Recycling Retraction...

Hi folks!

First, some housekeeping: Regrettably, I must retract my assertion on the "What's in Your Garbage" video that the butter carton is recyclable. Sadly, because it has a coating of plastic, it is not. It SHOULD be, but that's beside the point. I think I was so distracted by the wasted tin cans and egg shells that I lost my head for a second. Anyway, sorry about that. I'll be more careful from now on when I post an informational video. Okay?

Second, I want to thank you for all your great composting comments and questions. I'm totally amped by this conversation. My plan is to put up a post in the next day or two about red worm composting.

Third, look it!












It's an article about WasteFreeLiving.com and yours truly in today's Burlington Free Press.


In good tilth,
compost maven

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Besides Garbage...

What's in YOUR garbage?



ciao!
-the compost maven

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Birkenstock Compost--Part Deux.

Hey folks!
Guess what--I recorded another Birkenstock video. Check it out...



In short, the sandals are coming undone but that good German leather will be around for a long time at this rate. Any guesses as to how long it'll take before those shoes are soil?

ciao!
-the compost maven

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Blue Light Lattice

Hi folks,

Okay, this is getting ridiculous. As amazingly lucky I am to have a generous and talented girlfriend who volunteers to keep my blog alive, I can't just keep relying on Alison to make blog entries for me. It's just been out of whack lately. Long story short, I need to find time not only to start two businesses and turn my (150 degree!) compost pile, but to do other things that I like to do such as connecting with all of you!

So, here's what I have for today. It's a picture of my most recent stained glass piece. I conceived it as a lattice of light, inspired by morning glories climbing towards the sun. Unfortunately, the yellow bits and the green round shapes don't shine through well in this photo. Attributable to the fact that I took it facing west this morning when no direct light was coming through.

Speaking of stained glass, I'll be in NYC this weekend and hope to check out Chagall's stained glass at the UN. Any of you ever see that? Supposed to be amazing. I'm also hoping to check out a gallery show of Kline's abstract paintings, which tend to reach into my brain's not oft used dimensions. I'll report back on what I find!

Ciao for now!
-the compost maven

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it's coming!

Alison here for Holly again. Things're gettin' pretty crazy here at Waste Free Living Inc. The launch date is almost upon us and Hol's working like a dervish. Here she is tonight, cranking on uploading all the products onto the website.

And here she is yesterday with Sydnee and Autumn, having a summit meeting.
Soon, very soon, you can get all kinds of beautiful and indispensible green things at WasteFreeLiving.com.

















Like this awesome compost thermometer, which is measuring Hol's freakin' HOT pile o' compost. 150 degrees, for the love of god.

After the launch, when things settle down, Hol will make a followup video of that decomposing Birkenstock. God, at 150 degrees the buckle might just have melted.

Stay tuned!

startup upstart

Hi, Holly's girlfriend Alison here. Holly’s too busy starting up WasteFreeLiving.com to tell you how busy she is starting up WasteFreeLiving.com, so I’m doing it for her. Look, her house is a disaster area, piles of catalogs and samples of lovely biodegradable and compostable things everywhere.



Here she is the other day with Sydnee, one of the eco-fabulous women helping her to get up and running.


Here she is placing her very first merchandise order last week when we were on vacation in P’town.

And here she is right now, all crazed, showing you some of her wares.


Now she's trying to figure out why people keep sending her seeds on Facebook. Facebook is rather baffling to both of us.


Also, Hol would like me to show you the extraordinarily handsome compost bins that she designed, and that have been built by local craftswomen. These will be for sale imminently.


They're not just pretty, they're HOT. Today she took the temperature of the compost in the bin in her backyard. 130 freaking degrees.

Here's her logo for the bins. See the little nuthatch? She got it made into a brand, like a for-real branding iron, which she then imprints the wooden bins with. Tssssst! The smell of burning white cedar.

Hot, I tell you.

A couple more weeks of chaos and Waste Free Living will be launched!

A Composting Vacation

Hey folks!

