Talking with my mom about enviro stuff
Apr. 28th, 2009 11:34 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
helwenInteresting conversation with my mom yesterday.
She lives in a semi-assisted living community, and more folks there are getting active in living more sustainably, be it technological approaches, insulating, recycling, etc. She already has a couple of those solar pipe things -- you put a tube through the ceiling up to the roof and then there's a mirror and a curved part on top that guides sunlight into the room so that you don't need to use electricity.
They have a retired apiarist living there who somehow managed to find some bees, and transported the hive to the main community flower garden. In California, bees are a rare treasure indeed.!
And apparently the giant pile of trash in the middle of the Pacific was covered on Oprah this week (she watches this, not me). Philippe Cousteau, Jacques Cousteau's grandson, has really been going great guns on behalf of the oceans, both on tv and in classrooms :) His sister's involved as well I believe, but he's the face for that particular oceanic group. It truly is hard to imagine a pile of trash (and there's enough there that it sits on top of the ocean, not just floating in the water) -- the size of Texas. No idea how that's going to be dealt with, but we can all work to reduce trash, so that there's less that can escape and get washed into our rivers and oceans. So she's looking at what more she can do to reduce the amount of trash she produces.
Packaging of course is a big offender, and the "green" producers are often no better than anyone else -- like the organic eggs that come in plastic containers, or the recycled paper TP, each roll individually wrapped in plastic.
Cheap goods that don't last are another problem. If you're going to buy something and it has to be new, get something durable. And maintain things so they last longer! We've had our current tv (yes, we watch tv and movies) for about 4 years so far and it's still doing quite well. We got it when the previous television set itself on fire...
The car will be going in for some body work this year as it has a few rusty spots and one has gone through a bit more than we'd like. Firestone is opening some new stores in the Northeast -- apparently business is good, as more people repair their current vehicles instead of buying new ones. We got ours used of course -- I haven't had a new car since the one time I bought one in the early 90s. I had it for less than a year because of the idiot who crashed into me and my friends on the way home from an event. Lovely car, and it did its job well, including saving my life.
I do think I need to remove a few t-shirts finally from L's wardrobe though... granted he only wears them around the farm but... ragged collars and holes here and there, and 10+ years is a pretty good run for a t-shirt. If I didn't already have polishing rags... hm. Oh hey, there is that punching bag we've been talking about making, maybe we could use them for some of the stuffing!
And of course, it's been a year since I last tried riding my bike, so it's time to get the bikes out and try again. I think this year my shoulder can handle it. My mom doesn't bike, but she does walk a bit, and goes with other folks to go shopping, or takes the bus. There are definite advantages to living in a city in that regard!
She lives in a semi-assisted living community, and more folks there are getting active in living more sustainably, be it technological approaches, insulating, recycling, etc. She already has a couple of those solar pipe things -- you put a tube through the ceiling up to the roof and then there's a mirror and a curved part on top that guides sunlight into the room so that you don't need to use electricity.
They have a retired apiarist living there who somehow managed to find some bees, and transported the hive to the main community flower garden. In California, bees are a rare treasure indeed.!
And apparently the giant pile of trash in the middle of the Pacific was covered on Oprah this week (she watches this, not me). Philippe Cousteau, Jacques Cousteau's grandson, has really been going great guns on behalf of the oceans, both on tv and in classrooms :) His sister's involved as well I believe, but he's the face for that particular oceanic group. It truly is hard to imagine a pile of trash (and there's enough there that it sits on top of the ocean, not just floating in the water) -- the size of Texas. No idea how that's going to be dealt with, but we can all work to reduce trash, so that there's less that can escape and get washed into our rivers and oceans. So she's looking at what more she can do to reduce the amount of trash she produces.
Packaging of course is a big offender, and the "green" producers are often no better than anyone else -- like the organic eggs that come in plastic containers, or the recycled paper TP, each roll individually wrapped in plastic.
Cheap goods that don't last are another problem. If you're going to buy something and it has to be new, get something durable. And maintain things so they last longer! We've had our current tv (yes, we watch tv and movies) for about 4 years so far and it's still doing quite well. We got it when the previous television set itself on fire...
The car will be going in for some body work this year as it has a few rusty spots and one has gone through a bit more than we'd like. Firestone is opening some new stores in the Northeast -- apparently business is good, as more people repair their current vehicles instead of buying new ones. We got ours used of course -- I haven't had a new car since the one time I bought one in the early 90s. I had it for less than a year because of the idiot who crashed into me and my friends on the way home from an event. Lovely car, and it did its job well, including saving my life.
I do think I need to remove a few t-shirts finally from L's wardrobe though... granted he only wears them around the farm but... ragged collars and holes here and there, and 10+ years is a pretty good run for a t-shirt. If I didn't already have polishing rags... hm. Oh hey, there is that punching bag we've been talking about making, maybe we could use them for some of the stuffing!
And of course, it's been a year since I last tried riding my bike, so it's time to get the bikes out and try again. I think this year my shoulder can handle it. My mom doesn't bike, but she does walk a bit, and goes with other folks to go shopping, or takes the bus. There are definite advantages to living in a city in that regard!
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no subject
Date: 2009-04-28 05:31 pm (UTC)T-shirt fabric can be used for dishcloths (washing type, I mean, although I suppose they might work ok for drying too), and for household cleaning tasks such as the bathroom sink, the bathtub, or spills on the floor. The ribbed neckbands make great scrubbies for stoves, pots, etc.
no subject
Date: 2009-04-28 05:46 pm (UTC)We already have a bunch of dishcloths too, both kinds. Only so many rags fit under the counter :D
But good ideas! Okay, anybody reading this, take note! You could be saving money, and the environment!
no subject
Date: 2009-04-28 07:48 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-28 10:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-28 10:51 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-28 11:03 pm (UTC)okay, how about a wall hanging behind a bookcase? *is perhaps stretching things*
no subject
Date: 2009-04-29 03:08 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-29 12:23 pm (UTC)