Tuesday Musings on Green Wishing

As my wife and I ran this morning, we happened upon a lot of trash in our neighborhood. It probably was about the average amount of trash for a neighborhood, but far too much for my liking. So I picked up a bunch (6 pieces: 2 booze bottles [one small the other travel size], a water bottle wrapper [there seem to be a lot of those lately], two soda cans [crushed] and a Doritos bag) and figured that what I got was "enough." You have to sometimes allow that what you did was enough.

This morning I will focus my green wishes on one broad goal:

• I wish that the Green Wish Foundation has a bright and abundant future.
• (To be specific) I wish that old and young alike join in the idea of taking responsibility for cleaning up a park, beach, street, etc that they care about.
• I wish that parents and adults use the Green Wish Foundation to help teach children the importance of respecting and cherishing the earth--on a local and global level.
• I wish that there will be a better recognition by habitual litterers that what they are doing is wrong and spoils other people's wishes.
• I wish that this effort will grow not only through the world wide web, but also through people WITNESSING green wishes in action.
• I wish that my parks, my streets, my world will grow greener, cleaner and happier as a result of this specific green wish (oh...and because of some people picking up trash, too!).

Stay tuned...tips on green wishing coming your way soon!

Roosevelt National Forest Campsites Looking Pretty Dang Good

This weekend, I made an exploratory visit to the Roosevelt National Forest in northern Colorado about 40 miles west of Ft. Collins. I was happily joined on this trip by navigator Amy (wife) and security officer, Gus (doggie).

We ventured on dirt roads to the Tom Bennett campsite just a few miles from the Rocky Mountain National Park boundary.

Our inspection (simply enjoying, eating good food & smores, joke telling, dreaming) revealed a very well maintained campsite with very little rubbish around. Still, for experienced green wish seekers like us, it was not too difficult to find some stray pieces of trash from previous campers.

A plastic fork and the plastic tie from a loaf of bread were the most notable specks of trash had on this visit. Kudos to previous campers for "leaving no trace!" We're happy to help with these two pieces as they now give Amy and me (Gus has declined participation in the actual wish making) two green wishes.

They are as follows:

Doug: I wish that the Atlantic Hurricane season is mild as to not exacerbate the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Amy: I wish all dog owners would be more conscientious about picking up dog poop when they walk their doggies.

Record Day for Sloan's Lake Green-Wishing!

I must give credit where credit is due: the parks department working at Sloan's Lake in Denver generally do a great job! The park is a busy place with regular picnics, people chatting, playing games, running, walking, biking and so much more...it is a wonder that the place is not overrun by litter.

That being said (always the bad with the good) there were endless green wishes to be had today. Once around the lake and my hands were full for each trash can I passed.

Among the pieces picked up today: a Crystal Geyser water bottle label, an Enfamil formula packet, a blue Dentyne package, countless straws, a wrapper of something with all sorts of unrecognizable ingredients, one cut zip-tie, numerous water bottle lids (come on people...those were dropped on purpose) and the fortune from a fortune cookie (it read: What is hidden in an empty box? Egg --don't really get it, but I still get the wish!)

So my picking up today was complimented by a nice man working for the city on a John Deere four-wheeler. He scooted around on his machine with a long grabber doing a heck of a good job. He pulled up next to me and I proudly told him that for each piece of trash, I get a wish! I probably should have let him in on the secret--even though it was his job, he is still entitled to make some green wishes. I hope he gets them someday.

So today, I offer a few public green wishes; the rest I will keep private and put towards very worthwhile and beneficial things!

1. I hope that this summer is a productive one of fighting the dreaded pine bark beetle infestation that is destroying so much of the Colorado forests.
2. I hope that instead of the political and social demonizing over the science of global climate change, people of all kind simply start to make choices in their own lives that show an increasing respect for the Earth and for what are limited and valuable natural resources.
3. (Closer to home) I hope that my struggling Thai Hot Pepper plant finds her roots. The heat is killing her now and I worry about her in the hot summer days ahead.
4. That anyone reading this makes a green wish sometime in the next week!

Happy wishing...

Morning Run Yields 4 Green Wishes!

An early morning run can be a bit tough on the body sometimes, but it almost always is very easy on the soul!

I hit Sloan's Lake this morning at about 6:30 for my regular loop and ended up doing a little Green Wishing while I was at it. The kid's jungle gym area and main parking lot provided me with a great way to get the morning started right. (Sadly, there are almost always green wishes to be found there).

I happlily took out four pieces of trash: a Hostess cherry pie wrapper, an empty Squirt can, a plastic picnic fork (in two pieces) and a granola bar wrapper were the prizes for the day. And just like that...WEEEHOOO: FOUR GREEN WISHES FOR ME!

Green Wishes for today (or thus far in the day):

1. I wish that the Green Wish concept grows and encourages others to take an active role in cleaning up their most treasured green spaces!
2. I wish that our garden has another bountiful year, with tomatoes, basil, peppers, raspberries (and more) in such abundance that we can share with many others!
3. I will keep this one private for my own dreams. :)
4. I leave one wish available for the taking...if you read this first, it is YOURS! Just post back to say you got it! Happy Green Wish!

A wish is a dream your heart makes....

Who doesn't like wishing upon a star? Who doesn't get excited when a they find penny?! Well I certainly do! And when I happen upon a piece of litter, messing up my favorite park (Sloan's Lake in Denver) I feel a great sense of satisfaction by helping out. The little bit of effort that I put forth in delivering that trash to its rightful place in the trash can is well worth a green wish!

My green wish today is simple: I wish that that horrible well in the Gulf of Mexico would stop...just STOP already!

Welcome to the Green Wish Foundation

Hello World...It's us! Yes, we who care about our parks and open spaces, we who are saddened by the proliferation of trash and litter everywhere, we who are ready to do something about it to help clean up our own little neck of the woods! We are the Green Wish Foundation.

The concept is simple: "Find some trash. Pick it up. All day long you'll have good luck." With this simple thought and action, we can not only improve our environment, but we can pass on to younger generations the experience of taking action to help make our world a cleaner, more livable place.

Through this blog and our website www.greenwishfoundation.org concerned citizens can bring their green wishes to life! We hope to offer tips on how you can "adopt" local parks and open spaces and keep them clean and free of trash in the name of the Green Wish Foundation. Additionally, we will offer simple, easy to use tips for helping establish and promote clean Green Wish sites, as well as offering templates and tools to help concerned citizens effectively advocate for clean parks with local governements and parks departments.

Most importantly, this organization is dedicated to passing on the idea of the Green Wish to the next generation! We aspire to help facilitate children learning the value and benefit of taking action towards a cleaner, greener world. With each piece of trash or litter that is picked up (and appropriately deposited in a nearby trash receptacle :) a person (regardless of how young or old they are) receives a wish...for something special for themselves or for the world.

It is an easy proposition...just start picking up trash and let the green wishes start rolling in!