Life Is Good!

This past weekend here in Canton, Massachusetts the well known lover of all dogs, Life Is Good, held their rockin’ good time festival and Matt and I were lucky enough to attend on Sunday.

The festival, held on the grounds of Prowse Farm, featured so much it would be almost impossible to list it all here but I’ll highlight the stuff we took part in and saw.

We started the day with the best part of all -- free parking! Parking was graciously donated by Reebok as their building was about a ten minute walk from the field and they had a parking garage which housed a healthy number of cars. Instead of waiting for a shuttle bus, Matt and I walked the distance to the field with our beach chairs, backpack (filled with towels, a roll of toilet paper, our Nalgene bottles and travel sized Scrabble) and a smile.

We arrived right on time to get set up to see Emily Elbert. Originally from Texas, Emily went to school right here in Boston at Berkley. We’ve seen her live before and couldn’t wait to catch her act on a much larger stage. The music she does is a nice mix of bluesy, jazzy, poppy, rock and her voice holds so much soul you’d never think it was coming from such a teeny girl. She rocked and even had an interpreter signing for the crowd!

From there we made our way to get some food from the local vendors and the prices were really reasonable which was a welcomed change from most festivals I’ve attended. We passed the Life Is Good merchandise tent on the way. Oh yeah, did I happen to mention that 100% of the proceeds from this event of LiG merch are being donated to the Life is Good Kids Foundation?

Cool!

Next up for us was They Might Be Giants, one of Matt’s all time favorite acts. They have taken to doing lots of kids music in recent years but we’ve discovered that the jokes and chatting the guys do on stage in between the tunes is all for the grown ups. So, sans kids of our own, we hung out on the periphery and enjoyed the fun!  They made a funny reference to Woodstock when one of the John's came up to make an announcement and I even recognized a few tunes (Alphabet of Nations I think is one of them) from having taken our nephews to their show a few months back.

We had a bunch of idle time until the next act we were interested in seeing so it was time to mingle -- festival style!

We passed on taking part in the sporting events because we just like to walk around (and also because we both had a drink so safety first!). There was a rock climbing wall, Frisbee toss, bocce, tug-o-war and a whole slew of other fun stuff for all ages to take part in! On the way around we passed the Art for All Mural (pictured at the top of the post) and I was in love!

It consists of 1500 tiles that are hand painted in pre-determined colors/palates by selected volunteers and when it is all put together this 25’ high by 31’ wide canvas is a most impressive piece.

We made our way around to catch a little bit of Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars on the main stage (who were quite grooving, I danced my way across the field!) and then headed back to the smaller stage to watch OK Go and Brett Dennen.

We played a little Scrabble (I won which is pretty normal around here, I come from a long lineage of fierce Scrabble competitors!)

Took a few photos.

And then, I had a Say Anything moment with my favorite eco-conscious musician, the headliner that night, Jason Mraz. Just like Lloyd Dobler and Diane Court “shared a moment” in a mall food court in that movie, my moment with Jason was quite the exciting sighting for me. He passed by about ten feet away with, I think, his Joyologist Tricia but I wouldn’t swear to it. They were walking with a purpose and headed toward the main stage.

I nudged Matt and pointed Jason out but he didn’t catch on until the man himself had already passed by. Oh well, maybe one of these days I won’t be so shy and just approach the guy. I mean really, we have the planet in common at least even if nothing else right?

After Brett was wrapped up we had a lot of time before the next act we wanted to see, Jason, so we kind of milled about the place. We caught a slight snippet of Guster (good!) and Corinne Bailey Rae (very mellow) but when we got to the kid’s tent I was really happy we walked all the way down there.

We were lucky enough to see most of Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue and they were amazing! The name says it all, with Cajun, jazz and big band swing influence this act even got Matt dancing (a treasured moment to be sure!). These guys were supposed to open the main stage but had travel problems and couldn’t make it in for the 12:30 start. We were both really glad to have caught the act.

A little more wandering, people watching, throwing trash into the designated receptacles for compost, recycling and trash itself and claiming our spot to see the main stage from a vantage point a healthy distance away and we were ready for the main act.

Jason took the stage right on time and it was such a great performance we ended up heading closer toward the crowd so I could concert call a few friends, also fans of his.

Matt and I danced the entire set and it was a super fun show. Jason was opening his tour this month and I don’t know for sure but I think this was the first stop. He was full of energy and so was the huge crowd even when he performed a whole bunch of new music. At one point he tossed a piece of his cantaloupe into a guy’s mouth in the crowd then later invited the same guy (Joe) and another gal (Katie) up on stage to dance. Good times.

After the satisfying end to a day full of love, fun and music we walked back to the car, tired but happy to have had the experience and lucky enough to sit in zero traffic when leaving.

Thanks for such a great event Life is Good, the day was phenomenal and I can’t wait to hear how much you raised to support the Kids Foundation! ♥love♥

Publishers Going Green

I recently read an article that indicated of the 4 billion books published every year, only 5 - 10% of them make use of recycled materials. As a Greenie and a writer, it really got me thinking.


Most of you know that I wrote my first novel last fall. This book is about two days away from being able to be published (IMO mind you, no professional Editor has laid eyes on it just yet) but I’m wondering how and where I should market my piece of fiction.

