Advertisement I use the toilet and wonder whether to flush and waste water, or leave the urine, but risk staining the white porcelain.
Then comes the shower. For two months, I have daily stood in 2 inches of murky, soapy water. My hair clogs the drain, which isn’t built for plunging.
And even though my landlord is good enough to light the apartment with environmentally-friendly compact fluorescent light bulbs, I still fear we’ll solve the drain issue with Drano, which I’m sure the rivers do not appreciate.
On the other hand, I’ve learned to keep the tub of water more shallow by turning off the faucet as I soap, and so I have come to see my clogged drain as a water conservation blessing in disguise.
Then comes deodorant.
I hear aluminum is a health risk, but every dang deodorant stick in Walgreens I look at has aluminum as its active ingredient. I tried Tom’s of Maine but then found myself asking throughout too much of my day to whoever was around: Do I stink?
Like many others, I have found trying to foster health in ourselves and our earth can cause problems.
I want to ride my bicycle, but what if that driver becomes inattentive when he’s approaching me?
One friend told me he likes to walk to work, but a mile takes a lot more time by foot than on wheels. So should he cut out time in the morning from his family or cut out time from his day at the office?
For Erica Black, the challenge of going green can come down to money.
The sustainability intern for La Crosse’s city planning department, Black said she likes to buy local and organic groceries, but they’re usually more expensive.
“That really affects people like myself because I don’t have a high income,” she said.
Even Joey Kay, co-owner of Simply Living, which stocks green products at 410 Main St., said living green is satisfying, but it can be kind of a pain. For instance, Kay’s gas mower broke down this year and he replaced it with a $100 human-powered reel mower.
Using the new mower takes twice as long, he
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said, and his model gets jammed if you don’t get every twig or piece of mulch out of the way. It also doesn’t do well on grass more than two inches high.
So wear does this leave us?
At this point, many, if not most, want to tread more lightly upon the earth, to reduce our waste, not damage our natural resources, and cultivate health in our bodies.
I mean, we want to respect where we live.
But our habits, and the way our infrastructure works, often frustrate our attempts.
As Joey Kay said, “There’s a lot of things out of my control. We’re trying to change the world, but...”
“...it’s hard to change,” I said.
On the other hand, I also know that five years ago, I barely wrestled with any of these questions.
Five years ago, I hadn’t experienced the fact that local tomatoes taste better than foreign tomatoes.
Five years ago, I didn’t know that riding my bicycle helps me know people and places in my community in a way that driving my automobile never will.
Trying to go green, like changing any habits, has its challenges for sure.
But these days, when I turn the key to my ignition and feel a touch of guilt because I am not on my bicycle, I also feel grateful that at least I now have that bicycle to consider.
Joe Orso can be reached at (608) 791-8429 or jorso@lacrossetribune.com.
