8 Ways to be Green
May 27th, 2008 categories: Market Trends
1. Use Reusable Shopping Bags
Switch from paper and plastic and bring your own bags. This one change will have the most immediate and dramatic impact on the environment.
- The oil it takes to produce 14 plastic bags will power your car for a mile.
- Paper is not better. Annually 10 million paper bags consume 14 million trees.
Check out: www.reusablebags.com and www.betterbagscolorado.org. If you’re a client of mine, I have Kentwood reusable bags for you! Just let me know how many you need.
2. Replace Your Light Bulbs with Compact Fluorescent (CFL) Light Bulbs
They last 10 times longer and use 1/4 less energy. Dispose of the CFL bulbs properly, they contain trace amounts of mercury. You can take them to Ace Hardware stores. Also try LED’s (Light Emitting Diodes) – no mercury. Remember to turn off the light when you leave the room.
Start with your porch: www.porchbulbproject.org.
3. Use Earth Friendly Cleaning Products
The EPA says air pollution indoors may be 2-5 times higher than outdoors. Try making your own cleaning products to cut down on chemicals.
All Purpose Cleaner: 1/2 cup Borax (look in the laundry aisle) to 1 gallon hot water, mix in a pail or use smaller amounts in a spray bottle (1/8 cup Borax to 1 quart hot water). Dissolve the Borax completely and wipe surfaces clean. This also works with Arm & Hammer washing soda to 2 cups very hot water.
Glass Cleaner: 1/4 cup white vinegar or 1 teaspoon lemon juice to 2 cups water in a clean spray bottle. Wipe surfaces with newspaper.
Soft Scrub: Mix liquid detergent to 1/2 cup baking soda until it’s the consistency of frosting. Use on sinks, showers and stainless steel.
Buy Seventh Generation or Clorox Green products.
4. Save Water
Turn off the water when brushing your teeth and you’ll save about 25 gallons of water a month.
Limit your showers to 5 minutes.
Implement xeriscaping (not zero scaping!) 35% of our water is used for lawns.
Check out low flow shower heads, toilets and faucets.
Only run your dishwasher when it’s full.
5. Calculate Your Carbon Footprint
What is it? How big is it? Flying, driving and tossing out garbage emit greenhouse gases. You can measure your household’s impact on the environment and learn how to reduce it.
Learn more at: www.carbonfootprint.com and www.begreennow.com.
6. Recycle
Take advantage of your neighborhood recycling programs and buy recycled products whenever you can.
Here’s more: www.rbrc.org and Colorado Recycles.
7. Conserve Energy
Turn down the temperature on your hot water heater to 120 degrees. Unplug your appliances or plug them into a “smart” power strip and turn it off when you’re away.
Clean your furnace and change the filters, and consider having your home audited for energy use.
Park your car for one whole day a month.
Set your thermostat at 68 degrees or cooler in the winter and 78 degrees or warmer in the summer.
Find additional savings and rebates at: Energy Star and Excel Energy.
8. Gardening Ideas
Find a place in your garden to compost your trash. Compost helps keep weeds at bay and saves water. Water lawns early in the morning and mow late in the day.
Look for xeriscape plants.
Avoid synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.
Have fun being green ~ it’s good for you and not as hard as you may think!
| Discussion: 3 Comments »
Gaylord Street Festival
May 24th, 2008 categories: Life In Denver
Our favorite thing to do with our boys on Memorial Day weekend is walk over to the Gaylord Street Festival and celebrate the beginning of summer. We used to watch the kids bounce in the blow-up castle. Now, they’re too big for that and prefer the climbing wall.
There are booths with crafts, a kiddie carnival, plus the shops and restaurants are all open, and the neighbors are out enjoying the day with you. If you’re in town this weekend, don’t miss it!
