Hippie Holiday dilemma: Real or Artificial Christmas tree?

I grew up in a family that took annual trips to the Christmas tree farm to find and cut down the perfect Christmas tree. We hunted and selected a tree that we all agreed on (usually), cut it down, brought it home, decorated it, and discarded it after the holidays. My new hippie alter-ego began to worry this year as the holidays approached: certainly this practice of tree murder could not be considered good hippie practice, could it? I began to consider the other alternative: the artificial Christmas tree. Being raised in a 'real tree family,' I know I am already biased against artificial trees. They don't smell nice, they look the same every year, and you miss out on the tradition of selecting a yearly tree with your family. But what about the benefit of not murdering a yearly tree? Are artificial trees more eco-friendly? One family can purchase one artificial tree and use it for years and years, saving many trees. But, what about the material? Most artificial trees are made of plastic, and likely made in China. So, made of an oil based substance, manufactured in a far-off land, and shipped here using fossil fuels. Hmmm, starting to sound less and less eco-friendly. And what about the fact that every one of those artificial trees will end up in a dump? Fortunately, the local tree farm answered the question for me. "These trees are grown especially for you. If it weren't for you, the trees would not be planted at all." Unlike tree lots, when you cut a tree down from a tree farm, the only trees being cut down are the ones that are used. I also learned that for every one Christmas tree cut down, three more are planted at this farm, and that these trees were planted in fields in which the soil can't support other crops. Neat! Not to mention real trees are biodegradable and/or recyclable. Many communities offer pick-up services after the holidays. They take your tree, and chip it to be used for mulch. No landfill- woo hoo! Oh, and one of my favorite points is that cutting down a tree helps to support local business. Instead of purchasing an oil-based plastic tree made in a Chinese factory and padding the wallets of the Walton family (or some other corporation) a little more, I chose to support Tree Farmer Brown (no that isn't his actual name). Oh, and I get to keep up the family tradition. Not to mention that wonderful Christmas-y smell. That reminds me- time to go water my tree! Happy Holidays!

Hippie Read: Radical Homemakers

Radical Homemakers: Reclaiming Domesticity from a Consumer Culture by Shannon Hayes "Mother Nature has shown her hand. Faced with climate change, dwindling resources, and species extinction, most Americans understand the fundamental steps necessary to solve our global crises: reduce driving; consume less; increase our self-reliance; buy locally, eat locally, rebuild our local communities. In essence, the great work we face requires re-kindling the home fires. Radical Homemakers is about men and women across the U.S. who focus on home and hearth as a political and ecological act; who center their lives around family and community for personal fulfillment and cultural change. It explores what domesticity looks like in an era that has benefitted from feminism; where the choice to stay home is no longer equated with mind-numbing drudgery, economic insecurity, or relentless servitude. Radical Homemakers nation-wide speak about empowerment, transformation, happiness, and casting aside the pressures of a consumer culture to live in a world where money loses its power to relationships, independent thought, and creativity. If you ever considered quitting a job to plant tomatoes, read to a child, pursue creative work, can green beans, and heal the planet, this is your book." This book is definitely an interesting read. It looks at how the role of a Homemaker has gone from a lucrative, skilled profession to one that is not even considered a legitimate career option. At one point, a homemaker was required to know how to manage and maintain a household. She (or he) knew how to be completely self-reliant and self-sufficient. But today, thanks to modern conveniences, the role of a homemaker is defined by consumerism. A homemaker is no longer required to grow food in a garden, make foods from scratch, or sew clothing. A typical day in the life of a homemaker now revolves around shopping and driving kids around. And as the homemaker's role has evolved from specialist to shopper, it has become more and more mundane, and women feel oppressed by being forced to remain in such a situation. And so, many women in today's society choose to work, which places families on vicious earning/ spending/ working cycles. Families have become forced into double-income lifestyles. By having both adults working, families must pay others to complete tasks that they could easily do themselves if they had the time: childcare, cleaning the house, lawn care, etc. They work more hours to make more money to pay for more conveniences to allow them to have more time to work. This book focuses on Homemakers across the country who refuse to fall into this vicious cycle. They opt to live with less in order to truly enjoy the important things in life. This book is definitely worth the read. Check it out at the library. Or, if you know me personally, you are welcome to borrow my copy. "For national and social disasters, for moral and financial evils, the cure begins in the Household." - Julia M. Wright, The Complete Home, 1879

