Comments nancyhammond has made

  • Rats

    The pest control company likely uses some nasty, non-organic poisons, which would give them an incentive to impugn the "green lifestyle."On Green lifestyle blamed for England's rodent woes posted 9 months, 3 weeks ago 6 Responses

  • Stovetop

    I pop corn in a Dutch oven on top of the stove in a few tablespoons of canola oil--no butter needed.  (Alas, coconut oil is way bad for you.)

    Turn on heat to medium-high, coat the bottom of your pot with oil, put in a few test kernels, put the lid on, and wait till they pop.

    Then put in the rest of your popcorn (about 1/3 cup per 2 people) and replace the lid.  Constantly tilt and shake the pot over the heat so it all pops without burning.

    Pour into a bowl and garnish with salt and whatever.

    You do need to wait a few minutes after popping for the popcorn to crisp up--the steam needs to evaporate.  Also this process can leave a coating of cooked oil on your pot.  It wears off after a while, but if you care about that sort of thing you might want to dedicate a pot to popcorn.On Why conventional popcorn sucks, and what you can do about it posted 10 months, 2 weeks ago 20 Responses

  • Try Ecover

    Not all eco-friendly cleaning products are created equal.  I've been quite happy with the Ecover tablets and the price is reasonable.

    If you don't fill up the dishwasher with one meal, using the rinse-only cycle in the interim helps a lot.  Longer-term, when shopping for a new dishwasher, use publications like Consumer Reports to get a good one.  They really do vary a lot in their ease of use and cleaning ability.On Umbra on eco-friendly detergents posted 11 months, 2 weeks ago 13 Responses

  • Carbon tax

    "Carbon taxers could start by pointing to an existing section of the U.S. tax code -- preferably related to a huge tax that affects virtually every economic actor in the country -- that exhibits those virtues."

    OK--payroll taxes (Social Security and Medicare.  Employee contribution:  7.65%
    Employer contribution:  7.65%

    Maximum taxable earnings:  $102,000 for Social Security.  No maximum for Medicare.

    I'm not saying this is the best system (it's highly regressive), or that a carbon tax would necessarily be simple.  But it is an example of a huge, pretty straightforward, tax.
    On Why should we assume that a carbon tax will be simple and transparent? posted 1 year ago 11 Responses

  • Sexual harassment

    It's been about 15 years but I'll bet it hasn't changed much--having someone in a car reach out and grab my ass.

    Then there was the teenage boy--also on a bike--who rode up to me, grabbed my breast, and told me to get out of his neighborhood.  I did.On Watch out for that flaming bag of McNuggets posted 2 years, 3 months ago 6 Responses

  • Print mag

    I recommend Mother Jones for a slick, well-designed take on all things progressive, including environmental issues (albeit skewed to a U.S. audience). Very good coverage of pop culture, which should appeal to the younglings.

    I read print mags because I can't take my computer to bed or
    put it into my briefcase.  Aging eyes do better with print.On Tell us about your favorite eco-magazines made of paper posted 4 years, 10 months ago 53 Responses