Just one thing.

When the alarm clock goes off tomorrow morning, just after you've flung it across the room, commit to yourself to do just one thing different.

Turn off a light you'd normally have one. Watch one less "Seinfeld" rerun for the nine hundredth time. Print off one less email from the British Lottery (you didn't really win). Send a dollar to a food pantry. Anything. I doesn't matter what, but it will matter. Big changes start with little things. Things you don't even think about and won't ever miss.

We don't have to change the whole world to change the whole world. We only have to change ourselves.

cnchnz 

Economy. The new status symbol.

There was once a time -- not long ago by the way -- when big cars, big engines and big egos were the collateral of suburban success. People stood in line to be the first to own a production Hummer. A war machine for the everyday battle for supremacy of the grocery store parking lot.

There are no more lines at the Hummer dealerships. 

Today, status comes in packages with names like Prius, and with the hum is coming from little electric motors that take the load off the internal combustion engine that sips $4 gas rather than guzzles it. 

No land yachts. No muscle. Just efficiency. Sure there are still gas burners out there, burning up highways and natural resources with reckless abandon (I love that phrase). But the lines are now forming for cars that get 35, 40, 50 or even 60 miles per gallon. Still consuming resources to be sure, but at a more responsible pace. And no, it's not a solution, but it's a least progress and progress better than excess. 

Look, I realize the everyone can't run right out and buy a new hybrid or high milage car. Cars aren't free and the Bush(league) economy hasn't exactly done us any favors in the lifestyles-that are-the-envy-of-the-world department, but people are changing their attitudes and that's a huge step in the right direction. 

So if you're looking for status in your next ride, start by looking at the EPA sticker. 

cnchnz

Unnatural disaster

It breaks my heart that the military junta that rules Myanmar (the former country of Burma) is so mistrustful of the intentions of the outside world, that even more people will die needlessly from the aftermath of the recent cyclone there.

Sorry I can't add any insight or interesting commentary. I'm not sure what more can really be said. 

cnchnz

What do you think.

By now, the one or two of you that seem to be willingly reading this are likely getting bored hearing me prattle on about things. So from now on, we're going to be conducting polls as part of the fun.

I want to know what you think. People want to know what you think. People who I know want to know what you think. I'll still prattle on, but at least it won't be the only reason to drop by.

We're starting by asking about the candidates. Other than gimmicks like the gas tax holiday (which in fairness Barack is against), no one has really made the environment the center piece or even a nicknack of their campaign. So which one do you think feels like you?

cnchnz

Testing the boundaries of freakingoutedness.

Runaway oil prices, runaway rice inflation and runaway housing deflation. Oh yeah, and isn't there a war going on?

If the new strategy for distracting our attention from Iraq is to focus us on the dismal state of our economy, then my hat's off to the administration. People are so freaked out -- and rightly so -- about the fact that their wallets and their buying power are shrinking like cheap cotton pajamas, you can barely conjure up a healthy debate about what's going on in the least popular war since the bad old days of Vietnam.

I never would have guessed these fellows could drop all the balls at once. I guess it must be something like multi-tasking. Who knew you couldn't spend like drunken advertising executives on a war without breaking something? You honestly don't know what you should be more freaked out about; the economy, the environment, the people who were just getting by as it is, or a war that's not even front page news anymore.

Maybe it'll all be better in November. I'm sure Hillary, Barack or McCain must have some handy-dandy-Swiss-Army-knifelike all-purpose solution up their sleeves. That's if they can find the time to think of one while they're busy pointing out who's chosen to use the occasional ill-conceived phrase, drinking shots and beers, bowling or apologizing for smear campaigns run in their name that they claim to have no control over.

I honestly don't know who has the answers, I'm sure not claiming to, but with all the crap out there let's hope someone does.

Not preaching, just freaking a little.

cnchnz

Water water everywhere and nothing to drink it from. (with apologies to the English majors)

Here's the deal. We can't all keep drinking bottled water because if nothing else we're filling up the landfills with the plastic bottles.

Unfortunately, now we also find out that we can't drink from all of those nifty sports bottles everyone's now sporting. The nice, hard, shiny, colorful, clear, ones are made from a chemical, bisphenol, that leaches into the water you're drinking. Look on the bottom of your sports bottle. You'll see a triangle with a number in it. If that number is a 7 they say you really shouldn't drink from it. The same is true of the hard plastic baby bottles, so you might want to switch to glass.

As a little side bonus, if you're drinking from a glass water glass and getting your water from a cooler at the office or even home, check the big bottle the water comes in. Chances are it's got a little 7 in its little triangle.

I guess it's city water for me.

cnchnz

People, politics and the Olympics game.

I find it difficult to write about human rights.

I think it's because it's so hard for me to believe that anyone doesn't believe in the concept of equal rights for all human life. But, every day I'm slapped in the face with the ugly evidence that an alarming number of people just don't seem to give a crap about their fellow human beings. Particularly if those fellow human beings look different, sound different, have different customs, belong to different parties, belong to the same party, have long legs, short legs, facial hair, no facial hair, blue eyes, brown eyes, believe in different gods, believe in the same God, prefer Coke over Pepsi 0r Pepsi over Coke. 

I am now convinced that even if race, religion and sexual orientation didn't exist, people would still find ways to distance themselves from one another. I don't know if it's because we can't literally feel each other's pain, walk in each others shoes, see through others eyes or any other cliche you'd like to plug in here.  Maybe we all secretly believe in the whole "I'm the center of the universe" junk.

