Recently we had all carpet in our house removed and replaced with Marmoleum, an all-natural flooring product made from renewable materials that also happens to be anti-microbial and has anti-static properties.

We’re really happy with the finished product.

The library…

A guest bedroom (the other bedroom has the same color)…

The office…

The master bedroom…

Now onto having the house painted so that it doesn’t clash with the floors.

Technorati Tags: marmoleum, green living, renewable materials, home improvement, floors

Last spring I bought a new bike to ride around the neighborhood and help save the planet. New restaurants and stores keep opening in our neighorhood, and it seemed silly to drive everywhere.

I had my heart set on a cruiser, but quickly learned that they are too heavy for small people with bad knees. I instead opted for a Jamis comfort bike which has some of the same features as a cruiser (such as sitting upright instead of leaned over) but is much lighter.

Still wanting the cool look of a cruiser, I set out over the next month to accessorize. Below are some photos of the finished product, complete with bells, baskets, and lights. It still looks like a comfort bike, but with a little attitude and much improved over what I started with. Plus, I can carry a six-pack of beer in the back… how cool is that?

Technorati Tags: bike, bicycle, comfort bike

Over the last several weeks I’ve become increasingly aware of the amount of stuff we throw away at lunch: plastic forks, paper bags, food wrappers — all which end up in a landfill. Also, how much of this is made with recycled goods? Probably not much at all.

I am also the lucky heiress of some hereditary cholesterol problems, meaning that almost anything I eat that is not salad will raise my cholesterol. So eating out often is really stupid, since I’m sure that cooking techniques sneak some saturated fat into things I think are healthy.

So even though I work downtown among some of the best restaurants in Austin, I value a long life in a healthy environment over doing what seems easiest. I went on the hunt for a cool lunchbox that would force me to do the right thing. What I found was Obentec, a company that makes bento-style lunchboxes that contain all reusable parts, including containers and silverware.

I opted for the Laptop Lunch System, which has everything I needed to get started. It even contains a book that speaks to eating healthy and buying products to minimize the impact of lunch on the environment, including getting away from single-serving containers. The book is geared largely to families with children but I still found it to contain information anyone can use.

Today was my first day using the new lunchbox. On today’s menu:

• Hummus, roasted eggplant, and roasted red peppers in a pita pocket;
• Organic lightly salted chips;
• Carrot sticks with garlic ranch dressing; and
• A valencia orange.

This took me all of 20 minutes to prepare. It was the perfect amount of food, as the system works to control portions by not allowing extra space to pack in junk.

technorati tags: food, environment, dining, working, health

We’re back from our whirlwind trip to Orange, Texas. The Honda Civic Hybrid we bought back in May proved that it was worth the wait:

The Civic does well on long trips. Not only does it get great gas mileage, but it’s also a comfortable ride. Of course it has more road noise than the 2005 Acura TL we had, but with the upgraded speakers this isn’t really an issue.

I highly recommend upgrading to navigation, bass speakers, and an iPod link for your Civic if you are either thinking of purchasing one or have just bought one. This truly makes the car a driving experience, and I don’t miss the fringe benefits of the TL one bit. Who needs heated seats in Texas, anyway?

Saturday night we took everyone to The Schooner, a great seafood restaurant that has the best barbequed crabs I’ve ever tasted. This restaurant has been around for more than 50 years, and I’ve been going there my entire life. One of the things I like about The Schooner is that it always has the same menu — one of the most important components of a comfort food restaurant. On Saturday I had the blackened snapper, a favorite of mine that packs a little heat. And some barbequed crabs, of course.

On the way home Sunday we stopped at James Coney Island, a Houston institution since 1923. I had not been there in years, and my husband had never eaten there. We both had the Texas Style Chili Dog — mustard, chili, onions, and cheese, and my husband also had a Chicago Style Dog — mustard, relish, onion, pickle, peppers, and celery salt. Both were very good and I’m surprised that the restaurant was relatively empty. $10 for the entire order and we were out of there in 20 minutes.

Of course, no trip through Houston is complete without some minor damage to a car. Flying rocks broke one of the fog lights:

Oh well. Could’ve been the windshield…

technorati tags: hybrids, travel, honda, houston, dining, food