Another option is to "go native". Around here we occasionally see yards where they did away with having mown green lawn, and instead have it growing with flora that is native to this region. Sometimes these can look a little wild, with 3-foot high prairie grass and lots of wildflowers.

TypePad HTML Email There is an REI right next to where I work, so I will get two small cans of Pepper spray, 1 to go in the bag for the leash that I use when walking Molly, and one for the one Susan uses when walking. Then, I’ll see about getting cap-bombs and firecrackers later. I just want to have a backup option. A firecracker should keep a coyote scared of humans. And if I never need them for coyotes, I should have them ready by the time the cougars/pumas/mountain lions start appearing.

We live right next to the city of Chicago. My wife has seen coyotes at least 3 times when walking the dog. I have seen only one, and it was because my wife pointed it out to me, and I saw only the back half of it as it disappeared into the shadows. OUr neighbor Linda says that she sees them almost every morning before 05:30 when walking her dog, Maybe they stay away from me when I walk the dog at night, because I am always talking to the dog. Also our dog looks like fox with a curled tail like a Husky's. They say you should always scare them away, so I don't know what David Orr was thinking. He might have enjoyed that encounter but he might have reduced the coyote's fear of humans, and that is what everyone advises against. So what you did was the right thing under the circumstances. Between you and Urban Woodswalker, there is more info than I have. Feeding birds with bird food is okay, but her neighbor who puts out food for deer and feral cats!? I hope we don't have the same neighbor! There should be some kind of law against that! I did not know about the Coyote-Wolf hybrids in the East. I guess the Chicago coyotes in my neighborhood are not so bad. I bet using a firecracker would shoo them away! But that would attract the police. Maybe a cap-gun or cap-bombs will do? http://www.amazon.com/Schylling-CAB-Cap-Bomb/dp/B000ELT05Q

One summer when I was 12 or 13, I grew popcorn in the back yard. I ripped up patch of sod making a rectangle that was about 5 feet by 10 feet -- that is 50 square feet. Made a 3 by 4 array of 12 small mounds, planted 5 seeds in each. When the young stalks poked about an inch through the soil, I removed the smallest 3 in each mound as the instructions said. Then there was fighting the bugs etc. At the end of the summer, I harvested the ears, and scraped the kernels off into a jar. It was about a half a cup. I put them in a skillet and popped them, and we ate it all in 1 night. 50 square feet of yard just for that! I learned why people do not usually grow any kind of corn in a vegetable garden.

Those whose jobs require them to handle hundreds of these receipts per day are at risk. There could be major litigation. Many of them have to touch both the receipts and the food. Now that the fight to get BPA out of food and drink containers and baby bottles is just abut won, this might need to be the next BPA/BPS battle. Actually, it should target not one substance, but it should be a ban on BPA AND all chemicals that can be classified as a similar hazard. There needs to be a reform to the FDA and EPA to make them more vigilant, and with more power to protect the public.

At the grocery store, I am in the habit of tossing the receipt in th grocery bag. I am not doing that again! I usually end up putting them in a special envelope which I take to work, and then empty the contents in to the Iron Mountain box. I do this with all paper that might have part of a credit card number on it and I have been doing this since my wife broke my paper shredder, but now it is a good thing that happened because I was tossing the shreds of those into recycling. I hope the people that work at Iron Mountain don't touch much of that paper directly! This demonstrates a failure of the US FDA. In Canada, BPA is considered a toxic substance. Meanwhile, BPA is being replaced with BPS, so the claim "BPA Free" can be made, while BPS might actually be worse!

Speaking of throwing things away, if you click the "Preview" button, that is exactly what Typepad does with your text. Anyway, I have used eBay, Craig's List and Freecycle to find new homes for things for years. Craigs List is local to one's general metropolitan area, but Freecycle can be very local. We have an Oak Park Freecycle. I got rid of my subway map collection and unused computer components that way. I have a box that I fill with odd discarded things that i plan to give to one of our local artists when I get a chance. I can't understand throwing away playable pianos. It is easy to find websites to help to find a new home for an old piano. There are plenty of people willing to pay the piano movers to remove the piano from the donor's residence at the donor's convenience. So if there is any item with very few excuses for tossing into landfills, it is a piano.

If the drive-through line at the CVS is more than 2 cars long, I park my car and walk inside. That way, if I have to wait long, I can put on visual displays of impatience that the ones at the counter can't avoid seeing. Actually, I have never had to wait longer than 5 minutes in the indoor pharmacy line at CVS. But, the bank is another story. Some bank branches out here in the 'burbs don't even have an indoor line, so in those cases, I'll shut off the engine while in line.

It is true about chargers. In fact leaving those plugged in without charging anything can actually shorten the life of a charger. Stereos, VCRs, DVD players, etc, actually say "Stand by" and they have that clock, so if you unplug it, then when you plug it in, you have to reset the clock. Same with the microwave oven. But, toasters? If I can find a reasonably priced measuring device, then I will run some tests that and other appliances myself.