Articles Written by Julie Hancher

While complaints about the Barnes moving from Merion have mostly calmed down, the Barnes Foundation is continuing to make news! This time, their new(ish) Philly home received a great GREEN honor today: LEED Platinum. The Barnes is the 1st art & educational institution to achieve the LEED platinum status from USGBC (US Green Building Council). They also have a piece of the Big Apple (literally.) How did they accomplish such a task?

I'll admit it, personal hygiene products stress me out. Why do they have to make shampoo, body wash, shave gel, razors, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and every other product in an unidentifiable (most likely) plastic where I don't know if it can be recycled or not? More importantly, what do I do with those empty tubes of DO for the BO? (Find out what to do with those tricky buggers, after the jump!)

Ready to sit on your butt outside tomorrow? Good news, we have a day JUST for you! Friday, September 21 is Park(ing) Day Philadelphia! This day is designed for you outdoorsy types that (Find out about this glorious day and how you can participate, after the jump!)

It's back! My approximate (no chef training) half-assed recipes are back with a vengeance! I've been cooking up a storm with my CSA shares and had a little Asian inspiration last week when I started feeling under the weather. This week's recipe brings you back in time but in a much improved fashion: Ramen Soup. Forget those .49 cent box wonders we relied on for nutritional value in College. After trying authentic Ramen in Fukuoka, Japan, I could never go back to the instant water variety. And for years, I couldn't find a satisfaction in the city of brotherly love. Yet always being a trend-setter,  Ramen is infiltrating Philly in a  huge way. But what if you want to try Ramen from your own kitchen? This recipe uses some of your finest (fall) CSA veggies for a hearty (and filling!) soup. Plus, I'm 5% Asian (accurate by blood test!) so it's at least 5% authentic. Julie's Half-Assed Ramen (or Udon) Japanese-ish Soup: (Check out the recipe, after the jump!)

Happy Friday! With the Philly Fringe Fest back in town and warmer (yet more crisp) fall temperatures, lots is going on in Philly (and around) again this week! Check out what you may have missed (plus a few sweet things to do this weekend!):

The Philly Fringe Festival is back and playing local artists with cutting edge theatre performances & diverse cultural experiences. I kicked off my Fringe Fest experience with Of Plastic Things & Butterfly Wings, an environmentally themed performance. Centered around a

Bike sharing is FINALLY in Philly... kinda sorta maybe. Our only Philly-based bike sharing company, Cityryde and its founders, left town due to our lack of bike sharing. Dranoff Properties (owner of 5 apartment buildings), has picked up the slack and

Our reader Heidi asked on our Facebook page: GPB ladies! I recently had to order new busines cards and am so sad to waste the old ones. Creative ideas for using up otherwise useless business cards? We did a little research, Heidi, and came up with a 11 innovative ideas to recycle your old stack of business cards:

What's more interesting than the amazing comments of support we've seen about the plastic bag ban is the opposition. I LOVE dogs. I have my parent's daschund (whom I trained as a mini hot dog) as my iPhone background. I adopt pit bulls (and other breeds) for an hour (per session) through the Monster Milers program at PAWs. And I stop strangers on the street to ask and pet their cute canines. Dog owners, I hear you. Your dogs shit. A lot. And you prefer (free) plastic bags to clean up their poo. I get it: Love: Dogs! Hate: Poop. So what would you do if plastic bags were banned or if there was a fee?