My Next Move

Today is the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. In the last week, I have seen and heard more adds about Earth Day and “going green” than ever before, and they’ve gotten me thinking about what we already do to help take care of the Earth and what more we could be doing.

So far we…

* recycle cans, bottles, plastics, and print materials

* use energy saving lightbulbs

* use reusable shopping bags (not all the time, but as often as I can remember to bring them- maybe 70% of the time)

* wash our laundry in cold water

* buy gently used clothing and toys

* donate to Goodwill and offer up items to Freecycle

* recently replaced some old windows with energy saving windows

Of course, there are areas where we could definitely be doing better. I’d like to work on using fewer disposable paper products (predominantly napkins and paper towels), and although we’re down to about 3 disposable diapers a day, I’m hoping it won’t be too much longer before we can get that number even lower. But one thing I’ve been thinking about for a while now is online banking. I’ve always been a little nervous to start doing online bill paying, but I’m wondering if that would be another way to cut down on the amount of paper we consume. I’m sure it would cut down the number of checks we use, but would it cut down on paper statements and envelopes?

If you participate in online bill paying I’d love to hear your feedback. What do you like about it? What don’t you like? And if you’re still a check, envelope, and stamp gal (or guy), like myself, what keeps you from making the switch?

And, of course, additional tips about how to green up everyday living will absolutely be appreciated.

Happy Earth Day!