I try to do something eco-friendly every day and add new things to my repertoire.

In addition to my newest eco-additions of a righteous, worm-filled compost pile and a new garden plot, I have tackled some other baddies to try to be better.

I don’t idle my car at the top of the driveway to get my mail. I am now getting into paper mache crafts and using recycled paper insead of heading to the craft store for more supplies.

But the one thing that is eluding me at present is all of the catalogues. I am very careful not to sign up for free contests and offers because, well, nothing is really free. But, if I get one more Oriental Trading catalogue filled with plastic trinkets, I am going to scream.

I signed up for GreenDimes (www.greendimes.com) which I think is a very good organization. The only problem is that I took the time to fill out all the forms, enter all of the catalogue names and customer numbers. I just went on the site to enter a few more and every single entry had an “action required” button.

So, each and every mail order company requires something different, all of which costs me money and more time. It is so frustrating. Some need a letter (which GreenDimes writes for you) but it requires a stamp (there are at least 20 of these on my list). Some require a payment to be removed (ok, it’s a dollar but requires writing a check).

I think these mail-order companies are purposely obtuse when it comes to removing my name, but it is automatic to get on the list.

So, what I thought would be a 15-minute project to up-green myself is taking a couple of hours. I have to be honest, I don’t believe that all of these companies will actually respond appropriately and quickly to my request.

I wonder if there is a way to refuse delivery and have all of the mail returned to them at their expense? Now, that would send a message loud and clear, wouldn’t it?

I’m interested in hearing about your up-greening experiences!

-Edamaddy, I mean Edamommy

I am trying to figure out how and where to plant a garden in my yard but I have some serious obstacles. As I mentioned before, I have two very wild and crazy dogs (Mya and Stewpot) from Bratislava (kidding) who have the run of my backyard. When I say “run,” it isn’t in jest. They have run through my backyard chasing critters and actually made the pachysandra retreat and die. We have a wooded lot, so there isn’t a perfect spot in the back to plant where I wouldn’t need a 6-ft fence to keep the mutts out.

The front yard is more lush (no dogs) but the deer have realized through their pee-mail network (my husband’s joke – we have email, critters have peemail) that the dogs don’t go there. I really should install a sneeze shield and take-out containers in the front because it is one giant deer salad bar. And, I don’t want to be the eyesore of the neighborhood by building a 6-ft fence around a garden plot (although the neighbor across the way is very unfriendly, which is an incentive to build something and paint it pink).. But I really want to grow vegetables. I refuse to take down trees and container gardening just doesn’t inspire me.

I need an intervention. My mom who is 82 tells me stories about the garden her father planted and how her mom got them through winters during the Depression by canning and storing every fruit and vegetable. We always had a large vegetable garden when I was growing up in Pennsylvania. I actually used to dislike it because one of my chores was weeding it. If I had to write a country song about it, it would be titled: I Was Composting Before Composting Was Cool.