Hippie Documentary: King Corn

I dropped the ball again. Despite the number of documentaries I've been watching, I can't quite keep up with a weekly review. So, no more timelines. This time around- King Corn. This film follows two recent college graduates and their attempt to rent an acre of farmland in Iowa in order to grow corn and determine exactly where the corn goes and what it is used for. The film examines how we as a society are dependent on corn. From the corn that is fed to cattle that becomes the beef we eat to high fructose corn syrup that is in practically everything in the grocery store, we consume corn at an alarming rate. This documentary is definitely worth watching. I learned a lot about farm subsidies, the insdustrialization of farming, history of corn, and just how dependent we are on this one crop. View the trailer here. "We aren't growing quality, we're growing crap."

Planned obsolescence and kids' stuff... aka how I refuse to be a sucker

Assuming you took the 20 minutes and watched the 'Story of Stuff' video I posted about a few weeks ago, you already know what the term 'planned obsolescence' means (you did watch it didn't you? No? Ok, we'll wait....). Alright, alright, for those of you who are too busy to spare 20 minutes to watch, I'll sum it up for you- planned obsolescence is a tactic used by manufacturers to design a product so it will have a limited useful life. The goal is to get us, as the consumer, to purchase a product that will last as short of a time as possible so that we will have to go buy that same product again, thus spending more money than if we were to simply purchase something once and (God forbid) have it last. Until I saw that video, I never really realized how prevalent that concept is. And how does this tactic relate to kids' stuff? If you have ever tried to purchase something that is gender neutral, you know that it is next to impossible. And it's not just clothing. It seems that it is becoming increasingly difficult to find anything that is gender neutral. Thinking back to my childhood, it seems that I had far more items that could be considered gender neutral than what is offered today. I don't remember everything I owned being either pink or purple. But today, everything from tricycles to underwear to blankets to baby gear can be chosen in a cutesy pink version. The problem I have with the cutesy pink version (and, yes, we do have plenty of cutesy pink in this house) is that the item then becomes practically obsolete the moment you have a boy (that is, unless you are crazy, like me) and you are forced to purchase that same item in a boy-friendly color. Without even thinking about it, you were just forced to purchase something twice, use the resources needed to produce the item twice, and ultimately, add twice as much to a landfill. Don't get me wrong, I am not planning to dress my daughter in all blue, or to dress my son in pink, but I do plan to stop and think everytime I am tempted to buy a pink tricycle, "Will my son want to use that?" The majority of the kid stuff I have purchased, from bouncy seats to highchairs to strollers is gender neutral. Also, I am fortunate to have a daughter who loves dinosaurs and puppies, so we have opted to purchase boy pajamas for her, and will also use them when my son grows into them. Perhaps one day there will be a company that does not intentionally take advantage of the consumer in order to make more money and instead prioritizes the quality of the product they sell. Until then, we'll buy as much green and yellow stuff as we can find, and what we can't reuse we will find someone who can.

