Heather Gore

Anybody that knows me, knows that I can be somewhat compulsive. So, about a year ago Oprah had Leonardo DiCaprio and this Dr. Oppenheimer on her show. To be honest, it was the first time I had REALLY payed attention to the whole global warming/protect the environment thing. I had heard of it, but I wasn't doing anything to help. So, I watched that show and I was very interested. Leo is cute and that doesn't hurt. But I listened and I even took notes. I EVEN made Scott watch.

So I was all excited to be a better citizen and to help protect our earth. I ran out and bought compact fluorescent light bulbs. I started by replacing 5 lights like they suggested. Then I bought more... and as my light bulbs burn out they get replaced with the compact fluorescent ones. Yes, even the ceiling fans now look oh so pretty. Our neighborhood doesn't recycle. I started calling around to recycling places. The closest recycling place was in Magnolia like 15 miles away, not around the corner. At the time I was drinking water out of plastic water bottles almost exclusively and I felt guilty to see the amount of plastic I was generating. Do you know what, all the places I called don't even recycle plastic. "There isn't a demand". I was shocked and decided I would write my state representative asking why can't I recycle plastic? I got a very generic form letter telling me I need to contact Waste Management for all my recycling needs. The person missed the point.

So fast forward a year and I'm still thinking about this issue. I have watched An Inconvenient Truth. That is when Scott started, oh so lovingly, to call me "Heather Gore" or "Heather Green". Changes have been slow. I still drive my suburban (it's almost paid for and Leo doesn't have to drag 4 kids around). I decided I can't be perfect with recycling but I can recycle paper. I bought some fun REI water bottles that don't leak and I drink Brita filtered water again. A little arsenic never hurt anybody. Hannah came up with an idea about collecting paper for a few neighbors. I want to plant a garden for the fall. My back was out for spring planting and I think I'm going to have to take the lead on this one. I checked into a CSA (localharvest.com) but they had us eating some very exotic foods. Notice collard greens and fava beans are not on Scott's menu plan. I have printed (thanks Hayley) a Going Green Checklist and I try to be more aware of what I'm doing. All I know is we can do better. I don't want to hear about anymore dead polar bears.

With all that being said...I woke up to an old man dog accident on the tile. I smelled it before I saw it. You better believe I was reaching for something toxic then. None of this vinegar and water thing. I wanted to burn off the top layer of tile.