My progress in seeking a sustainable lifestyle is so up and down! I suppose this is another one of those progressions where I should enjoy the ride without just focusing on the destination, but I'm not too good at that. I like quantifiable results, things like being able to see how much my outgoing trash has shrunk, or how many plastic bags I'm sending to the landfill each week. Just
saying that "I'm moving in the right direction" doesn't satisfy me.
My utility bill frustrates the heck out of me! We live in a house that is over a hundred years old, and we've been trying to make it more energy efficient as time goes on. We've remodeled the bathroom to include a low-flow shower, changed out the toilet for one that uses less water, bought Energy Star appliances, installed better windows, and gotten a furnace that should be about 8x --I may be exaggerating here--more efficient. You'd think I would be able to see how these changes are paying off, wouldn't you?
Well, I can't. There's no way to tell by how much money we spend on energy. Petroleum prices have gone up and down, we've opted to buy some shares in wind-produced energy, some months are hotter, colder, or windier than others. We also can't really judge our progress by number of units of energy consumed. Sometimes, despite our most determined efforts, things happen that we can't control. Last month, the Roto-Rooter guy came to unclog the sewer line.
When he was doing that, we had to facilitate the process by running as much water as we could through the line. Last month, our furnace shut down and we had to have a plumber come out
and fix things. While he was doing that, he had to turn the heat on and off several times, making our gas consumption unlike what it normally is. Can't I have just one "normal" month? I have
no idea what normal looks like!
Today, I'm setting the trip odometer in the car on zero. I want to see how many miles we drive in a week...THIS week. I just want a number I can hold onto. I know our car is mostly used to get DH to and from work. We also use it to run errands that can't be done on foot. Since we joined the Compact [last February] we've done pretty well at combining trips, and I'm certain that we've cut our usage a lot, but I want to see that number to compare our car usage with "the average American family's car usage." Anyone here know an "average American family?"
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2 comments:
No, not many "average" Americans. The fact that you care about this makes you "un"average. You are doing the best you can and I appreciate all your efforts to be kinder to the planet. Thank you for all that you are doing.
I hear you! I also want to see results. I get frustrated with myself that I cannot change my life, my home, and my world as quickly as I see it in my mind. You are doing a wonderful thing to be living by example. I have already learned a lot from you and hope to use seed bombs and renegade plant my neighbors garden (it is untended and crosses into mine). :)
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