My Hobby Room

Go Green--Urbane Farms & Gardens Tour 2009

2009-06-21T20:15:00.000-07:00

It is nice to live in an urban area where gardening and farming is alive. I just received a copy of a bulletin detailing the 2009 Kansas City Urbane Farms & Gardens Tour to be held Sunday, June 28, 2009 from 10AM-5PM. http://urbanfarmstourkc.com/

"Food from the City, For the City" was chosen to introduce the idea that growing food is happening and should be happening in our neighborhoods. The idea of making our cities more beautiful with productive gardens and farms and our ability to use gardening to lower food costs, provide income, raise property values, and reduce crime is a theme for this year's garden tour.

Empty lots are changed to green areas and rain water is captured before running into our sewer system. Gardening provides therapy in times of stress and teach life lessons in love, caring, and responsibility.

Farms and gardens are well described in this bulletin. Many are tied into school systems for youth education. Important ideas on ecology and environment are being taught. They are located in both Missouri and in Kansas.

The following website is given for more information: http://urbanfarmstourkc.com/

SEE YOU THERE!!!!

Go Green--Prairie Fire Magazine review

2009-06-03T10:28:00.000-07:00

Prairie Fire--On environmental issues

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

Being retired, tired, and feeling unemployed I sometimes miss the turn in the road and have to backtrack. This trip was no exception and the car turned into a museum area near Plattsmouth, Nebraska. The museum was dedicated to the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Excellent presentations on the animals and flora discovered on the trip as well as models of the keelboat used to navigate the Missouri River were key attractions.

I discovered an excellent environmental resource on the free magazine rack located by the front door of a museum dedicated to the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

On the cover of the magazine, "Prairie Fire, The Progressive Voice of the Great Plains" there is an illustration of a man standing on a trash can juggling tin cans, old bottles and trash. An article by Joel Sartore (Nebraska resident and a photographer for National Geographic Magazine and contributor to national news broadcasts) entitled "Wasteful consumption" seemed promising.

The ideal that we throw away too much stuff is one I agree with. Joel Sartore shares his observations on his foreign experience. Mexican families searching the town dump for food, families in Brazil living in cardboard shacks without running water are just two observations.

I can add my observation about life in Central America where the family business may consist of going from house to house to buy old catchup and wine bottles to recycle. Nothing is wasted that can be used again.

Sartore adds that many countries want to live like Americans but it is a dead-end road. It would take 2.5 more planets to supply the resources needed for the rest of the world to copy American consumption! The following quote from the article is impressive:

"It just can't happen, but everyone is trying, much to the detriment of the earth's last great forests, grasslaqnds, oceans, and precious few wild spaces. In short, as resources dwindle, really big compromises in the way we live will be necessary."

I would add my observation to the efforts of large paper container companies like the "Stone Container Company" who have traveled as far as Central America because they have been denied permission to cut down our giant trees in the USA. Trees are Green but Money is sometimes greener. Fortunately some countries have turned them away and the tropical rain forests have been saved for the time being as no workable plan for reforestation is available.

Joel Sartore goes on to suggest solutions to our mass consumption by listing three words: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. We can make less purchases, we can reuse old furniture by passing it on to someone who needs it, we can recycle but it is the last resort as anything is better than throwing something away.

Joel suggests donating many of the household items we normally throw away to organizations like Catholic Social Services, Disabled American Veterans, Goodwill, and the Salvation Army.

Picking up "Prairie Fire" for just this one article was well worth the missed turn in the road. The web address is www.prairiefirenewspaper.com for your information and I hope to continue this blog at a later date talking about some of the other interesting news articles and how they fit with Going Green.

Go Green--A Model Educator

2009-04-26T19:57:00.000-07:00

Being Retired, Tired, and feeling unemployed I was happy to receive my May/June AARP magazine in the mail. The information in the magazine articles has more than paid for itself over the years. This issue was filled with a gold mine of information. 50 ways to save cash Now! A survey of America's Top Hospitals, Travel get-a-ways on one tank of gas, some neat memory tricks, and articles from some celebrities like Dolly Parton and Maria Shriver.

The article that really caught my eye was "The Power of Elder Wisdom." In this day and age who can't use a little help from experienced elders and what does this do with going green?