Officially off the deep end

Once upon a time, in 1968, feminists held a protest against the Miss America pageant. "Protesters saw the pageant and its symbols as an oppression of women (because of its emphasis on an arbitrary standard of beauty, and its elevation of its choice of the "most beautiful girl in America" to a pedestal for public worship and commercial exploitation). On September 7, 1968, a "Freedom Trash Can" was placed on the ground, and filled with bras, high-heeled shoes, false eyelashes, girdles, curlers, hairspray, makeup, corsets, magazines (such as Playboy), and other items thought to be "instruments of torture," accouterments of enforced femininity." (Wikipedia.org). (Protesters did not, as the myth goes, burn their bras- this was a misconception fueled by the media). Yet, here we are today, 4 decades later, living in a society in which women are told all day, everyday that in order to be "beautiful," they must strive to look like women that are paid thousands of dollars to advertise a product. Marketing pays big bucks to drill into the minds of women that in order to be "beautiful," we "need" products that make our skin smooth, our hair shiny, and our bodies smelling nice. They come up with new products all the time and new ways of convincing us we need them (Have you ever noticed that Baby Boomers call conditioner "cream rinse"? I wonder what marketing genius figured out that "conditioner" sounds like something we "need" more than cream rinse. Uh oh, I'd better "condition" my hair- otherwise it might fall out or something equally scary!) Several months ago, before my hippie-ness really kicked in, I decided to start using a nightime face cream. Possibly due to my child-induced sleep deprivation, I felt my skin had seen better days. And I'd seen commercials for this product- the women had flawless skin and absolutely zero undereye puffiness (of course, with absolutely no help from digital enhancement whatsoever). It must be due to this magical product they use, right? Weeks went by, and night after night I slathered this junk on my face. Then one night I thought "Hmm, how weird that I am putting this on my face and I have absolutely no idea what is even in it." So I flip over the little jar, and there is not even a list of ingredients on the container! (Perhaps it was in the box it came in, however, I, like most people, throw out the box as soon as I open it!) I was unable to quickly and easily determine what I was putting on my face night after night. I started to think about the number of products I use daily. I would say on an average day, I use about 8-10 products. Obviously, it depends on the day, and my plans for that day (leaving the house, or getting repeatedly spit-up on by an infant?). On a day (rare as they may be) that I am getting "dolled up," I use: shampoo, conditioner, face wash, soap, lotion, deodorant, root volumizer, mousse, hair spray, concealer, foundation, eye primer, mascara, eye liner, eye shadow, and bronzer. That is 16 products right there. And I think that I am on the low end in comparison with other women. I rarely paint my nails (in fact, I recently had my very first pedicure at the age of 27), I don't dye my hair (I can count on one hand the number of times I have dyed my hair in my life), and I typically use minimal makeup. But I got to thinking, why do I need to use all of the products I use? I came across this website. I'm not sure if it's 100 percent accurate, but it is interesting to read what ingredients are in our products, and what these ingredients may do to our health. This article is also interesting. The things we do for beauty! And so, the title of this blog entry. I have decided to stop using shampoo and conditioner. Yes, you read that correctly. I've read a lot about people trying the "No Poo Method" (funny name, huh?) and I decided that I am the perfect candidate to try this little experiment- admittedly, I'm a little crazy, not terribly concerned with impressing anyone, and rarely leave the house (probably the most important factor in this experiment). As of today, I am one week into this experiment. So far, I have to admit, I am liking it. I've been using a baking soda wash with apple cider vinegar rinse. It's working nicely. It makes so much sense to me- we all know that you aren't really supposed to shampoo your hair daily. Your body naturally produces oil to keep your hair healthy. Using shampoo daily strips your hair (so you can replace those oils with conditioner of course!) and upsets your hair's natural balance. This causes you to produce more oil than necessary to compensate. Kind of a supply and demand situation. In the past, I haven't been able to go more than 24 hours without shampooing, or my head looks like an oilslick. It's weird to have gone a week with zero shampoo, and my hair actually looks pretty darn good. I've read that one goes through a transition phase lasting a few weeks when attempting this method as the scalp rebalances and adjusts the amount of oil needed. So far, I have had a few 'slightly greasy' days, but nothing terrible. I appointed the husband as the official head sniffer/ hair toucher/ oil slick spotter so I can get an unbiased opinion of this process. Day 1- Husband sniff test Husband: I don't know, it doesn't really smell... clean. Me: By clean, do you mean, fragranced? Husband: Yes. Fortunately, my goal is not to smell like flowers or strawberries. It is also not my goal to be a stinky hippie, so I will be keeping close tabs on my stink factor. Everyday since, the husband has said my head smells good and clean. And don't worry, I am still showering daily, using soap, and deodorant. I can't say that I will never go back to shampoo. But so far, baking soda and vinegar are working for me. I hope that I can get my hair to a point where I am not dependent on shampoo or other products. I'll save myself some money, and keep chemicals off my hair and skin. Heck, if you're brave enough, toss those products in your "Freedom Trash Can" -- or perhaps, your "Freedom Recycling Bin" and join me in this crazy hippie experiment!

