When it comes to gadgets, simple is better. At least for me. I never was much of a geek, to be honest, and I sometimes have trouble with simple instructions, often creating not-so-simple problems that require (if I’m lucky) simple solutions. With that in mind, here’s the simple story of the Belkin Conserve Socket Power Timer.

This little device turns stuff off. Gets to the root of the issue, really, as for all intents and purposes it unplugs plugged-in stuff when it’s plugged in. Okay, so it’s simpler than I’m making it out to be. The gadget basically acts as a timer for your electro-stuff, shutting off power – including standby power – after a time interval that you select.

To use it, just plug it into a socket and then plug your device, in turn, into its outlet. Then set its little timer for either 30 minutes, three hours or six hours and that’s it. Whatever is plugged in gets cut off from the juice when it’s had enough. This is good for all sorts of stuff, like coffee makers, irons, phone chargers, even television sets.

The Conserve Socket Power Timer’s reason for being is that many electronics and appliances suck electricity even when they’re not being used. This waste is sometimes referred to as vampire energy or standby power and, as pointed out by our pals at Good, adds up over time. Put on your times-millions-of-devices-times-millions-of-households hat and, well, doing the math is pretty simple – that’s a lot of suck.

The post Turn It Off: All the Way Off appeared first on EcoSalon.

Phantom energy sucks. Even when turned off, plugged-in electric devices are draining the juice in your house, a phenomenon that can add up to more than 65 billion kilowatt-hours of power each year. Save energy, and you save major cash.

The Union of Concerned Scientists calls the culprits of this waste vampires which silently suck away more than $5.8 billion annually of extra energy, which sends more than 87 billion pounds of heat-trapping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. Although few of us are in the dark about this waste, we do little or nothing to limit the stand-by mode of our glowing devices, mostly because we are too tired, or too busy, too lazy. Also, some cable boxes lose all their data when unplugged and microwave ovens are installed in 50s fashion – inserted in a wall shelf with no access to the cord.

Unplugging when possible is the easiest weapon to combat these vampires and the little things make a big difference. A huge time saver also is to plug your electronics into a power strip or surge suppressor that can be shut off with a single switch.

First, you should identify the nocturnal monsters. They’re not as hot as the Cullins family but are powerful nonetheless. Here are the top 10:

1. Adapters with rechargeable battery-powered cordless phones

We have these in several rooms and I’m sure you do, too. You don’t want the phones to go dead, but you also need to curb that extra $100 to $200 you are spending each year on those phantoms.

2. Cell phones and chargers

How many times do you leave the charger plugged into the outlet and hanging on the counter or your desk? Just start to notice this and pull the plug.

3. Televisions

If you’re able to get behind your TV unplug it after viewing. If not, connect it to a power strip. You’ll deserve an Emmy for effort.

4. Power Tools

Cordless drills and circular saws? Home Renovations suggests you go this route, and if you don’t, we suggest you keep your tools unplugged.

5. Microwaves

You should see the dinosaur in the teacher’s lounge at my kids’ school! Scary, and it never gets unplugged, unless I go in there and do the job. It’s so easy to unplug when these appliances are freestanding and not inserted into cabinets. Experts say the clocks use more power than the ovens themselves.

6. DVD players

These should be on the same power strip as the TV to avoid draining the grid.

7. Digital Clocks

It can be alarming to think these essential time tellers suck energy when standing by all day while you are away. CBS News tells us a good guide is to unplug anything with a digital clock. If you don’t mind the flashing clocks, put them on a surge protector and shut them off, and only turn them on when you’re using the appliance. The memory chips are on, even when we’re not using the appliance.

8. Computers

Is that lap top hooked up when you go to sleep? Is the docking station still active when you are getting your Zzz’s? Try powering down at night to have sweeter dreams.

9. Computer Monitors

We forget to unplug these, as well, wanting them fired up and ready to go when we are ready to work.

10. Digital camera chargers

Just like our cell phones, we get in the habit of recharging and forgetting. Learning new habits is challenging the results make for a much brighter energy picture.

Image: j/f/photos, alanclarkdesign, pasukaru76, UweHermann, mattbuck4950, William Hook, kanonn, samantha celera, Let Ideas Compete, g_kat26 and Andrew*.

The post Pull That Plug! 10 Common Culprits of Phantom Energy Leaks appeared first on EcoSalon.

Sure, you’re forced to take down the ghosts and fuzzy spiders (news flash: your neighbors are pissed if you haven’t done so), but some of the seasonal elements we put up to get in the mood  should endure until the end of the year, if not beyond.

