No impact=not an easy road

Sunday=Consumption I did some winter shopping and got home and put up the items I bought. I noticed that I could throw away the bags the items came in or put them to use so I cleaned up my room and put all the trash in the bags.

Monday=Trash Well in my house me and my brother split up the weeks to take out trash and this week is my week so I took out the trash two times and actually produced more trash because I was using more paper plates and bowls then I noticed. So I really didnt contribute to the theme on this day but Oh well!

Tuesday=Transportation Wow was this a tiresome day. First of all every day I go to the gym at six a.m. which is when it opens. I went to the gym attended my classes and also stayed in the math lab getting ahead in classes and of course you say nothings wrong with that, but I stayed at school untill 9 p.m because thats when practice is over. So I was very exhausted but in the back of my mind I know I reduced my carbon footprint by only driving two trips. One from home to the school and the other from school to back home. :)

Wednesday=Food Food has never really been a problem to me since I leave in San Marcos and at home with my parents. We usually eat fruits and vegetables and never go out to eat. Unfortunately, sometimes I get this craving for the beefy 5 layer burrito that they sell at taco bell for 99 cents :/ This time I resisted that urge and proceeded on with my healthy diet.

Thursday=Energy Energy is something I find hard to consume. So If you ask anyone this day really was a failure I left my phone charger plugged in the car and in the wall of my house while not in use. I also did the same with my laptop charger. So you can call me the energy waster because thats exactly what I did today!

Friday=Water My goal is to carry a aluminum water bottle with me that was given my Txstate university. We'll see if this works!! Hopefully it doess :)

No impact week

For No Impact Week there have been a couple of things i have done to try to reduce my impact on the environment. I have used the recycle bins in my dorm room to dispose of my recycalable items. I have also walked and rode the bus to places as much as possible so I dont have to use my car.

no impact week: food day

Checked out farmers market. It was really neat! My roommate and I have been walking everywhere and recycling like mad! It's been a great week! Can't wait to see everyone monday!

GO GREEN! (not the color just the concept)

Sunday... (Consumption)

I'm going to be completely honest with you right now. Today is Sunday Oct 3rd and this entry is suppose to be about Sunday Sept 26th. But with that aside, I watched 'The Story of Stuff' at storyofstuff.com and the video was very eye opening.

Monday... (Trash)

Confusion, frustration, aggravation, and I'm sure some other words that end in 'ion' that I can't think of started my beautiful monday. Trash. Really Trash? How do you not make trash?! Hmm I sense a loooong week ahead of me. (Grrr) Okay, lets back track some. Trash; somewhat inevitable but I love a challenge (LOL). I think I can find some energy to set aside papers I can later recycle, I'm thinking maybe I can refill and reuse a bottle of water throughout the day, and I might, MIGHT, eat something not given to me on a paper plate :O Quite a challenge, but hey I'm helping my great great grand kids live longer, right?

Tuesday... (Transportation)

Well... lets just say I tried. I really did, really :/ Okay, let me start by saying that I didnt use or ride in a vehicle at all today :) Good right? Now lets talk about this whole 'don't use elevators' thing; that's not going to fly with me. Before you judge me just picture this with me shall you; you've been walking class to class in die hard heat, weaving through clusters and crowds of people sweating like a pig all day long and when you finally get to your residence hall and hit that fresh AC breeze you have to climb five more flights of stairs. Um yeah, NO. I'm home, I'm tired, I'm taking the elevator. Bottom line. I'm all for the color green and saving the earth, but in all reality; I'm not the fittest crayon in the box.

Wednesday... (Food)

This day was, as the kids would like to put it nowadays, an epic fail. (smh) This is how the day was suppose to go; First get money out the bank so I can have cash to buy and enjoy the Farmer's Market in the Quad, Second not buy or drink anything other than water, and Third not buy or eat anything individually package wrapped. Like I said earlier, Epic Fail. I unfortunately work up a little late and didn't have the time to get money out the ATM all day, I caved into buying a powerade at Jones, and yes while I was at Jones I bought Panda Express and some Famous Amos cookies. I failed every goal I had set for the day but at least at the end of the day I felt bad for my choices. That's a step right?


Thursday... (Energy)

If any of my friends would have seen me in my dorm room today they would have thought one of the two things. One: I was seriously depressed or Two: I'd turned into an Owl. I was obviously conserving energy, duh. I kid you not when I say that I sat in the dark and had nothing plugged in for 85% of the day. The only time I used a light or had anything plugged in was when I took a shower (showering in the dark is scary) and when I was doing homework (I used the little built in desk lamp). That should make up for yesterday *brushes shoulders off* :)

Friday... (Water)

Today was one of those fun, yet stressful days. You know, the days when you have a million things to do but while your doing them your getting things done and feeling good. I had one of those days. Now I know what you're thinking, "Um Tamara, what's that got to do with 'No Impact Week' and saving water?". Well due to the fact that I was terribly busy all day I took the shortest showers, didn't run the water while I brushed my teeth, and managed to forget my addiction of drinking water non-stop. Not too shabby if you ask me. It may not have been intentionally but I did do something.

