Yesterday, I went to lunch with my mother. After we finished, my mom asked for a to-go box for the leftovers. I knew in my mind that it would end up in my hands, and this time I didn't really want the leftovers. She always reminds me that eating leftovers is better than buying new food every single time you go to eat. I reluctantly took the box (made of styrofoam). What bothered me is that it is next to impossible to live simply without having to fight hard at every turn. I should finish my meal, and if I don't I should box it up and eat it later. But I shouldn't have to support the use of styrofoam in order to be efficient and money-saving in my eating.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Manual labor
This does not apply directly to food or packaging, but I felt that it was important: Last week, the power saw that I use in fence repairs kicked the bucket. While another was being ordered, I was required to use a good old fashioned hand saw. I now have a much more intimate respect for power tools AND for how things got done on a farm pre-electronics. I reflected on how convenient and even lazy it was to simply press a button and brrrrrrr! the wood is sliced like butter. Then, I reflected on the monotonous, and sometimes frustrating task of hand-cutting wood. Not that is was too hard to do, it was just not so darn easy like before!
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I hear you, Jeff. I feel like one of the lessons that keeps slapping me in the face during this experiment is that most of this "acting sustainably" stuff is so not easy! I get the RSS feed from the Zero Waste Home and it always reminds me of what a crappy job I'm doing at not making waste. I'm going to write more on this in my post in a few days, but I think you're totally right--the yearning to live simply does not manifest itself without a lot of complicated maneuvering and re-engineering of one's life!
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