About Stacey (because there was fair warning)! :)

I recently had the pleasure of meeting a lovely woman through my employer.  Stacey, came to work with me as a part-time sales associate at my retail job.  In getting to know Stacey, I have to admit, I am smitten over her parenting techniques.  So smitten, in fact, that this entire blog post will be dedicated to her.  :)

Stacey is a Princess, she really has taught me a lot about self-esteem and self respect.  She carries herself with confidence and pride.  She is one of those bright people that other people are immediately attracted to.  When we work together, she literally steals the show with her personality.  Simply put, she is amazing.

However, the amazing-ness that is Stacey, doesn't end there... She is a wonderful parent.  One night while working together we were "closing up shop" and while gathering the garbage Stacey makes a comment about recycling it.  (A woman after my own heart.)  I mention to her that our work has a recycling program for cardboard that was recently announced and implemented, however they have yet to refine their recycling to more than just cardboard products unfortunately.  Upon hearing this, Stacey is saddened and the look on her face is an upset look.  I had never seen her look down before this.  Stacey insists on going through the garbage and taking pieces of it home with her to recycle rather than throwing them in with the rest of the garbage.  I am intrigued.

We make conversation about recycling and the importance of it.  Preaching to the choir, I tell her... and also make reference that she might want to check out my blog.  She is surprised that I write about recycling, I explain to her that I write about everything.  ;)  Recycling is very important to me though, so of course I write about it.  I am a huge supporter of everything Green and proud of it!  Admittedly, I feel a little ashamed that I hadn't been stealing garbage to recycle it before Stacey did it.

In conversation, Stacey mentions a trip her family went on to California.  She said while they were driving they noticed all the garbage along the highway and it sickened her and her children.  She said that her children wanted to stop and pick up garbage along the road.  My heart literally melted.  Stacey has two sons, neither of which is very old, so to hear that they are so responsible already just makes me want to cry tears of joy that someone is raising their children correctly.  (Not trying to imply that everyone else is doing it wrong, by any means.)  Stacey told me that California is a lovely place to visit, but they need to take better care of their highway system when it comes to litter.

Stacey mentioned that she had spoken to a person she knew who works with the correction system about having inmates clean up the highways like many other states do, and the response she got in return was that gang activity is so high in California that if the inmates were to do anything out in public, they would be murdered.  So there is no answer to the litter issue at the moment, other than volunteers willing to risk their lives to clean up the mess.

The reason why I felt the need to write about this wonderful woman is because she is doing exactly what I would do, if I had children.  She is passing along the correct information to her kids that they are just as responsible for keeping where we live nice.  Her children now have the knowledge that things don't just magically happen, you have to make them happen.  By teaching her children the importance of recycling she is handing down something greater than just knowledge.  She is giving us all hope through her growing children that someday this planet will be a better place to live in.  Thank you Stacey for your amazing-ness!  You Rock!

Computers: Friend or Foe?

I have never been one to scoff at technology.  I am a firm believer that the advancements we have made are helping us to live easier lives and also helping to reduce, reuse and recycle (obviously).  I love that technology has come so far that I can now check my bank account with a few button presses on my high tech cellular telephone rather than taking the time to balance my checkbook with pen and paper (yes, I used to do that).

However, like any great invention there will be downfalls too.  The downfall to doing all my banking via internet and not needing to balance on paper?  Well let me point out the obvious before going into my rant.  The obvious downfall is that I'm not up to par on my insta-math skills so much these days as I maybe once was.  It would probably take me longer now to do simple math than in the days when I did it daily.  Yes it's sad, but I've never been a fan of math which is why I love the technology that takes math out of my day.

Now for the rant part.