Guess what. I went on vacation this past week to one of my favorite places: Cape Cod, Massachusetts. One day Alison and I were at Herring Cove Beach basking in bikinis and playing toss with our highly entertaining "buzz bomb", which is a bit like a bright orange mini nerf football that has a blue stabilizing tail. It also makes this oddly delightful buzzing sound when spiraling through the air.

Anyway, while blissfully buzz bombing away we ran into Alison's old friend, the great organizer Michelle Crone, who's now taking care of the Provincetown Unitarian Universalist meeting house (which I accidentally refered to as a church in the movie below. Sorry UU's!). When I told Michelle what I do she brought up the sad state of their old pile out behind the UU. Like most places, the composting scene in Provincetown is pretty much nonexistent. Wouldn't I just love to spend a summer there setting up a beautiful composting program that would turn all the food scraps there into black gold! Anyway, through that conversation a composting project was born. Here's a little movie about how it went down...



Other highlights for me this week included getting to meet the consistently brilliant, charming, and hilarious Kate Clinton and her girlfriend Urvashi Vaid, who are, turns out, really darn nice. If you haven't seen Kate perform lately or picked up one of her books or cd's, then you must do so ASAP.

Have fun turning those piles!
-the compost maven

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Another Triathlon, What's Compostable?, Birkenstock Compost Video Part 1

Hi folks,

Yesterday was my big triathlon for the year. It was an olympic distance triathlon: 0.9 mile swim, 28 mile bike, and 6.2 mile run. The bike is my strongest event by a long run, so to speak. I finished in 3 hours and 16 minutes--2 minutes faster this than last year. Next year I'm really psyched to start doing more technical training with a heart rate monitor, etc. Here's how it started...



Here I am pushing through the last mile of the run...























All in all it was a busy day because after the triathlon Alison and I picked wild blueberries, drove all over the back roads of Vermont, and then made this little video of me composting my old birkenstock sandals that were already starting to rot with mildew (because they were very old plus I left them out in the garage for a year!).

The "what's compostable" rule: If it was once alive it'll compost.

So why not leather, rubber, and cork sandals? Check it out...



And speaking of what's compostable, on a previous post I was asked by not drowning waving about large scale versus backyard composting. Here's what was asked:

"hey Holly
do you know much about City composting? Our council here in London (Camden) has just introduced organic waster pick up service - little bins and all.
But they say you can compost things that in my other life as a more rural composter I would never have put into my compost.. and it got me wondering how these things work and maybe you might know??
Perhaps the compost pile of a city is so huge and so hot that anything can be broken down??"

My short answer: you can compost anything in your backyard, including meat, bones, and dairy. The only requirements are that your pile be enclosed (to keep out the critters) and you manage it properly. Managing your compost pile means having the right recipe and turning it regularly. Also, you gotta make sure you have at least 2 bins available for composting. When one bin is full you can start a new batch while letting the 1st one turn into compost (without continually adding more food scraps). And it really doesn't take a huge pile to heat up. That's what I do in my backyard. Of course, I had to design my own bins, which work awesome and look lovely. (These will be for sale on the web in the very near future.) But if you just have an open pile that any dog or raccoon can get into then you might not want to put the meat and bones in. And it's a crying shame to throw these valuable resources away when they could be turned back into fertile soil. Large scale compost facilities are in the business of managing their piles properly. That's why they can take anything. But you can do it too! That's the beauty of it.

Thanks for your compost questions. It's just about my favorite topic.

ciao!
-the compost maven

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Alison at the Steinway

Hi folks,

In my last post I mentioned that I got to see the Brooklyn Botanic Garden composting operation. Then Alison posted a comment with a video she made of me while tooling around in a BBG pick-up truck. Which reminds me that I made this little video of her during that same trip! Here she is at her mother's house...




Ciao for now!
-the compost maven

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July Travel Highlights

Hi folks!

