It’s Valentine’s Day. Normally, I wouldn’t really notice it but I work at a public high school and it’s kind of hard to ignore 50,000 mylar balloons and teddy bears and chocolate roses wandering around attached to teenage girls. You might think I’m a little cynical because I’m single and single people are supposed to hate Valentine’s Day because it is just a reminder that they are alone, yadda yadda yadda…
No, I’m cynical because I just finished reading Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas L. Friedman and I’m really sensitive to displays of senseless consumerism right now. Yes, I’m in Sustainable-Living-Girl mode and apt to look askance at anything that’s wasteful and silly (at least to me). Spending money on plastic doo-dads and cheap chocolate that was probably grown in degraded rainforests just rubs me the wrong way. Teenagers don’t see it this way, of course; they are easy marks for advertising and suggestion (we all were at that age, and far too many of us still are).
Now I am feeling guilty about my own less-than-green actions like that frozen meal that was so convenient to throw in my bag and microwave for lunch, instead of a home-made organic meal. Or the moral quandary of whether it’s okay to spend $99 for two days at the Disneyland Resort (which I haven’t been to in well over 10 years, since they were still building California Adventure the last time I was at Disneyland) or if it’s just a frivolous waste of money that could be better spent on something concrete and useful. The little kid in me wants to go to “The Happiest Place on Earth” during spring break and have fun; the responsible adult in me rebels against the giant marketing machine that is Disney.
Why do I have to over analyze everything? Please, tell me! Unless you think it’s best that I don’t know …
Oh, this has been my life for what, the past 25 years? Finding a balance between doing what I think is right and actually living my life without getting paralyzed or depressed. I am the girl whose first thought upon seeing the lights of Las Vegas (at 17) was how incredibly wasteful it was.Spending money to have fun isn't necessarily frivolous. At least paying to go to DL is paying for an experience, not something made in China. Just skip the souvenirs. DL also does great with recycling. Choose a vegetarian meal instead of a feedlot beef hamburger. Take an empty water bottle and fill it at drinking fountains.Disney is a big machine, no doubt. We went last year after having taken a break for 5 years. But even before we would pack food (harder to do now that your food has to go through security) and not buy *things*.Find a way to do enough and be happy with that. Choose a dollar amount to cut from your food budget and send that to a hunger relief organization. Buy used (check out The Compact). Eat less meat and choose humanely and sustainably raised meat. Buy local produce. Shop at local stores and eat at local restaurants.None of us can be perfect.
You are right. No one if perfect but I try to do my best to strive for it now and then.
Thanks for the great advice!P.S. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who has had that reaction to Las Vegas!