Image: Greenpeace, flickr

Remember sponges from the phylum Porifera in biology class? If you were a science geek like me you remember the collar cells with the flagella pulling water in and filtering it as it passes through the sponge! What a marvelous invention to naturally clean the water for many varieties of tropical fish and other organisms. And now scientists are reporting that huge sponges are coming back and getting the job done even as coral reefs die.

The decline in coral reefs along the reef tracts of the Caribbean and the Florida Keys has resulted in a competition between barrel sponges and macroalgaes (seaweed).  Although the seaweed is food for some fish it doesn’t live long. However, the barrel sponges, some the size of 50 gallon drums, filter out about 100 times their own volume every hour according to researchers in the Florida Keys. That is some serious water cleaning and that improves the environment for the underwater ecosystem..

The Aquarius Underwater Laboratory, owned by NOAA off Key Largo regularly houses scientists for 10 days at a time, 60 feet below the surface. There they can measure activity for long periods of time and observe what is happening to the reef. The barrel sponges start out about the size of thimbles and grow into large barrel- type organisms.

This is encouraging news. even though reefs are declining, for unknown or not fully understood reasons, the healthy sponge colony and the sponge’s filter-feeding seem to be improving the water quality for the fisheries around the reefs.

Great Blue Heron- A Powerbird

The tall, long-legged great blue heron is the most common and largest of North American herons.

I first became familiar with Great Blue Herons when I moved to the Champlain Islands of Vermont. We soon noticed large, prehistoric-looking birds, with long necks cocked back, flying past in the wind several times a day. Although ungainly looking in the air the birds are magnificent to watch on the ground. Great Blue Herons are waders, typically seen along coastlines, in marshes, or near the shores of ponds or streams and they are expert fishers. (more…)

Recently my summer came home during spring break. There were lots of adventures to report that’s another story! Anyway, like most college kids, he is on a very different schedule than the grown ups… Anyone living under the same roof with the college sub-species knows what I am talking about. They stay up late, texting, playing soccer and hoops, gaming, and of course eating.

What does this have to do with my sustainable living blog? We have become accustomed to switching off the power strips on the TVs, sound systems, computers, and other appliances in the house when he is away at school. This is done not only to keep carbon out of the air by reducing our electricity load but it also saves about $20 a month on our electric bill! But when Joe College is home, and he is gaming, online and watching bad TV, all of those electronic devices are still pulling power, into the wee hours. Since the adults are early risers, there is not much down time, even if he switches off the power strips when e finally goes to bed for the night.

My somewhat obsessive subconscious was lamenting this conundrum and then it dawned on me: What if we plugged our electronics into “Smart Strips”? Smart Strips are the kind of power strips that automatically shut off energy hog appliances that are continually drawing power, while allowing some appliances that need continuous power, such as the house phone, to stay “on”? Now THAT would allow electronics to turn on when needed, and automatically off when not in use. AND the Smart Strip would pay for itself in a month or two! As utility rates continue to rise, Smart Strips will be everywhere.

Is that enough reason to buy smart strips for your house? If not, here are is one more reason. We are giving $5 from the sale of every Smart Strip power strip sold in Vermont to the Vermont Foodbank to help support cold and hungry people!

Excuse me, I need to go now and order a bunch of those Smart Strips from my wholesaler. We are having a run on them! By the way, you can buy Smart Strips right here! Do you have Smart Strips in your house and if so, how do you like them?

I spotted this monarch in late August warming in the sun on a misty morning in a meadow.

Monarch butterflies fly 2500 miles to migrate out of the cold. The milkweed leaves they eat as caterpillars have a chemical that builds up in their bodies and the butterflies are poisonous to predators like frogs, birds, mice and lizards. Increasing development has led to destruction of milkweeds and lack of habitat for monarchs. Conservationists are trying to restore monarch milkweek habitat before it’s too late. The males and females look alike except for dots that the males have over veins on the wing. The dots secrete pheromones to attract girlfriends. Can you tell which sex this one is?

Monarch Butterfly Migration 2006, PenOpticon, youtube

More information is available here. If you enjoy the outdoors be sure and check out our outdoors products. We offer the very best green products and we support cold and hungry people. Find our products like solar chargers, wind up lights, green coffee makers and nature games here.

Check out a great book on Monarchs here:

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This Ain’t No Ordinary Cup A Joe! And it’s green!

Are you a coffee lover? Listen to this:

“The AeroPress coffee maker is the best coffee maker I’ve ever owned.” Another user says, “It makes the best cup of coffee I’ve tasted in my entire life.”  and  still another commendation: “I have achieved coffee nirvana.” And the citations go on and on! The AeroPress is greener because it only needs energy to heat the water, it uses tiny filters which compost easily, and it uses very little water for cleanup. When we heard this portable little coffee and espresso maker was so popular we had to buy one and do our own review.

Donna found it easy to use, green, easy to clean up and best of all, it produced incredible coffee. We will use this in our kitchen, in the shop, at the office and on the trail. It even comes with it’s own carrying pouch! Check out our homegrown video to see how it works and then buy one here at LoveEarthAlways! Best of all, get 25% off during our summer sale through September 21st. Use coupon code Summer2010 at checkout.

