The Green Thing
Sure we didn't have the green thing, we had the "sensible" thing.
Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the older woman that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.
The woman apologized and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in my earlier days."
The clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations."
She was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.
Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled. But we didn't have the green thing back in our day.
We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks. But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day.
Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throw-away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that young lady is right. We didn't have the green thing back in our day.
Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she's right. We didn't have the green thing back then.
We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn't have the green thing back then.
Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus, and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.
But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?
Please forward this on to another selfish old person who needs a lesson in conservation from a smart young person.
Remember: Don't make old people mad.
We Don't Like Being Old In The First Place, So It Doesn't Take Much To Tic Us Off.
Author Unknown
Source: Internet
Monday, March 12, 2012
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Buy American Products
Eleven Easy Ways to Buy American in 2012 by Roger Simmermaker
1. Cotton Swabs. Don't call them Q-Tips. The Q-Tips brand is made in America , but guess what? The company that owns the brand isn't American at all. The name of the company is called Unilever (ever seen Lever 2000 soap?), which is a joint venture between England and The Netherlands . An American alternative would be the CVS or Walgreen's brand , which are both made in USA as well for about the same price. Both CVS and Walgreen's are American-owned companies and are based in the United States .
2. Deodorant. Suave and Dove are both owned by Unilever, so the profits go overseas and the taxes are paid overseas to foreign governments when you buy either of these brands. Want an American brand to buy and save money, too? Go to the Dollar Tree store and buy the Speed Stick brand for $1 each, which is made in USA by American-owned Colgate- Palmolive . If you drop five or ten dollars, you won't have to go back to the store for this item anytime soon.
3. Bath Soap. Irish Spring sounds like it might be foreign, but it's actually an American brand made in the United States . Ivory soap is American, too. Jergens is made in America , but Jergens is owned by a Japanese company.Think of it like this: Just like a Toyota made in the U.S. is still a Japanese car, a bar of Jergens soap made in the U.S. is still a Japanese soap. Dial is owned by a German company.
4. Mustard. French's mustard isn't French. It's owned by the British. Grey Poupon sounds like it might be foreign, but it's owned by an American company, and is made in America .
5. Pasta sauce . Did you know Ragu is owned by Unilever, the foreign-owned company we learned about in examples one and two . Prego is an American brand owned by the Campbell Soup Company , and is made in the United States .
6. Disinfectant. Lysol and Clorox are both effective disinfectants and there is little if any price difference between the two, but only one is American owned. Lysol used to be owned by Kodak, but Kodak sold it to a British company in 1995. Clorox is American owned .
7. Coffee. Two of the most popular brands in the United States are Maxwell House and Taster's Choice, but only one is owned by a company based in the United States .. Taster's Choice is made by Switzerland-based Nestle, the largest food company in the world. Maxwell House is an American brand. The coffee beans for both brands are imported, however. For truly American coffee from tree to cup (the beans come from Hawaii ) check out the USA Coffee Company at www.USACoffeeCompany.com.
8. Cosmetics . Revlon is an American-owned company and many (not all) of their products are made in the United States . Maybelline was American-owned until 1996 when French-owned L'Oreal bought the company for $758 million. Mary Kay is also an American-owned company .
9. Bottled water. Now that we know the French own at least one brand many probably thought was American owned, what other popular brands are owned by companies based in France ? You might be surprised to know that Dannon bottled water (and other Dannon products like yogurt) are French owned. Aquafina (owned by Pepsi) and Dasani (owned by Coca-Cola) are American brands.
10. Peanut Butter . They say choosy mothers choose Jif. Choosy patriotic Americans choose Jif, too, because Jif is American-owned . Skippy is owned by our favorite foreign brand Unilever.
11. Apparel . Why shop at Wal-Mart and buy foreign-made t-shirts when you can buy American-made t-shirts from All American Clothing Company ( www.AllAmericanClothing.com) where they use 100% U.S.-grown cotton for just $7.99. Are the shirts in Wal-Mart that much cheaper? I have to admit I don't know because I don't shop there. But I do know Wal-Mart is the biggest seller of Chinese-made goods on the planet.
EXTRA: Okay, I had to give another example because this is probably the best one, and since winter is still here, we might be adding some hot chocolate to our shopping cart at the supermarket. Swiss Miss is American owned, but Carnation is owned by the Swiss.
The good news is that the more we buy American-owned and American-made products, the more powerful and positive impact we will have on the U.S. economy.
And the even better news is we can usually do it without any extra cost or inconvenience to the consumer. Awareness is the key.
About the Author: Roger Simmermaker
Roger Simmermaker is the author of How Americans Can Buy American: The Power of Consumer Patriotism and writes "Buy American Mention of the Week" articles for his websitewww.howtobuyamerican.comand WorldNetDaily.com. Roger has a degree in Electronics Engineering Technology and is the vice president of his local Machinists Union (IAM&AW). He been a frequent guest on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC, and has been quoted in the USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Business Week among many other publications.
