In the midst of my popping Benadryl capsules, smearing Vicks VapoRub on my nose (Yes, despite the directions on the jar, I have always smeared VapoRub on my nose when I am sick to help me breathe!), sneezing and constant nose-blowing -- I have managed to incorporate another "green" change. It's a small one, but every bit helps, right?

That's right, instead of using one tissue after another during the course of my cold, I have opted to start using handkerchiefs! A hankie can be used many more times than the 2-3 nose-blows possible with a tissue. And, when they have gotten sufficiently "soiled", I can throw them in the wash and use them again and again...and again! It occurred to me that it was a great option that was sitting right under my nose [pun very much intended, LOL] because we had a large quantity of brand new handkerchiefs already in our closet. I had brought them home a couple of years ago and forgot about them -- one of the many things salvaged from the man's daddy's house after he died. Ever the old-fashioned-gentleman, Pop had packs and packs of brand new handkerchiefs -- as well as boxes upon boxes of brand new towels, never-worn shirts, every suit ever bought, every pair of shoes, every scrap of anything, etc. Yeah, he had a hording problem...Anyway, it seemed a shame to just toss them and pointless to donate handkerchiefs, so I thought, "These could be useful..." and took them home.

Now, not only is that usefulness proving to be very true, but the man and I have the added benefit of being able to make jokes about my using "another one of Pop's hankies" every time I blow my nose! I like the idea that he stays in our minds and in our lives, in this simple every-day-way, even though he is gone. I like to think this comforts the man.

Aside from my current cold, I periodically suffer from allergies and frequent sneezing -- I sometimes feel like I am forever blowing my nose. Handkerchiefs are much softer than tissues and better for the environment. I am enjoying them in spite of my nasal misery. So, thanks Pop...You are helping us "be greener" from the grave!


Related posts: Baby Steps Part 1, Baby Steps Part 2.

Labels: blogs, Earth, EcoFriendly, experiments, photos, plans, recycling, web

Today, the cats went green! Yes, it is official, we have switched over to 100% biodegradable, Eco-friendly cat litter. As I mentioned in Part 1 of "Baby Steps Toward A Greener Life", we will be trying out two kinds of litter side by side -- one made with wheat and one made with corn -- both pictured at left.


In terms of color, texture and smell -- they are virtually indistinguishable -- as you can see here -- sorry, we are not a Scratch-N-Sniff blog at this point, so you can't smell. World's Best Cat Litter is in the green box, Swheat Scoop is in the red box. They both smell very natural, like feeds for livestock on a farm. There was certainly a lot less dust when I poured them into the boxes, which was nice! As my Twitter friend, margalit mentioned in the comments of the previous Part 1 post, we have already made note of the fact that World's Best (corn) costs twice as much as Swheat Scoop (wheat). The Swheat Scoop came in a 40lb. bag and the World's Best came in a 17lb. bag which cost almost the same price. Obviously, we will most likely stick with the Swheat Scoop in the future, but for the purpose of evaluation, etc. we are trying both right now. Thus far, the cats have liked (and used!) both boxes without any adjustment problems. Of course, we do have unusually cooperative, well-behaved cats so this does not surprise me too much. And, NO, that is not our bathtub -- we have a second bathroom that is designated as the Cat Bathroom -- where we keep the cat litters in the tub with a shower curtain drawn. This gives them a pleasing amount of privacy, keeps the boxes out of human sight, and more importantly, keeps cat litter from being all over our apartment (because it drops off of their paws as they jump out of the tub). We still use the toilet and sink in there -- which works out fine for everyone -- we just need to vacuum out the tub once or twice a week during our normal apartment cleaning activities...that sounds pretty funny now that I put it in writing...vacuuming out the tub!

Anyway, we are happy about this new transition. The urine appears to clump very well in both types of litter. And, as per Margalit's additional advice, we are not flushing our clumps (even though we do not have a low flush toilet) -- we have old newspapers saved under the bathroom sink -- I use 2-3 sheets of newspaper to scoop litter onto, and then, wrap up the waste into a 100% biodegradable packet that can go out with the trash. So, no more need for the plastic supermarket bags. Great!

