An easy one for me seeing as I have no car, no $ to buy a car/plane ticket/train ticket/etc, and live on the first floor of my building, negating the temptation for an elevator. I guess since I've already read No Impact Man, I've already consciously thought about my environmental impact so a lot of these changes aren't surprises.
Still, if I want to go to the library across the bridge (and I do, since I get more work done there), I walk or take my bike even if Andrea could give me a ride. I use the stairs to get to work, on the third floor of the library (mostly because it dings loudly when you arrive at your floor, signaling to the rest of the semi-quiet library, "Attention! Lazy slob arriving!").
More friendly travel ideas:
-Bike to work (even if you only do it a couple times each week), especially if you work less than two miles away from your house.
-Carpool...self-explanatory.
-Use public transportation, if it's available. The sad thing about America is public transportation has a negative stigma. Another reason I miss Europe, even with all the complaints (see: stinky Romans, lack of personal space, donne vecchie).
-Run errands all at once, instead of making several small trips.
I should confess: I will be cheating in majors ways later this week when Mom comes to pick me up to go home in a motorized vehicle, then takes me to Best Buy so I can buy a new power cord for my laptop. Hopefully I can at least recycle the dead one, otherwise that means I'll have traveled, consumed and made trash within the span of several hours. Sorry, planet.
In non-Earth Week news, my latest author binge is David Sedaris. I'm thoroughly convinced my attention span is depleting as short stories seem to be the only thing I can read lately. Sedaris holds my attention, though, judging by the way I powered through Me Talk Pretty One Day and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
this weekend.
Ha! I didn't know other people thought about that after they ride the elevators at SNC! We are forming a hive consciousness I think.
ReplyDeleteYour talk about using things over and over until they are completely exhausted (t-shirts become tote bags become paper towels etc., clothes are resold again and again, containers are re-used) is very thought-provoking. I wonder what a drastic drop in consumption would mean on the long-term for us culturally and economically (would we primitivize or evolve?). It's cool, I like it.
P.S. David Sedaris is many times better than Dave Eggers, JS Foer, et al. Most of 'em are hipster trash y'ask me, I like David Sedaris though. I like your thoughts!
Drew
David Sedaris's mother is my spirit animal. That is all.
ReplyDelete