California Plans to Use Citizens as Guinea Pigs: Why Every U.S. Resident Should Care

Beginning this summer, airplanes will fly 500-800 feet over California, spraying hundreds of thousands of California residents with an untested pesticide called CheckMate. This will start one night in June, and will happen again three nights a month for nine whole months. None of us will know which nights our towns are being sprayed, and none of us will be able to stop it. Your children will wake up the following morning, head to the park, breathe in the air, play on the jungle gym, and you will have no idea if their little hands are coated in the CheckMate pesticide. You might even be walking home from the BART station one evening, and hear that low-flying plane hum over you as it drops its load.



This ain't no horror story - it's actually going to happen. The State's Department of Food and Agriculture is initiating the largest aerial pesticide spray in the history of the United States because it's afraid the light brown apple moth will take over our plants.

• Never mind that the evidence suggests that this moth has been with us for decades causing no harm whatsoever (and has, in fact, been controlled by natural predators).
• Never mind that scientists across the globe have dealt with this moth before, and advised California that widespread spraying will do no good.
• Never mind that the State's previous spraying last year resulted in well over 600 reported ill health effects.
• Never mind that a man named Stewart Resnick, an agribusiness man whose farming company happens to own the manufacturer of CheckMate (the pesticide to be sprayed on us) has made generous political contributions to our State's officials.
• And never, ever mind that 19,000 citizens and counting have said out loud that they do not want to be sprayed.
  

And why should anyone who lives outside of California care? One simple reason: we are the nation's guinea pigs. The USDA recently announced plans to survey all 50 U.S. states to see if the light brown apple moth can be found anywhere else. If they do, you can bet that state officials where you live will look to California as an example for how to deal with it. Even though California's approach won't work.

So what can we do? Do we sit back and inhale the fumes? Do we let agribusiness dump pesticides literally on our heads? Close our eyes and hope we don't get sick? This is not a joke, and this is not the State's choice to make for us.

Join the tens of thousands of other residents who refuse to be sprayed! You don't have to become an activist, and you don't have to give up your valuable time. Just pick and choose from the following easy steps, and make your voice heard.

1. Sign the petition to stop the spray.
2. Learn the facts about their plans.
3. Write an email to Gov. Schwarzenegger, who currently supports the spray.
4. Write an email to Sen. Migden, who's filed legislation to delay the spray.
5. Send an email to everyone you know telling them about the spray (or linking to this blog post).
6. Write a letter to your legislators voicing your opinion.
7. Attend the meetings on 4/15 and 4/16 to add your voice.
8. Flyer your block, neighborhood or town to inform your community.
9. Send out a MySpace, FaceBook or other social networking bulletin about this.
10. Blog about the spray, or simply link to this post.
    

Get loud. Get angry. This is your air, and your body. Don't let them f--- with it.

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Pause...

Ain't life grand? Before I address my absence, I'd like to give you a huge THANKS for your interest in, participation in, and general support of Small Failures. I continue to be bowled over by the generosity of my readers, and it's incredibly reassuring to know that this blog has found a place in so many daily routines. How odd. Obviously, I've taken some time off from the blog post-car accident, simply for lack of energy. I'm going to continue to do so, with the caveat that you're not entirely free of me yet.

In the meantime, if you're interested in what is inevitably a more tangential interpretation of my brain waves, you might like to check out Blog! Unruly in presentation (it's being redesigned, I promise), and completely random in coverage, Blog! is just my way of cataloging the neural buzz in the back of my brain (inconsistent though it may be). Check it out, you might discover some cool stuff (including Small Failures-esque topics).

Thanks for your patience!

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The Blink of an Eye

It's easy to create drama on the internet, to make more of something than it really is. On Friday, August 3rd, I was in a car crash. I've called it an accident on occasion since, when discussing it with family and friends, but it did not feel like an accident. When a stranger so violently and deliberately steers a car through a red light, accident feels somehow an inappropriate word.

The moment itself was exactly like the movies—the noise, the telescoping of time, a car sailing through the air. The most incredible part for me, though, was not the drama of what happened but what didn't happen. I did not die. In fact, all three of us drivers involved opened our car doors, stepped outside, and made our way to the sidewalk where we were engulfed by a growing crowd.