Video: LoveEarthAlways, youtube

Weight Loss Made Easy- No Kidding

Image: State Library of New South Wales collection, flickr

I’m so skinny when I turn sideways I disappear!  I am so thin that I have to run around in the shower to get wet! But seriously, I am one of those people who , up until a couple of years ago, always had trouble gaining weight. So I am not a shining example of of “this is how I did it, now you can to!” and “follow my example and you can be a freak like me” credibility. That being said, I have run 3 or more days a week  and continuously enjoyed all kinds of outdoor sports all of my life. And if I miss a couple of days of activity now, I notice it around my belly.  So even though I don’t have the same weight-management challenge as many do, I have learned keeping fit is all about balancing the food intake with the calorie burning. And most Americans have a different metabolism than me. I have known many people who struggle with weight management and I have seen what has worked for them.

Losing weight for many people is obviously a daunting task. But if we break it down to some easier steps it becomes more doable. If you work at this over time, you will see rewards. Here are some tips that can help you stabilize and lose excess weight. (more…)

Do you have a favorite spot you long to go to be with nature? Away from the bustle? I know a place you can go to be alone or with a friend. There will be wildlife, incredible light, soft sounds, sometimes a stiff wind and big waves. Check it out. I think you will like it.

Video, LoveEarthAlways, youtube, August 15, 2010

Green Home Design and Energy Efficient Products For a Healthier Tomorrow

The Vermont Green Home & Living Show, a sustainable living fair, which will be held January 21- 23, 2011 in Essex Junction, Vermont  is calling for presenters and exhibitors. The two and a half day event will bring together local organizations and businesses that have an interest in improving the environment with alternative energy, energy efficiency, sustainable food, local products and green services.

We are looking for experts in the sustainable living community to present workshops to help educate others and exhibitors who would like to showcase their products, services and opportunities to thousands of people in the middle of next winter! We also expect acoustic music performers and local food samples!

If you think you might be interested in exhibiting, my advice is let us know immediately. Space is limited for this show and we expect it to fill up quickly. Simply email Glenn with questions and we can get information out to you asap.

The event is sponsored by us, LoveEarthAlways.com and yes we will be there, showing off our products, giving things away and selling our cool goodies at cost!

One of the beautiful things about summer is enjoying a bounty of fresh veggies that transform dinners into masterpieces at our house. This dinner is one we dream about all winter. Fresh juicy sweet tomatoes and onions, fresh basil and garlic at their peak flavors. Hmmmm. When our CSA order came in with 4 ripe tomatoes and sweet onions, together with our homegrown garlic and basil I knew we had an opportunity to make one of my favorites: pasta primavera with fresh vegetables. This is a 15 minute dinner with a million-dollar taste. The only choice we had to make was, which pasta would be best? Here is the recipe that was perfect for the 2 of us.

The Ingredients:

2 medium-large ripe tomatoes chopped, with juice

1/2 large sweet onion cubed into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces

3 chopped fresh basil leaves

1 splash of red wine

3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1 8 ounce can tomato paste

2/3 pound of dry pasta of your choice (or use fresh if you have it)

The Recipe:Boil water for pasta and cook according to instructions.Saute garlic and onions in olive oil. As soon as they soften, add basil, wine, and stir. Then add tomatoes, stirring and let simmer for 5 minutes. Add tomato paste, stir well, and simmer for 5 – 10 minutes until the pasta is done to your liking.  Drain pasta. Add sauce over pasta and I cheat and sprinkle Parmesan cheese to taste.

I am hungry just thinking about it.  Please try it and let us know what you think. If you like this recipe be sure to see our LoveEarthAlways foodies category for more.

Photo by The Breeze

After hearing first hand accounts of Champ, the Lake Champlain monster from eyewitnesses I finally had my own close encounter with the Lake Champlain Monster. There I was swimming in the water at Rosetti Park Beach in Colchester, at the end of another sweltering 80 degree day on Friday August 13th. The water was even warm as the red sun sank lower towards the horizon over the Adirondack Mountains. By then all of the boats had pulled anchor and moved on to other destinations. As I broke the surface and gasped for air I saw a an unusual shape a hundred yards or so away. I wiped the water out of my eyes and looked again. It was moving. By now I was moving too, towards the shoreline, as fast as I could go.

I quickly dried off my hands, grabbed my trusty camera and wheeled around in time to see what appeared to be a large serpent-headed beast moving from right to left at a steady speed. As a photographer this is the kind of situation where your hands can’t seem to move fast enough. Turning it on, finding it in the viewfinder, adjusting the focus, these are all actions that take only seconds yet why did it seem to be taking minutes?

I was lucky enough to get one good shot of it before it submerged again. Few of the half-dozen people on the beach even noticed. Someone asked, “What was that?”  ”Just Champ,” I answered with a shrug, knowing I had my once in a lifetime picture.

Editorial note: This is the third or fourth article we have published on Champ, the Lake Champlain Monster. For those who believe in the existence of Champ, along with the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus and Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, please stop reading here and move on to our Activities and Events Page. For those who have their doubts about Champ, please see the disclaimer (*) in the comments section below.