Earth Day!
Apr 22, 2010 Environment, Family life
What will you do for Earth Day?
As I am writing this post, I can feel a baby rumbling inside my tummy, which kinda puts things into perspective. I will soon have two children – which in itself may not be perceived as very environmental. But I feel like my mission is to raise them in such a way that they will contribute to making the Earth a better place for everyone to live on. I want to raise green citizens. Really, I am hoping that one of my children will be the one to discover the solution everyone has been looking for – be it for green transportation, environmental ways to grow enough food for everyone, you name it, there are plenty of solutions to find!
Wait, I take that back. If we wait for one of my kids to be old enough to find those solutions, we’ll already be in so much trouble it won’t be much good anymore. We need to change our habits faster than that – like, last year. And I’m working on it!
In the last few years, we completely gave up on plastic grocery bags. On the rare occasion when I forget my reusable bag, I feel so guilty I often end up buying a new fabric bag. I have been clothing my son almost entirely with second-hand clothes. I don’t own a car and travel by foot and bike as much as possible. We just subscribed to a CSA, which will allow us to receive fresh, organic vegetables grown right here in Vancouver, all summer long. We do not buy farmed salmon. We favor local produce. We unplug everything that doesn’t need to be plugged. We have a worm compost on our balcony, where we will also be growing all sorts of veggies in containers this summer. I live in a small apartment right next to my workplace, which I walk to every morning. We use cloth diapers, wipes and fabric swim diapers. We use no bleach or harsh cleaning products (replaced by vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice). We don’t have a TV – instead we go out and play. We avoid cheap plastic toys, buying mostly wooden toys or second-hand stuff, and making sure that they will be used and last for a while. We borrow books from the library. Etc. Etc. Etc.
Of course, there is still a lot we could do better. We still kinda long for a car on days when the Car Co-op pisses us off for a reason or another. I throw away the occasional recyclable product when it is dirty beyond recognition or full of green stuff I don’t want to have to fight against. I could bike more (although I found out yesterday that this will have to wait until August, as my bump is now getting in the way). I take a plane on a long ride every year, and I am not willing to stop. We occasionally buy fruits that have traveled halfway across the globe to get into our plates (oh, yummy mangoes!). I have a cat, whose poop needs to be thrown away in plastic bags, and we now have fish, who use a lot of water when you consider the water changes needed (especially right now when we have an algae bloom). I could use less water when I do dishes. I should exercise more. I should volunteer or do more good in my community. I should donate more money to charities.
So my resolution for Earth Day, this year, is this: I will try to improve my behavior as a green and community-minded citizen, and when I need an extra boost of motivation, I will ask myself “What does my child(ren) see me do? What will they take away from it? How can I be a better role model?”
How about you?
Biking…
Aug 28, 2009 Environment, Family life
I rediscovered biking last year. When our son got old enough and had a head big enough to wear a helmet and be parked be in a trailer, we bought ourselves some brand new bikes and some top-notch equipment, and went a-riding.
At first, I was elated. I felt like the child in me had come back, the 12-year-old who loved to go biking around her neighborhood. And I still enjoy our rides when the going is good.
The problem is: we live at the bottom of a hill. A big hill. Since we have bikes and no car, we have decided to use them for transportation as much as possible so we save on booking cars from the Car Co-op and help the environment a little. That’s why we biked to our son’s birthday with 40 pounds of gear. That’s why last weekend, we biked to a friend’s house for a birthday party. It was about a 10 km ride, or more precisely 19 km round-trip.
But biking is hard. On the way to our friend’s place, it was almost all up, all the time. And I don’t really love suffering. Granted, afterward, I felt proud. Proud that I did it, proud that I didn’t need a car, proud that I didn’t spend a penny or waste a drop in gas, proud that I didn’t have to go to the gym after… I like the fact that I can use my bike to travel. But I can’t say I enjoy the ride when it’s hard. Of course, I liked the way back a lot better…
Tomorrow we’re planning on making it to another friend’s place. The ride is about 10km as well and we have never been that way, so we’re not sure exactly how hard it will be. It scares me, but then, what’s the worse that could happen? I have a lot of small gears, I can always stop and rest, I can always walk up the hill if I have to (although I would have to endure a bit of ridicule). And I know that after I will be proud and happily tired. But during… Well, let’s just not think about it!