Long time no post. I've been all over the place this past month including New York City (for a wonderful commitment ceremony in Prospect Park plus NYC Pride!), then to Pennsylvania to visit Alison's wonderful family and check out the old homestead in Beech Creek, and most recently, Cape Cod. Here's a few photo highlights from those travels...

Okay, first picture. Here's some DTWOF trivia for you: Which character's family owns this excavating company? Give up?

Second, check out this waterfall between Brooklyn and Manhattan. This is one piece of an enormous public art project that opened on the day we arrived in the city. It's intention is to get people in the city more in touch with the fact that they're surrounded by water. Very cool.

Third picture: One of the highlights of the trip was getting an inside look at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's composting operation. They take some food scraps from the big co-op in Park Slope and combine it with a bunch of chipped brush and mulch. They have their own chipper, which is awesome. That's Caleb showing me around. I just love seeing how other people compost! And I have lots of ideas about setting up composting systems/programs like this one in case anyone out there needs a composting consultant.



















And lastly, here's me and my 18 year old nephew, Taylor, last week on Cape Cod. Cool picture of him holding the camera reflected in his aviators! We camped in Provincetown for three nights and got very sun-baked and wave-pummeled, which is always the plan. It's been our annual tradition since he was 4! I'm pretty sure that's why he turned out to be so cool. But that's just me. Anyway, it turns out that it was "Bear Week" in P-town while we were there. It was a real treat to see so many big, hairy guys be so sweet, sexy, silly, and just totally having a blast.


















Other than that, things are coming right along with Maven Vermont Products and the Waste Free Living website. I plan to post soon on the newest member of the Waste Free Living team, Sydnee Viray, who is completely awesome, brilliant, and of course, fabulous!


That's it for now.
More soon.
-the compost maven

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Triathlons, Permaculture, Michael Pollan,

Hi folks,

Jeez, sorry to be so out of touch. Starting two businesses can be a tad consuming, turns out!

Welp, I was in a sprint triathlon yesterday. I had a good time except for the parts where I felt sick, I accidentally veered off the pavement on my bike but managed to get back on unscathed, and I almost got hit by a big red F150 pick-up truck. Mainly it was a good (and necessary) kick in the butt to start training in earnest for the olympic distance triathlon on August 2nd. No olympic medalist here--I like to think of these things as try-athlons. (there's a picture of me getting on my bike just before it started to rain)


So, needless to say, I'm a huge fan of permaculture and designing with nature. Michael Pollan talks about healing the planet through a kind of agriculture that is respectful of the entire biota. He brings up an exciting hopefulness--exciting partly because of its simplicity.


Will post on my exciting compost bin project soon! And stay tuned for a Compost Maven exclusive where I will compost my old birkenstocks on video...

Ciao!
-the compost maven

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Two Nice Girls, Alison's Morning Spin

Hi folks,

I just finished putting this little music video together. I recorded it while riding around town with Alison on a sunny Sunday morning during the Vermont City Marathon, which is a really wonderful race if you're into that sort of thing. I ran it in 2002. Anyway, when I saw the video footage I knew right away that the music it had to be set to was Two Nice Girls' "The Sweet Postcard" which is currently in my cd changer.



Enjoy!
-the compost maven

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Morels and Blue Circles

Hi folks,

Here's the painting I did last weekend...

Blue Circle (18"X24")

And check out this morel that Alison and I fortuitously stumbled across just before dinner a couple nights ago...





and my favorite part...

That's it for now.
Don't forget to turn your compost--your pile will thank you!

-the compost maven


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Ruby Kaplansky Love

Hi folks,

Check out this video I made this morning of a ruby throated hummingbird feeding on sugar water as viewed through Space Kaplansky!



There's been a pair of courting hummingbirds buzzing and zipping around this feeder lately. They're surprisingly tame in their shiny green coats, paying little attention to our presence or the salivating cat. Some cool trivia: their wings beat between 55 and 200 beats per second (I guess it all depends on how excited they are), they're the only birds that can fly upside down, sideways, and backwards, and finally, they are darn cute.

Ciao for niao!
-the compost maven

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Flo Rida and House Demolitions = FUN!

