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Keeping it real
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In honor of Blog Action Day, I wanted to review some of the ways we've become better citizens for the environment. Since returning from HK a few years ago I've been already economizing at home and in some way writing about what we've done is really just an extension of values we were already living. So as a way to make a difference in the environment we've doing a bunch of lifestyle changes. Some really simple as changing your shopping habits, and some even just changing your attitude.

1. Replaced 90% of the house light bulbs to CF. There have been many giveaways recently through some cities and Safeway even had a special club savings for a big pack of CF for only $0.99 that are originally $19.
2. Recycle: clothes, plastics, paper, glass, batteries, garden waste.
3. Buy used/sell/give away stuff on Craigslist/Goodwill.
4. Telecommute.
5. Keep old cars well-maintained.
6. Repair before replacing any household electronics or appliances.
7. Wear extra layers instead of turning on the heater; keep water heater thermostat lower.
8. Switch household cleaning products to earth friendly products.
9. Stop using inorganic products for weeds/pests in garden.
10. Use canvas bags/totes/coolers for shopping(grocery & other shopping).
- I've used MyOwnBag for non-grocery shopping bags
- I use old conference canvas bags for groceries(easy to wash) however just found Envirosax that are pretty cool looking.

Some things I'd like to do in the near future
1. Learn how to compost
2. Learn how to sew and repair clothing.
3. After getting used to diapering the baby with disposibles, will consider cloth diapers.

Yup we don't have the fancy cars or clothes, or the latest gadgets but we're trying really hard to reduce our imprint on the world and remove the clutter from our lives. It's a real challenge living in Silicon Valley but it's better than not doing anything. Also there are times when we splurge but we're always seeking out stuff to recycle or give away.

Btw, I have a ton of books to get rid of again...mainly business and IA books. We're still trying to make more storage space as the baby stuff starts moving my professional stuff to garage.

Posted on October 15, 2007 12:22 PM