Earth Day--going green

Every week, it seems there is an article or news somewhere about ways to be green. Last night, before bed, I read some of Sunday's New York Times' magazine articles about things to do that are "green." Initially I was overwhelmed by all the things that I do that work against being green, but then I started thinking about all the ways I do contribute to a greener way of being. Preferring to be positive, I thought I'd inventory all the things our household consciously does to support a greener earth, while keeping in mind things we might start doing.

• Recycling--I have been home recycling for years and years and years. I am consciously making an effort to recycle envelopes from mail and pieces of junk mail. Additionally, I'm trying to make sure I put the cardboard from the toilet paper and paper towels into the recycle bins regularly. I currently get delivery of two papers daily (Denver Post and NY Times) and find that I only read the entertainment section of the local paper. Even though I recycle all the papers, it feels like a waste. Thus, I'm seriously considering stopping delivery of that paper and reading that section online.
• Using cloth rather than paper when it comes to napkins and paper towels. At home, we have gotten in the habit of using our cloth napkins. We are making a more concerted effort to eliminate so much paper towel use, relying more on cloth towels in the kitchen.
• Composting--We have had a compost bin for awhile, only interrupted by a year when we had work done in the yard. Occasionally, I will toss vegetable scraps in the garbage because I am too lazy to empty the inside bin into the outside bin.
• Relying on local produce--We try to shop at the local farmer's market and some farm stands during the summer. We still, however, find ourselves buying plenty of produce in the stores. This year, we took a community supported agriculture share in Grants Farm, so that we can make a more conscious effort to rely on local produce.
• Changing out light bulbs--when our old energy insufficient bulbs burn out, we are replacing them with "green bulbs." In the lighting department, I sometimes have a tendency to leave lights on in parts of the house that I am not using (again due to my spaciness); this is something I am trying to be better at--plenty of room for improvement here.
• Relying on cloth bags--I have plenty of cloth bags in my car to use when I go into stores. I have recently started using cloth bags to take my lunch to school. We still use plastic bags to collect cat litter; we haven't figured out a viable alternative to scooping out and cleaning the litter.

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