One man's junk...

You know the saying. With the number of moves my family has had over the last few years, it's pretty easy to realize the amount of "stuff" one can acquire. The one good thing about frequent moves (and trust me, this might be the only good thing) is that it allows you to purge the possessions you rarely use. It allows you to assess how often you actually use something, what the item means to you, and whether it's worth keeping. But, what to do with the "stuff" you are ready to part with? Lazy* answer: Trashcan! Hippie answer: Freecycle! For those of you who are not familiar with Freecycle, I highly recommend you check it out. It's a network that allows you to post items that you no longer want, and are willing to part with for free. Other members can then contact you if you have what they want. Essentially, it's a method of finding a new owner for something you no longer want, but may be of use to someone. To use Freecycle, you simply search for a town near you, and you then become a member of that particular network. You can either post items you want to get rid of, or you can search for other people's stuff. Others in the same network can find your stuff and contact you if they want it. Just one more way to keep stuff out of landfills. You never know, someone may want that old ball of yarn or that three-legged table. *Please do not take offense to this. I use the term 'lazy' with the utmost love and respect, as I have been known to throw a thing or two in the trash. Baby steps.

Oh the things we consume...

Gross. I am not above this. I still eat at McDonalds (and drink too- I can't quite resist those "crack coffees" - aka, Iced Coffees that I swear are infused with crack because they are so addicting). Although, I have been finding more and more reasons to avoid this and most other fast foods. Articles like this and documentaries like Super Size Me have really made me think about fast food and how much I eat it. Now that I have significantly reduced how much fast food I eat, an occasional meal at such a franchise makes me feel.... well, yucky. It tastes good momentarily, but it is short-lived, as I begin to feel awful the minute it hits my lower esophageal sphincter. I swear Pepto Bismol advertisers must've been eating McDonald's when they came up with their slogan- "Nausea, Heartburn, Indigestion, Upset Stomach, Diarhhea. Yay Pepto Bismol!" Why do we continue to eat this garbage? Because we crave it! More about diet choices in a later post....

Hippie Documentary of the....week? The 11th Hour

When I last wrote about a Hippie Documentary, I entitled the post 'Hippie Documentary of the Week.' I figured with as many documentaries as I had been watching, I would be able to post a new one each week for you to consider watching. Unfortunately, that did not come to fruition. I got busy, and forgot to post. Oops. So here I go again. I will try to be more on top of this. This week, I am recommending The 11th Hour. Produced and narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, this film discusses global warming and our impact on the planet. Although some of the footage was, in my opinion, somewhat excessive (did they really show a man bludgeoning a seal??) and bordering on shock effect scare-tactics, this film does present a powerful message: we are trashing the planet, and we need to stop. Now. Fortunately, as is the goal with most documentaries, a solution is ultimately provided, and the viewer is left feeling hopeful and inspired. *Spoiler alert* : The coolest fact this doc presented is that by using existing technologies, we can reduce our impact on the planet by 90 percent! That is pretty remarkable and encouraging. Renewable energy sources like solar power and wind energy could reduce our impact by 90 percent. Pretty cool. Not to mention new innovations in renewable energy technology that are being developed every day. It seems that we are at a turning point, as the film mentions. Will we continue to trash the planet until it's too late? Or will we find ways to change our lifestlyes and change our mentalities so that protecting the planet becomes a priority?

