environment poll (kinda GISR, kinda not)

Nebb · August 2009

1) Its summer, its hot - AC or no? How do you beat the heat? 2) Do you garden or grow your own veggies/herbs? 3) Do you compost or does your area have a composting program? 4) Have you noticed, over the years, a change in your areas weather patterns? 5) Do you buy local from farmers markets or do you prefer grocery store produce, any reason why? 6) Do you pay attention to your carbon footprint, how have you tried to reduce it?

hunniapple · August 2009

1) I don't leave it on during the day when I am not home, but I live in a high rise and it gets SOOOOO hot in there...I gotta turn it on or I will die.2) FI's family does and we will when we buy a house but the aforementioned highrise condo building isn't really conducive to this3) I would if I had a garden to use it in but I just use the garbage disposal...4) Crazy rainy summer in New England!5) Whatever FI's family grows in the garden obviously we eat first. Then usually it's the super market - farmers' markets cost too much money but I will get some things once in a while6) Of COURSE!!! I recycle whatever I can - if I can carry what I am buying out of the store by myself without a bag, I do. I make sure to turn off all the electricity, take the subway, etc.

dvshaw · August 2009

1) Its summer, its hot - AC or no? How do you beat the heat? AC, yes. GA is way too hot. 2) Do you garden or grow your own veggies/herbs? Veggies, yes. Tomatoes, squash, cucumber, peppers. 3) Do you compost or does your area have a composting program? No. 4) Have you noticed, over the years, a change in your areas weather patterns? Haven't lived here long enough to really comment. But we got a ridiculous amount of rain this year, along with the whole east coast. 5) Do you buy local from farmers markets or do you prefer grocery store produce, any reason why? Farmers market! Cheaper and way tastier fruits and veggies. Also helps me stay away from processed foods (cookies, crackers, etc) 6) Do you pay attention to your carbon footprint, how have you tried to reduce it? Not as much as I should.

Nebb · August 2009

1) We only really use the AC on humid days, which we havnt had many of this year. We have a lot of ceiling fans though so they are on high when the AC is off. 2) Just started gardening this year - some veggies and herbs 3) My city offers a green bin program - all compostable items (food, paper towels, a whole list of things) can be put in biodegradable bags in a small in house bin they provide and then with the weekly garbage pick up you have a larger green bin for on the curb. I think its a great program. 4) The winters are definitely shorter and milder, and so far this summer it has been very cool and rainy. Very weird! 5) Ive started buying my produce locally since april or so, 20$ a week gets me a lot of food. I dont know how this will work in the winter though, so I will probably start getting veggies at the grocery store in the winter so I still get a good selection 6) We have cloth bags we keep in the car for grocery trips, dont keep the AC too low when it is turned on, keep lights off (and have switched to compact florescent). We are considering getting a a hybrid or electric car next year - we just found out the government is offering a 10000$ rebate on specific electric cars next year so it is something we definitely want to look into.

exictedbride · August 2009

1. No AC. When it does get hot I just go shopping or drink a lot of cool liquids.2. We live in an apartment, but we have 3 tomato plants, a strawberry plant, a bell pepper plant, and some dwarf citrus trees on our patio.3. No and no.4. There really hasn't been a notable change. Winters have been colder and snowier and this summer has been much cooler than the last couple years...way below average. 5. We get fruits and veggies from the farmers' market as much as possible. I like supporting the local economy and the quality is amazing.6. Honestly, not really. We recycle and turn off things that we are not using, but we really don't actively watch our carbon footprint.

spainerk · August 2009

1. I live in MA and we just had summer start last week. For some reason it has been cold and rainy up until then. So, we had been using one fan until we put the A/C unit in (only in our bedroom) last week. We open the basement door so that our furry dog can hang out there during the day. 2. We are renting so we didn't plant any veggies. We do have about 15-20 pots on the deck full of all different kinds of herbs and peppers (thai, jalapeno, etc). Our neighbor did give us two heirloom tomato plants so we planted those on the side of the house and they are doing great!! 3. We give our grass and compost to our neighbor that uses it for his garden. 4. This year was ridiculously wet. I swear it rained every day. Under the climate report released this past spring, it did mention that the Northeast was supposed to start to get more and more rain- affecting cranberries, maple syrup, etc. We have only lived in MA for a year.....5. We do a local CSA. Unfortunately b/c of all of the rain the fruits and veggies haven't been spectacular but we do get 6 months of food for only $550!!!6. I have a Prius. We make sure all lights are out if we are not in the room. I unplug appliances/ chargers if they are not being used. I drive to the closest commuter bus stop and use that to get to work. I use cold water for laundry. We bring fabric bags to the grocery store. We bring glass, plastic, aluminum cans, paper, cardboard, newspaper, tin cans, etc. to the transfer station for recycling- usually twice a month.