Speaking of which, we used our new canvas bags at the supermarket last weekend. People did look at us funny at the registers which amused me, but also made me feel proud (?) in a weird way. In addition, we saved .03 cents per bag used on our grocery bill which is not much, but it still feels like a reward. Maybe this next thing is just a serendipitous coincidence, but I stopped into the supermarket again today -- and they are now selling reusable bags at the registers which were never there before! Were the supermarket managers (or workers) influenced to make this change by seeing us with our bags? Or was it already in the works?? I do not know and I do not need to know -- I am purely excited by the fact that it has happened -- whatever the cause! ;-D


Some other small changes we have implemented...in an effort to reduce the amount of plastic wrap and the number of Ziploc bags we use, we are washing out Ziploc bags and reusing them many times before disposal. Basically, we will be using them until they develop a hole or tear. It is amazing how long these suckers last -- which is why they are a problem in the first place, huh?

We have always had a Brita water filter container in our refrigerator, but we are making an effort to eliminate buying any bottled water when we are out and about. We have saved a few plastic bottles that we fill up at home and take with us rather than buying new ones. The idea of buying water has always been ridiculous -- so this is an easy thing to feel good about from a "saving money" standpoint as well as the plastic and waste issues.


Another recent change...for my intermittent struggle with Starbuck's Mocha Frappuccino addiction...I bought this reusable travel cup which will hold any grande-sized beverage purchased from my local pusher. It is easy enough to take it with me, eliminates the need for all of those wasted disposable plastic cups...AND, I save .10 cents off of my purchase when I bring my own cup! Cool beans, indeed.

We are also making a real effort to recycle properly by making it a more efficient, do-able task. We use the same canvas bags for the supermarket to keep purely recyclable-only items separate from the ones with refund deposits. When it is time to go to the supermarket again, we just grab the canvas bags as usual already filled with our presorts. This makes it very easy to dump the recyclables in the bins outside on the way to the car, and then, we take the deposit refund recyclables with us to the supermarket to get our money back. If we sort as we use and bind the new habit with a well-established habit (going to the store) -- it is much more likely that we will follow through consistently. Plus, it keeps the recycling under control -- nothing is worse than lugging 2-3 months worth of cans and bottles to the supermarket -- at least, until one has children to do that for exercise and spending money! ;-) LOL



Semi-related side note: Twitter friend, cwdaniels made mention of our "Baby Steps" project post on his blog here. Thanks, Wess! You can also read his great post about his own efforts at more sustainable living. Or, check out the rest of his blog at http://gatheringinlight.com for more good reads! :-D

Unrelated side note: Twitter friend, margalit recently went to the hospital for another congestive heart failure incident -- if you would like to send her some kind-thought-vibes via Twitter or her blog at http://outtamymindwithworry.blogspot.com, I am sure she would love to hear from you. She's very kind to strangers... ;-) Feel better, margalit!

Labels: blogs, cat litter, cats, Earth, EcoFriendly, experiments, friends, IdealBite, LivingGreen, pets, photos, plans, recycling, twitter, web

Sorry. I have not been much in the mood for blogging this week. We have been a little bit busy with stuff I will tell you all about another time.

Since the Facial Symmetry Study of Amber Valletta was enjoyed by all, I thought I would show a few more of other famous people. Many of these faces have much more asymmetry...as you will see. Watch out for Meryl Streep -- she's a beautiful lady, but not when it comes to symmetry! And Sarah Jessica Parker's Right-Side Symmetry looks like it could be her transexual brother! As always, comments and suggestions are welcome.


















Photo Credits:

Ray Romano Photo
Photo by Lester Cohen - © WireImage.com - Image courtesy WireImage.com

Sarah Jessica Parker nonTAN Photo
Photo by Steve Granitz - © WireImage.com - Image courtesy WireImage.com

Sarah Jessica Parker TAN Photo
Photo by James Devaney - © WireImage.com - Image courtesy WireImage.com

Tom Cruise Photo
Photo by Lester Cohen - © WireImage.com - Image courtesy WireImage.com

Jerry Seinfeld Photo
Photo by James Devaney - © WireImage.com - Image courtesy WireImage.com

Meryl Streep Photo
Photo by Steve Granitz - © WireImage.com - Image courtesy WireImage.com

Labels: art, asymmetry, experiments, famous faces, funny, hobbies, photos, recreation, studies, symmetry

As a graphic designer, photo editing softwares like Photoshop and Fireworks are a part of my everyday life. But, when I am not using these programs for a design project, I love to edit and manipulate photos purely for the fun of it. I suppose you could call it one of my "hobbies"...

