Please meet my newest bloggy friends, Chelsea and Danielle. I invited Chelsea and Danielle over to talk a bit about their mission (and passion). I think you'll find it very interesting.
Balloons Blow…Don’t Let Them Go! --
That’s the message we’re trying to get out. When we first started cleaning the beaches over 15 years ago, my sister and I, along with our parents, would never find balloons. As the years went on we would find a few more here and there. Now, both in our early 20’s, we continue our weekly beach cleanups and every year we find more and more balloons. Of course there is much more plastic than ever as well, but the disturbing thing about balloon pollution is that it is “celebrating by littering”. We collected over a thousand balloons in 2011. This year's count so far is already over 200.
It is very alarming, the amount of debris that gets washed ashore on our beaches, but it is particularly troubling that people are purposely littering with balloons to celebrate, to honor the dead, or to just mindlessly watch it float away. This is the reason we have created www.BalloonsBlow.org, a website dedicated to educating people about the danger and destruction that releasing balloons can cause. There are countless websites and Facebook pages promoting balloon releases. The balloon sellers try to convince people that latex balloons are "environmentally-friendly" and that they are "biodegradable" and harmless, but we show proof, that is not true. There are laws concerning balloon releases in several states in the U.S. and many countries around the world, yet many unknowing celebrators, grieving groups, and others, are arranging balloon releases worldwide. Honoring a loved one or celebrating by littering (litter that can entangle and kill wildlife) is ridiculous and should be banned altogether. People need to get creative and earth-friendly with their celebrations, and we will keep trying to get the word out that: Balloons Blow…Don’t Let Them Go!
About Chelsea and Danielle
Since we could walk, we have been doing beach clean-ups with our parents. One of the most disturbing debris we find are balloons. We find at least one every time we go to the beach (which is a minimum of once a week). In the past five years we have been finding an increasing amount of balloons, most with ribbons attached. Any animal that comes close can easily be entangled in the mess and eventually die. Wildlife can also mistake the popped or slightly inflated balloons for food and ingest them which can lead to death.
An increasing amount of people are releasing balloons for fun, for an event, or to remember a loved one. We find these balloons; balloons with festival logos, birthday balloons, balloons with notes, valentines day balloons, bouquets of balloons, balloons with charity logos, even animal print balloons (how ironic). The fact is that letting balloons go is littering. All litter threatens wildlife and the environment.
A little over a year ago we created www.BalloonsBlow.org, a website dedicated to bringing awareness of the impact balloon litter has on the environment. Since then we have gained support from people around the world through our facebook fanpage including scientists, rehabbers, and other grassroot organizations. We hope to continue spreading our message and hope it stirs more environmental consciousness and respect for our planet.
Thanks so much to both Chelsea and Danielle for stopping by with their message. As this weekend is a holiday in the US, I encourage everyone to reconsider the use of balloons. Chelsea and Danielle are now on Twitter ... their user ID is @BalloonsBlow.
It is the first Friday of the month and that means ... another delicious, vegan recipe. As most of you have heard me say (countless times) ... eating meatless meals is one of the easiest ways to walk a little gentler on the earth.
This month I am very pleased to introduce you to Cindy, the owner, author ... and chef-extraordinaire ... of Vegetarian Mamma. Cindy and her husband grew up eating meat but decided to make the switch to a vegetarian diet about 8 years ago. Their children have been raised vegetarian but since Cindy's youngest son has allergies to peanuts, tree nuts, gluten, soy and dairy, they focus more on vegan foods. They are interested in whole organic non-GMO products which are free of artificial flavors & colors. And they've recently taken an interest in adding more raw dishes to their diet.
Vegetarian Mamma recently moved to a new, beautiful site ... Cindy's own ".com"! This blog is so much fun to browse through. While you will find original vegan & vegetarian recipes (like Teriyaki Plate and Spinach, Mushrooms and Pine Nuts), you'll also find discussions on things like whether or not organic food is healthier, menu plans, recipes from other sites, DIY projects (the Homemade Bulletin Board is fabulous), reviews, deals and even an occasional giveaway. Vegetarian Mamma is a diverse, interesting site! Head over and visit for awhile!
Cindy has graciously agreed to share a recipe with us. I hope you and your family will enjoy it!
Roasted Red Pepper Risotto
Ingredients
1 red bell pepper
6 cups vegetable broth
3 tablespoons vegan "butter"
1/2 cup of your favorite Vegan White Wine
1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cups arborio rice
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
First, you will need to roast the red pepper. Wash, de-seed and slice the pepper into halves. Lightly mist the pepper halves with oil and place on a baking sheet under the boiler. Soon the peppers skin will begin to blacken. When the pepper is covered in darkened patches, remove from the broiler. Place in a paper sack to cool. (Or in a covered bowl) This will allow the moisture to stay in to help loosen the skin as the peppers cool. Once the peppers cool, peel back the skin with your fingers. Once peeled, puree the peeled peppers and set aside.
