The Dirty Dozen List

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Yesterday while driving to work, I heard a report on the radio about which fruits and vegetables tend to contain the most pesticide residues when conventionally grown. I buy organic produce as a rule, but there are a few stores around me that don’t carry it or that don’t have a decent selection, so sometimes I have to make an exception. Buying local is also important to me, and yet not all the vendors at my area farmers' markets sell organic produce.

This report has helped me to decide when buying organic is an absolute necessity. You can check out the list here: "Apples top 2011 'dirty dozen' list, says group". I’m sure you’ll snort in disgust, as I did, when you read how the spokesperson of a produce trade association branded the report “a sensational publicity stunt disguised as science.” That sure sounds like Monsanto talking to me!

A painless way to stop unwanted mail

Since my last post was about getting rid of clutter, I thought I’d share a great resource for tidying up your home while helping the environment. It’s Catalog Choice, a free service that enables you to control the amount of catalogs, phone books, fliers, circulars, newsletters and other unwanted mail you receive. You indicate which mailers you don’t want and Catalog Choice contacts the respective companies to request they discontinue delivery.

You need to create an account (a login and password) and enter your mailing address. Then, when unwanted catalogs arrive in the mail, simply select them from Catalog Choice's alphabetical listing, confirm the name and address on the mailing label and enter the customer number (also from the label). Catalog Choice does the rest. It takes about 10 weeks for the change to become effective.

I signed up about two years ago and it has definitely made a difference in the amount of mail I receive. Every so often, a catalog that I’ve given the boot to ends up creeping its way back into my mailbox (yes, I’m talking about you, American Girl), but for the most part it’s pretty effective.  Catalog Choice is a free service, but donations are accepted. Annual donors of $20 or more are entitled to an unlisting service which, according to the group’s website, “proactively removes you from lists bought and sold by marketers.”

Check it out at http://www.catalogchoice.org/