Praise for Inefficiency

A Smart Car pulled up next to me at a red light on my way to work this morning. On the other side of the road, I noticed the normal variety of vehicles, mostly with one occupant each, making their way to the normal variety of places. The Smart Car got me thinking about efficiency.

Money down the drain

Marketplace Morning Report shared this report from BBC World Service: an 8 minute shower a day costs $648 a year. Do you take 8 minutes (or more) in the shower?  If you do, watch the drain – that’s where your money is going.

Is it ok to lie in this case?

A guest in the building where I work asked if I knew where coffee cups were.  I did, and was headed that direction. I lead her to a cabinet of 30 or so coffee mugs, many of which had been donated to us to help us cut down on waste. When she saw them, she

Bright idea?

A recent Economist carried a piece about how maybe the increasing efficiency of light bulbs is not going to lead toward a reduction of electricity needed/produced. It is worth remembering that when gas lights replaced candles and oil lamps in the 19th century, some newspapers reported that they were “glaring” and “dazzling white”. In fact,

Go Green, Save Green

“Going green” isn’t always a money-saver.  Buying food that is sustain-ably produced can be costly. buying a new, more fuel-efficient car is expensive (and only arguably a greener option than maintaining a paid-for car you already have). One way that Rachel and I have chosen to do a part to be better stewards of the earth is

Sustainability

I’ve had conversations with some of you about being “green.”  For me it is primarily a matter of stewardship. As a new blog, EvanEco puts it, “The world isn’t ours to mess up.-Ps 24.1)  I am trying to move in the direction of living on this planet God has given us in ways that all

Sustainable Argument

I’ve blogged several times about water conservation and usage. (Here, here, here, and here, for a few) Word gets around (apparently) because someone asked me recently if I thought water down the drain was gone for good and not reusable. Of course not, I replied. Then why did I care how much water I used?

A Worthwhile Cause?

Not every cause promises to change one’s life.  If I jump on board with this one, mine would surely be very different. I read this morning, on a General Board of Church and Society note, about Killer Coke. I’ve blogged about my love of Diet Coke before.  In fact, I found a post about the

Addicted Land?

As I’ve probably shared here already, Rachel and I gave up meat for Lent this year.  It was a very interested time for us; Rachel has barely gone back to eating meat, and I am eating far less than I used to. I posted a facebook status Tuesday afternoon that I hadn’t “eaten meat since

Get Wormy

I’ve been wanting to share this with you for some time now.  A year and a half ago Rachel and I became farmers. Worm Farmers.  You can see our vermicomposter, or worm farm, in the picture to the left. We tried starting a compost pile in our back yard, but there are too many critters