1st Annual Sunflower Ball and Benefit, April 10, 2010

Celebrating Lindsay’s 40th birthday,

Benefitting the Betty Biodiesel Organization

The benefit will feature:

YOU dressed in colorful costumes that depict what spring feels like to you

6:00-8:00   Global Fusion Dinner Must Register (pre-pay ideal)

8:00-9:00   Brian Baker: guitar-ssionist: a percussionist on the guitar

9:00-1:00   Dancing with DJ Dragonfly’s Global Grooving Sounds

Dinner $20

Dancing $10

Dinner and Dancing $25

REGISTER/ BUY TICKETS

There will be a Silent Auction for those who wish to support our youth,  donations needed

Volunteers needed to help with decor, tickets,        dinner, etc.

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]]> http://www.bettybiodiesel.org/blog/2010/03/02/1st-annual-sunflower-ball-benefit-april-10th/feed/ 0 http://www.bettybiodiesel.org/blog/2009/06/03/the-planet-will-survive-will-the-people/ http://www.bettybiodiesel.org/blog/2009/06/03/the-planet-will-survive-will-the-people/#comments Wed, 03 Jun 2009 20:29:07 +0000 admin http://www.bettybiodiesel.org/blog/?p=29 There I was happily doing the dishes when my friend Greg popped his head up the the window. We chatted a bit and wham he said it, “the planet will survive the issue is the people”. Any science class will tell you that the earth has undergone many transformations. There was the ice age where our earth was covered in sheets of glacial ice, the dinosaur age where dinasouars and about 70% of all life species died due to volcanic and asteroid activity.

So here we are in 2009 and when it gets to 3009 what will the history look like. Will it be like those sci fi movies we’ve seen where New York is eerily covered in water or ice or robots come back to the planet to roam the antiquated artifacts of our time? Who knows but what we do know and what the left, eco, environmental, etc. movement needs to come to grips with is a relanguaging of how we sell the urgency of needing to take care of our earth. It seems quite neglectful of our human species to simply say, “Save the Earth”, when what we really mean is take care of the planet so we can save the human species and the animal and plant species that we rely on.

This blog is part two in a call for the relanguaging of the movement to change our consumptive, greedy and exploitive ways. The first blog related to this was the way the green movement encourages people change our burning of fossil fuels. We actually use the word “Fight Global Warming” when there isn’t anything to fight, except ourselves.

In all the therapy I’ve done, the one thing I know about myself is if I am beating myself up with a negative thought bat then it is time to stop, put down the bat and check in with how much I do love myself. I invite us all to take this to a global level, and dig deep in the request to be grateful for where we have been, what we have done as a culture and begin to recognize ways to change the behaviors that will not bring about supporting ourselves, the plants and the animals. I add these plants and animals as reminders that without these we humans would not exist, plain and simple.

I am baffled as to why we still objectify the whole experience we find ourselves in by saying “save the planet” as if the planet was not us. We are intrinsicly dependent on the planet, however the planet is not dependent on us. Take this another way, what if the planet was a living organism (the gaia theory suggests this) and without us humans the planet would not be able to express its amazing bounty without our manipulations of it. This is how we get all the products, transportation, etc., through invention of the humans inquiring deep into ourselves and coming up with ways to produce, be mobile and create our future.

The question is…Is what we are creating going to bring about the death of human, plant and animal species as we know it and if so why is that so bad or good?

Everything we need to learn we learned in kindergarten and the biggest lesson I recall my teachers saying was to share and be nice to one another. Meanwhile, thousands of flyers, posters, handbills, etc. get printed with “Fight Global Warming” as a call to what beating up ourselves or the air. How about picking up the mighty hands and punch oneself for we are the people who gets in the car, turns on the light, uses a toilet, eats meat, buys clothes from a large mall who gets their goods from a far away place and lays our heads down on a pillow of synthetic oil just to get up and do it all over again the next day.

I offer that instead of using the words “Fight Global Warming” we turn to such vernacular as “Transform ourselves”, offer “Fierce Love and Compassion” to one another and above all “Communicate” about solutions so that we change from being “Consumers” to “Solutionaries” and finally “Accept” ourselves and each other for the mistakes we and our ancestors have made and begin to “Clean Up” our mess.

