Green has been the word du jour the past few years and just like any new trend its true meaning is often lost in hype. From organic t shirts that sometimes leave a bigger carbon footprint than purchasing that plain old cotton t shirt to trying to remove plastics out of your life without going nuts, I thought I would touch upon some of the more practical ways I'm aiming stay GREEN.
Most of us have converted to reusable grocery bags and Nalgene bottles instead of plastic ones.
A few other GREEN ideas I have incorporated include:
biodegradable FLOSS
biodegradable garbage bags
environmentally friendly soaps, detergents
unfortunately i dont use public transit as much as I did when I lived abroad, but i found a website entitled Environmental Graffiti that show cases some very creative ways people are being more GREEN. My favorite is the dog powered tricycle.
It's true that tiny choices can make big impacts and all without feeling like you have to have a drastic change in your life!
PHEW!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Sunday, August 23, 2009
the end of verano 2009
Summer 2009 has more than made up for the string of bad luck I had been experiencing earlier this year.
and it started with a death. The start of this summer was looking like it would hit a new low..my beloved grandpa passed away just 4 days before his 95th bday. But instead it hit a high note with my cousin's wedding three weeks later where my grandpa's presence was felt everywhere and again this past weekend with the marriage of a good friend from college.
The time between these giant memories was accentuated with dancing days, arty nights, refugee garden visits, a Giants game and a Hmong graduation celebration. A feeling of ''home'' is once again taking hold as I exit my 10th month back in the states (the longest I have done so since 2005..).
maybe this feeling and me are here to stay..
and it started with a death. The start of this summer was looking like it would hit a new low..my beloved grandpa passed away just 4 days before his 95th bday. But instead it hit a high note with my cousin's wedding three weeks later where my grandpa's presence was felt everywhere and again this past weekend with the marriage of a good friend from college.
The time between these giant memories was accentuated with dancing days, arty nights, refugee garden visits, a Giants game and a Hmong graduation celebration. A feeling of ''home'' is once again taking hold as I exit my 10th month back in the states (the longest I have done so since 2005..).
maybe this feeling and me are here to stay..
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
counting your blessings.
ode to the true friend:
it's true that there is not a lot guaranteed in life.
but if you are lucky enough to have even one good true friend, you are blessed more than you may know.
So thank you {enter your name here} for being that shoulder to lean on, for keeping me in check, for saying just the right things, for supporting me for every crazy dream i have ever mustered.
For if I only had one person to believe in me, you have been that. It's easy to take those you love for granted and even easier to pick out the things you wish were different, but I'm grateful for the chance to have people that make life worth living.
it's true that there is not a lot guaranteed in life.
but if you are lucky enough to have even one good true friend, you are blessed more than you may know.
So thank you {enter your name here} for being that shoulder to lean on, for keeping me in check, for saying just the right things, for supporting me for every crazy dream i have ever mustered.
For if I only had one person to believe in me, you have been that. It's easy to take those you love for granted and even easier to pick out the things you wish were different, but I'm grateful for the chance to have people that make life worth living.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
my happy list.
{inspired by my friend Pauline's happy list}
1. sitting on a beach in Vietnam
2. dumplings- any kind especially soup ones..
3. street food: pretty much any kind.
4. laughing so hard i get plegmy (I know its strange)
5. having one of those rare amazing conversations with a stranger.
6. game nights! in fact anything game related..except mind games
7. the ocean and anything related to it. remember when you could spend hours in the water and not know it?
8. babies particularly lil cousin nicholas when he is smiling.
9. being helpful for help's sake and not expecting anything in return.
10. seeing your friends, family, loved ones happy!!!!!
11. ice cream. i don't care how old you are. this will always brighten my day :D
12. kisses- long passionate ones but even those short leave you wanting more kind of kisses..
ahh bliss
1. sitting on a beach in Vietnam
2. dumplings- any kind especially soup ones..
3. street food: pretty much any kind.
4. laughing so hard i get plegmy (I know its strange)
5. having one of those rare amazing conversations with a stranger.
6. game nights! in fact anything game related..except mind games
7. the ocean and anything related to it. remember when you could spend hours in the water and not know it?
8. babies particularly lil cousin nicholas when he is smiling.
9. being helpful for help's sake and not expecting anything in return.
