Celebrating Earth Day? Here Are 10 Simple Tips To Reduce Your Footprint

We've all been told to take certain actions to save the planet: recycle what you can, only fill up your gas tank early in the morning or later in the evening, don’t take your private jet across the city of LA… 😉 It’s easy (and understandable) to feel frustrated because it seems like your efforts are ineffective.

If you're tired of the same old advice that doesn't seem to make a real impact, it's time to explore practical ways to reduce your ecological footprint and make a meaningful difference. We have simple yet powerful strategies that can truly help in saving our planet.

By listening to the episode, you'll gain valuable insights into sustainable living from a non-expert's point of view, while also discovering practical tips that can be easily implemented in your daily life. Jenny's relatable approach and wealth of knowledge make this episode a must-listen for anyone interested in making a positive impact on the planet.

>>> Get all the tips in this episode, here! <<<

In this episode, you will be able to:

• Discover simple yet impactful ways to reduce your ecological footprint.
• Uncover the benefits of planting native species for a sustainable environment.
• Learn how to create your own eco-friendly weed killer with simple DIY ingredients.
• Explore practical tips for reducing food waste at home and living more sustainably.
• Understand the impact of using revolving doors on energy saving and environmental conservation.

Also in this episode…

• Support Ariella by purchasing her novelette on Kindle! If you enjoy spicy books, this is a must-read. It’s called Let It Rain, available for spicy-book lovers everywhere! 
  • Book Info here: https://bit.ly/CKGK_Ariella_LetItRainInfo
  • Grab it yourself here: https://amzn.to/3xD2oq5
• Visit your neighborhood Buy Nothing Facebook group to offer up items you no longer need. It's a great way to find new homes for your old belongings and reduce waste.
• Experience the next total solar eclipse in Denver, Colorado, in 20 years. Start planning your trip to witness this rare celestial event with family and friends.

Bios
Jenny GK, a passionate advocate for all things Earth Day, shares insightful tips and tricks on reducing our ecological footprint. With a keen interest in environmental conservation, Jenny brings a fresh perspective to the conversation, making eco-friendly practices accessible and achievable for everyone. Her practical approach and wealth of knowledge make her a valuable resource for those looking to make a positive impact on the planet. And Caitlin adds color. 🙂

Sources
Tips in this episode provided by…

• https://www.sierraclub.org/
• https://www.goingzerowaste.com/
• https://www.crayola.com/colorcycle.aspx
• https://web.mit.edu/

The best support is a rating and a share.

Love,
CK & GK

Transcript

00:00:01 - Caitlin Kindred
Happy Tuesday. Yeah.

00:00:06 - Jenny GK
Here we are again.

00:00:07 - Caitlin Kindred
Yep.

00:00:08 - Caitlin Kindred
We're so glad you're here today. Today we're talking about ten things that you can do or some, I don't know.

00:00:14 - Caitlin Kindred
Is it ten?

00:00:15 - Caitlin Kindred
A number of things that you can do to save our planet, because it's Earth month, folks.

00:00:22 - Jenny GK
It is indeed. An Earth day is on Monday.

00:00:25 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh.

00:00:26 - Jenny GK
So you have less than a week to prepare. I don't know if you are having the same multi course Earth saving meal that I am with the. No, I'm just kidding. We don't actually have our Earth day celebration in our house. But before we go on, I need to introduce with us, as always, is Caitlin. And she's a garden because I'm digging her.

00:00:55 - Caitlin Kindred
Wow.

00:00:59 - Jenny GK
That one comes courtesy of www. Dot earthdaypickup line.

00:01:04 - Caitlin Kindred
Stop it.

00:01:04 - Caitlin Kindred
That's a thing.

00:01:06 - Jenny GK
I don't know. I just googled Earth day pickup.

00:01:08 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay, well, that's Jenny. She's everyone's mind, in particular, knowledgeable crocodile. And we're just thrilled with all of these Earth month. I don't know, things that she's going to save now she's chomping like a crocodile.

00:01:25 - Jenny GK
All right, so I will tell you that my tree hugging nature goes back a long time. When I was in the third grade, my very favorite book was 50 simple things kids can do to save the earth. And I read it back. Excuse me. I read it cover to cover about 22 times.

00:01:47 - Caitlin Kindred
I love that.

00:01:51 - Jenny GK
So I have always been interested in the silly things that you can do to save the planet. We all know about the big ones, right? Recycle, reduce, reuse, try not to drive if you don't have to carpool. Time your errands so that you can do one drive rather than multiple. Don't take a plane if you don't have to. Like all of these things.

00:02:15 - Caitlin Kindred
You don't need to fly across the city of LA in your private jet. Right, and then have a race with your boyfriend to see who's gonna get there first.

00:02:26 - Caitlin Kindred
Right?

