Writing for a blog like Ecollo always provides a unique challenge. On one hand, there's a desire and goal to provide readers with tangible ways to live an eco-friendly lifestyle in a positive, upbeat and encouraging way. On the other hand, much of the environmental news we are faced with everyday isn't about the most pleasant of topics. After all, it doesn't seems likely that global warming and a food crisis are going to be the next big themes for a line of Hallmark greeting cards.

That being said, sometimes it becomes evident that even though I feel like I'm often giving a doom-and-gloom approach, the reality is some topics just can't be sugar-coated.

Case-in-point: Mr. Pinky Bean and I went grocery shopping yesterday, a rather typical non-event for a Sunday afternoon for us. What wasn't quite so normal were the store shelves, particularly the rice aisle. Typically one of the biggest sections in our local store that usually features almost every variety of Asian rice you would possibly need (and in every size you could imagine), today the section was barren. As in completely empty except for one lone bag of Thai rice that we watched a wary customer put back on the shelf.

Many of our posts in recent months, especially over the past week, have been devoted to the food crisis, but seeing the physical evidence of the very things you've been writing about is a real eye-opener.

That being said, there is a time and place for everything. We will continue to discuss the issues that affect readers in their day-to-day lives, even when the news may not be the greatest. However those of us that work on Ecollo always a good chuckle, so don't be surprised to see more cute animals and bento boxes amidst talk of starvation in Haiti. We want you to be well-prepared and aware of what is happening in the world, but we don't think you have to check your sense of humor at the door to do so either.

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