Green and Gorgeous presents:Gorgeous Pacific Plantation, style 5 bedrooms, 6.5 baths north of Montana, Smart landscape with native and kitchen gardens. Detached "casita" with fireplace and bath is 6th bedroom/ office, living room with fireplace and French doors open to patio, family room and dining area/ den/ office with fireplace. 

Formaldehyde Free cabinets throughout the house.

For more information visit www.gorgeousandgreen.net

BE GREEN, BE GORGEOUS!

May Hsu

Did you know that CO2 emissions from transportation are a leading cause for global warming?
In this segment, we opted to forego the usual gas-guzzling airport limo and got the VIP treatment in one of Planet Tran's eco-friendly Priuses.

 

Learn more about Bianca at ConsciousLivingTV.com

Last December, two weeks short of his 100th birthday, Lynn's dad/Corey's grandfather died. We know a lot of people think this, but in our case, it's 100% true: Grandpal, as we called him, was a very special person. If you gave a casual nod and a friendly smile, you became his friend. Six months after his passing, his widow is still receiving two page condolence notes from people who'd met him once or twice.

Grandpal and Corey, about 1976

He had a brilliant mind, but only those who counted on his business acumen, knew it, because he refused to use his intelligence as a sword or a way to make himself appear better than others. His face almost always was lit with a smile and his optimism was infectious. He could be counted on, with only the slightest provocation, to head to a nearby piano and play beautifully any song you requested--in the key of C. He loved his chidlren and grandchildren in a way that most every human wishes to be loved--whole-heartedly and without judgment. 

This will be the first Father's Day of our lives without him. 

Last week, Lynn, with a few other relatives, spread some of Grandpal's ashes in a place that was almost sacred to him, a summer camp where he'd spent many years as a boy and young man. We knew about Camp Utopia (unfortunately, that's not its current name) because he had regaled three generations with embellished tales of his adventures there--Rattlesnake Rock, The You-Go-I-Go and the Bear Story, to name just a few. Of course, Lynn's heart was heavy as she held the remains of her father in her hands, but there was something completely right and peaceful in leaving a part of him in a place he so loved.

This Father's Day, if you are fortunate enough to have your dad still with you, celebrate him in grand style. Don't just pick out a tie or a book and call it done. Spend an hour asking him to tell you things you may not know (and if he's told you a million times, allow him to say it again). Be sure to tell him you love him. Have fun together. We hope you will make this a Father's Day neither of you will ever forget, because you never know, next year may be too late. 

And if like us, you have only memories, find a way to celebrate your dad just the same. Do something wonderful for someone else in his name. Plant a tree that flowers in his favorite color. Call up a friend or relative and share funny or poignant memories. Write a poem about him or put together a scrapbook. Spend some time quietly sitting and remembering and appreciating your dad. That's what we'll be doing.

Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson are a mother-daughter team and co-authors of Celebrate Green! Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations and Traditions for the Whole Family, available at www.CelebrateGreen.net.

What if you could send and receive correspondence without using a single piece of paper? And, no I’m not talking about just email; I mean everything – from bills to advertisements, to birthday cards. Well, I discovered an awesome new service the other day and I’m happy to say that now you can. The service is called Zumbox and it is like a snail mail/email hybrid that is (in my opinion) genius.

According to Zumbox, it is the first all-digital online alternative to the traditional paper postal service, and as long as you have a street address, you can start using it. Every US street address can create an online mailbox with Zumbox. Businesses, restaurants, banks, non-profits, even your grandmother - anyone who sends you mail through the postal service can sign up with Zumbox and send that mail electronically instead.

At first glance, I was wondering exactly what mail I will be saving with this service. I pretty much receive all my bills online and pay them online too. The problem is that only 3-5% of people in the US actually do that according to Zumbox. In addition, many businesses have a hard time going totally paperless because it is difficult to securely send information to an email addresses. However, with Zumbox, your mailing address is the address to where digital mail is securely sent, opening the door to send virtually anything, well virtually.

To get started, just put in your name and address at Zumbox.com. The company will mail you a Security Code to your home address via the U.S. Postal Service (yes, through snail mail – but that’s just to get your account set up). It takes 3-4 days to receive your code. When you receive the code in the mail, you return to Zumbox.com and type-in your Security Code to register your address for a Zumbox account. Then, you will be ready to send and receive your Confidential Mail through Zumbox. Any person or company who uses this service can send you electronic mail instead of traditional mail. As an added bonus, this service is even more secure than your average mailbox. And, you can get your mail anywhere – from work, on the road, even on vacation.

So for this system to work and for us to see the environmental benefits, a large percentage of the population would need to be using it. That’s why I’m spreading the word. We need lots of people to sign up for this service. Currently, about 700 million pieces of paper mail are delivered daily in the U.S. – that includes letters, cards, advertisements, and bills. Wow, that’s a lot of paper!

Zumbox projects that if all U.S. households received and paid their bills electronically, the country would save 16.5 million trees annually. That’s the amount of lumber needed for 216,054 single-family homes. Not to mention all the emissions spared from mail trucks as well.

Be one of the early adopters and tell your friends and family about it too. It’s free, it’s easy, it’s secure, and it’s green. How cool is that?

Learn more about Allison at