Earth Day - April 22

I wonder if it's just me - this year's Earth Day is getting so much more attention than it did in the previous years. More people are aware this week is the Earth Week and are constantly talking about being environmental friendly.

I hope the green fever does not wear off after this week. Let's see what we can do as part of the living beings on the earth. This is what I've been doing:

In the office:
-Reduce paper use - only prints whatever necessary
-Reuse - I use the back page of the rough papers
-Recycle - I trash the used papers into the shred box, assuming the shredded papers will go into recycling later
-I turn off the lights when I'm the last one to leave the room

Daily:
-I only turn my electric devices on when I''m using them and turn it off when I go out or sleep
-I un-plug the cord from the switches - Yes, a very minor amount of electricity still runs in between. Especially in the case of U.S. electricity ports that do not have the on/off switches
-I turn off the lights in my room whenever I walk out of my room - Although larger amount of electricity is needed to turn appliances on/off, studies have found that if you'll be away for 15 minutes or more, turning it off saves more.
-I do laundry every 2 weeks, and only wash whatever needed with the minimal amount of detergent. - Detergent does great harm to clean water source and soil.
-I eat a lot. But I eat what I want and very rarely waste food.
-I don't buy what I like (e.g., clothes, gadgets, books). I buy what I NEED.
-I do grocery shopping at the supermarket with a back pack (for heavy food stuffs like milk, canned soup) and a reusable bag. - I save at least 2 plastic bags a week.
-I cook and bring food to work as often as I can. I also try dining at the restaurant than taking out food. When I take out, I try to skip plastic bag and disposable cutlery.
-I bath with slightly warm water, not hot water. I turn off the water when I apply shampoo/body wash. I don't let the tap water runs freely when I'm brushing the teeth or washing the face.
-I recycle the used items - newspapers, card boards, bottles, etc.
-I bring my own water and I avoid buying bottled water.


My room was next to the pantry room and two doors next to the bathroom when I was staying in the dorms. The "stingy" part of me shows when my ears hear the tap water dripping in the pantry room, or sometimes in the bathroom, from my room and I would immediately walk out to turn it off. Every drop counts. It seems like I don't need to pay for the water; but we all pay it at the expense of our future, and our next generations' future.

I simply want to share how little I am doing on my part. No need to volunteer, no need to call for slogans to save the earth. I'm sure you share some of what I've been doing here. Saving is not being stingy, but really being knowing what you NEED and spending them rationally.

The best thing of living in New York City is I commute with the train and bus everywhere I go. I feel guilty of the amount of petrol I used in driving in KL. I will try to use public transportation as often as I could when I go home. Saving the time is not the excuse.


E-DAY
This year is the 40th Earth Day. Earth Day was first celebrated in New York City on April 22, 1970. NYC is celebrating the E-DAY this week.

Wonder how I spent my day on April 22? I took shorter lunch hour and finished my home visit earlier so I could rush to the Times Square for the E-DAY celebration and exhibition. I was too late when I arrived at 3.40pm, though the event was scheduled 2-4pm. The booths were closing when I was there.


My next stop was the Grand Central. The exhibition was much smaller than I expected. Not more than 15 booths. I got this shirt as a present. It's made out of recycled cotton (clothes) by the clothing company Anvil. They have shirts made out of recycled bottles too!

The front.
The back.

Well, that's pretty much how I celebrated the E-DAY. We all can do our little part. Start today if you haven't. And please share with me tips you have been doing daily to save the resources. I always wish I could do more.