One of my favorite things to do is a Facial Symmetry study. The majority of us have extremely assymetrical features...and, if you have ever done one of these on yourself, you will probably get very disturbing results! Typically, one side (half) of the face reflecting itself to create a "symmetrical whole" will produce a very strange-looking wide head, and the other half becomes a narrower head, or has what I call a "pinched" face. Trust me, generally, it is not very attractive. When I have done my own face in the past, one side produces a cute, wide-eyed and wide-foreheaded, semi-retarded-looking girl and the other side, looks like I was squeezed in a vice as a child...I shall call her "pinhead"!

Not too long ago, I was listening to an NPR or PRI podcast -- and I heard a story regarding the study of facial symmetry and attractiveness. I seem to recall it had something to do with criminals as well, but I have been unable to find the exact story on either website. [Connections between lack of symmetrical features = perceived ugliness = less-liked and fewer opportunities = tendency toward anti-social behavior = crime, etc.?? Something like that...]

Anyway, scientists have been doing variations of these facial symmetry studies, body proportion ratios, genetic health, etc. for a long time. The thing that stuck out to me in this story, is that they mentioned studying the faces of many people, famous and not famous, that were perceived universally by subjects as "beautiful" -- and it always came back to having high symmetry and particular facial size-ratios. The model Amber Valletta was mentioned as having one of the highest measured facial symmetries and almost perfect size-ratios -- and therefore, in the study, she rated very high with subjects on her "perceived" beauty. This got me thinking...it would be interesting to do one of my Facial Symmetry studies on Amber Valletta's face!

I needed to find photos that were as "forward facing" as possible, preferably with a relatively "even" or "neutral" expression. I found three very interesting pictures to work with that I thought would yield interesting artistic results. As I began to work on them, I was truly amazed...I have never seen anything like this...





There is almost no difference between her Left-Side Symmetry and her Normal Front View -- while she does still have some asymmetry (crooked smile, slight nostril difference, etc. which, personally, I think creates her most charming attribute, her impish grin) -- it is so slight that her Left-Side Symmetry could be a post-plastic-surgery "after" photo, displaying a minute nose job correction and right side chin implant. I would say this is her "too perfect" incarnation.

What is even more unusual, is that her Right-Side Symmetry looks completely normal. It does not look as much alike to her Normal View as the Left-Side Symmetry did, but it is still so much like her that it could be a slightly different "twin" sister. Neither one of these symmetries has any hint of being abnormal-looking, like you would expect to see with most faces. Indeed, apart from the "overly perfect" aspect of the exact-mirror symmetry, these women could be triplet sisters with small facial differences. This is incredibly unusual and I am amazed at how these pictures turned out.


These next two groups were very bizarre! I did them purely for the crazy symmetry fun of it -- to see what would happen! She still looks like a beautiful lady, but with some serious...ummmmmmm...birth defects?!? Yikes.





Here is a body series, but again, aside from the weird shadows on the face and the crazy bodies, look at how much the face on the Right-Side Symmetry version still looks very normal!

[ I would recommend clicking on the image to zoom in on the face -- you'll see better how "normal" it looks close up. ]







Photo credits:

Picture #1: Photo by Jeff Vespa/WireImage.com - Image courtesy WireImage.com
http://www.imdb.com/gallery/granitz/0684-mes/valetta2.mbe.html?seq=2

Picture #2: Photo by Raymond Burrows
http://www.lucire.com/2004a/0627ll0.shtml

Picture #3: http://www.luxe.com/Lagerfeld/gallery.htm

Labels: AmberValletta, art, beauty, experiments, favorites, hobbies, pictures, pretty, studies, symmetry

When I first became interested in this whole blogging thing, I was strictly a reader. I tried to start a blog, but did not feel I had the stamina to keep up with it. Growing up, I never kept a journal -- beyond a few isolated entries in notebooks here and there, sometimes years apart. I did write letters to friends pretty often. I guess something of a "journal" was given away in the letters I wrote.

The other problem was a feeling of shyness. Not sure I wanted to blog, to share. It felt weird. So, I gave it up right away.

But today, I was feeling struck by the fact that my entries on this blog, while plentiful, were more often than not, fluffy? Not always. I do try to keep things funny for my own sake. I try to say something, even something silly, or just a notation of something interesting I saw elsewhere, as a time-capsule of "self"...as an exercise in regularity...in sticktoitiveness. To say, "I DO have the stamina!"

