Green at heart: feeling good starts with doing good
Who knew saving the planet could be so self-serving.
I've been thinking lately about how good I feel when I'm using or eating something that's healthy for me and/or the planet. Now, "good" is a very broad term, but in this context it encompasses feelings of excitement, reward, self-satisfaction, accomplishment and wellness. (In other words, opposite of the dental pain and regret I'm feeling after having eaten a naughty piece of Toblerone. Glad it was the last one.)
I think it's important to emphasize the personal benefits of doing good for the earth, and oneself. There are, in fact, many opportunities and I'm always looking for more.
When do I feel good?
I feel good when...- I'm packing up my gigantic $2.50 Lee Valley (and other) cloth bags to go grocery shopping and plopping them in a reusable bin. Or filling them up at the checkout. Or putting them away when I get home.
- I wash my hair with quality healthy shampoo and conditioner.
- I put on my natural deodorant or my good-for-me moisturizer.
- I score a deal on something natural, like a sale on Burt's Bees* or knowing my everlasting deodorant was only $5.
- I use my Keeper instead of disposable, bleached paper/plastic... feminine things.
- The person on the other side of the counter seems shocked that I brought my own bag or toss them back the plastic one they want to give me.
- I leave the market with mostly local products, especially when something's organic. "Yeah, organic potatoes! Score!"
- I eat organic or really pure foods... quinoa, whole oats porridge, a hearty cereal with fruit, etc.
- I'm scooping food out of a glass JAR instead of out of a tin or a hard plastic container (#1 PET).
- I put my bulk foods into jars, stare at the appearance, and put them away lovingly in my cupboard.
- The market has my organic, local, free run, paper-packaged eggs in stock. Yeah!
- I put something alternative in the freezer or fridge, like some Anita's Organic Mill whole wheat flour I was just given tonight, or anything home made.
- I find a product I like in entirely recyclable packaging, e.g. dishwashing gloves in a cardboard box instead of plastic. By the way, is it true that rubber latex gloves are biodegradable? Should I be burying them instead of hoarding them?
- I make the best choice I can for myself and my environment.
I feel good when I think about the good things I'm doing.
Some of these feel-good cosmetic products actually feel good partly because of the way they're packaged, and I'm not just talking about their labels. I'm not accustomed to a jar of creamy moisturizer, a simple shampoo bottle cap, a salt crystal or a good old-fashioned toothpaste tube. The fact that they aren't commonplace (at least for me) adds to the "hey this is pretty awesome" feeling. It makes me more aware of what I'm doing, which is important in this day and age of zombie routines, time is money and carelessness. HEY! Wake up! Be conscious!
When do you feel good?
What eco-savvy things are you doing that make you feel good? Are you eating with the seasons, are you using biodegradable dish soap, are you wearing organic cotton or hemp fabrics? Are you curbing your consumption? Tell me. (Need some tips? Check out Ecoholic by Adria Vasil. Good design, even better ideas.)
* Unfortunately Burt's Bees has been purchased by Clorox. I'll probably follow up with a post about why I despise Clorox right now, and Febreeze, etc. I'll likely grudgingly continue to use and purchase Burt's Bees products, but if anyone can suggest something as natural, and maybe cheaper, in healthy recyclable packaging, that I can get locally that'd be great. I like not having to go out of my way to get BB since London Drugs sells it. Mom suggests Patrick Curelle, but she has to use a third product to tame the frizz it gives her, so I didn't think it was worth it.
I am an Interactive Designer in Vancouver, BC, and a graduate of the Communication Design program at the Emily Carr Institute. I enjoy tea, chocolate and European desserts. My passions here and elsewhere include the local eating lifestyle, environment and sustainability issues, public transit, health and design. You see? They're all related.
Comments
Great post!
I too feel good:
- when I bring my own bags
- when I use my Diva Cup instead of using, and disposing of, all that monthly "sanitary" waste
- when I take the garbage out and notice that my family of 5 has less waiting on the curb than most every house on the block
- when I mix the compost and see that it's almost ready to go into the garden
- when I cook dinner from only local, in-season produce and the kids like it
- when the kids make a tough choice, standing by our enviro comitments, even when the "norm" among their peers is something entirely different
- when we eat a jar of pickles or peaches that I canned, and everyone marvels at how good they are
- when I rinse out an empty glass milk bottle, knowing that Avalon is going to clran it and reuse it
- when I get off my lazy @ss and walk to school to pick up the kids
- when we spend a day outside or in the woods enjoying the reason we're on this green bandwagon in the first place
This is a neat idea for a post - nothing like a little push to get you started in the direction of positive affirmation and gratitude. You should start it as a meme (that's the right blog term, yes?) - others may enjoy this task adn it may prompt some to do more than they're already doing.
Posted by: Late Bloomer | February 10, 2008 4:21 PM
Thanks! Those are great ideas and most are different from mine. I don't have kids so I'm glad you get to share it with yours. Your perspective here is a great balance for mine. My aunt was telling me about a co-operative eco game her students were playing, and I told her our future is in good hands!
That last point: so true. We're lucky to live in such a warm winter place, too.
I think it's a meme, yup. Good idea! Let's do it.
Posted by: erika | February 10, 2008 4:26 PM
I love these ideas!
Posted by: Raul | February 10, 2008 11:11 PM