Two years ago, one of our favorite musicians here at GLR, Jason Mraz, put out a photography book titled “A Thousand Things”. When it came out I thought it was super innovative for its use of sustainable materials in the paper (Forest Stewardship Council [FSC] certified wood free, chlorine free) and ink (soy based). Even the cover is wood free and, upon Jason’s request, all waste during the printing process was recycled.

Not bad! But how about for those of us who aren’t already a celebrity? When we put out our first book can we be as demanding of how it is printed or do we have to suffer as a tree is chopped down and deal with it because we don’t have any influence in the process?

Well that question is mostly rhetorical when it comes to me because if there is anything you all know about me by now it’s that I never rest quietly on what someone else says I should do! ‘Question, challenge then understand’ should be my motto in life.

So then the first question of course is: where do I begin?

Many publishers are thinking of new approaches to the questions of sustainability. For example, they may use standard tree pulp for their paper but it comes from sources deemed FSC certified*.

There is also a growing trend to offset their paper footprint in ways around the office. Chronicle Books has an Environmental Policy link right on their homepage where they talk about the Green initiatives in their office construction three years ago, as well as their support of various social and humanitarian charities through their staff’s volunteerism.

Another new movement cropping up among many publishers is the elimination of paper from their media. There are so many ways to publish electronically these days -- blogs, websites, pdf documents, even twitter! -- it is almost not necessary to cut down a tree just to put an author’s perspective out into the world.

Other publishers will plant a tree for each book printed, such as Eco-Libris. Because many of the publishers that partner with Eco-Libris print on demand (only print copies when an order is placed), it reduces the advance of materials in order to satisfy orders.

For me it will be easy enough to cross reference the publishers I find listed online with my Writer’s Market 2010 guide to publishers that I have in paperback form in my office already.

Since there is an environmental angle in my manuscript, it might not be a bad idea to start with those folks. After all, we will be on the same page when it comes to the printing process. No pun intended.

*read more about certification and sustainable forestry on the FSC.

We Are the World New Cause Same Powerful Impact

It has been twenty five years since Lionel Ritchie and Michael Jackson, sat down to pen one of the most powerful messages in music We Are the World and now it is being revived for a wonderful cause.

The song was originally written to inspire people to bring an end to hunger in famine torn Ethiopia, but now, with such a long road ahead to bring some semblance of normalcy back to earthquake ravaged Haiti, Lionel and Quincy Jones sat down and decided it was high time to dust off the lyrics and re-record the song with a group of eighty one new artists and one backing track from Michael (current roster, could change with additions over the next week or so).

The group is impressive, with everyone from Barbara Streisand to Haitian native Wyclef Jean showing up to lend support. One of our favorite musicians over here at GLR, 2010 Grammy award winner (yea!) Jason Mraz, lent his voice to the choir which includes other artists like Jennifer Hudson, Will.I.Am (Black Eyed Peas), Josh Groban, Lil Wayne, Tony Bennett, Harry Connick Jr., Snoop Dogg, L.L. Cool J, Celine Dion, Miley Cyrus, Pink, Rob Thomas, Adam Levine (Maroon 5), Brian Wilson (Beach Boys), and the Jonas Brothers. Not to mention a handful of actors such as Nicole Ritchie, Vince Vaughn, Rashida Jones and Jeff Bridges.

MTV has a wonderful listing of all the musicians and others who are taking part in this amazing experience, read about it here.

Will.I.Am is doing even more than lending a voice to this effort, he has also written a new hip-hop, rap which will be included in a break, is taking a lead role in the belting out of lyrics and is also helping to produce the track.

And the track is going to be a little different as well by incorporating a more hip-hop style vibe that Lionel was looking for to make the whole experience have a more modern twist.

The video for the song is going to be introduced to the world during the opening ceremony of the winter Olympics on February 12 on NBC and the song, with video, will be available to purchase. The proceeds of which are going to benefit the We Are The World Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by Quincy Jones, Lionel Richie, Wyclef Jean, Paul Haggis, Randy Phillips and Ambassador Louis Moreno.

For those of us who embraced the original version of this song and the message behind it this sequel will go straight to our heart strings. For those of us who were too young or not yet born when the original was recorded in 1985, this is a fantastic opportunity to take part in something great. By simply purchasing this recording we are once again able to help our fellow man; the very message that Lionel and Michael wanted to spread from the start. ♥love♥

Original lyrics to We Are the World

There comes a time when we heed a certain call
When the world must come together as one
There are people dying
And its time to lend a hand to life
The greatest gift of all

We can’t go on pretending day by day
That someone, somewhere will soon make a change
We are all a part of Gods great big family
And the truth, you know,
Love is all we need

Chorus:
We are the world, we are the children
We are the ones who make a brighter day
So let’s start giving
There’s a choice we're making
We're saving our own lives
It’s true we'll make a better day
Just you and me

Send them your heart so they'll know that someone cares
And their lives will be stronger and free
As God has shown us by turning stones to bread
So we all must lend a helping hand

Chorus

When you're down and out, there seems no hope at all
But if you just believe there’s no way we can fall
Let us realize that a change can only come
When we stand together as one

Chorus to fade

Eco Fashion Friday Feature Organic Cotton is All the Rage in Band Tees

A couple weeks ago a bloggy friend of mine sent me the link to a sale going on in the tee shirt shop** of one of GLR’s favorite eco-conscious musicians, Jason Mraz. Back on October 10th, all tees in the shop were to be listed at $10; it was called the 10-10-10 sale. I decided to give a look as it had been a while since I had purchased a tee, least of all from this guy’s cool shop and what I found had me really excited!