Earth Run
Apr 27, 2009 Environment, Family life, Outdoors
Sunday morning, we headed to Stanley Park for Earth Run. The turn out was quite disappointing, but not unexpected when you consider that the race started at 8 am (registration was at 7, although we got there at 7:50 and barely made it before the start of the race). I suspect the early start was due to the fact that the MS race was happening around the same area a bit later in the morning. Not sure if it was due to bad planning on the part of the Earth run organizers or if it shows the importance devoted to Earth day…
So we had to rush like crazy to make it, and we were not even able to do the whole 5 km as we were with two other families with toddlers and in between the ones who wanted to walk (very slowly and mostly in the wrong direction), the one who fell in a mud puddle (ours of course) and the one who wanted to stop for a snack, we were so far behind the rest that we were strongly suggested to take a few shortcuts so people could clean up behind us. When we made it to the end (not all that far behind the last of the participants), there was almost no food and no goodies bag left.
Luckily, the weather was gorgeous and we were in good company, so we still had fun despite the disappointing event. The kids played at the playground after and we were able to catch up with our friends. One of them is pregnant again and due in July – her son will be 23 months old when the new one arrives. She walked with us despite being tired (and 20 pounds heavier than normal) and she’s still in a pretty good shape! The three boys were really cute and played very well together. And we made it there and back on our bikes without Zak having pain in his knee, which bares well for the future – let’s just hope I don’t jinx it by saying I hope he’s on the mend!
A real tantrum
Dec 26, 2008 Environment, Family life, Outdoors
Today our boy had what was probably his first real temper tantrum in public. Guess where and why?
We went to the bike store to get him a new bike helmet. He got a bike for Christmas and his old helmet is too small now. And it was boxing day, so we had to shop till we dropped. Well, ok, we only went to that one shop which is across the street from home. The trouble was when it was time to leave. Our son would have none of it. Bikes are his life and he only had time to go around the store once! He broke into a full-blown tantrum.
I wonder if they see that often at the bike store. At Toys R Us, yeah, I suspect they do. But the bike store?
Personally, I love what it tells about him!
Let it Snow!
Dec 22, 2008 Environment, Family life
About 30 cm of snow fell on Vancouver yesterday. This morning, I walked in deep snow to get to work. It looks like Quebec City. It is absolutely beautiful!
Vancouver in itself is not the most beautiful of cities. In my opinion, its main appeal comes not from the city itself, but from what is around it: ocean, mountains, wild nature within reach… But on a day like today, the city is transformed and looks like the magical kingdom of a fairy tale. I love love love it!
I have never seen something like that here, as I have mentioned earlier. The temperature is not supposed to warm up significantly before Christmas (and it should snow again on Christmas Eve). It will be the first white Christmas in Vancouver since 1998. Hopefully Zak’s family makes it here tomorrow, in between two snow falls.
I can’t help but feel like I’m part of a historical event. I’m sure we’ll be talking about this Christmas for years to come, especially when our feet will be in 2 inches of rain puddles on Christmas Eve (or during the Olympics next winter). My only regret is that my son is not old enough to truly participate in the enthusiasm (he’s still not sure about the whole snow thing) and he will not remember it.
Every night I go to bed, I take a long, hard look out my window for fear that it could be gone in the morning. That’s what usually happens: you wake up and during your sleep, the snow has turned to rain and melted everything into a slushy mess. It hasn’t happened yet, but eventually it will. And my real fear is that such a snow event could never happen again in these parts. Hopefully it won’t be the case, but with global warming, who knows if my son will again someday be lucky enough to play in so much snow downtown Vancouver?
In the meantime, Zak and him are stranded: they tried going out this morning, but even with our mega-stroller, there is no way he could navigate the sidewalks with so much snow. We need a sled!
The end of the world
Oct 15, 2008 Environment, Family life, Rant
Last night was the election, and for a while it looked like the Conservatives were going to have a majority government. In the end they didn’t, but the fact is, noone wants an election for the next two years at least, so the Conservatives will be able to do whatever they want for at least that long. And that scares the hell out of me.