May 24th, 25th and 26th, 2008
Hours: 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. (Daily)
Free Parking at South High School: Louisiana Avenue & Franklin Street with Free Metro Taxi Shuttle Service to and from the Festival
Pancake Breakfast: 7:00 AM – 10:00 AM daily
Strolling Magician: Saturday 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM
New this Year: Petting Zoo
Including a Wallaby, Baby Camel, Giant Rabbit and more
| Discussion: 2 Comments »
Washington Park Gem
May 21st, 2008 categories: LifeStyle Listings, Real Estate News
Temporarily off the Market – Winter 2008
- Classic Red Brick 2 Story Georgian by Weston Homes
- Location, Location, Location…2 Blocks from Washington Park
- Granite Countertops, Black Appliances & Heartwood Maple Cabinetry
- Large Kitchen Island and Cozy Breakfast Nook
- Granite-Surround Gas Fireplace in Living Room
- Brick Fireplace and Built-In Shelving in Family Room
- Hardwood Floors, Crown Molding & 9’ Ceilings
- Built-In Bookcases and Pocket-Doors in Study/Den
- French Doors Open to Private Patio
- Butler’s Pantry with 2nd Oven and Great Storage
- “Mudroom” Laundry Area w/ 16” x 16” Tile leads to 3 Car Garage
- Lovely Master Suite with Balcony, Sitting Room, His-n-Hers Closets
| Discussion: No Comments »
Harley Tells it Like it Is!
May 16th, 2008 categories: Market Trends
I’m in Washington, DC this week at the NAR Mid-Year meetings. This is the 100th year of the National Association of Realtors and the 105th anniversary of Harley Davidson.
Yesterday, I opened the hotel’s USA Today and this is the ad I saw on the back of the Business Section:
We Don’t Do Fear
Over the last 105 years in the saddle, we’ve seen wars, conflicts, depression, recession, resistance, and revolutions. We’ve watched a thousand hand-wringing pundits disappear in our rear-view mirror. But every time, this country has come out stronger than before. Because chrome and asphalt put distance between you and whatever the world can throw at you. Freedom and wind outlast hard times. And the rumble of an engine drowns out all the spin on the evening news. If 105 years have proved one thing, it’s that fear sucks and doesn’t last long. So Screw it. Let’s Ride.
An article in Milwaukee Journal Sentinel online reviews this brilliant ad campaign, and Harley Davidson’s counter to the bad news in the press.
I’m hanging the full-page ad in my office work room when I get back to Denver!
(I originally posted this earlier today over at Active Rain)
| Discussion: 8 Comments »
Washington Park Home Tour 2008
May 9th, 2008 categories: Life In Denver, Real Estate News
If you don’t have anything to do tomorrow, and you like the idea of touring homes in one of Denver’s primo neighborhoods, then look no further than the Washington Park Home Tour.
You can drop in at any one of the featured homes, or begin at Steele Elementary. The neighborhood is eclectic – with many scrapes, “pop-tops,” Victorians and post-war bungalows. The home tour benefits Steele Elementary, the local Wash Park elementary school and runs from 10 am until 4 pm. While you’re in the neighborhood, head over to one of the fabulous restaurants for lunch or get ice cream at Dinos’ soda bar.
Finish up with a walk around the park to work off your ice cream, and enjoy the perfect Denver springtime. The tulips are in bloom, the flowering trees are radiant in shades of pink and white. Remember your allergy meds, and have a great weekend!
| Discussion: 2 Comments »
Woof Woof – We’ve Gone to the Dogs
May 7th, 2008 categories: Life In Denver
Colorado Dogs Parks – Fun for the Whole Family!
| Discussion: 7 Comments »
Spectacular Home in Cherry Creek Country Club
May 4th, 2008 categories: LifeStyle Listings, Real Estate News
This is a truly spectacular home with ultimate potential and possibilities in Denver’s Cherry Creek Country Club gated community.
This elegant home is wonderfully situated on a premier lot in prestigious Cherry Creek Country Club. Backing to the 6th and 7th Greens with expansive views of the Nickalus designed golf course and the lake beyond. There are no looming homes across a narrow green or fairway – only golf course and water views to revel in.
The home’s back yard faces east, offering the utmost comfort during warm summer months for outdoor relaxation and entertaining. A covered patio with built-in gas grill and outdoor fireplace on the main level as well as a ground-level covered patio are an entertainer’s paradise.
The interior of this special home was constructed of the highest quality finishes. There has been no detail left out. The highly functional floor plan with 5 bedrooms and 6 baths is perfect for an expanding family or as a haven for visiting guests. The custom hardwood Brazilian Cherry floors, natural stone and high-end kitchen fill the house with warmth and comfort.
Offered at $1,395,000.
Closed May 21, 2010 ~ $1,250,000.
View the entire online presentation at www.gretchensdenver.com, and have a lovely Sunday!
| Discussion: 7 Comments »
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