I like good enviro ideas

And here is a good one: Envirosax. I got one of these bags as a gift and they are just the greatest, sassiest little bags. They're small enough and cute enough that I have no excuse to not use them rather than all those horrible plastic grocery bags. So I'm officially breaking up with grocery bags and have my new favorite gift to give (no surprises at Christmas).

And I'm on a bit of a tirade about consumer packaging these days. Just look at all that goes to waste in consumer packaging the next time you are at the grocery store. My big one -- the deli meats in the plastic containers drive me nuts-o. I actually had a talk with someone at Procter & Gamble while I was in Geneva to test a little business idea I had on this very issue. Her feedback was that the supply chain and manufacturing is established and changing it would be a huge cost that consumers would not be willing to pay for -- and consumers typically don't buy for the environment, convenience wins every time. Seems like there is room to do both in my book.

Get ready for more of this random blogging. It's better than dressing Ellie in a ballerina costumes I suppose and its enironmentally friendly.

Home sweet home, at least for now

I'm all settled back in DC after a long visit in Texas. I thoroughly enjoyed my time -- no matter where I live, Texas will always be home. Here are some pictures from the Texas family time.



But for now, DC is home and feels like the right place to be. My mom came to DC with me and Ell (yep, the cat is back) and got me all settled into my new apartment (huge thanks to her). I'm back in the same area and have a nice view going into Dupont Circle and Adams Morgan and a running trail right out the front door.

But I'm going a bit stir crazy already, so I'm thinking I'm going to have to get some hobbies before I lose it and start dressing my cat up in ballerina costumes. I start classes in 2 weeks, but I only have about 4 hours of class time a week, the rest is independent study. I've thought about training for another marathon to fill some time, possibly Austin in February. Any takers? ;)

But I certainly have things to keep me busy -- i.e. finding a job and finishing my thesis. My thesis topic is set -- I'll be looking at vocational training programs in India, specifically their effects on women. This is all dependent on getting some data from India, but fingers crossed it will come through this week. Otherwise, I will be looking at the same topic, just in Nicaragua. Very interesting area and one that I have become a bit obsessed about and you will certainly be hearing more about it on this blog...

I also have a project that I've been working on this summer in a similar area that is getting more and more interesting, perhaps with a possibility to work on it further post graduation. More to come on that as it develops as well...And this week I will find out if I got a part time research position looking at public-private partnerships -- which is right up my alley. So all in all, good stuff is going on in the Plowperson universe.