Here is my list of favorite affordable decorative displays for the festive and frugal in all of us.

1. Lanterns

Rice paper lanterns bobbing outside (with solar lights) or in your rooms make a huge, happy statement. I love the cylinder shapes with Asian motifs like the ones found at My Green Party Goods, $3.50 each.  Keep out of wind and rain and purchase eco options.

2. Mini Pumpkins

Don’t toss these babies out with the bad Halloween candy. They transition to the Thanksgiving table (orange+pumpkin) and even co-mingle happily pomegranates and pepper berries for winter holiday merrymaking. You can buy organic by the case at Baldor, if you haven’t already succumbed to the adorable guys at the farmers’ market.

3. Bowls of shells

It’s likely you have amassed these already. Gather them in a pretty bowl for the coffee table, scatter on the table, line them on the mantle. Shells – often used to evoke romantic, seaside summer lazing – work just as well in fall and winter. I like combing the beach for sand dollars and tossing them into my mix.

4. Strung Cards

I string three rows of natural wire along my dining room wall to hang beautiful cards from the high holidays and my daughter’s October Bat Mitzvah to Halloween, Thanksgiving and winter holiday greetings. Just pick up some clamps and you’re in business. Guests love them and cards are so cool, why toss them out?

5. Photo Displays

I’ve mounted many photo walls for clients and friends, which is affordable art for the home and a way to display treasured memories from the year. Of course, assorting eco frames on various tables throughout the house works well, too (school photos, Halloween shots, other fun scenes).

6. Foliage

Harvest leaves, twigs and pine cones and branch out in your earthy styling of tables, entryways and other venues that smack of fall color. I like how Arenamontanus gathered a grouping for a desk.

7. Candles

Beeswax candles come in all shapes and sizes and really set the mood for seasonal statements. Mix ’em and match ’em, turn off the lights and turn on the tunes. For a great assortment visit 1000 Markets.

8. Recycled Cloth Coasters

Like these vintage treasures from Etsy, turn your excess fabric into coasters with easy sewing for delightful results. When do you put them away? Never.

9. Table coverage

Roll out the organic runners and roll out the fun, kids. This sumptuous moss design from Amenity can take you through the seasons and inspire unique styling. I use them to dress up many surfaces from the dining table to the buffet and entry way.

10. Vintage Dishes

This peach glass from Step Toes is a lovely example of the menagerie of collectibles you can break out to display and use for serving, from favorite heirloom porcelain to tea pots and even plates hung for display. This is where you canhave blast and save on that styling budget.

The post Styling on a Yulestring? 10 Frugal and Festive Fall and Winter Displays appeared first on EcoSalon.

Jewish is going greenish.

It’s a phenomenon I like to call Oy-Soy, the marriage of ethical Jewish values with eco alternatives – everything from the artifacts that help color our heritage to a back-to-nature approach to living more sustainably.

I guess it’s all in line with the goals of tikkun olam, the repairing of the world, which we Jews perform in a variety of ways, from donating to our communities with charity and acts of kindness to taking stock in our resources.

Is being green a blessing? Try these out and see:

Recycled Ketubah

The wedding contract, called a Ketubah, often emerges as a gorgeous work of art which couples frame and hang on their walls. This exquisite design on handmade recycled paper features pressed wild flowers and ferns, along with embossed plants for a touch of the early garden. $195.00 from Ahuva (shown above).

Eco-suede and Fair Trade Kippots

For greener coverage, try a golden kippot made of eco suede, the friendly vegan alternative to a suede-leather. These yarmulkes are made of recycled cardboard. $2.50 each from A-Zara. Or, opt for colorful crocheted, fair trade head coverings made by sixty Maya artisans working in the Guatemalan highlands. With the purchase of the woven caps, you are dong a mitzvot by helping women artisans earn a steady income for their families. $16 each at the Globale Exchange Store.

Fair Trade Challah Cover

Bring some exotic Boho flair to your Shabbat table by covering your  organic holiday bread in this handwoven, fiesta blue cloth embellished with a bright colored star and borders. 15″ x 20″. 100% cotton. $38 at Artistor.

Guilt-Free Organic Nosh

Nosh like an eco fresser with the organic bagels from Rudi’s Bakery (multigrain, honey wheat, white and cinnamon raisin); Nancy’s organic cream cheese (thick like you mean it); top with Vital Choice kosher, wild sockeye salmon Nova Lox. Head to your local farmer’s market for the tomato and onion and gorge without guilt!

