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Name: 
Dylan Stiegememier

TeddCreds

  • Teddy Patrol: 157252
  • Teddy Writer: 270
Total (all categories): 157495

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About: 
I am the Founder of this organization. I love the outdoors. I tried to think of an idea that could inspire lots of individual action and ultimately create change. This is my best attempt. I am educated in political science from Idaho State University and the school of hard knocks. I value conservation efforts and hope this forum will help engage others.

Comments by user

dylans13 wrote a comment on Kellogg I-90 Clean Up
23 Apr 2018
Wow! You guys rock. Great job. So much trash. I 90 looks to be much cleaner!
dylans13 wrote a comment on Kayak Teddy 4/14/18
16 Apr 2018
Awesome job! Love your photos and dedication.
dylans13 wrote a comment on Mother's Day Kayak TEDDY
14 May 2017
wow! great job and great pictures.
11 May 2017
so cool! great job.
08 May 2017
great job girls!
dylans13 wrote a comment on Sunset Kayak TEDDY
06 May 2017
killing it, as always.
dylans13 wrote a comment on Trash pick up!
06 May 2017
rad! great job!
dylans13 wrote a comment on Small fishing Teddy
02 May 2017
Awesome!
dylans13 wrote a comment on Brother TEDDY
30 Apr 2017
cool. getting the family involved! i started a hashtag you might like.... #warongarbage My brother and I just made a video for it, its on facebook...
dylans13 wrote a comment on Picked around the house
30 Apr 2017
great job Lukas!

dylans13's Teddys

If it’s not a game I don’t want to play

I saw on the news a few weeks back that they (I believe it was the university of agricultural sciences) have developed a sort of video game for high schoolers where the premise is to run a farm or agricultural business and see how different crops, livestock, ways of farming, types of equipment, etc. impacts the environment. Very simply put, I’m sure there’s more to it. But the idea is to hand the kids a tool that’s informative, educational, easy to navigate, and fun. A game. Except you don’t really win. If you play it right, the planet does less poorly. Which is a win I guess.

I also recently came across this food calculator (link below, I don't know why I can't insert it here...) Which I will make no attempt at fact checking and instead just assume is fairly legit. I like it. Because it’s, well… informative, educational, easy to navigate, and fun. It’s not a game per se, but I still want to play. And as a result, I reflect. Some things are no brainers, like beef. Others more surprising, like avocado and rice. Beer versus wine. Coffee.
Try it. (https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46459714)

At this day and age we are so spoiled with information (real and fake) constantly being thrown at us we sit like roman emperors, carefully selecting only the finest grapes and olives, when deciding which links to actually click on. What articles to read. Which clips to watch.

I really want to wrap up with something insightful about that. But I’m drawing a blank. Maybe it’s the vegan diet..? Although I have to say, 11 days in, that it’s not so bad.
Have a great weekend!

Posted: 4 years 5 months

Friday guest blog--Åsa--Veganish

Depending on the source, numbers vary when it comes to how much meat consumption impacts the planet. And whether you care more about greenhouse gases or the (short) lives of animals bred, raised, fed and slaughtered in the mass production of chicken nuggets, meatballs, bacon and hamburgers…. There’s no (to me credible) way of denying that the meat industry, at large, is gross and harmful.

So there. Now I know this is a sensitive subject to a lot of people. Let me say this: you don’t have to give up all your meat to make a difference. You don’t have to feel guilty eating cheese just because you admit that most dairy cows are displaying alarming rates of hormones and that it might not be so great to consume gallons of the milk they’re producing 24/7/365 for calves they don’t have.
I’m not a vegetarian. (Any more, I was for almost 15 years though) But I eat a lot of vegetarian and vegan food. My kids eat meat and drink regular milk and yogurt and whatever is served at school. At home they drink oat milk and eat vegan hotdogs one day and regular meatballs the next. My only goal with their meat consumption is that I don’t want them to be meat-eaters by default. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had people tell me ”I don’t think I could be a vegetarian…. I just don’t know what I’d eat?!” And when they cook they base the whole meal around the meat and assume that were you to cook a vegetarian meal you’d just substitute the steak with a carrot. I don’t want my kids to think about food and meat like that. But I will never force them to stop eating meat.

There are so many great tasting alternatives these days. AND, there are a lot of vegan dishes that aren’t even made to be a vegan alternative to a meat, they’re just healthy (for the planet and for you), delicious food.
So what would work for you? Meatless Mondays? Trying to eat vegetarian for lunch on weekdays? It’s not all or nothing. But every effort counts. I’ve always felt like vegan was too hard core for me, and I still do. But for the month of October, I am going to try it. So far so good. And like I suspected, the hardest thing is the inconvenience. But, it’s been 4 days. I’ll get back to you when I’ve gone a couple of weeks without eggs and cheese.