Okay, here's the thing: I really like this song and I was showing my friend, Susanna, how to upload YouTube videos onto her "house demo" blog. I used this video as an example and then decided to just leave it on, for your viewing pleasure.



Here's Susanna's video. It shows her house being creamed into oblivion by an awesome hunk of yellow iron. Check out the heavy machinery finesse and Camel's Hump Mountain in the background.




Enjoy!
-the compost maven

Back to the Basics

Hi folks,

Here's an update on my bread baking adventures. I showed you a picture of my sourdough starter a while back. I made a loaf of bread yesterday up at Alison's. It was so tasty. Here's a video of me kneading the dough...





Here's what it looked like after the first rising.


Sorry I didn't take a picture of the finished loaf. It was gorgeous.
Anyone have any suggestions for getting the crust to be good and crunchy?

Until next time,
-the compost maven

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Scarlet Runner Bean Love

Hi folks,

I'm sorry to have been so out of touch. I've been so busy working to get the Waste Free Living website off the ground, plus gardening and gallivanting, that I've hardly had a moments rest! How're your gardens doing? Got yer peas in yet?

As evidence of one of my recent gardening-related adventures I offer a video that Alison made of me yesterday out on her deck.





That's right folks, I don't go anywhere without my Led Zeppelin belt buckle!

ciao!
-the compost maven

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Space Kaplansky Love

Hi folks,

Here's my second stained glass piece. I just finished it today, the last day of class. I showed you my first piece back in February. Remember that? I love stained glass, don't you?

ciao!
-the compost maven





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Sustainable Inspiration for Waste Free Living

Hi folks,

As I get closer to a Waste Free Living website launch date I am inspired to share with you some of what has inspired me along the way in starting this company. As an entrepreneur I'm inspired by sustainable practices like zero waste, ethical manufacturing, and making meaningful, social-change-producing connections with vendors and producers. Of course, I'm a big proponent of businesses for social change and I'm looking forward to attending the annual BALLE (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies) conference in Boston this June.

Check out this video of my friend (and world class nice guy and ultimate frisbee player!), Daron Byerly, of Seventh Generation talk about their approach to sustainability.




In good tilth,
-the compost maven

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Fedco Love

Hi folks,

I took a little trip to Fedco seeds in Waterville, Maine yesterday with my pregnant friend Ann-Elise. I picked up a bunch of seeds, a cherry tree, two grape vines, raspberry canes, a dawn redwood, and a rose. Very exciting! Ann-Elise got a plum tree and lots of other stuff, too. It was their annual tree sale and a very nice scene. Here's a photo essay from the trip...

...driving past the White Mountains of New Hampshire.


Ann-Elise on the grass at Fedco... for her, a dream come true.


...in the Fedco seed room.


...driving back past New Hampshire's Whites, and then home again to Vermont's Camel's Hump.

So now, it's time to get my hands in the soil and do some planting!

Stay tuned for more gardening news.
-the compost maven

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Pledging my allegience to the soil

Hi folks,

I was just reading one of my favorite poems and thought I would cap off this Earth Day with a quick poem post and a random photograph of a black radish.

For All
by Gary Snyder

Ah to be alive
on a mid-September morn
fording a stream
barefoot, pants rolled up,
holding boots, pack on,
sunshine, ice in the shallows,
northern rockies.

Rustle and shimmer of icy creek waters
stones turn underfoot, small and hard as toes
cold nose dripping
singing inside
creek music, heart music,
smell of sun on gravel.

I pledge allegiance

I pledge allegiance to the soil
of Turtle Island,
and to the beings who thereon dwell
one ecosystem
in diversity
under the sun
With joyful interpenetration for all.

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Happy Earth, Soil, and Compost Day!