The fact that I am, relatively speaking, okay—hurting, achy, bruised, swollen—but okay (that is, alive), still slightly surprises me almost a week later. I don't put it that way for the sense of drama, but because going into it I was sure I wouldn't be. As soon as it dawned on me that this woman was going to drive at full speed straight through her red light and into me, I braced for something I knew would happen. The impact came sure enough. But afterwards, looking up at that green light through my windshield, I had to double check to make sure it wasn't a symbolic green light.

The point of all this is nothing more than an explanation for why you haven't heard from me all week. And for why you probably won't hear from me for a while longer yet. The crash has raised some funny questions for me. Not questions about guardian angels or reasons for things happening, but questions about how I can spend my time now that I can't sit in front of a computer for very long. According to my statistics, there are a lot more of you readers out there than I ever would have expected and it occurs to me that I don't know you very well. I'd like to. Because although writing on the internet is often an exercise in egotism, for me it is also about the craft of writing and exploring ideas.

So now that my time online is limited, I want to make the most of it. Will you tell me what you think? About it all: your experience with this site, with the ideas I write about, with what you'd really like to read about, with all of it? There are all kinds of rules and tips and suggestions for writing on the net; much of it is either bullshit or common sense and I'd like to offer a little bit more than that. I would love for you to leave your thoughts below, or even to email me directly if you prefer.

[I've also posted this entry on my other blog, Bar Stories.]

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Technical Difficulties...Please Stand By

...Aaaaand we're back! I'll resume posting over the weekend, as I'm working on a few rent-paying deadlines...

In case you haven't noticed, the "[Continue]" function is not currently working. I'm getting it worked out now, but please be patient! I recommend subscribing to the blog using the rss feeds to the right, so you'll know when I've got it worked out.

Thanks!

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Comments Schmomments

Having trouble commenting? Seems Blogger is acting a little wonky—not sure if it's just Small Failures or if it's Blogger-wide, but please don't hesitate to contact me directly instead.

I'll let ya know when I get it worked out.

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They Found Us: Link Love

Small Failures' readership has been growing steadily over the months, and many of you discover us through other blogs and sites, some which have a green theme and some which don't. I've decided to start mentioning these blogs on a semi-regular basis as a way of saying thank you to those folks who feel we're worth linking to.

Cider Press Hill: A thoughtful, personal blog from Kate (I believe), who offers a quiet look into her own life as well as those around her. Some great links on this blog.

The Worsted Witch: Clearly this really is "the malformed love-child of [Jasmine's] indecorous passions for knitting, sustainability, gothic horror, and illustration." A sense of humor, an elegant design aesthetic and a cat named Chekhov makes Jasmine worth a long read.

Simply Green Living: This fairly new blog covers the writer's journey to simplify her life, although she's been living green for fifteen years.

And thank you, readers, for continuing to support Small Failures! I've got some cool ideas coming up for the site, and eventually I'll be hitting you up for some feedback. Stay tuned!

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HOW You Doin'?

Just a quick "howdy!" to all you HOW magazine readers who've found us via their update and/or blog. I've noticed quite a jump in visitors since we were mentioned recently. Although Small Failures isn't geared toward any any specific profession, we all head home at the end of the day; my hope is that you'll find something here worth bringing with you.

And if you're looking for more design-related tips, be sure to check out my recent installment of The Sustainable Studio, in which I deconstruct the myths of sustainability for designers (you will find the column's archives here).


More link love...
I would be remiss if I didn't also give a shout out back to Eric at ReNourish, the lovely folks at TreeHugger, Vanessa at Green as a Thistle, and all the other bloggers and organizations who have taken the time to visit us, read us and link to us (and their loyal readers, of course).

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Small Failures Gets Carbon Neutral!

Our hosting company has beat us to the punch. About a month ago, I emailed DreamHost and asked what they were doing to become a more sustainable company. Last week, they announced that they've gone carbon neutral. How's that for service?

In reality, of course, carbon neutrality and carbon offsets are still controversial. How does it work? Does it really make any significant difference? Is it a truly sustainable model? Who are the reputable companies? I've actually been drafting an article about carbon offsets that hopefully answers all of the above questions; look for it in the weeks to come.

In the meantime, I'm relieved to know that DreamHost has taken at least this step towards reducing their carbon impact.

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Scheduled Downtime

Just a heads-up that Small Failures will be inaccessible during the wee hours tonight. There will be a scheduled downtime beginning on Sunday at 12:01 am PST and hopefully ending by Sun at 4:00 am.

