Thanksgiving by Edgar Albert Guest

Thanksgiving

(Edgar Albert Guest, 1881-1959)

Gettin’ together to smile an’ rejoice,
An’ eatin’ an’ laughin’ with folks of your choice;
An’ kissin’ the girls an’ declarin’ that they
Are growin more beautiful day after day;
Chattin’ an’ braggin’ a bit with the men,
Buildin’ the old family circle again;
Livin’ the wholesome an’ old-fashioned cheer,
Just for awhile at the end of the year.

Greetings fly fast as we crowd through the door
And under the old roof we gather once more
Just as we did when the youngsters were small;
Mother’s a little bit grayer, that’s all.
Father’s a little bit older, but still
Ready to romp an’ to laugh with a will.
Here we are back at the table again
Tellin’ our stories as women an men.

Bowed are our heads for a moment in prayer;
Oh, but we’re grateful an’ glad to be there.
Home from the east land an’ home from the west,
Home with the folks that are dearest an’ best.
Out of the sham of the cities afar
We’ve come for a time to be just what we are.
Here we can talk of ourselves an’ be frank,
Forgettin’ position an’ station an’ rank.

Give me the end of the year an’ its fun
When most of the plannin’ an’ toilin’ is done;
Bring all the wanderers home to the nest,
Let me sit down with the ones I love best,
Hear the old voices still ringin’ with song,
See the old faces unblemished by wrong,
See the old table with all of its chairs
An I’ll put soul in my Thanksgivin’ prayers.

Green Party!!

Want to party at some swank place, but it’s too far from home base? Want to do a tailgate party without the hassle? Have a bunch of people who want to drink, and no one that wants to drive? Want to spend a long day somewhere, and dread the drive back? Want to a scavenger hunt, but don’t want to send 10 cars out driving around?

That’s okay. Rent a limo-bus!

They can either pick everyone up at home or at some central location. You can party on the bus on the way to the party and on the way home from the party!  If you do your homework and pick the right company they will even help you figure out your party plans.

The cost is extremely reasonable. Many of the companies can offer discounts you won’t find elsewhere because of their relationships with local businesses. This will make your holiday party a lot safer and a much greener option too!

Here in Southwest Florida I recommend First Class Limo Bus! I had a great time going to the casino with a group of friends. The owner is honest, fair, and responsible. They are a great company that I would trust with all my events!

Charity Shopping

Did you know you can do your holiday shopping and donate to charity at the same time? It doesn’t cost extra, and takes very little time to get started. Here are some sites you can use.

• Shop for Charity Now
• Amazon Charity Listings
• We Care

Of course don’t forget that when you shop at second hand stores, you are also supporting charity. Do good, feel good!

Did I miss any shopping for charity that you know of? Let me know!

Is Your Printer Outdated? | 6 Vital Clues

Here are 6 easy ways to know if it’s time to replace your printer.

1. It can only connect through a parallel port. If it doesn’t have USB capability, it’s not up to date.
2. It prints less than 8 pages per minute. You may not need the fastest printer out there, but you would be amazed at the difference between 8 and 20 pages per minute.
3. It’s an inkjet printer that has lasted 3 years. It is sad to say but printers have a built-in obsolescence, and aren’t meant to last past 3 years.
4. It doesn’t meet all of your needs. If your printer doesn’t do all the things that you need it to do, or you have a separate printer, fax, and scanner. You probably need to upgrade to an all in one.
5. It’s an inkjet printer. If you are printing more than 500 pages a month you need to upgrade to a laser printer. The upfront cost may be more, but you will save a ton on ink in the long run!
6. It doesn’t work. If you have a really big paper weight on your hands let’s either get it fixed or get rid of it. No reason to have it if it doesn’t work. You’re working, it should be too!

Do you think your printer is outdated? Need some advice on what to get? Call me 239-481-1272 or email me at amanda@jetscape.com

Want a black and white laser printer? Check out JetScape’s machines.

Green Thanksgiving

I have seen a few blogs on going green this Thanksgiving and most of them mention Tofurky or Vegan meals. I will never ask you to stop eating meat. ( I actually have to eat meat Dr.’s orders ) There are a few things I think are the better ways to go green… and they will actually save you money.

No Red Plastic Cups- if your family is a big as mine, we usually use plastic cups for everyone. Instead ask people to bring a cup of their own (they’re probably bringing a dish any way) or just use your glasses if you have enough. I have taken to traveling with an insulated cup. It keeps my drink cold and I just get it filled up instead of buying plastic bottles or sodas from fast food places.

No Paper/Styrofoam Plates- I know some of you do the formal sit down already, but there are a ton of families that don’t. It honestly isn’t that hard to wash a few plates. Heck just throw them in the dishwasher, it’s more efficient anyway.

Recycle-  everything you can, from soda cans and bottles to the tin pan for the turkey. Try to make sure you have your recycling bins visible as a reminder to everyone to do their part.

Carpool- a little extra time with your family. My mother, father, boyfriend, and I will all ride together to Thanksgiving this year. I happen to think that this is one of the best parts of the holidays.

Eat Out- I know this sounds weird, but if the other things make it tough for you at home, go out to eat. Not just anywhere. Here in Fort Myers we have The Sandy Butler. They are a local market/restaurant. They are serving a beautiful and sustainable meal for Thanksgiving.

Can you think of anything else that can help make your Turkey Day a Green Day?