Source: Internet Email
1. Cotton Swabs. Don't call them Q-Tips. The Q-Tips brand is made in America , but guess what? The company that owns the brand isn't American at all. The name of the company is called Unilever (ever seen Lever 2000 soap?), which is a joint venture between England and The Netherlands . An American alternative would be the CVS or Walgreen's brand , which are both made in USA as well for about the same price. Both CVS and Walgreen's are American-owned companies and are based in the United States .
2. Deodorant. Suave and Dove are both owned by Unilever, so the profits go overseas and the taxes are paid overseas to foreign governments when you buy either of these brands. Want an American brand to buy and save money, too? Go to the Dollar Tree store and buy the Speed Stick brand for $1 each, which is made in USA by American-owned Colgate- Palmolive . If you drop five or ten dollars, you won't have to go back to the store for this item anytime soon.
3. Bath Soap. Irish Spring sounds like it might be foreign, but it's actually an American brand made in the United States . Ivory soap is American, too. Jergens is made in America , but Jergens is owned by a Japanese company.Think of it like this: Just like a Toyota made in the U.S. is still a Japanese car, a bar of Jergens soap made in the U.S. is still a Japanese soap. Dial is owned by a German company.
4. Mustard. French's mustard isn't French. It's owned by the British. Grey Poupon sounds like it might be foreign, but it's owned by an American company, and is made in America .
5. Pasta sauce . Did you know Ragu is owned by Unilever, the foreign-owned company we learned about in examples one and two . Prego is an American brand owned by the Campbell Soup Company , and is made in the United States .
6. Disinfectant. Lysol and Clorox are both effective disinfectants and there is little if any price difference between the two, but only one is American owned. Lysol used to be owned by Kodak, but Kodak sold it to a British company in 1995. Clorox is American owned .
7. Coffee. Two of the most popular brands in the United States are Maxwell House and Taster's Choice, but only one is owned by a company based in the United States .. Taster's Choice is made by Switzerland-based Nestle, the largest food company in the world. Maxwell House is an American brand. The coffee beans for both brands are imported, however. For truly American coffee from tree to cup (the beans come from Hawaii ) check out the USA Coffee Company at www.USACoffeeCompany.com.
8. Cosmetics . Revlon is an American-owned company and many (not all) of their products are made in the United States . Maybelline was American-owned until 1996 when French-owned L'Oreal bought the company for $758 million. Mary Kay is also an American-owned company .
9. Bottled water. Now that we know the French own at least one brand many probably thought was American owned, what other popular brands are owned by companies based in France ? You might be surprised to know that Dannon bottled water (and other Dannon products like yogurt) are French owned. Aquafina (owned by Pepsi) and Dasani (owned by Coca-Cola) are American brands.
10. Peanut Butter . They say choosy mothers choose Jif. Choosy patriotic Americans choose Jif, too, because Jif is American-owned . Skippy is owned by our favorite foreign brand Unilever.
11. Apparel . Why shop at Wal-Mart and buy foreign-made t-shirts when you can buy American-made t-shirts from All American Clothing Company ( www.AllAmericanClothing.com) where they use 100% U.S.-grown cotton for just $7.99. Are the shirts in Wal-Mart that much cheaper? I have to admit I don't know because I don't shop there. But I do know Wal-Mart is the biggest seller of Chinese-made goods on the planet.
EXTRA: Okay, I had to give another example because this is probably the best one, and since winter is still here, we might be adding some hot chocolate to our shopping cart at the supermarket. Swiss Miss is American owned, but Carnation is owned by the Swiss.
The good news is that the more we buy American-owned and American-made products, the more powerful and positive impact we will have on the U.S. economy.
And the even better news is we can usually do it without any extra cost or inconvenience to the consumer. Awareness is the key.
About the Author: Roger Simmermaker
Roger Simmermaker is the author of How Americans Can Buy American: The Power of Consumer Patriotism and writes "Buy American Mention of the Week" articles for his websitewww.howtobuyamerican.comand WorldNetDaily.com. Roger has a degree in Electronics Engineering Technology and is the vice president of his local Machinists Union (IAM&AW). He been a frequent guest on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC, and has been quoted in the USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Business Week among many other publications.
Source: Internet Email
Leap Year
Leap Year Poem
Thirty days hath September,
April, June and November.
All the rest have thirty-one,
Excepting February alone,
And that has twenty-eight days clear
And twenty-nine in each leap year.
~ Mother Goose ~
Source: Internet
Thirty days hath September,
April, June and November.
All the rest have thirty-one,
Excepting February alone,
And that has twenty-eight days clear
And twenty-nine in each leap year.
~ Mother Goose ~
Source: Internet
