Christmas Spirit - Flash Mob

Recently I wrote about the "new thing" in Charleston, the closing of King Street on the Second Sunday of each month. Charleston's infamous, King Street, is open each second Sunday to pedestrian traffic only, and this temporary redirection of auto traffic has been a total hit. As far as shopping, lots of cool deals and specials are there to be found. The experience seems a bit more fulfilling when one does not have to contend with traffic. Best of all - you are able to walk the street without the foul smell of exhaust wafting up your nostrils. Trust me, that IS the best part! People are loving this and a lot of cool things appear to be happening.

I admit, I did not get out this past Sunday, and there is a small part of me that is devastated to have missed the Christmas party "flash mob." But I heard about it, and thankfully the moment was professionally captured in this beautiful video, made for the Charleston Symphony Orchestra whom, pardon the pun, orchestrated the flash mob scene. This little holiday gathering must have been a real treat to anyone that caught it, and was conceived as a "sneak peak" of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra's Holiday Celebration coming this Saturday night, December 18th, Gaillard Auditorium. The show begins at 7:00 p.m.

Merry Christmas from Charleston - enjoy!

Controversial Political Toy

Online shopping for Christmas has its hazards.

Aside from the easy persuasion to overspend (as credit card sits temptingly next to computer console) one can expose themselves to lots of things they might rather not know exist.

Take for instance, this dumba%$* toy, which is a fine example of a collosal waste of energy spent toward its production. The Path CRA 911 Super Fun Childs Toy appears to be made in China, with French (don't speak French; not positive on this one) instructions, and according to the internets, is sold in Morocco. It is a near unrecognizable plastic President Bush figure, sitting atop a tank, chasing Osama Bin Laden on a circular train track.

Someone in the world is making mucho dinero by reducing an historic and tragic event to a plasticized, oil-based prop. Sad. It might be that time of year to reflect, yet again, on the stupid crap we buy all around the world.

- photo credits to fun-blog.biz

A New Kinda Christmas Story - The Story of Stuff

www.storyofstuff.com

Tips For Thanks And a Conservation Christmas

Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone and now we march toward the Christmas holiday. Contemplating an appropriate post for a dramatic year, an unexpected e-mail arrived. A reader shared with us that she commends our attempt at cutting back our oil use/dependency. Lamenting her own inability to give up her “bus” as required by the needs and safety of her children, we pointed out that conservation efforts can occur on a multitude of levels, and that her methods needn’t specifically mirror our own. Anyway, in this inspirational e-exchange, our reader asked us to post a few ideas, as well as one of her own. This is no way constitutes a complete list, but this being a great idea, we’ll continue to post interesting finds. As the holidays continue to unfold, we thank all of you for your kind words, kudos and the appreciation some of you have shown for the conservation efforts of two small people in the world.

Happy Holidays to all! Good luck implementing any of the following conservation tips:

Install fluorescent light bulbs to ensure reductions in energy use.
Install adequate insulation in your home to ensure reductions in energy use.
Buy recycled products when available, i.e. recycled paper towels.
Recycle your glass, newspaper and plastics in areas where recycling is available.
Reduce use of plastic bottles - mountains of plastic bottles end up in landfills.
Investigate personal product choice – use your dollars to cast favorable VOTEs for companies practicing conservative production methods.
Designate an area of your yard for compost.
Install a rain barrel and use it for yard watering. Reductions in water use also reduce energy use in areas where hydropower is the source of electricity generation.
Repair dripping faucets or leaky toilets.
Turn off the faucet when brushing teeth and shorten showering time.
Carpool.
Use public transportation just once or twice a week to reduce use of fossil fuels, and still keep your car for really busy days.
Turn off the lights. You’ll look foxier by candelight anyway.
Don’t buy a fake Christmas tree. Think lead dust and crowded landfills.
Plug TV, VCR, DVD, Stereo system, computers, etc. into a surge protection plug. Power the whole mess off at the surge protector to stop electrical “leak” into the electronics.
Turn off your car and curb pollution while waiting at the drive-thru, school pick-up area or bank drive-up ATM.
Buy locally grown foods to combat fossil fuel use in long distance food shipments. Check out this cool mashup from www.GoGreenCharleston.org to find local food sources.
Last, simply buy less.

Still haven't had enough? Here are ten more.

As always, feel free to post your comments and include other green tips or conservation ideas we’ve not listed here. Ya’ll take care!