In the meantime, if you're just dying to read more Jess writing, check out Bar Stories, a completely unrelated and much more cynical blog.

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A Hug From Treehugger

Small Failures is honored to be chosen as one of Treehugger's green blogs of the week! We're certainly in good company, and it's great to get the nod from one of the leading online green magazines. Check out the other mentions as well:

Ivan Enviroman
Greener Magazine
It's Getting Hot In Here
Jen's green Journal

If you're curious as to what piqued Treehuggers interest, it was our recent post about teaching kids to eat sustainably.

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Save the World a Sandwich at a Time

I have always been a sucker for a peanut butter sandwich, ever since having to write a step-by-step instruction guide for making one in the 5th grade (this was a lesson in following directions and literalism, or something).

But apparently my peanut butter addiction has been making a difference: every sammich I've eaten has saved anywhere from 2.5 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions than if I had eaten a hamburger! Given how many peanut butter sandwiches I've eaten over the course of my life, that means I've saved at least 7,500 pounds of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. Damn, I'm good! (I also happen to have saved over 36,000 square feet of land from deforestation, overgrazing, and pesticide and fertilizer pollution!)

And now you, too, can help save the world...one sandwich at a time. The campaign appears to be the work of do-gooder Bernard Brown, who perhaps has just finished reading The Omnivore's Dilemma. Regardless, who can complain? Eat up, smokey!

[via Sustainablog] [Edited to correct my stupid statistical math.]

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Five Minutes to Midnight

Could we be facing immanent nuclear warfare? Last week I mentioned that the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, a group that includes numerous Nobel winners, were to make a "very important announcement" and yesterday they did. The conclusion: that we have awoken to the dawn of a new nuclear era.

This seemingly dire announcement has been punctuated by the Bulletin's decision to move the Doomsday Clock forward by two minutes, to five minutes to midnight. Contrary to popular assumption, though, the clock is not a gauge of how close we are to nuclear war waged by our world's politicians.

In fact, the clock reflects “basic changes in the level of continuous danger in which mankind lives in the nuclear age, and will continue living, until society adjusts its basic attitudes and institutions.” This subtle difference is an important one, as it stresses the need for a fundamental shift in our way of approaching the way we live in the world. Is it not suprising, then, that the Bulletin also concludes that "the dangers posed by climate change are nearly as dire as those posed by nuclear weapons."

The full statement is well worth reading. Most fascinating to me is the report's description of how our nation's administration has relaxed its attitudes towards nuclear weapons, embracing this technology to a degree unheard of since WWII, and the direct influence this has had on today's nuclear proliferation.

But it's not all dire doomsday warnings. Even more important than the current "threat level," to borrow the language of the current administration, are the Bulletin's recommendations. Among the very specific steps that can be taken to reduce the nuclear threat are some obvious ones—begin dismantling the 20,000+ nuclear warheads we've got stored everywhere—and some less obvious ones. These include beginning an international discussion about the ramifications of nuclear energy (particularly salient as nuclear becomes more and more attractive as an alternative energy source), and securing current nuclear materials that are, as of now, dangerously insecure.

All of this nuclear talk can seem so distant to those of us who've never had to duck under a desk. But North Korea's recent testing should start bringing these dangers home to us—hopefully not directly, but at least by impacting our actions. So what can you and I do to influence our nation's approach to nuclear weapons?

We can start by educating ourselves (read the news, dispel the myths) and forming an opinion. Then share that opinion with those whose fingers dangle limply over the Big Red Button. Vote, send emails, start conversations with friends and neighbors. Whatever you choose to do, choose something, please. Don't you think it's time to stop letting others make our decisions for us?

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Doomsday Draws Near?

Thanks to the folks at Development Crossing, I am now officially scared sh--less.™ They've pointed out a recent Reuters article announcing that the hands of The Doomsday Clock (cue Jaws music) will be moving for the 18th time since 1947. The clock was created by those in the know in response to the (still) rising threat of nuclear proliferation: the idea is that when it hits midnight, you can kiss your ass goodbye.

But the question remains to be answered: when they adjust the clock next Wednesday, will it be moving back or forth, and what time will it be when they're done?

