People can be very proud of their particular dishwashing methods, but the most-quoted study, from the University of Bonn, has shown that a full dishwasher load washed by hand takes an average of 27 gallons. Even the most efficient handwashers used 8 gallons of water. By comparison, an Energy Star–qualified dishwasher uses less than 5.8 gallons per load.

I’m really looking forward to going to My Thai Cafe. It’s my absolute favorite Boston vegetarian restaurant. I went there for the first time over ten years ago (then called Buddha’s Delight) and had “chicken” fingers. It’s also one of the few vegetarian restaurants in Massachusetts open on Thanksgiving. Others are…

Last Friday was the third time that our recycling bin has vanished (as well as our trash can lid and, three months later, our trash can, too). The disappearances have always mysteriously coincided with new neighbors moving in next door.

We checked on the old worm bin—the one we haven’t been feeding—and were amazed to see that it’s full of worms. Huge ones, too! Not feeding that bin for a couple months has completely eradicated the fly population living in the compost. Unfortunately, it looks like they’ve all moved to the new bin. This is so embarrassing!

We went to Maine this weekend for a holiday of our own devising: Carrot Cake and Poker Day. It’s less filling than Thanksgiving and far more fun