00:02:27 - Jenny GK
Right. You don't.

00:02:29 - Caitlin Kindred
Right.

00:02:29 - Caitlin Kindred
Take down the corporations that are polluting the earth. All of these things that we're all working, it's really not you, dear tiny consumer of products, that is causing the majority of the issues. The thing here is that we can all.

00:02:46 - Jenny GK
If we.

00:02:46 - Caitlin Kindred
If everyone did these things, then we would see some actual growth in, I don't know, planet saving. So Jenny's gonna. Jenny's gonna share some of her favorite tips for doing those things.

00:03:03 - Jenny GK
Okay? So the first three come from this Sierra club, which you may know is a national tree hugger organization. They are a political action committee that helps with green initiatives.

00:03:20 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay. Yeah. Yes, I heard.

00:03:23 - Jenny GK
And so the first one is to plant native species. So it's springtime. People are starting to think about gardening again. Look for plants that are actually native to your area. They use less water, they need fewer pesticides and they help bring in natural wildlife and pollinators.

00:03:45 - Caitlin Kindred
Smart.

00:03:46 - Caitlin Kindred
I did not know that.

00:03:47 - Jenny GK
They're not going to need as many pesticides because they have natural defenses to the natural species they're used to.

00:03:54 - Caitlin Kindred
That makes a lot of sense.

00:03:55 - Caitlin Kindred
Right?

00:03:56 - Jenny GK
Like, they are native to this area. They have lived here for millions of years. They. They know what's up.

00:04:03 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:04:05 - Jenny GK
Okay, next. Carry your own utensils.

00:04:09 - Caitlin Kindred
Is this like when on the episode of Friends when Jenny walks up on Rachel and Chandler eating cheesecake off the floor in the hallway and he whips out his own fork? Is that what we're talking about here? Okay, great.

00:04:20 - Jenny GK
Yes. This is what we're talking about. Now, most people are already doing this when they pack their lunch.

00:04:25 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:04:25 - Jenny GK
Right. They'll be like, okay, I'll either use the reusable stuff at work or I will throw a. I'll throw cutlery in my bag. But I am saying take this one step further and actually, Jenny, it.

00:04:38 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:04:40 - Jenny GK
Carry a fork or spoon or both in your backpack or your bag or whatever you bring with you throughout the day so that when you do go somewhere out to eat and all they have is plastic you can whip out your own metal. Okay, now, here's what I do. Here's what I do. I take the to go utensils that throw away.

00:05:09 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:05:10 - Jenny GK
Plastic ware that comes with delivery. And I throw that in my.

00:05:16 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes, I use those all the time. And then because they're plastic you can recycle them at the end of your usage. Yeah, I do that too.

00:05:23 - Caitlin Kindred
That's a good one.

00:05:24 - Jenny GK
So it's not as weird as Jenny pulling a fork out of his pocket but, like, oh, I already have this other to go set that somebody else delivered to my house. I'll just use it.

00:05:33 - Caitlin Kindred
Exactly. I like that one.

00:05:36 - Jenny GK
All right. And then this one also from the Sierra Club. I do not know how well this works.

00:05:40 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, interesting.

00:05:41 - Jenny GK
I cannot stand by this recommendation. I can only throw it out there into the universe and you listeners can try it and let me know what you think. Yeah, make your own weed killer. Their recipe is a gallon of vinegar, two cups of epsom salts and a half a cup of dawn brand dish.

00:06:07 - Caitlin Kindred
I actually. Excuse me for the stutter I feel like I could see this working.

00:06:11 - Caitlin Kindred
Right.

00:06:12 - Caitlin Kindred
Dawn dish soap would make it sticky. And the salt and vinegar, that's. That's probably enough to kill some plants. I can see this working. I don't know that. I mean, again, I'm not a. I'm not a botanist, but I could see that working.

00:06:26 - Jenny GK
I mean, think about how salt and vinegar chips feel in your mouth. It's pretty abrasive.

00:06:30 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh.

00:06:30 - Caitlin Kindred
But so good at the same time. So good.

00:06:33 - Jenny GK
Maybe the plants love it, but basically the idea here is stay away from the evils of roundup.

00:06:39 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:06:41 - Jenny GK
The makers of Roundup have worked on patenting life. There's all kinds of weird genetically modified organisms that they use. It causes cancer.

00:06:52 - Caitlin Kindred
There's a class action lawsuit that people.

00:06:54 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:06:55 - Caitlin Kindred
That people file for that stuff. But also, if it's that bad for the plants and it's bad for humans, imagine what it's doing to every bit of wildlife that comes into contact with it.

00:07:06 - Caitlin Kindred
It's really bad. Okay.

00:07:08 - Jenny GK
Terrible.

00:07:09 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah. Okay.

00:07:10 - Jenny GK
So then we went to going zero waste.com.

