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About thinkofitasanadventure

My husband Peter and I attended a sustainability conference with Richard Heinberg of the Post Carbon Institute in 2010. We learned some hard truths about climate change that shook us to our core. We knew we needed to transition away from fossil fuels as soon as possible, for the sake of our children. We initiated a neighborhood Transition group (Transition Longfellow). It became the center of our lives. In 2019, we downsized and moved to a tiny rural village. It's a whole new way of life and we've got a lot more learning to do. We're choosing to continue to "think of it as an adventure."

April Movies, Discussions and More

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Mad City Chickens
April 20, 6:30 potluck; 7:15 movie; 8:30 discussion

The Longfellow Transition group will be showing Mad City Chickens at our monthly potluck. The movie is about keeping chickens in your city yard. Some of our regular movie-night attenders are chicken-keepers so if you come for the potluck, you may be getting the inside dish on chickens and roosters at your table.

Our guest speaker this month will be one or both of the owners of Egg|Plant Urban Farm Supply, located at 1771 Selby Ave in St. Paul. Egg|Plant sells chicks and chicken supplies and offers classes on raising chickens. (We stopped in the shop last week and it was delightful. They also sell gardening supplies, canning-dehydrating-fermentation supplies, and cheese-making supplies.)

Hennepin County Library “Club Book” Author Event
Sunday, April 22, 2 PM
Ridgedale Library, Minnetonka
Richard Louv is a journalist and author of eight books about the connections between family, nature and community. Louv’s first book, “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder,” was translated into 10 languages and published in 15 countries. His newest book, “The Nature Principle: Human Restoration and the End of Nature-Deficit Disorder,” offers a vision of the future. Book sale and signing follow presentation. FREE

First Unitarian Wins Energy Competition, Tour the Building and Learn How

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In 2011, the First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis won an EPA Energy Star national building competition, “Battle of the Buildings,” in the House of Worship category for their efforts to save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

By taking advantage of low-cost and no-cost energy-saving opportunities, the congregation saved more than $16,000 in the first year. See how they did it — and how your church can do it, too. The Metro Clean Energy Resource Team (CERT) and Minnesota Interfaith Power & Light are hosting a tour of the First Unitarian building at 900 Mount Curve Avenue, Minneapolis, on Sunday, March 18, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm. This event is free and open to the public.

Read more about what the church did to achieve such excellent results.

Low-Carb Vacation (carbon, that is)

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Last week we took a mini-vacation to Hastings, Minnesota for an overnight stay at The Classic Rosewood Inn. I wanted to bring this lovely B&B to your attention for a couple of reasons.

  • Hastings is a short drive from the Twin Cities so no need to burn up a lot of gas for a nice little getaway. There is a nature center that would interest kids. Lots of antique shops close by each other for a day of walking. For history buffs, there’s a historic estate down the road — the LeDuc Estate. A winery just south of town offers tours in the spring and summer. And the town is located at the convergence of two rivers so plenty of boating opportunities, as well as many trails for walking and biking.
  • The Rosewood is an 1880 Queen Anne building with beautiful, unique rooms, an interesting history and, I hope, a long future. The owners, Dick and Pam Thorsen, are committed to the three R’s — reduce, reuse and recycle.

    • Continue reading →

    From Roots to Rooftops!

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    Every month a group of folks meets at the Red Stag Supperclub near downtown Minneapolis to hear the latest developments from people working on energy and environmental issues. This month’s “Green Ideas & Ham” meeting looks at innovative water management strategies.

    Speakers John Bilotta, an educator with the U of M Extension Service on Water, and Angie Durhman, a National Green Roof Manager with Tecta America, will talk about the benefits of green roofs and landscaping in conserving and protecting clean water. John has years of experience in education and training around soil and water resources, and Annie has worked on more than 200 green roof projects including the Target Center in Minneapolis.

    This monthly breakfast forum will take place on Tuesday, March 20, from 8 to 9 am (doors open at 7:30). The Red Stag Supperclub is in near-northeast, at 509 1st Ave NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413.

