Spill Baby, Spill!
I’ve been in numerous debates with friends and family over offshore drilling ever since Sara Palin uttered that famous “Drill Baby, Drill!” during her campaign speech. Unfortunately my argument can be easily illustrated just by reading any of the recent headlines about the recent BP drilling disaster in the Gulf Coast. What’s most concerning is that we pushed humanity’s technological capabilities and now we have no known way to stop this “spill” from potentially destroying all of Earth’s oceans. In fact, I think we should stop using the word spill because to me a spill is something that is done and over and we can begin cleaning up; not the case with the current flood of petroleum continually blasting into the Gulf of Mexico. If you look to my new GreenPeace widget on the right-hand side of my blog you can actually watch it tick out the gallons of oil being spilled off the coast of the United States as I type this. Pictures of the disaster are everywhere and show just how enormous this crisis has become. Some interesting calculations that I’ve come across indicate that one (1) gallon of oil can ruin about one (1) million gallons of water. We know that there are about 31 gallons of oil in a barrel. That’s 31 million gallons of water ruined per barrel. The hole drilled deep into the Earth’s crust that is uncontrollably shooting 5,000 barrels of pressurized oil into the Gulf of Mexico is destroying a terrifyingly vast swath of our environment each day since April 20, 2010. Worse yet, our technology to drill seems to have outpaced our ability to recover from this disaster. We are all in far more danger than is currently being reported and IF, that’s a very big if, we can stop this environmental catastrophe in time to stop the demise of the entire planet we have got to do more as individuals to reduce our reliance on petroleum immediately. We also have to stand up and say no to more offshore drilling. Even if we manage to survive this cataclysmic event, the repercussions of extending our capabilities without understanding the implications or providing sufficient safeguards will be felt for generations to come.
Featured in Creepy Queen Magazine!
Can I tell you that I am just the happiest little nerd in the universe today! I logged into my Etsy account this morning to find that I had a convo from a writer at Creepy Queen Magazine contacted me to says, “Hey! I write for an online magazine/blog called “Creepy Queen Magazine”. We fell in love with your reuseable snowman gift bag and have featured it in our next article/blog post, called ‘Though The Weather Outside is Frightful..’, all about snowy items on etsy!” Boy was I stoked and I went to learn a little more about the site and learned that:
CreepyQueen is an online magazine/blog that spotlights the indie alternative. It is our aim to provide free promotion to small businesses, diyers, industry professionals, and alternative crafters.
How freaking cool is that?! I’m so excited to learn that there is another whole community of alternative fashion people out there who particpate in and love the DIY life as much as I do. So check out the article where they featured my bag and some really other cute items with a winter theme “Though the weather outside is frightful” and pick-up some adorable handmade Christmas gifts for your friends and family and learn a little bit more about the DIY fashion community by reading the blog or signing up for their online magazine newsletter.
Knit Wit
I really enjoy recycling clothes and its true that with a little assistance that I can make darn near anything out of an old T-shirt, but I’ve always been drawn to knitting and crochet. The trouble is that I don’t actually know anyone who does it and everyone who has tried it complained that they couldn’t sort it out. Luckily, a friend of mine is currently happily knitting away at wash cloths and some very elaborate squares (I think to be used in a blanket). So I figured, it’s now or never… I’ve ordered a video from Amazon entitled The Complete Beginner’s Guide to Knitting
My Very Own Etsy Store
My Very First Etsy Item!
So about 6 months ago I got this crazy idea to start selling my recycled tshirt stuff at outdoor fairs, or even our own Lauraville Market Connection. Unfortunately, neither time nor bank account allowed me to get my little shop off the ground. Fortunately Etsy makes it easy and cheap to try it out. The site listing that I picked out previously is currently being sat on by someone and as my husband reminds me, he did tell me to buy it over half a year ago, doh. The Twitter name is gone too, but luckily it was still available on Etsy and I’ve even uploaded my very first item for sale. www.SerendipiT.etsy.com. It’s alive! So, come visit my little slice of homemade heaven and tell all of your friends about it too, who knows maybe someone else will share my love or passion for recycled tshirt stuff and mabye even buy it. While I can’t give up my full or part-time job status any time soon, maybe this will at least buy me a beer. So, I’ll be adding new items as I finish them in my spare (ha ha) time. Sadly, being married to a graphic designer doesn’t actually get your marketing materials completed first in line, so I’m hoping to have some of those available later this year and you know I’ll post more information up as soon as I’ve got picture. Cheers!
Slacker Update: What I’ve been up to and what’s next
I’m taking my final class for my Master’s degree this semester and it’s mid-term exam time again. You may notice that my blogs mysteriously disappear every time a new semester starts. I’m dreaming of the day when I can pass my free time (what’s that?) doing the things that I enjoy like sewing, dreaming up new recycling projects, and enjoying the great outdoors riding either a bike or a snowboard. For now though, those things will have to wait. Fortunately or unfortunately, I am having surgery later this week. I imaging the prolonged bedrest will be good for catching up on sewing though. I have lots of socks to darn, buttons to sew, and a few projects to finish up. If you have any projects/topics you’d like to see me cover in my time down and out, please post up and I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime, I apologize for the delay, but I promise to get busy soon.
