Gilbert Green

GREEN with ENVY

2012-02-04T20:34:00.000-08:00

I took the little boys and Jackie O for a walk this afternoon (I think it was 75 degrees out this gorgeous February day btw) and as we rounded the corner of our Court, we saw our neighbor, Kurt and his grandson and dog, Muggsy heading out in the old truck. I'm pretty sure even Gilbert Green himself would be envious of this LOAD of recycled stash... hope they came back with some decent cash!

Gilbert Green celebrates Earth Day with MeandMineMagazine!

2011-04-22T14:16:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of chatting with Jen Traynham , the editor of MeandMineMagazine.com about my book, Gilbert Green and our little exchange is being featured on their blog today - EARTH DAY 2011 along with a Gilbert Green giveaway! Visit MeandMineMagazine.com today and enter to win a signed copy of Gilbert Green!

I'm thrilled to join forces with MeandMineMagazine and solute their spirit today and everyday!

Happy Earth Day!

2011-04-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

In honor of Earth Day 2011, let's switch it up and have a "Meat Free Friday!" This is a no-brainer for those of us who like to consider ourselves good Catholics, as it just happens to be Good Friday as well, the last Friday of Lent!

Regardless, here are the facts presented by Paul McCartney and the story about Meat Free Monday. In 2006, the United Nations issued a report which stated that the livestock industry as a whole was responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than the whole of the transport sector put together.

I found this interesting particularly because people at the UN are not a vegetarian society and therefore, could not be accused of bias. They pointed out the following facts:

* The Livestock industry produces gases that are extremely dangerous for the future of our environment.
* The two main gases, methane and nitrous oxide, are considered to be more harmful than CO2 (methane is 21 times more powerful than CO2 and nitrous oxide is 310 times more powerful than CO2) so the data suggests that this is causing a highly dangerous situation for ourselves and, more importantly, for future generations.
* Methane also remains in the atmosphere for 9 to 15 years; nitrous oxide remains in the atmosphere for 114 years, on average, and is 296 times more potent than CO2 - the gases released today will continue to be active in degrading the climate decades from now.
* Livestock production is land intensive: a recent report by Greenpeace on land use in the largest meat producing state in Brazil found that livestock (cattle) production was responsible for vastly more deforestation than soya.
* A third of all cereal crops, and well over 90% of soya, goes into animal feed, not food for humans. Eating less meat will free up a lot of agricultural land which can revert to growing trees and other vegetation, which, in turn, will absorb more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
* Livestock production is water intensive: it accounts for around 8% of global human water use. The estimated 634 gallons of fresh water required to produce one 5.2 ounce (150g) beef burger would be enough for a four-hour shower. For comparison, the same quantity of tofu requires 143 gallons of water to produce.
* Livestock production is the largest source of water pollutants, principally animal wastes, antibiotics, hormones, chemicals from tanneries, fertilizers and pesticides used for feed crops, and sediments from eroded pastures.
* The meat industry is set to double its production by 2050 so even if they manage to lower emissions by 50%, as they have promised to, we will still be in the same position.

With this in mind, my family and I launched Meat Free Monday in the UK, an idea which has been gaining support from people like Tom Parker-Bowles who, after a lifetime of denigrating vegetarians, recently wrote in his Daily Mail column, “I wince at the memory of my boorish antics” and who pronounced himself “intrigued” by MFM: “There’s no doubting the plain common sense of the message…Meat Free Monday is something to really savour”. Another supporter is Al Gore who stated that initiatives like Meat Free Monday “represent a responsible and welcome component of a comprehensive strategy for reducing global warming pollution and simultaneously improving human health."

Even a number of schools have already done this in the UK with great success. The town of Ghent in Belgium has a meat free day and, amazingly, Sao Paulo has one even though Brazil is a large exporter of meat. In Sweden, the government is now labeling food to give the consumer the opportunity to understand the dangers of indiscriminate food consumption and there are many more examples appearing online.

