You would think that having your book mentioned in the New York Times' Style section would be un-toppable.  And while that's pretty hard to beat, another review I received today gave Alex Williams of the Times a good run for his money. The author's name is Latoya Pryce and I met her today at her church in the Bronx, where I had gone to read my book. She passed a note to me down the pew and it read, "Dear Victoria Perla, I think the book you wrote is very extraordinary. I say that because this book is written so that the kids can understand and it is very straight to the point. Also I think that this was a good idea to write this book, being a teenager I can understand the little things you do to prevent global warming. You have helped me to understand it much better and to do little things to prevent it. I thank you on behalf of the church and my family. Job well done, Latoya Pryce" Latoya -- job well done to you. Your note was articulate, beautifully written and very much appreciated. Yes, you can make a difference and so can all of the kids around you. Go change the world!

Posted by Vickie at 09:34 PM | Comments (1)

On Friday nite we launched the book at FAO Schwarz in New York with a reading & signing event.  It was a big success and a very exciting time. The most unexpected surprise was the number of teachers who came up and expressed their gratitude for having the book as a resource to use when they work with their young students. It's a great compliment!  But most of all, it's great to know that more conversations about the planet will happen as a result of this work. 

 

Posted by Vickie at 10:35 PM | Comments (1)

To Tree or Not to Tree

By now you’ve made your choice, so I’m really curious to hear where you netted out.  Live tree, fake tree, no tree, alternative tree?  If anyone has a brilliant thought, please weigh in.  It’s an on-going debate that doesn’t have one really great solution.  Yes, artificial trees are made from horrible materials and often shipped in from far-away lands.  But they do last about a decade – which means a decade less tree-chopping.  Live trees are my fave idea but really hard to successfully transplant from the warmth of your Christmas home to the shock of the winter ground.  It’s almost torturous when unsuccessful.  As you can see, I’m still struggling.  Am I the only one?

Posted by Vickie at 12:28 PM | Comments (5)

Green Card(s)

I am making every effort to go green this year, but some habits die hard. Case in point: Christmas Cards. Botanical Paperworks www.botanicalpaperworks.com is an environmental alternative recommended by a super “green” friend. They have stunning  100% recycled papers and cards embedded with seeds – so they can be planted.  No trash, just life.  And the holiday cards contain seeds for White Spruce trees, so you can do your little part toward replacing some of those Christmas trees.

Posted by Vickie at 12:27 PM | Comments (1)

Something happened when I had my first child.  An inner mother bear roared to life and she’s had me in her grip ever since.  Much of what I do is driven by how it’s going to affect my children and their path in life. 

In the past few years, mother bear has been making me obsessed about what kind of environmental future our kids going to face. I’ll admit it was a slow start. As a parent of young children, you slip into a convenience-driven fog – anything that can simplify your life is your friend. But when I saw Al Gore speak in the summer of ’06, the fog really lifted. I felt like I had to reinvent my life overnight. Yeah, that wasn’t happening – particularly with small kids in the picture.) So I tried another approach. We simply started doing what we could because something had to be done. Little things like:

Turning off the lights. 

Turning of the water when we brush. 

Recycling more and more and more. 

That worked out pretty well.  So we tried more: 

We improved the overall energy efficiency of our home. 

Unplugged our chargers. 

Put brakes on the disposables (bottles, bags, drink boxes, plates, cups, you name it.)

Started using our own grocery sacks. 

And that worked out well too.  So we’ve continued pressing on and now it’s downright viral.  Every week there are a handful of new little ideas to make an impact.  We’re by no means perfect, but we’re a heck of a lot better than we were a few years ago and we’re going more in the right direction every day.  Mother bear is very pleased.

 

Posted by Vickie at 12:24 PM | Comments (1)