This tee is made from 100% organic cotton, as are many in the online shop, but best of all it showed off Jason’s strong commitment to a healthy environment through the wind turbine and mountain graphic; something I would wear proudly about town. I placed my order right away.

When it arrived I was excited to try it out but as with all clothing I buy, it was washed first. The tag indicates “This EarthPositive shirt was manufactured solely using renewable green energy from wind and solar power.” Sweet!!

Flipping the tag over for washing instructions however I was slightly confused as it suggests to “save the climate wash cool - line dry”. It did not indicate that it should not go in a dryer, just that it was a suggestion for a more Earth friendly alternative. Since line drying is not possible in my apartment building, I opted to set the dryer on the lowest setting.

When the shirt came out I was definitely disappointed. It appears that the fabric pieces were not cut on the correct line of the weave and the side seams had turned about an inch and a half toward the front / back of the shirt (a semi bias cut). The neck and shoulder placement maintained alright and the graphic remained intact (I also always turn graphic tees inside out) but I was wholly disappointed by the shrinkage. Luckily I had snapped the photo prior to washing and I was happy to have only spent $10 on this tee (although shipping was almost as expensive at just under $8).

I will continue to wear this shirt but sadly it would never have fit as comfortably as it should have due to the fabric twisting incorrectly because of the cut, it is just more noticeable now after going through a low dryer. In the future, I will likely reserve my band tee purchases for after the show and will always remember to check the fabric weave for any signs of ill construction prior to purchasing!

** Please note all tees are temporarily sold out.

Oxfam Is A Renowned Organization Partnered with Great Music

Recently while attending a concert for one of my favorite performers, Jason Mraz, I came across a gal hanging out at a very small round table with no one around talking to her. The bright lime color sprinkled about the area she was in attracted my attention immediately so I figured why not go and see what she was up to.

That was the moment I met Clara Herrero, an Outreach Training Program Assistant with Oxfam America. Clara is a volunteer based out of the Boston branch of Oxfam and she was totally excited to chat with my Mom and me about exactly what they were doing there and why.

Turns out this organization has been around since the first European activists took action against Famine back in 1942. The organization grew, expanded, began a United States branch in 1970 in Washington DC which relocated to Boston in 1973. Fast for a World Harvest is a campaign that began in 1974 and to this day is still one of the largest anti hunger campaigns in the United States and it helped to spawn Oxfam America; a separate entity from the originating organization in Great Brittan.

The focus of the mission of the organization as a whole is to battle against poverty and injustice toward all humans and they have grown to house locations in over 100 countries worldwide.

Oxfam has partnered with a slew of musicians such as Crowded House, O.A.R., Mraz, Coldplay and R.E.M. (among many others) to promote the campaign Rock the World. The organization volunteers reach out to concert goers to spread the word and I for one was so excited to have been able to chat with Clara! She provided me with information on what they are doing to help women specifically as well as how the poorest countries are the most at risk from climate change.

In addition to their official website these folks are all over social media:

They have a blog
Facebook page
MySpace account
Follow them on Twitter
Watch their videos on YouTube
Check out photos on Flickr

For those of you who will be heading out to a concert this summer please look for the Oxfam table and chat with the very friendly volunteers about their mission and goals. Then when you get back home, I strongly encourage everyone to check them out in one or all of the above locations. Why not consider donating time or money to this worthwhile organization today?

Sharing Is Caring

Last night we had my mom over for dinner and it was a fantastic night full of laughs and awesome conversation, catching up and sharing the daily happenings of all our lives. As a housewarming gift she gave us a copy of Christina Pirello’s vegan cookbook Cooking the Whole Foods Way which I must say I am already completely excited to tear into and start creating from because just about everything in it sounds fantastic and mom has made a dish or two for us already at her place and they were fabulous (Leaf Rating review to follow!). In addition to the book she brought a couple other goodies but let me back up to explain them all.

A few months ago I purchased tickets to see Jason Mraz on his upcoming Gratitude Café Tour when he comes through Boston. Because Matt has gone with me to a countless number of this man’s shows, not to mention that we will see him open for Dave Matthews a couple weeks before the Boston show, he declined going this time so I invited my mom. To somewhat prepare her for the experience I figured it was only right to let her borrow his most recent studio release We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things and give it a listen. She brought it back last night saying she may even buy it, that it is really good. I had a feeling she would have that reaction! As she handed it back to me she also pulled a couple other cd’s out of her bag.

Back in April my mom and her best friend Eileen hosted their own birthday bash at a shnitzy function hall complete with a cash bar, full buffet style meal and live entertainment. They kept the entertainment portion to themselves for months as a surprise. There was much guessing among us who the performer might be -- Five O’Clock Shadow, John Gorka, Vance Gilbert, Ed Gerhard or perhaps Christine Lavin? The night came and a musician I had never heard of before got up to sing and play his guitar and, along with everyone else in the room, he blew me away. His name is David Roth.

