Chad Michael Murray, you lost yourself a winner.

Happier times. More successful times for Chad.

So, home alone the other day, I flicked on ABC Family and tuned into Christmas Cupid starring one Christina Milian—where the heck has she been?—as a control freak/career girl and her hot doctor-to-be beau, played by the inimitable Chad Michael Murray. I forgot how much I enjoyed watching Chad on One Trill Hill, which got me thinking about his onscreen love affair with cheerleader-turned-designer Brooke, which got me thinking about his off-screen ex-wife, Sophia Bush.

There are a number of things I love about Ms. Bush, not least of which are her dimples, which rival the likes of Cheryl Cole’s. (Sidebar: See what I mean? Wouldn’t you be a better, happier person with these dimples?) I also love that she’s found a new love in her current OTH boyfriend (or is it now husband?), and how he just happens to be a self-proclaimed green geek like the starlet. Score! Turns out, playing the seven degrees of Chad Michael Murray’s poor life and career choices can be fun and uplifting after all—for everyone but Chad that is.

But now that we’re on the topic of Sophia, let’s talk about her eco-obsessions for a moment, shall we? Cutely, she recently surprised her “biggest fan” by refurbishing his home in the way of the green. Aw, right? She and Austin Nichols, the aforementioned boyfriend, have also recorded a compilation album called Gasoline Rainbows, the proceeds of which will go to Global Green to help those who took a hit during the oil spill. Adorabs! These two may very well be my favorite humanitarian lovebirds, second of course to Team Jolie-Pitt over there in France.

Which reminds me: Are those two coming back to the states soon? Can they bring Johnny Depp and his French brood with them as well? Perhaps they can have Mad Hatter tea parties together instead of making ridiculous (but beautiful!) movies together in Italy. Sigh. L’amour!

XO, The Green Gamine

PS: You can now watch Christmas Cupid in all its sappy glory over on Hulu. Ah, Chad, let’s ask Santa for a kick-ass 2011, yes?

Honestly, Muggles, Leave the Owls Be!

As a crooning Katy Perry so kindly reminds us on her latest album, Teenage Dream, it’s “Not Like the Movies.” No, kids, it’s certainly not, especially when the movies in question depict the Boy Who Lived and his snowy pet owl, which, I might add, is not a common pet for we non-magic folk. In fact, it’s ill-advised to train an owl as your house pet, particularly if you’re in India right now, as the outdoor owl population is swiftly declining.

Realer than a Death Eater killing Hedwig.

And according to the Indian Environment Minister, Jairam Ramesh, Harry Potter is to blame. Ramesh says, “Following Harry Potter, there seems to be a strange fascination even among the urban middle classes for presenting their children with owls.” He explains that the Harry Potter series is just as (if not more) popular in India as it is in the rest of the world. As opposed to books or even brooms (as Quidditch is also on the rise!), these kids want owls for the upcoming holiday.

And no, we’re not talking Christmas or Hanukkah. If rumors are to be believed, owls were sacrificed in black magic rituals during the Diwali, also known as the festival of lights. I don’t know if I believe all that hoopla, but if it’s true that owls are this year’s sacrificial lambs, someone should get on that – pronto. Owls were neither meant to be trained like kittens nor slaughtered in the name of magic.

While HP7: The Beginning of the End gets pretty bloody, the book doesn’t promote violence. On the contrary, Harry rages through war because he hopes to bring peace back to the wizarding world. I’m pretty sure J.K. Rowling meant for us to apply the sentiment to this world – the real world – as well. I truly hope we’ve only heard one side of the story, and that the other side is much happier.

How ’bout we buy the kids a canary next time, yes? Wondrous.

XO, The Green Gamine

Will the Prince and Princess Play House in an Eco Palace?

Prince Charles and Kate Middleton are going to the chapel...or the Abby.

There’s nothing like a call from your mother at 8:30 in the morning to wake you up, particularly when it’s followed by a squeal of excitement. Her source of happiness today was none other than the engagement of Prince William to Kate Middleton, or “Waity Katie” as those biting Brits call her. The spawn of the People’s Princess popped the question last month while vacationing with his beloved in Kenya. And the best part of this story? Kate was gifted with Diana‘s sapphire stunner of an engagement ring. Swoon! (Feel free to insert references to The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement here.)

