Sustainability is still a big portion of my life and you will still find information on “going green” and my experiences with it on the new blog: Midnight Maniac, but it isn’t all my life. I have many interests: gardening, biking, planning parties, flower arranging, cake decorating, cooking, baking, bird watching, mushroom hunting, volunteering, homesteading, thrifting, fashion – Yes, fashion. Vintage fashion, more precisely. Reusing, buying second-hand, wearing vintage – they are all ways to go green. Basically, I can’t decide what I want to do when I grow up, so I just do it all and Midnight Maniac is where I will blog about it.

It is still a work in progress, but I would love for you to poke around and offer feedback. I have no idea what it looks like on a browser other than mine (Safari), so if you see something blatantly out place or broken, please let me know. You may have noticed I have already changed my Twitter name, email address, and Blogger profile. You can follow me on Twitter as @Midnight_Maniac or on Facebook by liking Midnight Maniac. I will still be EnviRambo at The Green Phone Booth and have created a profile under that pen name. At my new digs I will just be me, Rebecca Jean.

Aunt Rose's Brownies

Melt together (microwave) in a large bowl:

1/2 cup canola oil

1 stick butter

10 tablespoons cocoa

Add:

4 eggs

2 cups sugar

Beat well.

Add:

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/2 cup flour

Beat well.

At this point you can make any other additions you see fit. We are partial to chocolate chips and nuts, but to each his own. I suggest leaving out the hair. In regards to beat well, we just use a wooden spoon. Everything goes into one bowl and gets mixed with one spoon. Less dishes!

Pour into a 9x13 pan (we use glass), greased or not. (I always forget which it is and have done both.) Bake at 350 about 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Don't over-bake! (Aunt Rose's words)

Now eat! (My words)

The other day I received an email from Environmental Working Group (EWG) containing some disturbing information. EWG tested the umbilical cord blood of ten newborns and found nearly 300 chemicals! Shouldn't a newborn be pristine? They just entered this world! Unfortunately babies are exposed to toxic chemicals before ever leaving the womb. EWG found BPA, fire retardants, lead, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and even pesticides that were banned over 30 years ago! What? Are babies are not even safe from something banned possibly before their mothers were born? Yikes! That speaks volumes about the consequences of allowing chemicals to be sold before being proven safe. That is right, right now chemicals are approved first and tested later. Crazy, huh? EWG wants to stop that. As do I and hopefully you. EWG is collecting signatures for the Kid-Safe Chemical Act. The Kids-Safe Chemical Act would require that all chemicals be proven safe for children before they can be sold.

Please take a moment (30 seconds) to sign the petition. EWG is shooting for 75,000 signatures. Just click the button above, it is super-easy. Then if you would be so kind to spread the word, use the links below to notify your friends.

I signed the petition. Have you?

Number 9: