Ten ways to be Green that you might have actually NOT heard before.
1. At the grocery store, be crazy, rebellious, and unimaginably strong, and don’t use a bag. If you’re buying gallons of milk (although more sustainable would be not buying gallons in the first place), I admit a bag is a good idea, unless you want to take thirteen trips to your car and have your arms go numb. Trust me, “running out†(AKA messing up the order) of milk at Peet’s is not fun, because I get to walk to Ralph’s and play the how-many-gallons-can-I-stuff-in-my-hands-and-haul-back-to-work game. Last time I was doing this, practically falling over and sweating, my face hidden behind Alta Dena Low-fat Milk containers, oh, Reese Witherspoon happened to pop in when I returned. Great. My luck. Anyways, back from my digression: if you are buying something not huge, carry it home! Without a bag!
2. Turn off your lap-top,not only to save electricity, but to give that ‘ole, hard-working friend a rest! You’d be surprised- your computer might run like a speed demon after.
3. Save paper and play my new game: see how much water you can get out of one paper towel. Chances are, you can use one towel, not seven, and dry your hands completely! Whoo!! It feels quite thrilling knowing that you’ve saved five towels. Multiply that by the number of times you wash your hands a day, and you’ve saved a whole friggin’ portion of a tree! As well as space in your trash can. As I learned in fourth grade, crumpled up paper takes up more room than non-crumpled paper. If you really utilized your towel to its full potential, there should be no dry spots on it. Not one!
4. This requires some basic math. Figure out how long, and how many resources, it took to get a product to you. Could you buy something that only traveled half the distance, or used less ingredients and less fuel? Okay, you’re right, that requires no math at all: just compare the cities of origin of the fruit, or T-shirt, or whatever you’re purchasing, and consider buying one that took less energy to get here! In other words, buy local!
5. You can maintain your caffeine addiction, (however unsustainable and selfish three cups of coffee a day may be, I support dependence on caffeine. Could be a worse substance), but improve it. Try buying fair trade coffee. Learn about a great Fair Trade Blend at Peet’s Coffee and Tea online. Then come in to Peet’s some day and taste it (Don’t tell, cause it’s a pain in the butt to make, but: you can ask to buy a personal press pot of any coffee, and drink it right there, or even pour it into a to-go cup! Super fresh coffee, and you get to look like a real connoisseur. Visit a local Peet’s (Westwood, Main Street in Santa Monica, Sunset Boulevard, and Manhattan Beach are just a few) to learn and taste. There’s a store finder on the site so you can find one close to you.
I suppose

you could check out other companies too
. (but Peet’s is better).
6. Takes some initial effort, but this is ridiculously easy once you get the hang of it: Start composting! Learn how here. (You know, the thing where you save all your food and add it to dirt and it helps the earth somehow.) Err, I’ll be checking out the site now, as well!
7. This is like, the epitome of helping you while helping the earth. Cleanse yourself of JUNK MAIL. I never knew there was a website devoted to this, but hey, sounds good to me. Bid farewell to that annoying stuff with the help of this GENIUS website.
8. WALK!!!!!! Everywhere!!! I love walking. You should too. If you’re not insane like me and want to see how far you can trek and how many errands you can get done, sans vehicles, then just hop on some comfy shoes (Mizuno are my favorite), and walk for fun! I found some routes and photos of
walks, it appears? I suppose to inspire and guide you on your merry way.
9. Have cute clothes. Shop at American Apparel because you know all the clothes are made in downtown L.A., not India, not China, nor Latin America. Sweat-shop free, guilt free, and comfortable, too. Visit their website, where I learned you can submit your photographs and, if you’re realllll confident, apply to be a model! Or just shop.
10. Don’t be afraid to reuse things! IN moderation. I mean, don’t use the same glass, 7 days in a row, like my dad. Bad for your health, and just unnecessary. But by all means refrain from washing your water glass every time you pour yourself a sip of water. I’m not a micro-biology major, but I do know that no amount of dangerous bacteria will form in an hour. Also, reuse your coffee mug by buying a nice, travel mug and bringing that to your local coffee shop. I think most places are like Peet’s in giving a little smidgen of a discount when you bring your own cup. Hey, those ten cents add up! TIP: Ask the barista to run hot water in the mug before: it’ll heat it up so your coffee doesn’t become frigid in ten minutes.
See, many ways to go green! Hop on the movement, it’s the new cool thing.
Photo by Creativity+Timothy K Hamilton via flickr.
2 responses so far ↓
1 Kendra // Apr 18, 2008 at 10:23 am
awesome post. i did the junk mail thing and i LOVE it!
2 Louis // Apr 18, 2008 at 6:43 pm
About #3: instead of using paper towels to dry your hands, why not use a dish rag? Eliminate paper waste altogether.
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