The point is that so many people these days are looking for ways to “do their bit” for the environment. We recycle - something we never would have dreamt of doing in the past. Many people now drive hybrid cars but most people understand that we cannot leave this important issue to the politicians of the world. Recently, at the Copenhagen Conference for Climate Change, this issue was not even on the agenda and so I believe it is once again left to us, the people, to do it ourselves.

It’s amazingly easy to take one day in your week, Monday or any other day, and not eat meat. When you think about it, there are so many great alternatives, for instance, in Italian cooking, so many of the dishes are vegetarian already and Thai and Chinese cuisine are the same. All it means is that you have to think a bit about what you’ll eat that day but, in actual fact, far from being a chore, it’s a fun challenge.

Having been a vegetarian for over 30 years, I find it very simple and in fact, tasty and most enjoyable.

So there it is! Next Monday - don’t eat meat and do your bit to save this beautiful planet of ours. For more information, ideas and lots of meat free recipes, go to the official Meat Free Monday website.

Rock on ya’ll!

Paul

Vegetarian Fried Rice

Serves 4 - 6

* 4 - 6 asparagus stems
* 450 grams steamed or boiled rice
* 2 egg whites beaten (optional)
* 2 spring onions chopped
* 4 tbsp vegetable oil
* ½ tsp salt

Break off tough stems of the asparagus and chop into 2 cm pieces, rinse. Stir fry in 1 tbsp oil for 1 – 2 minutes, remove from the wok. Add more oil to the wok if necessary and, when hot add the beaten egg whites to form a thin pancake. As soon as the egg is cooked remove from the pan and chop.

Heat 2 – 3 tablespoons of oil in the wok, when hot stir-fry the white part of the spring onion, add the cooked rice and stir over a low heat until the rice is uniformly heated through. Add the asparagus, egg whites and salt and stir and mix all the ingredients together until piping hot.

Compliments of Mr. Chow in London...Enjoy!

Joe Henderson Elementary School's Read Across America GOES GREEN Celebration

2011-03-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure of joining Joe Henderson Elementary School's Read Across America GREEN CELEBRATION on Friday night! Special Thanks to Christi Taylor, Media Specialist -her library rocks and her green spirit is much appreciated!!!!

Thank you to the many participants and their families for letting me share my book with you. The Students at Joe Henderson Elementary KNOW what it means to be truly GREEN and I have no doubt they all do their part to help save the world's natural art! I can't wait to come back soon and share Gilbert Green's next adventure with you all!!!!

Lastly, another special thank you to Richard Flynn for the music!

p.s. Dr. Seuss would be very proud of this group as well, especially proud of those awesome RECYCLED Seuss hats the boys & girls made!!!

Gilbert Green will be featured at Read Across America

2011-02-19T10:32:00.000-08:00

Friday, March 4th from 6:30 - 8:00pm - Joe Henderson Multipurpose Room-
Nikki who is a local author (and Benicia High Alum) will be sharing her book Gilbert Green in two sessions at our Going Green themed Read Across America celebration at Joe Henderson Elementary School in Benicia, California. Each session will be followed by a time for questions, answers, and book signing.

Signed Copies of Gilbert Green NOW AVAILABLE at The Little Seed!

2010-06-01T11:14:00.001-07:00

Get your signed copy of Gilbert Green online at the little seed or better yet, go visit them on N. Larchmont Blvd in Los Angeles!!! Tree hugging with style and worth your time I promise, this earth-friendly baby store has been our favorite spot to shop for a few years! Check out their Feature Friday Blog too! Thanks Little Seed!

2010-05-15T17:10:00.000-07:00

On Earth Day's 40th Anniversary, I had the pleasure of sitting in the BIG RED CHAIR and reading Gilbert Green to a very special audience. The Madison Square Boys & Girls Club's Big Red Chair Goes Green campaign was even highlighted on Channel 6 the local evening news. I feel very fortunate to have been able to be a part of their Earth Day 2010! The Kids got a kick out of Gilbert Green and asked a lot of questions and confirmed that they do indeed want to be truly GREEN! Their spirits are inspiring and their knowledge encouraging, they want to help clean up our Earth and they have already started the process by recycling in their world just like Gilbert Green! The Brooklyn Boys & Girls challenge YOU to do the same!