The answer of course, is wait and see. A visit to the clock's creators, the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, warns simply: "On January 17, at 14:30 GMT (9:30 ET), the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists will launch a new website and make a major announcement."

Who knew scientists could be so...thrilling? Actually, a little digging reveals that the clock is currently set at seven minutes to midnight. You can read a bit more about its current status at their old site, including how North Korea's recent nuclear tests have affected nuclear Doomsday.

Stay tuned for the future of humanity...

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Earth & Sky

I don't generally post simply to point you to a particular site, but this one is good: Earth & Sky is a radio series, a website and a blog that "are committed to describing humanity’s work to understand itself and its relationship to the Earth."

It may sound high-minded, but the articles are all peer-reviewed and the blog has some really fascinating entries. Like this one, titled "Nature Provides 'Ecosystem Services':"

Scientists are beginning to focus on the consequences of environmental degradation to human wellbeing. It’s the idea that nature provides goods and services we humans need – like clean water and fertile soil...So the service concept is really important because it links people to these concerns, which have been sort of remote in the past. If you say, “well we’re losing biodiversity,” a lot of people say 'well so what?'"

So what? We'll be singing a different tune when our services get shut off for failure to pay the rent.

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New Feeds for Sustainable Fans

As readership continues to grow, however modestly, I've slowly been making some improvements to both the usability and aesthetics of Small Failures. My most recent move has been to make it easier for you to subscribe to the blog via either a feed or email.

A feed is simply a way for you to get all the latest updates to your favorite blogs in one place, instead of bouncing from blog to blog (here's a quick explanation). But if you're not feeling the feed, you can always get the same updates via email instead.

Either way, you'll find the necessary sign-ups to your right (at the top of the right sidebar). Go ahead and sign up—you can always unsubscribe later if you don't like it!

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Urban Rivers

Work, in Plain English pointed out a remarkable scene recently: a river running through a congested city that actually looks healthy. Penina points out how important it is that an urban river actually engage passers by and should rely on naturally occurring elements to keep it healthy and flowing safely.

City planning in the U.S. should be so good.



Further reading:
More on rivers than you probably want to know.
The abstracted article that inspired Penina's post.

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The Path to Recovery is Paved with Fresh and Local Vegetables

The year is winding down and reflections are inevitable. Small Failures is still very young and I am still feeling it out, choosing new directions, and generally learning about what makes sense for both Small Failures and my readers.

I received a wonderful Christmas gift yesterday: The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. This book has been getting a lot of press, much like Fast Food Nation did when it came out, and for good reason. The book traces several food chains that we all live with nowadays: industrial agriculture (factory farms, etc.), alternative agriculture (organics et al.), and hunter-gatherer agriculture (few of us ever participate, of course). Pollan's writing and use of language is remarkable, and I look forward to devouring the entire book.

Having only read through the introduction, I find myself wondering about my own ability to really affect change. The whole point of Small Failures is to begin with one, me (or you, the reader), and work on that. I do believe in the need for mass institutional change, but I also believe that successful social revolution begins at the individual level and ripples outward. (Geez, I promised myself I wouldn't get all polemic up in here.)

With all that said, I have discovered a blog that beautifully captures this idea: Eat Local Challenge. A group of folks scattered across North America is exploring what it's like to only eat food produced locally. This is a tough challenge, one many of us have a hard time with. But as Pollan's book and my own experiences both reveal, I don't believe I need to sacrifice anything but old habits in order to do so.

So onward into 2007. Small Failures wishes you well and encourages you to share your own Small Failures with us. Email me at jessie [at] smallfailures [dot] com or simply post a comment. It matters.

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Douglas Fir vs. Douglas Faux: Are Fake Christmas Trees Better Than Real?

While many of you may already be curling up by a well-lit and amply decorated tree, we just bought ours yesterday. This is only the second year we’ve ever had to buy a tree, and this time around we wanted to make the most environmentally friendly choice.

There are basically two schools of thought when it comes to Christmas trees (three if you count “Bah Hambug” as a school of thought). One insists that fake trees are better, as they are reusable from year to year while real trees are simply cut down and thrown out after a few weeks. The other argues that real trees are renewable resources that create valuable oxygen and feature non-environment-damaging materials while fake trees are not recyclable and rarely last as long they claim. So who is right, here? Is there a clear winner in the perennial battle between Douglas Fir and Douglas Faux?

