Green Living

I do several things that I like to think help out the enviroment. Right now while we work the same exact shift (although this will have to change once we go to days :( )we ride to work together as we live 20 miles or so from work. I recycle aluminum cans. I buy the energy efficient light bulbs. I try to use rain water to water my outside plants with. In the winter I keep the house chilly to cut down on using our gas heating. I also use an electric space header too on occasion. I do buy in bulk when I can. Like in toilet paper, meat, ect. And when I get the toilet paper I make sure it's not the one with the 4 packs individually wrapped bunched together with yet more plastic wrapping. I try to not use plastic baggies and reuse them if I do when I can. I would also use solar power too if I had the means. I'm not real sure what I wouldn't do in these efforts to help the environment. Except maybe I could not not flush my toilet after every use...We did have to do this one year when we had a bad drought and I hated it.

I very much wanted to get into helping the environment when I was a teenager, back in the late 80s and early 90s. Unfortunately, at that point, there wasn't a whole lot that individuals could do--no widespread recycling facilities, for example. We recently moved to Seattle, and I'm very happy with all of the options that have presented themselves here. Now, I can take the bus to and from work each day, rather than driving my car. (And the buses here are part electric, part gasoline fueled, though I don't know exactly how much of each.) Also, our apartment complex has two dumpsters for recycling (and only one for garbage), so we are slowly but surely learning what goes where. I do know that the recycling has made an impact on how much garbage we take out; we used to take out a bag almost daily, but now we can go a few days without taking out the garbage, as long as we haven't thrown away any food in that time. I'm hoping to be able to do more. I still need to find out which of the grocery stores will let me bring in my own bags, and then I need to get some more canvas bags for shopping.