Reuse again... and again

I love second-hand shopping for numerous reasons, including the inexpensive prices, the ability to obtain higher quality goods that I could afford if they were new, and the fact that it's great for the environment.

For example, due to thrift shopping, my daughter received more gifts from her father and me than we could have privided her if we were buying new. We gave her a set of roller skates, a bigger bike, a boy Barbie, a dress, several cute tops and pants, and a Christmas teddy bear, all in excellent condition, for about $50 total.

Some object, however, that the second-hand market isn't practical for society at large since it always requires a first-hand market. That's true, but the complaint usually assumes a one-to-one relationship between the first-hand and second-hand market for each item. In other words, someone buys something new and donates or passes it on, then someone else gets it second-hand. Once the second person has finished with the item, that's the end of its life cycle.

Many items, however, can have multiple life cycles as long as they're still in good condition. Well-made, durable items like bikes and children's clothing (since kids tend to outgrow things quickly) can be passed on multiple times to multiple users before they're no longer in good condition.

Here's a good example: I purchased my daughter's old bike $8 from a thrift store two years ago. She has recently outgrown the bike and we found a larger one, in great condition, for $10 at Goodwill. It's very possible that either bike had multiple users (say, an older and younger sibling) before being donated and purchased by us.

One of my daughter's friends, two years older, also got a new bike for Christmas. Her mom and I planned at first to pass on both old bikes to younger children, but they were too big for the younger children we knew.

So I came up with an even better plan for passing on the two bikes. I had a meeting in Olympia today and had to pass through Lacey, where Alaffia, my favorite natural body care company, is based. Alaffia has a project, Bicycles for Education, in which they collect bikes from Washington residents to ship to Alaffia's founder's home country of Togo. These bikes make transportation to and from distant schools possible for many rural children who wouldn't otherwise be able to attend.

I dropped off both bikes at Alaffia's headquarters today and was able to have a follow-up conversation with them about hosting a bike drive at Marlene's Natural Market in Tacoma (which will take place in June). So you see, many items can be used not once, not twice, but again and again and again, for older children, younger children, and children across the world!

I will not complain

I used to hate winters in Boston, because I couldn't handle the cold. In my twenties, I was very, very thin. (You know those people who can eat anything and never gain an ounce? That was me back then. Alas, now that I'm over 40 and post childbirth, that's no longer true). Because I had so little body fat, cold temperatures took a toll on my body.

A store's motto, however, changed my perspective. I had a boyfriend who planned a hiking trip with some other guys in New Hampshire's White Mountains in November. He visited a ski shop to buy outerwear for the hike, and told me that the store had a motto proudly displayed on its walls: "There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing." Hearing that made me consider that maybe the problem was that I wasn't dressing warmly enough for the cold. I began to wear more layers and found it made a difference. For the first time, I could appreciate, or at least not loathe, Boston's winters. (Of course, gaining weight once I hit my 30s helped, too).

I also made a decision to be grateful for the weather, whatever it happened to be. That attitude served me well during my years in Boston, but I had forgotten it here in Washington. I found myself once more loathing a season, but in this case, it was Western Washington's nine-month rainy season from September through May.

But now... most of our relatives and old friends are living in parts of the U.S. that are sweltering. And meanwhile, I've heard a few locals here in Washington complain about the cool summer. I can't join them.

I will not complain. I know what I could be experiencing, and by that measure, this summer in Tacoma has been beautiful. Yes, it's cooler than usual, but the sun peeks out for several hours most days (sometimes even the entire day!), and by afternoon it often hits a balmy 70 degrees. I drive from work with the sun on my face and have a good hour or so to watch my daughter ride her bike outdoors after I get home. I can drive with the windows rolled up so I can hear the radio or a CD, without needing to turn on the car's AC. We not only don't need AC in our home, we've only needed to use a fan a couple times this summer -- saving both energy and money.

Yes, I most certainly can't complain. Instead, I am grateful for the summer we're having, and I pray for all those suffering across our nation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FYI: Crunchy Chicken offers a great list of tips for keeping cool this summer.

For more on what's happening this summer across the U.S., this Weather Channel post shares some sobering information.

Summer Staycation Adventure, Week 1

(Since last Monday was July 4th, Monday, July 11 was the first vacation day I've taken this summer--making it Week 1 of our Staycation Adventure. My plan is to take each Monday off to have a fun and learning adventure with my daughter. More about our summer staycation plans here).