Those darn grocery bags

We all know how terrible plastic shopping bags are for the environment. They take ages to decompose, they require buckets of oil to produce, they get stuck in trees, they suffocate poor animals, and they say mean things behind your back. Okay, that last one might not be true, but regardless, even the soggiest among us know these things are no good. However, if you are anything like me, despite your best efforts to remember to use your reusable cloth grocery bags (you do have some of those by now, don't you?) you inevitably forget them at home. I have a note to myself posted on my door out to the garage that reads "Do you have your bags?" so I see it on my way to my car and I still manage to forget far too often. And so, I acquired a massive pile of plastic bags that I refuse to ship off to the dump. Alas, thanks to this website, I learned that the grocery store right up the street has a bin to collect plastic bags for recycling! Have you ever noticed how careless cashiers are with those bags? No, I don't need a bag for my milk- it has a handle! I'm pretty sure you can fit more than one box of cereal in one bag. And, bagging eggs separately does not mean the eggs won't break- those plastic bags don't have magical protective powers. If only cashiers were trained to minimize bag usage. Or, if only stores charged a minimal fee per bag- I think more people would remember their reusable bags. And, stores would save money on buying all those bags, which would then lower cost of products in the store. Practical, economical, and eco-friendly. Imagine that.

The Story of Stuff

I've been meaning to post this for a while. I came across an interesting video that discusses our obsession with "stuff" and the implications that this obsession has on our planet and ourselves. While I don't agree with 100% of this video (the husband doesn't like her jab at the military), she does present some interesting information, and a valid perspective. Just how much "stuff" do we really need?

Save the Trees!

At the risk of sounding like a crazy tree-hugger (oh who am I kidding- if you've read my previous posts, you already know I'm a bit crazy)- there is a simple and painless way to be a little more green and save some trees. Eliminating junk mail! According to Cleanair.org, Americans receive almost 4 million tons of junk mail every year. I think it's called 'junk' mail for a reason. And, thanks to the convenience of the internet, you barely have to lift a finger to make a difference. If you are like me, the daily trip to the mailbox can leave you puzzled. "How on earth did I end up receiving a Pottery Barn/ Victoria Secret/ Sporty's Pilot Shop (yup, I got this one today!)/ fill-in-the blank catalog? Did I even sign up for this?" "Why am I receiving three credit card applications everyday?" "Why do I continue to receive paper statements when I do all my billing online?" Think about the amount of junk mail you receive everyday. You probably go straight from the mailbox to the garbage can (or, I hope, the recycling bin!) and toss 75 percent of what you receive daily. Or, it piles up on your counter top and creates the annoying chore of sorting it after a week. Now multiply that junk mail by every household in the country. That's a whole lot of unnecessary waste. Yes, recycling junk mail is better than tossing it in the trash, but why not cut out the waste at the source? Fortunately, there is an easy way to do this: To cancel unwanted catalogs, click here. To cancel credit and insurance offers, click here. Another option I have read about, but not yet tried is this. Some extreme tree-huggers utilize online newspapers and magazines. Some have requested they no longer receive the Yellow Pages (this one makes sense- I recently received TWO of the same phone book within a week or so- what a waste of paper!) Another easy change is to utilize online bill paying instead of receiving paper statements. There are varying levels of tree-hugger in all of us. You may enjoy reading your morning newspaper, and I am not asking you to give that up. But we can all probably live without that catalog (or 9) that go straight to the trash without even being looked through. Or the annoying credit card application you seem to receive 3 times a week. Take a few minutes and save a few trees.

The simplest switch yet...