Saturday... (Give Back)

Although giving back isn't usually part of my daily routine, I did manage to do a little to make a difference. I opened the door for everyone around me (eventhough I don't count that as giving back because we all should do that anyways), I picked up trash in the hallway at Blanco Hall (which for some reason always has trash on the floor), and I even helped Chris Jackson (the slow) with studying for our Mass Communications class. I was no mother Teresa but I did lend my helping hand.

Sunday... (Eco-Sabbath)

To tell the truth, I'm not too fond of the color green and till recently I wasn't fond of the concept of going green either, but the second half of what I use to think has all changed. No Impact Week has changed my outlook on how I choose to live and in the long run that change will be nothing but beneficial. I can definitely see myself in the future recycling, saving energy, and even giving back. I'm no Eco-Sabbath and I don't think I can say I'll ever be a complete one, but for now I'll do what I can one step at a time and hopefully others will too.

Tamara Johnson

"No Impact" Pact Starts with Breakfast

Breakfast at Mague's Restaurant.

By Kym Fox
A commitment to limit my impact during No Impact Week seemed like a simple idea. But then we went out for our traditional after-church breakfast.

Early Sunday morning, the first day of No Impact Week at Texas State, I had already made a plan: No weekly trip to H-E-B, no packing pre-packaged food for my Monday lunch, watch one of the No Impact Week videos (I need to get ready for my US1100 lecture anyway).
Our family tradition on Sunday is to attend church and then go to breakfast at our favorite Mexican food restaurant, Mague's. I figured the restaurant stop would be OK because they serve on real plates, and Mague even prefers local food. Her kitchen crew makes everything fresh, so even the kitchen uses minimal packaging.

But then it happened.

What about my Sunday indulgence of a giant unsweet ice tea in a to-go cup? Actually, my entire family is in the habit of ordering our drinks in those giant Styrofoam cups. Maque has that crunchy ice like Sonic, and she makes the best sweet and unsweet tea around. Before we leave the restaurant, we always fill the big white Styrofoam cups with fresh ice and more tea. It lasts the rest of the day. But not this day. I was the first to order, and I grudgingly ordered my tea in a regular glass. Lydia, our server, gave me a look, but she made note. Then, without even a kick under the table from me, my husband did the same.

So, apparently it is possible to change habits and survive.

Now my pledge for the rest of the week:
Monday - Trash - I am packing my lunch in reusable containers and using my travel mug for coffee. I'll use a plastic shopping bag for my lunch, but I won't throw it away - I'll keep it to use at least the rest of the week and maybe longer. If I make that trip to H-E-B, I'll use my reusable shopping bags that are supposed to be in my trunk (note to self: put the reusable bags back in the trunk.) Now, this is the big one - I'll pick through my office trash and make sure everything that can be recycled is put in a recycle bin. I have a paper recycling box under my desk, but visitors to my office don't know that, so they are always dumping paper in my trash.
Status Update: I made it through Monday creating minimal trash and used No Impact Week as a reason to avoid grocery shopping for a few more days. It's a good thing peanut butter and jelly is standard fare at my house. 

Tuesday - Transportation - This one is tougher. I live 80 miles from campus. I have only one transportation choice - my car. I do drive a very fuel efficient car, a diesel Bettle. That's the best I can do on transportation.

Status Update: My commute did not get any shorter, and my little town did not magically develop mass transit, so I drove to school as usual.

Wednesday - Food - I am usually off campus on Wednesdays, so I will take a break from grading and stop by the small meat market in my town. They have locally produced meat and local cheeses, sometimes other items. I'll cook a great meal for my family and make it as local as possible.

Thursday - Energy - I vow to turn off the light in my office if I don't need it and especially when I am away teaching. I'll unplug all those other things that are perpetually plugged in at home and at school - my cell phone charger, music player, electric pencil sharpener - whatever I can find to unplug.

Friday - Water - I will carry my Texas State water bottle everywhere. I will turn off the tap when I am brushing my teeth or washing my face, which I usually do anyway. I'll take a "drought" shower. This summer, during the drought, we were afraid our well would go dry, so the house rule was - water on to soap up and water off until you were ready to rinse - 5-minutes max! We made it through the summer with our well intact. I can do that again.