Discovery Pond: My daughter and I had two adventures last week. On Monday, we visited Discovery Pond at the Tacoma Nature Center. Adding to the specialness, my daughter's daycare teacher has decided to join us for each Monday's adventure, so all of her friends are coming along. Discovery Pond is a play area for kids designed as a natural environment that includes rocks to climb, caves to explore, a pond (with fish!) to rock-hop across, a treehouse to hang out in, and an old-fashioned water pump. A staff person told us that they were amazed that the fish have survived since Discovery Pond opened last year. They were sure that either the fish would die or the raccoons would get them, and neither has happened.

The kids had a ball in the play area, followed by a picnic lunch. We also visited a little of the inside of the Nature Center, and the kids got to see frogs, turtles, snakes and lots of bugs! As a follow up, I asked my daughter what she wanted to learn more about, and she said turtles, so we checked out a few books from the library about them.

Tiptoe through the Tidepools: I learned that day that Metro Parks Tacoma and the Nature Center were sponsoring a free "Tiptoe through the Tidepools" event at Titlow Beach on Saturday (yesterday), one of several they've held this summer. My daughter and I visited and it was fascinating. I learned a new word, "estuary," which is an area where salt water and fresh water come together. The Puget Sound is one of the world's most prolific estuaries, replete with sea creatures that are most visible at low tide. Estuaries are also perfect habitat for salmon, which is why this area is known for them.

My daughter and I were able to see and touch a variety of crabs--and watched a poor kid get pinched by one :( -- along with seaweed, barnacles, starfish, and the most amazing 20-legged sunflower sea star (see pic below). We're following up by reading more about tidepools here in the Northwest.


I'm really starting to appreciate the natural environment here in Washington, and probably will even more so after we visit Mt. Rainier, which is the most prominent mountain in the contiguous US (prominence is the measure of the distance from a mountain's lowest point to its summit), and one of the world's potentially deadliest volcanoes.

I never thought anything could compare to the breathtaking beauty of a New England fall, complete with apple picking and scrumptious apple cider donuts. But I'm learning that Washington state has a unique beauty of its own.

Weekly summer staycation adventure!

Mt. Rainier, Washington. Image from publicdomainpictures.net.

Several factors--a lack of funds for vacation travel, my daughter's daycare teacher being short-staffed on Mondays this summer, and the advice of educational experts--led me to plan what I'm calling our "Weekly Summer Staycation Adventure!"

Instead of taking a week or more off from work, I'm going to take every Monday off to do something fun and educational with my daughter. There are tons of low-cost places to visit in the area, many of which we've never been to. And educational experts advise that one of the most effective way to help your children learn during the summer is to reinforce experiences with reading, writing and other learning activities. Having a different experience each week, rather than cramming a bunch of experiences into a short time frame, will give us quality time to do that.

Here are the experiences we have planned (not yet in any set order):

1) The Hands-On Children's Museum in Olympia, WA.

2) A visit to Alaffia's factory in Lacey, WA.

3) Fort Nisqually Living History Museum in Tacoma.

4) Port Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma.

5) The Tacoma Nature Center's Discovery Pond.

6) A trip to Mount Rainier (this may be a weekend event, because I want hubby to join us). Mt. Rainier is the impressive peak that looms over Western Washington, but is only visible when the sun is out. If you're new to Washington State and you arrive when it's overcast as I did three years ago, the first time this huge mountain appears in your vista is indescribable.

7) Stewart Heights Pool and Water Park in Tacoma. (This one is just for fun!)

8) Maybe even blueberry picking at Charlotte's Blueberry Park in Tacoma.

9) Perhaps a visit to a farm in the area.

We may add others as we discover them. For each experience, we will get books from the library to learn more, we will write stories and do art projects, and if I can be creative enough, incorporate math and science. I'll blog more about this throughout the summer.

Each of these locations is relatively low-cost (admission is either free, or less than $10, except for the zoo), I plan to pack our lunches, and for the Tacoma locations, I hope to take the bus.

BTW, all praise to Metro Parks Tacoma, the muncipal corporation that manages every single one of the Tacoma locations above, making available incredible opportunities for recreation, the arts and nature for the people of Greater Tacoma!

Private vs. public sector: which is better?

First, a disclaimer: I have never worked in the public sector. However, I have always worked in the nonprofit sector, which, while technically private, has a public mission.

The public sector has been trashed in many quarters of late, and thankfully (in my opinion), the trashing is producing a backlash. Many people are starting to realize just how much all of us benefit from the public sector and its services.

I wrote a post a few months ago at the height of the protests in Wisconsin, about how thankful I am for the government and its libraries, schools, safety net, etc. Now some might say about the stories I shared in that post, "Well, OK, maybe the public sector can do well sometimes, but if it's a choice, the private sector will always do a better job." Competition and profit, they claim, will always result in better service.

