Lesson 01 | Throw a Party for the Planet by Andrea J. Lee

Issue #01

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Is it really possible to have loads of fun, and help the planet at the same time?

Really??

Welcome to the first issue of Joy to the Planet, the weekly e-course on how to enjoy life AND help the planet. I'm thrilled you've decided to join the fun! My name is Andrea and I'm looking forward to exploring and affirming with you the answer to the above question, and that is a resounding "YES!"

Let's start out with a bang shall we?

Throw a party for the planet!

Yep, you heard me right!

But not just any party. Nope. Throw a No-heat party!

I remember the first No-heat party I went to. It was on the coldest night of winter that year, according to the Farmer's Almanac. I know, because the hosts actually bragged about it to us...

You see, even though It was a @#$% cold minus 40 degrees outside, that party had the windows of the house completely fogged up from our body heat, all night long.

The hosts were thrilled, because they'd managed to turn DOWN the thermostat for the very coldest night of the entire year. (This was the kind of thing they got their jollies on. I know. I can relate.)

In fact, what really made me stop and think was that I found out later...they didn't have to heat that place for the ENTIRE next day. I guess it didn't hurt that they'd jammed us in like sardines and we were quite the rowdy bunch. Giggle.

But as Item #1 on our list of 88 things we can do to enjoy life and help the planet, I think you take the point...throwing a No-heat party is pretty simple! Here's what you do:

	Invite a bunch of people over. Friends, coworkers, family, or a combination works too.
	Turn DOWN, or OFF, your thermostat an hour before everyone arrives.
	Enjoy the party. (If you've invited enough people, it will be a nice warm one.)
	Warm it up even more by turning up the music and dancing off that food.
	Thank everyone for their body heat contribution (or don't, if you're shy) and hit the sack happy, knowing you've done a cool thing for the planet AND had a great time.

Easy right?

You're absolutely right.

And what you'll have had there, is your very first green, no-heat party. Congratulations! I hope it's the first of many, many more.

Now of course, there are lots of other things you can do to green your party, in addition to turning down the heat. We'll get into some of those throughout this course. But that's really all there is to it. Turning down your thermostat just the one or two nights a month or so, when you're entertaining, is a mindless, simple and FABULOUS way to help the planet. Heck, you may even want to throw more parties so you can do it more often! Just be sure you're fair about it and go warm up your friends' houses once in a while too.

Turning down your thermostat when you're entertaining is a simple way to help the planet, and have fun doing it.

In fact...was that too easy? I bet it may have been. Well...let's see what else we might do while we're having a party, to help green it up shall we?

Ah...how about a food and music tip for your no-heat party? Right, let's talk about something to eat first...

Aren't they gorgeous? They look like colorful potato chips right?

Well, they are, sorta...these are called terra chips and they're actually a mix of root vegetables, including taro, sweet potato, yuca, batata and parsnip, all relatives of the potato, and naturally very nice and flavorful.

Serving natural snacks like terra chips are a fun way to liven up a party...and it ALSO helps the planet!

You see, terra chips are completely natural with no artificial colors, preservatives, flavorings or bad oils. (They're also kosher certified.) In other words, no chemicals...yum!

To order, try one of these:

	Go to http://www.terrachips.com and click 'place an order online.'
	Make a trip to your local natural food store. If you're not sure where one is, try these options to find an address near you:
	http://www.teldir.com/eng (all addresses, all over the world) http://www.greenpeople.org/healthfood.htm (US addresses) http://www.yellowpages.ca (Canadian addresses)
	Or, give your regular grocery store a try. Natural snacks are gaining popularity and you might just find them there. (Oh yes, in case you're wondering, I have NO ulterior motive for talking about terra chips; I just like 'em, and hope you do too...)
	Last step? ...be sure to share! These chips are too good to stay a secret. Enjoy!

And now for a quick last tip for this week, a great music website to make your no-heat party swing: www.Putumayo.com. Putumayo CDs are a really neat way to get to know the music of other cultures. And because part of your money goes towards building sustainable economies around the world, this really is a feel good purchase. 'Islands' pictured below, is on my wish list for Christmas this year...

Based on the clips I've heard so far, I just know it'll warm up the no-heat parties around my place...heck, that's almost every night! In fact, I challenge ANY of you to stay still when you listen to it! Sample for yourself and see, at this link: http://www.putumayo.com/cd_global/islands.html

Put on some music from Putumayo and help the planet through your ears as well!

Well, that's all for this week. There are just SO many things to do that are fun, AND helpful to the planet, but I'll just have to hold back until next week. Can you tell I'm looking forward to it? Until then, I hope you enjoy planning a no-heat party complete with music and snacks real soon.

Oh, and when you do? I'd love to hear about it! Drop me a line at andrea@joytotheplanet.com. Same goes if you have any questions or just want to talk back with thoughts of your own about this issue. I look forward to hearing from you...

Signing off to enjoy life and help the planet...what about you?

Best to you,

Andrea Lee
andrea@joytotheplanet.com