Organic Kosher Wine

Such a blessing, the organic fruit of the vine, like Hafner Queen Esther Reserve Pinot Noir ’04, which is produced under the strict supervision of Rabbi A.Y. Schwartz in Vienna. $11.08 for a bottle at Online Kosher Wine. Or open a bottle of  the Baron Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, $29, made of grapes selected from vineyards in California’s Central Coast areas of San Luis Obispo and Edna Valley and the northern coastal areas of Sonoma.

The post Nu? Eco Ketubas, Kippots, Bagels and Wine for Repairing the World appeared first on EcoSalon.

Besides being impossibly adorable, this painted enamel adaptation of the Asian field worker’s tacked lunch box is the ideal container for a dieter on the go.

I received one as a gift from my boss over a cup of Joe and a lesson on social networking. She said, “Here, take this and have fun with it. Maybe your kids can use it.”

Maybe, not! I’m not about to let them have another cool gift of mine so they can abandon it on the blacktop, allowing the contents to rot over the course of several months or convert it into a Barbie submarine bath toy.

Noooo. I’m going to pack healthy snacks in the tiered compartments because every dieter knows, failing to plan is planning to fail. If you don’t have those chopped organic veggies and fruits handy, you reach for the so-called protein bars (a.k.a. candy) or bagels (six points).

I know this sounds a bit crazy (’cause I am) but I even take it downstairs into the basement with me while I write so that I can keep nose to keyboard and not have to flee every time I get a craving for a chunk of jicama. I’ve also taken it with me when I have to drive a distance and get lots of looks from people who see me toting it. “That lady is stacked,” they’re thinking, and I like the fact they envy what I got on me, you know what I mean?

The best news is my bento is yet another way to eliminate throw-away bags and plastic and is awfully stylish compared to many of the reusable lunch containers made for work and school. It doesn’t leak and is dishwasher safe, too, for those who are sticklers about sanitation – and you should be.

And guess what? VivaTerra is even offering to give away this ultra-cool lunch box for you EcoSalon readers. Just post a comment on how you think you would use it to be entered to win one of your own!

The post A Bento a Day appeared first on EcoSalon.

If you haven’t heard, fancy-shmancy cupcakes are stealing the hearts of America as we downsize our celebrations with treats that fill us up, not out.

For a growing number of sweet teeth, four bites and one candle do the trick as we replace the wasteful sheet cake of old with an indulgent Red Velvet vegan confection made to order at your chic neighborhood cupcake boutique.

Call it theater in the round for the bakery hound!

The new stars are the vegan assortments  introduced by bakers such as Yummy Cupcakes in Los Angeles, which sells from its healthy alternative menu three days a week at its shops in Burbank and Santa Monica.

Yummy’s flavors include Almond, Blood Orange, Chocolate Chili,  Brown Sugar Cinnamon, and my favorite, the Arnold Palmer – black iced tea and lemonade.  They sell for around $3.25 a pop for the classic size and $1.50 to $1.65 for the mini size. Of course, you can buy them by the dozen, as well.

Tiffani Soforenko, one of the three partners at Yummy, says the vegan menu was  inspired by an offer to prepare cupcakes for talk show host Ellen DeGeneres and her crew. “We knew Ellen was a vegan and hadn’t done vegan recipes yet, and figured it was the perfect time to figure out how to do it,” she recalls. “We brought the red velvets for her and her staff and they were a huge hit.”

It took off from there. “We thought if we can make that, what else can we make? Our normal menu is 156 flavors and we do 43 as vegan,” says Soforenko.

What sets them apart? No animal-based products, eggs or butter or egg replacers. They are also topped with raw sugar instead of colored sprinkles. People with food and dairy allergies are gobbling them up!

Another gourmet vendor, Kara’s Cupcakes in San Francisco (with four Bay Area locations) proudly boasts it is “green” on its web page, from its sustainable local and organic ingredients to environmentally-friendly recyclable and compostable packaging to its bakeries built with green certification standards. It even uses green cleaning products and delivers its treats in ultra low emission vehicles. Plus, the cupcakes are to die for, from Kara’s Karrot on Halloween night to Raspberry Dazzle and Milk Chocolate Ganache.  They look good and are filled with good stuff. What else would you expect from the daughter of a dentist?

While pure ingredients are naturally in high demand in buff California, the notion of a greener cupcake is just now making its way to glitzy Miami, where the founders of Cupcake Nouveau – Cristina Valdes and Shayrin Badillo – are getting in the groove.

