After a late-night fur-to-face conversation with my cat, I was online googling organic homemade cat food recipes when I received an email from my sister. She had attached a link to a listing of the best and worst tap water in the country. My home tap water was deemed the worst in the entire country. Here we are, in the greatest country on Earth, and our water is toxic. It's loaded with chemicals, metals, and pesticides, and just plain tastes awful. Of course, it's within the government guidelines, at least for the toxins they monitor, but what about the rest? The organic cat food would have to wait. I had a much more urgent and basic matter to address: clean water.
Yes, I read The Omnivore's Dilemma. Yes, the New Year is just around the corner, and I've got a few inches to lose. Yes, I've got kids, and I don't want to leave them an environmental disaster, or let them become obesity statistics. But none of these things was enough on its own to push me to change our diet and lifestyle. Nope. It wasn't until I learned about our water supply that I got mad enough to take on the way we live. That's huge. It's hard enough for most of us to get dinner on the table, let alone shop consciously, eat healthfully, and make everything from scratch while reducing our carbon footprint. OK, maybe we try it for a week, but by day 3 or so, most people are overwhelmed and exhausted. I know I'd fall into that category, and I don't want to fail. So what can I do?
First, let me state right now that I will fail, slip up, and cheat periodically. But when I do, I intend to make better choices at the next meal, and I'll try not to beat myself up for it.
Second, I'm asking for help left and right. I've googled and asked friends and family and healthy-looking strangers for direction and suggestions. One by one, I'm going to check out all my options.
Third, I'm not going to change everything all at once. I'd love to, but I don't have the knowledge or resources to overhaul everything at once. The game plan is that I'll take on one change at a time and by the end of 2010, we'll be living a healthy, local, sustainable lifestyle.
Fourth and finally, I'm going to be flexible. The more I learn, the more my expectations change. A month ago, I thought "organic" was the way to go. Now I know how often that term is used & abused, and "local & sustainable" might better describe what I'm looking for. What matters most to me is the final result, not the terminology or marketing.
So where did I ultimately start? How have I kicked off this adventure? I started by asking for help. As suggestions are offered, I'm keeping them with other information I've found online together in a folder on my computer (soft copies save trees, of course). I've ordered a water filtration system, which I'll discuss when it arrives and I've had a chance to try it out. I've made plans to visit a local farm with a friend tomorrow, and of course, I've created this blog.
I've already heard back from many people that they'd love to hear what I discover, and that they want to live a more sustainable lifestyle too. Hence this blog. I'll let you know what I'm finding, learning, and learning to avoid. Some entries may be detailed reviews of a specific product or service, others may be painfully brief (e.g. Hal's Pretty Good tofu and watercress hot dog substitutes = bad!). Either way, I hope you'll find something here to benefit you and your family.
No comments:
Post a Comment