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20 thoughts on “What is the hardest thing for you about living green?”
lilzoo411
I’d have to say the hardest thing for my husband & I are the looks, laughs & remarks of others who aren’t so green.
They aren’t laughing so hard when we have cut our bills in half & had our car paid off in 2 years (new off the lot). Needless to say…They don’t laugh much anymore. We started saving our aluminum cans & turning them into cash a few years ago & we have saved up close to $200 just in can cash. (We go for walks & pick up trash, therefore wind up with a lot of cans.)
mesndblues@sbcglobal.net
trying to defend it against the constant onslaught of irrefutable evidence to the contrary..
Bunny
The hardest thing for me is to see other people blantly ignor eco friendly ways of doing stuff. Like I see people throwing away recyclable cans/bottles in the trash when there is a recycle container right next to it! Or the people that drive Hummers…man they tick me off! we can all pull together to do a little bit and help, but some people still have the Dennis Leary "A**hole" song ingrained into their thinking and ways of life!
sraallison
For me it’s the initial costs. While I’m saving in the long run purchasing CFLs, I’ve gotta shell out the initial investment. Same with buying a hybrid car or installing solar panels on my house. It’s just not something I can afford.
So for now I’m focusing on smaller changes, like using cloth alternatives to paper products (including diapers and personal care items), relying less on heater/AC, cooking for scratch and purchasing organic/local foods. : )
I find many of the smaller changes you can make are helping my budget as well. I’ll work my way up to the bigger ones as I can.
Terri
I’m a broke college student, so I don’t have money to do a lot of green things. I would love to have solar panels, all organic, locally grown foods,etc. I do what I can though.
Mary E
My job includes a lot of driving and time is an issue. I have to do site visits and I have to be dressed up. So, public transportation(time) is out as well as my bike(sweaty). I do try to plan accordingly as far as locations to travel to, making sure they are close and no backtracking.
Also, I have found money to be an issue. It is expensive to be really green.
Abby
The hardest thing is how to handle my commute to work. I cannot live any closer to my job then I already do (~20 miles), so I am spending too much gas driving. The only alternative would be to ride a bike — The roads are too busy for riding a bike ( I hope that changes in the future) — or finding a different job. I am hoping that the work I do at my current job, in terms of its green impact, outweighs the commute.
Lui
Nothing, nothing at all. Saves me money, saves the environment, I’m happy.
francis g
i live as my needs are. these hollywood types talk the talk, but surely dont walk the walk. they re just preaching to the choir then jet off in their private plane. but hey, its a free country to do as they please, free to be hypocritical also
hippie chick
the hardest thing for me is that people won’t stop bothering me about living green. they think i’m wasting my time and it hurts me. i won’t stop just because they want me to. that’s just letting them win.
GreenUrbanDweller
I love my green life and I don’t find it difficult at all. The only thing that makes it challenging is when I see people who have very non-green lifestyles and are happy to flaunt it… especially to me since some of them know I work for an environmental non-profit organization.
You know the type, they drive Hummers, Escalades, and whatnot, and if you talk to them, some of them are actually going out of their way to be destructive to the environment as a way of rebelling against the mainstream (since the mainstream seems to be going green, finally!)
I think it’s similar to many smokers’ attitudes–many of them insist on smoking simply because so many people are telling them NOT to. (But maybe this is to cover up the fact that they feel they are hopelessly addicted.)
The most difficult people for me to deal with are the ones who deny global warming exists, are pissed that incandescent light bulbs are being replaced by CFLs, brag about their energy use… these people are probably direct descendants of the people who insisted the world was flat during the world is round/world is flat debate.
Baltimore Gas and Electric just hiked its rates for electricity today by 50%! If more electric companies raise their rates like this, and gas prices stay high, I think these global warming naysayers are going shut up and hop on the green bandwagon quicker than you can say, "Go green!"
englandjohns
I live in a rural area and we are low income. So, the hardest part of living green is actually being able to do it. I
recycle aluminum cans, but that’s all that’s available where we live. I recycle paper at home make paper, use it in the garden and composite it. I also make crafts from recycled items that’s about the best I can do for recycling.
The only car we can afford is a gas guzzling beast from HELL. We plan out trips to town so we make fewer trips. We car pool when we can. That’s the closest we get to mass transit here.
