Cool stuff in Springfield Missouri

Last weekend we drove up through the Ozarks to visit friends in Springfield, Missouri. Even if the weather hadn't been idyllic for walking around outside, it was a relief to escape the muggy lowland humidity for awhile!

Here are a few highlights from our trip that are worth checking out if you go to Springfield…

The Springfield Botanical Gardens encompass 36 beautiful garden spaces, most of which are free! Only the Japanese strolling garden charged a small entry fee. We wandered around the historic log cabins and church, heritage garden, butterfly house, Master Gardener demonstration garden, and areas dedicated to impressive displays of hostas, roses, mini conifers, and viburnum. There are several playgrounds with creative equipment for kids to play on, and plenty of open space to run – very kid-friendly.

There was a wedding reception in the main building, otherwise we would've explored that too, but I gather that it's very environmentally friendly and expected to earn a respectable LEED rating. The Greene County Extension Service and Master Gardeners are housed here.

At the Springfield Conservation Nature Center, three miles of paved hiking trails meander through woods and wetlands. In and around the main building you can see live turkeys, fish, and insects as well as exhibits on water and forest conservation.  Also a great place to bring the kids.

And finally, the Diverging Diamond Interchange, for the infrastructure nerds among us. Apparently there's one of these in the Baltimore-Washington area, but I'd never seen one before. This type of interchange was developed in France in the 1970s to reduce traffic backups from drivers waiting to make left turns onto highway on-ramps. According to the NPR article I linked above, they are cheaper and safer than many alternatives, and I can attest that although it's unnerving to drive on the left side of the road for a spell, this particular one seems to be effective.

So there you have it:  three cool reasons to visit Springfield, Missouri.  Bon voyage!

New year, new font

In case you didn't hear about this in 2010, switching your font to Century Gothic can save you big bucks on printer ink.  If, that is, you're still old school enough to be printing at all.  Read about this in a GreenBiz article that features the fax machine beatdown from a film classic.

 

And don't forget the Dutch Ecofont...

http://almgreen.blogspot.com/2009/01/holey-ecofont.html

 

Happy New Year!

Earth Day cuteness

Now posted online:  winners of an Earth Day poster contest sponsored by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency mid-Atlantic region and the Philadelphia Zoo.

The contest was for students in kindergarten through grade 12 in EPA’s mid-Atlantic region, which includes Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.  Students submitted hand-created drawings in three categories.  Winning entries and others were displayed at the Philadelphia Zoo for EPA’s 40^th anniversary Earth Day celebration.  Many posters continue to be displayed at the EPA’s Public Information Center in Philadelphia.  

Pretty cute!

Mid-Atlantic (region 3) EPA website:  http://www.epa.gov/region03/index.htm

Saving the Senator Theatre

A beloved local icon fell prey to the economic downturn recently:  the Senator Theatre has hosted movie premieres and local gatherings since its opening in 1939.  I watched the 2009 presidential inauguration there with a standing-room-only crowd, it was a memorable experience.

After the Senator was acquired by Baltimore City, the Baltimore Development Corporation issued a Request for Proposals to "renovate and rejuvenate the Senator into an active and vibrant center for the community."

I'm biased in favor of our Towson University radio station's submittal:  WTMD's general manager posted this blog entry about their proposal to use the space for its originally-intended purpose:  movies, music, and events to bring the community together.

This is an elegant solution that addresses both historic preservation of this lovely Art Deco structure and fostering community in Belvedere Square and beyond.  I hope they have the opportunity to realize this endeavor!

Read a related Baltimore Sun article here.
Other great historic local theatres: The Charles and the Rotunda Cinematique.
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How to save water

How do YOU save water? EPA's Pick5 blog has some ideas...

http://blog.epa.gov/blog/2009/09/11/how-do-you-use-less-water/

Here are some things I do...

Don't buy bottled water: one of my company's offices saved over $1000 and 6000 gallons by switching to filtered water, not to mention reduced greenhouse gas emissions from not trucking all those heavy bottles around.

Don't run water while shaving, scrubbing, brushing teeth, washing dishes, etc. Also shower less often (think like a European!).

Recycle water from rinsing or cooking produce to water your plants: added nutrients!

Use a rain barrel for watering the garden. I also use a soaker hose buried at root level with a layer of mulch. Watering in the morning reduces evaporation.

What could you do to conserve water in your life?

On ceiling fans and clotheslines

I'm sure I've mentioned the Everyday Cheapskate newsletter before: author Mary Hunt writes from experience about how to get out of debt by living below your means, and many of her suggestions focus on the reduce/reuse/recycle theme. Today's newsletter shared a few tips about conserving energy in your home.

Dear Mary,
How much electricity does it take to run fans? I wonder if fans really are more efficient than air conditioning. Susan, Michigan

Dear Susan,
The difference in energy use between running the air conditioning and an electric fan is huge. In the typical home, air conditioning uses more electricity than anything else, about 16 percent of the total electricity used. In warmer regions, air conditioning can be 60 to 70 percent of your summer electric bill.

Electricity is measured and billed according to the number of kilowatt-hours you use with a scale of 1000 watts per hour. A 2.5-ton central air conditioning system uses 3,500 kilowatts per hour of use, which is 3.5 kWh. A medium-sized window a/c unit uses 900, or 0.90 kWh. A floor fan uses 100 watts, or 0.10 kWh on the highest speed, and a 42-inch ceiling fan set on high uses only 75, or 0.075 kWh. Where I live in California, we pay 17 cents per kilowatt-hour billed. That means it costs about $.60 per hour to run a home central air conditioner, but only 1.2 cents per hour to run a ceiling fan.

Dear Mary,
How can I get my spouse on the same page as me when it comes to saving money? I'd like to save on our electricity by using a clothesline and installing more power strips that we can switch off at night to stop the phantom load. I know both of these can significantly reduce our costs. My husband doesn't see the point to either of these ideas, nor does he like the feeling of clothes dried on a line. How can I bring him around? I'd like to reduce our cost so we can build a fund for the winter months when our power bill is sky-high. Sarah S., e-mail

Dear Sarah,
Your best bet is to compromise. Make a deal with him that if you can get the laundry soft without using so much expensive energy, then he'll install a good, strong clothesline at a height and location that are best for you.

When line-dried laundry comes out stiff, it means the detergent is not getting rinsed out completely. Use only the amount of detergent recommended on the container. Add 1/2 cup of white vinegar to the last rinse to get all of the soap rinsed out. Jeans and bath towels receive the most complaints. To prevent their stiffness, remove them from the line when they are almost dry and run them through the dryer for five to 10 minutes.

Take the responsibility yourself of installing power strips and turning them off at the end of the day. Start keeping track of the amount your utility bills drop as a result of these simple techniques. Then, show him in black and white how much money you're not spending. I think he'll come around when he starts seeing those dollar signs.

Subscribe to the newsletter here.