I don’t recognize myself in this government. I don’t share their priorities and their values. To quote no other than Sarah Palin (in a very different context), Stephen Harper sees a Canada that is very different from mine (or something like that). For the longest time, I didn’t have much of a vision of Canada anyway. The last time I cried about the result of a vote it was in 1995 when I voted for the separation of Quebec from Canada. It was my first vote, and losing it made me really depressed. Today, I am crying because I have to come to terms with the fact that lots of Canadians seem to agree with Stephen Harper.
It makes me want to move back to Quebec where, at least, people don’t vote Conservatives. Oh, wait… Where did I live again? Right, in Quebec City, where people just elected 3 Conservative MPs…
The worst thing for me, though, is the environment. I don’t understand how people can be so blind. We cannot afford to do nothing about the environment for another 2, 3, 4 years! We couldn’t afford to do nothing for the PAST 3 years. Call me crazy if you want, but I would like my son to have an Earth to walk on when he’s an adult. How can people not feel like that? How can they oppose a carbon tax that would help us heal the environment, if ever so slightly. How can people not see that their wallet will be emptier if the environment collapses than if they have to pay an extra cent per liter of gas?
Today, I am mourning my Earth. Because I have the feeling that when we do wake up and stop letting the Conservatives blind us with their American-style personal attacks, when we do realize that we need to do what Europe has already done to reduce our emissions and start fixing the damage we have done… When we do realize that what we needed is a Green Shift 10 years ago… That day, it may very well be too late.
And that is why today feels like the end of the world.
Elections are coming…
Oct 8, 2008 Environment, Miscellaneous, Rant
The Canadian election is coming and I have a harder time than I wish deciding who to vote for.
I WILL vote. That much is certain. I don’t understand how some people can pass up the right to vote as if this was some unimportant chore that someone else can do for them. Voting gives you the right to complain about your leaders afterward if they’re doing bad. People have died around the world for the right to vote. All WE have to do is get informed beforehand, and then on voting day, get our asses off the couch and vote. That’s not too much to ask.
I am not voting for the Conservatives. That much is easy to decide. I think that Stephen Harper is a dangerous, scary man who sets Canada back years and years in terms of environmental and social policy. I am deeply ashamed of him and of his position on global warming and on crime, to name but a few. Just thinking that he could get a majority gives me hives. I just can’t stand this possibility!
Now who is left? Last election, I voted for the NDP because I really like their candidate, but this time, I’m not so sure. To be fair, I don’t know much about their candidate in my riding. But the NDP’s environmental policy is pretty much that of the Conservatives. And environmentalists around the world have shown that the cap-and-trade system (proned by the NDP) is not as effective as the Liberal’s carbon tax.
If I was in Quebec, I would probably vote for the Bloc Quebecois. But I’m not in Quebec. Enough said.
I would probably vote for the Liberals, even though I don’t like Dion much, because I really like the Green Shift idea an I think that the Liberals would best govern us at this time. The problem is, I really hate the candidate in my riding. She has been here forever, she hasn’t done anything, and last election I saw her at a town hall meeting and her personality really got on my nerves. She arrived (very) late, she acted like a diva… No thanks! She will probably win anyway, though. She always does, and by a landslide. Which means I don’t have to vote for her even though I want the Liberals to win. And that way I will still be able to live with myself the morning after.
The only choice left is the Greens. I don’t agree with some of their social policies, and frankly, I certainly wouldn’t want them to govern the country! But I figure a vote for the Greens would register as a vote for the environment. And that’s the main issue for me right now. I would like to have an Earth to pass on to my son. I really don’t get why people don’t figure this out: sure, the carbon tax may hurt the economy a bit (I’m not even sure that’s true, but let’s pretend it is). The planet’s implosion will hurt more than that, won’t it? We need to protect the Earth, or else there won’t be any economy left to complain about.
So I will most likely vote for the Greens, unless someone convinces me otherwise before next Tuesday. By the way, have you noticed? Tuesday is a full moon. I wonder if Harper is superstitious. Maybe he figures superstitious people won’t want to bring about any change on a full moon. Hopefully we will surprise him. Because if he’s elected with a majority, I’m the one who will turn into a werewolf…
Maybe this time, if Obama is elected, it’s Canadians that will be moving to the States!