The picture of Diane Green on page 54 caught my attention. Her work at the University of Idaho and Washington State University would make a good model for other Universities . After teaching a university farming course she was moved to start Cultivating Success, a summer program where student apprentices learn on her organic farm in Sandpoint, Idaho. In this way, Diane Green has passed on her knowledge and hopes to influence a new generation of farmers.

A quick Google search took me to Diane Green's website at http://www.greentreenaturals.com. The website is filled with information on the mission statement of the farm and the summer program. This advise is directly from Diane Green's website:

"The large farms across the country are slowly being lost to over-production and high land taxes. It is the small acreage organic farm that will be the wave of the future. Populations all over the world rely on local farms for fresh produce. In this country, most of the food we eat comes from many miles away and the connection between the farmer and the consumer has been lost. We hope to educate our communities of the importance of supporting the local small acreage farmers and market gardeners and encourage others to do the same."

The acreage used in the production of organic farm crops has increased since 1995. The USDA Economic Research Service shows a growth in organic acreage in the production of corn (+67.7%), wheat (53.1%), oats(56.1%), while barley(-6.3%) and rice(-1.6%) saw small declines. Since 2000 the acreage used in organic vegetables increased 77.9% with organic fruit leading the list with a whopping 123.7%!

Thanks to educators like Diane Green this trend in going green will continue.

Go Green Food Statistics

2009-04-22T21:30:00.000-07:00

Being Retired, Tired, and feeling unemployed I dug into a reference book at our local Public Library and I found some interesting statistics from the USDA Economic Research Service showing the trend we have taken since 1970 on our Per Capita consumption of Green and healthy foods.

1. Broccoli consumption increased from 0.5 lbs to 5.7 lbs. in 2006 (1,040% growth)
2. Onion consumption went from 9.5 lbs to 18.6 lbs in 2006 (95.8% growth)
3. Tomato consumption went from 10.3 to 16.9 lbs in 2006 (64.1% growth)

It is interesting to note that celery (-16.2%) and potato (-39.6%) lost in the race to go green. Canned vegetables use was down -5.8% while frozen vegetable consumption jumped to +70%.

Fresh fruit consumption was up with avocados leading the peck +700% strawberries are closing the gap (+250%).

Beverage consumption saw coffee (-26.9%) and distilled spirits (-22.2) while fruit juice (+49.1), beer (+16.8%), and wine (+76.9%) saw gains in consumption.

It wold appear that consumers are making healthy choices by adding Green Foods to their diets.

Let us hope this trend continues as we live in a time when obesity and health problems associated with obesity are at an all time high.

Go Green--Food vs Health

2009-04-22T18:37:00.000-07:00

Being Retired, Tired, and feeling unemployed I have been spending some time preparing the garden for spring planting. This year I will be using straw bales as a planting media to avoid leaving a large carbon footprint emitting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. I would like to also talk about the benefits of going green on health and wellness.

The other day i walked into one of our community resources, the Public Library, and was impressed with a free magazine article in the April 2009 Tastebud. The Magazine if filled with gardening articles, adds for local restaurants, and coming events.

I was impressed with an article "Make leafy greens part of your diet."

The important part of this article lists the benefits gained from going green:

1, gain life energy
2. prevent cancer
3. cut down on joint inflammation
4. help your immune system
5. feel mentally well and avoid depression
6. remove drug or toxin from your body
7. improve circulation
8. add antiseptic benefits
9. take advantage of anti-radiation benefits
10 improve digestive enzymes
11. add trace minerals
12. purify blood
13. promote healthy intestinal flora
14. improve liver, gall bladder and kidney function
15. clear up congestion
16. strengthen lung and respiratory system
17. prevent osteoporosis

Going Green appears to be the way to go!

You can contact the author of the article at her website www.healthfulelements.com for further information on going green with food.

Our local community is full of resources to help us meet this goal. Every Thursday there is a class at the Community Garden. Good information for the beginning gardener and the advanced gardener is readily available. This past Thursday the director of the center demonstrated planting potatoes in the Community Garden demonstration plot. He had waited until after all danger of frost as many gardeners in the area plant on St. Patric's day and saw their crop freeze to the ground. The Community Garden center also sells plants grown in the greenhouse and I am eagerly awaiting the new tomato plants due to come out the last week in April.

I have plans to add green bell peppers to my straw bails and to continue planting greens in my container gardening venture. This year I will try cucumber plants in one bale letting them fall over the side of the bale and run around the bale. Marigold flowers will help serve as bug control throughout the garden.

