This Green Thang
Okay, I think I'm falling behind in being the perfect green mom. Oh, that's right… No I remember; I'm trying to be. I get press releases sent to me all the time about how to be a more green parent. Of course I get press releases about airline promotions as well, so that's not saying much.
I naturally gravitate to serving myself and my children foods made from things not found in a lab and not serving soda in their baby bottles. I recently had the carpets cleaned and got a service that said they used no chemicals (which is probably why some stains remained). But I can't get all hard core about it. I get these books. Big thick books about green parenting. Let's face it:
Most non-fiction books are flabby.
You can skip past the first few chapters and then some. And if I don't finish a spy novel I bought at the airport, I know I am not getting past a title like, "Checklist for the nursery." It reminds me of when I used to drive between SF and LA every week and I bought books on tape. One time, I decided to ditch the pot boilers and get something that I could learn from. I got one called something like, "Understanding the Stock Market." After ten minutes, I almost drove off the road as my snoring jolted me awake (but we know how well I learned to spot a Ponzi scheme, so perhaps I gave up too early).
I can't imagine after having put two kids to bed that I'd brush the day off my teeth and finally hunker down in my jammies to read one of these tomes. They are well meant. Probably have some good info, but dang it. They are too long.
And it's like being vegan, which I also did for 3 months till someone dangled some red meat in front of me. I'm sure it is better for the planet and myself to be a vegan, but that would take so much planning, extra thought, and effort.
I recycle, OK? I have one car and one electric car, bona fide; is that enough? I usually walk to the market.
Have I bought the perfect sheets, bottles, and diapers?
That would be no.
Oooh me, too. I cloth diapered Jack until we started doing the potty training and now we're buying Pull-Ups. I worried about BPA and lead and all kinds of stuff when he was still putting things in his mouth and now…not so much. I still recycle like crazy but the economy has made it less important to buy organic…
I love this post! I feel the exact same way. I go from being guilt-ridden because I threw away a piece of paper at the gas station instead of bringing it home to recycle to "Fuck it! I'm doing the best I can."
When given the choice, I go green, but other factors come into play–like money, time and stains on my carpet.
@BeingSuper
yes, I know. My "green carpet" looks as bad as before I shelled out $200 dollars. But, they said wool is harder to clean than synthetic..ironic!
With my 1st son I never Recycled and Did not cloth Diaper. buy with my 2ND I realized its not hard to Recycle and Cloth Diaper and the benefits we are having on our Earth are worth it.
I have a girlfriend who is a bona fide vegan (after being relatively normal for the first 2/3 of her life) and one of the comments she made a while back was that part of being greener isn't using the right sheets or diapers or food… but not manufacturing any MORE.. Baby stuff costs so much and they use it for WHAT a minute? If you get a hand me down, or get it from a thrift shop, as long as it's safe, you're not producing any more AND being green in the process.
This post really spoke to me. I haven't even had my first child yet and I already feel the pressure. Co-workers have asked me if i've decided to use cloth diapers and i've gazed with fear at the enormous shelves of green parenting books at Barnes and Noble!!
I plan to take a deep breath, relax, and try to make small changes. if I try to become a "green mom" all at once, I might have a heart attack!
Thanks for your post.