The whole world is going green. I have a few close friends who have inspired me to make some lifestyle changes. One of them is Priti Rao about who you can read
here.
Ok, so I am fairly green. I ensure that I carry my cloth bags wherever I go. I switch off all lights and fans if not in use. I also ensure that water is not wasted. I keep buckets under leaking taps. Infact the other day, my kitchen sink mixer tap had been leaking. The plumber was immediately called and he said the entire tap is gone (thanks to the not so friendly hard water) and we will have to purchase a new one. I obviously said ok to that till I heard the cost... 2500 bucks...what!!! The plumber was sent off and I precisely kept a small katori under the leaking tap. This was till yesterday, when I realised that my kitchen is not looking cool enough and I am okay with shelling out 2500 bucks on a stupid tap. I hate inflation.
My kids are always on the move. Ofcourse partly coz they are kids and mainly coz they run around switching off lights and fans in the house. The other day A had switched on the tap to fill hot water (Did I tell you ours is the only house in the whole apartment which has a solar panel), and the poor guy got mesmerized with some cool dance competition coming on TV. Soon enough the water started over flowing. That moment... that life defining moment when my son's and my eyes met and he ran dropping the towel... to close the tap. My dear son was not visible for the next half an hour.
The rule of the house is whoever exits last from a room has to switch off the lights. This rule is taken very seriously by N and A was proven a few days back. I saw N refusing to come out of the room. She kept calling me or her brother.
Me: Why can you not come out?!
N: Because I will have to switch off the light.
Me: So?
N: If I switch off the lights, the ghost will eat me.
She kept staring at with huge wide opened eyes and I felt like a monster!
If there is one thing where I have failed miserably is educating my darling husband. Its truly weird how as soon he enters the house, all the lights of the house comes alive. Can you think of what he did to my green heart when he threw an entire bucket of water because it got filled with cold water instead of hot?!! Don't ask further questions about what happened after that. Well, dinner was eaten silently and water has never ever been thrown after that day.
Shortly after my mother moved in with us and after witnessing my go-green initiatives at home, one late evening I entered into a pitch dark house. I was wondering where everyone is. And then I heard my mother and kids playing in her bedroom. When I wanted to know why the house is dark, she said, "Well, you don't want unwanted lights to be on, right? And we were in my room, so all other lights are off." Seriously, Amma?? I am surely misunderstood by my family.
The latest bug I caught was growing veggies, Well, I was inspired by those who grow their own veggies and I was all gung-ho about it too. So we drove to the nearest nursery, bought pots, seeds, and all the jazz. I spent a whole Sunday afternoon making my hands dirty and the kids had a ball too. But to my dismay, I realised that my green hand reaches only the electric taps and switches. Growing veggies is not my thing, hats off to those who do it. But I am not cut for it, atleast for now. So till then my local sabzi wala it is.
People who know me are aware how crazy I am about reading. My electronically friendly husband had been after my life asking me to get a Kindle. But I always pushed him saying there is nothing like the smell of a new book and how a book has to be felt and not just read. Then one fine day while dusting my library shelves, I suddenly realised how many trees have been cut for all these papers. The very same evening, Kindle was ordered (much to my husband's delight). And I must add here, I am very happy with
my device. I have donated 90% of my books to a library. I have been reading a lot more thanks to free e-books, cheaper e-books and ease of reading whenever and wherever.
I still like to call myself my environmental friendly (who cannot grow veggies). I am trying to do little things if not big ones. :)