It's Not Easy Being Green

On the Muppet Show, Kermit the Frog once sang “It’s Not Easy Being Green.”

Perhaps the fine frog had a premonition about the future. True, sometimes it’s not easy “being green”, but a lot of worthwhile endeavors are not easy.

Being green encompasses many activities, all aimed at protecting the earth from further decline. I’m sure some people have heard about the movie “An Inconvenient Truth” and can’t figure out what the fuss is all about. Maybe they think they will most likely be gone from this planet by the time any real problems show up, so it doesn’t matter if they conserve energy or prevent pollution.

That’s kind of like making a provision in your will that your children will inherit your home when you’re gone – then letting the house fall into disrepair so that it’s no longer inhabitable. Who would want to inherit that?

It’s not a matter of being a tree-hugger or not. It’s a matter of maintaining what we have, rather than being sloppy and careless. It’s a matter of paying attention and doing what we can, even if it’s not always convenient.

I see a lot of people lining up on Saturday mornings to recycle materials at the Adrian drop-off site. Apparently there are many of us who are getting the message that we can’t continue to bury every item we can’t find a use for. Landfills can only take so much, and then there will be a need for more space. Will it be in a field near you?

On Monday mornings in Adrian, you can drive the streets and see which homes do not “Reduce, reuse, recycle.” There are big trash bags that obviously contain plastic, glass, and metal recyclables, piles of cardboard boxes, furniture and household items that are simply no longer wanted.

With all the options for disposing of items, why do folks just toss these things on the curb? Most likely they do it because it’s easy. Or maybe they don’t know any better and can’t figure out who would want their discards.

If you have useful home improvement items to get rid of, Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore in Adrian will take many of them. All you have to do is call and ask if they can use what you’ve got.

You can call the Lenawee County Solid Waste Department and ask for information about recycling and hazardous waste disposal, and you will receive an abundance of options for keeping “green”.

Several non-profit agencies will take donations of good used clothing, furniture, and household items. Check out Goodwill and the Salvation Army thrift stores, but don’t overlook Associated Charities, which gives useful items to those in need. And Lenawee Freecycle, an online Yahoo group, links givers with folks who are looking for items.

In my quest to live a greener life, I’ve started using compact fluorescent light bulbs instead of incandescent. They use much less energy. When I had to replace my car, I found one that was smaller and more fuel-efficient.

I would like to buy more organic food, since having pesticides, fertilizers and hormones in and on my food conflicts with my desire to be healthy, and pollutes the earth further. But a lot of organic food comes from across or out of the country, so the fuel burned to transport it seems to negate the benefits of reduced chemicals, at least where the earth is concerned.

So I vow to buy my food locally as much as possible. There are many food-producing companies based in the Midwest, and I support Eden Foods of Clinton as a source of organic choices.

Needle-Lane Farms on Tipton Highway provides vegetables grown organically (www.needlelanefarms.com), and Skow’s Berry Farm on Ogden Highway has such a wide variety of fruits and vegetables that it’s my favorite farm stand. There are many famers' markets in the area, too. I can’t wait for spring and fresh, locally grown lettuce and peas.

I know I’m not perfect. I sometimes take long showers, using water and the fuel to heat it. When it’s really cold outside, I turn my thermostat up to 70 degrees instead of the usual 68. Sometimes, when it’s very gray and dark out, I turn on several lights in my house to make it seem more cheery.

I don’t expect to live my life completely green, but I know I will do what I can, where I can. It’s not always easy being green, but I think about my children, and their future children, and I know I want to leave them a “home” they can feel safe in.

How green are you?

Published in The Daily Telegram, Adrian, Michigan on March 3, 2007