Top 3 Things NOT to Do At a Farmer's Market

There is something about a farmer's market that make me a little nervous/anxious/ whatever you want to call it. Honestly, I do not feel at ease when I shop at a farmer's market. Maybe I do not go often enough. Maybe I do not feel comfortable with all of the unspoken rules. Maybe I do not like that they are no signs to tell me who grows organically and who does not. I have had my share of mishaps and embarrassing moments farmer's markets. Today, I bring you the top 3 things NOT to do when you are shopping at a farmer's market (from my own experience).

1. Do Not Ask Young "Farmers" to Pick Out Your Produce - when a guy who looks like he is in his mid-20s tells me to pick out which watermelon looks the prettiest, I do not feel confident that he has any idea what he talking about. I know how to pick out a watermelon, but feel weird going around flicking and slapping watermelons to pick out the perfect one.
   
   
2. Do Not Buy From the First Stand - walk around to the other stands; see what others are selling. You might find a better deal or better quality.
   
   
3. Do Not Buy the "Pretty" Produce - I might not be a master gardener, but I know that tomatoes organically grown on a local farm do not look perfectly round. I have grown my own tomatoes and I have picked tomatoes from an organic farm. If anything, ask the farmer what they use to control pests.

>> What mishaps have you experienced at the farmer's market?
  

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Wordless Wednesday - Bulk Bin Tags

(Disclaimer: this is a somewhat-Wordless Wednesday post)

Buying from the Whole Foods bulk bins has resulted in a large collection of the tags that you write the bin code on. I do not know an alternative to using these (aside from writing on the bag with a permanent marker or making the employee search for each code) or what to do with these in the mean time (other than storing them in a container). HELP!

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Speed Bumps and Solutions to Green Living [#CTWW]

This week's challenge comes from Reduced Footprints.

This week, please share road blocks to green living. If you're not struggling with any road blocks at this time, then please share ones which you've heard from others. For example, one of the most common reasons is that it's too expensive.

Then ...Take a look at the road blocks shared and offer solutions. The idea of this challenge is to help us all find solutions and "bust" all excuses for not living green.

Today, I am sharing some of the road blocks I have experienced on my path to more eco-friendly and green living. I am going to take after Jen and Joey and call them "speed bumps." I have learned to pick my battles because they are slightly bigger eco-friendly fish to fry (no, not frankenfish).

Speed Bump:  Paper
The amount of paper products used in our house is unimaginable. Sometimes, I feel like little evil elves come out at night to steal our toilet paper, tissues, and paper towels. There is nothing better than throwing away a used tissue and not having to worry about washing a handkerchief, but the guilt reminds me that paper used one time is very wasteful!

Solutions:
1. Purchase and use cloth napkins and rags (we already reuse old socks and washcloths for cleaning rags)
2. Offer, do not force, for others to use them

Speed Bump:  Heat

My husband hates to be cold (and I do also). If he could move to Florida or Mexico, he would in a heartbeat. The man walks around in short sleeves and shorts while I am sporting 2 wool sweaters over a long sleeve shirt. When we are at home, we keep the house at 67 degrees (68 degrees recently because it has been very cold). During the night, I bump it down to 64 degrees. One degree can make a big difference, but a husband complaining every 5 minutes might not be worth it.

Solutions:

1. Drink more hot tea
2. Put more blankets on the couch and the bed
3. Snuggle up to stay warm

4. Add eco-friendly insulation (long term solution)

Speed Bump:  Water

My husband's solution to the above speed bump (when I do not allow the temperature to be set above 68 degrees), is to take a hot bath. Oh, the amount of water that baths use is unbelievable! In addition to letting water run in the bathroom and in the kitchen when not actively using it also increases water usage.

Solutions:
1. Turn water off when I walk by (not recommended)

2. Offer to wash the dishes (use cold water, turn off when soaping up)

Final Note: I do not mean to call my husband out so much here because I am wasteful myself. My husband has come a long way in supporting me and being more eco-friendly. I am grateful for his support! I hope that we can continue to remove waste from our lives.

>> What road blocks or speed bumps have you experienced?  How have you dealt with them or going to deal with them?
 

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Pencils Skirts and Stairs

This summer, I got into a habit of wearing skirts to work.  I find skirts to be more comfortable than pants.  I hope to wear skirts for a little bit longer into the colder season by pairing with boots and leggings.  My office job prompts for Business Professional and/or Business Casual depending on the location and the meetings we have.  Therefore, I have several pencil skirts.  I love the look of pencils skirts and they truly fit my body the best.

Frequently throughout the week, I need to go to 2-3 floors above me.  I feel like taking the elevator is a waste when I have two perfectly good feet.  I usually opt for the stairs if I need to go up or down 5 or less flights.  I guess this is my way to "green" and get a little bit of exercise during the day.

I came to the realization this week that pencil skirts do not work with stairs!  Add boots to the equation and you might as well not go anywhere!  I actually had to hike my skirt up to even be able to go up the stairs.  Luckily, no one else was in the stairwell, or I would have been really embarrassed.

>> What fashion mishaps have you experience at work or in a social setting?
 

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