Happy Earth Day, folks! A lot of people ask me, what does Earth Day mean to you? To me it's simple: Earth Day is about soil and compost. Why soil and compost? Because if we all always acted with the best interest of the soil in mind we would have a healthy planet. Period. For starters, soil organic matter is usually way too low and the soil food web is way to depleted. Luckily, we can easily fix that by adding compost! I personally think we need a national I LOVE COMPOST Day, and maybe someday we will, but until then I'm going to post an annual video about my compost pile on Earth Day. Here's my first installment...




Check out my girlfriend Alison's blog for more Earth Day video madness!

In good tilth!
-the compost maven

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Tip O' the Nib Award WINNER Announced!

Now, folks, I'm sure that by now you can tell I'm not the type to blow my own whistle, but today is different. Why, you might ask? Why is today different than all other days? Because I have finally realized a life-long aspiration by being named WINNER of the Tip O' the Nib Award in Episode 526 by THE Dyke To Watch Out For herself, Alison Bechdel.

Here's Alison drawing...


Here's me and Alison at the awards ceremony...


I'm totally thrilled. Thanks, Alison!

Until next time,
-the compost maven

P.S. Tip O' the Day: Anyone can be a winner if you make up your own contests. Try it, it's fun!

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Composting Regs, Bear Pond Books, Persepolis...and a name change?

Hi folks,

I guess I'm on a little roll with writing diary-like posts...

Yesterday I spent almost the entire beautiful spring day indoors with about 40 composters and regulators from around Vermont in the first of a series of meetings to rethink current composting regulations. I was happy with how the meeting went. I felt that a lot of the problematic rule ambiguities, inconsistencies, and redundancies were unearthed and identified. I personally felt good about being able to articulate what I want to see in terms of regulations. I want us to move towards goal-based regulations, where we regulate our activities as if we are a part of an ecosystem, rather than definition-based regulations that bog us done in irrelevant distinctions, that at best don't get us closer to our goals of environmental stewardship, and at worst are actually counterproductive--as in the case of the Intervale. I think we can get there but it's going to take vision and real leadership from the State, and that's always a crap shoot.

Afterwards I finally got it together to send my mother something I've been meaning to send for months, which she reminded me of in a non-subtle manner when I saw her this weekend. So that was a load off. Then I went to my favorite bookstore, Bear Pond Books, in Montpelier, right before I went to see Persepolis, finally, with Alison. I thought Persepolis was powerful. I cried the first time she left Iran... That's right, folks, I'm a weepy butch!


Bear Pond is so great. Imagine those old creaky wood floorboards like in old general stores, plus an amazing selection and an informed staff. Can I just say that Montpelier is completely awesome and worth a visit no matter what? Let me know if you're coming to Vermont and I'll tell you exactly where to go, okay?

Another shot from my recent trip to Ithaca...


Also, I woke up this morning with an idea for changing the name of this blog...

For the love of god, stay tuned!
-the compost maven

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My little spring break in Ithaca, NY

Hi folks,

I'm just back from a few lovely days in Ithaca, NY where Alison spoke and signed books at Cornell. I used to live in Ithaca so it was extra fun for me. I met so many interesting people including Alison's Firebrand publisher, Nancy Bereano, and her partner Elizabeth. It was simply a blast to be so well attended to by so many lovely people. We were shown a night on the town and a wending walk through Sapsucker Woods at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology where we saw skunk cabbage, sapsuckers, and a Cooper's Hawk sitting on a branch about 50 feet from us!

Here's Alison taking a picture of a sure sign of spring: a drunken cedar waxwing on the Cornell campus...



...These pictures are from my visit to the greenhouse on campus...


Another sign of spring in Ithaca is the start of the Ithaca Farmer's Market, where I got some black radishes, dried beans, and a few random but beautiful pieces of wood. I'll have to show that all to you next time in some kinda still life.

A few more shots from the trip...

...rowing, farmer's market, local fever, the co-op...


And now I'm watching the really cool scene towards the end of Oceans Twelve where the Italian thief is dancing around the lasers. One of the best things about this movie is the tie that he's wearing at the very end where he discovers the truth about the egg. You might say I have a little thing for nice ties...


Until next time,
Adios!
-the compost maven

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