I await any suggestions from other Green Growth gardeners and invite them to Google me at myhobbyroom.blogspot.com to see other blogs on this topic.

Gardening events....Going Green

2009-04-22T14:03:00.000-07:00

Being Retired, Tired, and feeling unemployed I was checking out some local resources for improving my garden this Spring. I found the following two events in one of our local magazines that I picked up at the Public Library:

I can drop by the Wornall House and Museum on Saturday, April 25 from 9 a.m. until sold out and buy herb and wildflower plants for the garden. (6115 Wornall Rd., Kansas City, MO).
There is a Citywide Plant and Seed Exchange on Saturday, May 9, from 9 a.m. until noon at the Anita B. Gorman Conservation Discovery Center. (4750 Troost, Kansas City, Mo)

The sale of herbs will be a good way to add new plants to our upstairs patio garden which is starting to complain about the lack of sun inside the house. We will start to move the small trees outside sometime in May after all danger of cold weather is over. The article mentions the benefits of herb gardening with over 15 million U.S. households having some form of herb gardening. Maybe it has become popular as households in lofts, apartments or houses with small backyards can easily garden in containers or limited sunny space. Estimated spending on this type of gardening is around $400 million. (I am looking forward to spending part of my Saturday morning picking out some new herbs for the garden and looking at an old historical house dating back to the Civil War.)

The Plant exchange should be interesting to attend also. Local gardeners will have some of their extra plants for trade or sale as well as seeds, bulbs, tubers, and cuttings. The Conservation Discovery Center is also one those neat local resources with a small lobby for book sales and rooms set up for meetings and for educational fieldtrips. Mo fishing licenses are also on sale and with Spring finally in the air I will check to see if I need to renew mine. I have been checking out the fishing gear lately and dusting off the tent. When one is retired, tired, and feeling unemployed the fish had better watch out!

Reducing my Carbon Footprint--A Plan for the Future

2009-04-20T15:09:00.000-07:00

Being Retired, Tired, and feeling unemployed I often take advantage of local resources like the Kansas City Public Library. Besides the shelves full of books, the extensive magazine reading area, and computer resources there are many free magazines to stuff into my book bag and scan through at home.

My eyes caught Tastebud Magazine , Kansas City's guide to food, drink, places and people. The April 2009 issue was green with a cover vegetable, asparagus. The magazine was full of recipes, adds and information on local grown agricultural products, places to buy garden supplies, a nice article on a must see local garden (Powell Gardens) , and enticing restaurant adds.

Then I noticed and article by Nichole Burnett, the Family and Consumer Sciences Agent at the KSU Research & Extension, Johnson county Office. The article was full of tips on how to reduce our carbon footprints in our homes and kitchens. I decided to put my lifestyle to the test as Nichole stated everything from travel and electricity to the food we eat affects the carbon footprint we leave behind.

1. My first measurement on this new carbon diet was to examine my use of the car to make trips to the store during the week. Since gas consumption affects carbon emissions I suddenly realized that I need to plan my trips and shopping in advance. I fear I did not do too good as I am quick to jump in the car and drive to the store or to a restaurant to eat out many times during the week. I would have to give myself at least a D- on the grading scale.

2. Nicole cites the University of Arizona Garbage Project which has found that Americans throw away 1.3 pounds of food a day or 474.5 pounds a year. I did a little better on this as my garbage from the kitchen goes out every two weeks or so and is mostly paper and container garbage. Maybe I could be a little more careful in preparing my vegetables as parts cut off could still be used. I would probably get at least a B on the grading scale.

3. Since most of my garbage is made up of packaging and non biodegradable wrapping as well as paper I could not say I follow Nicole's advice on selection of packaging and use of paper products like paper towels. Again, after careful consideration there is a lot of room for improvement and the score is D/C (giving myself the benefit of the doubt as there are a few sponges in the kitchen to take the place of paper towels).

4. "Buy local-Think Global" in the market was another piece of good advice. I do shop for groceries in our local City Market several times a month. However, many of the products may have trucked in from California or Canada or Mexico and often even the local produce vendors on Saturday and Sunday have bought from some of the vegetable wholesalers. I even asked a vendor what he thought of the recent drought in California and how it would affect food prices in the coming months. There was lots of experience in his 70 to 80 years of life as he mentioned how years ago there was plenty of water in California and a lot of it in drought conditions was taken from the sea and salt removed to use as water for truck farms. I can probably give myself at least a B for just shopping in a local market.

