Hello All!

It has been quite a while since I’ve published anything on here and I think that’s good, I know my inbox is constantly filled up with newsletters and other content and whatnot, which can be quite overwhelming, so maybe I’ve been doing us all a favor by keepin’ to myself. But alas, I do have some things I wanted to jot down real quick for continuity.

As far as the Zero Waste Journey goes, a couple new advances have been made since I last wrote about transitioning to a more Zero Waste lifestyle:

1. Stone nail files: These particular ones come in a plastic tube but that’s the only plastic involved. There are other stone nail files on the market but I haven’t found any others available in the US.

2. Toothpaste tabs: I’ve been buying them in bulk from a local Zero Waste Shop called Ethos in Capitola, Ca. They’re by the company Unpaste.

3. Nudi Goods Mascara: When I first wrote about this mascara I didn’t like it, but now that I’ve been using it for a while I really do like it. So I say go for it!

4. Micro-plastic laundry bags: I figured I should give these a shot because plastics in the ocean is not a good thing. I bought one and then another because it balances the machine spin better to have two. The one’s I bought are by Guppyfriend. They are good for washing clothes made from synthetic fibers because they catch plastic micro-fiber lint that comes out in the wash cycle. I haven’t noticed a huge amount of plastic lint and don’t really enjoy the process of using these bags, but I’m going to continue using them because it seems like a good thing to do.

5. Laundry detergent strips: I also get these in bulk from a low-waste living store. The ones I’ve been using are by Tru Earth. They’re a bit pricey, but I really appreciate how compact and plastic free they are. And they work. I get the Fresh Linen scented ones.

6. Bulk Dishwasher Detergent Pods: When I was living in a home with a dishwasher I tried these out, also from the bulk section of a low-waste living shop. The ones I tried are by Dropps and they work great.

7. Probably most importantly, I started on the “road to Veganville” aka started avoiding animal products. I’m not psychotic about it, just shifting. Since I work in the Veterinary field caring for animals and have all these environmental leanings, I felt it makes sense for me to start making that shift. How to Create a Vegan World: a Pragmatic Approach by Tobias Leenaert was a helpful read for me in this process.

If interested in other zero waste shift ideas, I’ve written about transitioning to a more Zero Waste Lifestyle for the past 3 years:

Year 1, Year 2, Year 3

Now for the the initial reason I started writing this blurb: a short list of chimpanzee sanctuaries to check out:

International

1. Liberia Chimpanzee Rescue and Protection: West Africa

Domestic:

1. Chimp Haven: This is the largest chimp sanctuary in the USA, home to ~300 chimps and located somewhere in Louisiana.
2. Freedom for Great Apes: They’re located near Bend, Oregon and are currently hiring a chimp caregiver. There are 7 chimps living at this sanctuary.

That’s all folks!

❤ Kelly

PS I’ve been hosting a late-night radio show on KSQD community radio. The show is called The Basement and I share it with DJ Kimi, hosting every other Saturday night from Midnight-2am. The shows can be streamed live on KSQD.org and if you miss it live, the shows are available to stream in the 2 week archive for…you guessed it…2 weeks after they air. Here’s a link: https://ksqd.org/two-week-archive/ . My last episode was Sunday July 31st 12am.

PPS Shamelss plug? I have some music footage up on Youtube if you’re interested. Most of it is clips from a local TV show I did a few months ago called Look Mom, I’m on TV, enjoy!