It's Not Easy Being Green

Grandma had a Frigidaire like the model advertised in this video clip. It was older than me and when Grandma moved out of her big house in 1984 we took the fridge and put it in our basement. We sold it in 1987 when we moved to another house and I wouldn't be surprised if it is still humming along keeping someone's drinks cold on this hot summer day. We are told that old appliances use huge amounts of electricity and efficient models are ENERGY STAR rated by the Canadian government's Office of Energy Efficiency. Being conscientious citizens, we gradually replaced our old appliances with pricey, but environmentally friendly ones.

The Becka informed me this morning that our six year old front loading Kenmore washer was making an odd metallic sound. The sound needed a professional assessment and the polite serviceman gave the machine a prognosis of about two months. He balanced the drum on its broken support and I paid him $90 plus HST. Apparently this model has a life expectancy of five to eight years and breaks down on average six months after the warranty period is over.

Green is a very expensive colour. Hybrid cars cost more than any gas savings accumulated over several years. Solar power and wind power options are over-regulated and over-priced. My front load washer supposedly saved me water and detergent, but not enough to afford a new machine in such a short period of time. Is the environment improved with ENERGY STAR appliances stacked up in the local garbage dump?

Grandma's colour TV is in our living room. It was over ten years old when she died in 1990. We have used it for twenty years. It has thirty channels and I bet it will last longer than the two year old flat screen TV in the the family room.
Our first low flush toilet was installed last fall when we did major renovations. We are told by powers that be that "the new lower flow toilets have been mandated to save precious and limited resources." Our high boy model is good for bad knees but any substantial deposits in the unit require at least two flushes for complete removal. I am not sure what precious resources it is trying to save.

So now we have to shop for another washing machine. Cement washboards are standard in the laundry areas of Mexican homes. Perhaps a portable washboard would be better as it can also be used as a musical instrument. Mom had a wringer washer until the 1970s but they are no longer in production. But I found this very efficient model online. It has all the benefits of a wringer washer and a gym membership. And I would have to take Mondays off work to do the laundry.

Here is Becka's take on this story. She posted a video of our exact problem.

Beautiful Wings

Red Admiral on Bleeding Heart

The weather last year was cool and wet and butterflies were scarce in our area. The Monarchs in our garden did not eclose until October and by then it seemed impossible that they could journey to Mexico due to autumn storms and cold weather. We went to Monterey, California at the end of October expecting to see wintering Monarchs in the pine groves near the coast, but they were few and far between there as well.

Red Admiral on Forget-me-nots

I have seen more butterflies in the past week than I saw all of last summer. Dozens of Red Admirals and Mourning Cloak butterflies have been in our yard along with several smaller species. I haven't seen any Monarchs yet but we have not pulled out the Milkweed plants which have popped up in the side garden. Mom, who is now recovering at home after last week's surgery, was telling me that she is seeing fewer butterflies in her part of Mexico, perhaps due to agricultural pesticides.

Local Green Darner Dragonflies

Weather variations do have an influence, but butterflies and other insects do reflect the general health of our environment along with amphibians and other small creatures. Herbicide and pesticide use on lawns is now outlawed here, and while dandelions and other weeds are taking over parks and yards, these insects may benefit from the change. Chemicals are still widely used in agriculture and on golf courses locally and around the world.

I do hope these early butterflies are indicators of a good year ahead for all beautiful wings.

Earth Week 2010

This is Earth Week, a celebration which aims to increase awareness of the natural world around us. This year, the biggest event is ongoing and is staged by the earth itself. The eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano has disrupted the lives of millions of people and will undoubtedly have an ongoing effect on weather and the economy this year. We have friends stranded in Switzerland and a co-worker is having to extend her vacation in Paris until at least this weekend. While we concern ourselves with mankind's carbon footprint, the power unleashed by storms, earthquakes and volcanoes can change our environment in a few minutes.

Buying local goods at our farmers' market

Since the inception of Earth Week and Earth Day in 1970, progress has been made in preserving some of earth's treasures. But in third world countries, survival usually takes precedence over conservation. North America is a throw-away consumer society and thoughtless excesses are detrimental to our health and the health of our environment. Living a simpler life takes time and requires that we step out of the pace society now accepts as normal.

Composting kitchen waste

Our community is hosting a number of events this week, from roadside garbage cleanups to nature walks and presentations. This is the most beautiful spring season I ever remember and it is not hard to stop and enjoy the flowers and sunshine after the winter. Ongoing changes to our lifestyle are much more challenging to sustain.

Here are some ways we are trying to change our habits and thinking;-

• reducing use of plastics in general and for food preparation specifically
• buying animal products locally and avoiding packaged meats from factory farms
• reducing the use of animal products substantially
• making use of our composter and green bin for all kitchen and garden waste
• buying local foods and goods as much as possible even if they are more expensive
  
• avoiding mass-made, inexpensive items i.e. "Made in China"
• eliminating processed foods and eating more meals at home
  
• contributing to reputable charities who assist people in third world countries to go to school and to run sustainable businesses

Have you any ideas to add to the list?

Willie was Wrong

Easter Weekend Daffodils

By the beginning of February most Canadians think winter will never end. Groundhog Day is a silly attempt to wish away snow and cold temperatures and by the time spring does arrive, most of us have forgotten what the groundhog predicted. I think spring is often a non-season in this part of the world. Some years we have snow and cold through the month of April and into early May, and then we get hit with a heat wave that lasts through the summer months.

