Going Green is perhaps one of the most positive changes I have made in my life this year, and what has come as a shock to me, is the lack of knowledge people around me have about the whole movement. Lack of knowledge is perhaps the wrong diagnose for the situation, since everyone should have some basic knowledge of what "Green" really is. I'm speaking more about the knowledge on the ease of transition into our daily lives.
I bring up my new eco-friendly lifestyle to many of my friends here in Las Vegas, it amazes me how they equate my lifestyle change to expensive, trendy, healthy or vegetarian. Not any of these terms are in any way associated to the changes I've made, well not completely, since grocery has become more expensive these days, eating organic vegetables and fruit mean less chemicals in my body which can be related to healthy, but vegetarian I am not!
Here are my tips on going Green without changing what you eat and how you live. Any of these tips included in your daily living can make a tremendous change to the future of our environment.
Green Tip #1 Grocery Shopping
One of the first things I've done was change my grocery shopping habits. Instead of regular grocery at Vons, Albertsons or Smiths, I opted for more eco-friendly grocery stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.
Whole Foods was where I first began. I started by buying organic milk, vegetables and fruits, then gradually moved into free-range poultry and meats if they were available. Almost everything I would need or want from a regular grocery chain, I have been able to replace with an equally appealing organic version, and the best thing is, taste was not compromised. I appreciated that Whole Foods offered a variety of choices to fill my grocery requirements, unfortunately, Whole Foods is not necessarily friendly to the pocket or wallet.
Within a few months Trader Joe's opened up near-by, this gave me more options for grocery needs. I started purchasing my household and grocery items from Trader Joe's and the prices were much more reasonable than that of Whole Foods. I eventually moved into adding in additional items such as chips and snacks from Trader Joe's as well.
Both grocery stores offer paper bag service, and incentives on reusing them as well. I've opted to purchasing their reusable bags instead of the paper and usually bring them back to either store for bagging my next purchases.
Green Tip #2 Magazine and Catalog Subscriptions
I'm big on online shopping, so email newsletters from places I shop are welcome! What was most annoying was the constant duplication of catalog subscriptions - such as Victoria Secret or West Elm and Pottery Barn. In order to cut down on waste - and to gain my sanity. I contacted each of these catalogs and requested they remove me from their mailing list but keep me subscribed via email.
I also contacted several magazines and asked if they had online versions which I could replace my magazine subscriptions with as opposed to the paper options.
My life is not completely Green, and I'm sure as time goes by, I will realize more ways to improve my living arrangements with eco-friendly lifestyle. If you have tips you can share with me on my quest please feel free to leave me a comment.
