This story in The New Yorker http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/07/07/080707fa_fact_kolbert?printable=true about a Danish island that decided to lower its carbon footprint, reminds me of Bustin's Island in the Casco Bay, on the Maine Coast, east of Freeport and Portland.
In the 1990s, my husband and I were like the Beverly Hillbillies: we would load up our four kids and dog on our full-size conversion van [8 cylnders, that is].
On the roof and back, we tied on canoes, a wind surfer, and six bikes. Inside, we crammed food, tennis rackets and games, stuffed animals, books, linens and clothing for two car-free weeks on an 80-acre paradise surrounded by ocean.
We visited the island four different summers, taking 2-week vacations on this idyllic place. We put the brakes on our frenetic pace of life, and s-l-o-w-e-d down to the 19th century way of life -- without the internal combustion engine, flush toilet, telephone or computer.
The first task was to load everything up on Archie's Ferry [a converted lobster boat] in Freeport, and transport it to the island. At the dock, we had the option of hiring one of the island's two trucks to help, but we used our built-in labor and handcarts, of course --low-carbon and low-cost all the way.
Conjuring up the memories of our last visit a decade ago, I feel my blood pressure go down, and a sense of calm wash over me. I have memories of reading books all afternoon, exploring the island, canoeing out to see the wild seals, letting the kids roam free all over the island, and relaxing.
Every day at 2 pm, all of the kids on the island played baseball. The younger you were, the bigger the bat. Everyone got a hit. No adults interfered. They managed.
At night, we read more books, played Charades, cards and other games. Occasionally, community events were held for amusement -- like a talent show. Early on, we made fools of ourselves singing "Rueben, Rueben, I've been Thinking," and acted out a simple story line on stage. This foolishness broke down barriers between us and the islanders whose families have been coming to Bustin's Island for generations. They began including us in their culture.
What is the lure of car-free vacationing, with outhouses, sun-showers, propane stoves, fridges and lights?
Peace of mind. Peace of soul. Calm. Connection to the earth and the people and the place where we were. No agenda. No where to go. I can smell the sea breeze, taste the frigid salt water, fresh blackberries picked by the kids [who are now all 20-somethings] and feel the sun warming my skin. All by walking, paddling or pedaling.
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Marty Saves a Mint
Marty Dutton, a senior quality analyst at a high tech corporation, lives 55 miles from work. Two days a week, she cushions the expense of her commute by carpooling. One day a week, she works from home. She works a four-day workweek, so her solo commute is reduced to one day a week.
"We have been carpooling for two years. It has cut down on my gas bills and my oil changes. I used to get oil changes as often as fillups," Marty said.
Marty drives 15 miles to meet her carpool partner, and they drive the last 40 miles together.
It's more important to work near each other and work the same hours than to live near each other. It's possible to drive to a meeting place at a major road, and carpool from there, but most people don't want to go out of their way at the work end. Ideally, you work at the same company, but that's not necessary for a carpool to work.
Marty has the simplest, most flexible carpool: one other person, with whom she is friends. Without compatibility, a carpool will fail. With genuine friendship, it will thrive.
With a carpool friend, you can say, "Let's leave 15 minutes early on July 3," or, "Next week, I need my car worked on. Can you pick me up at the repair station?" or "Can you drive? I have to make a few phone calls."
By driving less, Marty pollutes less, gets to spend time with a friend, and saves a mint on her car expenses.
"We have been carpooling for two years. It has cut down on my gas bills and my oil changes. I used to get oil changes as often as fillups," Marty said.
Marty drives 15 miles to meet her carpool partner, and they drive the last 40 miles together.
It's more important to work near each other and work the same hours than to live near each other. It's possible to drive to a meeting place at a major road, and carpool from there, but most people don't want to go out of their way at the work end. Ideally, you work at the same company, but that's not necessary for a carpool to work.
Marty has the simplest, most flexible carpool: one other person, with whom she is friends. Without compatibility, a carpool will fail. With genuine friendship, it will thrive.
With a carpool friend, you can say, "Let's leave 15 minutes early on July 3," or, "Next week, I need my car worked on. Can you pick me up at the repair station?" or "Can you drive? I have to make a few phone calls."
By driving less, Marty pollutes less, gets to spend time with a friend, and saves a mint on her car expenses.
Monday, July 07, 2008
When my backyard is impacted, I'll change
Unabated, our contagious love affair with the car will congest us -- our roadways and our airways -- and heat up the global mercury.
Do we have to wait until the target of our infatuation floods our backyard?
Washes away the levies in our city?
Do we have to wait until the fields growing corn and soybeans for our next meal are struck by flood, drought, pestilence, pollution or lack of pollination?
