Now that you have your compost bins, what do you do with it? D and I keep a small lidded trash can and fill it during the week. You could also use a bucket – our dogs became fascinated with it, so we had to use something with a lid! If it gets full we dump it on the compost. When we have time on the weekend, we flip it to incorporate the new material.
Good things to put in a compost
Fruit and vegetable peelings and leaves
tea leaves/ tea bags and coffee grounds
leaves
grass clippings
soft prunings (not the hardwood kind because it takes forever to compost)
young weeds (those with seed, or about to set seed, should be disposed of in the garbage)
cow and horse manures
ash (from open fireplaces)
hair and nails
vacuum cleaner contents (however, synthetic carpet will not break down)
shredded newspapers/paper/mail, paper towels/napkins/tissues, and cardboard
if you want to speed up the composting process, you can add a fertilizer high in nitrogen
For some interesting things to put in your compost, visit the WebEcoist’s article on composting
Browns are those things that are dry to the touch – crunchy autumn leaves, paper products
Greens are those things that are fresh or have a higher moisture content – grass clippings, kitchen scraps
An added bonus!
When flipping the compost, you’ll notice a lot of worms! I still get a little squeamish around them, but they do very good things for the soil. They break down the compost and then spread nutrient rich castings (worm poo) wherever they go!
3 years ago I tried to build a compost bin out of 4×4′s and 2×4′s – big mistake! I only made one panel because it ended up being so heavy so I gave up on the idea. That following year D and I finished installing our 40 foot long retaining wall and we had quite a few pallets sitting in our driveway. These were something that our hired dump truck would not take away. About this time we had slowly started thinking more “green”. I wanted a compost bin now and had talked D into one.
Basically we made two attached topless cubes using 9 pallets. We had some snow fence, so we stapled that to all pallets to keep the compost better contained, but I have seen some pallet-compost bins without the snow fence and they’re doing just fine. All pallets were screwed together except the front pallets and bottom pallets. We attached the front pallets with some twine so we can easily pull them off and flip the compost. We just left the bottom pallets unattached – you may opt to not even have a bottom; we just put them there because we had extra pallets.
Here are a couple of the photos! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask!
As requested, here are the tools needed:
9 pallets
All weather screws – we used 12
Drill
Fencing (snow, geogrid) – if using
Stapler – to attach fencing if using
Where to find pallets:
Big home improvement stores (Lowe’s, Menard’s, Home Depot, etc.)
Last Father’s Day I purchased a 1.5 quart Rival ice cream maker for D. We’ve (I’ve) made ice cream an average of once per month over the past year. We’ve made mostly vanilla – both quick and old-fashioned (custard) recipes, Oreo ice cream, and even a few different vegan recipes.
At the same time, we have frequently purchased ice cream at the grocer such as store brand and Blue Bunny, but realized it’s not “real” ice cream. If you look at the front of the carton, it usually says something like “Vanilla Flavored Ice Cream.” These often contain the dreaded high fructose corn syrup and a plethora of hard-to-pronounce words. I’m assuming that Breyer’s vanilla and Haagen-Dasz brands are more expensive because they don’t have these things.
The following recipe is from the Rival 1.5 quart ice cream maker’s guide:
Old Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream
1/4 cup sugar ($0.13)
1/8 tsp salt (cost not calculated)
1 3/4 cup whole milk ($0.47)
2 eggs, beaten ($0.15)
(Heat the first three ingredients together in a pot. Add 1/2 cup of mixture to beaten eggs and mix. Add this mixture back to main mixture. Chill for 2 hours.)
1 1/2 cup whipping cream ($1.27)
1 tbsp vanilla extract ($1.16)
(Add the cream and vanilla to the chilled mixture and stir together well. Add to ice cream maker and chill according to manufacturer’s instructions.)
I even used a couple organic ingredients! Although I’m addicted to sweets and vanilla, I thought that 1tbsp vanilla extract was too much in this recipe. I will try using less next time.
