When it comes to recycling pee, you need to decide if “urine” or you’re out.
BANTER BITE BACKSTORY: Red’s all for recycling, but when it comes to the idea of “peecycling”, she has a hard time getting away from the “ick” factor; while Black’s fascinated by the science and business aspects, and loves all the opportunities for wordplay.
Red, being the straight-A student, read the New York Times article Black had forwarded, and although intellectually she understood how human urine could provide all the essential nutrients to fertilize crops (and none of the dangerous pathogens that are present in chemical fertilizers), she couldn’t get past the visual image of collecting it. Of course, Black suggesting we’d need recycling buckets next to our recycling bins didn’t help. And when Red thought of it being used to grow fruits and vegetables we’d ultimately eat, all she could say was, “Yuck”!
Black started to ask why the chemicals didn’t generate the same response, but instead mentioned that chemical fertilizers are not only expensive, in terms of cost and impact on the environment, but are becoming scarce due to the prolonged war in Ukraine. However, she knew Red wasn’t interested, so it was like pissing in the wind. (Sorry, we couldn’t resist.)
But then she remembered Red had once dreamed about moving to Vermont, so casually mentioned that while research has taken place internationally, much of America’s focus on recycling urine takes place in Vermont. Yes, that got Red’s attention, although she wasn’t surprised as Vermont has always been environmentally conscious “in their own New England Yankee way, and definitely are independent thinkers.” Plus, it quickly brought back bathroom memories (really!) and a favorite rhyme,
I first learned, “If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down.” on a trip to Vermont decades ago. Long before “water conservation” was popular. But now, you had to taint it, so to speak, with peecycling. I’m almost afraid to ask what’s next …
Black wasn’t originally going to mention this, but since she asked,
How about a beer brewed using recycled toilet water? It would give new meaning to the British phrase “getting pissed” (drunk). And, it is all the rage in Singapore.
Red didn’t know if Black was kidding or not. And she didn’t want to know.
When the news is challenging or life’s stressful, there’s something comforting about Girl Scout cookies. Always has been, which is why we’re rerunning this post from several years ago.
Girl Scouts, though, are about so much more than cookies, as year-round girls learn important life skills, gain confidence, and discover leadership skills. But buying cookies is such a sweet way (sorry, we couldn’t resist) to support the organization. Red’s favorite is the classic shortbread (now known as Trefoils), and Black buys a large assortment and gives them all away.
But hurry! Cookie season ends on March 23.
P.S. - If S’mores and Toast-Yay! are your favorites … make sure you stock up as this is the last year they’ll be available.
Let's play word association. If we say, "Girl Scouts," what's the first word that comes to mind? Ok, what's the second word?
BANTER BITE BACKSTORY: When Juliette "Daisy" Gordon Low organized the first Girl Scout meeting – hoping to create an organization that redefined what was possible for girls everywhere – there was no way for her to know the difference it would make in the lives of millions of girls and their communities.
Many people's first (and sometimes only) image of Girl Scouts is as cookie salespeople – either selling door-to-door or at a make-shift table at a grocery or other store (or having their parents hand you an order form). But if you've been a Girl Scout (both of us have) or know someone who has, you know that Girl Scouts are about so much more.
So, as we celebrate the Girls Scouts being around for over 100 years, we should celebrate the years of fun and friendships, and for helping girls learn important qualities such as responsibility, courage, strength, and independence. Qualities that are as important in 2021 as they were in 1912.
And what better way to celebrate than to buy some Girl Scout cookies? Guilt-free as you're helping a good cause.
Today’s turbulent times for Jews may overshadow the celebration of the Jewish New Year, one of the holiest of the Jewish holidays. Yet, ironically, we feel it should strengthen its significance, as the holiday is a time for reflection on the past and hope for the future.
If you think today’s politics are ugly … let’s talk about a man who named himself “dictator for life” of the Roman empire, and is then assassinated by a group of senators, including his best friend. (However, there’s a “pretty” part – Cleopatra was his mistress.) Food trivia and leadership lessons aside, the fact July is named after him is the perfect excuse to rerun one of Red’s favorite Banter Bites …
Quick! If someone says "Julius Caesar," what comes to mind?
BANTER BITE BACKSTORY: Almost everyone has heard of Julius Caesar, but how many of us really know much about him, or at least that's what Red starts to wonder when she receives the usual flippant, but still accurate, reply from her sister, after feeling very proud that she knew that July was named after the famous Roman.
Which is what got Red to realize, much to her surprise (shock, if truth be told), that even as a straight-A student with a love of history, that when it came to Julius Caesar, a famous historical figure and possibly one of the greatest generals and statesmen of all time, she couldn't tell you dates or battles or anything "historical" associated with him.
Even as a theater major in college, she never read Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar," although she knew just enough about the play to know that it was where the fortune teller warned Caesar to "Beware the Ides of March." Instead, her knowledge of Caesar came from her love of movies.
My first, and probably my most enduring, memory is of a brilliant general who not only commanded armies as he conquered lands far from home but was a great statesman who was also involved with one of the world's most beautiful women. And while he was Julius Caesar and the woman was Cleopatra, to me, they'll always be Rex Harrison and Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra, a movie almost as controversial as the general himself.
And Black? Besides knowing that Caesar Salad was invented by a different Caesar, she appreciates Julius Caesar's leadership skills and way with words,
There is much we can learn about leadership from Julius Caesar, whether on the battlefield, in politics, or in business (start small, take risks, communicate well), including what ultimately led to his death (always consider worst-case scenarios, never get complacent or arrogant). Many of his quotes speak (pun intended) to his powerful way with words, and the ability to not only deliver a message but to inspire (and story tell), with my favorite being, "I came, I saw, I conquered."