Well, not only is there a clear winner but there are plenty of options for those of us who want the perfect eco-tree. It turns out that real trees are more sustainable, for a whole host of reasons:

• Materials used: Fake trees are made almost exclusively from PVC, a petroleum-based plastic. Anytime you buy plastic you encourage our dependence on (foreign) crude oil. Remember that war going on over on the other side of the world? That’s about oil. I could make a Christmas-Muslim joke here, but I’ll leave that to Bill Maher and instead point out that wars suck, no matter what their cause. Real trees, on the other hand, improve the air we breathe by emitting healthy oxygen.
• Recycling: Once a fake tree has worn out its welcome onto the trash heap it goes, taking up space in our already over-taxed landfills. Real trees, on the other hand, can be chipped into mulch and used in the garden, or planted for shade and aesthetic advantages.
• Price: The average real tree actually costs less than the typical artificial tree, according to the National Christmas Tree Association.
• Smell: Seriously, real trees just smell more Christmas-y.
• Freight Impact: It may seem astounding, but artificial Christmas trees are the 5th most imported product from China (according to the U.S. Dept. of Commerce). Over 9,000,000 fake trees were shipped all the way from China in 2005, requiring an increased dependence on oil and taking a huge toll on the environment.

So if you’re thinking about replacing that plastic tree this year (or next), consider going the natural route and purchasing a real tree instead. And if you do buy real this time around, remember the following options:

Potted Trees: Available at home supply stores, orchards and local tree farms, living trees with roots can be planted on your own property after the holiday, or donated to a local school, church, or nature group for replanting. If you do it yourself, be sure to read up on the best way to plant a tree so it doesn’t eventually take over.

Organic Trees: Sadly, most living trees are grown using pesticides. To find an organic tree farm near you, check out this list, Local Harvest, or Google.

Recycle Your Tree: If you buy a non-potted tree, don’t just dump it in the trash when you’re done enjoying it. Check with your local public works dept., as many schedule a specific tree pick-up and recycle day. Or bring it to a local farm or garden center so they can chip it and use it as mulch.

Rent-A-Tree: I'm not kidding. If you live near Portland, you can rent a living tree for the holiday that will then be picked up and planted for you. They're still taking orders, so hurry!

Use LED Lights: No matter what tree you buy, make sure you use LED lights. These are 90% more efficient than incandescent lights, which saves you money, too! And please, don't forget to turn them off when you're not home or when you go to bed. You can always buy a timer so they go on when you wake up, if you really need that "Surprise! Here's a lit tree!" feeling.

Other Christmas Tree links worth checking out:

• How to Pick a Green Christmas Tree, from Treehugger
• LED Light Resource, from Inhabitat
• American Forests: Everything you've ever wanted to know about trees but were afraid to ask.
• Have a link you'd like to share? Leave a comment!
  

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Can Sustainability be Sexy?

Today marks the first step towards a better looking blog. Consider it an early New Year's resolution: Small Failures resolves to lose weight, tighten up and get hot.

Of course, it's not as easy as it sounds. I know just enough code to screw things up, so much of the redesign is more trial and error than actual success. But after a week of head-scratching and about two thousand virtual push-ups, the blog is already in better condition.

I still plan to make some more changes to pretty it up around here, and I still have to troubleshoot the following issues:

1. Unfixed columns: As you've probably noticed already, the center sidebar squishes all up (yes, that's the technical programming term for it, I swear) when you shrink your browser window width. I am unsure how to fix the column widths—do you know?
2. Topic links: I am having trouble with one or two of the topic links (see the left column). For some reason, Blogger doesn't want to republish a page or two in the new template.
3. Labels at the bottom of each post: These topic labels should be left aligned, but they don't seem to want to cooperate. I cannot for the life of me find the code in the html to fix this.
4. General design: There are still some layout and graphic issues I plan to take care of when I have a bit more time (say, next year).

If you know of a fix for any of the above, or feel like lending your expert coding skills to the troubleshooting process, please do get in touch. I can be reached at jessie [at] smallfailures [dot] com.

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Menu for Hope: Feed and be Fed

How can you go wrong with a $10 entry fee and prizes that include Paris chocolate tours, a candy-red Kitchenaid mixer, and any number of other fabulous books, art pieces, tours and food items?