Posted: 4 years 5 months

Friday guest blog--Åsa--Doing our part

Last Saturday I decided to join the Håll Sverige rent (keep Sweden clean) campaign and took the girls out for a little Teddy cleanup. The weather was nice and we were all in good spirits. Until Lou stepped in human feces and I threw her favorite tennis shoes out and commotion ensued.

Anyway. Today is another Friday for Future and I plan on joining the now global movement for climate change through strike right here in Umeå. I don’t work today so I’m not really striking I guess. But nevertheless... a few years ago when women were marching on Washington DC and Spokane and other places I regretted not going. It felt like something I should have done with my daughter. But she was a little baby and wouldn’t have been very good at marching. So I didn’t participate in person even though I really cared and really stood behind those women.

Now I am going to go strike with a stroller and two kids. Why not?
Also, for the month of October I am committing to a (climate friendly) vegan diet.
More on that next week.

Happy weekend!

Posted: 4 years 6 months

Åsa took Lou and Ellie out for World Clean Up Day

Went around Umeå and collected some trash with the kids.
Posted: 4 years 6 months

Friday guest blog -- Åsa--Cloth diapers and sh*t

When I was pregnant with our first child we debated cloth diapers. Not really, more like decided against them pretty dang quickly. Dylan liked the idea of reusable diapers and suggested we give it a try. I also liked the idea (better for baby, better for the environment, better for wallet, right?) but left it at that. A nice idea.
Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely commend anyone and everyone using cloth diapers. But personally I don’t want to deal with that shit. Literally.

As a parent to small children, I fight a constant war of convenient versus healthy/sustainable. And no, of course they are not mutually exclusive. There are plenty of convenient products, snacks, etc. that are healthy and/or environmentally friendly.
But they don’t sell fresh fruit and veggies at most places the kids like to hang, they sell hot dogs and ice cream. Little individually wrapped everything is oh so handy even though I feel like a monster for using them.

I could pack cloth rags and wipes with me and then take them home, wash them and use again. Of course. But I don’t. Once I wipe that snot, banana, mashed potatoes, dirt, oatmeal, sand of their little faces… I don’t need to carry it home and revisit those substances in the laundry room.
So what do I do? How do I try to clean up my act when it comes to icky, sticky, just want to throw it out, baby stuff?
Well.

I save the plastic bags from bread, fruit and other groceries and use them for throwing out dirty diapers.
I try to use mostly washable rags at home.
I buy the single serving items and use for trips and days on the go. But get the bigger containers for use at home.

I try not to throw away food and instead think of ways to use leftovers in kid’s meals, lunches, etc.
And, perhaps most importantly, I try to show the kids that this stuff matters.

Posted: 4 years 6 months

Friday guest blog -- Åsa-- Car-less not careless

We have been living in Sweden for two years now. During this time we’ve been using my dad’s old Volvo, he has two cars and really only needs one. It started as a temporary solution and has gradually turned into the way things are. We pay insurance, registration and all that.

But now we’re about to let it go, give the old Volvo back and go car-less. It’s more about money and convenience than the environmental aspect, to be honest. Parking, gas, taxes, insurance…. It all adds up, quickly. And we just don’t drive much. We never did. And especially now when we live so central that the car has to be parked about a mile away and Dylan has to ride his bike to get it, while the kids and I wait to be picked up… it’s too much of a hassle. Taking the bus or riding bikes is just easier.

Here, that is. It’s easier here. The way we were living in Idaho there’s no way we would have let the car(s) go. We needed two of them to be comfortable. At one point we had three. It’s ridiculous. But not uncommon. Most American cities and towns are designed in a way that assumes everyone is getting around in a car. Huge parking lots. Drive-thru everything. Many places there are no safe and convenient ways to get around by bike or foot. I know that, you know that.

But we don’t live in Post Falls right now. We live right smack downtown Umeå and just got a bike trailer. So here we go. Car free and carefree.

Posted: 4 years 6 months

Guest blog --Åsa -- Happy Birthday Dylan

Today is Dylan’s birthday. That’s the third birthday this week for this family and we’re full of love and cake.
His parents have been here for three weeks now and are leaving tomorrow. It’s been nice to have them and have the girls spend time with grandma and grandpa.

It takes a village and all that. It may take a village to raise a child. But it also takes a village to keep the Theodores going.

Dylan’s parents brought fresh copies of the children's book with them when they came so there’s a stack for sharing with friends and family here. We gave one to the girl’s preschool already. And while they’re overseas, his sister takes care of the Teddy gear that sells and needs shipped. And then there’s Ali at AHA (and all the other businesses that badass lady is running). And Sera and Greg at Gravis Tech. And Austin and Cyrus and and Abe and Robert and Sara and yeah... a lot of people.