    The cost to attend the talk and for a fabulous farm-fresh breakfast (I can attest that it is really good) is $15 total. Donate $5 online at Environment Minnesota, which reserves you a seat, and come prepared to pay $10 to the Red Stag server at your table. (Note: the Red Stag does not accept checks).

    Energy and Environment Conference at William Mitchell

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    At the third annual Energy and Environment Conference takes place at William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul on March 14, from 11 am to 4:30 pm. Legislators and government officials, environmental advocates and industry leaders will discuss:

  • The impact of recent EPA regulations
  • Climate change and its effects on natural resources
  • Updates on environmental case law

    • The event is organized by the William Mitchell Environmental Law Society.
    Featured speakers include:

  • Robert Kaplan, regional counsel for the EPA Region 5
  • Fresh Energy’s J. Drake Hamilton, speaking about Clean Air Act regulations, and
  • U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum will present the closing address

    • It is free and open to the public but you must pre-register. Lunch is provided. Register here.

    Seward Neighborhood Sustainability Fair

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    Longfellow folks, there’s going to be a sustainability fair just down the street on March 17, from 1 to 5 pm at Faith Mennonite Church (across from Seward Montessori) at 2720 East 22nd St.

    Organizers say the fair will provide opportunities to learn from neighbors about what they are doing to use less of the earth’s resources. Join neighbors and local groups in activities such as:

  • A clothing exchange (bring clothes to swap)
  • Small electronics exchange (bring old cell phones, P4 computer processors, hard drives, DVD drives (no CRTs)
  • Seed swap
  • Bike tune-up
  • Meet a local urban farmer, learn more about Seward Coop is up to.

    • “We want to create an event which is fun and hopeful, while providing opportunities for learning, networking, and increasing the
    sustainability of our daily lives. Please join us!” If you have questions or comments, please contact Phil Stoltzfus at Faith Mennonite Church, at 612-375-9483.

    First Saturday Longfellow Sustainability Group

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    For the past year, the Longfellow Sustainability Group has met on the first Saturday of the month, usually at Peace Coffee. At our first meetings, we decided to do monthly mini-challenges on topics the group itself decided to explore — the following month we would discuss how we did on that challenge.

    For year 2, we’re considering a change. We recently discovered Resilience Circles. While they use slightly different language than we might use — “personal security” where we would use “resilience and self sufficiency” — I think that concept is very much what we were trying to do when we began our group.

    Resilience Circles are intended to help people:

    • Face  economic and ecological challenges, learning together about root causes.
    • Take concrete steps for mutual aid and shared action.
    • Rediscover the abundance we have and recognize the possibility of a better future.
    • See ourselves as part of a larger effort to create a fair and healthy economy that works for everyone, in harmony with the planet.
    • Get to know neighbors, find inspiration, and have fun!

    The website about resilience circles talks about three components:

    Learning – The realities of our economic and ecological challenges may be overwhelming for isolated individuals. The Circle is a supportive community in which to learn about and analyze structural flaws in the systems within which we live — particularly our current economic system, which has created massive insecurity for young, old and everyone in between.

    This is very much in line with the Post Carbon Institute‘s new Community Resilience Initiative. Two books from PCI focus on economic issues: Local Dollars, Local Sense (hot off the presses) and The End of Growth.

    Mutual Aid – Resilience Circles provide members with concrete opportunities to stretching their “mutual aid muscles.” For example, in session 5 participants write down things they can offer – such sewing skills, tools, or child care – and things they need — and then take action. This step helps participants gain a new sense of the wealth within the group and the community.

    Social Action – Many of our challenges won’t be solved through personal or local mutual aid efforts alone. They require us to work together to bring about change on the state, national and even global level. While there is no official Resilience Circle social action agenda, many groups choose to take action based on their own values and interests.

    If you would like to participate in a Resilience Circle — or if you do NOT want to see our current sustainability group shift to this model — please show up at Peace Coffee this Saturday morning to weigh in on this decision. We meet from 10:30 to noon.