I don't think I can brag about the score! I will leave it to you to read Nicole's other hints and thank her for the hints on how I can do my part in acting local but thinking global.

SO........

IN 2004 THE USA WAS RANKED NUMBER 10 IN CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS PER CAPITA AND NUMBER 14 BY GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.

In 1998 the USA signed the Koyoto Protocol with no intention of ratifying the commitment to reduce the major four greenhouse gasses causing Global Warming. In my experience the USA is one large country but 50 small ones make up the whole. Ratification would have to be fought for in a State by State campaign and local laws changed to cover all factory emissions and carbon emissions. (I base this observation on what has happened with the United Nations treaty on the Rights of the Child which leaves only two countries not ratifying, USA and the lawless country Somalia in Africa.)

At the present rate of Global Warming our green planet Earth can look forward to Sea levels rising, retreat of glaciers due to melting, loss of sea ice and permafrost. The Amazon rain forest would be stressed, dry desert areas would increase, we would experience extreme weather events like huge hurricanes, many species would pass into extinction, and agricultural yields as we now know them would cease to exist.

Check the Worldwide web. The information is there as well as many organizations formed to help solve the problem. (Wikipedia is a good place to start.)

In my neighborhood we have had roses blooming in December for the last several years.
Maybe it is time to become concerned!

I remain "Retired, tired, and feeling unemployed." It was so much easier to ignore everything when my days began at five AM and life revolved around the mania in the workplace where even a trip to the bathroom or a cup of coffee was a luxury (let alone tme to read a real newspaper).

Community Garden--Act Local, Think Global

2009-04-18T16:31:00.000-07:00

Being "Retired, Tired, and feeling unemployed" it is great to see the spring flowers on our front lawn full of yellow daffodils and tulips. The garden beside the house is beginning to come to life again.

I was browsing an old 1998 National Geographic and found an article in The Millennium Series by T. R. Reid, "Feeding the Planet." Reid notes that the global population in 1998 is 5.9 billion and each day there is a population increase of 230,000 people. He sites UN predictions of 2,740 calories per day per person is represented by the global food supply. The article goes on to say that the use of modern agricultural techniques have led to soil and water degradation which threatens agricultural output worldwide. However, the article highlights the many problems facing families on the lower end of the economic scale. While the USA is well ahead in cereal grain production in pounds percapita many families are forced to go hungry in the US as money available to the working poor, elderly, and children goes to pay for rent or for heat in the winter. While food is available climate, lack of water, and the lack of money to buy seeds and farm equipment may influence production in many other parts of the world.

Now that I have thought global it appears that the ability to act local is being applied in our community.

One of the best resources available to our community is found at The Kansas City Community Gardens. On Thursdays from Noon until One there is a weekly garden clinic run by the program coordinator, John Williams. Residents wanting to get information on starting a garden can bring their questions and get answers . I attended a class and saw a nice demonstration in the Garden's demo plot on planting potatoes. Many gardeners in this area planted on St. Patrick's day and saw their labor ruined by late freezes this year. The Community Garden website lists benefits of membership as well as projects going on through various schools for children in the area. Maybe starting young is part of the act local idea.

We are fortunate to also have one of the best examples of acting local and thinking global resources available in the country through the Heartland All Species Project. "The project's mission is to encourage ecologically respectful community at the local level including facilitating groups on community building process and perspective shifting, local food production, and natural no-till gardening."

I decided to run down the founder of the website, Marty Kraft, and volunteer some time in response to an email I received last week. I found Marty working in the school garden at the Niles Home for Children, a school working in partnership with the Missouri Division of Family Services Children's Division, the Jackson County Mental Health Levy, and the Kansas City, Missouri School District. After raking the straw mulch off one of the raised beds, I got to help several enthusiastic students move a donated load of earth. Everyone was having fun getting into the dirt, you might say. Time went rather fast as another student helped transplant lettuce seedlings into a no-till garden bed.

I returned home to read an interesting article on the web from the Niles Home. The title is Niles Home Youth "Eat What They Sow" in Community Garden. The article has a nice photo gallery of the children working and tells how the community garden has helped students better appreciate some of the vegetables they normally would never eat.

"Act local but think Global" is an action all can take and it is there for the taking just by searching the Worldwide web! I might mention that several of these organizations depend on donations to support their work. How you respond to it is up to you.