00:07:14 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:07:16 - Jenny GK
And this is really cool. The owner, creator of this website, has all kinds of articles about going minimalist.

00:07:27 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, I like that. And so, yeah.

00:07:29 - Jenny GK
And her vibe is cool that it's not like, hey, I have zero waste. I'm like, so much better than you. It's like, I've been living zero waste for a while. Let me show you what you can do to be better.

00:07:39 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:07:43 - Jenny GK
So she says, avoid paper cups whenever possible. So this includes the paper to go cups that you get at that mermaid coffee place?

00:07:57 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah, because it's my understanding that those can't be recycled because there's a, like, a wax lining on the inside, so you can't actually do anything with them.

00:08:07 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:08:08 - Jenny GK
So most paper cups, like Dixie included, have a waxy coating that liquid proofs the cup. Right. Otherwise, you've poured water on paper and seen what happens. It doesn't exactly stay there. So while they are recyclable, it is extremely difficult to recycle them. Most city curbside recycling programs cannot actually separate the wax from the paper, so they end up in the landfill. So bring a travel mug. I think you get $0.10 off if you bring your own mug. Ask for a for here cup whenever you can. Bring your reusable water bottle wherever you can. And if you're hosting a party, invest one time in reusable plastic cups. And I am not talking about red solo cups. No, I'm saying go the next level and buy the white, uh, kind of opaque plastic cup that you can run through the dishwasher. They're super useful. They hold about 12oz, and they, unless you, like, step on them, they don't break.

00:09:19 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah, that's a good idea.

00:09:22 - Jenny GK
So we've been using those cups at our house for a long time. I really like them, and I got them all free at a party.

00:09:27 - Caitlin Kindred
That's nice. I do also have to put, like, pour one out for the red solo cup, honestly, because you can recycle those. So if you're going to use it, if you're going to do, like, if you have disposable stuff for a party, opt for something like that that can be put in a recycling bin. And then tell your guests to put the red solo cup in the recycling bin.

00:09:47 - Jenny GK
Right, right. I like that. So she says the next thing is to eat more plants, the semicolon there is, and less meat.

00:09:58 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:09:59 - Caitlin Kindred
Right.

00:09:59 - Jenny GK
It's not just eat more plants, it's have more of your diet be based in plants just because farming plants uses a lot less resources and creates a lot less pollution than farming animals. So really consider what you're putting in your body and how much of it is animal based versus plant based. This is not the same thing as be a vegan or be a vegetarian. No, it is just really considering what percentage of your diet is meat. Okay, remember, our number one family rule is don't waste.

00:10:31 - Caitlin Kindred
Right? Yeah.

00:10:32 - Caitlin Kindred
No, and I believe my sister when she told my other sister, like, what are you doing when you say you're going vegetarian? She was like, what? Morans eat meat? She was very like, so, yeah, like, that I'm.

00:10:48 - Jenny GK
You can't do that.

00:10:49 - Caitlin Kindred
You're not gonna separate me from eating meat. But I like, but I see the point here. I get what she's getting at.

00:10:56 - Caitlin Kindred
Right?

00:10:58 - Caitlin Kindred
All right.

00:10:59 - Jenny GK
And then the last thing I grabbed from her website, which, again, is just a treasure trove, there's so many cool articles on there. And. But the last thing I pulled from her was do a food waste audit.

00:11:11 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, this is gonna be.

00:11:13 - Jenny GK
So she says, by recording what you throw away for a week, you'll have a better sense of where your food waste comes from and then be able to address how to decrease this misuse of nourishment.

00:11:27 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, a misuse of nourishment. I feel guilty hearing that statement.

00:11:31 - Jenny GK
Oh, right.

00:11:32 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:11:33 - Caitlin Kindred
All right.

00:11:34 - Jenny GK
I am just kind of imagining the more you.

00:11:36 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah, like, watch. Yeah, exactly. Like, here's how much. Have you seen those? There's, like, buzzfeed stories of people saying, like, this is how much I threw away in one week. And there's one girl who, like, tries to go zero waste by all of her trash has to fit in this jar. It's, like, the wildest thing, and it really eye opening. Oh, okay. All right. All right.

00:11:58 - Jenny GK
Yeah. I've never done a waste audit, but.

00:12:00 - Caitlin Kindred
I think I'm gonna do it.

00:12:02 - Jenny GK
Just, you know, just the other day, I was making chicken thighs, and I was cutting off those big chunks of fat on the side and thinking, why? Why are they selling me this big chunk of fat? And then I realized it's because it weighs something and chicken is sold by the weight.

00:12:21 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:12:22 - Jenny GK
But otherwise, like, who is eating that? No one. So it gets chopped off and thrown in the trash. So that's just one thing I was thinking about, like, wow, this is really wasteful.