Order your signed copy of Gilbert Green through Google Checkout today and help spread the g love!

Gilbert Green is nyc bound for Earth Day New York 2010!

2010-04-10T20:44:00.000-07:00

I'm going to sit in the BIG RED CHAIR (which is going green for EDNY week) and read Gilbert Green to a very special audience, the Madison Square Boys & Girls Club. What an honor this will be!

be the E "...be the change you want to see in the world." -Mahatma Gandhi

Order your signed copy of Gilbert Green through Google checkout to help celebrate Earth Day's 40th Anniversary on April 22, 2010. To insure delivery before April 22nd, please order by April 15th!!! Uncle Sam WANTS YOU to!

Please write a review of Gilbert Green on your fave online retailer!

2010-02-24T10:31:00.000-08:00

The 40th Anniversary of Earth Day is coming... Thursday, April 22nd... and Gilbert would really appreciate it if you would be kind enough to take a minute and write a quick review on your favorite online retailer so his green spirit can be shared with more!
Please help spread the "g love"!!!

Meat Free Mondays!

2010-02-05T10:08:00.000-08:00

I am not a vegetarian, but when I heard about “Meat Free Monday,” I was intrigued. I hadn't thought about the environmental impact of raising livestock. Below are the facts presented by Paul McCartney.

It will be Chinese take-out for the Gilberts this Monday, fried rice is about the only thing I can stomach at the moment anyway! Sure wish we lived near Mr. Chow or wish I had the energy to cook their Vegetarian Fried Rice, maybe in my second trimester! (See below for recipe.) Cheers, NMG

Ok, here’s the story on Meat Free Monday. In 2006, the United Nations issued a report which stated that the livestock industry as a whole was responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than the whole of the transport sector put together.

I found this interesting particularly because people at the UN are not a vegetarian society and therefore, could not be accused of bias. They pointed out the following facts:

* The Livestock industry produces gases that are extremely dangerous for the future of our environment.
* The two main gases, methane and nitrous oxide, are considered to be more harmful than CO2 (methane is 21 times more powerful than CO2 and nitrous oxide is 310 times more powerful than CO2) so the data suggests that this is causing a highly dangerous situation for ourselves and, more importantly, for future generations.
* Methane also remains in the atmosphere for 9 to 15 years; nitrous oxide remains in the atmosphere for 114 years, on average, and is 296 times more potent than CO2 - the gases released today will continue to be active in degrading the climate decades from now.
* Livestock production is land intensive: a recent report by Greenpeace on land use in the largest meat producing state in Brazil found that livestock (cattle) production was responsible for vastly more deforestation than soya.
* A third of all cereal crops, and well over 90% of soya, goes into animal feed, not food for humans. Eating less meat will free up a lot of agricultural land which can revert to growing trees and other vegetation, which, in turn, will absorb more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
* Livestock production is water intensive: it accounts for around 8% of global human water use. The estimated 634 gallons of fresh water required to produce one 5.2 ounce (150g) beef burger would be enough for a four-hour shower. For comparison, the same quantity of tofu requires 143 gallons of water to produce.
* Livestock production is the largest source of water pollutants, principally animal wastes, antibiotics, hormones, chemicals from tanneries, fertilizers and pesticides used for feed crops, and sediments from eroded pastures.
* The meat industry is set to double its production by 2050 so even if they manage to lower emissions by 50%, as they have promised to, we will still be in the same position.

With this in mind, my family and I launched Meat Free Monday in the UK, an idea which has been gaining support from people like Tom Parker-Bowles who, after a lifetime of denigrating vegetarians, recently wrote in his Daily Mail column, “I wince at the memory of my boorish antics” and who pronounced himself “intrigued” by MFM: “There’s no doubting the plain common sense of the message…Meat Free Monday is something to really savour”. Another supporter is Al Gore who stated that initiatives like Meat Free Monday “represent a responsible and welcome component of a comprehensive strategy for reducing global warming pollution and simultaneously improving human health."

