Happy (EGOlogical) Halloween

Happy Halloween everyone!  Today is the day we get to dress up in crazy cool costumes we will only wear once and knock on people’s doors to collect candy that creates a lot of garbage waste after its eaten!  Sounds harmful to the environment, but since Halloween is more like a societal tradition it is difficult to expect people to change.  Therefore I am going to point out a few things you can do to have a more EGOlogical Halloween.  From the costume to the candy, the idea is not to enjoy Halloween at all, but more how to reduce your environmental impact your Halloween celebration.

Costume: Try searching thrift stores to put together a costume using used clothing or props.  This will reduce the amount of resources extracted and pollution created during the production and consumption of the product.  Also, use recycled products such as cardboard or plastic bottles to create a neat homemade costume.  You can also spread awareness with your costume by being something with an environmental theme like a Recycle Cop or a Mermaid hit by pollution.  Visit Do Something to view a list of environmental Halloween Costumes.  Be creative! 

Candy: The amount of candy received can add up and create a lot of garbage waste.  Most candy wrappers cannot be thrown into your recycle bin, so they get thrown into the garbage.  However, there is a company that does recycle candy wrappers called Terracycle.  Terracycle works by mailing in your recyclables in a box and shipping it to them where you will receive a certain amount of credits towards purchasing Terracycle products or you can donate those credits in dollar amounts to your school or charity of choice.  Terracycle pays for your shipping too so all you have to do is just collect the waste and you and the environment receives the benefits.  Visit www.terracycle.net to learn more and find out how you can start recycling your candy wrappers!    

Say NO to Toothpicks

What is the purpose of a toothpick?  Maybe you use one to see if your cupcakes are done or maybe you grab a toothpick on the way out of a restaurant to get something out of your tooth.  These are each things that are unnecessary and can be avoided.  So next time you reach to grab a toothpick, stop yourself and just say NO!

By saying NO to toothpicks you will reduce the amount of wood or plastic that is produced to make the toothpicks.  Reducing the amount of toothpicks produced will reduce the amount resources that must be extracted and it will also reduce the amount of pollution produced during the production and transportation of the toothpicks.  Since toothpicks typically get food attached to them, they cannot be recycled because they are now “contaminated.”  Therefore they are a nonrenewable resource that should be avoided. 

You will also save money because you won’t have a buy them for your home or restaurant (if you are in the food industry).  If you want to get something out of your teeth, too bad.  Just wait until you get home that night to get it out when you floss, I guarantee you won’t even notice it’s there after a few minutes of leaving the restaurant.  If you are checking your cupcakes, try to use a knife instead.  Works perfectly and you can wash it and reuse it.  

Who Said Tails Was Bad Luck?

How many times have you been walking somewhere and see a penny on the ground?  You bend down to pick it up, but stop because you notice it is facing tails-side up, not heads.  So you get back up, leave it there, and walk away.  Since we were young, society and culture has taught us that picking up a penny on the tails side is bad luck.  However, I am going to encourage you to go ahead and pick that penny off the ground!

I don't know whoever made up the story that pennies facing tail-side up are bad luck because finding any type of money on the ground should be a sign of good luck, especially in today's economy!  Since pennies are made of copper, they cannot decompose.  We also need to Recirculate to Recycle and prevent new coins from being minted.  This will reduce extraction of precious metals ad reduce the pollution caused during the production of coins.  Picking up any coins off the ground, regardless if they are facing heads or tails, will make you a richer person! Yes you might be only one penny richer, but every cent adds up.  Just think, if you've picked up every coin you've ever walked past, you would have more than "just a penny."

P.S. Yes that circular spot on the ground in the picture that looks like another penny is gum.  Make sure you Say NO to Gum so the ground won’t be covered in spots that look like coins!

Disposable vs Refillable Pens

The use of pens are almost unavoidable in today’s society.  You use them at school, work, meetings, to sign autographs…  You know, just the important things.  When you start using a new pen, it feels like you will never run out of ink.  However, eventually the ink will run out and you will have to get a new pen.  Unfortunately new pens typically cost more than we expect, but I have an EGOlogical tip that will not only cut on the costs of new ink, it will reduce the amount of plastic you consume! 

The answer: buy pens that can fit refillable ink.  The initial cost may be a little more than a disposable pen, but I promise the cost is worth it.  Ink refills are fairly cheap and they don’t have the unnecessary extra plastic casing around it that you already haveso there is less plastic being produced and consumed.  They also reduce the amount of pollution produced from packaging and transportation costs.  If you already own a pen that supports ink refills, great!  Just buy the ink refills that are supported by that pen the next time you go to the store.  If you don’t have one, consider investing in a pen that can support ink refills.  Now some may argue buying a new pen is promoting excess plastic consumption, however in the long run you will be saving money and plastic from the landfills because you putting time and money into an investment for your future pen usage.  

