The response for The Zebley Daily Grind Going Greener Award was overwhelming with almost twice the entrants as expected-we had two! While it was a very difficult decision to determine a winner, it had to be done.
Drum Roll Please...Our first runner up is Jan, aka B-Dub's Girl. She has made some great changes in the past year including using reusable bags at the store, recycling junk mail and paper at work, and using glasses at work instead of paper cups. My favorite part of her entry was an attempt to save some gas:
"For a week, yes just one week, I attempted turning off the car and putting it in nuetral and coasting to my destination (I only did this on the way to work when I was on the final street.) I saw this on the news which is why I tried it. You lose your power steering but that's not that big of a deal. According to the news clip I saw this saved a man some fuel on his SUV. " That's dedication! She determined after the week that is wasn't the most efficient way to go greener.
Thanks for the entry Jan!
And, the grand prize winner is Jennifer D. Last September I wrote an entry on recycling and stated, " It's appalling to me that there are many families on our street that don't take advantage of the free, little effort required opportunity to recycle at the curb." Jennifer called that day to announce that she was "one of those appalling people that doesn't recycle." I wasn't quite sure what to say. Thankfully she has changed her ways; here is her official entry in green.
To sum it all up I used to be a litter bug.....only when people were not looking. For example....I would leave trash on my tailgate and pretend to "forget" it when I would drive off! BAD, VERY BAD JENNIFER!!!
Now I am starting to think about the environment more....baby steps but a great start!
Examples of how I have changed:
1. I throw away my garbage and toss all recyclables in my recycling bin when I arrive at home.
2. I make it a point to always recycle when I am at home- I feel like I have to do this every day- it is sooooo much fun to recycle and toss the stuff in the green bin.
3. I am recycling my plastic bags and I am asking for no bag at the store for items that really do not need a bag.
4. I am talking with my children about the importance of recycling.
5. I am running hot water in my milk jug and then pouring the water out- thus shrinking the milk carton by smashing it----it will take up less space in my recycling bin to fit more in it.
6. I bought a cute little onesie for an adorable baby named Tobin that is about going green! (Sounds like a bribe)
7. I am making Hannah stay in her diaper longer- dirty or not- so that I will use less diapers- they are so bad for the environment! (Someone call CPS)
8. We have installed 42 compact fluorescent light bulbs in our house- the energy saved by converting to this light source is the equivalent to removing 2 vehicles and all of their emissions from the planet! This info comes from my lighting expert husband. (How many Texans does it take to change 42 light bulbs?)
9. We have a HE washer and dryer which uses on average 2 gallons less water per load and less soap! (Technically this one doesn't count since the changes had to occur within the last year...)
10. We recently purchased a vehicle that has a variable displacement engine (whatever that is) which runs on fewer cylinders on the highway which consumes less fuel and emits lower emissions.
Congratulations Jennifer. Jennifer won a HEB & Target reusable bag, Recycled Toilet Paper (paper that has been recycled and turned into toilet paper, not used toilet paper), Seventh Generation All purpose cleaner, and Simply Green cleaner. (She would like it noted that this picture was taken just after she finished working out)
Joshua decided to celebrate Earth Day by "donating" his shoe to the duck pond.
I'm very thankful the contest is over so Jennifer won't have to call me every time she puts something in her recycling bin. Thanks again to all the entrants, and start working towards next year's contest!
Joshua decided to celebrate Earth Day by "donating" his shoe to the duck pond.
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