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Thursday, December 31, 2009

New Year's Wishes for All




May the Best of your Yesterdays, Be the Worst of your Tomorrows~



According to Mark Twain - - -



New Year's is a harmless annual institution, of no particular use to anybody save as a scapegoat for promiscuous drunks, and friendly calls and humbug resolutions.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Electric vs. crocheted blankets

Electric vs. crocheted blankets

By Green Living Tips
Published 09/1/2007

Keeping warm in bed - crocheted vs. electric blankets

I hate the cold. Let me rephrase that - I really, really hate the cold. I mope around much of winter complaining about it. When I first heard about global warming years ago, like many others, I thought this to be an excellent prospect. Of course, after learning a little more about climate change related to global warming, I quickly changed my mind.

It's still a little brisk here of an evening, but with the northern hemsiphere heading into the colder months, I thought it time to look at the topic of electric blankets in relation to the environment. If you're considering buying/replacing an electric blanket this year, hold that thought for a moment.

I was a little surprised by the electricity consumption of these blankets. Under normal use, they consume somewhere between 60 watts an hour for a single and 100 watts an hour for a double on average.

It mightn't sound like much, but let's do a a couple of quick calculations to get an idea of the carbon dioxide emissions impact created by a coal fired power plant in order to generate the electricity for a blanket over a season:

100 watts x 8 hours = 800 watts
800 watts x 90 days = 72 kilowatts
72 x 1.5 pounds of carbon emissions per kw = 108 pounds

So, around 108 pounds or 49 kilograms of carbon dioxide associated with the use of each electric blanket over the coldest months of the year; each year. Now multiply that by the millions of people who use them and the amount becomes really substantial.

Added to the greenhouse gas emissions associated with electric blanket use, there's also these points to consider.

- The plastic coated wiring and other components that are used
- They are often made with synthetic fibers
- There's some debate as to health issues relating to electromagnetic fields
- The initial cost and then ongoing costs of electricity
- Fire/burn/shock risk

Aside from environmental issues, the fire and burn risk is really disturbing. It's estimated around 5,000 fires are caused by electric blankets in the UK alone annually. Electric blankets also present burn risks for the elderly and very young and others who may have problems registering pain or reacting to it.

When you dispose of your electric blanket, and for safety reasons that should be every 10 years maximum, many of its components will be around for generations to come; particularly the plastics.

I guess that in some areas of the world, electric blankets have their place and it's more earth friendly to use a blanket than to use room heating - but for many of us there are more environmentally friendly options to consider.

In our house we use a feather-down quilt and a crocheted top blanket that my partner made - that's it. Her creation made a huge difference.




Don't let the "holes" in a crocheted blanket fool you :). This has kept us warm and toasty through the winter, even when temperatures approached freezing. It's still a bit nippy when first diving under the covers, but that's only for a minute or two.

The blanket took a while to make, but you can buy these online from many places. Look for crocheted blankets that are made from wool, recycled cotton or perhaps even recycled nylon.

Costing a few hundred bucks for a queen size, these blankets and good quality down quilts are a little expensive, but view it as an item that will be long lasting and over time you'll probably save money through not having the ongoing electricity and replacement costs. A well made blanket like the one my partner made can be a family heirloom!

If you're not quite ready to give up your electric blanket, some folks simply turn their electric blanket on around 30 minutes before snooze time and then switch it off once in bed. You could also consider using a timer so the blanket switches on only during the coldest parts of the night.

You don't necessarily have to sacrifice comfort in order to live a greener life, but these small choices we make collectively do make a huge difference to our impact on the environment.

Friday, December 4, 2009

Ugg Boots -

ugg boots

If you will click on the photo above, you can enter to win a pair of Ugg boots!  I just did . . .  Oh boy, my toes can almost feel them already!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Christmas - a Time of Things and the Thoughts of Loved Ones


This is a wreath that our daughter made for me.  It has raffia, toy cat jingle bells, and fabric with cat motiffs.

She makes these in any theme, and they are prettier than my feeble effort at photo taking can show.



The photo on the right, is the dear granddaughter of my best friend.  She is wearing a furry batwing shawl that I made.  Her hair is all tossled because she had just woken up, but insisted that her photo had to be made right now~
    Isn't she a darling?




This is my Dad, whom I miss terribly.  He was a true "Southern Gentleman"

No matter how old I manage to get, I will still want to be able to talk with him and get one of those loving Daddy Hugs~



And this is my Mother, whom I also miss horribly.  She was a wonderful, loving woman, who always had time to listen to me, really listen, and I truly miss being able to chat with her. 

She had hugs ready when I needed them, as well as a good solid proverbial kick in the butt when I needed that~

For us, the holidays are always a time of happiness, as well as remembering those we have lost.  And especially a time to be thankful for those we still have with us~