Eat the ENTIRE Apple

Since we were kids, culture has taught us to eat an apple just to the core and throw out the rest.  We would see pictures of apple cores in books or comic strips and would connect that image to garbage.  As seen in the comic Todd and Penguin by David Write below, apple cores are correlated with garbage.  However, I am going to encourage you stop thinking of apple cores as garbage and to eat the entire apple.  I had actually never done it until recently because the thought of eating the ENTIRE apple was just odd to me, but I tried it and it doesn’t taste any different than the rest of the apple.  By eating entire apple, you are reducing the amount of garbage that will be thrown into the landfills therefore reducing greenhouse gasses. 

    http://www.toddandpenguin.com/

When you hear the phrase, greenhouse gasses, the first thing you may think of are carbon dioxide emissions polluting the atmosphere.  Humans can be blamed for contributing 9 - 26% of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, however there is another type of gas induced by humans: methane.  Methane gas naturally comes from livestock, however the number one cause of methane gas is from landfills.  When garbage is put into a landfill, the chemical reactions and microbes breaking down the waste produce methane gas.  Therefore, by eating your entire apple you are preventing excess breakdown to occur in landfills when your body can benefit from the healthy nutrients an apple has to offer. 

Don’t be afraid to try it, I promise it’s not bad at all.  Eat the seeds too, they don’t taste weird!  If eating seeds is weird to you… don’t let it be because just think, strawberries are COVERED in seeds and you eat those!  So next time you’re eating an apple, be EGOlogical and just think of all the methane you’ll be saving just by eating the “weird” part culture taught us to know as garbage, but what we now know is just a normal part of the apple.    

Heated vs Natural Hair

Sorry men, this tip is for the ladies… but you are more than welcome to use this tip too if you wish to.  However you can apply this tip, keep reading and it’s at the end.  Now this is a “touchy” subject because “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” but what does having beautiful hair mean to you?  In today’s society, soft, smooth, and well-pampered hair is highly desired and all it takes to get that is a little bit of heat.  That heat is generated through electrical devices such as hair dryers, curlers, and straighteners.  Every person has a different hairstyle and uses different techniques to style it.  However, I am going to encourage you to let your hair flow naturally every once in awhile. 

There are many different hairstyles that still look nice and don’t require electrical devices.  Visit the youtube channel, Loepsie, and view her tutorial videos on how to create cute natural hairstyles.  By eliminating the use of your electric devices, you are reducing your electricity consumption.  This will reduce the amount of greenhouse gases produced during energy production and electrical consumption.  This tip will also reduce the cost on your energy bill. 

Now men, this is where you can apply this tip.  Encourage your significant other that their hair is beautiful all the time.  When it’s strait, curly, or natural, it’s always beautiful.  This will also cut electrical costs personally and environmentally.  I’m not telling you to never make your hair look nice, maybe just reduce the amount of heat you apply to it.  You will also be saving your hair from making it dead faster.  Your hair does not define your beauty, it’s how you love it, own it, and work it!    

Normal vs Shorthand

How often do you find yourself in class or in a meeting furiously writing down mass amounts of information as quickly as you can?  It’s commonly a difficult task to write down information slide per slide or verbatim out of the speaker’s mouth, therefore you should develop a system of shorthand to help you write more efficiently as well as gain more information in the same amount of time. 

Developing your own system of shorthand can be a difficult task if you’re not used to it, but once you get it down you will be happy you switched.  Not only will it let you write more, it will save the environment!  Since your shorthand will reduce the amount of words/letters you write, it will reduce the amount of ink used in your pen and the amount of paper you will go through.  By reducing your ink and paper consumption rates, you will reduce the amount that needs to be produced.  This will save pollution in production, transportation, and consumption costs as well as save you some money because you won’t have to buy as many pens and notebooks as often AND on top of that you have more notes!  Don't forget to the EGOlogical tip to write small!  


Tips to creating legible shorthand: be patient and figure out what works best for you and if it helps tell yourself you’re doing it for the Earth!  Good Luck!  

Thank You World!

This is my 50^th post on Be EGOlogical and I just wanted to say thank you to all of the people around the world that read it!  Saving the Earth is not only local activity, it’s a global effort that we all need to be aware of.  My tip for you today is that spreading awareness is one of the best ways to educate your peers and there are many ways you can do that.  Whether is volunteering in community clean ups or sharing this blog with your friends, word gets out and people’s lives can change.  Every little effort adds up and does really make a difference.

There are 23 countries the Earth would like to thank for helping change the world by applying EGOlogical tips to their lives are:

Australia

Brazil

Cambodia

Canada

China

Denmark

France

Germany

Hungary

India

Indonesia

Italy

Kenya

Malaysia

Netherlands

Norway

Pakistan

Russia

Saudi Arabia

Sweden

United Arab Emirates

United States

Vietnam

As a global entity, it’s our duty to work together and help the Earth.  I challenge you to continue spreading awareness and taking action throughout your community.  Please Contact Me, I would love to hear your stories and feedback about your endeavors and how the EGOlogical tips are being implemented in your life!  Keep up the great work!  Looking forward to hearing from you!