**2:28PM Sunday 12/16. I just edited this post based on the errors I found (i.e. not responding to points 5 or 6!) whilst putting Bea down for a nap. Please excuse the errors!**

Every day 8 kids under 20-years-old die from gun violence in America.

This weekend many of us feel helpless in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary massacre. Instead of just reminding one another to hug our children close with a “there but for the grace of God go I” mentality, we can support the parents and families of those lost in Connecticut, of those lost all over the U.S. due to gun violence. To honor the children and innocent victims who lose their lives EVERY SINGLE DAY due to gun shots in the inner cities whose deaths get less media attention due to their frequency and to “only” being one death instead of a mind blowing 20 child massacre. (Not to mention the adult victims who were mothers, fathers, daughters, sisters and aunts.)

To bring it closer to home, last July, 14 year old Unique Russell was shot during a 4th of July barbecue in South LA. That was by no means an isolated incident in her neighborhood.

Before I had kids, I taught 6th grade at John Muir Middle School in South L.A. Most of my students were used to hearing bullets whiz by outside, were not allowed out of their apartments after dark, and many had family members deceased from gunshots. I remember preparing for Day of the Dead, we were coloring masks to hang in the auditorium for the day’s celebrations. I gave them each a piece of stationary to write a letter to a anyone they had loved who was now deceased. In my naiveté I imagined letters to grand or great grandparents. What they wrote were letters to uncles, cousins, siblings and parents many killed by handguns. It was shocking to me, coming from a strongly middle & upper middle class community. I didn’t know anyone killed by gun violence. The celebration was not one of your typical Hallmark holiday celebrations, it was a genuine opportunity to honor and remember a loved one but it also hilighted a massive problem – the high number of gunshot deaths which were now being treated as an unavoidable “part of life.”

I bring up the urban gun deaths to shine the light broader on this subject. While we’re all shocked into action by this latest massacre, it’s actually been going on at an individual rate right under our noses.

Here are some arguments against gun control:
1. It’s not the time to discuss gun control.
2. Crazies will get guns illegally so upright citizens need guns to fight back & protect themselves.
3.The 2nd amendment protects our right to bear arms. It’s what the Founding Fathers wanted for us.
4. Mental illness is the problem, not guns.
5. Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.
6. It’s the violence in video games & movies that is responsible, not the right to own hand guns & semi automatic weapons.

Here are my refutes:
1. If not now, when? This is the PERFECT time to discuss gun control. Whenever a shooting happens we are told, “Now is not the time to discuss this.” and “Let the families bury their dead.” etc. However, please let us know when we CAN discuss it. If my child died at Sandy Hook last Friday, I think I’d want a massive public uprising.

2. What are the statistics regarding how often legally owned guns in the home have been used to successfully protect their owners? How many of those guns in the home have been involved in accidents? Then compare the numbers. Just Google “man accidentally shoots his own son.” for an idea.

Just last week a father accidentally shot his 7 year old son outside of the gun shop in a horrific tragedy. This man loved his child, was out shopping with him, never intended to use his gun on any humans and yet look what happened. Is there any hobby worth this?

3. The 2nd amendment was created when the country was new for militias. The US Army IS the current replacement for the militias. The US Army IS heavily armed. The police are heavily armed. (Let’s take a moment to admit that neither the US Army nor the police are always perfect with their arms at all times. Police brutality IS a huge issue that can’t be denied.)

4. Mental illness IS a massive problem. Constant budget cuts to mental health supports (education & treatment) are happening in front of us, under our noses. BUT, if a mentally ill person is UNable to access handguns & semi-automatic weapons, the damages will be resultantly less. (Excuse any poor grammar!) Why did Lanza’s mother have 2 handguns and a semi-automatic rifle in her house when she knew her son wasn’t right? Also, take for example the man in China who went on a rampage the exact same day as the Sandy Hook Massacre. While it is deeply troubling/shocking & horrific, and while the children, parents & community will never forget this, none of those children died. That’s a big difference – just ask the parents.