Even a number of schools have already done this in the UK with great success. The town of Ghent in Belgium has a meat free day and, amazingly, Sao Paulo has one even though Brazil is a large exporter of meat. In Sweden, the government is now labeling food to give the consumer the opportunity to understand the dangers of indiscriminate food consumption and there are many more examples appearing online.

The point is that so many people these days are looking for ways to “do their bit” for the environment. We recycle - something we never would have dreamt of doing in the past. Many people now drive hybrid cars but most people understand that we cannot leave this important issue to the politicians of the world. Recently, at the Copenhagen Conference for Climate Change, this issue was not even on the agenda and so I believe it is once again left to us, the people, to do it ourselves.

It’s amazingly easy to take one day in your week, Monday or any other day, and not eat meat. When you think about it, there are so many great alternatives, for instance, in Italian cooking, so many of the dishes are vegetarian already and Thai and Chinese cuisine are the same. All it means is that you have to think a bit about what you’ll eat that day but, in actual fact, far from being a chore, it’s a fun challenge.

Having been a vegetarian for over 30 years, I find it very simple and in fact, tasty and most enjoyable.

So there it is! Next Monday - don’t eat meat and do your bit to save this beautiful planet of ours. For more information, ideas and lots of meat free recipes, go to the official Meat Free Monday website.

Rock on ya’ll!

Paul

Vegetarian Fried Rice

Serves 4 - 6

* 4 - 6 asparagus stems
* 450 grams steamed or boiled rice
* 2 egg whites beaten (optional)
* 2 spring onions chopped
* 4 tbsp vegetable oil
* ½ tsp salt

Break off tough stems of the asparagus and chop into 2 cm pieces, rinse. Stir fry in 1 tbsp oil for 1 – 2 minutes, remove from the wok. Add more oil to the wok if necessary and, when hot add the beaten egg whites to form a thin pancake. As soon as the egg is cooked remove from the pan and chop.

Heat 2 – 3 tablespoons of oil in the wok, when hot stir-fry the white part of the spring onion, add the cooked rice and stir over a low heat until the rice is uniformly heated through. Add the asparagus, egg whites and salt and stir and mix all the ingredients together until piping hot.

Compliments of Mr. Chow in London...Enjoy!

Green Goals for 2010!

2010-01-05T14:04:00.000-08:00

If you enjoyed your copy as much as Georgie did, PLEASE write a review of Gilbert Green by Nikki Murphy Gilbert illustrated by Joe Lee (Paperback - Nov 2, 2009) on your favorite online retailer. Thank you kindly!

NO Pressure, BUT try cooking GREEN in 2010!

2010-01-02T21:27:00.001-08:00

One way to cook green... use a pressure cooker! They are designed to save energy and time, not to mention they lock in vitamins and minerals. Cook Green and stay lean! Consumer Reports names BEST pressure cookers, overall, budget and electric. If you were wondering what to spend your Christmas cash on, now you know! Happy New Year!

Last Minute Green Gift Idea!

2009-12-23T15:12:00.000-08:00

Recipe for "Sunshine Glow" Shannon Rathbun's homemade organic body scrub:
1/2 C Epsom salt
1/2 C organic sugar
1/4 C Sunflower oil (can use organic)
few drops of lavender oil

Give gift in a pretty, reusable jar with a bow. Shannon uses reusable glass shakers from Cost Plus 4/$4.

Viola! Holiday shopping done.

Thanks Sunshine, GILBERT LOVES YOUR SPIRIT!!!

Gigi's Green Gift Bags!

2009-12-15T22:48:00.000-08:00

My mom, aka Georgie's Gigi has gone GREEN with her Holiday wRAP sessions. The woman has always been on top of her recycling (Gilbert Green would be very proud of Gigi!), however she has gone beyond the basics with her creative eco-flair bags this Season. She recently moved from NorCal to SoCal and had to de-clutter her life after 40+ years of being in one place and she ran across a box filled with old holiday cards (we're talking... VINTAGE Holiday Greetings from the 60's and 70's, very cool, anyway, she just couldn't bring herself to throw the entire bag in the RECYCLE, so she decided to REUSE...REGIFT if you will! Recipe for Gigi's Green Gift Bags: Step 1: Take a few old shopping bags (smaller size works best, standard 8.5 X 11 or so) Step 2: Take old holidays cards and cut the cute decorative front off and of course recycle the other half or inside message. Step 3: Glue or tape the card over the retailer logo on the bag and voila you have custom green gift bags. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

SHOP GREEN, SAVE GREEN FOR HOLIDAY GALAS THIS SEASON!