I have the most technologically advanced options for my checking account.  My attached debit card makes life so much quicker than the days of formally writing out checks.  Now I no longer need to spell out any of the retail names, rather swipe and go.  Easy Peesy, Mac n' cheesy.  I also have online banking.  I can check my account balance any time of the day or night with just a few clicks of my computer mouse or my high tech cellular phone that has internet access on a 24/7 free basis (well not free, but included in my phone bill).  Not only can I check my account balance all the time, I have the bank send me emails on a daily basis.  The emails are normally just account balance updates.  So every morning at about 8 am (however the times have been wonky lately) I will receive an email and check it from my cellular phone.  The emails are short and sweet.  "You have $22.58.  Have a nice day."  That kind of thing... but I also have "alerts" turned on as well so when my account gets dangerously low they send me a nice alert warning me that they are going to charge me for over-drafting if I don't do something about it.  Sadly, the bank never catches me in time to properly warn me... usually they are a couple of pennies late by the time I get the email.  Figures.

As high tech as my life has gotten in terms of my banking, I've been nothing but pleased with how it's working out for me.  Until now...

I received my paycheck on Friday.  (I've been too lazy and probably a little unsure of providing my work with my banking information in order to set up a direct deposit just yet.)  As soon as my check was in hand, I went to the bank.  My receipt says I was at the bank teller at 10am.  I cashed my check and then deposited the cash.  For those of you thinking "that sounds like more of a hassle than anything", you may be somewhat correct however my account is an out of state account at my bank therefore any checks are held for 5 days.  Whereas Cash is instantly deposited and available just in case.  :)  I have been banking with my current bank long enough to know the ins and outs.  So I know how to work the system in my favor without it being against the rules.  Yay me!

Back to my story.  I cashed the check.  Keeping out just enough cash to pay my bills and depositing roughly $200 into my account for use on things I would need throughout the next two weeks (such as food and gas).  After depositing cash and feeling sure that I now had money, I went to the gas station and immediately filled up my tank.  Swipe, pump and drive.  So easy and stress free, or so I thought.

On Saturday morning (yes even on the weekends my bank is working for me), I received an email.  I thought "oh goody, now I can see if my phone bill payment has come out of my account since I paid it online".  I opened up the email and to my shock and surprise it was a nice little "alert" from my bank.  It read something like "Warning:  Your account is negative and if this issue is not resolved as of 5/6/2010, you will be required to pay an over draft fee for every transaction... blah blah blah".  I immediately logged onto my online banking to see that my account was already slammed with not one but THREE separate over draft fees of about $35 a piece.

I studied my online banking page for a good 10 minutes.  Reading that my deposit was listed, but listed as "pending" rather than being listed as in my account like it should have been since it was a cash deposit.  That alone was the problem at hand.  Had the cash posted to my account, nothing would have been negative.  Not my phone bill payment, my full tank of gas, my lunch that day, or any other charge that may have come out.

I signed off the computer and went directly to my nearest bank location.  Thankfully they are EVERYWHERE.  I only drove a block away.  At the bank center, I stood talking to a lady who looked as if she really didn't want to deal with my problem, seeing as how it was Saturday and near closing time for her, plus there was a long line of people behind me trying to get things resolved or money for the weekend.  She was polite, regardless of the look on her face and she found the problem, I showed her the receipt for my deposit and she agreed with me about how this was incorrect.  She called the corporate offices (or a 1-800 number for their company) and discussed my issue and how to resolve it.  This conversation took longer than I had thought it would.  I stood at the bank for over 10 minutes while she talked to the lady at the 800 number, then was put on hold, then talked some more.

Finally, she hung up the phone.  She comes over to me and says  "Ok, well here is the deal.  This is completely the bank's fault.  The lady I just spoke with assured me that they are going to remove the over draft fees just as soon as they can..."  She was speaking in a tone that said 'good news and bad news'.  So I asked "when is that".  Well, with this being the weekend, they cannot do much until Monday.  However, they are going to program it in the computer that on Monday these fees are just going to drop off your account.  Until then, it'll still show a negative balance but once all the pending items are processed, those fees drop off ... then your account will be correct again.  "Really"?

