Confessions

So, you know I have been trying to go "green". I haven't made any great strides in that area in months. The reason? It's too tiring. How lame is that?

An explanation for those of you sitting out there, scratching your heads and saying, "How can it be tiring to take care of the environment? It's the most natural thing!" Yes, yes it is. But, for a perfectionist as myself, it's tiring. We are cloth-diapering, recycling more, yada yada yada -- but there is always MORE I could be doing. Every time I use a paper napkin (we are still working through that stash -- but I am using cloth after they are gone!!), I cringe. Every time I drive a quarter mile to the grocery store b/c it's too damn hot to walk there, I cringe. Same goes for every time I get takeout in a Styrofoam box or toss my Starbucks cup in the trash instead of recycling bin. It's like Pandora's Box - once you start thinking about the environment and make a few changes, you realize how much more you could be doing. And it's tiring.

So I'm confessing to you all -- I have been slacking off with this. I'm hanging my head in shame. Because, logically I know that even if I'm not "perfect" with being green, at least I am doing something and thinking about it. And the more I incorporate all these little things into my life, the more naturally it will come, and the more things I will do. This isn't a quick project that I can cross off my to-do list. This is a lifelong goal that will constantly be improving. And while that is hard to swallow for someone who likes to feel a sense of accomplishment, it's a good learning lesson and very humbling at the same time.

So without further ado -- here are my Green Goals for July:

~Look into better lighting for the house -- light bulbs that give off less carbon and use less energy
~Fill a bag for the Amvets with stuff we can do without
~Check out the local farmers market

Since July is almost over, I'll leave it at that.

:-)