Lifestyle

First a disclaimer: I won't stray too far from the 'green' theme on today's blog post. Just let me take a minute to get there. Yesterday, my Facebook news feed was filled with Miley Cyrus updates. At lunch, I dropped off a huge bag of donations at Goodwill and then went inside to peruse. (Did I mention I scored a $3 unused french press?!?) As I was enjoying the thrift shop like Macklemore, I overheard one shopper’s tirade about how Cyrus’ ‘career is RUINED” and she is an absolute terrible human being. This morning on the Today Show, Matt Lauer & others once again discussed if “just being Miley” crossed the line yet again. OK, I understand that Miley was performing the “song of the summer”, which is essentially about getting laid. (In the ‘equal rights’ category, does anyone blame Thicke for his lyrics? Did everyone block their memories of Britney Spears wearing a snake or the Janet Jackson/JT superbowl moments?) I won’t get into my full opinion on this issue, although I can’t quite understand why anyone over the age of 15 watches the MTV music/VMA/movie awards. But there is something more disturbing here. The Onion summed it up pretty well: as the day journalism was overtaken by Miley Cyrus. CNN’s top headline was twerking. I now would like to bring in the important question: Why? (Find out how I related Miley's latest scandal to the environment, after the jump.)

Dear Non-Recycler, This morning I was in a fabulous mood. Nothing extraordinary happened, minus the fact I was able to do some cleaning and throw the ball around with my cat for a few minutes before work. Then, I saw it. A plastic bag. In. The. Trashcan.

I must admit - When it comes to drinks, I save any calories for booze. Therefore, I typically only drink water, coffee (with organic soy or almond milk), and homemade smoothies. When I received a batch of Organic India Tea to try, I was so psyched - but I didn't want to try all of this hot tea when it was 8000* outside. Therefore, I experimented with iced tea. Here's one of my fav combos thus far: The Arnold Palmer Makeover: Healthier, less cals & delicious.

Between my love of whiskey, local brews & organic wines, it's no secret I love a nice drink to unwind. But if you were like 20,000 of my closest friends at the Food Trust's South Street Night Market last evening, you may have enjoyed some delicious food last evening. (I sampled our fav Farm Truck, the Cheese Curds & a cupcake.) Oh, and maybe tried a few drinks last night. And like me, you may be faced with one of those obnoxious hangovers. So how do you deal with the sweaty palms, urge to drink like a camel and not-so-hot hangovers? And if you don't turn to juicy burgers & greasy bacon, WTF do you turn to as a veg? Here's 7 hangover cures without meat:

Growing your own herbs & plants means you get SO many fresh veggies. You almost forget about about those dreaded winter nights where you can't find anything growing besides mold in your leftover takeout. So rather than let your plants over-blossom, why not preserve your herbs now? Here are 4 ways to Preserve Your Herbs for Colder Times:

When you're adopting a furry child, you're faced with many choices from beds to toys. Yet nothing prepared me for the worst day of being a CatMom. Find out about what happened to Pounce and what you should do during pet emergencies, after the jump!

Whether it's August or feels more like "Rain-Fall", there's never a bad time to cleanse your life... which means getting rid of those piles of clothes you haven't worn for a year and those 'registry' gifts you never bothered opening. One great way to do that? Hosting a yard sale! (or apartment/condo/room sale.) In honor of Where Can I Wednesday, we're addressing How Can (you) host the best yard sale in Philly.

Outdoor barbecues, camping, concerts and wonderful summer weather (and lots of rain) tend to bring the pests among us. But scary chemicals like DEET (the most commonly used pesticide in mosquito sprays) have been found in various studies with side affects including harming the nervous system and birth defects. What's an outdoor lover to do? One option is to DIY Insect repellent - and it's a lot easier than you think! Find out how to DIY Bug Repellent, after the jump!:

Early this summer I took a lovely two-week trip to Northern Spain. We traveled to Mallorca, Valencia and Barcelona. Each spot was filled with its own brand of enchantment. There were so many things that I loved about Spain  - the architecture, the late leisurely lunches complete with cava (and often dessert), the opportunity to stumble upon the most charming restaurants and bars in little alley ways and the laid back Euro attitude of course. (Naps at 4pm every work day?  Hey sure, sign me up.)  I was also pleased with many of the environmentally friendly efforts I noticed in Spain. I struggle with dubbing these efforts "environmentally conscious" because it seems to be almost organic, as though the Spanish (and many other European countries for that matter) feel there would be no other way to live. However, we know this isn't really the case.  There is a consciousness behind Spain's efforts. Just a few examples - in 2006 Spain made wind energy their primary source of power, and in 2007 Spanish Socialist government made plans to provide citizens grants to make their homes more environmentally friendly. Here are some of the more pedestrian observations I had in Northern Spain...