New Year’s I always have good intentions. I plan for a good fresh start, to do better, follow through… and accomplish tasks that I just did not get around to yet.
This year, I decided to look back on the previous year as a gauge. What might I realistically expect of myself in 2010? It is amazing to think about how I do things differently than I did just one year ago.
One year ago, I threw out about 50 laundry detergent and softener bottles a year. Now there is a quarterly ritual of making homemade laundry soap and softener reusing the same plastic bottles repeatedly.
One year ago, I bought a large package of paper plates about 3 to 4 times a year. I bought one small package this year. Most of them are still in the cupboard.
I stopped buying/using plastic utensils and straws. I don’t even want them anymore, it is easy enough to pack what I need and bring them back home to wash. No big deal, really!
When shopping, I opt for foods and drinks packaged in glass jars, most are cleaned and re-used for food storage.
Packing my own lunch & drinks is not the trouble I once thought. While running errands, I no longer need the bags of wrappers and waste that I thought nothing of accumulating and “throwing away”. Now I eat healthier than the days of past when I thought the fast food drive-up was the only way to go.
Cloth bags over plastic – and I now remember to take them into the store! At first, it was hard to remember. This act alone must save about 500 bags a year, or more!
I have started avoiding wrapping paper. Finding new ways to re-use boxes and recycle items whenever possible is now my current routine.
Listing the strides I have made in 2009 creates a spiral thought process that is sure to magnify my efforts in 2010. I’ve been thinking about how everyone in the world gets to live on this planet rent-free. Paying more attention to what we take and use and what we leave behind makes a lot of sense. No resolution needed, the process to reduce my carbon footprint is now embedded into my behavior.
Showing posts with label 2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2010. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Happy New Year - Times Square - New Years Eve
Waiting for the New Year..... what might it bring? This year is the marker of a whole new decade! Seems to be a serious turning point! 2010 - wow!
It doesn't seem like it was 10 years ago that everyone was worried about all of the computers shutting down and a possible end to the world! The magic moment came and went sort of anti-climatic after all of the commotion and predictions.
Even still, New Years is a fresh start of sorts... 2009 turning into 2010 deserves some kind of attention, anticipation, a marker of the ages. It will be here soon....
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