I'm standing there with my mouth hung half open, trying to process all of this, doing the math in the back of my brain about the amount of hours I will be without a dime until the computer error resets itself sometime on Monday.  Finally I ask "so this means I won't be able to use my card for the entire weekend"?  The lady gives me the sad "sorry your dog just died face" and says "yes, I'm afraid so.  There is nothing they can do to fix this any sooner.  I asked her numerous times."  Uhm... ok!?!

Needless to say, suddenly I'm a little upset at my high tech banking.  I keep thinking if only I had just kept the cash back then I wouldn't be so antsy for this problem to work out.  And of course, now is the time that the urge to eat pizza or at a Red Robin hits me.  I'm unsure what is worse, not having money or having it but not being allowed to use it.

Yes, it is Monday and things should be fixed... but after having checked my account online at 1 pm and things are still "Processing" on my account with fees still waiting as well, I am a mess with what to do.  I am trying to remain patient but as my hunger urges are getting worse, my patients is wearing thin.

This entire mess is really making me rethink my position on computers.  I am unsure if being so high tech that they can take away every penny I have with a "glitch" is really a good idea now.

Think about it.

Google: Taking over the world (in a good way)

Dear Google,

I want to come work for you.  I caught a glimpse of a program on the Green channel or one of the discovery channels just a few days past about renewable resources and how things are changing for the better in many places.  The program interviewed Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (he just earned my vote) about his stance on the issue of the amount of vehicles and pollution in his great state of California.  The Governor laid out a plan that he has been working on to convince people to trade in their gas guzzling autos for better alternatives, such as Hybrid vehicles.  The program really touched on everything in terms of how to reduce our carbon footprints in a big way and make our world a better place for our children and their children.

The best part of the program was the part that went into detail about Google.  Little did I know, the Google headquarters in Mountain View, CA is the largest solar power system constructed on a U.S. corporate campus and one of the largest on any corporate site in the world.  Way to go Google!  Google has initiated a better way of living for all of it's employees with corporate cars that are all electric hybrid or completely electric cars.  These electric cars are parked in a solar car port where they are plugged in and left to charge throughout the work day and when employees are finished for the day, they simply unplug and away they go.  It's AMAZING!  I'm in love!


I decided to do a little research and stumbled upon this video, check it out!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YGqY5vmEcg&feature=player_embedded
The video is obviously made by an employee (who I'd love to work with, *wink*) who loves her job as much as I would if I worked for Google, because they are so environmentally conscious and responsible.  Yay Google!  In the video, the girl talks about how there are bikes that she can ride from one building to another (and during the warm California weather, who wouldn't) for meetings and whatnot.  The Cafes' on the campus of her work are all environmentally conscious as well, how freaking amazing is that?  I'm drooling.  ;)


On the Google Wikipedia site it states that in 2009 Google announced it was going to release a herd of goats to keep the grass of the complex nice and trimmed to help reduce the risk of wildfires and the pollution of the gas from mowers.  Seriously, what do I have to do to get a job with Google?  That is a wonderful idea... Google people are so smart.  Google literally gives their employees time to work on things that inspire them, their own personal fun projects.  Perhaps you are familiar with Gmail?  Gmail was a "fun project" that just so happened to help Google out tremendously... so, why aren't other companies catching on?


Why does it seem that Google is so far advanced as a company in terms of keeping employees happy and helping out the environment?  I am suddenly happier to be a proud user of Google Chrome (and gmail).  I look forward to many more years of Google leading the way in innovations not only in the technology of computers but in the fight to make our world a better and cleaner place to live.  One day, Google will rule the world... they are already king in my heart.  :)


Google is awesome!  Think about it.

The Happening (Well it will be, very soon!)

So here is what is going on in my life right now... I'm writing a blog.  I'm excited about writing this, it's my way of standing on the front of the ship and screaming "I'M THE KING OF THE WORLD!"  