    Movies, MayDay and More in March

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    Bell Museum Sustainability Series — all movies showing at the Bell Museum (University of Minnesota); $5 donation
    Up the Yangtze – March 1, 7:30 pm: The Three Gorges Dam, the world’s largest mega-dam provides the epic and unsettling backdrop for this award-winning film. At the edge of the Yangtze River, not far from the Three Gorges Damn, young men and women take up employment on a cruise ship, where they confront rising waters and a radically changing China. This dramatic and disquieting documentary explores life inside the 21st century Chinese dream and the landscapes and inhabitants it impacts.

    The Greenhorns documentary screenings
    The Greenhorns is a 45-minute documentary telling the stories of the young farmers who are the face of the Agricultural Renaissance. The Greenhorns is also a national non-profit with the mission to recruit, support, and promote young farmers in America.

  • March 8th at Macalester College in St. Paul, 7 PM in the James B.
    Wallace auditorium in the basement of the Campus Center. Sponsored by MPIRG.
  • March 12th at Bryant Lake Bowl, 7-9 PM, with a panel to follow. Sponsored by the Land
    Stewardship Project.
  • March 27th at the Casket Cinema in the Casket Arts Building in NE Minneapolis, 7-10 PM with panel discussion after movie.

    • MayDay 2012 Planning and Activities
    Planning has begun for the 2012 MayDay Parade & Festival and your input is needed. Join a brainstorming meeting on Tuesday, March 27 – 7-9 pm, at the Heart of the Beast Theater building on Lake Street near Bloomington Ave. Bring your ideas, concerns, hopes and dreams about building a sustainable future — and bring your friends and neighbors! This brainstorming will shape the parade and festival. Puppet and float making occur in April.

    A group of folks will be gathering on Friday, March 2, from 12-12 at Heart of the Beast Theater to brainstorm ideas surrounding the food justice and compost component of the parade, which they will then bring forward at the larger planning group. If local food and food justice inspires you, please attend this brainstorming session.

    In the Heart of the Beast has a GREEN TEAM that will be working on energy, food and waste for the festival itself. Volunteers are needed for each of these ventures.

    The Truth Behind the Tar Sands

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    We hear a lot in the media and from politicians about the Keystone pipeline and the Alberta tar sands but most people don’t actually know much about this unique area of the world or the impact that extracting oil would have for that region or the globe.

    The St. Anthony Park Community Council’s Energy Resilience Group is hosting as movie night on Tuesday, Feb. 28 (6:45 refreshments and 7:00 pm film), showing the film WHITE WATER, BLACK GOLD. The movie follows the filmmaker’s three-year journey across Western Canada to understand the issue presented by the tar sands from beginning to end — from the pristine mountain ice fields that are the source of the industry’s water supply to the Tar Sands tailings ponds that remain after oil is pumped out of the ground. Governments and industry spokespeople say there is no cause for concern but is that true? University scientists have made a number of discoveries that challenge that assessment, raising serious concerns for both Canada and the United States.

    The movie is showing at St. Anthony Park United Methodist Church, 2200 Hillside Avenue, St. Paul.

    Excited about Recycling? Become a Master Recycler/Composter

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    We have a friend — Annette — who knows everything there is to know about recycling and waste reduction. It’s so fun to go out with her because waste is everywhere and we learn so much from her. In fact, we’ve gotten quite interested in waste because of her willingness to share what she knows.

    Well, Hennepin County is now giving everyone a chance to become an “expert” in recycling and waste reduction through a Maser Recycler/Composter program. The six-class program covers waste prevention, recycling, home composting, alternatives to hazardous household products, “de-construction” and construction sites, and the ever-so-important topic of psychology of sustainable behavior change.

    The cost of the program is $30 and graduates need to volunteer to share their knowledge for 30 hours. The next session begins April 4 and runs every Wednesday evening through May 9. The program is limited so register soon if you are interested. Register at www.hennepin.us/masterrecyclers.