Day One: My Commitment

When I was a little girl, my favorite book was 100 Things a Kid Can Do to Save the Planet. My head soon swirled with lofty ideas about homemade compost bins, quarterly tree plantings and epic neighborhood trash clean ups. It didn’t take long to realize that most of the people around me thought my ambitions were cute but unrealistic, that one day I would grow up and see that those things were simply impractical in today’s world.  

Luckily for me, the world has prooved my childhood naysayers wrong. Unfortunately I’m ashamed to say, I have done little to help in this effort. I have become a psuedo vegetarian, giving up meat on a daily basis. I have chosen a religious path that puts nature at the center of my spiritual quests. For the last three years I have attempted gardens, though I was terrible at tending them. These are the biggest changes made in my personal life to make the earth better.  Despite my good intentions and eco-fantasies, I still drive my car way too much, leave the lights on in unoccupied rooms, and over-consume even when my funds are low.

 My ADD (sorry excuse I know) has gotten the best of me, and now that I live with two other people (my husband and our ten month old baby boy) my chaotic disorganization has gotten worse. I think about all those wonderful people out there in their minimalist retreats, hanging their clothes out to dry, weeding their bountiful organic gardens, and aspire to be them.  My husband and I will be going back to school soon. We are planning to move from slow and affordable East Texas to progressive, expensive Santa Cruz. The beach will be beautiful, the people inspiring, and the weather divine, but my budget will be zilch. My newfound quest will not be merely out of environmental concern, but also out of necessity. 

I invite readers out there in the blogosphere to hold my hand and walk with me on this perilous journey as I throw out my precious items, learn how to wash my pants in the bathtub, and get my hands dirty in the field.  We will save money, gain zen-like freedom, get healthier and help reduce our negative impact on this beautiful world we live on. Thanks for joining and I wish us all good luck!!!