Since I originally started this blog for my sister (you know I love you & Congratulations on your marriage once again), this post is directed at her and the rest of my family that is too busy to keep up with me in person (aka phone, although with the 2 hour time difference I understand and please no more texts at 6am my time) or via Facebook or Myspace.  :p  haha

As of late, I've been going through quite an ordeal of stress that was typically attributed to my horrible part-time retail management position at the local mall.  The stressful situation came to a boiling point just before my recent trip to be in the above mentioned wedding.  (I didn't say much while in town because who am I to take the spotlight off the beauty of two people who will actually stay in a marriage?)  So... I've already done the venting about this particular situation to my mother and to my diary.  It's out and done.  However, what I failed to mention to my venting sources is that I intended to DO something about the stress.  

With a little push from one of my roommates, I was encouraged to look into going back to college for the Fall Semester.  Having just done my taxes and having that information in hand made the FAFSA all that much easier to complete.  After talking to Roomie who has been and done all this, I was feeling anxious and excited (little did I know what was to come).

FAFSA information was sent to my e-mail in as little as 2 days and the GREAT news is that I am HIGHLY qualified to attend college with full financial support from grants.  Yay for our government!  Roomie adds "good thing you are over 24 so you no longer need parent financial information".  Yeah, thanks for reminding me of that... 

So now I'm doing the math, literally.  I graduated in 2001 from high school.  I'm just now starting college (damn that procrastinating teenaged mentality of mine)!  I'm inches away from my 10 year high school reunion and sweating about trying to remember all the ins and outs of school again.  Not only that, (as I reminded my best friend today) now when asked to hang out after school, my immediate response will be "how old are you"? 

The upside of being asked out by an Eighteen or Nineteen year old is that it makes you feel young(?) perhaps, but it has this strange way of making you feel old as well.  :(  If you don't believe me, picture this.  You are 18 or 19, see me (I'm not bad looking in my opinion) and ask me out... I say "really?  I'm almost 30 years old, and you're too little to even dream of being able to buy drinks."  :(  See?  Now I'm an old lady.  Bleh!

The BEST part of my story is this:  I am going back to school.  I am going to succeed at accomplishing my dreams in life and I'm going to do it with government help since I deserve it!  :)  (Trust me, I truly do with all I've been through if you don't know me.)

AND... because I learned how to pinch even the thinnest pennies thanks to my mom being the single parent equivalent of Super(wo)Man, I should be fine to do it full-time and no longer need my crummy, stressful, piece of... work, job!  :)

Not only that, but I have a plan.  I have my future all mapped out, already.  (I've had 10 years to daydream and fantasize about what I wanted to be when I finally decided to grow up.)  I'm getting my Associates at Community College (laugh all you want, I'm going for free!) The college I'm going to has a program that will transfer to my nearby state school (Arizona State) and there I can accomplish obtaining my BA in Education.  

Arizona has this silly rule about needing your AA before you substitute teach or become a teacher's aide, so I can be teaching my way through my BA if need be... and since State School will be more expensive, the need may indeed be there.  :)  However, I still don't see this as a bad thing.  

I am thoroughly excited, filled with pride and this indescribable energy that I never knew I had to succeed and accomplish something that I've been wanting for so long now.  I can't help but see this as the best step forward I have ever made.  

The bad news is, classes don't start for another 3 months (more math) which means I'm stuck putting up with my current stress and wages until then, but with a smile on my face at what will be coming up in no time... surely extending the time I wanted to work there won't seem too bad. 

And of course, after taking re-entry exams today and testing out of reading courses, I'm even more excited.  When the lady at the testing facility handed me my results and said "you tested exempt for reading courses", I think I nearly choked.  Not that I doubted my reading ability, but after nearly 10 years, it's nice to feel smart even if only for brief seconds.  :)

So that is what is going on in my life.  Now it's out there for everyone to know... and suddenly I am the (unofficial) spokesperson for continuing education.  Don't believe me, ask my 15 year old sister who got an ear full today about how important it is that she NOT "take a year off".  My big sister words of wisdom were "If I can do it, you can do it... and I AM doing it"!  