Ansel Adams

I am a very visual person and I vibrant colors and especially the blues and greens of this planet. So black and white landscape pictures never really interested me, that is until I came across Ansel Adams. Not only was he able to capture nature in black and whites in the most amazing ways, he was also a conservationist. Here are a few examples of his work:

This only scratches the surface of what this man has created. Please do yourself a favor and check out more of his work.

Where do your recycled computers, printers, toners, and cell phones really go?

Technology is ever changing and growing. What is new today, is old hat tomorrow. Americans always want to be on the cutting edge, but what happens to the old technology? Many places have “e-waste” drop off points, and most of us assume that the computer, toner, or cell phone we drop off will be responsibly recycled.

Sadly this is not always the case. Monitors, motherboards, and toner cartridges are extremely difficult to recycle due to lead, mixed materials, and hard plastic parts. Many recyclers have a hard time turning a profit by actually recycling these components due to the extremely technical nature of the process and the equipment that much be used. It is much easier to sell the waste to “recyclers” in China illegally. This just passes the problem to people who are much less equipped to deal with the recycling process.

The town of Guiyu, China seems to be an end of the road for much of this waste. The streets are littered with piles of monitors, toners, cell phones, and other technological waste. The toxins in the land and water are so bad they need to have their water shipped in. The air is leaden with lead and other carcinogens. Those who live here attempt to reclaim the usable materials from some of this e-waste by burning the plastic away causing toxic clouds of smoke and fumes. Children play barefoot on piles of obsolete and broken technology.

How can you help? Instead of recycling, we can all cut down our waste by reusing materials. Find a responsible re-manufacturer for your computers, toner cartridges, and other out of date technology. If you don’t know who re-manufactures your materials, call someone who repairs it. If they don’t take it, they will know where to send you. For those things that cannot be reused, take the time to look at the processes of your recycling plant. Ask your local place for a walk through, or at least do some online research.

You can find a 60 Minutes video and article at http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4586903n. There is also an article with more information from recharger magazine at http://download.101com.com/rec/Cartridge_Solutions4p.pdf

Green Haiku

I’m feeling creative… so here are a couple of haiku about the environment.

the earth moves slowly

the destruction moves too fast

will you do something

land fills overflow

where will all my garbage go

well i just don’t know

nature is perfect

man spoils it all for his gain

the earth will revolt

Do you haiku? Send them to me or, or feel free to post them in the comments!

The Holidays are Coming are You Ready to Save?

The holidays are fast approaching, are you prepared? I’m not. I am notorious for procrastination on everything I need to do in my personal life. This year will be different though…

I have decided to make a green effort this year, and save some money while I’m at it. This will take more time than I customarily spend purchasing gifts, so I can find that “perfect” gift in a greener way.

Here are some of my ideas

• eBay – Everything (used of course)
• Second Hand Stores – furniture, materials, toys, unique gifts, tree
• Pawn Shops – jewelry, electronics, music, games
• Home Made -  picture frames, furniture (only attempt furniture if you’re handy.
• Creative – cards, take pictures, make movies

eBay has a great selection of barely used items. Some of the things I’m looking at are electronics and cell phones. There are people in my life who would be ecstatic to get an almost new middle of the road Blackberry or a used PS3. (We are a simple folk) By buying used from eBay we keep unwanted stuff from going in the landfill and keep the original manufacturers from making new stuff when there is plenty already on the market. (They also have an eco and fairtrade section)

Second hand stores are great too. Just in Fort Myers, FL there are 1,617. They carry toys, books, televisions, furniture, games, clothes, and much more. Just look closely at what you are purchasing to make sure there are no defects or issues with it. You will have to spend more time searching the store for what you are looking for than you would in a retail store, but it’s better for the environment. Most second hand stores are also tied to charities so you’ll be doing three good deeds at once! Want to see whats out there? Check out Miss Mustard Seed’s Favorite Finds

Pawn Shops are no longer the seedy place downtown (ok well there are those too). There are many pawn shops now that look like jewlry stores when you go inside. They have the same jewlry that the mall store has for as little as 25% of the price. My favorite in Fort Myers is Gulf Coast Jewelry and Loan. They are a top notch facility and they do great repairs too.  Some of the other things you can get at pawn shops are instruments, guns, and video game systems.

Picture frames are pretty simple to make, and bookcases aren’t too bad either. Just make sure you have everything you need when you start, it can be maddening to go to the store for nails three times.

I never realized the impact something simple and creative (free even) could have until my mother’s birthday this year. I was told not to spend any money on her. It’s against my grain to not get her anything for her birthday, so I made her a movie. I grabbed windows movie maker (1st time I ever opened the program), took a bunch of childhood photo’s, and a touching song and made a movie. She loved it. She cried, I cried, my aunt cried. It was really neat for both of us, and because I sent it to her on Facebook she was able to easily share it with her friends.

What is on your go green holiday list? Anyplace I missed? What do you think?

Trash Art

Ok I was digging around on the internet today looking for interesting uses for trash. (ok that didn’t sound normal) I discovered a site called Environmental Graffiti. It is a very visual blog with many astounding pictures and a sense of humor. I highly suggest you dig around over there for a while!

My favorite post was Incredible Shadow Art Created from Junk. This post is about Tim Noble and Sue Webster who are known for pushing the envelope in art. They are currently turning piles of trash into extremely intricate shadow art. Like this:

Image: pashasha

I was honestly astounded by the intricacy of their work and there is more of it over on Environmental Graffiti, just remember this is the “tamest” piece that was featured.