ramble on, karen

carbon footprint reduction:

we dispose of our cars roughly every year and walk everywhere, or take the bus. no really, delivery is potentially hazardous to the function of a car. it certainly increases the chances of accidents. in a 3 year period resulting in a pandemic, we were good and ready to try statistic status over our white privilege. as expected, we hated it. many accidents, many woeful goodbyes to the shortened privileges we did endure with car.

during this period we did not recycle every tiny thing, especially the science experiments that grew legs in the fridge... we lost some good tupperware. working hard is so expensive.... delivering groceries turned out to be a two person job at times.... we used too much water to wash our dishes, thinking we were in the clear not using a dishwasher. did you know you can actually scrub with a soapy sponge, without the water running?! and rinse in a bin of clear water?

certainly the unnecessary electricity of a dish washer was all to blame for our carbon footprint fail... we, of the able bodied privilege. we tried not eating red meat- you know, lower the demand on rainforest cows- but my iron kept dropping once a month. you have no idea how much I resent male privilege, sometimes. spinach is great, but one needs to afford a lot of it (both in money and physical comfort). poverty is no respecter of keeping a clean carbon footprint without great exertion, which working for minimum wage as it is, renders nearly impossible.

so, if you're worried your carbon footprint is so great that god is punishing you with poverty, it's a catch 22. not necessarily the book.

speaking of paradoxes, all those paper towels instead of rags you can bleach every week....but then your water bill is high.... don't live in a drought state if you want to save the trees and not catch covid.

Today, we disregard our previous ideas of comfort for that grand idea made famous in the bible stating, "the lord as my shepherd, I shall not want." -Psalm 23

our wants are fitting us better, because we lowered what we thought were standards but were actually luxury addictions. today, when the sufficient food stamps actually come, we make healthier choices for ourselves and the environment... nod to the U.S. Government for caring enough to let people eat all month! what a concept! I mean if crime went up, I finally get what it means to be hangry.

and hangry can lead to a lot of carbon footprint messes.... it really does seem impervious at times that the human, when feeling deprived, can seriously overdo just about anything- i know, that's the privilege talking... it's a subject I'm uncomfortable with, because it's just too soon after the world fell apart and so many of us felt that deprivation... many who were financially endowed before covid-19, regardless of race or creed. the end of the world has happened many times, but this one really sucked. I'm glad to have lived, resurrected by divine intervention to appreciate new order as it seems to have improved since the 1800s. Remember the Great Disappointment? This guy was right and wrong at the same time:

was industrialism not once harolded as a new order in it's own right? yay tech age! we don't have to chop down unnecessary amounts of oxygen producing things to get this essay to you in book form. we can order our items straight from the store to minimize extra boxes heading straight to our homes- smaller boxes, more surface area, look it up. anyway, thanks Instacart! please include more stores! and Amazon, I love the combine stuff in one box option... can you improve on that any? I'm rooting for you!

encouraging corporations to think in these ways can never hurt. suggestion boxes are digital now, no trees necessary.

using products that have versatile use is my favorite. dr. bronner's for shampoo, soap, toothpaste, disinfectant, etc..... one bottle for many things, and that stuff is concentrate, so a little goes a long way. until the toiletry industry figures out how to transport their products in a self-serve bring-your-own-bottle kind of system, I like to think of this as a reduce and reuse concept.

I also try not to pee too much until a shower..... did you know peeing on your own feet has antifungal properties? wallah! less flush water and less antifungal ointment! we also found those toilets that only use as much water as we need to begin with... press the handle down longer for stubborn debri.... we're on a roll!

reduce and reuse projects in the kitchen include a prep day when things that can be frozen or refrigerated can be bought cheaper and with less packaging over all. a good set of airtight glassware is my favorite. I'm not sure about those new biodegradable and reusable products they're making these days to wrap food.... I'll be reading a lot of vocal articles to find the rogue company that advertised to me when I was playing Words With Friends when i was broke.

as a last remark, did you know you can wash vegetables at home and skip using a plastic bag? I'm scared, too, and I pee on my feet in the shower. We'll get through this! I promise.