tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post38889570838001873..comments2024-03-18T20:50:36.597-07:00Comments on Rural Revolution: How green is our household?Patrice Lewishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06012022335047974670noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-88867697564208345092012-03-21T23:23:33.811-07:002012-03-21T23:23:33.811-07:00Loved reading all these messages. I think most pe...Loved reading all these messages. I think most people who live in rural America live a lot "greener" than any city folk. Don't know what those "green-be'ans" are so uppity about. It is a way of life, and a mighty good one.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-48838639453606188382010-09-09T17:03:06.716-07:002010-09-09T17:03:06.716-07:00• We don’t watch television (no reception) and the...• We don’t watch television (no reception) and therefore the kids don’t get the gimmee’s from ads. Since we homeschool (as do most of the rural families around us), the kids aren’t influenced by peer pressure for expensive gadgets and clothes.<br />• Our leisure activities are low-tech. We are voracious readers. We rarely travel, eat out, go to a movie, or anything like that. Where we live, there are few restaurants, no movie theaters, and it’s so gorgeous that there’s seldom a reason to travel far. We rent DVD’s for home viewing. We take walks, ride bikes, and visit neighbors.<br /><br /><br />AWESOME! Both of those bullet sound so ideal and dreamy.<br /><br />http://swimtaxi234.blogspot.com/ - our homeschool world.Swimtaxihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16776669832895557955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-7130942535814346302010-08-13T21:04:55.898-07:002010-08-13T21:04:55.898-07:00One thought, Patrice:
We have 'composting toi...One thought, Patrice:<br /><br />We have 'composting toilets' at our Doomstead. They are standalone, and not hooked up to our small, required (for kitchen waste) septic system.<br /><br />We bought 'fancy' Canadian composting toilets that cost $1500 each, but I like the $50 solution -- two five gallon buckets, one for business, one for cover material -- housed in a wooden box and topped with a toilet seat.<br /><br />A great book on the subject is 'The Humanure Handbook'. I look forward to using the composted waste on our vegetable garden.<br /><br />Keep up the good 'green' work, Patrice!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-6694235623770517132010-08-12T11:18:06.436-07:002010-08-12T11:18:06.436-07:00Good info, A.T.
I tend to avoid G.E. products, t...Good info, A.T. <br /><br />I tend to avoid G.E. products, too, and will strengthen my resolve by double checking the light-bulbs' manufacturer before I purchase them. I'll stick with Sylvania from now on. <br /><br />We try to buy American made products whenever possible. This has proven wise where our business is concerned: drywall. We only buy regionally made materials. No poisonous Chinese-made stuff allowed around our operation. Jeeperz...if it's that toxic to live with imagine what it would do to my husband if he had to work with it every day. No way. We have enough trouble competing against illegals and unlicensed operators. We love our clients....We don't poison them. <br /><br />Here's to good light!<br /><br />A. McSpAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-34041449442663113412010-08-11T08:33:45.384-07:002010-08-11T08:33:45.384-07:00A.McSp - I know the report to which you referred r...A.McSp - I know the report to which you referred regarding the mercury in the CFL bulbs. You're right, they could require hazmat cleanup - if a large one breaks in a sensitive area (near a water source, on a playground, etc.). The mercury in them requires some special handling when they burn out, too. <br /><br />I refuse to buy G.E. because of its political connections. Instead, I buy incandescent bulbs made by Sylvania. They are not easy to find, but they are worth the effort. Sylvania incandescent bulbs are guaranteed, which is an added bonus. (No, I am not being compensated by Sylvania for my recommendation!)<br /><br />Anonymous Twit<br />USAAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-87118510653330538742010-08-10T23:29:59.798-07:002010-08-10T23:29:59.798-07:00A.T! Welcome home!