00:12:32 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:12:32 - Jenny GK
But I'm not going to eat this.

00:12:34 - Caitlin Kindred
No.

00:12:36 - Jenny GK
Okay. So this is my favorite suggestion. I could save it till the end, but I'm not. I'm just burying it in the middle. It's totally fine. This is learn from the color cycle, okay. Which was Crayola's crayon recycling program that was started in 2013. And this actually comes from crayolas.

00:13:02 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:13:04 - Jenny GK
Okay. So they realize that kids get a new box of crayons every year for school. And if they're anything like my kids, they probably get two or three new boxes of crayons every year because we're losing crayons. So in 2013, the Crayola company started something called color cycling, where you could mail in your crayons and they would melt them down to make more crayons.

00:13:32 - Caitlin Kindred
Sure.

00:13:34 - Caitlin Kindred
I thought this was brilliant.

00:13:36 - Jenny GK
In fact, I was gonna. I was gonna suggest for the show to use your crayons to send your crayons to color cycling. I was like, oh, this is so cool. Well, recently, they did a study of the program and realized that it was actually causing more damage because of the carbon footprint associated with all the shipping. No way. The costs and logistics of recycling the products. For example, people would send in markers, and there's a very small amount of a marker that's actually recyclable.

00:14:11 - Caitlin Kindred
Just the plastic outside.

00:14:12 - Caitlin Kindred
Right.

00:14:12 - Caitlin Kindred
That would be it.

00:14:14 - Jenny GK
And actually, not even the whole plastic outside, just the tube part.

00:14:18 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, my gosh.

00:14:19 - Jenny GK
The ends. That two ends are too small. So Crayola came forward and said, this actually isn't as great for the planet as we thought it was. So we're just continuing the program.

00:14:32 - Caitlin Kindred
No way.

00:14:35 - Jenny GK
So my recommendation, my thing that you can do to save the planet is learn from this and really think about what you're doing and whether or not it's helping. So having an electric car is great unless you're charging it from a house that's on the coal grid.

00:14:53 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah. Right.

00:14:55 - Jenny GK
So think about that. Like, what. What impact are you making with good intent but actually doing more damage?

00:15:03 - Caitlin Kindred
That's very, um, uh, the good place.

00:15:07 - Caitlin Kindred
Right?

00:15:08 - Caitlin Kindred
Like, it's very the good place when you learn about, like, why everyone is in the bad place. I don't want to be, like, that person who spoils it for you, but it all comes down to, like, ripple effect and. Super interesting. That's fascinating. I honestly thought that that system still existed. So what did they encourage people to do instead? Just put them in their home recycling.

00:15:34 - Jenny GK
Or melt them down and make fun crayons yourself. Like, you can put pieces of crayon in a silicone and fit it in the sun.

00:15:44 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:15:44 - Jenny GK
Or you don't even have to warm them up in the oven.

00:15:47 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:15:47 - Jenny GK
They'll just melt in the Texas.

00:15:48 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay, well, I was thinking about the markers, too. Like, the marker thing was super cool, so I guess that doesn't exist anymore. All right, well, time to tell your art teacher friends that program doesn't exist.

00:15:59 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:15:59 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, what a bummer. Okay. But I appreciate that.

00:16:02 - Caitlin Kindred
The.

00:16:02 - Caitlin Kindred
The honesty and integrity it took to come forward and say, like, hey, we learned not so much. Wow, okay.

00:16:11 - Jenny GK
I was so impressed. I was like, crayola, way to go.

00:16:14 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:16:14 - Caitlin Kindred
I love it.

00:16:15 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:16:16 - Jenny GK
All right, my next one is to use the revolving door.

00:16:20 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes, I heard about this recently, but you need to explain it to me. Tell me about this.

00:16:26 - Jenny GK
So, a bunch of kids at MIT did a research project. I shouldn't say. A bunch of kids, graduate students at MIT, did a research project back in 2006 where they compared the energy loss of using a revolving door versus a traditional swinging door. And so a lot of places you'll go, they'll hold the revolving door, and then they'll have the traditional swinging door next to it. That's per fire code, and it's easier to get your swinging door and it. Right, and that's the other piece is this universal design idea that, like, if it's good for someone who has a. A special need, it might be good for everyone, and. But the revolving door uses eight times less air than a swinging door.

00:17:18 - Caitlin Kindred
You know, you can feel the difference in the air pressure as you go through the door. Have you ever noticed that? Where.

00:17:23 - Jenny GK
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:17:24 - Caitlin Kindred
Like, you're in a literal vacuum for a minute.

00:17:27 - Caitlin Kindred
Right?

