Lessons learned from living with an eco-freak
Solar panels, bicycles and compact fluorescent light bulbs are part of this environmentally-friendly household.
By
Debra Fieguth
ChristianWeek staff
When
I got married, I gave up the single life, but I gained a
husband who came with a solar panel.
When his household merged with my household, I soon realized that his most prized possession was the one he installed atop the back deck to collect sunrays and turn them into indoor lighting, thus reducing slightly our reliance on Winnipeg Hydro.
That’s not all I realized. If I was going to partner with a committed ecologist, I would have some lifestyle lessons to learn.
For the most part, these lessons have not been difficult, and I share a few of them with you in case there is something you haven’t already tried that you might want to think about.
1. It isn’t absolutely necessary to own a car. Several months after we married, I forfeited my aging, troublesome Hyundai and began walking, cycling and catching the bus. We live in the city, where public transit is fairly efficient, and I don’t miss the headache of looking after the car or digging it out of snow banks. Groceries can be delivered–occasionally–and if we want to go camping in summer, we can always rent a car for the weekend.
2. Anything that can be recycled should be. Blue box programs vary from one community to another, so it’s good to find out what your city will accept, and go with it, including all manner of paper, from cereal boxes to bus transfers. (Sometimes we try to sneak in something that’s not listed, like the #6 plastic mold from the chocolate Easter bunny that I slipped in the box this morning. They usually find us out.)
3. Buy recycled products. Recycled paper is cheaper than it used to be, so use it whenever you can. Unfortunately, we still haven’t convinced our supermarket to stock recycled toilet paper, so we have to cycle out of our way to pick it up.
4. Bag your own. The cashiers sometimes look at us askance when we walk up to the till with our saddlebags and backpacks, but they’re getting used to us. (Sometimes they even help bag.)
5. Feed your eggshells to the garden. That goes for coffee grounds, banana peels, apple cores and other yummy things too. Once you get your compost heap going (worms help!), you’ll start looking at every orange rind as a potential contributor to your garden’s health.
6. How many environmentalists does it take to change a lightbulb? Well, if you’re using compact fluorescent bulbs, they seldom need changing. They’re more expensive than incandescent bulbs, but last more years and use much less electricity.
7. Look for alternative sources of energy. The solar panel, which powers some of the compact fluorescent lights, is only the beginning. My beloved is now looking into getting a windmill.
8. Say goodbye to Styrofoam. Our church has a "loonie lunch" on Sundays, which is wonderful for fellowship, but because we don’t have a dishwasher, we use up hundreds of Styrofoam soup bowls and cups every month. My husband and I have started bringing our own bowls and mugs from home.
9. You don’t have to be an eco-freak to appreciate the environment. The truth is I don’t live with an eco-freak. I live with someone who cares deeply about the creation God gave us and wants to preserve it.
10. The Earth is the Lord’s, and all that is within it.