“We are in the process of developing new recipes that are sugar, gluten and dairy free,” shares Valdes, who says her South Beach clientele is all about glamor and chic. These skilled bakers are known for the artistic detail they add to their specialized cupcakes for weddings and fundraisers, such as pearls and roses adorning the Vanilla Bean Madagascar creations. You grow, girls!

Rather bake em yourself? Many of these gourmet cupcake companies offer cupcake party baking kits for around $42 that ensure hours of fun and a terrible mess for moms as the guests go crazy stirring, blending, frosting and decorating their visions. Either way, the naturally beautiful end result seems to be taking the cake.

Main Image: Cupcakes Nouveau

Image One: Yummy Cupcakes

Image Two: Cupcakes Nouveau

Image Three: Luanne Bradley

The post Green Ecosalon Recipes: Gourmet Cupcakes on the Rise with the Vegan Wise appeared first on EcoSalon.

Bottled water sales have dropped for the first time in at least five years as a result of  vocal environmentalists sparing the landfill and a recession that has consumers giving tap water a shot.

Americans drank 8.7 billion gallons of bottled water last year, compared with 8.8 billion in 2007, according to consulting firm Beverage Marketing Corp. This is the first decline this decade, signs the Siggs and advocacy groups are making a dent. (Here at EcoSalon, we’ve encouraged readers to Stop the Bottle in 2009.)

According to a report in the Los Angeles Times, Nestle, the largest seller of bottled water in the U.S., reported its profits fell 2.7% the first half of the year. Nestle sells Poland Spring, Deer Park, S. Pellegrino and Perrier. And while the corporate giant peddles many other brands of food, bottled water was the only sector failing in global sales during the first half of the year, down 2.9% because of weakness in the United States and Western Europe.

“I thought we’d never be able to impact sales of bottled water, and all of a sudden it’s really gained momentum,” said Wenonah Hauter, executive director of advocacy group Food & Water Watch. “I think we’re making real progress.”

The progress has resulted from campaigns launched by consumer advocacy and nonprofit organizations to educate consumers about the massive waste and environmental damage caused by plastic bottles. According to Food & Water Watch, people are wising up to the environmental costs of bottled water: production consumes energy and emits toxic chemicals; transportation guzzles oil, generating pollution; and disposal amounts to littering, with 86% of all bottles put in the garbage instead of the recycling.

The figures are a welcomed departure from last year when bottled water ranked America’s third most popular beverage (followed by soda and milk) with sales exploding 59% from 2003 to 2008, making it one of the fastest-growing beverages. Surveys show 70% of consumers drink bottled water.

Americans drank 8.7 billion gallons of bottled water last year, compared with 8.8 billion in 2007, according to consulting firm Beverage Marketing Corp. This is the first decline this decade.

Image: elNico

The post Are We Finally Weaning Off the Bottle? appeared first on EcoSalon.

While we generally avoid traditional paper gift wrap these days, a Berkeley MBA and mom has developed a line of more responsible coverage for those gifts: reusable, recycled bags.

Josie Gaillard’s Living Ethos made its debut in San Francisco this summer in selected boutiques. Now, the versatile and vivacious eco-chic wrap is available on the web.

What makes this attractive paper one to chase?

The sustainable gift bags come in 30 varied prints that are as attractive as upholstery fabrics. But instead of being assembled with cheap cotton, they are a high quality fabric born of recycled plastic bottles (hurray) and come with coordinated grosgrain ribbons also made of the same PET materials (hurray, again!).

They can be reused countess times – for gift-giving or storage – which is the goal when it comes to paper products. Just yesterday, I presented a bottle of wine in one, and the recipient returned the bag to me to use again. That was special.

The bags come in four sizes – mini, small, medium and large to fit small items like books and trinkets to larger gifts such as wine, clothing and toys. $28 for set of four. They are sewn locally in the Bay Area and the shipping envelopes also are reusable.

It’s all part of Gaillard’s effort to make it easier for consumers to “live their ethos.” Gaillard, a solar energy marketing professional turned entrepreneur, has a passion for product design and promises more stylish, sustainable goods to come.

The post Re-Wrap appeared first on EcoSalon.

Only three weeks left of summer and the ads to stock up and save on school gear are invading our space. Grrrr!

Anxious kids sense the clock is ticking as they try to prolong the inevitable. Meantime, I refuse to listen, look or buy when it comes to the ads for “must have” clothes and supplies for fall.