So the question is, how on earth does Kate’s Cinderella story, touching as it may be, relate to my green blog? Thanks to this article, I was clued in to the possibility of a green home for the newlyweds-to-be.

Let me backtrack a little bit. Although I admit I am very much behind, I only recently discovered Charles‘ bid for a title change, something along the lines of The Green Prince. It’s been reported that the first in line to the throne has renovated no less than three rooms in his various homes with sustainability in mind. He also asked his servants (?) to swap cars for bikes for a time. He’s even written an article about his commitment to greening the world in Vogue, which was an unexpected and advanced choice on his part. His suggestion to fashionistas: recycle clothing by going vintage.

And in addition to all of this, Charles got the greenlight, no pun intended, to build an eco-friendly “starter” home (above) for his son and his lady-in-waiting. The six-room home, to be built on the lands of the Harewood Park Estate, would boast a rainwater reservoir, stable and a chapel. The roof would be insulated with wool, the walls would be partly made up of volcanic ash, and the floors would be constructed from recycled brick and stone. When blueprints were released in 2007, Kate and William temporarily called it quits, but now that the pair is very much on, perhaps we can hope to see the realization of Charles’ designs in the future.

Two questions: Rhetorically, what starter home has six rooms? But more importantly, do you think ever-chic Kate can spearhead a green revolution in cranky England just by inhabiting a green home? Here’s to hoping, kids.’Til then, my mom and I will be anxiously awaiting our Save the Dates. After all, there’s no better view than the one from your couch.

XO, The Green Gamine

Another Reason to Swoon Over Ian Somerhalder (Other Than the Obvious)

Red Cross, green heart.

Ian Somerhalder is delicious on The Vampire Diaries, is he not? Which is not to say I don’t love Paul Wesley as Stefan Salvatore because I do—sappy, immortal Stefan is my ideal man. But Somerhalder as Stefan’s big bro Damon is a Rebel Without a Cause for a new era, and who among us can resist a man with wild eyebrows and a bad-ass leather jacket? No one.

That said, I’d like to point your attention to another reason The Bad Salvatore is red hot: he’s green! Check out this article he wrote for The Huffington Post about the BP oil spill and its ongoing effects. Somerhalder talks growing up on the Bayou, where the Gulf served not only as a resource to many neighboring families but also as the cornerstone of their culture. And he reminds us that, sadly, families are bereft because the oil spill recovery is far from complete. Just because the media is no longer there to capture the consequences doesn’t mean they don’t exist. He broke my heart a bit—just like two weeks ago when (SPOILER!) he told Elena that he loved her before erasing her memory.

Somerhalder is also an avid tweeter, which is how I discovered he’s such a greenie. After innocently stumbling upon his page, I read a number of his tweets concerning wildlife and conservation. A quick Google search directed me to the HuffPo article. How did we not know this? Tell me those (ahem) kids who watch TVD wouldn’t be happy to give a helping hand after hearing this. Way to use your platform for good, Damon, you delectable demon you.

It’s official: Leo is out and Ian is in as my fave green celeb. Who’s yours?

XO, The Green Gamine

The Weekend Reading List

ScarJo and Michelle: Maybe they're pen pals, too.

A rundown of the greenest happenings ’round town…

Leading lady Scarlett Johansson backs Michelle Obama, refuses to eat mystery meat. [U.S. News]

PBS to debut 2009 Sundance darling Earth Days on Facebook. [Channel Guide Magazine]

Victoria’s Secret drops organic line introduces ‘natural’ line for PINK – whatever that means. [ecorazzi]

Kate Moss models recycled mosquito net dress, fights malaria. [Daily Mail Online]

FernGully wannabe Avatar gets an Earth Day DVD release. [L.A. Times]

Runaways rocker Joan Jett releases ‘Greatest Hits’ in eco-friendly packaging. [Tonic]

XO, The Green Gamine

On Killing Christmas

Big Ben in Macy's Holiday Display, 2007

This one’s for our friends across the pond.

Obviously, I love me some eco-fanatics. But, for those of you who don’t regularly check my green shopping tab, I am also a sucker for pretty things that make me smile. This includes diamonds, bright lights, and Christmas. Shiny.  So, when BBC News reported that those Brits, in keeping with the Carbon Reduction Commitment, were considering pulling the plug on nighttime window displays, I was a tad taken aback. (This may have been in part due to the editor’s photo choice: a small shop’s Christmas display.)