00:17:27 - Caitlin Kindred
Like, you're just. And it's so quick that you don't really. It doesn't really mess with you. But, like, I could see how that's. And they're usually sealed so tight. Right? Like you could hear it swiping against glass. That's what it is. Yeah. Oh, my gosh. Interesting. Okay, well, this is not to say that if you need to use the swing door, you shouldn't. This is to say that if you have the option and you don't need the swing door, use the revolving one. And. And you're actually saving energy for the building.

00:17:55 - Jenny GK
Well, and I'm thinking, um, there's a hotel that we really like to stay at that has revolving doors. And I would send John through the swing door with the suitcase and then bring the kids to the revolving door.

00:18:09 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, yeah. There you go.

00:18:12 - Jenny GK
Because I don't want. It's not always easy to drag your suitcase, your wheels through, but we can split our party up.

00:18:20 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:18:22 - Jenny GK
Okay. All right. This one's wacky. I don't know if it's gonna work.

00:18:28 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:18:30 - Jenny GK
But according to Canadian Geographic ca. Eduardo. Eduardo Gold was one of the 26 winners of over 1700 submissions for the hundred ideas to save the planet competition in 2009.

00:18:49 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:18:51 - Jenny GK
His idea is to paint the peruvian Andes white.

00:18:59 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:19:00 - Jenny GK
Right. They used to be white.

00:19:02 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:19:03 - Jenny GK
When they were covered in snow. But due to climate change, the snow is not there. There's no more, like permafrost. So his idea is to paint the tops of the mountain white so that they reflect as much sunlight as they used to.

00:19:19 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:19:20 - Jenny GK
And then it won't be absorbed into the earth.

00:19:23 - Caitlin Kindred
I have also seen this being a thing in some major cities where they're painting asphalt. Roofs and roofs white. Asphalt is in the streets.

00:19:33 - Caitlin Kindred
Why?

00:19:34 - Caitlin Kindred
I wanted to say I heard about this happening in LA, but I could be completely making that up. So, you know, fact adjacent here on CK and GK. But I know, I know that was a thing. And they were noticing significant, as in, like, multiple degree temperature changes on the street when they were. When the streets were painted white.

00:19:57 - Caitlin Kindred
Kind of.

00:19:58 - Caitlin Kindred
Amazing.

00:19:58 - Jenny GK
That's amazing. That's crazy. So, um, all I can hear in my head, though, is we're painting the rope, right?

00:20:08 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I have that in my head. We're painting the Andy's white.

00:20:14 - Jenny GK
We're painting the Andy's white.

00:20:16 - Caitlin Kindred
All right, well, listen, if it's not going to be like, paint fumes released into the atmosphere damage level, then, sure, why not?

00:20:26 - Jenny GK
This might be one where they need to study crayola.

00:20:28 - Caitlin Kindred
Right, right.

00:20:30 - Caitlin Kindred
Unintended consequences.

00:20:32 - Jenny GK
Okay, so here's my last tip.

00:20:34 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:20:36 - Jenny GK
And the source for this one is you and me.

00:20:39 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay, great.

00:20:41 - Jenny GK
This is something that we just do.

00:20:43 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:20:44 - Jenny GK
And we are recommending to others. Don't throw it away. Don't throw it away. Offer it up on your neighborhood. Buy nothing. That buy nothing is not just for getting stuff.

00:20:59 - Caitlin Kindred
No, it's for.

00:21:01 - Jenny GK
It is for getting rid of stuff, too. Oh, my gosh.

00:21:04 - Caitlin Kindred
The best. The best.

00:21:06 - Caitlin Kindred
There is nothing better than having, like, the box that has all the crap in it that you're giving away and then all of a sudden the box is, like, not there anymore.

00:21:19 - Jenny GK
Yeah. And you know someone who really wanted it, like, they came to your house together.

00:21:23 - Caitlin Kindred
Right.

00:21:23 - Caitlin Kindred
That happened to me, actually, pretty recently. I had this. My child had a very large racetrack for hot wheels cars and he did not play with it. And we decided as a family, it was time to let it go. And I put it. I posted it in my school's or my school. It's not my school, my son's school. It's by nothing. And I had parents, or not by nothing, but, like, their neighborhood group. And I had parents all over me. All over me for that. And I felt so good. Like, it's got a new life with a new family and they really love it. Yeah, it's great. And I didn't have to feel guilty about putting any. Breaking it down, putting it in the recycling bin or anything like that. Felt really nice. Highly recommend, the buy nothing.

00:22:06 - Jenny GK
All right, so here's our recap. Plant native species. It's planting time. Pick things that are native to your area. Carry your own utensils. If you don't want to look like Jenny Tribbiani, use the plastic ones. Just throw them in your bag. Make your own weed killer. Then let me know if it works. Avoid paper cups at all costs.

00:22:28 - Caitlin Kindred
Eat more plants and less and less meat. Okay.