David is a folk genre singer with seven albums available and the songs he performed that night were upbeat and fun selections from his catalogue. One song in particular, “New House in Orleans”, stood out as it was all about construction of his home on Cape Cod; after completing a 3-1/2 year rehab ourselves it resonated with me and Matt. I had been meaning to pick up one of his albums since that night but had not gotten around to it. Well last night my mom pulled a few of his cd’s out of her bag of tricks and said I could have my pick of one; David had been kind enough to give both of the gals a box set as a thanks for having him and some of the discs were duplicates to her collection. Score!

I scanned the discs for the song and found it on his album Think Twice a two disc set. I was so excited to load the discs onto iTunes this morning and give this new music a listen so when I got to the second to last song on the first disc titled “What Can I Do” I simply smiled. I would like to share the lyrics here and encourage everyone to check out this talented singer and songwriter as well then get out and do something awesome for someone else today!

“What Can I Do”
by David Roth

I heard somebody had a hard day out there
I had a hard one too
We could count ‘em all up and see who wins
Who do you think would have more
Me or you?

Feeling sorry might work, but not for long
We don’t have that luxury of time
Got an idea, might help us both
And it starts with a question of mine

CHORUS:
What can I do for you today
How can I help in some small way
It would be such a gift to me, its true
If you’d let me do one little thing for you
What can I do

There’s a whole lotta things that I can’t make
I can’t build a house or meditate
But I know there’s one thing I can create
I can make some time

Tho the older I get, the faster it flies
I spend it like crazy, no surprise
But when my pockets are empty
And my credit’s declined
I’ll know that at least I gave you some time

CHORUS

Such a noisy and crazy Earth out there
We are neighbors in crisis everywhere
Just in case you were thinking no one cares
Someone may prove you wrong

People all over this world need love
Some won’t be lucky to get enough
That’s why I’m hoping that you’ll understand
How we’ll both get ahead if I give you a hand

CHORUS

Thanks for the inspiration David, can not wait to pick up more of your wonderful tunes. ♥love♥

Little Moments of Inspiration

Whether it is a wonderful quote, a photo or a short movie I am inspired daily by the little things that people put out on our great web of internetworking. Here are a few of those very things for everyone to relish and enjoy. I hope your day is sunshiny even if it is raining outside your door!

This soft and delicate rhododendron was photographed beautifully by my favorite photographer Judi FitzPatrick as is called, appropriately, Rhodi. No I am not at all biased just because she is my Mom, she is a kickin’ artist! It can be purchased in her online shop and gazed upon with a smile forever as it hangs gracefully on your wall.

One of my favorite styles of poetry is the limerick. There is an interesting structure to a limerick and the rhyming is in the 1, 2, 5 / 3, 4 (a-a-b-b-a). The syllables dictate the timing, or beat, of the poem and there is always a set rhythm to each. It is a style I have never been able to master, as five lines is far too short for me to tell a story that includes a punch line, but they are so much fun to read because they are almost always humorous. Well at the least a little tongue in cheek. Here is an anonymous limerick to give you a chuckle!

There once was a fly on the wall
I wonder why didn't it fall
Because its feet stuck
Or was it just luck
Or does gravity miss things so small?

It is no secret I am a fan of Jason Mraz. Many know of his music but not as many read his blog. He is an inspiring writer and I greatly look forward to diving right in when I see a new post pop up over at the Freshness Factor Five Thousand space. Lately he has been on a super kick for happiness and gratitude, practicing it and preaching it alike. Here is a wonderful quote from a recent post:

“If everybody’s mama hugged him or her when they were young, this world might be a big musical breaking out in song more often. But that ain’t always the case. So let’s start hugging some folks and give love and hope to those that need it.”

Disco Jakes video will blow you away with his astounding ukulele skills. I was mesmerized the entire five and a half minutes; I have never seen someone’s hand move quite that fast across strings.

Eco Fashion Friday: Follow-up With Jon Marro of Blend Apparel

As promised yesterday here is the interview with Jon Marro from Blend Apparel.

I've had the distinct honor of interviewing Jon a couple of times in the past and I keep reaching out because he's such a positive force in the eco-fashion world. Not to mention the man is just an all around open and honest business owner who truly cares about what he does and how he shares his passions with the world. 

Please take a minute to say hello or give him a virtual high-five at the end of the post!


It's been a while since we last spoke, how have things changed for Blend Apparel in the last year? 

Things are truly amazing. Orders are more consistent; we have a few new designs and discontinued a few others. We also have a super big-hearted and phenomenally devoted intern named Julz. So she's been really freeing me up with answering emails, doing product research, and shipping out orders and the corresponding love notes we send. This of course has allowed me to stay creative, and focus more on the visionary aspects of the company-which I am so grateful for. Basically, we've grown and broadened our "communi-tee" -some of whom you can see on our website gallery. 

How has the economic crunch in California impacted you personally or professionally or both? 
Honestly we haven't noticed a difference at all. Things around here have been steady. Sure we have our good weeks and our not as good weeks, but overall-we can proudly say we're still doing really well. I feel at times like this people actually want to be a part of something transformative. Something that questions the ways things haven't been working so efficiently (whether it's the financial or political systems, expressing love, generosity, self-worth, or any other issue Blend tries to have its wearers and viewers consider). 

As an artist and human-I'm always looking at the whys of the way things are, and I try to offer up questions for different, more "heart-minded" views on life. Really it’s the famines, the wars, the recessions that really call me into action. I can see they are all results of some kind of fear or perceived scarcity. I'm acutely aware that there's no less money in the world right now. The money didn't go anywhere. It's all still out there-people are just holding more tightly on to it. Thus, it's not flowing. 

