"Open Mike Night"

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Tree Hugger Consulting Blog's "Open Mike Night." It is a chance to share your funny experiences related to green. Whether it is the darn things the kids say, a reaction to a humorous incident, or a joke you recently heard, we wanna hear it! The only rule is: The post must not be scandalous, slanderous, or in poor taste.

Okay, I'll start:

I was at my first home show, plying my sustainable consulting wares. All I had was the sign provided by the show, "Tree Hugger Consulting." In the middle of a throng of people, a woman asks, "So, are you one?" I look at her quizically and respond, "Am I one what?" She says, "A tree hugger." I half smile (cause I think my business name is sort of humorous), and say, "Yeah, I guess I am." She proceeds to lay into me, blaming me for the failure of the logging industry in Oregon, saying I am responsible for jobs lost, mills closing, etc. I smile and say, "I'm sorry you feel that way. Enjoy the show." At the time this was quite a shock to me, and the accusation stung a bit. But there were a couple of things I couldn't figure out: how could a 30-something person be responsible for actions that took place before she was born? And, how could one person cause the entire logging industry to collapse? Didn't know I was so powerful!

Now it's your turn ....


4/7/09

Here are a few "low-tech" green gadgets. Can you guess what they are?

1. Wall-mounted efficiency toggle - This device can achieve a 100% reduction in power usage and activate the natural light in any room.

2. ioAerial garment purifier - This razor-thin cord harnesses wind power. Setup is a snap. Arrange wet garments along the ioAerial to initiate dehydration. Cycle completes in three to four hours. Can be installed indoors or out to utilize sustainably harvested power.

3. Anti-solar panels - Combining special opaque paneling, an adjustable vertical axis, and a full 120-degree variable angle for light displacement and absorption, anti-solar panels will be all the buzz this summer.

4. Eco-friendly textile restoration kit - Cut your waste - and your wardrobe budget - with this chemical-free textile-refurbishment tool. Handheld, user-friendly, and compact, this precision instrument allows you to reattach buttons, mend holes, adjust waistlines, and even eco-convert entire outfits into reusable shopping bags when they go out of style.

5. SmarterCar - Introducing the only human-powered, zero-emissions vehicle on the market! Municipalities are adapting their infrastructures to accommodate this hot transport unit, which is out-of-the-box compliant with all major traffic laws.


Here are the answers: (1) light switch, (2) clothes line, (3) mini blinds, (4) needle and thread, and (5) bicycle.

Courtesy of RooftopComedy.com, as published in Fast Company magazine, April 2009.

Welcome!

Welcome to Tree Hugger Consulting's blog, hosted by Blogger. We are excited to be launching this blog, in the hope that it will stimulate conversation about our favorite topic: anything "green."

Tree Hugger Consulting is a consulting firm concerned with sustainable building, but we also acknowledge that there are more things out there that can be improved besides buildings. The owner, Dawn Killough, currently writes for Green Building Elements, a blog devoted to sustainable building. This new blog is a chance to comment on the green things that are not necessarily building related.

We will try to bring a bit of the lighter side to our blog, because otherwise these things are just too boring! We ask all our readers to keep this in mind, and, please, share your humor with us in your comments.

We will try not to openly offend anyone, and ask that our audience do the same. Comments will be strictly monitored to ensure an open and understanding environment (which doesn't mean we can't argue!).

Without further ado, here we go ....