During elections, I see statuses from all political parties. During sporting events, I see statuses from fans of all teams. I see funny statuses. I see sad statuses. I hide some people who clearly spend way too much time on Facebook.
I only see two types of statuses about the oil spill. I see the people calling for a boycott of BP and I see people blaming Obama. When I saw this picture (via the Guardian) of the spill in Orange Beach, Alabama, I couldn't help but think about why we haven't stopped to blame ourselves.
What can you do today to use less oil? Can you drive one less mile? Can you make sure your tires are inflated? Can you turn down your AC one degree? Can you eat one vegetarian meal - a PB&J sandwich for lunch? Can you wash your clothes in cold water instead of hot? Can you buy something from the farmer's market instead of having it shipped thousands of miles from South America? Even better, can you buy one less thing today?
The thing is, you don't have to make big changes to reduce your footprint. You don't need to drive a hybrid or wear hemp clothing or live on a farm off the grid. If each person did one thing today, it would make a bigger impact than one person taking it to the extreme. Learn small things you can do to help here.
Do I think there is blame to be had? Certainly. But we must also take some time to think about how our own actions can help the situation. And as parents, we need to think about what we are teaching our children and what we are leaving behind for our children.
18 comments:
That reminds me, I've been hiding from my high school class president on Facebook. I really, really don't want to go to my reunion.
One of the things I hate about living in a house that I know we won't be staying in is that I can't make some of the changes I want to make. I really, really want solar panels.
i wish blogs had a 'like' button...
Just for the record, your favorite Republican blames BP. =)
Yes, yes, yes. Like this post. Thanks for making me rethink some small decisions today!
I grew up in a college town and worked on campus from the age of 15 on. I used to think the greatest thing about that setup was that all of my friends were college kids. I still hold to that theory, but get the added bonus of never having to go to a HS reunion because by the time graduation had rolled around, my classmates were just acquaintances. No ties, no obligations to schlep back to the Midwest!
One of the reasons we moved to a rural area was to force ourselves to be more self-sufficient. The down side to that is that my commute is unavoidable. We try to follow the 4 R's: Refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle. We buy less stuff, and we try really really hard not to buy anything plastic. The things we do use (ziploc bags) we wash and re-use as many times as possible. I also started buying shampoo bars - it's amazing how quickly those plastic bottles were piling up in our recycling bin! My next project is to start making our own yogurt (vegan for me and N, Greek for M).
Also, my husband's grandfather had a rule that he wouldn't buy anything that was packaged unless he knew he could re-use the packaging. So just about anything plastic gets repurposed for the garden, as cloches, seedling start containers, anything I can think of. It's just a blip on the radar of change, but if nothing else I hope we're teaching our daughter how to use her resources more wisely.
So true ... there are so many small choices that can really equal a big impact.
In total agreement. At times I feel like my one little thing won't matter, but my one little thing plus everyone else's one little thing could = I BIG thing. Thank you for this post to remind us that we CAN make a difference.
Great post and reminder. Thank you.
Great reminder that we all share blame and that together we can all do something. If a lot of people make small changes that is a huge change. Thanks
Great reminder that we all share blame and that together we can all do something. If a lot of people make small changes that is a huge change. Thanks
here, here. i totally second your perspective on this. most of us are complicit in this disaster and we all have the power to make small (and large) changes that will impact this situation. thank you for posting this.
on to equally important subjects - what are your favorite iphone apps for n and a? we're going to cali in a month and i want to make sure we have our ducks in a row. a and o loved superwhy and zombies vs. plants at the apple store last weekend, but i just know there are other (zombie-less) stellar apps for preschoolers out there.
Living in a city that oil built, this is something that is really interesting. I find that hear we are horrifically bad at internalizing these lessons, but I want to raise my girls to do better.
Here is a really good article along the lines of your thoughts exactly: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/06/04/notes060410.DTL
Which I had earlier shared on Facebook. :)
Amen, Amen. I agree with brooke. I want to hit the "like" button for this post. Thanks Laura, this got me thinking.
this is such an amazing way to gently remind us why they are looking for more oil in the first place. and i love the way you did it....you have such a great voice, laura. thank you. :)
Such a great post - it really hits home when you think about the world you are leaving behind for your kids. Thank you for this reminder!
Thank you! I've avoiding saying much about the spill because those are the only reactions I hear around us. I also live in small town Ohio where the immediate response will be to blame the President. sigh.
Love it! I catch a lot of flak for having a large SUV (GMC Yukon), but we also try not to drive it if we don't have to. We also bike almost everywhere, buy our produce locally or through a buying club, don't use things like plastic wrap, aluminum foil, plastic bags, etc. I am so saddened by the spill, but finger pointing really isn't going to change anything. Until we change our ways a little, nothing will change. And a little WILL go a long way!
well said.
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