So yes. The economic crunch has totally affected me as someone who's sensitive to global issues. But this is the stuff that really fans my creative fire and gives birth to new ideas and images. Also, I feel it really gives us all an opportunity to shift our resource reliance on community versus bank or institution. 

Carpool, share groceries, clothes swap. Instead of "mine. mine. mine." It can become "ours." I truly feel the only way out of a lot of the knots we've collectively got ourselves into is by getting past our individual (and limiting) beliefs and [come] together in a unified stand for what best serves the whole.

Are you finding an increased awareness in the Green movement is also leading to an increase in understanding what Blend is all about?
Whether it’s "the green movement" or just people  starting to wake up-I'm so thrilled it's happening. People are becoming way more self-aware and privy to ways they can make a difference, and that our planet needs a difference made. I feel there's a cultural and I'd go as far as to say, global inherited belief that "I don't matter." So we have all these people running around the globe thinking they don't matter, what they say doesn't matter, and what they do doesn't matter. It's no wonder the planet is in the state it's in.

So for me personally, I think it's awesome that it's currently hip to be green. There's always been a green movement. I live in Berkeley, and I promise you it's still alive and well. I'm glad it's found some limelight through celebrities and the media.

I've also heard people say that green is just [a] trend and that it too is has been over-commodified. That now we'll have a new problem of a zillion METAL water bottles as opposed to plastic ones. And honestly, I can see their point. The green movement can become like anything else if we're not committed to creating a sustainable system for it. A system that naturally creates a future for us (and future generations) to live into, not just creating more products.

For us, we feel t-shirts and living more sustainably never go out of style. Our shirts are designed to really just teach ways of BEING. BEING more loving. BEING more generous. BEING more aware. So while I am all for the green movement, our commitment is to who we're being about our lives.

It's my belief that the being gives way to the doing, and not vice versa. For example: using green materials (the doing) doesn't necessarily make you committed to the environment. BEING committed to sustainability and the planet's future will naturally transform the doing/using green resources. Again, this isn't "true" it's just the practice I feel gives me a powerful place to lead and create from.

Speaking of creating, now that more people are creating clothing from bamboo have you considered increasing the use of this fiber, or are you happy with the current, literal, Blend?
I love the feel of the material. The blend of 70% bamboo and 30% organic cotton that we're currently using, we've found holds up better. Being a product oriented company, we're completely committed to giving our customers the best product we can find with the greenest possible materials. I'm always open to new ideas, but really am more concerned with the footprint we're leaving then trendiness.

What is your favorite new design & why do you love it so much?
I love the reciprocity shirt. It's SO brilliant to me. You can't tell if the hand on the left is placing the love in the palm of the hand on the right or taking from it. It's this infinite give and take. A cosmic sharing.

What has been your greatest personal or professional achievement in the last year?
Jason Mraz (part owner with myself and our other friend Jeff Goss) wore the “?eace” shirt on American Idol. There were 80 million+ viewers who watched that show and thus saw my shirt***. That's pretty amazing to think about. And to be honest to continue to have people such as yourself interested in what we're up to-lets me know we're up to pretty cool things. We've had people hand write us letters thanking us for all we do, and almost daily emails with similar sentiments. It's amazing.

***Editor's note -- At about :25 there is a sweet shot where Jason’s jacket opens on the way down the stairs & the shirt is in full view. Yippie!




How does it make you feel to see so many people send in pictures of themselves wearing one of your shirts, be it celebrity or everyday normal guy?

I love it. That’s the whole point of this crazy/foolish project. To plant as many seeds of love and awareness as possible. So that the wearers become beacons and seeds of transformation. Spreading smiles and ponderings across the land.

Honestly it's a dream come true. It's so cool-that I get to wake up everyday and walk into a world I helped create. I really am so proud of the work I do.

What is the furthest from California you have shipped a shirt?
We've had some Indonesia and South Korea [shipments] out there. Australia too. And Chile. We're on 5 continents so far. I'd love to get onto Antarctica without the help of global warming. It's not exactly t-shirt weather there so we may just have to offer some Blend parkas or mittens or something.

What kind of new stuff is on the horizon for the second half of 2009? Do you see the company growing?
New stickers. A few new tees. And it’s my goal to have a hoodie for the holiday season. I totally see the company growing and I had an insight recently, where I realized I've been waiting for Blend to "get big" or for it to be discovered some how. Within that realization I decided that I wasn't living very powerfully and am choosing to take on passionately inspiring and enrolling people in the possibility of Blend.

To invite our fans to take on spreading the word and help create the world we want to live in. I see this whole crazy experiment as my responsibility as an artist to fill the world with as many smiles as possible. So yeah, if I were to go all algorithmic on you, my calculation for 2009 would be something like this: more shirts + more smiles = more love.

Please visit Blend Apparel and help spread Jon's message of love!

Creatures in the Yard

The song is fun, adorable even, and the video just made me love it all the more. The following is a video for Creatures in the Yard by Bushwalla (featuring MC Raz). I hope this sweet song and video brighten up your day!

What Impact Does the Phone Book have on the Planet?