00:22:35 - Jenny GK
Do a food waste audit. Learn from crayola and think deeply about what you think might be a sustainable practice. Use your revolving door whenever you have an opportunity. Paint the Andes white.

00:22:52 - Caitlin Kindred
You can do that. Your friend, you can go to the Andy.

00:22:55 - Caitlin Kindred
I mean, he's one of the winners.

00:22:59 - Jenny GK
Out of 1700 plus submissions. Like, it must be based in a lot of sites. And then, of course, don't throw it away.

00:23:06 - Caitlin Kindred
This whole white thing about the Andes. I'm wondering if maybe it means, like when you. When you redo your roof, you opt for a lighter color. Like, maybe it's something like that that people can do.

00:23:17 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:23:17 - Caitlin Kindred
But, like, not yes.

00:23:18 - Jenny GK
And there's a right. Don't paint the mountains. Or do. I don't know. So I'm going to give you some time now to go and find all those things that you were going to throw away and quickly list them on your neighborhood buy nothing site.

Okay. Welcome back. I hope that you were able to find a great home for all of your old things. Yeah, they were sitting in the garage, and instead of just donating them to the local thrift store, where some of them are going to get sold and some of them are not, you are listing them individually for other families to specifically claim and put together.

00:24:07 - Caitlin Kindred
Picture and say, hey, this needs love. But it's still. It's still great. That's how I did it. Worked really well.

00:24:13 - Jenny GK
Yep. Okay, so let's talk about what we're obsessed with.

00:24:18 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay. What's up?

00:24:19 - Jenny GK
Okay, so we invented a new game at my house.

00:24:23 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, lord, here we go.

00:24:25 - Jenny GK
Okay, so you already know that we're, like, obsessed with Disney.

00:24:30 - Caitlin Kindred
That's fine.

00:24:31 - Jenny GK
So much so that John got a job booking travel so that he can call all his Disney obsession work.

00:24:41 - Caitlin Kindred
Exactly.

00:24:42 - Caitlin Kindred
Yep.

00:24:44 - Jenny GK
So we were watching a, like, best snacks in all of Disney World video the other day, and we invented a game. It is modeled after the game Kiss marry kill, which you might have called a different name, but we're gonna call it that. This is a show for small ears. Yeah, but it's scarf share or skip.

00:25:08 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:25:10 - Jenny GK
And so only one person can call for each.

00:25:13 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:25:15 - Jenny GK
So we'll watch the video and pause it that, as they're way describing the snack, and you have to call out which one you want to do. Scarf means that you'll eat more than half of it by yourself. Share means that you'll take a few tastes of it, and skip means you don't eat it at all. And so there's, like, this whole strategy of, what do you call for? What do you want? Like, if you really want this snack, should you call for scarf? Because a lot of people might also call for that, so maybe it's smart to yell share.

00:25:43 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:25:43 - Jenny GK
And then at least you'll get a taste of it.

00:25:45 - Caitlin Kindred
I like this.

00:25:46 - Jenny GK
So we've been playing this.

00:25:47 - Caitlin Kindred
This is cute.

00:25:47 - Caitlin Kindred
That's so cute. How fun. It's funny. Uh, no, that's a good, uh.

00:25:54 - Jenny GK
You could do it with. With men.

00:25:56 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:25:57 - Jenny GK
You're sitting around in the waiting room trying to kill some time. You could open a magazine and just call for it with your kids. Scarf share.

00:26:09 - Caitlin Kindred
I'm into it. Okay.

00:26:11 - Jenny GK
Okay.

00:26:12 - Caitlin Kindred
Mine is, um. I.

00:26:14 - Caitlin Kindred
We.

00:26:14 - Caitlin Kindred
We've talked about this before. I am a terrible reader. Terrible reader. Not that I can't read, but just.

00:26:21 - Jenny GK
That I was just gonna say.

00:26:23 - Caitlin Kindred
But, like, I just. The ADHD. I.

00:26:26 - Jenny GK
Right. It's extremely difficult.

00:26:28 - Caitlin Kindred
I either have to take notes on everything I read or I don't retain any of it.

00:26:34 - Caitlin Kindred
Right.

00:26:34 - Caitlin Kindred
Like, I just.

00:26:35 - Jenny GK
Right. You finish a page.

00:26:36 - Caitlin Kindred
Wait, what did I just read? And I have to go back and reread the same thing over and over again. Um, but. And every year I try to do the Goodreads reading challenge. Of how many books are you going to do? Well, I try to do one book a month, and I have failed for the past 48 months. But this year I am on pace and I have finished four books.

00:27:06 - Caitlin Kindred
Four books.

00:27:06 - Jenny GK
Oh, my gosh. We're not even done with the book.

00:27:08 - Caitlin Kindred
I know. I know. You're ahead for the year. I have finished four books and I am so proud of myself. And I didn't start until March, so I. That means I've read four books since we went on our good night moon.

