April 2008 - Posts
It's time once again to celebrate our wonderous Earth. Though Earth Day began as a grass-roots movement 38 years ago to educate people about pollution, conservation and to draw the government's attention, it has changed over the years. Today, we all have concerns like climate change and diminishing resources fresh on our minds.It seems like everyone's making some small changes, or just being a little more aware. I've made a consious effort to buy more organic food, switching my light bulbs to compact florescents (CFLs), and turning off unused electronics. But I'd like to do more this Earth Day, so I've been searching for ideas. Here are some of the best one's I've found... a few of them utilize our Lifetime Products:
1- Plant a tree in your back yard: Besides being a fun activity for your family, planting trees help to lower greenhouse gas emissions, and they provide a habitat for a variety of other plants and animals. Go to your local nursery, and pick out the perfect tree for your yard. Lifetime [trailers] make it easy to haul the tree home. More trees in your yard can actually lower your cooling bill by providing shade over your house.
2- Make pine cone birdfeeders- Bring birds right to your yard and watch them as they enjoy a healthy snack. Making pine cone bird feeders is a fun and easy activity for children. Simply roll pinecones in a mixture of lard and peanut butter, and then coat with seeds.
3- Visit a nearby recycling facility- Recycling processes are fascinating and fun to watch. If you save up recyclable materials to drop off during the visit, you’ll earn some extra change you can use to pick up ice cream cones afterward.
4- Sit with the family and set specific goals to recycle and save energy- It’s often as easy as changing your light bulbs, adjusting the setting on your fridge, or making a routine trip to a nearby recycling bin.
5- Plant or renew your vegetable garden- April is the perfect time to plan your garden. Section off an area of your yard, and decide what you’d like to grow this year. If you don’t have a yard, window boxes and large pots work just as well. Home grown vegetables are pesticide-free and help you save money. Let the children choose new types of fruits or vegetables to try out each year, and give them responsibilities in the garden.
6- Plant flowers or greenery at a local non-profit organization or church- Contact the organization prior to planting. Most are thrilled when someone offers to beautify their grounds.
7- Go on a nature hike- Nature hikes and campouts are a great way to appreciate the details of our beautiful earth. Pick a park or nearby trail, or visit a new place every year on Earth Day.
8- Clean up litter at a local park- Parks provide places for everyone in the community to enjoy nature. Unfortunately, litter often detracts from their beauty and can be dangerous to people and animals. Bring some large bags or a Lifetime Yard cart and gather up trash to revive your park. Use sticks to pick up the litter you don’t want to touch.
9- Attend an Earth Day event- Earth Day events are held across the nation, and are full of fun activities for both you and the kids. Pick a place close to you, events can be seen at www.earthday.net.
10- Cook a special Earth Day meal using all non-processed foods- Invite the friends and family over to share a healthy, home-cooked meal. Tell your friends about some of the ways you're "going green" at home. Get creative and decorate in an ‘earth day’ theme using leaves or potted plants, and let each guest take a plant home to add to their garden. If you have many guests, set up extra tables and chairs to accommodate them.
Today is Pet Owners Independence Day, a day when pet owners have their pets come in to work for them. Though it seems like a tempting proposition to send our pets to work and lounge around the house napping all day, we didn't celebrate here at Lifetime. We were all hard at work, letting Fluffy, Stan, and Max enjoy their naps.
It's interesting to think what would have happened if some of us at Lifetime had celebrated....
If Jay, our Research and Design Engineer, sent his 30-year-old cat Bubba, he would plop himself on his computer chair and stay curled up there all day. If another engineer came in to ask about one of the tests that bring our Tables and Chairs up to BIFMA standards, Bubba would simply open his mouth, as if to meow. Then he'd turn around to ignore them.
My cat Skyler might enjoy being the Interactive Media Manager, though first he'd hide under my desk until he knew it was safe. Eventually he'd proceed to paw through my office in search of something to play with. He'd delight the finding a bin of paperclips, spreading them all over, and pouncing on each one.... typing out an interesting blog post in the process. If someone stopped to ask him a question, he'd probably start meowing loudly and follow them out of the room thinking they had food.
If our Graphic Artist's beagle Boozer filled in for Lindsey, he'd probably sniff out the entire office until he found the engineering area. He'd scare Bubba off his chair then chase him in and out of our powder coating facility, coming back to the office when he missed his bone. If someone asked him what he thinks of a design concept, or to re-design this blog, he'd probably sniff the paper in their hand for about three minutes before he carried it away in his mouth go bury it.
Susan's dog Pequeno would have a difficult time placing orders for retail store POP materials, as his primary language is Spanish. We'd have to bring in our team of Spanish translators to help him fill his new role as a Display Coordinator. But when Graphic Artist Omar yelled "Marchese el gato!" to Skyler, as he followed him down the hall in search of food, Pequeno would ditch the phone in no time. Once he lost interest chasing the cat, he'd probably join Boozer and start sniffing around for food.
So you see, without our great team at Lifetime (not to mention the slew of animals taking over their jobs) we'd have a tough time making and supporting our products, which would mean a tough time for all our retailers and customers. Not to mention we'd have a tough time answering your customer service issues through your parrot. So, thank you, and thanks to all our employees for not celebrating Pet Owners Independence Day!
Scrapbooking for 3 days straight may sound like a weird form of torture... but even after the paper cuts, late nights, and reeeeally early mornings, I look forward to it twice a year.
My family’s crazy little tradition is called "Scrapbook Weekend". If you’re anything like me; you have a busy schedule, a suffering photo album, talkative friends and family, and an endless appetite for good cooking. Scrapbook Weekend gives me the chance to learn new layouts, trade materials, or just catch-up on all my photos.
Twice a year, all my aunts and cousins (about 18-20 people total) drive to my mom’s house with cars full photos, paper supplies, and the fixin's for some great food. We load all the food in the fridge, spread out our cutters, paper, pictures and embellishments on about 6 or 7 Lifetime tables, and camp out for 3 days… stacking pages like we’re warming up for "Scrapbooking with the Stars". We always put the tables in a square formation to facilitate talking. I’m not really sure why... we seem to have no problem doing that otherwise. You learn a LOT: who’s kids are just starting school, my aunt's new neighbors, the latest cooking trick, my aunt's new singing group, my cousin who’s falling in love, and some stories so funny they’ll make you cut crooked.
Scrapbook Weekend is really the only time I sit down and do some major damage to the 'ol album... if you saw my pages you'd know what I mean ;). This year I brought a fat stack of wedding and honeymoon photos. Good thing my mom stepped in; I actually ended up with some pretty sweet layouts. But even with the help, I was a scrapbook slave. The last to go to bed and the first to wake up. I plowed through my college days, wedding preparation, some of my wedding day, and skipped to our Cancun honeymoon.
Indisputably, the best thing about Scrapbook Weekend is the food. We're not a family of gourmet cooks, but some of my aunts could probably host on the Food Network. They seem to compete for the best recipe. Which means three days of eating better than a newlywed could ever dream!
This Scrapbook Weekend I came home with a few more pounds — but our album gained some too. I think it's a pretty fair trade-off. Since the weekend, I've set up a Personal Table to work at home, and haven't touched my album. I salute all you scrapbookers who can dedicate time every week to your scrapbooking! At least I know it's there... patiently waiting for me to organize my life.