They have a point, of course. Supermarkets and small chains – which were cited as major offenders – probably don’t need their lights glaring all night long. But what about Christmas displays? I wouldn’t bring it up if it weren’t implied through the picture choice that the British are coming…and leaving with Christmas. What if New York decided that the trippy 5th Avenue snowflakes or the nostalgic display on 34th Street was not worth keeping lit? Better yet, what if our mayor decreed Times Square’s energy inefficiency be put to an end (as he’s threatened before)?

Page the Bookworms

Paper free: Love it or leave it?

The Book Industry Environmental Council proudly reports that they plan to cut the industry’s greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020. (Probably because the book industry will cease to release books in the traditional paper format, much to the joy of treehuggers and illeterates alike.) The council, representing more than 60 percent of the market, says they’ll cut the gases down to 80 percent by 2050 – but we shouldn’t hold our breath.

This decision was made at the request of publishers, booksellers, librarians, and paper providers, to name a few. It’s less of a matter of banning books than it is a matter of overprinting, forcing booksellers to send thousands of “unbought” books back to their publishers each year. Pete Datos, chair of the B.I.E.C.’s climate subcommittee, and the VP at Hachette Book Group USA, elaborates:

“The tools at our disposal have dramatically improved — providing better insight to improve our forecasts, reducing lead times to get books printed and distributed faster, and increasing our flexibility to print just the “right” quantities.”

The movement includes not only using recycled paper in books, a trend used by the likes of the Harry Potter series, but also reducing the amount of energy used in corporate buildings and production companies. No word yet on the impact of Amazon’s Kindle or Sony’s eReader, though we imagine there to be unpleasant thoughts. Dig deep, bookworms. Those e-books’ batteries must be more toxic than chopping trees? (But, ladies, can we really put a price on Edward Cullen?)

XO, The Green Gamine

P.S. Follow my tweets, please.

Pencil Earth In: Oct. 24, 2009

Don’t know what 350 stands for? Watch the video and find out. (Hint: It’s one of the world’s biggest climate action campaigns, and Bianca Jagger is a spokeswoman. Rock and roll, baby!)

Fall Back, Sunshine: Obama Considers Global Cooling

The Obama administration announces that global warming is worse than ever and that it plans to take some radical action in an attempt to reverse the damage. One drastic option is to shoot pollution particles into the air to reflect the sunshine. Talk about progressive.

They’re calling this new chemical and physical science combination geoengineering, the controversial science of tinkering with the climate to save the ice, and the polar bears while they’re at it. Since the consequences of avoiding the issue can be “really intolerable,” says John Holden, a concerned physicist, now is the time to act. The British Parliament is also considering the idea. 

Holden does warn us against going to extremes. While he agrees that geoengineering should be kept on the back burner just in case, he thinks some ideas go a step too far – like one Nobel laureate’s concoction of a faux-volcano. Still, he admits, desperate times may call for desperate measures.

Do you think we have to reinvent the environment to save it?

XO, The Green Gamine

Empire State Building Glows Green

For anyone who’s been trying to defy the gravity of this economic recession, this will come as a pleasant surprise to you. Wicked day at the Empire State Building all year round!

Jokes. Though the Empire will continue to glow green on the anniversary of the Broadway phenom (i.e. Halloween), the green I’m talking about is something you can’t see.

The building, completed in 1931 (in the midst of another notable depression), is finally getting a $500 million facelift. One fifth of that has been set aside to green the building. The Clinton Climate Initiative, founded by President Bill “Al Gore” Clinton, has agreed to foot the first $20 million. The Clinton Climate Initiative helps cities cut greenhouse gas emissions and is secretly chaired (shh!) by none other than Mr. Gore.

The Empire‘s energy-saving model should lower the energy intake by 38 percent, ultimately saving the 102-story building $4.4 million a year. “What Is This Feeling?” It’s the feeling of your heart “Defying Gravity” because you know this plan will be so “Popular” among treehuggers and people with common sense alike. “No one mourns the…” energy inefficient!

Sorry. End of the Wicked references.

XO, The Green Gamine