To the Nines: Celebrate Earth Day

4/21/2010

No matter how long you've been around, Mother Earth has been here a lot longer. So show some respect. That's the whole point of Earth Day, which celebrates its 40th anniversary Thursday and has been inspiring appreciation for the environment since 1970. There are all sorts of important things you can do to celebrate, from recycling to planting a tree. Here are some suggestions to get you in the right frame of mind.

- Ryan E. Smith

1. Read The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. The powerful environmental book isn't just for kids. It spoke for the trees when it was published in 1971 and continues to today.

2. Watch Food, Inc. on PBS as part of the POV series. The documentary about the underbelly of the U.S. food industry airs tonight at 9 on WBGU-TV, Channel 27, and at 9:30 on WGTE-TV, Channel 30.

3. For something lighter try WALL-E, the touching, animated flick about a robot on a planet laid waste by pollution who travels across the galaxy in pursuit of love.

4. Listen - really listen - to "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" by Marvin Gaye. Like he says, things ain't what they used to be.

5. Play FarmVille on Facebook. For one day you can do it and not feel guilty. After all, what could be more Earth-friendly than responsible farming - even if its virtual.

6. Plan to take your kids to "Our Planet," a program at the University of Toledo's Ritter Planetarium that focuses on the Earth and how it interacts with the sun and moon. It takes place at 1 p.m. Saturday.

7. Get nostalgic and tune in to Captain Planet and the Planeteers. The environmentally conscious cartoon TV series from the '90s still plays on the Boomerang network.

8. Sit back and eat a couple of chocolate Earth balls from thechocolatestore.com or candywarehouse.com. You've earned it.

9. Go outside, look around, and smile. It's your Earth. Enjoy it.