"Going Green" tips or just living smartly?
"Going Green" tips are everywhere now. It's the new fad, the new buzz-word. I believe in being a good steward of God's creation, but I have to chuckle at many of these tips. After all, wise housewives have been implementing them for generations!
Hang clothes to dry.
Turn off lights when not in use.
Make your own meals.
Grow a garden.
Conserve water.
The list goes on and on! Many a housewife doesn't even need to jump on the "going green" bandwagon. She's been riding it the whole time. It's just that someone took the bandwagon's "live smartly" sign down and replaced it with the new buzz-word..."going green." After all, being a smart housewife went out with Leave it to Beaver.
Some of these tips don't even make sense to me. For instance, they say to take a shower rather than a bath. So, I tried my own experiment. I plugged up my bathtub and took a normal shower. By the time the shower was over, the tub was nearly 3/4 full! So, I figured I just needed to take a quicker shower. The next day, I went as fast as I could without sacrificing cleanliness, but I still filled the tub half way! I can take a bath in only a 1/4 filled tub. In fact, I find it faster, more thorough, and it doesn't leave my skin all dried out.
The other tip is to use a dishwasher rather than washing dishes by hand. When hubby and I had a dishwasher, our electric bill went sky-high (and we always ran out of hot water.) I stopped using it and went to hand-washing. I can see where a dishwasher could save if you tend to run the hot water the entire time you're hand-washing. But if you're frugal with your water while hand-washing, it seems to me a greater savings. Also, when we had our dishwasher, most of the time I had to wash the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher! Or, I'd have to run the dishwasher twice because there would still be food stuck to the dishes (or transferred from one dish to another.) Granted, there are better models of dishwashers out there, if you can afford the price.
I've been "green" for some time now. Or should I say, I've been frugal for some time, it's just that someone slapped the "green" label over my frugal label.
Hang clothes to dry.
Turn off lights when not in use.
Make your own meals.
Grow a garden.
Conserve water.
The list goes on and on! Many a housewife doesn't even need to jump on the "going green" bandwagon. She's been riding it the whole time. It's just that someone took the bandwagon's "live smartly" sign down and replaced it with the new buzz-word..."going green." After all, being a smart housewife went out with Leave it to Beaver.
Some of these tips don't even make sense to me. For instance, they say to take a shower rather than a bath. So, I tried my own experiment. I plugged up my bathtub and took a normal shower. By the time the shower was over, the tub was nearly 3/4 full! So, I figured I just needed to take a quicker shower. The next day, I went as fast as I could without sacrificing cleanliness, but I still filled the tub half way! I can take a bath in only a 1/4 filled tub. In fact, I find it faster, more thorough, and it doesn't leave my skin all dried out.
The other tip is to use a dishwasher rather than washing dishes by hand. When hubby and I had a dishwasher, our electric bill went sky-high (and we always ran out of hot water.) I stopped using it and went to hand-washing. I can see where a dishwasher could save if you tend to run the hot water the entire time you're hand-washing. But if you're frugal with your water while hand-washing, it seems to me a greater savings. Also, when we had our dishwasher, most of the time I had to wash the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher! Or, I'd have to run the dishwasher twice because there would still be food stuck to the dishes (or transferred from one dish to another.) Granted, there are better models of dishwashers out there, if you can afford the price.
I've been "green" for some time now. Or should I say, I've been frugal for some time, it's just that someone slapped the "green" label over my frugal label.
Comments
Blessings,
Hunter