The Green Thing: Past and Present

There is a story of an older woman who was being ostracized by a cashier because she failed to bring in recyclable bags for her groceries. The cashier proceeded to bag her groceries in plastic and continued the lecture about plastic bags not being good for the environment and shame on the older generation for not caring enough about our environment. The woman apologized to him and explained, "We didn`t have the green thing back in my day."

She was right. There was no "green thing" back in her day.

Back then, milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles were returned to the store, sent back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so the same bottles could be used over and over. Today we call it recycling.

Back then, they walked up stairs, because there wasn`t an escalator or elevator in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn`t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they needed to go two blocks

Back then, they washed the baby`s diapers because there was no such thing as disposable diapers. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

Back then, there was one TV, or radio in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief not a screen the size of the state of Montana . In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn`t have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn`t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn`t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she`s right; we didn`t have the green thing back then.

We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn`t have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn`t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.

Yes, it`s true there was no green thing back then, but then again back then life was simpler, not filled with all the media hype to buy consumer goods that claim to increase our quality of life with convenience and . Now a two year old can operate a cell phone, TV remote and computer.

I know folks from the "greatest generation" who have always recycled and others who can`t be bothered and see it as a chore for the younger generations. There are young mothers who can`t bear the thought of dealing with a dirty diaper and hence use disposable so they can throw it in the garbage. Then there are those mothers who are concerned about their children`s environmental future and DO wash out dirty diapers and proceed to launder and hang then out on the line to dry.

The bottom line is all generations need to come together on the green thing.

Happy Holidays to all generations, The Energy Advisory Panel