Nope…don’t like foam.

I don’t like Styrofoam. Never really realized why until today.

 

I read this article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about using Styrofoam to fill in an underground tunnel in downtown St. Louis. The foam will not expand sideways and crumble antiquated buildings’ basement walls. I wasn’t satisfied with the article’s explanation of environmental concerns and the fact that the paper’s misleading use of the term “green” in the photo accompanying the online story (no image in print).

 

So, I looked into it.

 

Here is just a bit of what I found: 

 

Polystyrene (aka Styrofoam):

Is made of nasty chemicals (aka. bad for the workers making it, the area in which it is made)

It leaches these chemicals that can cause health problems to the consumer

It is not a “closed loop” recyclable product (A foam cup doesn’t become another. It goes into something else, and new foam must be made for more cups.) 

I got all of this from here. Check it out for more info. 

 

I would like to know if the foam will be “recycled,” and if they are doing anything to protect the foam from leaching! Ahhhhh, right into the Mississippi! 

 

On another note, also in this article from the Post, funding for this and other road projects is coming mostly from the stimulus package. There are a ton of bus stops in my neighborhood (most, in fact) that are closed for lack of funding. Why are we relying more and more on the automobile? (Also on the front page today: biofuel.) 

Final irony: the tunnel they are filling in with foam was once used for passenger trains. There was a tunnel under the Mississippi River to Illinois!!!! Runs were suspended in favor of the automobile.

I’m In!

I attempted to get a library card the first week I arrived in St. Louis in a desperate attempt to use their Internet. I was turned away because I didn’t have any proof of my new address . Fortunately, my birthday came and my loved ones sent me cards (proof that I exist in St. Louis)! That was a few weeks ago, and we got Internet soon after…today, I finally got around to going back to get my card. 

I’m in with the in crowd now! Well, me and the bum napping in the periodicals section are! I spent a few hours out of the house working at the library. It was a nice change of pace. 

I also checked out the dvd selection. I’m not about to go to Blockbuster to spend a ton of cash on renting movies and I don’t want to feel obligated to watch movies becaues I have a Netflix subscription, so FREE movies it is! I got a couple yoga dvds and parts of the series Freaks and Geeks! (note: the St. Louis library does NOT rent out whole seasons, each disc is rented seperately…I know, LAME…I was spoiled at the Barrington Library!) 

I’m excited to use my card now and visit the other branches. Hopefully, there’s a branch with a larger dvd selection…I will have to do some exploring! Plus, I’m going to be able to request materials! YIPPIE! I already have a list of books and other things in mind! Catalogue search…here I come!

Romance is in the Air

I just finished my second project for Purple Sheet Publishing. It’s always a relief to hit send and shoot off an assignment into someone else’s hands. For two weeks, the project looms over my head. Then, in an instant, it’s gone. Now, I wait for payment and hopefully, another assignment. 

Romance novels are not something I ever thought I would be writing. In journalism school and in all my time as a magazine writer, I’ve been looking for facts, checking with a source to fill in any blanks. With fiction, I get to make it up as I go along. I have some guidelines, but it’s mostly up to me what my characters look like, do and say. It’s freeing but also trying at times. 

As I continue to write about love and lust, I sometimes wish I could ask these imaginary people what they’re really thinking and feeling. Often times, these characters are in situations I’ve never been in, nor do I ever wish to be in. I get most of my inspiration and ideas from the movies! And, most of the times, I feel like I’m being totally cliche.

I guess I let these feelings role though. After all, this isn’t the type of writing I’d set out for. It’s paying the bills though!

I’ve still got some “real” journalistic projects underway. It’s nice to escape to my fantasy land after writing about health crisis around the world. But, I am conflicted because I find more reward in the true stories.

Still, I’d like to be more sleuthy…get the scoop. For now, though, romance is a money maker, so I’m going with it!