The proceeds this year go to the U.N. World Food Programme (last year participating food bloggers raised $17,000 for UNICEF). The raffle ends December 22nd, so get your bids in now and you'll end up with an incredible Christmas present for someone you love (yourself, perhaps?).

Go for it: Menu for Hope III

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The Small Failures Redesign

As a graphic designer, I am accutely aware of how costly an identity redesign can be: new letterhead, new website, new promotional materials, new invoices with new logos, and so forth and so on. The beauty of the blog, however, is that there is no reprinting necessary. There's no old stationery to throw away and no outdated business cards getting tossed in the trash.

So we're going for it: Small Failures is getting a makeover. We're redesigning the site so that everything works properly, looks good and reads well.

In the meantime, here are a few tips for reusing that outdated stationery instead of just throwing it in the garbage:

1. Letterhead: When printing in-house materials (like daily schedules, or items that will simply be filed for internal reference), print them on the backside of your old letterhead. No one's going to see them but you, anyway!


2. Business cards: Old business cards can be used for note taking, quick "to-do" memos, or simply dropped into restaurant fishbowls for a shot at a free lunch.


3. Envelopes: Envelopes are priceless when it comes to organizing your office. Use outdated envelopes to hold loose paper clips, rubber bands, notes and scrap paper, and anything else that clutters up your desk drawer.
   

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Put Your Online Gaming in Perspective

If you've ever uploaded an avatar to an online forum, community gaming site, or whathaveyou, you should really check out Nicholas Carr's take on avatar energy consumption.

What the hell is avatar energy consumption? you might ask. Well, Nicholas crunched some numbers using the rampantly popular online world Second Life as an example. Using the estimated number of avatars hosted on Second Life's servers and the typical energy consumption of those servers, among other factors, he extrapolated the following:

The average Second Life avatar consumes about 1,752 kWh (that's kilowatt hours) annually while the average real life human being consumes about 2,436 kWh annually.

That's a lot of real-life energy just to maintain a pretend life!

Be sure to read some of the comments to Nick's post to learn about the CO2 emissions of online players among other mathematical acrobatics.

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Small Time Vacation

Small Failures is still recovering from Thanksgiving. I'll be back next week with entries about pro football (?!), parenting and some other random yet sustainable tidbits.

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Tag, You're It!

Small Failures is honored to be tagged by Anne at The Golden Pencil, a wonderful resource for freelance writers. It's a "5 Things Most People Don't Know About Me" meme goin' 'round that at first didn't seem related to me over here. But if there's one thing I know for sure, it's that everything is related. So here we go:

1. I have a Buddhist bent. I'm not disciplined enough to call myself a Buddhist, but those Noble Truths ring a bell.
2. I was kicked out of summer camp as a kid for fighting. I didn't learn my humility lessons until much later, but it did end me up at another camp (no longer operating) that got me hooked on camping, farming, and generally interacting with the natural world.
3. I have rheumatoid arthritis. I take lots of pharmaceuticals for this, which is a pretty horrifying industry. My goal over the next couple of years is to reduce my meds where possible in exchange for accupunture, yoga and other alternative treatments.
   
4. I was a honky tonk DJ. As a result, I have saved the life of over 600—maybe 800?—vinyl records that otherwise would have disappeared into landfills. (Okay, this may be a stretch.)
5. My bartending days left me with a penchant for Manhattans. I plan to feature some great organic booze on this site, so check back soon.
   

Perhaps not the most interesting collection of factoids, but there ya go. Tag, you're it:

1. Jeopopolis: Inspiration in art form.
2. Ideal Bite: Get green tips by email!
3. Groovy Green: A team of folks parsing the world of green for the rest of us.
4. Sustainablog: A sane look at the broader issues.
5. Ai Ai Gasa: Brooklyn boutique featuring cool-ass goods made lovingly from hand.

Please, if I tagged you and you're not interested in playing this little game, fear not. This is just a good excuse for me to share some of the links I dig.

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A Note About Featured Businesses

Small Failures believes strongly in promoting businesses that offer sustainable products and services. Because a lot of these companies are not local, we don't have the opportunity to actually test them out. This means we can't endorse them; we can only tell you about them and let you draw your own conclusions.

If you have a chance to use any of the businesses mentioned in Small Failures, we would love to hear your experience. You can leave a comment on the blog, or you can send an email directly to jessie [at] smallfailures [dot] com.

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