Alicia Silverstone's Blog, page 195

my garden in the summertime!

 

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Now that fall is in full swing I wanted to share some photos from my garden that were taken over the summer. The tomatoes are still going crazy and the berries are still coming along.

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The kale has gone bye bye so it's time to replant.

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I'm so happy to be back home in LA. I can't wait to garden!

What are you going to be growing this winter?

ecostiletto giveaways!

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Ecostiletto is a great blog that was started by journalist Rachel Lincoln Sarnoff that's all about style that doesn't leave a footprint.

A lot of people think of eco-products as being ugly or anti-fashion. But we know that's not true. And EcoStiletto is surprising eco-skeptics everyday with great info about earth-friendly and stylish fashion beauty and lifestyle products.
 
So…would you like to sample some eco-swag? EcoStiletto gives away 250 of green goodies every week. You can win anything from shoes to beauty products. To enter just sign up for their newsletter here!

Just be aware that not everything on EcoStiletto is vegan so look out for leather or wool - but some of the stuff looks amazing and Earth & animal friendly!

What are some of your favorite eco-blogs?

vote!!!!!

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This weekend is the time for making some important choices and I don't just mean picking what costume you're going to wear to your Halloween parties. No Kind Lifers we've got an election coming up next Tuesday Nov. 2 and as usual the stakes are very high.

In the weeks leading up to elections I always find myself getting so frustrated. As much as I want to encourage people to educate themselves and vote it's hard to blame them for tuning out when so much of the information out there is being communicated by ridiculous TV advertisements that are gimicky manipulative and sometimes just wrong. They're such a huge waste of money and energy that could go to so many more worthwhile efforts it's depressing.

But what's the alternative to just give up and not participate? That just leaves the decisions to be made by the uninformed or semi-informed people who've been swallowing those horrible TV ads at face value and forming their opinions from them – and that's just scary. No once again we Kind Lifers have to try a little harder knowing that the most important choices usually don't have shortcut answers but also knowing that by educating ourselves a little more we can do better and make a difference.

I know you're asking "OK but how? How do I get honest accurate objective information." Unfortunately the way 21st century politics operate they kinda make that difficult for us. To make things more complicated the outlets for useful information can vary depending on where you live. Since I live in California I know a bunch of resources that help me make my voting decisions here but it's up to everyone to find the resources that help them decide the issues in their own city county and state.

First off if you're registered to vote you may have received a pamphlet in the mail with information about the upcoming ballot and if you're not registered to vote go to the website of your local board of elections and find out how to get yourself registered or we are not going to get along!. Anyway these pamphlets are a bit of a snooze to read through but sometimes they can be helpful in at least understanding which candidates are from which party some basics about what they stand for and the general topics of any ballot propositions. Don't stop there!

The next thing you should do is track down more information about the candidates. You may have heard things from the news from friends from chain emails etc. Guess what? No matter what your views are a lot of that stuff is just flat-out wrong. Respect the process and think for yourself. The best way to do this is to listen to the candidates in their own words. Visit the websites for both sides and see where they stand on the issues. Watch video of the candidates' debates on Youtube or C-Span's website I know most of you think C-Span is just a cure for insomnia but it's a good resource for this. Candidates can always accuse media outlets of distorting their views and sometimes they're right so judge them by their own words and actions.

Think about it – if you were interviewing for a job wouldn't you want someone to make their decision based on your words and actions and not on what some random people are gossiping about you? Give these people the same courtesy. After all they're the ones who are going to be making the decisions that affect all our lives so let's try and get it right.

Here in California we have something called the Easy Voter Guide created by the non-partisan League of Women Voters which breaks down every item on the ballot and puts it in context in several different languages too!.  Every state has a League of Women Voters committed to educating voters on the issues without political bias.  Just go to their website and find the link for your state.

Another great resource for Californians is the Center for Governmental Studies. They're great for explaining those complicated ballot propositions that make my eyes glaze over in straightforward easy-to-understand terms. They have a Youtube channel where they post brief videos that sum up each ballot measure and summarize the pro and con arguments in usually just a couple minutes. I mean how much easier can they make it than that?