Well, I've got news, I am not the center of the universe and neither are you. Bill Gates may be but that's a possibility I choose not to consider.

Which leads me elsewhere. 

I've been watching the coverage of the Olympic torch relay. Couldn't avoid it.  Violent protests in the streets over China's human rights record, their support for Sudan and their hold on Tibet.

I can certainly understand the protest. It's people's voices that can ultimately change the course of governments, but violence against people in the name of anti-violence against people, is an oxymoron. Violence is violence no matter who's doing it and to whom.

See, that sounds preachy doesn't it. I don't mean it to be. I just wish people would think about this stuff.

cnchnz

I'll be back.

If you've tried to go to cnchnz.com lately you've been disappointed. We're actually going to be out of commission for a few days while we fix some stuff.

I'd love to tell you some really glamourous and exciting tale about compact fluorescent lighting toughs storming in to shut us down or the military industrial complex doing whatever it is that they do. But the simple truth is we needed to make some changes. 

In the mean time, don't forget what we're all about. Sure we're selling shirts and giving 10% of our revenues to causes like homlessness, hunger, global warming, conservation, human rights and peace and nonviolence; but the cnchnz brand is really about standing up, being seen and showing the world we care about and support things bigger than ourselves. Passive activism if you will. Not confrontational, sensational or in your face. Just mass (someday) visiblity. 

Anyway, really sorry for any inconvenience. We'll see you in a few days.

Please don't super size me.

Ok, I'm not proud of it but we went to McDonald's drive-thru yesterday. Not that we're above it, as Dollar Menunaires we enjoy the occasional burger and fries to go. (I think I've mentioned before that I'm not perfect. Now you have the proof.)

So we sit in line for a few minutes wasting gasoline and adding hydrocarbon emissions. Have a pleasant exchange with the voice from the speaker box. Wait in line some more. Pay. And finally reach the pick-up window and receive the bag-o-food. 

As we're digging through the bag of spilled fries it struck me. In addition to the bag itself, the sandwich wrappers, sandwich boxes, the cups, the straws and the lids; there must have been 10 paper napkins. 10 for 3 of us. 

First, what do you do with them all? I'm not going to throw them away. Like everyone else, I used to, but I can't make myself do it anymore. So we put them in the glove compartment. Next time I'll ask if they can hold the napkins and just give me the small fries they forgot to put in the bag instead.

cnchnz

Mercury Blues.

When we were all told that we needed to replace our Edisoneque incandescent light bulbs with the newer -- and arguably cuter -- compact fluorescent ones, we dutifully ran off to the Depot to load up. Ouch, pricey. But we told ourselves they'll last longer and use less energy. A size 12 carbon footprint drops by maybe a half size, so better for the world. It's the cnchnz way right?

Not so fast. Sure they last longer and use less energy which is good, but I just found out that they also contain enough mercury vapor that, if broken, you can exceed the government's guidelines for chronic exposure. And, if you just toss that puppy in the trash it spells potential trouble for landfills and water tables. 

But here's the bottom line from what I can tell, these bulbs are better for us all and the environment. While you should try really hard not to break them and never just pitch them in the garbage, there are safe ways to dispose of them. Just check for your local CFL recycling options on sites like earth911.org. 

And never fear, smart people in white lab coats are working to create better options that don't use mercury. Until then, try not to break a CFL while eating a tuna salad sandwich. Oh yeah, and hope someone doesn't discover that polonium 210 makes a great reading lamp.

Just thought it was worth knowing.

The reawakening of idealism.

If you're like us, there was a time when you were hell bent to change the world. Nothing big, just make it a little better place for everyone and everything. But like most people, you become so involved in surviving that it's your immediate world that gets the focus. Getting to work, keeping the bastards at bay and paying your rent. Until you wake up one day and realize that you're only watching the world change on television. 4oo channels of HD cable, but still, only watching.

 

We just launched our site, cnchnz.com. The whole point of it is to create a brand that gives a voice to the best of human intentions. You know caring, understanding and respect for the earth and it's inhabitants. A brand that allows you to take your conscience (cnchnz) out for a walk in public without fear of having to defend it to someone wearing a beer logo or a cute picture of a farting bunny on their shirt. 

Now we don't mean to suggest that simply wearing a brand around on a shirt alone is enough to change the world. It's not that easy. But, most people still aren't willing to take a rubber bullet at a G7 summit and many just can't get the time off work necessary to chain themselves to a redwood. 

That doesn't mean people don't care.

Besides which, real change ultimately comes not from the individual acts of a few but from the collective voices of the many. 

So what cnchnz is trying to do is to create a mass brand that financially supports organizations working for change.  One that enables the will and the voice of the many to be seen and heard. And tries to do so in a responsible way. The hope is to enable change by enabling everyone. 

Look, we're not simple people and we know change isn't easy. We know that it also takes political, cultural and social change along with the mitigation of fear, prejudice and ignorance. And all those things start with people. Lots of ordinary, everyday, hard working, respectable people all willing to reveal their conscience (cnchnz).

That's it. We're not perfect. We're not trying to preach or say we have the answer. (hey, at times it's still tempting to waste and afternoon watching the 400 channels of HD cable.) We're just going to see if we can make a difference and help other people do the same.