00:27:22 - Jenny GK
Doesn't count.

00:27:23 - Caitlin Kindred
It is not good night moon. They are actual novels.

00:27:27 - Jenny GK
Chapter books, if you will.

00:27:31 - Caitlin Kindred
So I read. I read the Tamron hall book. It's not watch where they hide, but it's. She's got a series that was the thriller. Yeah, it was a thriller. And I actually just checked out the new one, which might actually be watch where they hide, but Tamron hall, it's a good one. I read when breath becomes air. I read the Leavenworth seven, which, if you like, true crime. This is about a group of men who broke out of the Leavenworth jail in the early 19 hundreds. And it was crazy. And then I just finished Malibu Rising, which I really liked. And now I'm going to read the next Tamron hall book in the series because I really liked that one and I'm very excited. And also, this is the shout out that I have to give. Ariella released a novelette, and I'm going to put the link to it in the show notes. But if you like spicy books, this is a book for you. And she, like, she. Go on.

00:28:41 - Jenny GK
If you know what other game I'm talking about besides kissing, this is probably your book.

00:28:47 - Caitlin Kindred
And we have friends who only read spicy books. Like, literally only read spicy books. So anyway, it's a novelette. It's easy reading, and it should go quickly. But she has it on her Kindle site and you can grab it. Go support her. We'll put the link here, but I'm really excited to read that.

00:29:09 - Jenny GK
It's a book.

00:29:10 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah, yeah.

00:29:12 - Caitlin Kindred
It's a buck to read it.

00:29:13 - Caitlin Kindred
Like, go.

00:29:14 - Caitlin Kindred
Go help her. Go help out our friend. And she's like, she's already out at events promoting it, and it's so awesome. I'm really proud of her. So put that in the show notes. Go check that out, and you can read with me, and I'd love to hear what you've. What you've been reading. I might have to, like, make a page on our website of, like, these are things we've read that we really loved.

00:29:36 - Jenny GK
Yes. I'm so it.

00:29:41 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay, gems. Tell me, tell me, tell me.

00:29:48 - Jenny GK
Caitlin. I saw the total eclipse of the sun again.

00:29:52 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:29:53 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes, you did.

00:29:55 - Caitlin Kindred
You made a day of it.

00:29:58 - Jenny GK
Yes. In 2017. I told you this was the most spiritual moment of my life.

00:30:04 - Caitlin Kindred
I remember this.

00:30:05 - Jenny GK
And now in 2024, it is also the most spiritual moment of my life. It was so incredible. We went to a small town in Texas that was in the center of the band, and the clouds cleared away moments before totality.

00:30:23 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:30:23 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:30:24 - Jenny GK
The sun was completely visible for the entirety of totality. And then as the moon started to move away, the clouds started to come back. It was like the universe wanted us.

00:30:36 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes.

00:30:37 - Caitlin Kindred
Yes. That we did not have the same experience, because I stayed in Austin, which was off to the edge of the band, but I had been watching it. There was the. I think it was a NOAA website, had, like, an eclipse tracker. And it was like, okay, you're in it now. You have this many minutes till totality, so you might need to. You might need to. Sorry.

00:31:05 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:31:06 - Caitlin Kindred
No, you're good. It's like, okay, you're in it now. And, like, if you want to go see totality, go outside in, like, 15 minutes. Like it was telling us when. And so I started to see, like, okay, there's some sunshine shine. I'm gonna go out there and look. And I like, you know, my husband was home, and he's like, yeah, okay. Like, he's not as into it, right. But I was like, right now, put your glasses. We're gonna go watch this. We might not get any more, like, breaking the clouds.

00:31:33 - Jenny GK
Right, right.

00:31:34 - Caitlin Kindred
So then when totality started, we. We saw the clouds kind of come over, and we were like, oh, man. And so I was like, maybe we can go see it out in the street. Like, maybe there's a tree in the way. Go see. And we go out there to our front door, and right at the front door, Bryce looks up, and he goes here, right here. And we're literally standing immediately in front of our front door, like, right in front of our ring cam. And we're looking up at it and we could watch it from there and watching the whole sky just turn pitch black. And all of the night animals, like, start making noises again. It was wild. And I'm like, this is what it looked like this morning when I came out here at five. Something to walk like, it was black. It was amazing. It was a really cool thing.

00:32:21 - Jenny GK
A rooster crowd.

00:32:22 - Caitlin Kindred
So weird. So weird, right? Did you cry? Oh, my God, I cried too.

00:32:28 - Jenny GK
So did, like, most of the people that were there with me.

00:32:30 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:32:31 - Caitlin Kindred
Like, I got a little emotional. Not gonna lie. I don't know what happened.