I suspect my little sister may grow to dislike phone conversations with me over the next few years while I am "doing it", she seemed to not want to discuss it at all today.  I suspect it will only get worse the older and "wiser" she thinks she is.  :)

In closing, remember, "If I can do it, you can do it".  Think about it.

Amazing Inventions! (Now we're talking!)

Ok, check this out!  OMG, Totally Awesome, huh?  Looks like a normal plastic cup but it's actually made out of corn!  Yep, like popCorn, Corn-on-the-cob, CORN!  Yay Corn!

So not only is this cup (non-edible by the way at least I'm pretty sure as of yet), recycle-able, it's also biodegradable!  Which means, if some jerk tosses it out his window while driving down a back country road, it's okay, this cup is safe for the environment and when our kid's kids decide to dig up that part of the country road, they won't find a plastic cup buried under the ages of dirt, rather they may find a nice tree that was fertilized by the cup while it disintegrated and released only good things (corn bi-products, I'm sure) into the soil.

Ok, last word about the Corn Cups.  Just IMAGINE if every place switched to these amazing cups rather than using plastic.  I'm freaking excited about the possibilities!

Speaking of possibilities, now that we know Corn can be used to make things like alternative plastics how about we try something a little tougher...

Introducing the Ford Model U.  It's only a concept car as far as I've read (introduced in 2003), however it is AMAZING!  You may not believe me now, but hold on to your pants, cause here I go on my eco-loving rant of why this car is a hippies dream come true (if it makes it past concept and into mass production).  

My boyfriend actually was the one that told me about this car, so big smooches go out to him for sharing this information and getting me super excited enough to do the research about it.  :)

As I was saying, YES this car is eco-friendly.  Mostly made up of plant bi-products, believe it or not (I feel like I could be on Ripley's as much as I'm saying that, but this is seriously incredible new technology I'm talking about)!

The Goodyear produced tires are made out of a corn based materials (again Yay Corn), along with the canvas roof of the vehicle and the carpet floor mats... can I get a double yay corn?!  :)

"The tailgate and side panels are made from soy-based resins. Soy is also the secret ingredient in the foam for the seats. And, the University of Northern Iowa, whom one may associate with corn, actually came up with a soy-based grease for the vehicle and Shell Global produced the vehicles' oil from sunflower seeds." -- www.hydrogencarsnow.com

So this car is biodegradable as well!  (According to the above stated website.)  That doesn't necessarily mean that your car will break down on you over time while you are using it, what it DOES mean is that if your car ends up on bricks for years and years down the road, or in a landfill someday, or a vehicle graveyard then it would eventually break down and return to the earth as soil enriching properties.  OMG Yay Ford!  So now we don't have the issue of more rust from older cars breaking down and leaking into our ground water or the old metal there to possibly hurt someone who is out mowing or something (yeah, I'm reaching, but you get the point).

Now the kicker as to why EVERYONE will have to own this vehicle... (excited yet?)

 "The Model U uses a 2.3-liter, I-4 engine, the same as the Ford Ranger of that year, only modified to run on hydrogen gas. The engine is supercharged and super-cooled and rated at 151 hp. The Ford Model U is able to achieve gas mileage of 45 MPGe (miles per gallon equivalent) and has a range of 300 miles." -- www.hydrogencarsnow.com

 So it burns cleaner, no gas fumes, no pollution!  Hydrogen only emits water vapor (I've heard), again I'm a total woman when it comes to this part of vehicles (which is why I choose to copy and paste from my sources).  :)

Now 300 miles to a full tank of gas may not be ideal for some people, but it's a cleaner way to travel for sure!  I am literally blown away at how advanced we have come with technology... especially when I discovered that this car was introduced in 2003, and now when everyone is lining up for the next new hybrid I say, it's time to make this concept a reality!  Not only is this car probably WAY better in so many ways from the Prius or even the new Ford Fusion hybrid, it's also quite stylish in Honda CRV (small SUV) meets Hummer (boxy SUV) sort of way!  I'm sure we could even find a eco-friendly paint for this little baby to make it a little more eye catching.  ;)

I'm about to contact Ford and suggest they move toward production rather than leaving the Model U a concept.  I suggest everyone else do the same, let's start a movement for cleaner, greener vehicles!  :)

Yay Kansas!

