A long letter from Charmaine Taylor, owner of Dirtcheapbuilder.com, to those who are a "Darker shade of Green"I Knew it was coming... the "How GREEN are you?" question. The new BUZZ word is "Light Green." It is both positive, as in you are an active participant to recycling and conserving, (see the information below). And Negative- as in only giving lip service to being green, but not actually doing much of anything. Soon there will be the "Green Wars"... political division in the USA between Left and Right, Liberal and Conservative is very high now that; so when this question is also flung at you.... how will you answer? I prefer a quieter approach, less polarizing, more trusting of other humans. There is a wonderful book by a Buddhist monk entitled "Start Where You are**" it's about order and balance and choice in your life, and your control over it. And , Solar Cooker expert Barbara Kerr also taught "start where you are".. she began solar cooking at 50, and still teaches practical ways to live thirty years later. She is also a cofounder of Solar Cookers International Being Green is also common sense, it is about being thrifty, or frugal, or following "waste not, want not" tenents of yesteryear. This is nothing new!...only the WORDS to express them are. It has been revealed that people, virtually everywhere on the planet, are more ECO-aware, and would LIKE to contribute to a greener, safer-to-breathe-in world. So I looked for trendy "LIGHT Green" information... and there are many ways you can begin, doing simple things to put your efforts where your good thoughts are. Here is a fun site- Ideal Bite it also SELLS you stuff that is green- but they offer the Free advice FIRST. [They are not stupid after all, they want to be rewarded for giving you something for nothing.] Then show where to buy those PVC free and eco-oriented products. If you're going to BUY anyway.. you can choose the products that try to be better. You can ALSO have them send you a daily email "Green tip" to help remind you, and teach you ways to be a "Darker shade of Green"... MY term, but go ahead and use it! http://www.idealbite.com/ **Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living by Pema Chodron ISBN: 1570-62839-4 ISBN 13: 978-1570-62839-9 Publisher: Random House Inc Publish Date: 21 August, 2001 Binding: Paperback , 156 pages Find it used on line at the usual places for about $5.00 Please bookmark this site before you hop off to "Go Green" Many great Books and DVDs listed HERE will show you how to Green the home you are in, no matter what color it is now! |