Let’s Be Honest
UPDATE: Turns out I have nothing to feel bad about. According to Treehugger even if you’re careful about how you hand wash your dishes modern dishwashers use less water, soap, and energy. I love my dishwasher even more, so much so that I think he needs a name. Suggestions?
Hello again! I’m back at home. My trip was fine. I was able to help my grandfather recover from surgery. He’s doing very, very well. Seems the new hip is working just fine. But here’s what I really wanted to talk about today…
We bought a dishwasher. It’s a two-year old portable Maytag that we got on Craig’s List for $150. As I was thinking over the purchase I had a split-second moment of guilt…after all, hand washing dishes (done properly) uses less energy and water. But let’s be honest…Mr. E and I never get around to actually DOING the dishes! And let’s be honest about this too: you can’t always make the perfect choice. Mr. E and I both struggle to find the time and energy to do dishes. The dishes pile up. The kitchen looks worse and worse. And we get depressed. We also end up eating out way more than we should because cooking means we have to clean dishes. That’s bad for our sanity, and our wallets. So we got a dishwasher. And we’re thrilled. And you know what…we can’t be perfect environmentalists. Trying to be perfect would be a useless pursuit and it would just drive us batty. My point is this; forgive yourself for being human. As long as you’re still trying to be better, as long as you never give up, then I say you’re doing great!
Thank Goodness for the Lost & Found
You may have seen my posts about Sigg waterbottles (this one, or this review). If you haven’t, suffice it to say that I’m quite fond of mine. So it was quite distressing when I realized I had lost my beloved water bottle. Of course it’s clear from the post title that it was recovered and is again in my possession. I’m grateful for the kind soul who turned it in to the campus lost and found. It’s a nice little reminder that being kind to the planet isn’t enough, we need to be kind to each other as well. True compassion extends beyond one single cause. True activism involves daily acts of service along with the anything else you’re involved in.
You can never really predict what impact your small deeds might have. I’m attached to my water bottle (perhaps a little too attached) so I was pretty saddened by the idea that I had lost it, especially considering how long I had waited for it to be delivered in the first place. Getting it back safe and sound made my day. Plus it meant I didn’t need to replace the thing…which would have been frustrating since the reasons for having it in the first place was to have a reusable bottle that wouldn’t need replaced. So while you’re busy saving the world, please, don’t forget to save the people in it too.
School is eating my soul…
My sincerest apologies to those of you who actually read this humble blog regularly (are there any such readers?). School is eating me alive this semester. I won a talent award from the art department which requires me to take more credit hours than I ever have (14). It may not seem like many, but for this ADD student who’s never taken that many it’s a big change. In addition I’m working again for the first time in a little over a year, not too many hours, but still it adds up. And seeing as this is my first semester in the art program and some of my professors don’t understand that students have lives outside of drawing class (lives that include family members, religion, other classes, service, exercise, hygiene, and hobbies/social activities to keep sane) the work load is unbelievable. Now, that I think about it this is more than just a time issue. As much as it’s been driving me nuts that I don’t have more time to post all the neat things I’m reading/thinking about…I realize there’s a second problem caused by this overload that is, truthfully, a green issue.
One of the biggest obstacles in the green movement is the notion of “convenience.” It’s become some sort of God to many people in the developed Western World, especially Americans. Paper plates, disposable cleaning wipes, fast food, even driving (especially when not carpooling) contribute in huge (often unnoticed ways) to the deteriorating health of our beautiful, and fragile home. That’s why I think the Simple Living movement is so important. I don’t know that I believe the green movement can be successful unless it goes hand in hand with simpler living. What’s frustrating is that as long as you’re in college still working at getting the all-important degree (I’m beginning to doubt its value, especially when it seems that earning one seems to be at the cost of actually learning anything), as long as you’re still entrapped in the university universe your professors, the system itself, forces you into a lifestyle in which time is such a rare commodity that convenience sneaks itself into your mind as something important, even necessary.
