Furibundum

Stupidity, thy name is Edward Hudgins : "Most individuals who celebrate Earth Day by cleaning up trash beside the road no doubt mean well. But ... the premises behind the eco-extremists are anti-human and, if acted on consistently, would lead to worse carnage than that wrought by communists . On Earth Day we should reflect not on the planet but on the inhabitants who can make it of value." I should have something to end this here, but all I can think to say is, "Huh?"

This guy Colin Beavan's year-long experiment going über green is fascinating to me, both for how extreme he went with it and, too, that he managed pulling it off in New York City. I don't know why exactly that would matter any more than someplace else, it just seems to me that where all things are so readily gettable it might be particularly hard bucking temptation. At the start of it, he said : "For one year, my wife, my 2-year-old daughter, my dog and I, while living in the middle of New York City, are attempting to live without making any net impact on the environment. In other words, no trash, no carbon emissions, no toxins in the water, no elevators, no subway, no products in packaging, no plastics, no air conditioning, no TV, no toilets…" Could just be my own lack of self-discipline is why it impresses me; I couldn't go so far as what they did even from out here in the country. I'm quite certain at some point I'd cave to a trip into town for some n...

I have said for probably about four or five years now that I want to, more than anything (sheesh, that's a bit much, but I do want to quite a lot), go check out the Dancing Rabbit ecovillage , here in Missouri. I want to move there, I want to be a Rabbit, I really do. It's not even very far from where I am in Odessa; Rutledge is only just over 211 miles away, three and a half hours. Much obliged, MapQuest . Here's their deal: "[E]cological sustainability is the primary focus of our long-term vision and our daily lives. Residents agree to follow ecological covenants and sustainability guidelines . We build our homes using alternative techniques such as straw bale and cob, powering them with renewable energy from sun and wind. Vehicles at DR are owned cooperatively and powered by biodiesel. Overall, we eat an ever-increasing amount of local, organic, and in-season foods, including many home-grown vegetables. "We strive to be good stewards of our land, with much of ...

You know, I'm the sort of guy that not too terribly long ago never gave a second thought to buying pretty much anything I wanted. Mostly because I had money back then, that helped a lot. But also because I never really processed in my mind whether or not I should reconsider buying something just for the want of it. Being poor makes a guy think about stuff like that. Hindsight and that sort of thing. I keep thinking if I had been even just the bittiest more frugal back then, I probably wouldn't be in such dire straits now and, honestly, could probably plan on getting by just fine for years to come; particularly given my borderline neurosis being so stingy now. Anyway, for some wiser than myself, it doesn't necessarily take for a bad break to envisage the possibility of re-appraising how they might want to change up their lives for the better; dismissing much of what most of us offhandedly are convinced makes for being happy, mostly just things, has its up side. This here bo...

I probably ought to mention that I haven't always been such a wackadoo about living so cheaply, nor was I one to spend an awful lot of time thinking very much about the environment. It has only gradually progressed to how funny I am about it all now over the last few years, and then only due to a most desperate downward shift in my own personal economy back then. Going from riches to rags can have its advantages in terms of evolving a new and better outlook on things, though. I don't intend to nor would I want to change that, however rich I might end up some day. But it's still relatively new for me, so I do admit that I am in no position to offer up any ground-breaking tips on frugality, as I mention over in the sidebar there; nothing new here. This blog is truly only to document what it is that I am doing now, and as I've mentioned before, to keep track of whatever new things that I will hopefully learn as I go along. It's still an ongoing adventure for me, a gra...

[ Update Jan 15: Fixed links to support planting a tree for Haiti ] In the wake of the devastation left behind after the earthquake hit Haiti on Monday, there have been the usual calls for donations that follow any catastrophe. Seemingly dozens of disaster relief groups are pleading for contributions to help the survivors and the country get better. Of course, do your study on whichever aid organization you might be inclined to chip in to support; sadly these worst of times inevitably bring out the scammers in hordes. The New York Times has an extensive list here of agencies you might consider. This is clearly no time to be cheap, I know that. Unfortunately many of us are dealing with personal situations right now that preclude being able to give like we once could have, and it is frustrating. However, excepting the most dire of cases, there is something that most of us poor can still do to help Haiti. Maybe not for the short term. But what the blow of this earthquake has managed to...

Seems like a logical follow up to the clothes washing post for saving some cash, especially considering that switching up the drying part of your laundering routine is where can be found the lion's share of savings. And it couldn't be any easier done, simpler even than diddling around with the clothes dryer and the perma fluff high heat low delicate whatnot dials and buttons. Personally I always just left mine on however it was when I got it and let it run until the clothes were dry. Never monkeyed around with figuring out the differences, seemed to work out all right. But yeah, easier still is good old fashioned air drying your washing instead of putting it through the dryer. It uses none of the electricity and sometimes also gas, and requires no special equipment to get the job done. Unless you splurge on a clothes drying rack like the one in the picture (my granny used to have one) or from any other style out there. It's a handful of bucks that will save you fists full ...

I've intended to start this blog for awhile now and figured since I have some spare time on my hands, why not now? Not that it's unusual for me having spare time, I just didn't want to come across lazy. On saving green, that's what this is about. I am notoriously cheap, probably to a fault, but seems to me most people chuck out way too much cash when there are often less expensive alternatives. Extra coin in the pocket is always a perk, and most often cheap is even better for the planet. And since green is in, saving some green is extra cool. Granted I take things a bit far sometimes, and also granted I don't do nor give up everything I could or should. But take what you will from here, I'll try to learn something new along the way as well, and for what it's worth I'll be back posting once I get things tweaked and ready to go.