I can’t stand it when the Christmas ads and music start playing after Halloween. I cringe when the Easter cards appear once Valentine’s Day cards are cleaned off the shelves, or when Fourth of July streamers and hats patriotically appear in windows moments after Mother’s Day.

And I can’t stand this retail intrusion, either.

Here are five reasons why we all should just say “No!” to the pressure to prep for September in August.

1. The ads are specifically designed by marketing executives as a strategy to get us to buy items we don’t need.

Mainly, this addresses back-to-school clothes and supplies. What’s the hurry? After all, in most states, the weather stays pretty much the same in September as in August, and I bet your kids can get by with the same jeans, Converse shoes, socks, tees, sweat shirts and possibly the uniforms they already own.

In addition, if you’re like me, you replaced the backpack in the spring and it is still good to go in the fall after a bit of wear-and-tear during the summer months. Teachers provide supply lists for each class, and many of those items you already own, such as rulers, binders, pencil bags, markers, boxes of tissues, and other supplies. We can get kids excited about entering a new grade without associating the leap with buying new junk.

Better to fill in with what they don’t have and get them excited with one personalized reusable lunch box with homemade organic cookies and a loving note inside.

Dear Lo, have a wonderful first day and eat the vegetables I packed! Insist on moving if you are seated next to Oren again this year. We’re all tired of him eating your pencils. Love, Mommy.

2. School Ads in August rob us of what little freedom we have left.

My kids hear the radio ads to start stocking up on supplies and sigh, “Summer is over already.” I tell them that they have three weeks left and to ignore the stupid radio ads. Stores like Target, Walmart and Sears (the back-to-school headquarters) just want to sell as much as they can to make money ’cause times are hard. But kids still have time to sleep in and play in the sand and do nothing to their heart’s content.

3. The retail goal of accelerating fall works against living in the present.

Isn’t one of the goals of a healthy mind to live in the present and reap the benefits of the Power of Now, as described in Eckhart Tolle’s bestselling guide? Being hit with television, online and radio spots about buying for school encourages us to direct our thoughts towards the months ahead and to rush out now and get ready or else.

Or else, what? Will our child be an embarrassment showing up on the first day in a dress they’ve already worn or uncool dirty shoes? Will they fail miserably without the proper Jonas Brothers backpack or Miley binder and be relegated to a dark corner of the cafeteria to eat alone?

There is nothing to get ready for except for bed after months of unstructured living. Have a nice end of summer dinner, put them down at a decent hour, make sure the alarm clock works, fix a good breakfast and get them out the door and to school on time. There, you a have done your job without blowing $200 on non-essentials.

4. Back-to-School ads are anti-green.

You don’t hear them talking about loading up on eco-friendly ensembles and recycled backpacks, do you?

No, they want you to buy cheap, made-in-China plastics that last a few months and pile up in landfills. It’s sort of like the cell phone manufacturer strategy. They make this stuff as cheap as possible to trick you into thinking you are getting big savings, but the reality is you are buying something made as cheaply as possible in most cases – junk that needs to be replaced as soon as it breaks or breaks down. It’s is always better to buy quality for your kids that will endure rather than getting duped by the ad giants to purchase short-lived, toxic Chinese bulk. Less is more. Quality over quantity.

Plus, no one wants to buy new wardrobes and tons of supplies during a recession. Do clothing swaps with friends, handing down clothes that don’t fit. Just buy what they need and hold firm. Believe me, there is plenty of time to shop for sale items throughout the year. These days, things are always on sale. They need to be!

5. The popular tune School’s Out for Summer means all summer.

Ask Alice Cooper if you don’t believe me. He will tell you the lyrics never said, School’s out for summer until early August because you have to buy stuff. Take back your power and be an ad buster. You have the control to savor what precious time is left of summer. Don’t succumb to the pressure to buy now!

Main Image:  Target

Image 1: Sketchers

Image 2: E.L. Bradley

Image 3: Kohl’s

Image 4: Sodahead

The post Why Parents Should Reject Back-to-School Ads in August appeared first on EcoSalon.

This is the third in Luanne’s new lifestyle column, Life in the Green Lane. Read the inaugural column, “The Pros & Cons of Being Married to an Eco Man” and the follow-up, “Why Is it So Hard to Get My Mom to Go Green?”.

My dog has fleece. And that’s not all. There are dozens of reasons why this impossibly adorable pug is leaving behind a puny carbon paw print.

If you consider dogs part of the family then it’s important they’re pulling their weight in the eco department along with the rest of us.

