Life is filled with trends, fashion and there seems to be the next big thing around every corner. It’s all very confusing trying to keep up and often time it’s frivolous and expensive. Now being green and hyper aware of your carbon foot print seems to be the next "in thing". If you’re not green you are slowly destroying the planet and taking the whole world with you thereby making you a selfish bitch. This led me to wonder how green am I and am I a bitch.
I have to admit being aware of our impact on our environment is very important and not something to take lightly. After all we don’t want to live in a messy junk filled waterless sauna one day. Even though hubby and I don’t plan on having children any time soon (if ever) and the concern of what we are going to leave behind for them is not a pressing concern, we do have a social conscience. For one I would like to leave this planet having made it a slightly better place. In doing so I have come to realize that small things does count.
Having recently moved into our new house and for the first time in many years having a garden again we had to make some decisions. Would we have a lush and beautiful garden that could make it onto the cover of any designer garden fashion magazine? Or would we have a garden that’s environmentally friendly, water wise and low maintenance? The decisions was a simple one, we opted for the low maintenance. We decided to only plant succulent and indigenous plants that would still be esthetically beautiful, water wise and resilient under any weather conditions. In addition we would also have a small organic vegetable garden. All good and well in my head but when it came to practical application it proved challenging.
Every weekend for the last two month these two eager queers have been slaving away, digging holes, fertilizing soil and replanting very stubborn and prickly bitches. Both my hands and that of my husband took turns growing blisters, both of us have been wounded and spilled blood. Hard labor has never been so unappealing! I have learned the hard way that planting any plants with thorns is a skill one must acquire before attempting it, if not your hands and arms will be stabbed, sliced and scratched leaving you looking like a self mutilator. After weeks and the loss of blood most of our plants, some of which I still look at with some degree of resentment, have found their stations in the garden and are flourishing. With all the hard work completed the vegetable garden was next.
Planting vegetables and growing them from seeds I thought would be less labor intensive and I was right. However, this posed a whole new set of unique challenges. You see birds, insects and snails would become my new nemesis. After planting our vegetables and herbs all seemed to be going well then one morning I arrived to find a battle had occurred and half our harvest had been devastated. The previous night and early that morning all the insects, snails and birds of the neighborhood discovered our vegetable garden. Half our crop was destroyed and the devastation enraged me. This was war!
Our cats were lectured about the food chain and threatened not to be fed again if they did not do their natural duty and chase away any bird no matter their size. Being green I knew when it came to insects I could not use conventional pesticide, but I desperately wanted them dead!. After some research I found a recipe for an organic pesticide that consisted of garlic, chilies, vegetable oil, dishwashing liquid and water. All the ingredients were put in the blender, mixed together and then the deadly juices strained into a spray bottle. Armed with my secret weapon I marched onto the battle field an unleashed my fury. I did learn one important battle lesson - never stand downwind from the vapor; the wind will blow it back into your face and when it gets into your eyes you are painfully reminded that there are chilies in your organic poison. I finished the whole spray bottle in the back garden and with the poignant smell of garlic in the air I saw my enemies scatter and die. I couldn’t help but think of all the families I destroyed but the fleeing of guilt soon passed as I realized my vegetables and herbs were safe for now.
I have to admit being aware of our impact on our environment is very important and not something to take lightly. After all we don’t want to live in a messy junk filled waterless sauna one day. Even though hubby and I don’t plan on having children any time soon (if ever) and the concern of what we are going to leave behind for them is not a pressing concern, we do have a social conscience. For one I would like to leave this planet having made it a slightly better place. In doing so I have come to realize that small things does count.
Having recently moved into our new house and for the first time in many years having a garden again we had to make some decisions. Would we have a lush and beautiful garden that could make it onto the cover of any designer garden fashion magazine? Or would we have a garden that’s environmentally friendly, water wise and low maintenance? The decisions was a simple one, we opted for the low maintenance. We decided to only plant succulent and indigenous plants that would still be esthetically beautiful, water wise and resilient under any weather conditions. In addition we would also have a small organic vegetable garden. All good and well in my head but when it came to practical application it proved challenging.
Every weekend for the last two month these two eager queers have been slaving away, digging holes, fertilizing soil and replanting very stubborn and prickly bitches. Both my hands and that of my husband took turns growing blisters, both of us have been wounded and spilled blood. Hard labor has never been so unappealing! I have learned the hard way that planting any plants with thorns is a skill one must acquire before attempting it, if not your hands and arms will be stabbed, sliced and scratched leaving you looking like a self mutilator. After weeks and the loss of blood most of our plants, some of which I still look at with some degree of resentment, have found their stations in the garden and are flourishing. With all the hard work completed the vegetable garden was next.
Planting vegetables and growing them from seeds I thought would be less labor intensive and I was right. However, this posed a whole new set of unique challenges. You see birds, insects and snails would become my new nemesis. After planting our vegetables and herbs all seemed to be going well then one morning I arrived to find a battle had occurred and half our harvest had been devastated. The previous night and early that morning all the insects, snails and birds of the neighborhood discovered our vegetable garden. Half our crop was destroyed and the devastation enraged me. This was war!
Our cats were lectured about the food chain and threatened not to be fed again if they did not do their natural duty and chase away any bird no matter their size. Being green I knew when it came to insects I could not use conventional pesticide, but I desperately wanted them dead!. After some research I found a recipe for an organic pesticide that consisted of garlic, chilies, vegetable oil, dishwashing liquid and water. All the ingredients were put in the blender, mixed together and then the deadly juices strained into a spray bottle. Armed with my secret weapon I marched onto the battle field an unleashed my fury. I did learn one important battle lesson - never stand downwind from the vapor; the wind will blow it back into your face and when it gets into your eyes you are painfully reminded that there are chilies in your organic poison. I finished the whole spray bottle in the back garden and with the poignant smell of garlic in the air I saw my enemies scatter and die. I couldn’t help but think of all the families I destroyed but the fleeing of guilt soon passed as I realized my vegetables and herbs were safe for now.
Being green is important to safe our planet and all of us should at least try to make an effort no matter how big or small. However, something people don’t tell you is that it takes some effort and a lot of dedication. We have a water wise garden that’s environmentally friendly but we still have to kill and chase away unwanted visitors. We recycle and use electricity sparingly, some days it’s inconvenient and too much of a hassle. Small sacrifices will be well worth it one day. This rock we life on should be respected and nurtured if we want to survive.Till next time.
Going Green: Supernews
2 comments:
That was a very simple yet effective post on the importance of being environmentally conscious. That there was nothing preachy about it was the best part!
Jana, I think that's the point. When people preach going green it seems superficial. In reality it's an effort. People should be told the truth...
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