These are just some of the sources that I like if you've got some others please share!. The bigger point is that just as we all have our unique points of view we also have our own way of finding out the facts that are important to us. So whether you use these sites or not and you should at least give them a look what's truly important is that you get yourself educated. Don't rely on campaign ads for information and don't let anyone tell you what to think.

Do use your mind to make choices you believe in and do use your ballot to make a difference. You've got all the resources you need at your fingertips but they're all wasted without your vote.

Juice Beauty is the Organic Solution Sponsored Post

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petition president obama to show compassion this thanksgiving!

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Each year President Obama pardons two turkeys at a White House Thanksgiving Ceremony. The pardoned turkeys are then sent to a Disney Theme Park where their good fortune quickly declines. Many of the pardoned turkeys sent to the theme park have died within just one year.

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Farm Sanctuary is petitioning the White House to send the turkeys to their shelter in Watkins Glen New York instead of the Disney Theme Park. Farm Sanctuary President and Co-Founder Gene Baur has this to say:

"We are offering the Obama administration an opportunity to distinguish themselves from past administrations by starting a new compassionate Thanksgiving tradition that is more in-step with Americans' growing concern about the welfare of animals raised for food...By sending the pardoned birds to Farm Sanctuary's renowned shelter in Watkins Glen N.Y. the Obama Administration can show that it cares about the humane treatment of animals and ensure that the turkeys get the expert care they need to thrive."

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Please help Farm Sanctuary to petition the White House! The petition information about Thanksgiving's toll on turkeys and resources for a compassionate holiday can be found at adoptaturkey.org. Also all of the turkeys pictured here are available for adoption.

Contact Farm Sanctuary for more information!

halloween from a 14 year old's point of view...

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My friend Zoe Giordano wrote a blog for all of you about what it's like for her to be a vegan especially during Halloween. I have known Zoe since she was a little under 2 years old. She was adorable then and is adorable now! She's always been a smarty pants. Check it out:

"I am a 14 year old girl and have been vegan my entire life.  People always ask me 'Why are you vegan? Isn't it so hard?' But the truth is it's so easy to be vegan. Maybe that's because it's been my lifestyle for 14 years who knows? Sure there have been times when I've walked past a dessert store and have seen delicious cakes but I know that if I took one bite of any of those cakes it wouldn't appeal to me. I think that's because I grew up without that kind of food and I'm not used to it so it just doesn't sound good to me.

So many people say things like 'I could never be vegan because I hate soy milk and fake meat' but I think that those people think that way because they're not used to those foods the same way that I'm not used to dairy-filled cakes.  

People always think that as a vegan your food options are so minimal but that is because those people haven't actually tried to be vegan when in fact it's so easy to find vegan options.

As the holidays come around I am asked the same questions. Especially around Halloween kids wave around Kit Kats Snickers Hershey's chocolate bars and other various sweets in my face saying 'Oooohhhh too bad you can't have this stuff!' But the truth is I have no cravings for those sweets and there are so many other options – much healthier options. On Halloween parents always think that it's OK to let their kids eat all of those sweets because it's just for one night. But one night can change a life – there are poisons and chemicals moving throughout the body as people digest these unsafe treats.  

I spend my Halloweens just like any other kid going around to each house asking for candy.  But at the end of the night instead of eating all of that candy I give it to my friends.

It is so easy for me and it's my own personal life choice – my parents aren't forcing this lifestyle on me; it's my decision. I remember when my dad sat me down once and said 'Sweetie if you ever decide to go another direction with your diet just tell me first.'  He was probably saying that so that he would be able to talk me out of it but now I see that I won't need to have that conversation with him because it's my life choice and my life choice is to be vegan."

halloween party!