00:32:34 - Jenny GK
Well, and I'll tell you, one of John's buddies, like, the guy who was hosting this event, invited us to come accidentally audio recorded the whole.

00:32:47 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, my gosh.

00:32:49 - Jenny GK
So he has on video on tape. I don't know. What do you use on audio? Like, how do we say this in 2024? Oh, we are not barking. Anyway, he has an audio recording of all of us reacting.

00:33:08 - Caitlin Kindred
Oh, wow. That's cool.

00:33:10 - Jenny GK
It's so cool to listen to. You're like, oh, my gosh. Oh, look at this. Like, one girl even says, like, oh, my gosh. I feel like I just need to get on my knees and, like, pray to some, right?

00:33:20 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:33:20 - Caitlin Kindred
That's so wild.

00:33:22 - Jenny GK
It was so cool. So the next time that this part of the state will be under a total eclipse is 300 years from now. And the next time that a total solar eclipse will happen in the United States is 20 years from now.

00:33:37 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah. Yeah.

00:33:38 - Caitlin Kindred
And that one will be in Denver. So, yeah. So that might be an excuse to.

00:33:44 - Caitlin Kindred
Go and see my family in Denver.

00:33:48 - Jenny GK
Absolutely.

00:33:49 - Caitlin Kindred
All right, tell me yours.

00:33:50 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:33:50 - Caitlin Kindred
Um, the thing on the notes right now, I just need everyone to know, is a poop emoji and baking.

00:34:00 - Jenny GK
Yeah. I am really confused.

00:34:01 - Caitlin Kindred
Okay.

00:34:02 - Caitlin Kindred
So randomly, my son asks me, can we bake something?

00:34:08 - Caitlin Kindred
And I was like, uh, sure.

00:34:12 - Caitlin Kindred
And he goes, something sweet that tastes good.

00:34:17 - Jenny GK
Okay.

00:34:17 - Caitlin Kindred
The implication being what?

00:34:19 - Caitlin Kindred
That.

00:34:19 - Jenny GK
Like, that what you normally make doesn't poop emoji.

00:34:25 - Caitlin Kindred
Right. So I just went. So I just went, actually, I only.

00:34:31 - Caitlin Kindred
Like to bake things that tastes like poop.

00:34:34 - Jenny GK
And he's like, right?

00:34:36 - Caitlin Kindred
What? What?

00:34:39 - Caitlin Kindred
Looking at me like, what? And I was like, yeah, obviously whatever I bake is gonna be, like, sweet and tastes good. Like, I'm not gonna just do.

00:34:47 - Jenny GK
Right. Baking.

00:34:48 - Caitlin Kindred
What are you doing?

00:34:50 - Caitlin Kindred
Hang on 1 second.

00:34:52 - Jenny GK
Come on.

00:34:56 - Caitlin Kindred
And stop messing with the chair, because that is messing with the recording.

00:35:05 - Jenny GK
So I also forgot to tell the girls that I don't keep the video. So did you see how they, like, cry? And then Abby just walks right behind. She's like, whatever, guys.

00:35:17 - Caitlin Kindred
Super.

00:35:20 - Jenny GK
Making it worse. Go put your clothes on, Sam.

00:35:30 - Caitlin Kindred
Come on. All right, so, yeah. So, guys, just so you know, I only. Whenever I bake, I'm terrible baker. I only bake things that taste like poop, apparently, because he's, like, the way he's so snarky was like, that tastes good. Ew.

00:35:46 - Jenny GK
I make salty things that taste.

00:35:49 - Caitlin Kindred
I love to overdo it with the baking soda and forget.

00:35:54 - Jenny GK
Oh, it's all mealy and yucky in your mouth.

00:36:00 - Caitlin Kindred
Yeah.

00:36:00 - Caitlin Kindred
So there you go.

00:36:02 - Jenny GK
All right, well, I am going to spend the rest of my day trying to make a Taylor swift themed cardboard.

00:36:10 - Caitlin Kindred
Boat, as one does.

00:36:14 - Jenny GK
Right? This is what you do when you're a parent of a tweeny girl. Last year's boat was a teapot.

00:36:23 - Caitlin Kindred
I remember. Yes, I remember this.

00:36:27 - Jenny GK
So there are some high hopes for swift sails.

00:36:33 - Caitlin Kindred
Nice.

00:36:35 - Caitlin Kindred
I'm into it. Well done. Hey o.

00:36:38 - Jenny GK
All right, so when you're deciding to bake today and you're looking at your recipes and you're trying to avoid something that tastes like poop, make good choices.

00:36:53 - Caitlin Kindred
Save the planet.

00:36:55 - Caitlin Kindred
Happy Earth day, everybody.

00:36:56 - Caitlin Kindred
Yay. Bye.

00:36:59 - Jenny GK
Happy Earth day. Bye.