Not necessarily. Often the same problems that occur in the public sector also occur in the private sector. For every complaint about waiting in line at the DMV, there's a complaint about waiting at home all day for Comcast to show up, to give one example.

But there are also occasions when the public sector does a better job at the exact same service. I'll share two examples from my life in recent years.

FedEx vs. the Post Office

The Post Office--"Neither snow nor rain...": During Christmas week in 2008, a terrible blizzard hit the Puget Sound region. Not being well-equipped for blizzards, many of us were shut-in for days, and my street was one of many that went unplowed.

On Christmas Eve, my daughter and I went out to build a snowman. Our snow-blanketed street was deserted and silent. After a while, we were surprised to hear a vehicle approaching. Soon a U.S. postal truck, producing the only tire tracks on the road, came into view. The truck stopped at our house and the mail carrier delivered two packages for my daughter, one from each grandmother.

Without that delivery, my daughter would have had only one present on Christmas day, the one her father and I gave her.

FedEx--"A blizzard? Get it yourself!": The day after Christmas, my sister called to ask how my daughter had liked her gift, and we told her we never received it. My sister said, "Man, FedEx sucks! I paid extra for them to deliver it on Christmas Eve!"

When I called FedEx to inquire about it, I was told that they weren't going to deliver until the snow melted, and if I wanted the package sooner, I had to go to the main FedEx facility to pick it up. I stood in line at the facility for about two hours that weekend. A Tacoma News-Tribune article later reported that neither FedEx nor UPS had made any of their deliveries during Christmas week, to the consternation of their customers, but the U.S. Post Office had made all of theirs.

Public sector: 1; private sector: 0.

AIG vs. Washington Labor & Industries

I'm a grant writer, so I work on a computer all day. When my right hand started hurting in 2002, while I still lived in Massachusetts, my first thought was carpal tunnel syndrome. However, an Internet review of my symptoms vs. carpal tunnel's (pain rather than numbness in my middle finger, no pain in the wrist, relief rather than aggravated pain at night) made me realize that wasn't the case.

I filed a workplace injury clain at work (for repetitive stress) and was referred to an orthopedist, who insisted despite my protests that I had carpal tunnel. She treated it as such, aggravating the problem by making me wear a wrist brace that increased my pain and giving me a cortisone shot in the wrist that caused my fingers to curl into a fist that I couldn't uncurl.

I demanded to see someone else and eventually was able to see a hand therapist (a subset of occupational therapy) who correctly diagnosed tendonitis and was able to successfully treat it.

AIG--"Let's give you the run-around": However, AIG, through which my employer had our worker's comp insurance, refused to honor the claim because I hadn't accepted the first doctor's (incorrect) diagnosis and (harmful) treatment. It was a full year before AIG finally paid on the claim, after numerous phone calls and letters to them from the HR person at my job, the hand therapy clinic, and me. During almost all our dealings with them, they were rude and incompetent (for example, we'd send a fax, call to ensure they'd received it, and a week later would be told that we never sent it).

When AIG had all those problems during the 2008 financial crisis, needless to say I wasn't surprised.

WA Labor & Industries--"We're thorough but caring": When my thumb started to hurt this winter, due to my previous experience I soon recognized the problem. I went through the same process of filing a claim at work and seeing a doctor, who (as I expected) diagnosed DeQuervain's tendonitis in my thumb.

The state Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) handles worker's comp claims in Washington. They've been very thorough in the paperwork my employer and I have had to complete, as well as their follow-up--they obviously don't want anyone to game the system. But they've also been very kind and competent in my dealings with them, and approved my claim in about five weeks.

The public sector wins again!

Move over, quinoa, I'm in love with farro!

At a conference I attended recently, I requested vegetarian for dinner. The meal I was brought consisted of grilled veggies in a creamy sauce, served over a grain that looked like unpopped popcorn kernels.

I had never seen the grain before, but when I tasted it, it was phenomenal! The same grain was served as a crunchy topping on our salads the next day, and was just as good that way. I asked one of the waitstaff about it, and he told me it was farro, a "super grain" that is originally from the Middle East, but is now grown organically in Washington state. As this web site which sells it describes it,

It's high in fiber, protein and nutrients, and absolutely delicious - nutty, full-flavored and with an appealingly chewy texture.

So now I don't have to eat quinoa to benefit from a super grain--I can eat farro! Even better, it's a local food for me!

(*I have to admit, though, quinoa has grown on me--just a little--since I wrote this post).