Growing up in Kansas, was not necessarily my idea of fun times, however, compared to where I call my hometown a farm in an even smaller town of Oklahoma, Kansas had it's bonuses for sure.  It was nice to have a mall nearby to torment during those teen years.  It was nice to have a movie theater close by in Kansas as well.  Compared to the 30 min or more drive that would be necessary to even find a Wal-Mart in my hometown.

During my high school years, I kept making a promise to myself (like all children of a small town) that I would one day move away and not look back.  I was determined to "Get the heck out of Dodge" as they say.  I was sure that the size of the town, the lack of opportunities, the gossip of the people there, the general small stuffy feeling was what was keeping me unhappy.  Come to find out years later, it doesn't really matter where you live, you can be happy or unhappy anywhere.  Happiness is what you make of it.

However, I have still felt that pulling teeth was what it would take to get me to move back.  There is truly nothing in Kansas for me now, just memories of the past which isn't what I necessarily want to keep re-living.  There is this one thing, that has brought the thought of moving back to my mind... This one thing that has made me think that maybe living and raising my children (someday) in Kansas wouldn't be such a bad idea.

What's this phenomenal one thing?  Greensburg, Kansas!  Here's the story (which you can read by clicking the link for more accurate detail), in 2007 a tornado tears up quite literally all of the town (95% per article).  The town (with funding) decides to rebuild in a better, more futuristic-ly focused way, they GO GREEN!  YAY KANSAS!

 

Greensburg, Kansas is the first official Green town in Kansas, and one of the first in the US to start this new trend of building all their buildings in a greener, less detrimental way to the environment.  So maybe this statement will make me seem really country, but even the John Deere Store in Greensburg is wind powered!  :)  It makes me happy to think that people are finally paying attention and trying to change the way we do things to make this world a better place, one thing at a time to make a bigger difference in the long run.

Not only has the rebuilding of the town gotten a lot of media hype and it's own reality show on a sister channel of Discovery with Leonardo DiCaprio as the Executive Producer, it's also creating more green jobs, which promotes the greener way of living.  By one town in the middle of nowhere (essentially) going green, they have literally caused a movement, opened the eyes of millions and gotten me to seriously thinking about moving back to Kansas, if only to live in one of the new green homes in Greensburg and work one of the new green jobs there as well.

Not saying I will move back, but it's definitely got me to thinking that Kansas might not be so bad after all.  As for now, perhaps other towns nearer to me will become greener and convince me to stay away from Kansas. ;)  I feel it is absolutely necessary for me to post this article however, if only to say "YAY KANSAS!"  I am thrilled at this movement, because I feel it is in the correct direction.  Yay Kansas!  Think about it.

Organic (the best way to be)

Organic eating is truly the way to go.  Perhaps that's hard to believe, but if you look at all the statistics, I believe you'd change your mind just the way I did.  

Here lately, I've really gotten into food.  I've always been intrigued with eating healthy and living healthier.  I am quite the hippie for those who don't truly know me.  I'm all about going green and reducing my carbon footprint in any way possible.  I enjoy researching new ways to better the environment in any way... and of course better myself at the same time.

At some point my boyfriend and I started doing a lot of research on the best way to eat.  We looked into everything from being Vegetarian to Vegan to... well everything, but the best way we found was to Eat Clean!  With eating clean, you are eating food in it's purest form, Organic foods are best!  

