Think there’s nothing you can do to conserve water in your kitchen in 1 minute?
Starring: Jack Halaby
Written by: Julie Tortorici & Jessica Arinella
Shot, Edited and Directed by: Alicia Arinella
Produced by: On the Leesh Productions
Music by: Banana Whale
What You Can Do Logo Created by: SCG Siddharth Creative Group
Statistical Information provied by: the EPA, www.epa.gov
Additional Footage Provided by: Shutterstock, Inc. Used by Permission
Special Thanks: Dennis Arinella
For more information, please visit – www.whatyoucando365.com
Think there’s nothing you can do to conserve water in your bathroom in 1 minute?
Starring: Julie Tortorici
Written by: Julie Tortorici & Jessica Arinella
Shot, Edited and Directed by: Alicia Arinella
Produced by: On the Leesh Productions
Music by: Banana Whale
What You Can Do Logo Created by: SCG Siddharth Creative Group
Statistical Information provied by: the EPA, www.epa.gov
Additional Footage Provided by: Shutterstock, Inc. Used by Permission
Special Thanks: Dennis Arinella
For more information, please visit – www.whatyoucando365.com
Think there’s nothing you can do to conserve water in your bathroom in 1 minute?
Starring: Matt Wadja
Written by: Julie Tortorici & Jessica Arinella
Shot, Edited and Directed by: Alicia Arinella
Produced by: On the Leesh Productions
Music by: Banana Whale
What You Can Do Logo Created by: SCG Siddharth Creative Group
Statistical Information provied by: the EPA, www.epa.gov
Additional Footage Provided by: Shutterstock, Inc. Used by Permission
Special Thanks: Dennis Arinella
For more information, please visit – www.whatyoucando365.com
Think there’s nothing you can do to conserve water in 1 Minute?
Starring – Mary Kate Funaro, Karen Funaro and Danny Funaro
Written by – Julie Tortorici & Jessica Arinella
Shot, Edited and Directed by – Alicia Arinella
Produced by: On the Leesh Productions
Music by: Banana Whale
What You Can Do Logo Created by: SCG Siddharth Creative Group
Additional Footage Provided by: Shutterstock, Inc. Used by Permission
Statistical Information provided by – The Environmental Protection Agency, www.epa.gov
Special Thanks – Joan Halaby Funaro, Maureen Halaby and Dennis Arinella.
For more information, please visit – www.whatyoucando365.com
To kick of Water Conservation Week, we are featuring a guest blog entry written by Karen T. Hartline.
Enjoy – Potty Mouth
This isn’t the first time that I’ve felt like a big fat dummy, but I would say that this is one of the most memorable ones. While staying with my sister in NYC, we were invited to her very close friend’s place for dinner. As we’re getting ready, my sis turns to me and says, “Hey, you’ll be interested to talk to this guy, because he knows how to make the water go down the toilet without flushing it.” Okay… So after everyone scrapes the last of this delicious meal off the plate, I turn to the husband and say, “Hey… can you tell me about how you flush the toilet?” I should mention I had spent the evening up to this point making normal dinner-conversation to build everyone’s confidence in me as a completely non-psychotic houseguest, which may be the only reason that that this guy graciously let me follow him into his bathroom to demonstrate how to flush the toilet without, uh… well, flushing the toilet.
Here’s the answer – get a pad an paper and write this down: pour water in the bowl.
Am I the only one that didn’t know that if you pour a gob of water in the toilet bowl that the toilet will flush itself in order to not overflow? Am I? Come on, I can’t be. Anyway, I looked at this guy the way the Munchkins looked at Dorothy when she dropped her house on the Wicked Witch.
Now, for those of you just joining us, (and for those of you who forgot), I’ve been wondering how to feel better about the gallons of grey water that gets sucked down the drain every other night when my son takes a bath. Ta-dah! I finally know what to do with it. I was a bit ambitious at first and insisted that my husband not drain the water in the bath, but as we were going to bed, I freaked out about the slimmest possibility of my son falling in the tub in the middle of the night (the bathroom is attached to his room with no lock on the outside). I know it’s a longshot, but I’m a worrier and pictured him doing a jackknife off the soap dish while I was asleep. So, my latest venture is to collect the water in gallon milk cartons one by one and use it to flush the toilets.
Well, I may be the only one to not have known this trick already, but I’m glad I learned this easy way to save gallons and gallons of water. Thank you to my toilet genius friends!
One of the wonderful organizations we have been fortunate enough to work with is Books for Africa. Please read on to hear from Books for Africa’s Executive Director Patrick Plonski, and to learn more about this amazing not for profit and the work that they do.
Please tell me a little bit about Books for Africa.
Books For Africa is the largest shipper of donated text and library books to the Africa continent, shipping over 22 million books to schools and libraries in 45 African countries since 1988.
How was Books for Africa founded?
BFA was established with our founder, Tom Warth, visited a library in Jinja, Uganda in 1988. The library had no books. Since he was involved in the publishing business, he came home to Minnesota and ran a book drive with some of his publishing friends and they sent a few bags of books. It was so well-received, that they set up a non-profit, Books For Africa, and kept going. That was 22 million books ago!
Since its creation, how has Books for Africa impacted the community it serves?