When you don’t have time to cook, clean your apartment, wash your dishes, wash your clothes, write your Grandmother a letter, etc. you end up either giving in and eating fast food or over processed, over packaged convenience foods, using disposable dishes, neglecting the things that really matter (like family) for those that seem more urgent (like homework and exams). Or, in the case of our little family you only end up doing some of those things…because you refuse to use ridiculous things like paper plates and instead you end up with a big smelly pile of dishes in your kitchen that stress you out and make you embarrassed to have people over. These rat race lives we’re living are so often referred to as unavoidable. But they’re not…even when it’s college that makes things hectic. After all, I’ve chosen to go to school. I’ve chosen to live this way for several years (if I had only settled on my major sooner I might be graduating this year and escaping the chaos). And I choose to finish it out. It’s important to my family, and 30 years from now I’m sure it’ll be important to me to know I accomplished this. But it does make one think, question…and the one thing I do know is that as soon as I’m graduated I’m never choosing something that will make my life like this again. I’m not at all ashamed that my plans, my goals include being a stay-at-home mom. I’d rather increase the quality of the activities and things in my life than the quantity. A family can (despite what popular culture tells us) live quite happily on one income. In fact, they can live better. With a parent at home to do things like cook, clean, garden, sew, etc. you don’t have to spend all that extra money on those wicked little slave-masters we call “conveniences.”
Cough…sniffly sniffle…cough cough!
By sibcerest apologies to you, by faithful readers (do I eveb have aby faithful readers?): as you cab probably tell by by ibability to produce the two letters that cobes after L, I have a bit of a cold. Bot buch to report this week abyhow. Hope you all are healthy.
A No-longer Secret Desire:
I want a decent blogging network. Deep inside my green heart is a little gnome yelling “Trade links! Trade links!” But how little gnome, how?!
I apologize for the somewhat disturbing imagery there…sometimes one can be a bit too original. But seriously…I want to promote my blog. I think I have something to offer here. I don’t think I write Pulitzer material. Heck, I don’t even do a good job proof-reading this humble little blog. But I think I have some worthwhile things to say, and I know I provide a good crossroads to the blogs and websites of others with worthwhile things to say. I must admit I’m amazed that, to date, 152 people have viewed Eco Elly’s. That’s a little over three times as many views as there are posts. So I guess I should be satisfied that such a young blog has gotten that much traffic. But what blogger doesn’t want to see more readers visit their site?
I suppose I should just start adding blogs to my blog roll because they’re worth the time to visit them…but that’s what my links page is for. I’d like to reserve spots on the blog roll for blogs which in turn add me to their blog roll. But I’m not sure how to go about organizing such a network. I’m not about to go pester every eco-blogger I admire to add me to their links. As big of a fan as I am of this blog I can’t realistically expect everyone to feel as equally warm and fuzzy about it. On the other hand…would it really be that much of a nuisance to others to receive a note from me? After all, they’re free to decide for themselves whether or not to grant my request. What say you, oh readers?
My other thinkings go something like this: “I really wish I could get a bunch of other green blogs to trade links with me…but the people who probably read their blogs and would click through don’t need to hear green preaching as much as the average bloke or blokette…how could I convince the author of an unrelated blog to link to mine…and who should I even approach, if anyone…the only blogs I read tend to be eco-inclined, or at least about simple living (which is inherently eco-friendly), except maybe a few craft blogs…but I wouldn’t consider myself a loyal reader of any blog (unless you count Treehugger)…and as much as I want non-environmentalist blogs to link to me, I don’t want to link to a bunch of unrelated blogs because I want my readers to be secure in the knowledge that all my links are relevant…” and so on.
Readers, what do you advise? Do you have a blog you’d like to trade links for? Do you know someone who does? Do you think I should just e-mail the eco-bloggers I like and ask them about linking to each other? How should I go about finding some more good earth-friendly blogs? And, perhaps most importantly…how do I get non-hippies and those of pale shades of green to take a look here? “The whole need no physician” after all. I want all those good people out there who just don’t know any better to learn about all the different (and often easy) ways they can help save our planet.
