Looking for a very last minute Valentines gift? Or, perhaps a unique “oops I forgot it was Valentines day” make up gift since it is now past the big day. These eco-friendly Fair Trade chocolates are certain to get you out of the dog house – well a little Fair Trade chocolate might help shorten the stay at least.

Yachana Gourmet Jungle Chocolates are created from Amazon cacao beans in Ecuador which are hand picked and sun-dried in special solar dryers, roasted to perfection chopped into bits and dipped in all natural Amazon cane syrup for a delectably delightful light sweetness.

Not only are these special Fair Trade chocolate nibs a special treat for the tummy you’ll get bonus points for supporting a fair trade company that pays its farmers 200%-300% above the local market price for cacao, uses green energy, and uses non-GMO ingredients.

Yachana Gourmet Jungle Chocolates come in several tasty variations including: Brazil nut and coffee, pineapple, macadamia nut, raisin and coconut, and a mixed batch of all of them. Yum.

These Fair Trade Jungle Chocolates are for sale at eBay’s World of Good. (maybe a bit late for a last minute Valentine gift – but it could save you from sleeping on the couch another night)

This Post Shared on Real Food Wednesday

It’s in the air – no not smog I’m talking about the scent of love and the joy of getting free stuff – no matter your views on the cherubic little angel with the sharp pointy arrows – everybody loves free giveaways right? And Swell Foop is in the mood for love (and love inspired giving).

Swell Foop has created two new 100% organic Valentine’s Day themed t-shirt designs celebrating not only the little chubby angel and his ministrations of huggy kissy’s but a love for the environment and sustainable products.

You see Swell Foop is a two sister tag team who believe in the good things in life – like the earth we live on and the furry, fuzzy, scaly, froggy, buggy, beautiful critters that scurry in the woods and oceans at night (ok so ocean dwelling creatures don’t do much scurrying but it sounded good). Their current designs feature animals that are threatened by a variety of conditions, including global warming, human encroachment into animal’s habitat, and hunting.

And thanks to their generosity and the fabulously fantastic focus organic blog you and I have a chance to bring home a soft cuddly 100% organic t-shirt with a cool new design for Free. So swing on over to Focus Organic and give Swell Foop some fooping good attention and who knows you might just have something else to celebrate this Valentine’s Day.

I was digging through an old copy of Popular Science magazine and discovered a review for the Samsung Reclaim M560 cell phone. This Earth Green Samsung Reclaim is, well Green. (Or you can get the Samsung Reclaim Blue – but I’m going somewhere with this so hold your pants) Samsung is following the lead of other tech gadget companies and going green.

The Reclaim is made from 80% recyclable materials and even sports a case made from 40% corn instead of petroleum – so if you have a corny sense of humor (oops did I just say that?) you’ll have bragging rights, and a great conversation starter.

Best news though is that you can get the Samsung Reclaim for cheap – only one penny at Amazon! (well ok you have to get a new service contract but isn’t that how it always works.) There are plenty ‘o Samsung Reclaim for sale for cheap on eBay of course but you’ll have to fight for ‘em.

Bottom line though is how does the Reclaim compare to other non eco-friendly cell phones? Pretty well based on some of the reviews I’ve looked through. Here’s the basics:

Pros:
The battery life is awesome – very energy efficient
Very clean menus and navigation
Fast internet and bluetooth compatible
Easily customizable quick link buttons (Facebook, Google Maps, MySpace, Twitter, YouTube etc…)
Plenty of Samsung Reclaim accessories
And best of all of course is that it is Eco-Friendly!

Cons:
Qwerty keyboard is small so if you have big hands it may take some getting used to
The GPS feature only works with Sprint Navigation
Some have complained the LCD is fragile

If you dig eco-friendly products and want to give this green beauty a try take a peak below for a cheap Samsung Reclaim for sale from eBay or if you need a service plan your best bet is to get one for a penny on Amazon.

I was spelunking in South America just this morning, I had my trusty high powered flashlight packed and ready for use when I heard the distinctive screech of an awakened and very thirsty colony of Desmodus rotundus, that’s vampire bats to those not familiar with these fierce man eating creatures. (ok they aren’t man eating but work with me here it’s my story and I’m sticking to it)

I reached for my trusty Maglite to protect myself with its hot bright glow to throw off the specialized thermoreceptors on the bats nose, only to find to my horror the Energizers were dead – as I soon would be too if I didn’t find another means of escape.

Fortunately for me I had planned ahead – I reached for my PowerGenix NiZN rechargeable batteries loaded my Maglite like a wild west gunslinger and blasted myself out of trouble faster than you can say Environmentally friendly 100% recyclable 30% more powerful PowerGenix Rechargeable AA Batteries!