annakatebride · August 2009

1) AC because of FI. If it was up to me I'd deal without it until it was 90 degrees out. As it is I have it set for 76 or 77 degrees and he always turns it down to 74 or below. Drives me bananas. :)2) We live in an apt so we're a little limited, but I do have two pots outside our door with rosemary, oregano, cilantro, and basil. 3) No compost... I'd like to once we have a backyard though.4) I've moved too many times to notice any changes!5) Local as much as I can. I don't mind grocery store produce, but look for where things are grown as much as possible. The closer it is the more likely I am to buy it. And I don't buy any greens from a bag like lettuce, it grosses me out for some reason.6) I do pay attention, but I don't know how good I am at reducing it. I have to travel a lot for work, so that makes it large. I only live two miles from work though, so my drive is very short. I'm thinking that next summer I'll get a bike and ride to work instead of drive.

spuccio · August 2009

1. No AC. We work all day in AC. Sleep with fans on and don't cuddle when its hot (FI is a radiator)2. We love to garden. Lots of flowers, shrubs. Lots of herbs: chives, oregano, mint, sage, rosemary, basil, and thyme. Yum. Also growing eggplant, tomato, squash, jalapeno peppers.3. We dont have the space to compost, but when we move we want to build a system like my mom and dads--HUGE.4. Yes, definitely. New England winters aren't nearly as scary as they used to be. Which is sad bc I love skiing and snow.5. We buy lots of fresh local fruit and veggies. It supports the local economy and is a thousand times better than grocery store veggies. 6. We pay a lot of attention to it. We are a one car family and get good mileage. We buy friendly light bulbs, use fabric shopping bags, minimize water usage, and try to support eco and labor friendly businesses. Our wedding is green, too: i am wearing an eco couture gown made with organic and vegetable dyed silk, we are serving local wine beer and dinner, i am making reusable favors, and lot of other things.

Nebb · August 2009

Spuccio, that is so awesome about the green wedding! I wish our wedding had of been more green (though all of our containers for everything were recycled jars - mason jars for flowers, etc. Centerpieces were potted plants for guests to take home, etc).

spuccio · August 2009

THanks! It has been fun to plan, and not really as hard or crazy as some would have it out to be.Honestly, people sometimes get this notion that being eco friendly is an all or nothing deal: you get visions of guests eating raw seaweed or being forced to suck down a vegan cake (not that there is anything wrong with that of course).The dress was a big one, of course. Favors are reusable. We grew and are arranging our own local seasonal flowers. Centerpieces are local flowers in used mason jars. Invitations on recycled paper. It doesnt have to be expensive either: our DIY invites came to 1.20 per invitation plus postage. It isnt a perfectly neutral wedding, but every bit helps.

kmarsh85 · August 2009

1) Its summer, its hot - AC or no? How do you beat the heat? A/C is on from when I get home at night until I leave in the morning, but then it's off.2) Do you garden or grow your own veggies/herbs? If I had a yard I would have a garden! FI grows herbs for me, though!3) Do you compost or does your area have a composting program? I wish they had one!4) Have you noticed, over the years, a change in your area's weather patterns? I'm still pretty new to Atlanta, so I'll speak for Florida. When I was younger it would rain every afternoon from June until September. Usually only for 15-30 minutes. It stopped doing that when I was in high school.5) Do you buy local from farmers markets or do you prefer grocery store produce, any reason why? I love farmer's markets! I finally just found one near where I live! They're cheap and they support the local economy.6) Do you pay attention to your carbon footprint, how have you tried to reduce it?I try to reduce it as much as I can at the moment: recycle everything that can be (paper, plastic, glass, clothes, etc), use compact fluorescent lightbulbs, keep my showers short and sweet, don't drive to work and run all my errands at the same time....

environment poll (kinda GISR, kinda not)

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