Green Out!

I know, I know! We're terrible, it's the truth.

But in all honesty, my life hasn't been too super green right now and the last thing I want is to feel hypocritical. My stress levels have sky-rocketed over the last few days weeks, and frankly all I want to do is watch television, read blogs, and eat every available highly-processed food product. And then I get stressed about being stressed. It's a vicious cycle, my friends, and it must be stopped.

So, in an attempt to disconnect, I decided to enjoy the weather and go for a very long walk around my neighborhood (and the surrounding neighborhoods . . . ah, suburbia).  But besides enjoying the spring air, the sunshine, and spotting the new flowers peeking out of the dark earth, I couldn't help but notice something. Though there were several other people, couples, families enjoying the day as well, very few had really left their business at home.

A mother and daughter listened to the radio as they walked, a wife talked on her cell phone while her husband pushed the stroller and walked the dog. And there I walked, all by my lonesome, no phone, no iPod, just my keys and a good pair of sneakers. You don't realize how much your thoughts are taken up by random, pretty inconsequential things until you actually give yourself the time to think about whatever you want. I mean, I'm not going to get into it because it's sort of personal, but I did more than thinking. I had thoughts. Big ones. In a ponder my life/the universe kinda way. I feel like we don't let ourselves do that very often.

Anyway, as I looked through the archives of the blog Green is Sexy today, I noticed that posted what they called an "eco Sabbath" but that I call a "green out." It's marginally simple: unplug. Take an afternoon/evening a week/month/year to turn off the lights, the computer, the cell phone, the television. Don't buy anything, don't use any electricity, just take a break from everything.

both images: we heart it

Read. Journal. Draw. Play cards, or backgammon. Run outside. Play tag, or badminton (*note to self: get badminton set). Walk the dog, or yourself, or your sister. There are so many things that we don't let ourselves enjoy because we feel we aren't being productive. But in reality, we go watch tv or browse the internet. So give yourself an allotted amount of time to do nothing, and give your natural resources a break at the same time.

Who knows? Maybe you'll have thoughts. Big ones. (I'm sure you will)