Love the Earth Day, Everyday.

For me, every day is earth day. I grew up on a horse farm in New Jersey and played outside every day of my youth, rain, snow, shine--no matter.  My mother will tell you, I stayed out of trouble hanging out in the forest, building tree forts, mud houses, fairy homes out of sticks and branches.  I love the Earth, so much, I moved to Muir Beach, CA--the home of Muir Woods. Whether you are a tree hugger or a city slicker , there is no way not to be impressed with the majestic beauty of Muir Woods.  This is where the dignitaries signed the Charter for the United Nations--how can you beat that for serenity inducing vibes?  World peace is a viable concept when you've giant redwoods to dwarf your sense of permanence.

So how can we shepherd the protection of the earth? You guessed it, consumer choice..conscious capitalism.  Here's how:

When you hire housecleaners,housekeepers choose someone who cleans with organic cleaning products. Laborfair has lots of people who do this..Check out Natalia. 

Use greener cleaners. As many as a third of Americans have an adverse reaction to common household chemicals. I'm grooving to grapefruit-inspired Meyer's Green Day Dish Soap--seriously, you could eat this stuff when you wash the dishes. I am now buying this dishwashing liquid in bulk 6-packs off of Amazon. There's also cool mix of uber-earth and pocket friendly concoctions to clean on Care2.com (the social network for people who care about just about everything). You'll save money, too. Furniture polish can cost about $4, but a quarter cup of vinegar and a few drops of olive oil cost just a few cents.

Tip 2: Eat lower on the food chain--be a vegetarian or a raw foodie. A plant-centered diet requires fewer resources and reduces your ecological footprint as well as gives you a big glow that you carry around like a halo. You don't have to become a vegetarian -- try gradually shifting the emphasis of your meals from meat to vegetables and grains. You'll be doing yourself, and the planet, a world of good. I swear you freaking glow after one week of this type of diet. Think about it, dead begets dead..I'm going overboard but it works for me when I'm feeling tired and stressed out.

Tip 3: Wash in cold water. Ha Ha--the laundry not you. I hate cold showers.  About 90 percent of the energy used for a load of laundry goes to heating the water. I understand if you wash bed linens in hot water to kill dust mites, yet you can opt for washing all other loads in cold -- and save up to $300 and 330 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions each year.

In love with green,

Jenna