Did you know that Dairy Cows are fed and injected with an overabundance of vitamins and hormones?  Sure feeding cows (that feed us), vitamins seems like a good idea, but too many vitamins can kill you... ever read the warning label on vitamins?  How about these hormones they feed the cows?  Any woman who has given birth knows that at some point the milk dries up... well think about that the next time you buy a gallon.  Non-Organic dairy farms feed their cows hormones to keep them producing milk.  Know how the news and doctors are always warning women that are pregnant to be weary what they put into their bodies because it goes straight to their unborn or nursing child... get the idea?  The things they are injecting and feeding to these cows are coming directly to us the consumer who is like the nursing infant, if you will.

So why is Organic food more expensive if it's all natural?  It takes more cows to produce the same amount of product if they aren't being fed these unhealthy chemicals.  Plus... there is the money game behind everything.  You can literally find a guy in a suit behind any product these days... a guy who most likely doesn't truly care about the product further than it making him more and more money.  Ok, so eating organic may be a little more expensive, but think of all the money you will save in doctor bills for unexplained pains or cramps or other unexplainable illnesses, even the most common colds could be attributed to not eating healthy or maintaining a healthy lifestyle.  

Now that you may be convinced to drink organic milk... time for me to bring up the fact that most of the things we eat, especially for breakfast contain eggs... Know what an egg is?  An egg (gross as it may seem) is a chickens menstrual cycle.  (Yes I am totally evil snickering at the thought of readers gasping at that.)  But realistically, it is true.  So... why do you think chickens lay so many eggs?  More unnatural hormones maybe? And what about if we feed chickens genetically altered food to help them produce a "vitamin enriched" egg?  Well... needless to say the best way to eat eggs is from cage free, natural fed chickens who aren't fed anything other than maybe a corn or maze meal (I grew up on a farm, if I know anything it is chickens).  :)

Ok, now that we've covered dairy products and eggs, let's move on to another breakfast favorite... Sausage?  Bacon, anyone?  Yep, even pork can be tainted.  :(  Just think of how you get a pig to grow bigger, faster... hormones, steroids?  Just saying... you may want to rethink that entire plate of food you are feeding not only yourself but your children.  

Not just Cows, Chickens, and Pigs... think about the bigger picture.  Anything you eat can and possibly has been altered in some way to help someone somewhere make more money by producing a bigger, "better" product in a faster time period and in mass quantities for mass distribution.  

So, now we realize that eating organic doesn't just mean eating more fruits and veggies... however Organic fruits and veggies are also better because the growing of them doesn't involve any chemicals or pesticides.  If pesticides can kill bugs (and birds), just imagine what they could be doing to your digestive tract.  :(  

Convinced?  How about some fun facts:

• According to Science News, 80 percent of all U.S. feedlot cattle are injected with hormones.
• A study of cows treated with melengestrol acetate (one of the artificial growth hormones approved for use in the U.S.) revealed that residues of this hormone were traceable in soil up to 195 days after being administered to the animals.
• While the average dairy cow produced almost 5,300 pounds of milk a year in 1950, today, a typical cow produces more than 18,000 pounds. 
• It is estimated that about 672 million birds are affected by large amount of pesticides used on US agricultural farms and 10% of these are killed due to these pesticides.
• More than 20,000 pesticides are registered for use in the United States. About 75% of the chemicals, some 2.2 billion pounds annually, are used on more than 900,000 US farms at an annual cost of about $8.3 billion, according to the Pesticide Action Network. Pesticide sales have increased more than 2,700% since 1962 and US users now account for one-third of the world pesticide market.
• NBC News recently reported that 9000 people die each year in the US due to food related illness. Our exposure to man-made chemicals in the food we eat is suspected of being a major factor in today's increased risk to cancer.

If everyone started eating Organic foods only, then maybe all the producers would start switching their practices and we probably wouldn't have to worry so much about the price of Organic eating being more expensive anymore.  

Eating healthy is obviously a good move regardless your age, now you know.  Don't believe me, research it.  Think about it.