Which came first? Who will be able to ever answer this ancient question?? … probably only the first chicken… or egg.
Easy as 1-2-3! August 3, 2011
Okay, so most people just want to know what they can do to “Go Green” that’s quick and easy and actually effective. I’m not going to tell you to go purchase a hybrid vehicle (well around 20-30K!), or to put solar panels on your roof (although it’s a great thing to have on your home out here in So. Cal — it’s NOT easy), or to only purchase local and organic products… those items are way overpriced most of the time, and I’m not Leo Dicaprio over here! I don’t have money to just play around with like paper dolls!
so… what are the easy suggestions that will not only make your space a little greener, but will also help your pocket book a little bit too?
Well, all good things come in threes…
Here’s the Green Scene:
Green Step Number 1 – And Then There Was Light!!
One of the simplest things to do is to change out your light bulbs. If you are still using those incandescent light bulbs, you are the in the dark ages baby. Halogen and LED are the green way to go. LED takes the LEaD as far as more bang for your buck: They use less energy, they radiate less heat, and they last a lot longer… but they are going to be about 5-10x more expensive than your average Halogen. But I promise, either one is much better than the incandescents your using. Have you been living under a ROCK!!?? Change those babies out!! … “but, I have dimmers!!” … meh, they have dimming capable LEDs and Halogens.
Green Step Number 2 – Become a Vampire Slayer …
Okay… I mean an Energy Vampire Slayer. All those appliances and electronics you leave plugged in all day and night are sucking the energy out of your home like Taylor Lautner sucks the good acting out a film. Did you know you’re using about 60 to 100 kilowatt hours a month on appliances and electronics that you leave plugged in when not in use? These are common things like:
- TVs
- Cable
- Stereos
- Coffee Makers
- Microwaves
- Computers and Printers
- Phone Chargers
Now, it’s true… each of these items don’t individually take that much, but when you start to put everything together, it adds up! Now, it’s not going to save you that much money, roughly about 8-14$ on your next electricity bill; BUT! if I can pull on your green little heart strings… if you can reduce by 50-100 kilowatts hours a month, you’d be reducing your CO2 emissions by 900 to 1800 pounds a year!
Green Step Number 3 – It’s Too Darn Hot!!!
Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you to turn off your AC and stew in your sweat and tears… that would just be gross. I’m talking about something much simpler and less painful… Your LAUNDRY!! Unless you have a washer and dryer from the 80s, you are able to get perfectly clean and fresh clothes using only the COLD water setting that even the crazies from Jersey Shore would be proud to wear. By using only the cold setting you will be saving approximately 60-100$ a year in electricity bills, and you’ll be saving approximately 70-80lbs of CO2 emissions a month. I will admit, there are those tough stains like oil, grease, and blood that need the heat to lift. In those instances I suggest doing a hand soak in a small amount of hot water and detergent before adding it to the main load.
With these three easy and quick steps that you can do today you will be Going Green, Saving Money, and Smelling Fresh all at the same time!
Everyone is a little different, and we all have our habits… but these small changes don’t hurt, and there’s no difference in quality of life. Makes sustainability a little more… sustainable.
LynZe.
No More Teachers, No More Books!! July 20, 2011
I’ve always been a fan of books… real books, paper and all. I know, the Blasphemy!! But I just love the feel of a book in my hands, the weight of it, the smell of it. I find a little bit of comfort in them… holding a book to my chest as I walk along the street, or fall asleep. But there is a certain family of books that don’t bring me any kind of comfort… textbooks. I never enjoyed lugging a textbook around… let alone against my chest. And it never was comfortable to fall asleep with a textbook; instead, like some drunk and misguided co-ed, i’d wake up having passed out and drooled all over Pg 365.
Well, it seems that for those who share my distaste for those goliath bricks of knowledge that they force upon today’s students (even the books in elementary school are ridiculous!) are going to have a bit of break; that is if they have a Kindle… or a really awesome teacher who doesn’t make them purchase any.
Here’s Z Green Scene::: Amazon has recently launched a new “Textbook Rental” program, in which students are able to check their books out on their Kindle, they are able to take and make notes, and they are even able to access these notes after the rental period is over. This reduces the amount of paper, oil, chemicals, and Lord knows what else used to create these monstrosities, and it reduces printing for those who wish to have access to notes saved on-line and so forth. It cuts waaaaay down on student costs, and I would wager that its much easier to carry around a Kindle than a text book.
Amazon is offering new and used print text books at a savings of 80%! … they promise… I’ve been so jaded by textbook prices, it’s hard to imagine. But let’s be hopeful its true.
These eText books are a good start in the green-education direction, but it’s doubtful that it’ll catch fire all that quickly; i’m sure there are still some kinks in the kindles that may make the lower-cost of the ebooks not worth the higher inconvenience. But! There’s only room for improvement; and just like every other bit of technology out there, what is current now will be out-dated in a number of months with something bigger, faster, and better replacing it.
Final opinion?? Hold out on running and getting a Kindle right away… I’d wait till September to see what the competitors come up with; let them work out all the kinks. Either way, eBooks are on the rise… and you don’t want to be the only school-girl with a hump on her back from lugging all her books that she could have got online!
As far as i’m concerned, I graduated… no more textbooks for me (in your face!). But that doesn’t mean that I should continue to purchase only paper books for my leisurely hobby. I’ll always keep my paper copy of Jane Eyre, all dog-eared and damaged, my comforting old friend, up on the shelf near my bed… but, I”ll also have my eBook version of it ready on my Droid for whenever I need a good dose of Bronte’s morose and mystery.
Get with the times!
Check here for more info about Amazon’s etextbooks:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2388639,00.asp
LynZe
Sustainability Consultant, LEED A.P.
zgreenscene 