Life with Dylan

Category: ecosystem

  • Why conservation is important to me

    Everyone has something they hold close to their heart. Something they are passionate about and that somehow connects with them on a personal level. As you have probably figured out, I am passionate about conservation and preserving what the earth has to offer for our future generations. 

    We recently lost an animal known as Lonesome George. He was the last of his species and now my family will never get to see this La Pinta Island giant tortoise. When my son and I read about this loss, we cried. Some may think crying over an animal you’ve never met is ridiculous. Others may think there are hundreds of other Galapagos tortoises – you see them at the zoo. These are the people that don’t get it. They don’t get the big picture and I would say that only a third of them ever will.

    I will probably live longer than the Northern White Rhino species. My sons children will probably never get a chance to see a Northern White Rhino. Why? Because these animals are hunted and killed … Just as the tigers and elephants are hunted and killed. When I read stories about this in the news, like the one I read today, it makes me sad and angry. I sit here racking my brain trying to figure out how I can help. These animals can’t talk. They can’t ask for help. So it is up to people like me, people who call themselves conservationist, to bring awareness to others about the plight of these animals and the importance of keeping them alive. Not just for our children and grandchildren to see, but for the survival of the animal world.

    When I see a picture of an endangered animal or one at the zoo or read a sign at the zoo that says only 39 left in the wild, I literally stop and catch my breath. These animals are so beautiful and I fear that too many people take them for granted.

    Don’t assume that because you can see an animal at a zoo today it will still be there in 20 years. Zoos educate us about the animals and let us see them up close, but the best way to ensure a species survival is for the species to thrive in the wild.

    Once you come face to face with an endangered animal, you will do whatever it takes to save them. I am proud to call myself a conservationist. I will continue to be an advocate for the environment and wildlife because one person can and does make a difference.

    Con·ser·va·tion·ist
    Noun: A person who advocates or acts for the protection and preservation of the environment and wildlife.

  • Why Yes, You Can Recycle That!

    Nothing gets under my skin more than people who don’t, or should I say won’t recycle. For one reason or another they say it is too much work. Now I will admit that I make more of an effort to recycle than the average person does, but once you start recycling it just becomes second nature.

    Common excuses I hear are:

    1. I don’t have time
    2. I don’t know what to recycle
    3. The city recycles for me

    Number 3 has got to be my favorite – let someone else do it.  

    Although you can buy a variety of containers for your recycling, they really are not necessary to do the job. Making your own bins to separate paper, plastic, cardboard, cans, bottles, newspapers, etc is quite simple. Rather than use plastic bags, that will just be thrown away, to collect your aluminum cans and plastic bottles try a reusable shopping bag. The handles make it easy to carry them down to your car and to the recycling center.

    I personally do not use paper or plastic bags, but when Dylan’s school stuff came home in a brown paper bag I reused it. The paper bag makes the perfect collecting spot for plastic containers, soup cans, and egg cartons that can be recycled. It only takes a few seconds to rinse out the containers and tear off the can labels.

    Newspapers, magazines, junk mail, cardboard boxes from food – just stack them up – no container needed.

    My recycling wall. 

    Now the city I live in does provide recycling trash cans, so this is where I put my stack of newspapers and other paper products. Cans, bottles, and plastic I take to the recycling center once a month. 

    OK, for those of you who answer with number 3 from above – the city recycles for me. Well, so does my city. However, if you read your cities web page you will probably find something along the lines of what my city’s web page says.

    In compliance with the State-mandated recycling goals, the City contracts with CR&R to transport all City-collected solid waste to a materials recovery facility (MRF) where the waste is sorted. The MRF is uniquely designed to separate and recover recyclable materials from unsorted (commingled) household waste. This process eliminates the need for additional containers and separate collection pick up normally associated with residential recycling programs. Even though residents are not required to separate their recyclable, you are encouraged to seal wet refuse in bags to prevent contamination of newsprint. (from the City of Newport Beach web page)

    As you can see, only the recyclable goods that have not been contaminated can actually be recycled. To save the newspaper, you are asked to seal your wet trash in a plastic bag. 
    Doesn’t using a plastic bag defeat the purpose of recycling?

    Now that I have you thinking about recycling, let’s go one step further. 
    Have you heard of TerraCycle? If not, you have now. TerraCycle is the answer to all things you didn’t think could be recycled. Personal care and beauty product packaging previously just thrown in a landfill can now be recycled through a TerraCycle brigade. So my shampoo bottles, lotion tubes, and makeup containers go in a bin instead of the trash can. Once I have enough to fill a box, I will send them to TerraCycle (free with their prepaid shipping label) and I can have the money donated to a charity of my choice or I can redeem points for products made from the recycled packaging. It’s a win-win situation. The same applies to my bin of GoGo squeeZ applesauce packages. 
    My recycling area is next to my trash can so it doesn’t take any extra effort. I go to the same area with trash and my recycling. The best thing is that I only take out my trash once every two weeks because 90% of what I use can be recycled. 
    Now that you now how easy it is to recycle, that recycling doesn’t cost you any money, and that YES, you can recycle that … I’m giving you a challenge.
    I challenge you to start recycling one new thing during the month of July. If it’s cans and plastic bottles great, but think outside the box and start recycling something that you don’t get money for. After all, the point of recycling isn’t just to get money … we recycle to reduce the impact of landfills on the environment. 
    Are you up for the challenge? What will you start recycling this month?

  • A crash course in vermicomposting

    I will never forget the day Dylan came home from school and said, with bright eyes and a big smile, “Mom, just listen first, ok?” Oh, this can’t be good. I knew this was going to be something I would have to say yes to, but I must admit what he was about to ask me made me cringe a little.


    This past year, the third grade classes started vermicomposting (worms, for those of you who don’t know) in the school garden. I can’t tell you how many times he came home and told me about these little red wigglers that had become his “friends” – and guess what – They need a home for the summer.

    Now we have talked about starting our own worm bin, but mind you talk is all we have done. I don’t have a yard – we live in an apartment.

    Where would these red wigglers go? Would I have to touch them? Would they get out of the bin? Oh my, the thought of little worms crawling all over me flashed before my eyes.

    Well, last week I became the proud owner of a black bin filled with red wigglers. OK, I can do this – it’s just for the summer. The bin sat in my living room for about an hour while I prepared an area on the balcony that would be in full shade because the worms can’t be in direct sunlight.

    Dylan gave me the crash course in how much to feed them (we were also given a scale to weigh the food), when to water t-shirts that cover them (yes, they came with their own spray bottle), and what not to feed them. Citrus fruit is a big no-no, they don’t like too much acid. Oh, and apparently their favorite food is egg shells, coffee grinds and melon rind, so I have a baggie of melon rind in my fridge. 

    It’s been a week now and I will admit that these guys are growing on me. I actually look forward to coming home and checking on them. (Sshhh, don’t tell Dylan.)

    Do you compost? Is it something you would consider doing? I hear worm poop is the liquid gold of fertilizer. 


    Everything has its place in the ecosystem … even worms!