Saturday - Give Back - I am active in a church organization called Walk to Emmaus. We have a retreat this weekend, and I'll be volunteering all weekend. (And I am taking a coffee cup and refillable water bottle so I can avoid the many disposable cups that can fill the trash cans.)

Sunday - The Eco-Sabath - I'll be volunteering on Sunday as well, so it should be easy to avoid most energy-consuming devices. The problem happens in the evening when my carbon footprint will take a giant step in the wrong direction - I have to fly to Las Vegas for the national Society of Professional Journalists convention. I can't avoid the flight, but I can share a cab in Las Vegas. It's not much, but it's something.

Check back later in the week to see how I do. I'll try to update my progress each day.

Who are you?

By Kym Fox
Remember to include your name at the top or bottom of your post so I know who to credit for each post.
You can include it at the top in the style of a byline or at the bottom. Check out how I did it on this post (no need to use multiple ways, I'm just offering examples.) - Kym Fox
- Kym Fox (or here)

The Little Things in Life

I’m thankful for my laptop. Without it I would have to resort to entertaining myself by watching television; which would not be good because everyone knows there aren’t any good shows on TV anymore. Seriously, how many wedding cake and married couple reality shows do we need? I’m also thankful for my friends. Without them I’d resort to talking to walls and my finger and be randomly screaming “REDRUM”. I’m thankful for my family because without all seven of them I’d live in a very quiet house.

I’m thankful for school, believe it or not, because it gives me something to do all day rather than babysit my brothers. It’s also an excuse to see my friends everyday. I’m thankful for being able to express myself through writing otherwise you would be reading a blog from a very disturbed person.

Ability To Post

Check. This is Desiree Smith and I can post.

Organic Not So Natural

While I could elaborate, I think you already understand. By labeling a product organic, it naturally sounds much more appealing than the processed counter option we're so accustomed to. But in reality, the organic label means little difference. By simply slapping a happy green sticker on different packaging of the same product, the asking price can dramatically increase with no questions asked. "It's healthier, so it's worth it!" Horrible, horrible lies. I believe the qualifications for defining a product as organic should be more heavily enforced. Receiving what we think we're buying should be easy.

Plastic Bags: Environmental Enemy

You're out of snacks. Oh no. Time to make the trip to Wally World and stock up. I mean come on, how else are you supposed to concentrate during those long study sessions in the dorm? I personally need something to munch on constantly. However, after purchasing my bag of chips and walking up to the register, when the cashier looks up at me and asks, "Would you like a bag for this?" I will opt out of adding another environmentally-damaging plastic bag to the collection sitting under our dorm bathroom's sink. The environmental damage caused by plastic bags is enormous. Plastic makes up 80% of the volume of litter on roads, parks, and beaches and makes up 90% of floating litter in the ocean. In every square mile of ocean there are over 46,000 pieces of plastic. This hurts so many turtles, fish, and other aquatic animals. We get to live without plastic objects in our food, choking us to death and killing off our species; why don't they?
So what I'm saying fellow college students is, recycle as much as you can, bring canvas bags with you when you go grocery shopping, definitely don't litter, and reduce your amount of environmental damage as a whole.

Death to Printers (death sounds harsh :/ )

At the end of the day, I agree, yes we need printers; so don't come to me saying that you've seen me use a printer because I know. I do realize people learn through a hands on method, I do realize a computer/ laptop isn't always handy, and I do realize some things online we just have to print for confirmation. Get it, got it, done. But in all true reality do we need all that we print. I'm going to save my time and yours by not preaching to you or boring you with pointless facts like the 'No Impact Man', but I will leave you with some questions to think about. Did you really need to print out those lyrics and tape them to the cover of your binder? Did you really need to print out your favorite celebrity and post them to your dorm room wall? And c'mon, did you really need to print out all those powerpoint slides knowing that you aren't going to give them a second look? It's your life to live and I'm not the printer police, but all I'm saying is Stop, Think, and just save some damn paper.

Tamara Johnson

Paper!

About every day an average american buys 62 million news papers and from those news papers an estimation of 44 million of those news papers are thrown away. If we would be able to recycle at least half of those news papers america would become more greener than ever.

US 1100

This is Jasmine Clark and I can post. :)

Wasting food

Americans need to learn how to eat all there food on their plate. In a recent study people waste approximately forty percent of their food. This has increased over fifty percent since the 1970s. If we waste twenty-five percent of our food we could feed twenty million people according to sixwise.com. This really upsets me because I think if you grab that item and put it on your plate then you should have to eat it since it was your decision to grab it.

Look I Can Post!

Yayyy posting stuff on the internet!