Well, ok fine you caught me, I wasn’t spelunking in South America surrounded by hungry vampire bats this morning but I was trying out some very cool new rechargeable batteries from PowerGenix. These Nickel-Zinc (NiZN) batteries claim to be 30% more powerful than Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) rechargeable batteries and equivalent to standard 1.5v disposable alkaline batteries. That simply wasn’t true – the nickel-zinc batteries hands down beat out the name brand alkaline batteries as well!

I did a side by side comparison with two of the same flashlights one loaded with a fresh package of Energizer Max alkaline batteries and one with PowerGenix Nickel-Zinc rechargeable batteries (freshly charged in the included 1.5 hour quick charger (which took closer to 3 hrs for the first time charging) – the PowerGenix batteries were brighter and had a larger light radius than the Energizers. I even switched the batteries between the flashlights to make sure there wasn’t a difference and the PowerGenix still came out ahead.

The next round of tests matched up the PowerGenix NiZN rechargeable batteries against Energizer 2500 mAh NiMH rechargeable batteries and this is when the PowerGenix really shined – yes pun intended. While I’m not sure without using a light meter the difference was at least the claimed 30% brighter (probably more like 31.475% but I’m just guessing). I didn’t have time to test my Duracell rechargeable batteries since Brandi claimed the NiZN batteries right quick for her camera.

The only downside to my cool rechargeable battery review experiment and negative mark against the PowerGenix batteries was when the plastic cover on the battery scraped against a sharp edge in the flashlight and tore. Possibly a rare fluke but my new toy now has an imperfection.

Popular Science magazine honored these PowerGenix Nickel-Zinc batteries with a Best of What’s New Award in the Gadgets category recently and I can see why – they are the best rechargeable batteries I’ve tried so far. I only wish I had my old digital camera that refused to work with standard batteries – I’m guessing I could have used that camera for a few more years powered by PowerGenix Nickel-Zinc rechargeable batteries – or perhaps I really will tackle those Desmodus rotundus after all as long as I have my new PowerGenix batteries.

“Nickel-Zinc is the most recyclable battery chemistry on the market. Unlike many other materials, both nickel and zinc can be recycled again and again while maintaining their physical and chemical properties. Plus the zinc electrode contains no lead, cadmium or mercury.

PowerGenix batteries are certified as recyclable by the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Coalition (RBRC), a nonprofit public service organization dedicated to recycling rechargeable batteries. The batteries can be recycled at more than 50,000 RBRC collection sites in the U.S. and Canada.”

I encountered my first bamboo towels nearly 5 months ago, strolling around the gift shop of an exotic Chinese Garden in Vancouver Canada. The bamboo fabric was remarkably soft – so soft in fact I was determined to buy it then and there despite the high price tag of around $70.

I have always been a soft towel nut; unfortunately, my experience with cotton has always been a disappointment. I’ve been told, “you have to wash them on cold if you want them to stay soft,” but then on the other hand, I have been told, “you have to wash them on hot if you want them to get clean.” And so in a relatively short time, those super soft cotton towels on display at the store become just average ordinary boring towels. Some people try to get around this dilemma using fabric softener – but I just can’t bring myself to douse my towels in chemicals. No, I needed another solution-and discovering bamboo towels seemed to be it.

My bamboo towels have remained silky and soft like chenille despite dozens of washings. Yet there is more to make me love bamboo towels than silky softness. I also adore that bamboo is naturally antibacterial. Unlike cotton, I haven’t had the need to wash my bamboo towels with vinegar to remove bad odors, because there aren’t any!

Unfortunately, I’ve recently learned there is a downside to that soft textile. Bamboo itself is extremely fast growing which makes it one of the most Eco-friendly sustainable plants available – however, some of the chemicals used to make bamboo into soft clothing and towels can be quite hazardous to the environment and possibly even your health. Chemical solvents like sodium hydroxide and carbon disulfide may be combined with bleaching which is not a very Eco-friendly thing to do, and is typically known as the Bamboo Viscose Rayon method.

Some companies have begun manufacturing bamboo using the less toxic Bamboo Lyocell method, which I will be on the lookout for next time I need a new bamboo towel. I still think my bamboo towels are the best and its delicious softness is something you must experience for yourself. You don’t even need to travel to an exotic Chinese Garden in Vancouver Canada to do so. Amazon has a fine selection of bamboo towels like these from Think Bamboo on sale for considerably less than the $70 bamboo towels I splurged on.