We live in a world of disposable everything. Napkins, diapers, even mop heads are now disposable. To stop for a second and think about where all that disposable junk is going is rather terrifying. Stop. Think. Piles and piles of garbage that grow bigger everyday. Won't we eventually run out of room for garbage? Have you seen the movie Wall-E? The movie is set in the future. Humans have trashed and vacated the planet, only to leave their mountains of garbage and sweet, little robots to attempt to clean it up. I had to turn it off after the first 15 minutes because I found it so depressing. Seriously, isn't this supposed to be a feel-good children's movie? I think it's time for us humans to think about all of the trash we produce. When something goes into the garbage can, it doesn't just disappear when the garbage man picks it up. Stop. Think. Is that Swiffer really more efficient at cleaning your house than a regular old broom? Did that paper towel clean that mess better than a cloth towel would? And thus, the topic of this blog- the simplest switch I've made yet- cloth napkins. I bought 3 dozen cloth napkins through an online wholesale site. I think I spent around $25. They are kept in a basket on our table for easy access during meals. To refute you naysayers who are probably already trying to come up with a downside to this- no, I have not had to do any extra loads of laundry to keep up with cloth napkin use. Because they are so small, they easily fit into my loads of towels without creating another load. And, no, we have never run out of cloth napkins before I wash more. And yes, I think this significantly has reduced the amount of trash we produce each week. With the amount of spills and messes our toddler has, and as sloppy of eaters as the husband and I are, we've cut back on a lot of trash. I can eat pizza and only use ONE napkin for the whole meal(those that know me should realize how amazing this is- one meal of pizza generally equals 7-8 paper napkins for this slob). My only complaint I have with the napkins I purchased is the color. I intended to purchase napkins with a soft, subtle green to match my dishes and towels. The color was called 'tea green' and looked nice on the website. Unfortunately, the napkins I received were bright, neon green, and before I even considered returning them, the box and receipt were lost in the meyhem of a toddler-run household. Oh, well. I guess the green napkins can be my reminder to try to be more green everyday.

The Compost Conundrum

We decided to try our hand at composting. The husband and I had talked about it for a while, so I did a little research (emphasis on the "little") and went for it. I figured it couldn't be too difficult, right? I took the husband's drill and drilled holes in a plastic garbage can with a twist-lock lid. We then began collecting our kitchen waste (banana peels, egg shells, non-meat food scraps, etc) and yard clippings and started adding them to the compost bin. The problem we encountered was that we didn't pay attention to Compost Rule #1- add equal amounts of "green" material and "brown" material. Green material is food scraps, lawn clippings, etc. Brown material is shredded newspaper, dead leaves, etc. We added essentially 95% green material. Let this be your warning- you MUST add brown material to a compost bin to balance out the green, unless your ultimate goal is to have a steaming pile of foul yuckiness that will attract every fly in town along with his brother. We learned this the hard way. Our backyard was... well, quite rank for a while. Fortunately, the neighbors don't hate us. After adding about a week's worth of shredded newspaper, and giving the bin a good turning or two, the stentch was significantly reduced. So now we have a nice balanced compost pile that is "cooking" quite nicely that will result in some good fertilizer for our garden in the spring. And you would not believe how much compostable food scraps we produce as a family. We keep an empty plastic ice cream tub under our sink, and it needs to be emptied into the outdoor bin every other day (sometimes every day, depending on what we eat). We've learned to add at least one day of shredded newspaper (junk mail also works nicely) every time we empty the bucket, to keep the stank away. And wow, between composting, recycling, and cloth diapers, our garbage bin has hardly anything in it on trash day. And that makes me feel very accomplished. It may make a stink, but I'm trying to do my part.

Hippie Documentary of the week: The Future of Food

I've been watching a LOT of documentaries recently. It's become a bit of an obsession, actually. Thanks to my Netflix subscription, I don't have to go to the video store, or even wait for them to get mailed to me. Most documentaries are available to watch instantly from my computer. Pretty convenient. I consider myself a pretty educated individual. I like to think my eyes are open to a lot of what is happening in the world. But every documentary I watch proves to me how little I know about certain topics, and leaves me wanting to know more. And so I watch more documentaries. And research certain topics on the internet. And read. And watch more documentaries. In the last few weeks, I've watched more doumentaries than I had in my entire life prior. As I said, it's become a bit of an obsession. And so, I thought I would share some of these documentaries on my blog in case you are interested. Not all the films are big names like Super Size Me (although I did enjoy that one). The film I just got finished watching is called The Future of Food. The Future of Food discusses the overwhelming trend of Genetically Modified foods and its implications on agriculture, our food, our society, and our health. The film discusses the process of genetic modification and the controversy that surrounds it. It looks at the huge corporations that utilize these methods (ahem, Monsanto) and how they bully the small farmer for monetary gain and greater control of the overall market. The film also explores the controversial concept of patenting living things. Did you know there is a patent on a gene linked to breast cancer and that researchers who are trying to find ways to treat/ cure breast cancer have to pay patent fees to use this gene in their research? To me that is both mind-boggling and infuriating. This is just one of the interesting tidbits I learned from this film. I found The Future of Food to be very intriguing and eye-opening. It's a quick 88 minutes, and in my opinion, definitely worth checking out. If you don't have Netflix, you can watch it here for free.

