Friday, October 24, 2008

Running the Numbers: An American Self-Portrait

Plastic Bottles, 2007 60x120" Depicts two million plastic beverage bottles, the number used in the US every five minutes.
Plastic Bags, 2007 60x72" Depicts 60,000 plastic bags, the number used in the US every five seconds.

Cans Seurat, 2007 60x92" Depicts 106,000 aluminum cans, the number used in the US every thirty seconds.



Paper Bags, 2007 60x80" Depicts 1.14 million brown paper supermarket bags, the number used in the US every hour.


My friend sent me a link to the artist Chris Jordan's gallery entitled "Running the Numbers: An American Self-Portrait". This collection "looks at contemporary American culture through the austere lens of statistics. Each image portrays a specific quantity of something...this project visually examines these vast and bizarre measures of our society, in large intricately detailed prints assembled from thousands of smaller photographs. Employing themes such as the near versus the far, and the one versus the many, [the artist] hope[s] to raise some questions about the role of the individual in a society that is increasingly enormous, incomprehensible, and overwhelming."
I was blown away while looking at the images - but even more awestruck (in a sickening way) by the statistics of American consumption. Here's the link http://www.chrisjordan.com/current_set2.php?id=7 should you want to view Jordan's entire collection.



Sunday, October 19, 2008

"Carborexic" - A New Entry for the DSM?

I doubt that the American Psychological Association will be adding "Carborexic" to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, but an article in today's NY Times claims that "to some mental health professionals, the compulsion to live green in the extreme can suggest a kind of disorder." According to the article, a "carborexic" is essentially an "energy anorexic... [one who] obsess[es] over personal carbon emissions to an unhealthy degree, the way crash dieters watch the bathroom scale." How to know if you're exhibiting carborexic behavior? Well, apparently if your obsession with living green negatively interferes with your day-to-day life. Hmmm... thoughts?

Friday, October 17, 2008

How to Recycle Anything

The magazine Real Simple has published a two-part A-to-Z guide of "how to recycle anything". From aerosol cans to zippered plastic bags, the September and October issues offer many tips of how to recycle, well, pretty much anything! Some ideas I'm gonna check out: 1) swap CDs, DVDs, and paperback books with others at http://www.zunafish.com/. 2) go to http://www.recycleforbreastcancer.org/ for prepaid shipping labels, envelopes, or collection boxes for recycling your PDAs, MP3 players, cameras, and other electronic devices. The proceeds will be donated to breast cancer charities. 3) Donate used sneakers to Nike's Reuse-A-Shoe program at www.letmeplay.com/reuseashoe. "Worn-out athletic shoes of any brand are collected, processed and recycled into material used in sports surfaces like basketball courts, tennis courts, athletic fields, running tracks and playgrounds for young people around the world."

When you do the research, it's amazing to discover how many companies and organizations are devoting time and energy to recycling efforts.

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Catching Up

Hi there folks - I apologize for the recent lack of posts! We have been extremely busy here, what with house repairs from Ike, finding out that we are moving back to Boston (yay!) and starting to think about putting our house on the market. I will resume with posting soon, and I appreciate your patience.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

Green Schools

The school I work at is in the first phase of constructing a new campus - the founder and directors of the school have decided to seek LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for the new school. Schools with LEED certification (based on the LEED Green Building Rating System) are designed, constructed, and operated with an ecologically-friendly mindset.


For more information, visit: http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=51