2009-12-09T21:52:00.000-08:00

Adorn in downtown Los Gatos has an amazing selection of vintage, designer, new and consigned dresses (wedding and party) jewelry to die for, handbags, shoes, little gifts (may even be a one stop shop, get a lil' holiday shopping done too!) Check her out!

p.s. Best photog on earth too!

Adorn is located at 33 E Main St, Los Gatos, CA 95030
Tues - Sat from 11-7

Gilbert Green available at Babycoo Boutique in Los Gatos, CA

2009-12-08T16:03:00.000-08:00

Get your signed copy of Gilbert Green at Babycoo an eco & organic baby boutique in Downtown Los Gatos, CA. Vania Hendratna, the owner of this charming spot is environmentally conscious while having wonderful taste and a beautiful green spirit. The murals on the walls are reason enough to stop in! Babycoo has the BEST green products on the market for our babies! Gilbert Green and his family would shop here for sure!
Please visit Babycoo at
140 West Main Street Suite H
(inside Opera House)
Los Gatos, CA 95030

ECO-KID FRIENDLY ORNAMENTS!

2009-12-06T14:05:00.000-08:00

If you are like me and have a little elf running around the house re-arranging the holiday decor, you might appreciate this tip...eco-kid freindly ornaments! Don't even bother unpacking your sacred collection of breakable treasures, reuse some goods around the house and make new ones. Step one: Find some newspaper or a paper bag (you know, the bags you have because you left your reusable bags in the car and were already inside the market and too lazy to go back out to the car in the pouring rain to get them!) Anyway, take your paper and if you have an origami expert husband like I do, put him to work in front of the TV while he watches football and have him begin folding stars or if he is really talented, maybe even doves! Or search YouTube for origami ideas and you will find helpful videos for you and the kids! Step two: Avoid those silly metal ornament hooks, find lose scraps of ribbon or robe around the house and make your own loop and hang on your tree. Step three: Of course just recycle them once the holidays are over!

BOOK SHIPMENT HAS ARRIVED!

2009-11-30T20:13:00.000-08:00

First shipment of pre-orders are on their way!
Order your signed copy of Gilbert Green by DECEMBER 12 to guarantee it finds its way into Santa's reusable sack for an on time delivery before Christmas morning!

Please help spread the Gilbert Green Cheer!
Reviews are WELCOME, especially on Amazon.com
If only my #1 Fan could write up a review... glad he is enjoying his copy nevertheless!!!

Gilbert Green NOW available on Amazon.com

2009-11-18T22:29:00.000-08:00

Gilbert Green by Nikki Murphy Gilbert illustrated by Joe Lee (Paperback - Nov 2, 2009) NOW available on Amazon.com

Limited edition signed copies by the author available through Google checkout, buy now and save a little green!

HOT OFF THE PRESS...

2009-11-12T21:38:00.000-08:00

Gilbert Green by Nikki Murphy Gilbert illustrated by Joe Lee (Paperback - Nov 2, 2009)

Pre-order a limited edition signed copy by the author! Great stocking stuffer and guaranteed to arrive before the Holidays! Buy now through Google Checkout.

GREEN Holiday Ideas...

2009-11-11T12:17:00.000-08:00

Wrap your gifts this Season with recycled newspaper! Grandpa George inspired this Holiday Tradition many years ago. Brett & I began RE-USING the Tradition 8+ years ago and Baby George opened his FIRST Christmas present wrapped in newspaper! Be Green & Save Green!

Stay tuned to meet our Eco Friend, Gilbert Green very soon!

2009-10-29T22:05:00.000-07:00