I thought back for a moment, back to my few feeble attempts at an anonymous blog. I re-read my few entries (posted and not posted) and felt almost perplexed -- "Who is this person? I wrote that?" And so, I decided to dust one of them off...because I thought it was funny, but also very telling. To those who know me really well, it speaks so innocently and simply, but peculiarly accurately, of the person I am today. What do I mean by this? I see the seeds of my current self in this childhood memory...my creativeness...my joy of feeling chills from spider-like tickling...and my selfish, demanding nature with regard to things being done "properly!"

Early childhood inventions: The Tickling Machine

As a child, I built the following engineering masterpiece:

Using several Tinker Toy sticks, I attached a rubberband to each one, knotted and fitted at the end of each stick - tight enough so that they did not slide off. This formed a loop on the end of each stick by which the individual stick could be hung. A much larger, "master" rubberband was threaded through these loops and looped through itself to tie the grouping off - into a sort of "key chain" of sticks.

I then presented my father with this bouncing windchime of sticks and rubberbands. In addition, I offered my bare 5-year-old back to him and demanded to be tickled with the instrument. My father required extensive training before he mastered the desired effect I had envisioned for the apparatus...namely, chills.

Brrrrrrrrrrr!

Labels: blogging, childhood, experiments, family, funny, memories, reading, recycling

What the hell is that thing on my head? This is my clever method for strapping two icepacks to the back of my head because I had a terrible headache at the base of my skull. After two Excedrins and the addition of my "apparatus", the pain is finally subsiding...and the amusement over how stupid I look is setting in!


[A flood of catty comments from the Peanut Gallery ensues...?]

Labels: blogging, experiments, funny, headaches, photos, Picasa

This is my friends' (Michael and Lori) new baby fetus! Very exciting ;) Looks to me to be the size of a small kitten at this point...since Lori is not very far along at all.

Congrats to my good friends on their evil seed! Can't wait to inspect it for suspicious birthmarks....

love ya, V

Labels: current events, cute, experiments, family, friends, girl stuff, pictures, towhead

For those of you who enjoy XML FEEDS:
I only recently discovered that my "Comments" feeds for Atom and RSS were not working correctly --- they were directed to the regular Post feed, instead of the Comments. This has been rectified! Now you can see what I say in my posts as well as the nasty comments that people leave for me...LOL just kidding :) You are all very nice people!

Wanna Search TBB??
I have added a dandy little Google-powered "Search" field so that you all can search the blog with keywords. As Google continues to crawl the blog pages, this search will get better at finding stuff in the blog (takes time.)

For those of you who enjoy searching by using an INDEX:
I have added a TBB SITE MAP that will provide all my posts in Monthly Archives, Daily Archives with Post Titles and Archives Sorted by Labels....I will try to update this monthly???

Wowsa. And of course, all of these changes have been implemented over at the Daily Lizzard as well. Enjoy! :)

Labels: blogs, code, computers, experiments, learning, lizzard, templates, web

Well, I have been working diligently through the night(s) on my Dell laptop to rewrite the html coding for mine and lizzard's blog...And after mucho, mucho experimentation and mucho, mucho, mucho testing...Eureka! I have created a template that displays well in both IE and Mozilla! This is great news, especially for jackie :)

My next step, since the Macs in the house are all older and we can't afford new ones at this time, is to go to CompUSA and test the blogs on the new Macs there...to see if the template works well in Safari...and, of course, while there, I will lust over the latest and greatest Macs, and cool accessories for my iPod and brand-spanking-new PCs of all kinds --- BECAUSE ALL COMPUTERS ARE CANDY TO ME!! I have a greedy greedy heart when it comes to tech-toys :)

Today is the Super Bowl aka Stupid Bowl --- and I will be rooting for the Bears while teaching the Lizzard to blog over the phone...a long overdue lesson! Soon, I won't have to post things as her anymore, but I'm sure I will probably always be playing a supporting role in the cleaning up of her posts...after she accidentally posts 3 copies of the same photo to her blog or whatever...I guess that is my job as the daughter.

In other news, we got a new frog! Not a new Green, but a new Cuban. His name is Paco. We will post some pictures soon...

Labels: aunt jackie, blogging, code, experiments, frogs, lizzard, mom, Mozilla, pets, templates