only need one, care is very manageable, and they last up to 10 years.  At $40, it probably will save you around $800 in its lifetime.  This is also an ideal solution if you're going to be backpacking (no garbage to pack out) or traveling in a country where feminine hygiene products are unavailable.   There are a TON of brands out there and they aren't all the same sizes.  There are even websites dedicated to describing the sizes and fits of the different brands.  The one thing they all have in common is that, in the US, they are really only available online.  I went with the Lunette (model 2) because it seemed the most straight-forward, size-wise.  There is definitely a learning curve, so it requires some patience, but on the whole I think it was worth learning to get the hang of.  The #1 lesson I learned from my trial ? MAKE SURE the suction seal has broken before you try to remove it, you'll be glad you did.  (ouch!)

If pads are more your pace, there are a number of quality cloth pad makers, including Glad Rags and PIMPS (Party In My PantS).

Part of the Patchwork Living Blogging Bee

Free Organic Shampoo & Conditioner

(Don't you just love the chibby bottles?)

 

Renpure organic shampoo is offering a free trial to those who buy it.  All you do is save your receipt and send it in with the tag on the bottle.  The form doesn't say anything about a limit, but I got separate receipts just to be on the safe side.  I found these guys at the Giant Eagle in Dry Tavern, PA of all places.  The renpure website has a list of retailers, but it doesn't seem difficult to locate it.  

Products I Like: Dryer Balls

 

These little guys are great on the body, environment & your wallet.  The concept is simple: toss them into the dryer and they bounce around and lift and separate the clothes.  This decreases drying time (saving on electric or gas bill) and eliminates the need for both dryer sheets and fabric softener.  Talk about a money saver! and they only need to be replaced every few years.  Also, I'm not usually one for fear-mongering, but there are some truly frightening carcinogens and even narcotics in dryer sheets, amongst other nasty chemicals.  Since the dryer is the end of the cleaning process, they don't get washed away.    If you miss having scent added to your clothes in the drying process, you can toss in a sachet of herbs or put a drop or two of essential oil on a wash cloth. 

Products I Like: Oils

Part of making this transition easy on my wallet is limiting the amount of driving I have to do to get to my food.  The nearest grocery stores and bastions of civilization aren't exactly close, so I try not to stray too far from them in my shopping excursions, our gas bill is high enough as is. 

This series is on products I can buy that are natural and/or organic, convenient and reasonably priced. 

SPECTRUM OILS

These guys make a ton of organic oils and oil products (mayonnaise, salad dressing, vinegars).  Their coconut oils are what I use in my soaps as well as lots of beauty applications.  Their High Hear Canola Spray is the only organic high heat I have ever seen.  High heat oils are great both for grilling and any sort of quick pan frying.  Their resistance to higher heats allows them to not burn and create a very difficult to remove residue on your pans.  Sold at Giant Eagle. 

 

FULL CIRCLE

These guys offer organic spray oils available at  Giant Eagle. 

NATURE'S BASKET

Giant Eagle's natural generic brand.  They make a mean organic olive oil.