I know this is long, but I'm fired up!

I have been too afraid to watch An Inconvenient Truth.

I was too afraid of seeing things way out of my control and too afraid to be frustrated by the world's apathy to all of it. Despite not seeing the movie, I have known that the earth is in crisis and have made some changes in how I live. I knew that I needed to learn more though. I, along with John, finally decided to watch it tonight.

It's such a good movie. I sat there watching it just wishing that everybody I knew would PLEASE just watch this movie. I have been putting off watching it like I would put off getting a tooth filled. I knew I should watch it, I just knew it would be painful. It was actually really well done, and somehow, Al Gore did it in a way that was entertaining.

I know, many people in my world are reading this and once the name Al Gore comes up their minds turn to the political side and shut down on this subject. That's the thing, it's not about politics, it's about saving our world for the next generation. That is so much bigger than republican or democrat. So I have to get that out of the way because I think that probably stops a lot of people from watching the movie.

So, with all of that said, I implore you to rent An Inconvenient Truth and check it out. We have had the movie for almost a week before we finally watched it and I'm so glad we did. For my friends who are teachers; are they showing this in schools? Man, I hope so. I wish they would play this movie on every channel for a week. It's that important!

For a while now I have been wanting to blog about some little things I have learned to do that can be a start to working toward repairing our damaged environment.

To give you some background, when I met John, I didn't know how to recycle, I thought cloth diapering would be impossible and that what I do in this world can't make much of a difference. John has taught me a lot and along the way I have made some changes in how I live. I do not in anyway say that I am this perfectly environmentally correct individual, I have A LOT to still change. However, my eyes have been opened to researching little ways to make positive changes. I would like to share them in the hopes to spread it on. I still have lots to learn and plenty of changes to still make, but here's my start:

Purchase powered detergent. Liquid laundry detergent takes water, plastic to hold it and then tons more gas/emissions to truck it across the country to stores. Powder detergent also comes in bio-degradable forms that are even better. FW Food Co-Op, or a natural grocery store in your area, is a great place to purchase biodegradable detergents and cleaners like Bio Pac.

Recycling: In Fort Wayne, sign up for recycling and in the brown bin put all paper (computer paper, cardboard boxes, etc.) and in the yellow put all food glass (with labels) pop cans, #1 and 2 plastic bottles and cleaning bottles. If you live outside the city limits, take it to omnisource or I just heard Sam's Club has a reclycling center. (Heck, bring your cans and papers to our house, we'll recycle it for you!)

Use high efficiency appliances that use less soap and energy.

Make your own baby food. Jar baby food is nutritionally fine, however, the packaging and gas/emissions for trucks to deliver it across the country is terrible considering how small each package is. Wholesome Baby Food


Use cloth diapers. I know many people see cloth as an impossibility, but I hope people would consider part time cloth use such as on weekends or while at home. It doesn't have to be all or nothing. Cotton Babies


There's more, but I'll keep this short (too late!) and just implore everyone that every little bit counts if everybody chips in. Having Miles has made me finally realize that we are giving this world to our kids. Duh! People have been saying that for eons, but holding Miles in my arms just hits it home that I want him, and his friends and family to have the beauty of the earth that we enjoy.



John was fired up too. Check out: John's Blog

Thanks for listening! If you have any good tips on ways to help the environment, leave a comment!