Of course, my cost may be different then yours. I could cut the cost if I purchased the dairy in bigger sizes (not 1 qt. sizes) and used all non-organic ingredients. When I look at the final cost, I think, “It’s not much cheaper than Breyer’s, more costly than Blue Bunny and store brand, and I have to prepare it.” But then I realize: the ingredients are natural and there are absolutely no preservatives or corn syrups in it, and that’s important to me.
It’s important to take good care of your skin because the skin helps your body keep infectious viruses and bacteria from entering your body. For centuries, people have used natural methods to clean their faces. Yes, cleaning your face can be done without a trip to the synthetic chemical-ridden beauty department.
Facial masks are an excellent way to clean your pores. When you slather on the mask (clay, gel, fruit), the material gets smooshed into your crevices and pores, attaching to the dirt particles. As the mask dries, it pulls away from the skin and pulls all of the bad particles (dirt and dead skin cells) with it. When you wash the mask off, you also wash away all those bad particles, leaving you with fresh and clean skin.
Masks usually have a high water content in them, so as they dry, your skin is hydrated. Now that your pores are clean and hydrated, they can close up, giving your skin a smoother appearance. With a warm mask, your blood vessels open up, allowing for better absorption of nutrients into your skin.
1 – Before masking your face, wash it and pat it dry.
2 – Put some of the mask into your hand. Apply it with soft circular motions to help it get smooshed into all crevices of the face. You want it to be thick enough that it gets into all the crevices and pores, but thin enough that it will dry and lift away the grime in your pores and on your skin. A good rule of thumb is that you want to put on just enough so that you can’t see the skin.
3 – Let the mask dry. Each mask is different and will take from 10 to 30 minutes to dry. When the mask is dry, use warm water and a washcloth to wash away the mask. This keeps the pores open so that any remaining mask material is cleaned out of them, and the washcloth helps to get the mask off your face.
4 – When you’re done, you can follow up with a rinse of cold water (or an ice cube). The cold water will close the pores back up again, helping them keep future grime from entering!
So what materials are good as masks?
Apples – For acne prone skin. Mix 1 grated apple with 5 tbsp warm honey.
Aspirin and Honey – Aspirin has astringent properties and is good for oily skin. It can do bad things if you use it too frequently, so please use it no more than 2 times per week. Mix a little water with aspirin tablets (not gel caps) until the tablets dissolve, then add in a little honey. Use like any other mask. This is a very cost effective mask – a bottle of 100 aspirin tabs at my local grocer is only 99 cents!
Avocado – For softer skin. It is very nourishing and works great on mature, wrinkled, and dry skin.
Bananas – Help slough off dead skin, energize the face, and is a good anti-wrinkle treatment. Can also be mixed with avocado, oatmeal, yogurt, honey, and/or vitamin E.
Clay with aloe – Clay is rich in minerals, deep cleans, and tightens pores. Aloe soothes your skin. A cheap and readily available way to get clay is by the chunky clay kitty litter. Don’t get the powdery stuff, the stuff with blue crystals, or scented. And please don’t put used kitty litter on your face! As always, Michelle does an excellent job of explaining this!
Cucumber – Revives skin. Can be mixed with yogurt. Also great sliced over the eyes – helps reduce bagginess and dark circles.
Eggs – Egg whites leave normal to oily skin feeling tight and refined. Mix egg whites with lemon juice to help get rid of blackheads. Egg yolks contain vitamin A and are great for dry skin. Egg yolks also help heal blemishes.
Honey and Almond – Moisturizes. Best for mature, sensitive, or dry skin. Honey has antibacterial properties. Mix 1tsp warm honey, 1tbsp ground almonds, and enough water to make a nice paste. Apply to face; in 10-15 minutes rinse off.
Milk – Moisturizes. Mix with other ingredients before using.
Papaya – Contains an enzyme, papain, which dissolves oil and dead skin cells.
