I am about to embark on an east coast odyssey, of sorts. I am taking my 2 and 4 year old girls from northern New England to the greater Washington D.C. area. By myself.

Yep, 10-12 hours on the road with two energetic, vocal, independent minded and sometimes surly (and whiny) little people strapped in. Wish me luck.

It really can’t be worse than the time my youngest decided to go on a 20 hour nursing strike while on this very same drive (any nursing mother can imagine the suffering–), can it?

Colony Collapse Disorder is still with us
…though not getting the same press it did the last couple of years. According to a joint survey conducted by the Apiary Inspectors of America and the Agricultural Research Service’s Bee Research Laboratory, 29 percent of honey bee colonies vanished between September 2008 and April 2009. That number is better than previous years…but not much.

I think it’s time to give back to the insect that has given us so much over our lifetimes (they pollinate 1/3 of our food supply). Here are 5 things you can do to help the bees:

1. Provide bees with a safe beneficial place to thrive.
Leave a patch of wildflowers and plants for bees to enjoy.

Leave the dandelions in the ground. Dandelions are probably the most beneficial flower for bees in the early spring. Check out this info from the Daily Green for a list of other plants bees love.

Make a bee post for bees to reside. Drill a variety of holes up to a half inch in diameter into the side of a thick piece of untreated timber. Attach a roof to deflect rain, smooth down the entrances to the holes thoroughly so there are no sharp splinters, and attach it to a sunny wall or fence. Keep the post in a dry, cool place in winter and bring it out in March. (Another bee house idea is shared here).
FYI, don’t build bee homes with new fence posts from home and garden centers. They are unsuitable because they have been treated with chemicals. Speaking of chemicals…

Thinking about installing a wind energy system, but not sure if the payback period on your investment meets your financial needs? I began thinking about this question last week when our old friend (and my real old friend) bobbyb sent me an article about a couple who’d installed a wind turbine at their home in Great Britain. He noted that the numbers provided in the article (a £20,000 initial outlay for £500/year energy savings) didn’t make financial sense: “That’s a forty-year payback period!”

He’s right… that kind of cost-benefit analysis doesn’t really work. If you’re going to put up tens of thousands of dollars for a wind system (or a solar energy system), you probably want to see a return on that investment in years, rather than in decades. I got so interested in the topic that I wrote a post about things you should consider before putting your money down on a renewable energy system at SUNfiltered. Wind energy systems have their own requirements, so here are a few of the things you’ll want to take into consideration.

The NRDC (National Resources Defense Council) has created Green Paws, a green living initiative, to help people keep their pets and families safe from toxic flea and tick products.

The surprising thing is that it’s not just the regular chemical culprits that may be dangerous to the health of your pets but some of the “all natural” herbal treatments can be just as poisonous.

Green Paws is committed to helping inform people that many flea and tick products can harm pets, people and the environment. They give great advice about what to do to avoid getting infested with fleas and ticks-washing your pet regularly, combing and brushing your pet, using a flea comb to pull out fleas and their eggs, vacuum your home often (and don’t forget to clean out the vacuum), and keep pet areas clean.

Visit GreenPaws.org to learn more about keeping your pets and families safe from toxic products. You can sign petitions, download a pocket guide to products, and see a list of safer flea and tick treatments.

I try to avoid chemical products as much as possible so I use herbal products instead. I was shocked to find out that even herbal products are not always safe for pets or people.

Concerned about how sustainable the fish is that you’re eating for dinner? Do you think that the farm raised option is always the best choice for seafood?

I recently attended a talk at my local Whole Foods Market given by natural health author Udo Erasmus, PhD where he discussed the properties of fat and, more specifically, the values of omega-3 fatty acids.  Omega-3’s have received an enormous amount of attention lately, due to the fact that they have the ability to improve heart health, brain function, mood, and conditions of inflammation such as arthritis.  Another reason omega-3’s are getting so much press?  Most Americans don’t consume nearly enough of them.