FUN TIMES :)

Engaging Topic

Ok, so I'm a computer/graphic design nerd and I decided to make a background for my MacBook on Adobe Illustrator. Its nothing informative, but I think it really sums up what we as a student body are focusing on. Its eye catching and delivers Texas State's message for the year: We're Going Green.

Unsustainable

How do you get a point across to a student population of 30,000+? Most would post hundreds of the same exact poster all across the campus. But little do they know that they are killing our earth and so ignorantly wasting our resources. A simple email would do the same trick and, in addition, make our earth more sustainable for generations and generations to come.

No Impact Week Activities

September 26 - October 3
No Impact Week
All students, faculty and staff are encouraged to participate in the No Impact Project, based on Colin Beavan’s book, No Impact Man. Texas State’s No Impact Week runs from September 26 Through October 3. This one-week carbon cleanse is designed to help you discover easy ways to decrease your overall environmental impact — and have a good time.

For a complete schedule of No Impact Week events and what YOU can do to participate, CLICK HERE (PDF)

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► Sunday, September 26: Consumption
• The Story of Stuff: video
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► Monday, September 27: Trash
• Sponsored by Texas State Recycling & Waste Management (website or 512.245.7733)
• Recycling / trash info tables, Quad, 7:45 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
• Film: I Love Trash, Alkek Teaching Theater, 7:00 p.m.
• Encourage use of reusable containers
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► Tuesday, September 28: Transportation / Take Action
• Sponsored by The Bike Cave (website or 512.245.4567) and Texas State Tram (website)
• Bike / walk / bus to school
• Plan bike route: website
• The Hub bike shop will offer tune-ups in Quad
• Film: A Crude Awakening, LBJ Student Center Teaching Theater, 7:00 p.m.
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► Wednesday, September 29: Food
• Sponsored by Edible San Marcos (contact Suzi Fields): website | email
• Farmers Market on Campus (sponsored by Edible San Marcos), Quad, 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.
• Composting demonstrations, Quad, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
• James McWilliams (History Department) lecture: "Just Food," Education Building 4062, 2:00 p.m.
• Film: Food, Inc., Centennial 157, 7:00 p.m. (see details below)
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► Thursday, September 30: Energy
• Sponsored by Net Impact student organization (Facebook group). Contact Janet Hale: jh29@txstate.edu
• Energy conservation in dorms and classrooms
• Treadmill tours, Student Recreation Center, 9:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
• Energy Resource Management featuring professor Mark Carter on "Reducing Your Coal Footprint" and a screening of Wear the Sun by Net Impact student organization, Evans Liberal Arts 316, 11:00 a.m.-12:15 p.m.
• Living Off the Grid featuring Rick and Stephanie Ertel of Kerrville, McCoy 233, 12:30-1:45 p.m. Info: click here or here
• Energy Options and Savings featuring Steve Harvey (Sustainable San Marcos) and Bigelow Homes (San Marcos), McCoy 240, 2:00-3:15 p.m. Info: click here (pdf) or here (pdf).
• San Marcos Engery Panel featuring Angela Riley (bio pdf) and Kyle Dicke (bio pdf) of San Marcos Electric Utility, James Harkins (student) and Ruben Becerra (Gil's Broiler/Phoenix Energy), McCoy 240, 3:30-4:50 p.m.
• Keynote Speaker: Karl Rábago of Austin Energy, McCoy 233, 5:30-6:45 p.m. Speaker bio: click here (pdf)
• Film: Bill Moyers Journal: Obama's First Year / America's Energy Challenge, LBJ Student Center Teaching Theater, 7:00 p.m.
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► Friday, October 1: Water
• Sponsored by Aquarena Center. Contact Ron Coley: rc13@txstate.edu
• "State of Texas Water" panel discussion with Ron Coley and Dianne Wassenich, Derrick 227, 2:00 p.m.
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► Saturday, October 2: Giving Back
• Sponsored by Student Volunteer Connection: website. Contact Kelly Stone: ks26@txstate.edu
• Service learning opportunities
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► Sunday, October 3: Eco-Sabbath
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(Content from Common Experience website.)

Assignment: No Impact Week @ Texas State

Assignment: No Impact Week blog post. Tell the story of your No Impact Week. Decide how far you can go to have No Impact. Commit to all or part of the No Impact Week experience, keep notes on your efforts and write about them on the blog. Your blog post can be just a few words and more photos or more words than photos. Consider 3-7 photos and just enough words to explain the images, 50-100 words. If you prefer words, please post should be at least 200 words. You may include opinion. Hint: Consider writing an initial blog post that commits to your intentions for the week, then go back into that post (edit post) and update your progress.