Today, I redefine beautiful. As I begin this blog, it is my drastic effort and dramatic undertaking to overhaul my life and turn it into something sustainable, green and still affordable. In order to do this, I need to depart with what popular media and culture have told me for years is beauty and make a new beauty - one that means my world will still be alive tomorrow. To me, this doesn't mean just paying more for hybrids and shopping at Whole Foods instead of Target. It means making an intentional choice. It means when I'm faced with multiple options on the shelf at the grocery store, I intentionally choose the one in recyclable packaging, the one with the least preservatives and artificial ingredients, and the ones that are the least manufactured and transported using harmful chemicals and gasoline. Imports are out where possible. I must think local, from the ground, and full circle to something that can disintegrate easily. At the same time, in order to be affordable and still current, I must also be reasonable. In the age of technology, I can't go without a computer or a cell phone, even though they took a lot of plastics, chemicals and shipping to produce. So, when it isn't possible to buy green, I will make every attempt to go longer without replacing, to repair instead of throw away, and to support refurbished products as much as possible.
I first decided to go after this goal a week ago, when I was home sick from work and tired of feeling like my words meant nothing. I work at a retailer, and I am very well aware that retailers and society will not change behavior unless it pays to do so. As such, I decided to "put my money where my mouth is". No, I can't change retailer behavior by myself. But, I am the only person I can change. If I continue buying non-sustainable products, even if I share my opinion and preach about the lack of recyclable or reusable goods, retailers will continue to sell the environmentally unstable items that I want so badly for them to avoid. It will only pay for them to change if I change first.
I found out this morning that this would be no easy feat. Alas, when the live-in-boyfriend and I went grocery shopping at Target earlier today, I made every attempt to buy the product in recyclable packaging when I had a choice. To my dismay, that choice came far too infrequently. In the dairy section, there was not a single cheese option to choose from. In the coffee aisle, amongst all the gourmet and premium blend coffees, there wasn't one that I could select that came in a container I could reuse. When I wanted chicken, my options came in non-recyclable plastic, styrofoam or a variety of other containers that I could only throw away.
I came home angry and defeated. Is it possible to live a so-called normal life and still stand by the principles I believe in? Or will it prove to be an unrealistic goal that I cannot afford?
When I got home, I took a look at the apartment. I had appliances plugged in everywhere that were not being used. Why have I never noticed this absurd draw on power before? Can I not unplug things when I'm not using them? Or put them on a power strip that I can turn off? I promptly when around the apartment unplugging. First, the clocks in the bedroom. Do I need more than one clock? No, certainly not. And at that, there is no reason it can't be analog instead of powered by electricity. Do I need my phone charger always plugged in? The coffee pot? The toaster? The TV? They're not on... so why do I keep them plugged in?
This is my small effort for today. While I started off incredibly optimistically, I've come to realize that this effort will take time, education and patience. I will need to inform myself on the companies that produce the products I buy and how they make them. I will need to find the companies that produce cleanly, regardless of marketing campaigns. I will need to search through media and fluff to reach the root of a green footprint, the ingredients of products, the production and the shipping all put together.
While my shopping experience today was disheartening, I will not give up. I cannot give up. Changing the world starts with me. As Michael Jackson put it, "I'm starting with that man in the mirror. I'm asking him to change his ways. No message could have been any clearer - If you want to make the world a better place, you've got to look at yourself and make that change."
No comments:
Post a Comment