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The awesome folks responsible for putting on Veggie Conquest an amateur vegan cooking competition in New York are throwing a Halloween bash in NYC! All proceeds from the party benefit Mercy for Animals. Check out the details below:

Local Vegans To Scare Up Tasty Tricks and Treats in the Big Apple
Veggie Conquest Halloween Bash Costume Contest and Vegan Candy Competition to Benefit Mercy For Animals

Emceed by Michael Parrish Dudell from Ecorazzi.com Vegdaily.com and Live a Damn radio and with musical stylings by DJ Lil Ray the Veggie Conquest Halloween party promises to be a frighteningly good time for vegans vegetarians omnivores raw foodists flirts fruitarians and whatever-other-tarians alike.

Guests are encouraged to strut their most creative Halloween attire and enter the costume contest. To enter the candy-making contest clever confectioners must make at least 200 pieces of delicious vegan candy. Both competitions are open to amateurs professionals and everyone in between.

What started as a potluck dinner party idea by Veggie Conquest founder Jessica Mahady a vegan foodie with an Iron Chef obsession has grown into a vegan-subculture-phenomena in New York City. Each of the five Veggie Conquest cooking competitions have sold out—the last one in just 10 minutes. The incredibly popular Veggie Prom held earlier this year was attended by more than 160 people.

"Veggie Conquest is all about food fun and flavor! And the Halloween party is a chance for veggie and veg-curious ghouls and guys to demystify vegan treats while supporting an organization dedicated to ending the horrors of factory farming" says Mahady.

Mercy For Animals is a national non-profit animal protection organization that strives to be a voice for animals through proactive consumer education and advertising campaigns research and undercover investigations rescues working with news media and grassroots activism. With offices in Chicago Columbus Dallas and New York City MFA works to create a society where animals are treated with the respect and compassion they so rightly deserve.

Tickets for Veggie Conquest Halloween are 25 in advance and 30 at the door. Guest must be 21 or over to attend. For more information or to purchase tickets visit www.veggieconquest.com/halloween.
 
Thanks Veggie Conquest! This sounds so fun! I am the Halloween scrooge but this sounds like the perfect way to spend it. I'm not a fan of the bad candy we give kids so I always dreamed of a groovy event like this. One day when I have kids I would like to have a Halloween party where plant-based cruelty-free deliciousness was everywhere and it was just a fun party. What are you doing for Halloween?

save south africa's rhinos

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Kind Lifer Claudine recently alerted me to the dire situation concerning Africa's rhinos.

South Africa is home to 90 of the world's black & white rhino population. Recently demand for the rhinos' horn has increased in Asia and so has the instance of rhino poaching in South Africa. In the past four years 600 rhinos have been poached. Currently 20 rhinos per month are being poached by criminal gangs who seek to sell the rhino's valuable horn.

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The WWF SA World Wildlife Fund South Africa is working to stop poachers. To support them you can donate here. Your donation will help anti-poaching units purchase the tools they need: binoculars radios night-vision gear bullet-proof armour rhino-tracking and camping equipment. If you choose to donate you will also be helping to fund essential training for anti-poaching units so they can effectively administer emergency veterinary treatments to injured rhino.

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You can also sign a petition to protest the poaching and you can get more info about South Africa's rhinos and the international poaching problem here.

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I was in Africa about 13 years ago working on a documentary about elephants... And while I was there I went to a rhino rehabilitation center.  I played with a baby rhino and even though it was just a baby it was pretty huge! They like it when you push their heads a little bit between their horns and then they push back. I play this game with my husband sometimes...When I'm annoyed he pushes my head and calls me a baby rhino and I push back. It feels good!

Let's help to end poaching and save this magnificent species!

the mcdonald's not-so-happy meal

Wow we knew happy meals were unhealthy but we didn't have any idea that they literally do not decompose! A woman named Sally Davies bought a happy meal and left it out for six months - watch the video to see what happens or doesn't happen. Not only is this gross and unlike any real food I've ever heard of but these meals are marketed to kids!

What do you think?

its world go vegan week!

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This week restaurants in four cities across the country – Chicago New York Columbus and Dallas - are participating in World Go Vegan Week October 24-31 this year. Mercy for Animals is working with restaurants to offer delicious vegan options during this festive week.
 
If you live in or near any of the participating cities check out the offerings near you:
 
Chicago
New York
Columbus
Dallas
 
How do you plan to celebrate World Go Vegan Week?