5. It IS the person not makes the gun kill people but what could the person do without the gun? They can use bombs but that is much less widespread, but much more difficult & requires a lot more time & prep that guns don’t. Bombs require much more planning than guns do. Would Lanza have done this had his mom not provided the weapons so handily? I even read today that she had taken both sons to shooting ranges so that they knew how to fire the guns. If he hadn’t had easy access to these weapons, would this have happened?

6. If video game/tv violence is responsible, someone please explain to me why Japan’s handgun deaths were in the double digits while ours in the US were over 10,000 last year. Bueller? Bueller?

This one’s a no-brainer.

Petition to the White House to Immediately address Gun Control Issue

Petition to the White House to Set a Date & Time for a Conversation about Gun Policy in the U.S.

No more cuts to mental health funding!
“I am Adam Lanza’s Mother”

If we don’t help our neighbors clean up the mess in their backyards it will surely spill over into to ours.

I decided to start up my “Weekly Green” postings again since the environment is an issue that weighs heavily on me as it might on you too. Before I start – let me just say that I fail in my efforts to live green, every day. But I try to make small lifestyle changes to be better. My main goal is to teach my children to want less, to go for a walk or hike instead of shopping, to think carefully before buying/wanting things (make sure the things they buy/want are high quality, can be passed on to someone else, and are not part of planned obsolescence).

Have you seen that Saturday Night Live that Tina Fey hosted a couple of years ago in which she plays Bedelia’s mom who’s been invited to the sleepover? The boys who’ve just snuck in the basement window are shocked that her mom is there. Bedelia thinks her mom is way cool.

You brought your mom to this?

Oh yeah, she’s the best! She re-uses Zip-loc bags, she dry shaves. I’m like, “Sign me up!

Here’s a link to the whole skit for SNL fans! (Apologies if you have to endure the Cristina Aguilara “Red Sin” Perfume ad first!!)

I’m afraid I’m that mom. I rinse out Zip-locs.

My counters DO look a mess due to the bag drying fields.

My kids get re-used Ziplocs for lunch (on the rare occasion I use them) And SO CAN YOU!

Why re-use ZipLoc bags?

1. It takes water & petroleum to make them. With 7 billion people living on the planet, both water & petroleum need to be used wisely. (Supposedly about 1,000,000 plastic bags are consumed EACH MINUTE.)

2. You probably heard by now that there is a garbage patch somewhere between the size of Texas and 1.5 times the size of the United States (though it is fluid & changes constantly) out in the Pacific Ocean. Although it’s a democracy of garbage, some common types of garbage found there are plastic bags.

3. You may say, “Oh well, at least it’s all confined to that area.” But since the plastic bags are made of petrochemicals that leach into the ocean, we are also slowly poisoning our ocean (which is essentially the Earth’s air conditioner!)

To learn more just Google “garbage patch pacific ocean” or check out 5 Gyres site.

I realize one nerdy mama re-using Ziplocs ain’t gonna save the world. But hopefully my kids can observe my efforts to be mindful about the resources we use.

To learn more:

Read about the Garbage Patch.

Replacements for typically plastic household items
Life Without Plastic

Blog of a Californian mom whose been living plastic-free since 2007!!
My Plastic Free Life

Story of an Austrian mom whose family goes plastic free for a year.

I dropped the ball on my “Weekly Green” posting. Not that I don’t have a TON of them in mind. But I felt overwhelmed about where to start. That and I didn’t want to come across as smug about being eco-conscious. Or maybe I just got lazy? It’s hard to compete with food porn.

Anyway, I’m bringing it back! Hopefully it’ll be in the spirit of collaboration not a know-it-all posting. I just want to share my ideas and hear other peoples’ as well.

So, here’s a teeny tiny one:

Our toaster oven bell no longer functions. I just noticed that this morning when I found this dried out old bagel in there.