It is hard to describe a community without a library or books of any kind. It is even more odd to describe a community library or a school library that has the building and the shelves, but no books. It is like these people are deprived of what so many of us take for granted. But more than books, what we provide to the kids we serve in Africa is opportunity. Books provide literacy which provides education which provides opportunity to improve lives. You can’t believe the excitement of the kids when they open boxes of books that we shipped. They are excited because they know that they will be able to have fun reading books, but also be able to have some education and move their lives forward.
Please tell us how Books for Africa has personally affected your life?
It has been a great honor to serve as the director of Books for Africa. If a day does not go the way I would like it to go, I can still say to myself “Hey, at least I helped send that container of 22,000 books to Africa today, and that’s a good thing.”
Could you please share an anecdote about someone who’s life has been positively affected by Books for Africa?
I remember visiting a school in Eshowe, South Africa a few years ago. We were visiting a book distribution site and bringing a few more books. There was singing and dancing and so much excitement. And I thought, wow, I wonder what would happen if there were this much excitement when books are delivered to a school in the United States?
Is there anything else you would like our readers to know?
Just that a book can change a person’s life. I have some of my favorite books, and I sometimes re-read the parts I love best. I also remember as a kid growing up on the farm reading books and going to the library because I knew there was a bigger world out there and books were the way to get to that world. Please help us to open these doors to the larger world to these kids in Africa.
Where have I been? To tell you the truth, one of my other resolutions was to waste less this year. So, I came back to the city after the holidays and I realized I had too much stuff! I went to put my new stuff (much of it made domestically) into my closet and the previous years stuff fell out. Hmmmm…I had a problem.
So I started to clean and organize. Two of my all time favorite things. Yes – I’m type A. Moving on…In the organizing, I realized I already had 3 things of shaving creme, 5 things of deodorant and 2 thinks of conditioner. And it didn’t stop at toiletries. I have a lot of stuff. Needless to say, I haven’t had to buy anything besides food for a while now. And my food is grown in these fine United States! I was very proud to pick up squash over Christmas that had a sticker on it saying it’s place of birth was New York. Awesome. I digress…
So as I’m digging myself out of the mountains of things that fell out of my closet, I realized – I need to organize better. And organization means shelves. And then I started to sweat. Shelves are Made in China and Sweeden. This wasn’t going to be easy. Or was it. I went to the containerstore.com and they’re currently having a sale on their elfa shelves. 30% off. Not bad my friends. Probably not for me though….
What’s this? These shelves also whispered some very familiar words in some very tiny print- Made in the U.S.A! WHAT? If I were them I would print that in HUGE FONT. It would help people like me. But how can this be? How can it be that the first place I looked, I strike pay dirt? Clearly the waste gods were looking kindly on me and granting me this concession so I will be able to see what I have and therefore stop buying stuff!
The question? What happens when I clear out all my stuff and need to buy something new? WIll my two resolutions live in harmony throughout the year? We’ll have to wait and see. But being type A, patience is something I need to work on,
I mark day 74 a HUGE SUCCESS but harbor trepidation for the future.
Think there’s nothing you can do to help fight World Poverty in 1 Minute?
Starring: Damion Fitz
Written by: Julie Tortorici & Jessica Arinella
Shot, Edited and Directed by: Alicia Arinella
Produced by: On the Leesh Productions
Music by: Banana Whale
What You Can Do Logo Created by: SCG Siddharth Creative Group
Statistical Information provied by: Mercy Corps, www.mercycorps.org
Additional Footage Provided by: Shutterstock, Inc. Used by Permission
Special Thanks: Caitlin Carlson, Heather Mangrum, Robert Sherman and everyone at Mercy Corps and the Mercy Corps Action Center, and Dennis Arinella
For more information, please visit – www.whatyoucando365.com
Think there’s nothing you can do to help fight Hunger in 1 Minute?
Starring: Julie Tortorici
Written by: Julie Tortorici & Jessica Arinella
Shot, Edited and Directed by: Alicia Arinella
Produced by: On the Leesh Productions
Music by: Banana Whale
What You Can Do Logo Created by: SCG Siddharth Creative Group
Statistical Information provied by: The GreaterGood Network, www.hungersite.com
Additional Footage Provided by: Shutterstock, Inc. Used by Permission
Special Thanks: Rosemary Jones and everyone at The GreaterGood Network, and Dennis Arinella
For more information, please visit – www.whatyoucando365.com
Think there’s nothing you can do to help fight Poverty in 1 Minute?
Starring: Dennis Arinella & Alicia Arinella
Written by: Julie Tortorici & Jessica Arinella
Shot, Edited and Directed by: Alicia Arinella
Produced by: On the Leesh Productions
Music by: Banana Whale
What You Can Do Logo Created by: SCG Siddharth Creative Group
Statistical Information provied by: Lions Club International, www.lionsclubs.org
Additional Footage Provided by: Shutterstock, Inc. Used by Permission
Special Thanks: Kristopher Kempski and everyone at Lions Clubs International, Premier Optical, and Dennis Arinella
For more information, please visit – www.whatyoucando365.com
On the Leesh Productions is a New York based company devoted to the production of innovative, energetic, and challenging film and theater. We are comprised of a core team of collaborators interested in new and provocative subject matter, in unhindered visual experimentation, and in realizing the work of like-minded creative artists and writers.