Strawberries – The seeds exfoliate the skin and the fruit is an astringent. Mix with a little yogurt to sooth.
Tomato – For oily skin. Scoop/compost seeds, puree tomato meat with 1 tsp each lemon juice and oatmeal.
Yogurt – Cleanses and nourishes, has been used for centuries due to its healthy properties. Mix 1 tsp with juice from 1/4 orange for a refreshing mask. For a great all-purpose deep cleaning mask for all skin types, mix 1tbsp finely ground oatmeal, 1tsp warm honey, and 1tbsp yogurt together. Apply to face; in 10-15 minutes rinse off.
A couple notes:
Many fruits and vegetables can also be used effectively. Anything acidic (lemon, strawberries, grapefruit, etc.) will tend to whiten and refresh your skin, but you need to be careful if your skin is dry.
For OILY skin – bananas, strawberries, lemon, clay
For DRY skin – avocados, honey, olive oil
In general, don’t apply masks more often than about twice a week, and try to vary the ingredients.
Disclaimer: I’m not a doctor or anything remotely close to a doctor. I took a chance to try an alternative method to curing an infection and this is my opinion of what worked for me. You are responsible for anything you try.
I get frequent urinary tract infections. I got my first one when I was in middle school and starting in college, I got them more frequently. They’re terrible and nobody understands the whole situation unless they’ve experienced it themselves.
Here’s how it usually goes:
Wake up on Saturday morning – “Oh crap, I think I have a UTI.”
Only choice now is to go to the emergency room where I’ll be chilling with sick kids for an hour before I’m seen. There’s also a higher deductible/cost for using the ER. Decide to wait until Monday – UTI starts getting worse.
Pop a couple Azo to dull the pain. Drink lots of water and feel like a bloated cow.
Wake up on Monday morning. Call to make an appointment with the doctor. “Oh, well she can maybe squeeze you in on Thursday afternoon. Would you like me to try to double book you?” Oh, I don’t get bumped up because I know for sure that I have an infection?
At this point I’m fed up with this crap. It’s embarrassing to go into the doctor because they want to see if you’re pregnant, then they want you to pee in a cup under pressure, then they give you a nice embarrassing lecture. Hm, I’ve been getting them two to three times per year for the past decade. Do you think I purposely bring them on so I can come waste two hours of my time listening to you lecture me every few months?!
So, here’s what worked the first time:
Loads of cranberry juice. The real stuff – not the “cocktail” because it has other stuff in it. If you hate drinking cranberry juice like I do, get some cranberry pills.
Azo definitly helps with the discomfort, but the disadvantage is that it turns urine a dark orangy color.
Cystex has some antibacterial properties. You’re not supposed to take it longer than three days and is only meant to “help inhibit the progression of infection until you see a doctor. It is not intended to replace a doctor’s care.” I did take it longer than the three days and nothing bad happened – in fact, the infection went away in about one week.
Doing some research, I found some alternative method of treating the UTI. Arctostophyllos uva-ursi is a bush that has been used for centuries as a urinary antiseptic. “Its leaves were officially a drug for urinary antiseptic in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia and the National Formulary from 1820 until 1950.” You can purchase “uva ursi” at your local health food store in caplets or a tea. I tried the caplets from Nature’s Way. A couple things about uva ursi: acids can hinder its effectiveness, meaning you shouldn’t be taking acidifying cranberry products and you shouldn’t take it longer than two weeks. In addition to the uva ursi, I also took effervescents which help make your urinary tract basic due to the sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) in it. It also has a pain killer in it. If you don’t want to go out and purchase the effervescent, you can try one teaspoon baking soda per glass of water.
This is what worked for me. I was impressed by the effectiveness of the uva ursi and have been suggesting it to friends and family. And although it’s really hard to do, you need to keep pushing fluids until the infection is cured. Feel free to let me know what has or has not worked for you.
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