the green post (for real this time)

I don't know about the rest world, but in this city, eco-friendliness is starting to gain a pretty solid fan base. You used to be branded as a hippie if you loved the earth, but nowadays, we instead scorn those who haul their shopping bags home in a hummer. I've gotten caught up in this environmental fad as well. Though I don't think 'fad' is the right word, as it implies a gradual phasing out once the next big hit comes along. If this is the case, I sure hope its not a fad, because it has some pretty important and positive consequences.

Looking back on the past few years, I've noticed a series of adjustments to my everyday life that have made me more ecologically friendly. Sometimes it seems difficult to suddenly switch over to a new lifestyle in the name of saving the environment. But when you make many small adjustments over time, it is a little easier and you still get the payoff... just a little further down the road. At the same time each new thing your incorporate into your everyday routine is also easier to maintain in the long run. In honor of Mary Anne and St. Patty's Day, here's a list of the ways I've gone (and am still attempting) to go green:

1) Recycle. Since I moved into my first apartment which came with its own separate recyclable trash can (conveniently left by the former tenants), I can't even imagine not having an extra container for our recyclables.

2) Travel Mug. A few months ago, I had a bad habit of coming to work in the morning and either stopping at Coffee Bean along the way for my favorite Cafe Vanilla, or forfeiting my dollar bills to the downstairs coffee vending machine. Both methods added up fast and contributed to needless paper waste. Finally, I vowed to learn how to use the coffee pot in our apartment which was most certainly feeling lonely and ignored. I bought a huge can of coffee from Costco for less than $10 and some yummy vanilla creamer, and started making my own coffee to bring to work in my bright yellow UCLA mug (trendy and spirited!).

3) Bundle up vs. use the heater. So this last winter, we didn't quite realize how cold our apartment could get in the evenings, even in LA. As a result, it took us a while to finally call the gas company to light our heater's pilot light. We were also afraid that the kittens (much smaller back then) would do something stupid. Good news is we saved lots of money by piling on blankets and donning sweatpants in the evening since we couldn't turn on the heat with a flick of a switch. Sometimes laziness pays off!

4) Paper or plastic? neither. Though I'll admit I don't always remember to bring them (or enough of them), I make an effort to use my own fabric grocery bags when shopping. Between my roomies and I, we have about twenty of them hanging up in our kitchen. They're definitely sturdier than the plastic option when it comes to lugging home the heavy stuff, and some even fold up nicely and fit in my purse... granted my purses are generally quite spacious.

5) Public transportation. I can't believe I almost forgot this one! Getting to and from work is a much more exciting adventure now that I take the bus. I can listen to my ipod, read a book, or just zone out and watch the city pass by on my way to campus. Its ten times better than spending money on gas, parking, and loosing my sanity to insane drivers. Oh yeah, and I don't polute the city. It's the ultimate carpool.

There are a few more things on my 'how to be green' list, but I don't think I've quite yet mastered them. They fit better on my 'ways I'd like to be green' list. Habits like remembering to turn off lights I'm not using, or taking shorter showers (I get a big fat fail in this category) would be good additions to my lifestyle, but are defintely a work in progress. Hopefully I'll be able to add those to a green post next St. Patty's Day!