Like Yellow Does on Blue

Green is good, just like Em and her matching tank and sheets.

But how do we balance? How do we work toward saving the world, one reusable bag at a time, without losing our sense of self? How do we not alienate friends and family, causing them to roll their eyes and plug their ears (and maybe their nose) whenever we come around?

The answer, as found over at Green as a Thistle, is to keep both a sense of humor and a balance. Many who give the environmental movement a bad name take themselves so damn seriously. I probably do too, when I get earnest about sustainable agriculture. But the point is to not beat ourselves up over every choice that we make that might create an additional waste or produce just a bit more CO2.

I'd love to write a blog like Vanessa's at Green as a Thistle. She made one "greenifying" change each day, and stuck with it until today, the last day of her experiment. Can I be that green? The point is, though, just how green we can go. I've been focusing more and more on energy use, recycling, composting. It seems the more I do the more I want to do. So this might be a worry experiment--if I could keep such a sense of humor.

But for now, I leave you with this, from her blog:
3) Lastly, and again, this really is nothing new, but seriously people: Stop buying crap. You don’t need it. In fact, you don’t even want it — you think you do, you want to be like that pretty girl in the commercial who has it, but it’s crap, it’s all crap, and you’re better off without it. I’m not a Luddite, I’m not an anarchist and I don’t support Buy Nothing Day because I’m all for creating a steady, strong economy, but if we don’t start turning the consumerism down a notch we are majorly screwed. There is absolutely no reason why anyone would ever need disposable Tupperware, a Swiffer anything, Glade PlugIns or yogurt in individually packaged tubes.

I've been saying this for years--we don't need the Swiffers or the individually packaged portions or to be keeping disposable cups in our offices. Tiny changes, baby steps, and we can find our ourselves going green. Buy a sturdy mop, invest in a cute coffee mug, and pay attention to the amount of packaging on your purchased items.

Stay tuned for more greenery.

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