As a prequel to this post I must say I love this world and the way things always seem to work out just the way they should. Most of the time the winds and waves of fate push us in the direction we are supposed to move so if we do not fight them we end up landing right where we should; carried by the natural way of things. When this type of thing happens it always makes me smile.

This morning I felt a strange need to go back over to read through the comments on Jason’s latest blog posting. It is truly rare that I do this on anyone’s blog, generally I leave my comment and go about my life until I see the next posting and then, repeat, but for some reason I felt compelled to be there today so I went with it and the end result, as referenced above, was a big smile.

One of the comments shared a couple links to the issue of the Yellow Pages and how the unsolicited delivery of them nation wide creates a huge draw on natural resources (sadly this person’s profile is set to private so I can not link back, sorry!). I had been considering what to write about today and bingo, there it was, a story I had forgotten about came rushing back. Here is what laura had to say:

“Arrrgh! Phone books came this week and I hung my head in shame. Not only did I get my shiny new set at work, but at home too. So now I feel like a complete drain on mother Earth. So I did a little searching online to see if this issue was being addressed by the sane.
EVERYONE please sign up to stop the madness! Go Paperless people! 540 million copies of these tree wasting bricks are delivered EVERY year in the US alone. The Google has it all kids!
Sign up to be removed from the mailing lists.
http://www.yellowpagesgoesgreen.org/
http://www.paperlesspetition.org/
I know that Jason's friends love the planet and thought they'd want to know. Heck, I might be the one catching up or should I say waking up.
Spread the love.”

I responded there to thank laura for the links and share a story about our own phone book delivery a while back. Matt and I were out front when the delivery person arrived. The books were not shrink-wrapped and he stacked them on the side of our front lobby. We, almost simultaneously, indicated we did not need one and thanks anyway but he could give it to someone else. He told us that he was not allowed to do that, he had to leave them or he would not get paid. We were stunned that trees were being chopped down for something we do not even need but at the time we had no idea what to do other than to take our copy back upstairs and recycle it with the paper later that week. We thought, who needs a phone book when there is Google or yellowpages.com these days? (The really important thing to note here is that I just went down to the lobby and there are still 32 various books just sitting there, taking up space and getting no use. Some have been there well over two months.)

Enter laura and the links so generously shared over at the Freshness Factor.

I immediately went to Yellow Pages Goes Green and began investigating. Turns out this grassroots movement is pretty alright! They indicate that 540 million yellow/white pages are printed each year (that is 1.79 books per every person in the United States) and their mission is to turn it around so these books are not simply left (unsolicited) but a consumer has to call to have one delivered if they want one, thus saving millions of tons of resources and emissions annually but still making the resource available to those who really want or need it. Clearly these folks felt the same as Matt and I about the advent of the Internet for providing information that meets our needs. After reading through all of the information on the website I was elated and signed up, hopeful it would make a difference.

Then it was time to visit the Paperless Petition link. I found this site to provide about the same information as the first and opted to use Matt’s information instead of my own so we would be doubly covered just in case. The cool thing about this site is they are able to support requests from Canada, the UK and Australia in addition to the US. International readers, this is the one for you!

I am not sure how effective signing up will be as we live in an apartment building and I do not know if this would be something my landlord would need to request but I figured it could not hurt to try anyway. Here is hoping that there will be at least one less book in all of the piles downstairs from now on. Please feel free to sign up if you no longer use the physical yellow pages. It takes just a minute and the planet will thank you.

As laura said “spread the love”.

UPDATE: Laura's profile is up but she does not have a blog so please don't spam her, thanks!

It’s, It’s An Email Blitz!

In the past forty eight hours I have received a bunch of emails and many of them are related to causes that are dear to my heart -- The Environment and The President. In fact two emails in particular not only show support for one or the other but managed to combine both the environment and President Barack Obama into one message. Now that is something I can sure get behind!

Let’s start by talking about 1Sky. This is an organization dedicated to creating alliances with politicians to effect real change in the realm of fighting global warming on a larger scale. Yesterday they sent all of us supporters a message to let us know that when President Obama signed the recovery plan into effect it included $87 billion in green investments. From what they have indicated this is the largest expenditure the government has ever made in the area of clean energy. Hooray!

Of course 1Sky was not simply letting us know about this wonderful turn of events, they have asked us to please send a thank you note to Congress and President Obama showing our willingness to continue to support the efforts they are standing behind with this package. The great news is they made it easy to express our gratitude! Simply go to http://www.1sky.org/green-recovery-thankyou and enter your zip code. A pre-written message of thanks (and thumbnails of our local Senators) will pop up. Enter the required information (name, email, zip) and hit submit. Then please pass this link on to as many people as possible. Showing our support for their support ensures the gratitude loop for positive change keeps revolving!

Speaking of change…

Is it time to change that old, worn out T-shirt yet? Well perhaps I could interest you in one of these:

Jason Mraz and Rock the Vote have partnered up to bring us this 100% Organic cotton t-shirt in two fun colors. As if that wasn’t enough the inks are water based and all solvents are environmentally safe. Considering all of these factors, the shirts are not expensive like many tend to be -- small to XL, men’s or women’s, silver or blue will not cost you more than $25.00 (plus shipping -- please note that I found the shipping cost to be a bit pricey but I feel the cause is worth it!). They will ship within the next couple weeks and 50% of the purchase price proceeds will go directly to Rock the Vote efforts.

