Twelve Rivers Musings

I’m sure many of you have read articles over the last few weeks on New Year’s resolutions.  At first I felt compelled to throw my hat into the ring discussing success in implementing changes.  But, I had to be honest with myself. I’ve never been one to make new year’s resolutions. Why? I’m just one who doesn’t look at a new calendar year as a milestone. Same with my birthday.  They’re just another day for me, not a self-imposed deadline or kick off for change.

I’ve always admired those individuals, though, who do use the new year as the impetus for a desired change in their life.  I’ve just never done it.  I am more about periodically taking stock of my life, evaluating where I’m at and where I want to be.  But I don’t necessarily do that at the beginning of a calendar year.  It’s more of a very slow climb with many setbacks throughout time.

So how does one make changes in their life successfully?  I could talk about goal setting, breaking the goals down into specific steps, and evaluating solutions that work for you personally.  I could discuss analyzing each goal so you know what is looks like for you and you alone. Or finding a friend to hold you accountable. I could share many suggestions pulled from pundits and personal experience, but I’m sure you, like me, have heard them all.

Bottom line, here’s what I’ve learned.  Goals can’t be achieved unless they are heartfelt.  Many goals sound good in theory but unless you can wrap both your heart and mind around them… really internalizing them, the goals will never be reached.

So, where does that leave us?  Let me just close by passing on a challenge that was recently posed to a group of us.  I view this as the essential foundation for all goal setting.  It is this:

It bears repeating. Don’t waste your life by being mediocre. You want your life to matter.  Never underestimate the impact and power of your life alone.

Mull on that for a bit, as I have. Then…. start setting your goals for 2010.

Can you hear us screaming in delight?! The EDEN bags are in and we couldn’t be more excited. Not only is each bag manufactured here in the U.S., each uses polyester created from post-consumer recycled plastic bottles, also made in the U.S..  Colors and coordinated collections are stunning. The icing on the cake is each bag rolls up and secures in the matter of seconds.

Enticing names such as Tango, Java Flow, and Onyx Moon suggest moods all their own. Choose one or choose a collection.

Each bag comes with a tag telling you the number of plastic bottles recycled to create the amount of fabric used in the bag. EDEN uses the ubiquitous 16-ounce plastic water bottle as their reference point. So cool! (You ARE recycling those water bottles, aren’t you!)

EDEN eco-friendly reusable bags simply are quite wonderful!

Yes, we are disappointed the Seattle bag fee did not pass but suspect it was due to people not grasping the true extent of our plastic bag problem.   It’s worth noting the plastics industry spent $500,000 (that’s half a million dollars!) on the anti-fee campaign in Seattle!

Sadly, the U.S. is far behind the rest of the world in embracing the reusable bag lifestyle. We’d like to see people choosing to make the change simply because they realize that collectively, each of us CAN make a difference in our world!

I’ve just returned from a week in the Seattle area, my home away from home. After years of flying into Seattle, the view of Mt. Ranier from the plane never ceases to take my breath away.

The area talk was of the impending bag fee, a vote being put to the people of Seattle. Last year, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels proposed a 20-cent-per-bag fee on plastic and paper grocery bags that was later passed by the Seattle City Council. Today, Referendum 1, the Seattle Bag Fee, will go up for public vote.

It will be interesting to see what decision the people of Seattle make and, to what extent, their decision will affect other U.S. cities discussing bag fees and bans. We, here at Twelve Rivers, believe it would be a step in the right direction, although we’d prefer people wholeheartedly accept the reusable bag lifestyle rather than being strong-armed into it!

Wondering what to do with Grandma’s dishes?

Here’s an interesting use… antique dishes and plates inserted into a window flower box. We found this outside a charming shop along Main Street in Milford, Michigan. The long box displays a unique mix between natural ferns and floral china.

Is this the newest way to recycle what’s left of Grandma’s good dishes? Tell us what you think!

Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Fight Terrorism and Build Nations . . . One School at a Time is one of my recent favorite reads.

Three Cups of Tea is a compelling account of the difference one person can make in the world. What started as a failed mountain expedition in Pakistan for American Greg Mortenson kicks off a monumental life journey. Mortenson vowed to repay the generosity of the village leader and his people who saved his life by building them a school.

Mortenson struggles to fulfill that promise and then commits to fundraising and building many more schools for both boys and girls in this Muslim country . There are obstacles that would discourage the best of us as well as unexpected twists of fortune that rescue his efforts from oblivion.

Although I won’t likely venture to the high mountains of Pakistan, Mortenson inspired me to find ways to make a difference in my world, be it my neighborhood, community or our country at large.

It’s a must read for all!

You have good intentions. You’ve gotten a set of reusable bags and they’re stored in the back of your car. You’re standing in line at the store and that’s when it hits you – the bags are still in the car!

We’ve all been in this situation. You weren’t planning on any shopping but, at the last minute, decide to stop by the store on the way home to just pick up something quick. Well, the best solution to this ever-present situation is by following the Boy Scout motto: Be Prepared!

Get yourself a compact reusable bag designated for your purse alone. Several styles fold up smaller than your cell phone and weigh a whole lot less.

This way, when you’re in line thinking of the bags in your car, you can smile to yourself, pull out your tiny pouch and magically unfold a shopping bag. You’ll get plenty of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from the clerks, trust me!