As the world attempts to go green, I have to admit that it's no easy peasy task. I thought that replacing my incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs was an painless task. I also thought that paying bills online and receiving statements was too but that would be a misnomer.
Organic food, isn't all of nature's bounty organic?... pesticides are not. No matter, even my tree hugger friends don't live in solar powered bio-domes so there's still hope for me yet.
Now I know that I was not the only one growing up noticing the waste we Americans accumulate and discard haphazardly. Now suddenly, after the last few years of using that cute gimmick, "going green" do we do it on a strict conscious regimen? Most likely not. Like any kick, be it new or favorable to our inhabitants and earth, it lasts a couple of weeks and then back to the old routine. I keep a recycling bin and separate but there's a lot that gets overlooked. Laziness and ignorance are often the culprit to not doing our part to clean up our acts. We should have been going green since the dawn of time if we think we are even putting a dent in the earth's rubbish pile.
Compact Fluorescent bulbs are great if you are not on some kind of a budget. I buy them when I feel like splurging on a small treat for the home. I believe that they last for quadruple the time a regular bulb does but the initial cost is killer on the wallet. Organic foods are much of the same nonsense, the price tag. I will do my part and grow my own green thumb and shop at farmers markets for produce. What the retail world won't tell you is that organic foods only matter some of the time: nectarines, pears, celery, peaches, apples, cherries, strawberries, potatoes, raspberries. They have more pesticide residue but tougher skinned produce seems to protect itself like pineapples, kiwi, broccoli, etc. The online banking thing is a great idea but it is not when there are "glitches" in the system, often costing the consumer more debt to someone somewhere.
It seems if we take it a step at a time rather than the all or nothing policy, we will see progress. You often get better results when you don't feel nagged about doing it. The three R's are a great start: reduce, reuse, recycle but not creating the waste in the first place is imperative. Prices need to go down on the better choices for our environment or it won't stick...less green for the green. I have an idea, let's start with the school system's use of paper- my kid is bringing home at least 7-15 sheets of paper home per day! Just makes me want to go hug the nearest tree.
Organic food, isn't all of nature's bounty organic?... pesticides are not. No matter, even my tree hugger friends don't live in solar powered bio-domes so there's still hope for me yet.
Now I know that I was not the only one growing up noticing the waste we Americans accumulate and discard haphazardly. Now suddenly, after the last few years of using that cute gimmick, "going green" do we do it on a strict conscious regimen? Most likely not. Like any kick, be it new or favorable to our inhabitants and earth, it lasts a couple of weeks and then back to the old routine. I keep a recycling bin and separate but there's a lot that gets overlooked. Laziness and ignorance are often the culprit to not doing our part to clean up our acts. We should have been going green since the dawn of time if we think we are even putting a dent in the earth's rubbish pile.
Compact Fluorescent bulbs are great if you are not on some kind of a budget. I buy them when I feel like splurging on a small treat for the home. I believe that they last for quadruple the time a regular bulb does but the initial cost is killer on the wallet. Organic foods are much of the same nonsense, the price tag. I will do my part and grow my own green thumb and shop at farmers markets for produce. What the retail world won't tell you is that organic foods only matter some of the time: nectarines, pears, celery, peaches, apples, cherries, strawberries, potatoes, raspberries. They have more pesticide residue but tougher skinned produce seems to protect itself like pineapples, kiwi, broccoli, etc. The online banking thing is a great idea but it is not when there are "glitches" in the system, often costing the consumer more debt to someone somewhere.
It seems if we take it a step at a time rather than the all or nothing policy, we will see progress. You often get better results when you don't feel nagged about doing it. The three R's are a great start: reduce, reuse, recycle but not creating the waste in the first place is imperative. Prices need to go down on the better choices for our environment or it won't stick...less green for the green. I have an idea, let's start with the school system's use of paper- my kid is bringing home at least 7-15 sheets of paper home per day! Just makes me want to go hug the nearest tree.
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