Splash the 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil into a pan. Heat the pan to a medium heat, saute the chopped onions. Once onions are cooked, add dry rice and saute for 1 minute.
Next, add your wine to the pan. Let the liquid cook down for about 1 minute. Next, add 2 cups of veggie broth. Let the broth cook down while you continually stir to avoid any burning. Once the liquid has been cooked down, add 2 more cups. Continue with this process until all your liquid is gone and your rice is soft. This process should take about 20 minutes.
Finally, stir in your roasted red pepper puree, season with salt and pepper, then ENJOY!
**You can top with Vegan Parmesan or chopped fresh parsley.
Thanks, so much, Cindy ... I can't wait to try this recipe out!
If you have a vegan recipe which you'd like to share, please send it to me HERE. And for all the recipes we've shared so far, be sure to visit our recipe page using the tabs at the top of this blog ... or by clicking HERE.
Update ... winners to our giveaway have been chosen and emails will be going out ... so watch your inbox!
Here's are the answers to the questions asked in the giveaway:
The composers of the music are - J. Thorn and Curtis Luck.
The photos answers are as follows:
Photo 1 = The blood drop from the header of the website
Photo 2 = The chain from the locket on the Blood Chronicles page
Photo 3 = The Blood Ripples from the blood pool on the Media Room page
Photo 4 = The center of the Born of Blood cover from the home page
Photo 5 = The MuseItUp Logo from the home page
See you Monday everyone!!
Welcome to the Grand Finale of our week-long event celebrating the debut novel, Born of Blood, by my friend and very talented author, S.B. (Brian) Knight. How appropriate that today is Friday the 13th (oooh ... a chill just ran down my spine).
It has been an amazing week! We kicked off the celebration with a special Meet & Greet Monday ... hopefully you all got a chance to link up your sites, Facebook & Twitter accounts ... and made some new friends (if you didn't, it stays open until 6:00 pm tonight). On Tuesday, Brian talked to us about "green" publishing and how both the process of getting books into our hands (as well as the books themselves) has changed over the years and become efficient and Eco-friendly. Our regular Change The World Wednesday challenge stayed on topic asking us to turn off the TV & Computer ... and read. Thursday found Brian and I chatting ... about books, writing and green living. And then ... some of you joined the conversation and told us a bit about yourselves ... about which book genres are your favorite and your feelings on whether there is hope for our environment. If you missed any of this week's celebration, you can "catch up" HERE. Brian's book tour may be leaving "our place" but it's far from over. For his complete schedule, click HERE.
I was very fortunate, a long time ago, to read a preliminary draft of Born of Blood. Honestly, I wasn't sure I'd like it ... dark fantasy novels don't entice me. But, because I admire Brian, I tried to approach it with an open mind. And wow ... from the first chapter to the last word, I was hooked. To say it was a "page turner" would be an understatement! I haven't yet read the final version of this novel but I can only imagine that it is even better than the original draft. If you're unfamiliar with the storyline ... here's the description from Amazon:
In BORN OF BLOOD, Jesse Banks unknowingly, steps into the middle of a battle between good and evil that has raged on for generations. As the danger escalates, she begins to put the pieces of her clouded past together.
Jesse discovers the truth about her ancestors and the horror that relentlessly pursued them — a horror that now pursues her. To survive, she must join the fight. But the immortal monster that stalks her has other, more sinister, plans, and will stop at nothing to see those plans accomplished. Can Jesse escape a fate worse than death and defeat an age-old evil?
Sounds intriguing, doesn't it? Born of Blood is the first book, of three, in the Blood Chronicles saga. I can't wait to see how this story continues!
I'd like to thank Brian for making us a part of this wonderful event! And Brian ... I wish you continued success, my friend!
Don't have an eReader device? No problem ... download a free application HERE for use on your computer, iPhone, etc.
Okay ... now for the moment you've been waiting for ... it's GIVEAWAY TIME! Brian has generously offered us a bunch of prizes:
Two lucky Reduce Footprints' readers will each win a $5 gift card to MuseItUp Bookstore
One lucky reader will win a signed copy of Born of Blood
And then ... in a special Bonus Round
One lucky reader will win a $10 gift card to MuseItUp Bookstore
Wow ... sounds great, right? You can enter in the rafflecopter forms below. This giveaway is open to everyone and will end tonight (Friday) at midnight (EST). Winners will be contacted by email.
Good luck to everyone!! To begin ... take a good look at these photos:
Photo #1
Photo #2
Photo #3
Photo #4
Photo #5
Now enter the Born of Blood Rafflecopter giveaway (may take a moment to load ... if it doesn't, please refresh the page):