Being Herbivore
I was, at one time, a pretty devout vegetarian (and working on the whole vegan thing). It started out of concern for animal welfare (especially the poor creatures trapped on factory farms*…which are pretty much evil-see this* and this* as well). My religious beliefs and personal conscience just wouldn’t allow me to continue my omnivore ways. Then, as I did my research I discovered how a vegetarian diet is healthy for me, (also: this & this) and the planet (and this).
But at some point I lost my dedication. I think it happened largely during a road trip to visit my parents, and my in-laws. I don’t like to make people cook especially for me, and finding veg food on the road, while entirely possible, is not always the easiest thing to do. But really, since when did ease become more important than integrity? And, as I discovered, eating meat isn’t so easy…on my stomach that is. I used to get an upset stomach every single morning. I thought maybe it was a lactose issue. So I decided to try soy milk. This was at the same time I went vegetarian. After that, my stomach was normal and happy. No more rushing to the bathroom in the morning. But when I started eating meat again…I started getting sick again. As it turns out it wasn’t a lactose issue at all. Hormone free milk doesn’t make me the least bit ill. It’s meat that upsets my tummy (as well as hormones and chemicals). I’ll be sticking with the soy milk (after all, it’s much, much healthier…plus I’m trying to slim down)…except for special occasions in which case I’ll be buying cruelty-free, organic milk (after all, soy milk just doesn’t taste the same with a batch of home-made chocolate chip cookies).
So my conscience’s and my stomach’s complaints have won me over once more. I’m re-going veg! There are a few things I’ll allow: cage-free, organic eggs, organic, free-range turkey (for the hubby) at Thanksgiving and Canadian Thanksgiving, and “special circumstances.” By “special circumstances” I mean occasions like the one in which we were given half a freezer full of elk meat that a game warden had confiscated from a poacher. I was okay with the elk meat because 1. the animal had already been poached and it would be wasteful to just throw away the meat, 2. the animal was not raised on a dirty, unnatural factory farm, 3. the animal never knew the terrifying smells of a slaughterhouse, and 4. the animal had not been shot up with all kinds of hormones and antibiotics. And, just a note, Mr. E and I both agree that the elk steaks were tastier and more tender than beef (though that doesn’t mean I support hunting…because I don’t).
So, I’m once more on a quest to have a diet that is compassionate, green, and healthy.
PS- I know I already provided this link above…but it’s too good not to suggest again. “For The Environment”
* These facts, images, and videos are not suitable for everyone, particularly children. What’s worse is that it isn’t some fiction horror story…but reality.
“Casting on” a New Hobby
You might remember that I was debating whether to get more looms for loom knitting, or get serious and learn traditional knitting. I decided to learn the old-fashioned method. I’m also learning crochet. I haven’t gotten very far with either (thanks to school starting). But I do find it enjoyable….at least, the knitting is. Crochet isn’t quite as relaxing. But I imagine as I get better at it that will change. I do have a little booklet of how-to instructions…but if it hadn’t been for KnittingHelp.com I would still be doing it wrong…not to mention feeling frustrated. The videos saved me from knitting doom. If I can find a similar sight for crochet…that’ll be wonderful.
Yarn is an issue. Wool is often farmed and “harvested” in incredibly cruel ways. Acrylic isn’t the most environmentally friendly material. And cotton, unless it’s organic, soaks the planet in pesticides. And organic yarn is so expensive that you’d generally be better off just buying what you want to make. I did get some cast-off yarn from a friend. And I already had a lot of yarn from when I first started loom knitting. So I should be set for quite a while. But in the future I’ll have to be careful about what yarn I use. I guess I can always recycle old sweaters.
If you’re looking for a good hobby then I recommend knitting. It’s relaxing, and useful. It’s definitely in tune with simple living, and there are lots of charities you can knit for (and check this list too). After all, what good is saving the planet if we ignore the people in need who live on it?