That gives a whole new meaning to ‘Rock On’ as these folks spend countless hours educating and encouraging voter registration. Plus how cool will it be to walk down the street with the caricature version of President Obama emblazoned on the front of a shirt?

Celebrate Green Celebrities!

No I do not mean Kermit the Frog (although I did just read about the fact that ten of his relatives were recently discovered) I am talking about Greenies! Celebrities who care about the planet make me very happy even if I am not familiar with their body of work because they are using their well known voice to spread the word about a strong sense of community caring.

This morning I read that Miley Cyrus received a Porsche Cayenne as a Sweet Sixteen present from her mom. The car formerly belonged to her Mom and even though Miley enjoyed the benefit of recycling, the environmental impact was not thrilling her so she traded it in for a shiny Toyota Prius. In addition to her eco-mobile the singing and acting starlet also has a song called “Wake Up America” which will be released as a single soon and basically tells everyone to get the clue that we only have one planet so we should probably take care of it. Right on Miley!

A couple days ago Ginger posted some information that peaked my interest in Leonardo Dicaprio. Turns out he is quite the environmental activist with a website dedicated to sharing information on global warming and what we can do to help reduce its effects, links to films he has created with regard to global warming and water (he narrates as well) and links to multiple resources for organizations or foundations which he supports. Who knew Leo was so hot (and by hot I mean concerned with our planet)?!

I have discussed others before such as Edward Norton or Jason Mraz but these are just the celebrities who I am personally drawn to. Since I am not considered a fan of Miley Cyrus or Leonardo Dicaprio but applaud them wholeheartedly for their environmental efforts I decided to do a little digging to see who else might support such endeavors that I may not be aware of. What I discovered is that to care about our planet does not mean being the stereotypical “Tree hugging Hippie” of the past; eco-conscious celebrities are vast and varied. Some of those I discovered who care are: Bonnie Raitt, Dave Matthews, KT Tunstall, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Ozzy Osbourne, Hilary Clinton, Jay-Z, Sting, Walter Cronkite, Morgan Freeman. And this is just the very tiny tip of the iceberg!

Here is a great collection of names and what each are personally involved in environmentally:
http://www.allamericanspeakers.com/Green_Celebrities_&_Green_Speakers.php

Bottom line is we all have a voice, we can all discuss the issues that are dear to us and take our own action to make necessary changes in order to save our planet it is just that people of a certain status of fame are better equip to reach a larger audience and for this I am granting every single one of these concerned celebs Four Green Leaves!



Thanks celebrities for spreading the word on a global scale so we can all take action on a local one. You rock!

More Music From Those Who Care

It is no secret to those who know me that Jason Mraz is quite possibly my favorite songwriter of all time. He has a way with words that, as a writer, I respect and admire. His point is always there, even if it is sometimes hidden within double entendre and, in his own proclamation, Wordplay. His hotness factor went up about a million clicks on the scale when I discovered he is also an environmentally conscious musician who attempts to do all he can to care for this great planet of ours. When I discovered the following song it went right into my top 100 of all time play list. I apologize and warn all there is strong language in this song but it definitely gets the point across. The time to act is now.


Collapsible Plans

What if these plans are collapsible
Why don't we try to be responsible
For the other motherfuckers that were searchin’ for the end of the rainbow
Ask me about the impossible
I tell you that everything is applaudable
For life is a proscenium stage and we are the stars
And the audience that we captivate is already ours

And we're more aren't we
Yes we're more aren't we all we are

So collapse all your plans
Like a map in your hands
Cause it won't take long to burn the motherfucker down

Many disaster unnatural
We have the ability it's remarkable
To cycle through the seasons adapting to the reason the waters low
If we listen to the sign of the times when she calls we'll know

That we're more aren't we
Yes we're more aren't we all we are

So collapse all your plans
Like a map in your hands
Cause it won't take long to spot the motherfucker down

So goodbye to your plans
And hello to a land
Where it won't take long to burn the motherfucker down

Move your feet when you pray child
Are you ready to change the way that you've been living your life up til now
The danger is more than a rain cloud
Will you adhere to the new solution to use less the useless uses of pollution hell yes

So collapse all your plans
Like a map in your hands
Cause it won't be hard to spot the motherfucker down
Say goodbye to your plans
And hello to a land
Where it won't take long to burn the motherfucker down

Say goodbye to your family
And hello to understanding
That it won't take long to burn this mother down
So collapse all your plans
And relax if you can
Cause it won't take long to burn this motherfucker down

No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
Oh to burn her to the ground
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
No it won't take long to burn this mother down
It won't take long to burn this mother down

Luckily I Am Married

Otherwise I would become a groupie, attending every show, to hold up a sign that says

For Jason Mraz.

Just when I thought this guy could not get any cooler he proves me wrong by hooking up with Reverb. The not for profit group, founded by Guster member Adam Gardner and his wife Lauren Sullivan, is primarily focused on helping musicians green their tours and, in addition to Jason, have worked with the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Dave Matthews Band, Jack Johnson, Avril Lavigne, Fall Out Boy, The Fray, Maroon 5 and so many more it would be impossible to list them all.

The far reaching efforts of this organization are definitely impressive as they educate and provide advice for anyone who has a tune in their ear; everything from carbon offset programs for fans (because of the travel to get to the show) to green cleaning supplies for the tour bus. Their list of business partners and non profit group affiliation is really impressive.