Unfortunately, the answer to those questions is YES. We humans are so slow to change our habits, to believe the science of global warming, that we must have tangible evidence or shocking energy bills before we change.
The canary in the coal mine -- the elegant polar bear and their shrinking habitat -- are a long way off from our backyard.
There are potential extinctions in my own backyard that will impact my life.
1. Honey Bees. Have you heard of the Colony Collapse Disorder in which millions of bees simply fly away from their hives and the super-fields they are consigned to pollinate?
I don't have the skills or time to pollinate my next meal, and I appreciate bees for doing that work, thanklessly.
Without bees in my backyard, we could all be pretty hungry. Google Colony Collapse Disorder and learn more. It's even on the radar of the US Dept. of Agriculture, so it must be real.
Einstein said that without bees, humankind will last about four years.
2. Bats. Have you heard about a fungus that is threatening the extinction of bats? Again, I could never do for the earth what bats do -- consume 500 to 1500 mosquitoes an hour, quietly, mostly unseen.
I prefer bats to pesticides, which could be contributing toe the Colony Collapse disorder.
We're all interconnected in the web of life-- that should be a song or a book or a website. :-0
A few weeks ago, while researching material for a speech and interactive presentation on carpooling and bike commuting, I Googled "Species Loss."
The results, solid and unmovable at the top of the organic search, caused me to stop my normal multi-task attack of my daily to-do list.
http://www.well.com/~davidu/extinction.html, gave me cubicle paralysis.
Posted on the website are more than 100 scholarly articles proving climate change is impacting the Earth's biodiversity.
Read it and feel the fear, as I did. The following simple statement precedes the list of links to the articles:
"Human beings are currently causing the greatest mass extinction of species since the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. If present trends continue, one half of all species of life on earth will be extinct in less than 100 years, as a result of habitat destruction, pollution, invasive species, and climate change."
For a decade, Prof. David Ulansey, a Professor in the Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco, has diligently posted articles that prove climate change is creating the greatest mass extinction of species since the dinosaurs.
This sounds like the canary in the coal mine. If half of all species on Earth are doomed, who's to say humans won't fall with everything else.
Will we read the writing on the website and change our foolish ways?
Do we have to wait until the target of our infatuation floods our backyard?
Washes away the levies in our city?
Do we have to wait until the fields growing corn and soybeans for our next meal are struck by flood, drought, pestilence, pollution or lack of pollination?
Unfortunately, the answer to those questions is YES. We humans are so slow to change our habits, to believe the science of global warming, that we must have tangible evidence or shocking energy bills before we change.
The canary in the coal mine -- the elegant polar bear and their shrinking habitat -- are a long way off from our backyard.
There are potential extinctions in my own backyard that will impact my life.
1. Honey Bees. Have you heard of the Colony Collapse Disorder in which millions of bees simply fly away from their hives and the super-fields they are consigned to pollinate?
I don't have the skills or time to pollinate my next meal, and I appreciate bees for doing that work, thanklessly.
Without bees in my backyard, we could all be pretty hungry. Google Colony Collapse Disorder and learn more. It's even on the radar of the US Dept. of Agriculture, so it must be real.
Einstein said that without bees, humankind will last about four years.
2. Bats. Have you heard about a fungus that is threatening the extinction of bats? Again, I could never do for the earth what bats do -- consume 500 to 1500 mosquitoes an hour, quietly, mostly unseen.
I prefer bats to pesticides, which could be contributing toe the Colony Collapse disorder.
We're all interconnected in the web of life-- that should be a song or a book or a website. :-0
A few weeks ago, while researching material for a speech and interactive presentation on carpooling and bike commuting, I Googled "Species Loss."
The results, solid and unmovable at the top of the organic search, caused me to stop my normal multi-task attack of my daily to-do list.
http://www.well.com/~davidu/extinction.html, gave me cubicle paralysis.
Posted on the website are more than 100 scholarly articles proving climate change is impacting the Earth's biodiversity.
Read it and feel the fear, as I did. The following simple statement precedes the list of links to the articles:
"Human beings are currently causing the greatest mass extinction of species since the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. If present trends continue, one half of all species of life on earth will be extinct in less than 100 years, as a result of habitat destruction, pollution, invasive species, and climate change."
For a decade, Prof. David Ulansey, a Professor in the Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco, has diligently posted articles that prove climate change is creating the greatest mass extinction of species since the dinosaurs.
This sounds like the canary in the coal mine. If half of all species on Earth are doomed, who's to say humans won't fall with everything else.
Will we read the writing on the website and change our foolish ways?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