But this year Wiarton Willie, our local rodent prognosticator was wrong!

He apparently saw his shadow and therefore predicted six more weeks of winter. Quite frankly, I believe his handlers had it wrong because the day was overcast and any shadow from the sun on February 2nd was 10% real and 90% imagination.

Guelph Lake near the end of last week

Spring came early and stayed on. We had no snow in March which is very unusual, and April arrived with summer-like temperatures. Forsythia is blooming in my garden a good three weeks ahead of usual and spring bulbs are coming up everywhere. This is somewhat alarming because we are sure to have frosts in April and May which could damage early blooming fruit trees. Our mosquito and black fly season is going to have a head start and the ground is exceptionally dry. Vernal ponds in fields and meadows are very small or non-existent so there will be fewer frog choruses heard during their mating season. My husband is concerned about an early start and end for spring lake trout fishing and lakes are rapidly becoming ice-free.

Forsythia in our garden today

Some people will preach global warming and win converts to their theory in this "El Niño" year. But weather norms are averages and our last two winters were exceptionally cold, snowy and long. Last summer was cool and wet and we never needed our garden hose. My niece in Spokane WA is experiencing snow and sleet this long weekend. I like to consider all sides in the climate change dialogue.

Weather is a favourite conversational topic for Canadians, and why not? I plan to enjoy each day as it comes.

Red-winged Blackbird Song

Male Red-winged Blackbird

The Red-winged Blackbird is one of the commonest birds in North America and one of the earliest to arrive here in early spring. I usually see or hear them in the first few days of March, about ten days or so before Robins return.

The Becka phoned me at work to say she heard a RW Blackbird today. (she says she is not interested in birding!) So we took the dog out to the field at the end of our street and sure enough, two males were calling back and forth. One of them posed nicely right in front of me while he belted out his call...conk-a-reeeeeeeee!

Sad to say, this may be the last year the birds return to this old landfill site. A section of the park is now a sledding and biking hill, and the field above is to be developed further this year. Two soccer fields, a parking lot, picnic area and splash pad will be constructed.

Frogs sing and breed in the vernal ponds, Red-tailed hawks and Kestrels hunt for small rodents, ducks, Kildeer and blackbirds nest in the cattails and grass. Many other birds and animals are at home here in the middle of a subdivision. Thirty-five years ago this area was on the edge of the city and undeveloped but houses and malls now sprawl several kilometers beyond this point.

and the squeeze continues...

Death and Life in the Park

The first bird we saw as we drove through Algonquin Park was a Golden Eagle which flew from a tree top in front of our vehicle. It was the first time I had seen this large bird which winters in this region. Near the east entrance to the park, the visitor centre had several displays featuring taxidermic animals and birds. One showed a Golden Eagle feeding from a deer carcass while Ravens and a Bald Eagle waited their turn.

Park rangers placed a road-killed deer far out in a bog below the visitor centre and had a telescope focused on the animal. Wolves had been spotted earlier near it but there were none around when I took this picture. Three days later, wolves removed the carcass and the pack is shown on this YouTube clip.

My husband is standing on the balcony of the visitor centre looking for action around the dead deer. Winter is difficult for wild creatures and many do not survive the harsh conditions. There are few seeds and berries for the birds this year and feeders here have supported Goldfinches, Gray Jays, Pine Grosbeaks, Chickadees, various woodpeckers and a few Pine Martens. Pine Martens are particularly fond of eating Red Squirrels and there were plenty of squirrels around the feeders.

We are very used to Chickadees feeding from our hands but Red-breasted Nuthatches seldom are this tame. The birds were accustomed to humans and flew toward us before we had seeds ready for them. While we saw very few animals in the days we were there, fresh tracks criss-crossed the snow and provided evidence of life in the bogs and forests. Most of the action was taking place during the night and pre-dawn hours of the day. We stayed in a nice motel in town, but I would consider staying in one of the yurts (with electricity and floors) which are available for winter camping in the park. Perhaps I would see the animals who leave the tracks as they work to survive in the wild.

Laurentian Wetland

I never used to be particularly fond of swamps and feared they harboured snakes and hordes of mosquitoes. It would never have occurred to me to buy a house which backed on a wetland for fear of having a wet basement and other flooding problems. A couple of years ago another nature lover introduced me to a wetland near our home. I started going there regularly and saw much more than the obvious Mallard Ducks and Canada Geese. I posted pictures from the swamp on Flickr and came to know other people who were interested in conserving this area. It is surrounded by a nursing home, two elementary schools, a large plaza and many houses. There are a few irresponsible characters who do not respect it and use the area as a dump for garbage.


A number of people from the community teamed with the city and have started to clean up the area. They hope to have benches and a viewing platform constructed in the future and the local schools have involved their students in caring for and learning about the wetland. Three large signs have been erected and give information about the area. The picture poster above is featured and shows some of the diverse wildlife in the wetland. I was pleased to have two of my photographs included in the poster.

The area is frozen over now and there are few signs of life these dark December days. But in two or three months migrating birds will arrive, the ice will melt, frogs will sing and turtles will sun themselves on logs. And that is something to look forward to on this dark winter solstice night.