This video includes a new song which sets off the images really nicely and Jason sits beside the ocean, intermittently discussing the benefits of getting together with Reverb.



I am giving both Reverb and Jason a Four Leaf Rating for such solid efforts in spreading the eco-tour word!

Say it with me -- “C’mon Jason, let me interview you for this blog because you are certainly doing your part to help green our world and we all love you for it!”

Slowing Down To Appreciate It All

This will be one of those times that people who know me might be tempted to leave comments like “Is this a ‘do as I say, not as I do’ type of situation?” and I can understand why they would feel that way because I am typically a person who never stops and it may seem that I fly through life not noticing the little things but truthfully I do allow my overworked mind to absorb these moments and it makes every day that much sweeter.

For the past few months (especially during the last few weeks of mass production for yesterday’s craft fair) there have been times when I purposefully stopped my work-centric brain from spinning to take notice of some of these joys.


Saturday night dinner with our closest friends has become a regular occurrence and it is fantastic. We generally just hang out and chat over food and drink, relishing in the small time we get to enjoy each other’s company. There is something amazing about knowing there are people in this world who are always there for each other no matter what.

Recognizing how the seasons operate here in the northeast has been fun -- fall rain and wind is essential to bring all of those flaming colored leaves down, blanketing the land to prepare for the winter layer of snow and ice that will help to compost those leaves into the soil of spring so we can have even healthier, sturdy green trees in the summer. Winter is not my season of choice but it will be nice to watch snow collect on these trees from my “heat rises” third floor apartment window this winter.

Attempting to get back in touch with some of this stuff has brought the connection back to my relationship with Matt. If nothing else just having fun with each other again, embracing romance, laughing a lot, creating our own inside jokes, being supportive of each others achievements and remembering why we got together in the first place -- because no one else out there could really understand the dorks that we are besides each other of course! Well that and we both understand the importance of how rare it is to witness clowns not fitting into clown cars.

Yesterday in my email I got an update to one of my YouTube subscriptions, the official channel for Jason Mraz. I did not watch it until this morning and I have to say at first I though wtf? Five and a half minutes of a camera zoomed in or out on his face, sometimes breaking into a smirk, sometimes very serious looking, and at the end he simply says “You did it”. It seemed a little strange at first (watching a five minute crash zoom to the face of one of my favorite musicians was somewhat odd) but in the end this video is what inspired me to write today’s post.



In a busy world it is important to remember to take the time to slow down, even if just for five minutes, to recognize and truly appreciate all the things in life that bring us joy!

One Voice, Singing in the Darkness

Those of you who are Barry Manilow fans will recognize the title of this blog as a line from one of his songs however I use it as it completely embodies just what we as environmentally aware individuals are doing to come together collectively -- sing loudly on our own so all our voices end up joining together as one in the end. There are many musicians who, through their recognizable names and faces, are fighting for humanitarian or environmental efforts so we all have a chance to survive on this planet. These are two of my favorites who not only spread their message but also live it everyday. Who are your favorite eco-musicians?

One of my all-time favorite musicians is Jason Mraz. The reasons for this are not strictly linked to his beautiful music or lyrics but to his strong planetary and humanitarian efforts as well; he genuinely seems to care greatly about the state of our planet. Not only do I support his art from a musical standpoint but I am an avid reader of his blog as well. Over the past year that he has been writing, he has shared information on his: diet change to raw foodist, carrying of a Sigg to replace plastic water bottles, support of local artists, tour in bio-diesel busses, concern that he is not very eco-friendly due to his flight paths, support of humanitarian causes and many others. One of his most recent efforts is teaming up with Bruce Parry and Brett Dennen to record a song (Long Road to Forgiveness) for Survival International. Truly inspirational.



A local act, The Grownup Noise caught my attention when a close friend told me of them and their plan to convert their 1980’s, diesel van into one that runs on vegetable oil, in an effort to save the environment as well as some cash on their summer tour. Cool! I met up with their bassist, Adam, at their kick off show in Boston and through shared information, links and photos, compiled a fantastic three part story of the entire process from installation right up through wrapping up the tour. To follow the journey please visit these three links -- Part I: The Band Gets a Van, Boston Based Band The Grownup Noise Kick Off the Veggie Van Tour and The Grownup Noise Part II: Touring, With a Side of Fries.

The inspiration for this post comes from the song by Barry Manilow, referenced above, so for those who are unfamiliar with it, here are the lyrics. It is a story about one individual starting the movement of joining together for a common purpose. We do not have to be celebrities to have a huge impact, all it takes is one effort in one town by one person and eventually all of those "ones" will add up to tons!

One Voice
Just One Voice,
Singing in the darkness,
All it takes is One Voice,
Singing so they hear what's on your mind,
And when you look around you'll find
There's more than

One Voice,
Singing in the darkness,
Joining with your
One Voice,
Each and every note another octave,
Hands are joined and fears unlocked,
If only

One Voice
Would start it on its own,
We need just
One Voice facing the unknown,
And then that
One Voice would never be alone,
It takes that
One Voice.

It takes that
One Voice.
Just

One Voice
Singing in the darkness,
All it takes is
One Voice,
Shout it out and let it ring.

Just One Voice,
It takes that
One Voice,
And everyone will sing!