On the Antique Trail--Deep Discounts

2009-04-14T10:46:00.000-07:00

Being Retired, Tired, and feeling unemployed I decided to park the car and take a walk in Historic Westport. This mid-town Kansas City party area was once the jumping off point for pioneer families heading west to seek their fortune. I walked by a shop that seemed interesting and a good place to stretch my legs.

Brookside Antiques at 6219 Oak Street since 1969 seemed to be a promising shop to pass my time and brouse for old furniture and books. A large dollhouse caught my attention and sparked my interest in mineature art. The owner answered my question about age, "The owner is in her 60's and had the dollhouse when she was eight or nine." The house was partially furnished with mineature furniture but there was room to move in more. The original price of aroound $200 was discounted as were many other antiques in the store.

One of the nucks and corners in the store had a great selection of antique related books. Again there were deep discounts available and many valuable sources of reference , especially on old depression glass, were listed at discount prices.

I was beginning to enjoy the mellow sounds of an old phonograph playing in the store. The recreation center playing the record was marked "Not for Sale."

On my way out I stopped to admire the Baby Grand Piano by the door. Again it was deeply discounted from the original price. There were a number of old instruments scattered throughout the store. I had been drawn by an advertisement that said "Specializing in Asian Antiques" but did not find a large number in the store. There was a large selection of old books (discounted) and I have listed the store as a nice place to brouse and return when I am in a buying mood.

The shop owner may be contacted at an e-mail address: bestantiues@kcnet.com

"Retired, Tired, and Feeling Unemployed"

2009-04-12T19:13:00.000-07:00

Being "Retired, Tired, and Feeling Unemployed" I received my monthly copy of the AARP Bulletin and started to leaf through it to find ways to pass my time and get some new ideas. The issue looked fairly promising with articles about health care, senior housing, and cheap living tips.

A few interesting facts came to light:

There has been a 194% growth rate among 55-plus users of social networking website Facebook in a six-month period! (We are not alone and a click away from someone to share our laughter and tears.)
We are spending twice as much per person per year ($8,000) on health care as Western countries that have universal health coverage and these countries are having better medical results. (As an educator I personally experienced this type of health care and the excellence of the Doctors in the universal health coverage system although they were challenged with budget woes, lack of supplies, and poor working conditions.)
A full page ad in the middle of the AARP Bulletin promotes weight loss with Nutrisystem for those of us who are badly overweight and need guidance to lose weight.
An article on money use extols the benefits of being "Fabulously Frugal". With the nations jobless rate at 8.1% and with 5.6% of workers 55 and older unemployed, this article gives tips on house sharing, clothes and grocery shopping, and even having a garden.
The inside cover on the last page gives 8 ways to burn 50 calories during the day.

The magazine is an inexpensive addition to your subscriptions as the tips and ideas will easily save a subscriber the money spent on it each year.

Antiques-On the trail for that elusive find

2009-04-08T13:38:00.000-07:00

Being "Retired, tired, and feeling unemployed" I decided to take a break from my latest business trip. I found myself north of Kansas City, Missouri on I-29 Exit 20, Atchison, Weston & Leavenworth exit, the location of W.D. Pickers Antique Mall. It is advertised as "The Kansas City Area's best selection of Antiques & Vintage Collectibles," and I had visited it a few times before whenever I felt an urge to stretch my legs and look for old postcards and photos.

I was happily searching through a pile of old advertising memorabilia when I found that elusive item I just had to have. "None so good as Noxall Shirts and Pants" the postcard sized add blurted. "They fit perfect and never rip." But even more exciting was the picture on the card as it featured the Electrical Building at the World's Fair held early in the 1900's in St. Louis, Missouri. (Well, this find was even more elusive than I thought! This is from the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. My deepest thanks to a potential bidder on my Ebay auction site at Stamproom1 who brought this to my attention!) I doubt that King & Fairman in Walnut Grove, Illinoise is still in business or that the Noxall Shirt and Pant Company still exists. The back of the card is filled wih the Noxall trade mark for the World's Fair Line, Noxall Shirts, Pants, Bixen, Overalls, Jackets, etc. manufactured by Isaac Lesen & Company in Quincy, Il.

"Fit well. Look well. Made well. Wear well. If you once wear them, you'll want no other brand."

Future shoppers may visit www.wdpickers.com for information on shopping or just stretching your legs on a long drive. You may also visit me at Stamproom1 on Ebay where I will feature this amazing find when I return to My Hobby Room.