I appreciated your thoughts on...A.T! Welcome home!<br /><br />I appreciated your thoughts on light bulbs.<br />I really dislike CFLs for the same reasons you do, and I too am stashing 'the real ones.' Another very bad point about CFLs is their mercury content. Breaking one is a nasty and unhealthy thing. I've read it's so bad it technically qualifies for a haz-mat cleanup that would run about a thousand dollars. I wish I could remember where I read this so I could give a proper citation. The article also raised the issue of their short shelf life, which is only about two years, max. The story said G.E. had been given a huge amount of federal funding to make them, and the amount spent on them added to their short life/replacement cycle dwarfs any alleged savings attributable to them. In other words, they're just another giant, expensive, feel-good-rip-off scam by....those..um...'other' people. <br /><br />Patrice, your post supports my theory that the greenest among us may very well be we who live in the reddest states. I say this in full awareness that on paper, at least, Washington state is bluer than Wisk detergent, but that's primarily due to the political sleight of hand that the Dems have used to disenfranchise everyone who isn't one of them. Out here in the real world conservatives far outnumber the libs.<br /><br />I'm guessing most of us who are 'regulars' here on your site would have no problem coming to each others' homes and fitting in pretty comfortably. It's a nice feeling. <br /><br />A. McSpAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-518925805819964992010-08-10T22:10:54.126-07:002010-08-10T22:10:54.126-07:00I had to chuckle at the mention of second-hand sho...I had to chuckle at the mention of second-hand shoes. In our JONES household :) we also pass down usable shoes. One year, my 5 yr daughter gave her 3yr old brother a pair of sandals for his birthday. He was so excited! And to top it off, my daughter proudly exclaimed, "And they're not even new!!! I mean, who would want to wear shoes that nobody's worn before???" Needless to say, I shared that little gem with all of my other (conservative) and thrifty relatives and friends.<br />KatieJ<br />(One Jones no one needs to worry about!)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-63390072415451982222010-08-10T19:27:12.062-07:002010-08-10T19:27:12.062-07:00Heh. If we were allowed to, we could ride our hor...Heh. If we were allowed to, we could ride our horses to work. Unfortunately, SwampMan's and my workplaces have parking lots, not hitching posts.<br /><br />The funny thing is, we live "greener" than most of the yahoos telling us how to live. The whole "green" word gives me a giant pain in the you-know-where and whenever I hear it, I have the urge to climb in a 4-wheel-drive monster truck and drive over somebody's solar panels.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-56977442678907121312010-08-10T19:10:41.317-07:002010-08-10T19:10:41.317-07:00You are going green in very practical ways, Patric...You are going green in very practical ways, Patrice. I think that conservatives are naturally savers and recyclers. Afterall, "conserve" is the root word of "conservative." Whenever I point that out to progressives, they get go silent - yippee!!!!<br /><br />My little vacation was enlightening (so to speak) in many ways, including the use of CFL bulbs vs. incandescent bulbs. I have been stocking up on incandescent bulbs because I've heard horror stories from greenies who have been using CFL's for years. A couple of these people are acquaintances and they told me they suspect CFL bulbs gave them tumors. Whether this is true or not, I have no idea. I do know that these 2 people are devout greenies and wouldn't make such an accusation about a main component of going green if they didn't believe they were correct in their accusations.<br /><br />Anyhow, I have been buying all sizes and shapes of incandescent bulbs because I like the instant-on feature of these bulbs and they produce a light that is more soothing to my eyes. The motels I stayed in for the past 8 days had either all CFL's or all incandenscents. In my opinion, the CFL's didn't produce adequate light for reading or typing and I wonder if this lower output will eventually affect our eyesight? <br /><br />My personal preference is leaving it a personal choice, but California is eliminating incandescent bulbs in 2012. The jack-booted lightbulb thugs will have yet another reason to kick in my door.<br /><br />Anonymous Twit<br />Home safe & sound<br />What an absolutely wonderful country! I love the USA!! I love the majority of the people.<br />I love the businesses that keep things moving along. I love vacations...and I love my home.<br />God bless America and her people!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-86682016112004157492010-08-10T16:30:13.948-07:002010-08-10T16:30:13.948-07:00Don't worry about getting hybrids though. The ...Don't worry about getting hybrids though. The components in them that make them "green" come from far-off mines all over the planet. If you factor in the mining (and all that entails) and the factories that turn them into the engine components, then the travel to get assembled and shipped to you.... if actually works out alot 'greener' if you get a decent car thats been produced in your own country.<br />Al Gore is a crook!<br />But just because I don't buy his globowarmthinkery rubbish doesn't mean I want to live in a throw-away society.<br />Living sustainably is better but we shouldn't be forced to fill fatcats pockets to do it.Amandahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16213399042268835093noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-21752936061011409482010-08-10T13:51:37.864-07:002010-08-10T13:51:37.864-07:00i too have reviewed how green or lives are...there...i too have reviewed how green or lives are...there of course are improvements to be made but we are doing pretty good.i think that living "green" could help alot with many of the problems our country has; one being obesity-and another-saving money.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5526768924178592295.post-79628099028784983262010-08-10T12:54:31.590-07:002010-08-10T12:54:31.590-07:00We do not intentionally try to be "green"...We do not intentionally try to be "green", but we live in much the same way. We rarely buy anything new and we recycle, compost, garden, have poultry for meat and eggs. We do buy dairy, but in our own containers from the farm. It's amazing how accusitory the "left" can be. I have many friends who do the same as us. It's just a way of life that you don't plan for. Just taking care of what God has given us.Mrs. Doughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07703464320152527607noreply@blogger.com