10. seeing your friends, family, loved ones happy!!!!!
11. ice cream. i don't care how old you are. this will always brighten my day :D
12. kisses- long passionate ones but even those short leave you wanting more kind of kisses..
ahh bliss
Sunday, June 28, 2009
i hate spiders and poop.
There are some phobias that I think aren't necessarily meant to be ''overcome''.
The fear of spiders and human poop in a white toilet bowl are two of these such things.
GROSS.
The fear of spiders and human poop in a white toilet bowl are two of these such things.
GROSS.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
saying goodbye.
In a few days, I will say goodbye to you for the last time in this lifetime. Mom has asked me to write something to honor your memory and I am not sure I will do you justice but here goes.
Although I grew up visiting you almost once a month throughout my childhood, the truth is I can't remember ever having an in depth conversation with you mostly because of the language barrier. But like most things, actions speak louder than words. For you love meant laughter and lots of it! I can always remember a time when you were laughing whether it was by the lake fishing or at a family poker game. In difficult times, you taught us that laughter truly is the best medicine.
Your smile- constant, beaming and warm- ALWAYS greeted me when I arrived and was always followed by a chuckle and a hug. Having fun was your job title. Showing all of us that fun was always possible in even the most mundane activities only drew us to you more.
Your strength was legendary. Having survived two heart attacks, a dog chasing episode that left you with a hole in your skull to drain the blood from, and in the last few months a couple of debilitating strokes, you never complained. Through the suffering you carried yourself with dignity even flashing that famous smile before leaving this world.
So thank you for being the greatest father, grandfather and role model. You taught through your actions and I am forever indebted to you for your kindness and loving nature. We will miss you too much but will always be comforted by the fact that you will always be able to watch over us for as long as we live.
I love you for eternity ong.
P.S. Happy 95th Birthday!
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Falling in and out of Love.
I think when most people read the title, they think of the love between two human beings. But what about the love you might have for an object-tangible or intangible? Many of us fall in love with food, with pop culture, animals (sometimes TOO in love but beastiality is another topic...),cars, and traveling. Just because it wasn't human does it mean its a bad thing?
Between the ages of 23 and 26 i became OBSESSED with traveling. I fell hard for the feeling of excitement that it induced. Traveling, anywhere, was like a drug. And in between my travels, I spent most of my time obsessing over how to get to that new place, that new high. I fell in love with traveling HARD and there was nothing or no one that would stop me from doing it.
So the question then was Why did I, like so many, feel the need to travel so much? I almost always traveled alone, meeting interesting and not so interesting people on the way only to find I was never satisfied. So I guess like the way human love changes you, travel changed me as well and hopefully like human love it will change me for the better. All I know is that I have changed, but how so and how much or for the better still remains a small mystery that I hope will unravel with time.
On another note, a quote from a travel article made me see my traveling in a different light: ''we carry values and beliefs and news to the places we go, and in many parts of the world, we become walking video screens and living newspapers, the only channels that can take people out of the censored limits of their homelands.'' In contemplating my travels, I almost always looked at the experiences in how it changed me without realizing how my own- however small impact- has affected the lives of those I have met whilst traveling. A lovely two way street relationship indeed.
Between the ages of 23 and 26 i became OBSESSED with traveling. I fell hard for the feeling of excitement that it induced. Traveling, anywhere, was like a drug. And in between my travels, I spent most of my time obsessing over how to get to that new place, that new high. I fell in love with traveling HARD and there was nothing or no one that would stop me from doing it.
So the question then was Why did I, like so many, feel the need to travel so much? I almost always traveled alone, meeting interesting and not so interesting people on the way only to find I was never satisfied. So I guess like the way human love changes you, travel changed me as well and hopefully like human love it will change me for the better. All I know is that I have changed, but how so and how much or for the better still remains a small mystery that I hope will unravel with time.
On another note, a quote from a travel article made me see my traveling in a different light: ''we carry values and beliefs and news to the places we go, and in many parts of the world, we become walking video screens and living newspapers, the only channels that can take people out of the censored limits of their homelands.'' In contemplating my travels, I almost always looked at the experiences in how it changed me without realizing how my own- however small impact- has affected the lives of those I have met whilst traveling. A lovely two way street relationship indeed.
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