And I think it’s really cool to see people go “Oh I get it! I’m all about this!” And get involved. But I also think it’s really cool when people go “I’m not sure I get it..? But I agree with what I’m hearing and I’ll support this”
Ultimately, there’s no difference. What's there to get? You see it, you like it, you get it.
Support is support and it’s everything to get something to grow.

That’s all I got today.
Happy birthday Dylan!

Posted: 4 years 6 months

How hard is it? Blog post Asa Burlin

I learned recently that bread is one of the foods we throw away most of. I was surprised. And I was even more surprised to learn that regular households throw away most of that wasted bread.
I can see how grocery stores and restaurants can end up with too much that just doesn’t sell. But I mean, at home... why don’t you just freeze the stuff you don’t think you’re going to eat? Before it gets stale and gross.
If you have a freezer, and most people (in Sweden which was the focus of the study) do, I don’t see how that would be so hard?
And if it has gone stale, there’s croutons, garlic bread, French toast. Or, if you’re not feeling enough Martha Stewart - take it to the park and feed the ducks.
The study had also shown that grocery stores that carried a larger selection of breads tended to waste more. More to choose from means more to waste, apparently. I don’t know why that is, and the reporter presenting the study didn’t either.
But it’s something to think about.
When I think of food waste, I usually think of the leftover noodles, the last piece of cucumber, the mashed potatoes gone stale or hot dog left in pan over night. And all the ketchup drenched foods we scrape off the kids’ plates. Not perfectly good bread we just didn’t get around to eating.

Now it’s not like we don’t waste food at our house. We do. Bread too. But the bread I throw away has usually first been buttered, licked and tossed on the floor

Posted: 4 years 7 months

Guest blog, Fast fashion.

Fast fashion – do you lub lub luve it?

I watched a documentary on so called fast fashion a few months back. Fast Fashion, the clothing industry equivalent of fast food. Cheap, convenient, easy and quickly digested and then forgotten. Fast Fashion, unlike more expensive clothing, oftentimes ends up being thrown out, fast. Because we are less likely to make sure we really like it, that it fits, etc. when it’s so cheap. And also, the quality of course. If it’s that cheap, there’s usually a reason. It’s not like the lady in Bangladesh who made that tank top is making enough money to support a family. Or herself. None of this came as a great surprise to me, even if I was unfamiliar with the term Fast Fashion.
Now, I don’t buy a lot of new clothes. Because I don’t have a lot of money (or time) to spend on shopping. And because Dylan absolutely despises most clothing stores. Especially if they’re inside a mall, he all but breaks out in hives. But when I do buy new clothes, I have to admit I do tend to go for Fast Fashion. That way, if it doesn’t end up being a favourite item, it’s no biggie. I’m definitely guilty of going out to buy a new shirt or a new pair of earrings for the first day of school, a job interview, a dinner out. Not because I need it but because I want to make the occasion more special by wearing something new for it.
Anyway, since watching the documentary I have tried to be more mindful of this. I have bought a pair of jeans, a couple of tank tops and some other things new. But for the most part they were items I had spent some time thinking I needed, not spontaneous purchases as a result of a sale or for a not-very-special-occasion.
So then I’m in H&M with my 3-year old the other day. H&M is ridiculously cheap. And everything (no, but almost) in that store seams easily wearable to me. I’m there to by an eyebrow pencil. As I’m browsing the make-up displays, my daughter is four steps behind me, going “what’s this? Mom, what’s this? I want that! Oh, that sparkles, I want that!” as 3-year olds do. And I answer “no, don’t touch that! that’s for your eyes. Leave that alone!” as moms do. Once I’ve found what I came for, I start ushering the kid towards the registers, but pause at a rack of t-shirts. Cute, summery, so cheap. I like the polk-a-dot one. And there’s a stripe one with flowers that’s kind of cool.
“What’s that mom?”
“Oh just a shirt I might by…”
“But not today”
“What… what do you mean?”
“We can’t buy it today” she says, so matter of fact-ly. Because of course that’s what I’ve told her a million times about toys, dresses, shoes, unicorns, candy. You can want it, and maybe have it one day if you continue to really want it, but we’re not buying it today. That’s what I always tell her. And now she’s making me eat my own words.
I didn’t buy the shirt. Guess you have to lead by example.
(Lou doesn’t like things, she loves them. Lub, lub, luvs them. Or she doesn’t. There is no in between.)

Posted: 4 years 7 months

Walk with my 10 month old

My wife took our eldest daughter to Finland to see a friend. I spent the day with Ellie. Went for a walk around Umeå. Picked up the trash we found along the way including a discarded fishing net.
Posted: 4 years 8 months