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torsdag 1 maj 2014

Decreasing my carbon footprint

The strange weather phenomenas and the depressive reports about the worlds health has made me really concerned. I made a carbon footprint test that told me that living the way I do would demand more that two earths. I live 3 km from work, in the same direction is the youngest school. Every morning I drive us to school and work, I drive behind a nearly empty bus, what the f---k am I doing! So the adults had an internal family discussion about how we behave. Johan is driving in his thirsty car alone to town every day. Since we have a bus stop just around the corner of our house we actually should use the bus instead. We are lucky to have a frequent bus line were we live. My own birth town closed it down because no one used it.
So we bought us bus cards and started to use the bus instead. When there's no kids at home, I take the bicycle/walk/bus and with the kids, we take the bus. Johan needs the car when his kids are at home but otherwise, he takes the bus. It's definitely not cheaper for me but there's another benefit: Suddenly we realised that we are more relaxed when we arrive at work or home. Even if we have a time to catch, we have a rest at the bus (even if it's not a comfortable ride). So I might take that test again and hopefully I only need one earth...
So what are you doing to decrease your carbon footprint?

Yesterday was Valborg/Beltane/Walpurgis night. Snow blended rain wasn't very tempting even if a huge bonfire and a choir singing could warm our souls. We choosed to stay indoors and play a local Monopoly game. 
Today is Labour day a day off. The snow is slowly melting away and the the water is dripping from the roofs. I bought a rain chain for my rain water bin at Indiska. I thought the splashing at the garage wall would decreased but it didn't. Well it looks nice anyway. You can see on this photo that the fir trees are gone. 
Another photo of melting snow... I have already planted onions and my mother came by and planted potatoes for me. 
Do you celebrate Valborg/Beltane/Walpurgis in some way? Do you celebrate Labour day? 

9 kommentarer:

  1. Jag kan tyvärr inte ta bussen, det går bara skolbussar här... Gillade verkligen regnkedjan, finns dom nu? Kram!

    SvaraRadera
  2. Jag önskar att vi hade en busstation i närheten, men jag måste köra till och från jobb varje dag - så jag behöver säkert också två jordar... :(
    Det är kanske ingen tröst, men du är inte värst - just nu uppbrukar amerikaner, kineser, indier och indonesier ungefär 5 jordar var...

    Jag har tunga och obehagliga saker knytna till minnen av Valborg så jag firar sällan. Men vi har haft sommarvärme nere i Skåne de senaste veckorna, så jag sitter på uteplatsen och solar :)

    SvaraRadera
    Svar
    1. Jag har försökt maila dig men vet inte om det gått fram..? Kanske är ni bortresta :)
      Hursomhelst så har jag skickat pumpafrön till dig och vill gärna ha blåärtor i utbyte!

      Radera
  3. I don't drive personally, it's a choice to a) save money and b) reduce my carbon footprint and I find it works for me although I worl within walking distance of my house. However I am having a baby soon and am anxious as to how easy getting about on the bus with a baby will be! Good for you!

    SvaraRadera
  4. I also feel MUCH more relaxed when I take the bus to work, even though it takes me an hour on the bus each way but only 15 minutes if I drive. However, riding the bus is not practical for us, as we found out, and since the drive is only 15 minutes each way, it doesn't really affect our carbon footprint much. I also recycle EVERYTHING, and give most of it to a co-worker who donates the recycling money to her daughter's school. And we walk to and from stores whenever possible.

    SvaraRadera
  5. Good for you! We only have the one car, which can sometimes be a problem for us, as the area we live in at the moment doesn't have brilliant public transport. I don't know how it differs in other countries, but recycling is standard in Australia. Everyone has 2 garbage bins: one for recyclables and one for non-recyclables. We live in a small home too, although unfortunately, many people here live in huge, suburban "McMansions", which no doubt use a lot of energy to heat and cool.

    SvaraRadera
  6. I admire your dedication! I'm also quite concerned about human lifestyles and the ending ressources of this planet... I go to work and try to lower my impact by buying used and fair/biologically correct. But I fail so often and I have the feeling that whatever I do is not enough...

    SvaraRadera
  7. Happy Beltane! I took the day off and while it was cold, I planned the garden for the summer.

    SvaraRadera
  8. Blev lite paff när det var engelsk text, men jag
    skriver på svenska eftersom du gjorde det.
    Det är toppen och åka buss, jag gör det eller
    samåker.
    Solig kram
    AnnaMaria
    Ps, blommorna är nejlikor

    SvaraRadera