Cool Site to Check "Walkability" of Addresses

Now that we've had a 3rd child, the townhouse we're currently renting is getting a bit cramped. Also, the dip in home prices is making buying our own place a more attainable goal than it was a few years ago. So I was checking out the real estate section on SFGate.com to see what they had listed. I noticed the listings included a "walkability" score. Our current home is rated "somewhat walkable" with a score of 58 out of 100.

I love the concept, though I would quibble over the details of the algorithm. The biggest flaw IMHO is that it's missing one of the most important places to which I would ideally like to walk: church. When DH was in grad school and we lived in student housing we used to walk to church every Sunday. Unfortunately, our current parish is 2.6 mi away from our home, which is farther than I care to walk with the kids on a regular basis. I couldn't care less whether there's a bar within walking distance (one of the categories that *IS* listed) but it would be very nice not to have to drive to Mass every week.

Catholics Called to Take Action on Climate Change

Via the link the commenter on my post the other day left promoting the "Meatless Mondays" campaign, I eventually wound up discovering a website for a group called the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change. It was launched yesterday to call Catholics to "make a serious commitment" to all of the following:

"PRAY and reflect on the duty to care for God's creation and for the poor and vulnerable;

LEARN about and educate others on the moral dimensions of climate change;

ASSESS our participation-as individuals and organizations-in contributing to climate change (i.e. consumption and conservation);

ACT to change our choices and behaviors contributing to climate change and;

ADVOCATE Catholic principles and priorities in climate change discussions and decisions, especially as they impact the poor and vulnerable."

As a Catholic, I do feel a moral obligation to try my best to be a good steward of God's creation. If we wait to take action until the debate over global warming has been settled it may very well be too late.

I also believe it's important for the Church to make its voice heard on this issue to make sure that any proposed government action does not conflict with Catholic doctrine. There are many environmental activists who would like to see family size limited in the name of "saving the planet". Catholics need to ensure that the focus is on reducing consumption through simpler and more sustainable living rather than fewer births.

Let's lead by example that families do not have to be small to be "green"!

How Green is Your Diet?

I'm currently reading an excellent new book entitled Go Green, Get Lean: Trim Your Waistline with the Ultimate Low-Carbon Diet by Kate Geagan, RD. I had known that a "flexitarian" diet has a much lower impact on the Earth than the typical American way of eating (of course, a vegetarian one is even more eco-friendly but I'm not ready to give up animal proteins entirely just yet). As a Christian, I feel a responsibility to try to be a good steward of God's creation. I also want to take good care of the gift of the body He gave me and make the most of the financial resources He has been generous enough to put at our family's disposal. There are so many families in our area who are hurting in this recession and demand for our local food pantry is up 50% from last year :-( If reducing our meat consumption frees up money in our budget to help feed the hungry, that's a sacrifice I believe Jesus would have us make.

Anyways, while I had a general sense that eating a plant-based diet with meat "as a condiment" was the way to go, reading Go Green, Get Lean has been a real eye-opener. I had no idea that the average American diet creates more per-person CO2 emissions than the typical amount Americans drive. Or that the food system consumes nearly 20% of all petroleum burned annually in the U.S. Red meat alone accounts for 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions from food in the average American household. Every 1 kilogram of beef consumed (~8 quarter-pound servings) has the same CO2 emissions as driving the typical European car for 155 miles. If Americans were to substitute 1 lb. of bread per month for 1 lb. of beef each year, that would save energy equivalent to 120 million barrels of oil!

Eating a "flexitarian" diet rather than a meat-heavy one also makes it easier to maintain a healthy weight. 1 lb. of porterhouse steak contains 388 calories vs. a mere 94 for 1 lb. of tofu. Not only does obesity raise the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and other health problems but it's also bad for the environment. A study done by researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine reported on CNN today found that the increase in obesity in the U.K. from the 1970 to today accounts for 270 million metric tons annually of additional greenhouse gas emissions. Yikes!

Regardless of one's views on the "hot button" issue of climate change, I believe we should be erring on the side of caution. I hate to sound like an alarmist, but if we wait to take action until the debate over global warming is resolved it very well might be too late. Reducing our meat consumption, especially red meat, is an easy and inexpensive way to lower our carbon footprint.

Our next car (at least we hope!)

I'm not much of a car aficionado, but I am officially in love with the Tesla Model S electric sedan prototype. One of DH's friends from grad school works for Tesla and invited us to come down to their showroom in Menlo Park to check it out last weekend.

The car is super stylish and HUGE! Tesla claims it seats 7; I'm not sure about that but it would easily seat 6. It's supposed to go 300 miles on one charge and re-charge in 45 minutes.

Depending on what happens with DH's job situation, we're seriously considering buying one when it comes on the market in 2011. It'd cost almost triple what we paid for our current car, but we've shared a single economy car for the entire 10 years we've been married. And it's not like we're buying a BMW or Lexus- the premium is for the green technology. We don't wear designer clothes or fancy jewelery, go on exotic vacations, own pricey electronics, etc. I think one splurge on a car that will also help the environment is justifiable at this point, assuming we can spare the cash.

Right now because of the turmoil in DH's industry, we've built our emergency fund up to a higher-than-normal level. We want to make sure that we'd be okay if he were to be laid off and had to endure a lengthy job search. But if the outlook starts looking more rosy, then we could put a portion of that cash towards the purchase of a second car.

DH's friend has promised to arrange a test drive for us soon and possibly even a tour of their manufacturing plant.

Anybody Use a Cloth Diapering Service?

I've always been tempted to cloth diaper but frankly have never wanted to deal with the hassle of so much additional laundry. With my previous 2 babies, there's never been a diaper service available where I was living. This time around, I've found a service called Tiny Tots that's based out of Campbell and delivers to my area.

Their monthly price isn't really a huge premium over what I'd be paying for disposables so I'm seriously considering giving it a try.

Has anybody out there used a cloth diapering service? If so, were you satisfied with the quality of the diapers and the customer service?

New Carnival for Environmentally-Conscious Mom Bloggers

Many of us homeschoolers strive to be good stewards of the Earth's resources, whether it's for religious reasons (like me) or secular ones (like a number of the families in my local inclusive HS support group). Whatever your motivation for your environmental consciousness, I highly recommend checking out the recently formed "Green Moms Carnival".

This month's theme is "Coping With the Commercialization of Halloween and Other Holidays" and is hosted over at the "Green Bean Dreams" blog. Even if your family does not celebrate Halloween, there are lots of good ideas for simpler, less materialistic, and more eco-friendly holidays.

November's theme is "Gratitude for Your Favorite Green Things" and submissions are due by October 27th to greenmomscarnival (at) gmail (dot) com.

(HT: afterschooler extraordinaire MC Milker over at "The Not-Quite-Crunchy Parent")

My Ideal Car for a First Date

I'm not single, but if I were, I would not be all that impressed if my date drove one of CNN's "Great Cars for First Dates." Honestly, most of the single guys I know who drive Mercedes, Audis, and Porsches are, to put it mildly, jerks. Some are rich, some are just in debt up the wazoo, but all tend to value style over substance.

If you want to impress me, show up in one of these babies: