So today all of blogdom is supposed to blog about being green and saving our planet. Thanks Patti for the reminder!
So I thought I would just tell a little bit about what the Lance family does to be as green as we can. As you have all read about my cloth diaper complaints, you know we are not adding to the 2 million diapers thrown away daily in the U.S. (disposable diapers take 500 years to break down) YIKES! We use g diapers with a cloth inside during the day and the g diaper flushable at night.
WE have always been recyclers but my dear friend Karen inspired me to be a crazy recycler about a year or two ago. SO now we rinse out anything and everything that can be reused and recycled.
One of the hardest things for me has been giving up paper towels, you don't realize how much you use them until they are gone. So we use some towel type cloths from Traders for spills on floors and what not.
Dan went on a crazy rampage and replaced every light bulb in our house, I was kind of annoyed by it, I wanted to wait until the light bulbs burnt out then replace them. He did not agree.
We unplug everything when not in use, even just plugged in things take up a lot energy. Especially cell phone chargers, things with clocks, like coffee makers etc.
We educate our kids, Zeke knows what things to recycle and we read books to learn more and instill the green thinking in our everyday lives. We are still trying to change his mind about hummers but to no avail. Dan's mom said don't worry about it remember Mike (dan's brother) loved (really loved)wrestling and the wrestler figurines, but he got over it. So we will hope this obsession with Hummers will pass!
Using canvas bags at the grocery store and target. People still look at me funny at Target and try to ring up my own bags from home, asking do you know how much this was? I have to say beforehand these are my bags can you please put my items in there instead of plastic bags? It is getting better!
We started composting also this summer, I have to admit we have slacked lately with it, but someday I will make some soil and put it on my flowers!
We hardly water our lawn, it looks really brown all summer but come fall it starts to green up and the neighbors forget that we were the ghetto lawn on the block!
We try to do all laundry and dishwasher running during the evening or morning, not peak hours.
This one might be kind of gross but we have the "if it is yellow let it mello, if it is brown flush it down" motto. You waste less water by not constantly flushing, maybe that is too much information!
So these are just some of our everyday things we do to be green, it is a learning process and a sacrifice but so worth it when you read about water bottles taking 1000 years to break down! Use a nalgene bottle!
Happy green day!
9 comments:
I saw a video about turning plastic grocery bags into your own re-useable bags. I am saving up my bags so I can make my own. Mrs. Johnson's 7th grade sewing class will finally get put to good use!
Okay...question and comment.
Do you seperate your recycling for glass, metal, and paper? Because, in the better state up north, we do & there are places to take your recycling. Do we have those here in Riverside?
And, Trav will dislike this comment, but Tom's deodorant should be added to your list of "green things." It's great and good smelling too :)
OK, I'm going to ignore the comment from "la rodriga"...
Anyway, your motto is kind of like mine: "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown...let it mellow. If it's sticking halfway out of the toilet...take a picture. On Fridays, flush it all down."
(is it bad that I'm laughing out loud at my own comment while I'm in the coffee shop?)
Umm, I'm so embarrassed.
The only time when being green in regards to flushing isn't okay is when you forget to flush for guests (like physical therapists) or your child instructs people not to flush.
G diapers??? I need to find out about these. I used flats with plastic pants (or the 1 woolie I own) - I know so passe but they didn't leak.
Also, did you find bulbs that don't look quite so florescenty? We have replaced the bulbs we don't care about like the bedroom, hallways, and closets, but I can't bring myself to make the family room look like a cubical farm.
i have to say, i am also encouraged by you as well...the toilet flushing thing is in the process of becoming a possible habit here...i mean, only one of us can smell anyway, so what the hey? and you should get one of those big baskets...id be so jealous, i only have my dogs to out in them...go for it!
answer to la rodriga: when riverside began collecting recyclables curbside, the decision was made to have one container for all recyclables - the city picks them up and takes them to a transfer facility for separation. (And, yes, this really happens - things are separated out for recycling). Individuals can opt to keep bottles and cans and cash them in.
A detailed analysis of the waste stream was made before our current system of waste disposal was implemented (we have three cans - one is for composting, one for recyclables, and one for other waste.) Many folks don't realize that everyone in the city composts - some of us have a compost pile in our yard as well as the one that we haul down to the curb with the additional yard waste from time to time......
Hope that helps.....
I am a storehouse of useless historic knowledge from my years of service on the now-defunct City's Environmental Protection Commission and Hazardous Waste Advisory Commission, as well as the Public Utilities Board.
Okay, I went to the Nalgene website and got info on these bottles. One question...can you buy these locally or only online? and do you use plain tap water or filtered water, i.e. Brita filtering system?
Thanks for the info, I'll check it out.
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