My little Smokey may not be as earthy as those drooling, stick- fetching, shaggy water dogs you see at Ocean Beach. But he plunges into nature pretty darn well for a pampered, toy breed favored by Tibetan monks, Chinese emperors and 16th century European royalty.

Plus, he’s a champion chick  magnet. I can’t take him anywhere without hormonal, puppy-loving teenage girls gushing over what looks to them to be a huge stuffed pet. Their devoted boyfriends stand by while they give up some love to my guy. “Ohhh, is that your pug? Can I pet him? What’s his name? OMG, he’s sooooo cute!”

Okay, so being a magnet doesn’t earn you an LEED certification, but these other things count – things you won’t learn at obedience school.

Here’s why my dog is cuter..I mean greener…than lots of other dogs.

1. Carpools on Playdates

Smokey gets picked up for his group, The Littles, a couple of days a week, and this has helped him become the socialized, refined gentleman neighbors invite over for biscuits and tea. Also, his owner (me) is saving fuel by not driving him myself.

2. Named for the Bear

Every time we call out his name, “Smokey, stop eating those Bounce sheets,” people are reminded of that famous ranger bear Smokey who first appeared in 1952 to get clueless cigarette smokers and weekend campers on a campaign to prevent wildfires. My mother argues he should be named Oliver or Churchill or something that goes with brandy and a cigar. But Smokey was already named when our babysitter gave him to us ’cause she was moving and couldn’t keep him.

2. Reuses Everyday Household Objects

A savvy consumer not taken in by the notion that new is best, Smokey forgoes the fancy, synthetic dog bed for a cozy laundry bag or basket filled with warm sheets and socks. Good boy! That’s my good green dog! However, his favorite mount is our laps and that costs nothing at all and we like it because he is so lovable and sweet.

3.  Maintains a Strict  Organic Diet

We feed him Newman’s Own organic pet food, as well as organic kibble and free range chicken broth in a reusable stainless steel dog dish. Occasionally, we let him have a treat, such as organic string cheese, which was a great training aid for prompting him to sit, lie down and stop eating Bounce Free sheets.

4.  Walks the Walk

Smokey is an avid walker who adores cruising to a nearby playground or hiking at Fort Funston. Walking keeps him fit (pugs have a tendency to pack on the pounds) and also calms him down. Walking is great for me, too, and for pet owners like you! Besides, Smokey gets rather nervous riding in cars. He insists on having the windows rolled all the way down and whimpers uncontrollably until we arrive at our destination. My husband is the same way.

5.  Wears Made-in-the-USA

Whether starring in a 4th of July parade in Sonoma or escorting his sisters on Halloween, Smokey wears locally-made garb, from patriotic bandanas to harnesses and muscle shirts. He feels we import too many toxic toys and products from China, and although he springs from the Asian culture and resembles the Foo Dog in looks and stature, it all stops there.

6. Creates a Warm Fur-ness

If you can sleep through the intense snoring (being hit over the head with a large mallet can help) then you don’t need to turn up the heat on a cold night in San Francisco. When Smokey stomps on your ribs and flops down on you or near you, it’s like a natural furnace that keeps you toasty all night. Just ask old Audrey. She likes to hang with Mr. Smokes for sunny afternoon cat naps. Audrey showed him who is boss from the very start, but now she needs him. Oh, yes she does, girl.

8. Prefers Biodegradable Pooper Scooper Bags

He won’t tolerate any other sort of bag for scooping up his shit. Funny, that’s one of the reasons I love him so. I once tried to pick up a poop using a plastic grocery bag and boy did he yelp. He likes that Bio Bags are made with planet friendly corn that breaks down. We use bio bags for composting, too.

9. Is Never, Ever Wasteful

Kids might kvetch, “there’s nothing to eat,” but Smokey never takes that stance because he will eat just about anything that resembles food. While I’m preparing his meal, he cries and dances manically in a circle, a tribal dance reminiscent of Native American rituals praising the buffalo. If a scrap falls on the floor, he laps it up. If he feels the compost we set aside could be more useful as a snack, then he asserts himself like a good steward of the planet should. And if Audrey won’t finish her own breakfast, Smokey recycles that into his dessert.

10. Conserves Energy

Like the best hybrid, Smokey is efficient at conserving fuel. Here he is after completing a five mile course along the Great Highway bike path. He parked his tired pug ass on the sofa for a snooze before dinner.  After dinner, he usually rests until his late night walk with dad. Then he parks it until breakfast.

OMG! My pug is sooooo cute!

Images: Luanne Bradley

The post 10 Reasons Why the Planet Loves My Dog appeared first on EcoSalon.