Petrified bagel.

You know what happens when you leave a bagel in the toaster oven for an hour? It becomes hard as a rock.

A few years ago I would’ve just tossed it. It’d be a lot easier to toss it. But it’s a waste of food. The more I read about the Horn of Africa’s famine

Warning: this is a BIG image – it was impossible to read the smaller version.

Graphic from foodandtechconnect.com

and even here in the “Land of Plenty” I try to use everything. There are a few things that help with this endeavor:

1. Plan meals ahead of time BEFORE grocery shopping. I am a pretty disorganized person and usually fly by the seat of my pants. If I happen upon a farmer’s market, I’ll buy things just because they’re beautiful when I have no clear idea how or what I’ll do with it. This is great if you are Alice Waters or a Top Chef contestant. Also, works really well if you’re a natural cook who knows what to do with things. (Rebecca Trotsky) I am neither. I have really only been cooking for a year and have 2 toddlers. This limits my research & cooking time significantly. To waste less, I plan 2 or 3 meals per week and then add only those items I need to my shopping list. This has helped me a TON. Buying fewer items means I have less clogging up my fridge. I also have a lot less stress about having to use things up out of guilt.

I don’t care how pink that rhubarb is, keep on walking, girl.

2. Find recipes that use leftover veg or day old bread. A great example is the quinoa cakes recipe. You can literally chop up any leftover veg you have into the mixture. Another example is the Spring Vegetable Risotto with Goat Cheese which I’ll post this week. Bread can become croutons.

3. ROAST any leftover veg you don’t end up using. Just have a night of leftovers/odds & ends. G is usually at work late & my kids usually don’t care that much about dinner anyway so I just do it for myself!

But what about this old bagel I’ve just shown you?

Here’s my GREEN idea(r): freeze it in a Zip-Loc bag & use for croutons. I am really into croutons right now! I make plain, garlic & dijon mustard. That’s it so far but they are gooooooooood. I actually add any bread that is over a day old that I know is in danger of being tossed. Next time I need croutons (which is every 2 days right now!) I use whatever bread is in that bag.

PLAIN CROUTONS.

GARLIC CROUTONS.

Stay tuned for link for DIJON CROUTONS! (coming VERY soon…)

If anyone’s reading this (besides my sister) I’d love to hear what steps you’re taking in this vein? It’s always helpful to get ideas from other folks…

You too, Lib!

Cancel catalogues. Save a tree!

You can cancel most of them online if you don’t want to sit on hold for a couple of hours.

I was getting 2 of these at a time. I don't even think these are real workout clothes.

This is the kind of thing I never remember to take with me.

Someone must’ve told them we bought the house.

Ballard Designs Dining Room

Our dining room

I need a new nozzle! How much water to make & ship THAT?

I’ve had this for a few years now and it definitely looks like it fell off the roof of my car a few times. I got it to carry my water around with me so I wouldn’t buy water in plastic bottles. I heard this would, ironically, save some water.

How much water does it take to make a plastic bottle for bottled water?

1.85 GALLONS of water.

Can you believe that?

Well, this article is a couple of years old so things may have changed slightly but still!

All I knew when I got my bottle was that:
1. It takes more water to MAKE a water bottle than is actually INSIDE the bottle!
2. It takes petroleum to make the plastic.
3. It can only be recycled once and not into another water bottle. (Although in parts of Europe that capability does exist.)

This is a really easy step to take – REI sells these and you can also order them online. I take it empty on the plane and fill it up (yes, using bottled water on the plane which sucks.) But then I have my bottle for the rest of my trip.

Devil’s Advocate Question: how much water does it take to make this aluminum bottle AND when you do the math(s), is it still the eco-friendlier path to take?

What do you all think about aluminum versus plastic water bottles? Do you care? If you do care or if you couldn’t care less, I can’t wait to hear from you below!