Going "Green" is the cool thing to do these days. If you are from Oregon, you've been green since kindergarten (even if you are 100-years-old).I've been experimenting with new ways to go green that benefit the earth and me at the same time. This is what I do:
- Turn off the lights when you are not in the room. Duh! I've been doing this ever since I could reach the light switch. This will save you money when the electric bill come.
- Use energy-saving bulbs. Yeah, these things suck as lighting when you are putting on make-up or are pulling a sliver out of your finger, but are great to use as a porch light. I have these in my hallways and in rooms where lighting is not an essential part of making my wardrobe.
- Don't waste water. How many people leave the water running in their sink as they brush their teeth? I don't get why people would do this. Turn off the faucet if you are not using water. Spit. And then rinse (this is the part where you get to turn the water back on).
- Walk! Ride Your Bike! I had a boss who would drive his car across the street to the drug store. I was in shock the first time he did this. What is even worse is that so many people do this. Good grief: walking two blocks is not going to kill you. I am always surprised when others are surprised that I walk to work. My office is barely a mile away from my home. One mile is nothing compared to the 5-k I run on the weekends.
- Get a Scooter. Yeah--I'm lazy and don't really feel like walking a mile to work all the time so I ride my scooter instead. My Geely gets 90 miles per gallon. That's efficiency at less than $3 per fill up at the gas station. No crying over gas prices for me.
- Open the windows. If it is hot in your house, chances are that it may be cooler outside. Opening your windows and patio doors is a great way to save electricity and let a nice, fresh breeze in your home. I know this may not work for those of you who live in places that are chronically hot and muggy or have bats that constantly fly into your house.
- Use a power strip. Even when your electronic equipment is off, it is still sucking electricity, which is costing you money every month. Plug your electronics and appliances into a power strip. When you want to use your computer, push the button on the power strip on and fire up the computer. When you are done, shut it down and turn off the power strip. I did an experiment last month with this technique to see how much money I would save if I used the power strip method on my own computer. I kid you not, I saved $12 on my monthly electric bill.
- Take advantage of deposits. A handful of states offer a 5 or 10-cent deposit for recycling your soda cans and beverage bottles (plastic and glass). That's 5-cents for each container. With enough cans, you can get yourself some gum.
- Get off the brakes. Have you ever been stuck behind a person who is constantly tapping on their brakes when they drive. Not only is this really irritating (to me), but it is sucking extra gas from their car. Gas-saving specialists recommend that you lay off the breaks whenever possible. For example, if traffic is moving slowly, let your car roll slowly with traffic rather than catch up to traffic and stop, catch up and stop, etc. Let there be a big gap between you and the car in front of you and roll merrily along knowing that you are saving gas.