I stand for the conversation that brings us to the place where we hold ourselves accountable in a loving non-judgemental way and begin to make choices from that place. Fighting and the language of fighting is mired in the male dominant patriarch paradigm, leaving me uninspired to take action. Wanting something to change and using the same language as that which got us into the problem is insanity. We are living in the insane construct with language being the achilles heel.

To CHANGE our our planet is to CHANGE our language.

Lindsay Hassett

Change Agent #9 aka Betty Biodiesel, Sister Solar and more to come

After spending the last 6 years answering all kinds of questions about renewable fuels, I thought I’d put my blog into action and answer some of the most common questions I have been asked from all kinds of people, with different political views and backgrounds.

This question…hemp for ethanol production begs for some backing up to really flush out the need for everyone to be on the same page with what biofuels are:

Biofuels is a name given to any fuel made from renewable resources such as plants, waste, and the sun. The term biofuels usually refers to the liquid fuel market leaving natural gas, propane, electricity, etc. out of the disucssion.

Here is a quick map to better understand biofuels (a term used to commonly refer to Ethanol).

Our world is a world addicted to liquid fuel. While there are many questions about what is the right fuel to use (I’ll handle that question in a later blog titled “which one”) The key to answering the hemp for ethanol production question is to discover that:

There are commonly two types of engines that use liquid fuel: Gas and Diesel

Each engine has their perspective renewable fuel: Ethanol and Biodiesel

Each renewable fuel has a specific medium to make it: Sugar/ Starch and Vegetable Oil/Animal Fat

Each Medium has its feedstock: Ethanol (Corn, Sugar beets, jerusalem artichokes, etc) Biodiesel (soy oil, Waste restaurant oil, sunflower oil, canola oil, animal fat, etc.)

In remembering how good my cereal tastes with Hemp protein on it and that there is a hemp oil, my response is that I think that with the current state of hemp being illegal it would prove better to use the hemp plant for all of its protein and fiber quality rather than making alternative fuel out of it. In 2005, I saw my first veggie oil conversion on a diesel and they were driving around the US on Hemp oil, shipped in from Canada. So the reality is that with Hemp being so controlled it would be too expensive to make ethanol from Hemp in this current state of legality. However, if there is a way to produce fiber for clothing, food, and other products from Hemp and there was leftover material there is a chance that a new process called cellulosic ethanol (not even launched yet) would be able to take all the Hemp material not already used and convert it into sugars to process it into an alcohol.

Thank you for your question and feel free to send more…Betty Biodiesel

How did Betty make that bulldozer drive away from digging up the sunflower patch? With her super sunflower staff, Betty called on the healing powers of the earth by sending her staff into the earth causing a vibration to make the funky ol bulldozer take a right turn.

How can Acupuncture help heal ourselves, improve our environment and change our negative patterns?

Acupuncture is an ancient form of healing that comes from Asia, where the use of tiny hair like needles are inserted in different parts of the body to heal a variety of ailments. By using needles as well as Chinese Herbs, people receiving acupuncture can heal their aches and pains and create more balance in their entire body.

Imagine if we could have acupuncture superheroes that would go around and help our planet heal from environmental damage…well we do and they exist as activists, organizers, non-profits, doing work to heal people, animals, and the planet from greed, consumption and denial.

To find out more about where you can get acupuncture in your area go to:

www.acupuncture.com

www.medicalacupuncture.org

Things to be aware of when choosing an acupuncturist

www.mayoclinic.com/health/acupuncture/SA00086

Which mode of transportation Betty is using is the best for the earth and us?
a) Rollerblading
b) Vine flying
c) Driving
d) Riding a bike
Answer at the bottom

When we make choices about how to get from point A to point B it affects all of us by the air we breathe. If we choose to use our bikes, skateboards, or rollerblades, then we get to enjoy exercising our bodies AND getting to where we need to go.

Resources for change…

Rollerblade/Skateboard- there are millions of people rollerblading and skateboarding around the world. Check out your local skate shops, parks and downtowns to find these people.

Bike – Connect with your local bike coalition to learn more about your local bike community, land use planning, safe routes to schools and much more.
Go to Google and type in [your city or state] + bike coalition

Carpool – If you can’t use the first two options and have to drive then check out these sites to share the ride and the road
www.erideshare.com
www.carpoolconnect.com
www.craigslist.com (rideshare)

Answer: vine flying – because it uses the least amount of materials. If you can’t find a vine then rollerblading, riding a bike and driving a car is last.
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www.kevinwoodson.com

I encourage you to ask the EPA to reconsider its denial to the states. It’s in the best interest of our health and our environment.

