"Green is the new Black"
On November 21, 2008 - 15:58
“We don’t inherit the planet from our parents; we borrow it from our children”. - Proverb.
I’ve never been one to keep up with the latest fashion trend but I am sold on, “Green is the new Black”! I was definitely not raised with this mentality but being a biology teacher myself, I cannot ignore it!
Any standard bulb is now fluorescent in my apartment, I drive a Toyota Prius (constantly attempting to improve my mpg—highest is 54 thus far) and I recycle everything that I can. I realized I was a changed woman when my city Recycling Center waved me through without question because they actually recognized me. I donate my unwanted items instead of tossing them away; I purchase less, and buy eco-friendly cleaning products. I spend more time at local parks and try to appreciate the delicate landscapes like never before! I have a long way too go—I still use entirely too much water and I drive quite a distance to work every day. I also would like to peruse more farmers’ markets and help our local businesses.
Kermit was right, “it’s not easy being green”. My apartment is always full of recycling and I feel guilty whenever I toss something away or keep the water running when washing my dishes. I will say; however, I’ve improved 100% since my teenage years of complete ignorance and excess of everything material. As a teacher, I feel I have a responsibility to do a little more than my students—I’m raising the bar. They’ve seen my hybrid car and said, “She doesn’t mess around, huh?”
As far as my observations of changing climate, they may just be all psychosomatic. I cannot honestly compare my observations from today to that of last year or the years before it. My town has experienced heavy flooding in major highways and apartment buildings, fallen trees are more common and the summer temperatures were quite strange with June being the hottest part of the summer. I am only 27 years old, so my observations have drastically improved in the past 5 years—suddenly the weather, traffic and local news is a daily concern in comparison to my blissful years of ignorance.
Like Kelly from Yonkers, I
Like Kelly from Yonkers, I too am a biol.teacher (>40yrs). Now, we are observing an uptick in (polical) awareness of serious threats to world ecosystems posed by ignoring human-induced Climate Change. It's the familiar, which comes first problem, i.e. should we save the economy at the expense of the planet, or what? Guess which most Americans would choose if they were setting priorities? ***mricle*** (The Bronx)