It all started with "poop catchers"

My husband has always wanted to have a vegetable garden. He's always been interested in eating nutritious foods and living a healthy lifestyle. He grew up snacking on fruits and veggies. I, on the other hand, have been a well-known junk food addict for as long as I can remember. Growing up, I wouldn't touch a vegetable with a 10-foot pole. My parents used to have to bribe me to taste anything that was green, leafy, or possibly nutritious. I prided myself on being a meat-eater, and was never bothered by what was actually in my food (I recall the junior high lunch table and being told precisely what was in a Twinkie, only to laugh and devour the one that was in my lunch bag). I scoffed at vegans and rolled my eyes at people who were cautious about chemicals that were in their food, cosmetics, household items, and the like. I was an ignorant American, and I liked it. The only thing I had going for me as far as "green" is concerned was that I was raised to be a penny-pincher, and therefore, not wasteful in the slightest. I think I got it from my grandma, who was known to wash and reuse styrofoam plates (ew) and hoarded paper napkins from fast food restaurants. But that really wasn't all that uncommon for the generation of Great Depresssion survivors. You didn't waste a thing because you didn't know when you would be able to afford it again. But that mentality isn't very common in today's generation. Fortunately, those values were instilled into my mom, and therefore, into me. Saving a few pennies here or there has always been rewarding to me. Finding a bargain is a thrill. Buying things used (garage sales, thrift stores, you name it) is a regular occurance. I've never spent money on name brands. I will squeeze every last drop out of a toothpaste tube before throwing it away. Until recently, this was not to be eco-friendly, it was because I was cheap. And one day, I was introduced to cloth diapering. Strangely, I reconnected with a friend from high school who had chosen this option for her son, and she explained the pros and cons of it. I had already chosen to use disposables with my first-born, so it seemed silly to invest the money and switch with the second-born, but for some reason, I was intrigued enough to try. And, just as my friend had warned, it quickly became an obsession, a snowball effect, if you will. Not only did I become obsessed with cloth diapering, but other "green" lifestlye choices began to intrigue me. Over the course of the last few months, I have gone from a typical American consumer to a recycling-obsessed, cloth-diapering, compost-making, cloth-grocery-bag-using, semi-crunchy* hippie. Now don't get me wrong. The transition from "soggy" to "crunchy" is not an overnight process. It is very gradual. There are still plenty of green things that I want to try. But doing them all at once would likely shock my system and I may die. It's not easy. I love big, fat, juicy cheeseburgers, I enjoy being lazy, I like cranking my A/C on hot summer days, and vegetables still kinda scare me. But I do feel that this beautiful earth is a worthy cause. I think that getting over my selfishness and laziness enough to step outside my comfort zone and give it a try for the sake of future generations is definitely worth it. And that is why I have chosen to write this blog. Perhaps you will find it inspiring. If I can make some of these changes, perhaps you can too. Or perhaps you will merely be entertained by my anecdotes and reading about me falling on my face and failing miserably at my attempts. Either way, I hope you enjoy reading. My husband laughs at me now. I eat vegetables daily (imagine that!). I made my own compost bin. I hang dry laundry as much as I can. I turned the first shovel to plot out our vegetable garden. He said, "And to think, this all started with poop-catchers." It had to start somewhere. *For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term "crunchy," here is the definition from the online slang dictionary- Crunchy: •hippie-esque; ALL-NATURAL. Refers to the crunch of granola, which (as goes the stereotype) hippie-esque people are likely to eat.