Nominated for a Mobbie: Vote for me!
I’m honored to know that my blog has been nominated as one of Maryland’s Outstanding Blogs and the polls are open this week. So, if you like my blog vote for me so that I can have the chance to win fabulous prizes and bragging rights. Thanks!
Baltimore Trash & Recycle: 1+1 = 6.13.09
Baltimore City is going to decrease trash pick-up an increase recycling city wide beginning June 13, 2009. The new One Plus One program means that each neighborhood will now have one trash pick-up and one recycling pick-up each week, which is great news for heavy recyclers like myself. I’m hoping the move will encourage my neighbors to recycle more as well. In Lauraville our new days are Wednesday: Trash and Friday: Recycle
Here’s a press release from the city:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, June 22, 2009
One PLUS ONE is Coming Soon!
Sanitation collection schedules; items to be picked up
Will change starting Monday, July 13, 2009
Public Works Director David E. Scott, P.E., reminds citizens that major changes in trash and recycling collections will take effect starting Monday, July 13, 2009. “This is going to be the biggest change to sanitation collection to take place in Baltimore City in nearly 50 years. This is a challenge to us and to the citizens of Baltimore to make this transition as smooth as possible.”
After Monday, July 13, the Department of Public Works, Bureau of Solid Waste, will begin picking up trash once a week and recycling once a week. Residents will then be limited to setting out three 32-gallon cans of waste on their trash collection day (96 gallons) but they may continue to set out an unlimited amount of recycling on their recycling collection day.
After Monday, July 13th, trash and recycling will be picked up Tuesday through Friday. There will be no trash collection in Baltimore city on Monday, July 13, 2009! Under the new schedule, if a holiday occurs during the week, Saturday will be the automatic make up day. There will be one point of collection for trash and recycling. Residents should set out their recycling where they now set out their trash.
Residents will be able to set out trashcans no later than 6 a.m. and set out waste the night before as long as it’s in a can with a tight-fitting lid. Using trashcans with tight-fitting lids has always been required by law in Baltimore City.
Postcards with the new days of service will be mailed to every address in Baltimore City. Residents can also call 311 or go to baltimorecity.gov or cleanergreenerbaltimore.org to learn their new days of service.
Contact:
Celeste Amato Robert Murrow
Telephone: 410-545-6541 Telephone: 410-545-6189
email: Celeste.Amato@baltimorecity.gov email: Robert.Murrow@baltimorecity.gov
For more inforamation visit the Department of Public Works website or the Cleaner Greener Baltimore website for your specific recycling days.
Quick Update: What I’ve been up to
Hemming jeans, altering t-shirts, mountiain biking, summer concerts, and visiting friends and family have all been keeping me very, very busy. I hope to have some new projects/content up for you soon as I just purchased a great new book by Aimee Ray called Doodle Stitching: Fresh & Fun Embroidery for Beginners
I also have a great new stash of fabric to work with from the clothing swap so stay tuned…
Current Project Books:
Doodle Stitching: Fresh & Fun Embroidery for Beginners
Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirt
My new home: Welcome!
I’ve officially moved from my blogger page to here and I can’t be more excited. I’ll begin posting my new crafty projects here as I complete them, but you can still check out my old tutorials and recycling advice at my old location www.icouldsewdothat.blogspot.com. Please feel free to comment on the new layout and if you have any requests for refashioning or recycling tutorials I’ve got the entire summer free. Welcome!
Lauraville Market Connection
I spy something new in the neighborhood… What was once an abandoned gas station on the corner of my neighborhood in Lauraville (Baltimore City, MD) now appears to be a farmer’s market of sorts. Many developers had plans to turn the area into anything from apartments to a yoga studio, but no one has actually broken ground. Over the last few weeks I noticed that someone had been building raised planters, covering the old parking lot with mulch, and adding a colorful mural to the abandoned white building sitting on the corner lot that reads “Market Connection”. I was walking to my local grocery store and stopped in today, their first open day. The sign indicates that they will be open every Tuesday from 4-8pm. Unfortuantely, there wasn’t anyone providing any information on the market, but a quick dig through the blogosphere when I got home revealed this post “New Weekly Market to Open in Hamilton-Lauraville Area”. The article gives information on how to become a vendor and information about the market. This is exciting for two reasons: 1. perhaps I can start hawking my recycled t-shirt wares and 2. this looks like an interesting blog in its own right. The market was alive with neighbors milling around and checking out the wares ranging from jewelry stands to nurseries selling native plants. I am very excited to have something much more interesting to look at on my corner than an old abandoned gas station, so three cheers for the Tuesday Market Connection! Perhaps I’ll see you there soon.
The Market Connection will be held through October each Tuesday from 4-6pm at 4500 Harford Rd., Baltimore, MD. 21224.