Write to the EPA at http://www.breastcancerfund.org/emissions.

Here is what I added. A bit of a diatribe but has some truth aspects to it.

The EPA is our governmental body that is set up by the people for the people and the people want more efficiency, if not for the environment and the people that live within it but for the US to be able to compete in the global car market. The rest of the world is increasing efficiency and making us look like idiots with our cheap gas and low MPG and by the way they are selling these cars like crazy, just take one look at the Prius…it’s everywhere. This is a sign that people want it and the more the EPA (our protective agency) says no the more you look connected or “in bed” with the large corporations.

I am frustrated that my tax money goes to the salaries of the people that work for the EPA making these kind of bad decisions. Besides the way it is set up it’s like the state of CA (the kid in this story) is having to ask the EPA (the authority) for a hall pass. This is bad parenting and needs to be redirected to YES WE WILL ALLOW YOU CA (the Kid) TO DO WHAT YOU WANT WITH YOUR STATE.

I’m curious, how does the oilagarchy feel about CA, the 5th largest economy in the world, wanting to make a move that would help the people and the environment and cut into their profits…but then again isn’t that what the “no” is about. Keep digging deep for the reality of things and make your move for the people and planet leaving profit last for a change.

The good news…

Did you know that the largest transportation fleet in the nation is the school bus fleet? 24 million students ride the bus everyday.

The school bus is the safest mode of transportation compared to individually driving our kids to school.

The bad news…

Students who ride on buses that aren’t equipped with particulate filters or alternative fuels, are being exposed to dirty indoor air emissions far exceeding acceptable levels set by the EPA. These emissions are known to cause asthma and cancer.

Furthermore, the Reagan Administration put a cap on the fuel budget in the 80’s. For every fuel price increase since then the transportation budget competes with books and other resources the school needs to spend money on. Meanwhile, most schools still offer free transportation to and from school.

Basically it boils down to this… We are putting our most precious cargo (our future) into buses that affect their health and not giving schools the resources to do anything about it.

Now for the super Good news…

Betty Biodiesel is a new ecosuperhero on the scene looking out for our kids.

She is teaming up with other organizations to bring forth some sanity to this crisis. Here is the plan for what school districts across the US can do to remedy this problem.

1) Initiate an anti-idling policy in the school district to turn off the buses when not in use or waiting for students.

2) Install particulate filters on the bus to stop the crank case and exhaust emissions from going inside the cab

3) Start using a blend of Biodiesel to reduce Particulate Matter (cause of asthma, Carbon Dioxide (one cause of global warming), Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (cause of cancer)

RESOURCES for change

To learn more about the five scientific studies done on the air emissions inside school buses go to:

http://www.biofuels4schools.org/content/blogsection/6/12/

To learn more about Anti Idling policies, Filtration systems and ordering a free copy of “The magic school bus gets cleaned up” go to…

http://www.epa.gov/cleanschoolbus/

To learn more about schools using Biodiesel go to…

http://www.biofuels4schools.org/content/blogcategory/8/9/

Organizations taking on the “clean up the school bus challenge”

http://www.greenaction.org http://www.momsforthefuture.org/

To help get Biodiesel into your school district buses contact Betty Biodiesel at 707-849-5234 or go to http://bettybiodiesel.org/contact.html

And you can help fund Biodiesel in school buses by offsetting your emissions that you put out from driving….go to www.biofuels4school.org and click on OFFSET NOW

Betty does! Betty loves to go to the thrift store to find great items to buy for much less than you would when buying brand new. But Betty doesn’t stop there, she wants to use her creativity to design a new dress from the clothes she bought at the thrift store or what she has in her closet. Do you have clothes you don’t use anymore and would like to use your creativity?

Spending lots of money and buying more than we can afford is getting people into money trouble, not to mention that buying clothes from large department stores is connected to a larger problem of people in other countries making very little money to make the clothing. This is called sweatshop labor and it is no fun for those who work there.

Resources for change

Want to learn how to take old clothes and turn them into new ones
Check out the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) online connect for current fashion trends
www.threadbanger.com

Serious about reconstructed clothing? Purchase the RC handbook
Reconstructive Clothing for Dummies

Learn more about where the “Stuff” we buy comes from and where it goes
www.storyofstuff.com

Support the end to children laboring in sweatshops…
www.coopamerica.org/programs/sweatshops/

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