Ramblings-n-Writings

I was hopping around the blog world a little while ago and came across Sheila’s post about going green. How fitting for St. Patrick’s Day!!! I have to agree with Sheila that many times most Christians don’t really think about how their habits affect the planet God gave us. I know that I didn’t really consider the possibility of going green until this past year. Before then I was too busy working and taking care of my home to think about what I was really doing.

So, how green are my DH and I? I’d say a pale green. I know there are things we could do better and other changes we could make, but for now, here’s some of what we do…

I try to avoid using store-bought cleaners. My preferences are vinegar/water mix, bleach/water mix, and baking soda (read more here). Those three solutions will take care of just about anything. For dusting I use a damp rag (mainly because regular dusting polish doesn’t work in our home – we live very close to a dirt road and dusting polish tends to make mud on the furniture). You’ll still find miscellaneous cleaners under my bathroom sink like Windex (haven’t been able to successfully use the recommended vinegar/water mix for the windows) and Pinesol (love the smell in the air after using Pinesol). So, I guess our cleaning efforts earn us a little green.

We live on a farm, so other than chicken, our meat is all 100% true organic. We raise and butcher our own meat. Our eggs, milk, cream and some cheeses are all 100% organic. During the growing season, all of our vegetables are organic; however, during the off-season some veggies are store-bought depending on the harvest from the season before. Because of the horrible drought last year, I have various bags of store-bought frozen veggies in the freezer. When I do buy veggies, whether fresh or frozen, I make sure the veggies are grown in the USA (read Broccoli, Wal-Mart and Religious Nuts for more on that topic).

Many women use some type of washing powder for the laundry. I’m still using regular laundry detergent mainly because I’m afraid to try making my own concoction. My DH’s clothes, particularly the jeans and shorts, tend to be stained or covered in mud so I need something that will definitely keep his clothes clean. Last fall, I started using Arm & Hammer Essentials which is actually a “green” detergent (baking soda and plant extracts). I love how clean it gets our clothes (stains that I thought would never come out disappear – even stains that had been through the wash before). In Good Housekeeping’s March 2008 issue, Arm & Hammer Essentials came out on top as the green detergent and I’ll definitely agree with that choice. (Purex Natural Elements was 2nd place.)

Unfortunately, in our neck of the woods, recycling centers are non-existent. However, there is a metal recycling place open every Friday, so we collect and recycle our aluminum cans (DH is a severe diet coke addict). We make a little profit from the cans since the recycling place pays so much per pound. My DH also takes time each week when the weather is nice to walk the roadsides picking up discarded cans. In an area with no open container laws, the roadsides are covered with beer cans. The amount of plastic bottles in the ditches is overwhelming at times, but we have no place to take the plastic if we collected it.

I do drink store-bought water, but I buy it by the gallon and those gallon jugs are recycled as milk jugs on the farm. We haven’t switched to using paper bags or reusable bags at the store yet. But the excess plastic bags we do have are re-used at the farmers market when customers buy our produce. Not the most green solution since I’m sure most just throw the bag away, but at least the bags have a slightly longer lifespan.

Like Sheila mentioned, we don’t see a drastic difference in our lives with these changes. We have a better feeling knowing we are treating our bodies better (organic foods, limited harsh chemicals) and helping the environment (recycling aluminum and other items as we can).

How are you living green today?