Even if we could aford organic produce we don’t get much here. We do have a small farm, so we try to produce as much as we can for ourselves. Substance farming is sooo not easy but it’s fun.
I use vinegar and baking soda for most of my cleaning. That does take a little more elbow grease then otherrs. We can’t even get the othe natural cleaners here letalone afford them.
identity crisis!
I would have to say money, (like a pp) and having to buy disposable diapers. I don’t have a washing machine, and can’t afford a service. It kills me to think how much I am contributing to the dump every week……
I also work in a nursing home, and cringe when I see the dumpster full of disposable products.
y2kotic4u1
money, it costs more to buy organic and natural products.
Daniel
Well, I think I really couldn’t live green. Me and my friends take our dirtbikes out every chance we get, it’s already quite hard to go on for 3 days in a row without riding! Practically all the sons and daughters of my friends are also riding dirtbikes, and competing too, the youngest being 3 years old. So it would be a big part missing from all our lives, families included. Apart from that I live quite green actually, but I think none of us would ever consider giving up the dirtbiking!
natalia k
For me it’s boycotting products. Every time I hear about a company doing something detrimental to the environment, or a product that is harmful to the earth I make a mental note to not purchase that anymore. But it’s so hard to keep track! I can’t continue boycotting everything!
scrawndogg25
There are not enough places around that show they care about being GREEN. I do what I can for the world…recycling, pre-cycling and all of that other good stuff. People NEED/SHOULD care.
rashmir
I think it is living in USA. Because being a part of the consuming economy and very much depending on gasoline for moving from one place to other, consuming too much of water for all daily needs I think I can’t be eco friendly.
lotsaroos
Not having the money or enough stores dedicated to selling green items.
I realize we have to approach everything with baby steps, but I certainly wish MORE people cared enough about the enviroment to give up some of their materialistic stuff and get greener things.
DSL
The hardest thing for me is dealing with the attitudes of others – people say we’re stupid and we’ll never make a difference. Even my own family considers us the ‘tree-huggers." Also, I know a lot of people who don’t even believe that global warming occurs – they tell me politicians make it up! Anyway, my husband and I know we do things for a higher purpose – preserving our world for our children and theirs.
I’d have to say the hardest thing for my husband & I are the looks, laughs & remarks of others who aren’t so green.
They aren’t laughing so hard when we have cut our bills in half & had our car paid off in 2 years (new off the lot). Needless to say…They don’t laugh much anymore. We started saving our aluminum cans & turning them into cash a few years ago & we have saved up close to $200 just in can cash. (We go for walks & pick up trash, therefore wind up with a lot of cans.)
trying to defend it against the constant onslaught of irrefutable evidence to the contrary..
The hardest thing for me is to see other people blantly ignor eco friendly ways of doing stuff. Like I see people throwing away recyclable cans/bottles in the trash when there is a recycle container right next to it! Or the people that drive Hummers…man they tick me off! we can all pull together to do a little bit and help, but some people still have the Dennis Leary "A**hole" song ingrained into their thinking and ways of life!
For me it’s the initial costs. While I’m saving in the long run purchasing CFLs, I’ve gotta shell out the initial investment. Same with buying a hybrid car or installing solar panels on my house. It’s just not something I can afford.
So for now I’m focusing on smaller changes, like using cloth alternatives to paper products (including diapers and personal care items), relying less on heater/AC, cooking for scratch and purchasing organic/local foods. : )
I find many of the smaller changes you can make are helping my budget as well. I’ll work my way up to the bigger ones as I can.
I’m a broke college student, so I don’t have money to do a lot of green things. I would love to have solar panels, all organic, locally grown foods,etc. I do what I can though.
My job includes a lot of driving and time is an issue. I have to do site visits and I have to be dressed up. So, public transportation(time) is out as well as my bike(sweaty). I do try to plan accordingly as far as locations to travel to, making sure they are close and no backtracking.
Also, I have found money to be an issue. It is expensive to be really green.
The hardest thing is how to handle my commute to work. I cannot live any closer to my job then I already do (~20 miles), so I am spending too much gas driving. The only alternative would be to ride a bike — The roads are too busy for riding a bike ( I hope that changes in the future) — or finding a different job. I am hoping that the work I do at my current job, in terms of its green impact, outweighs the commute.
Nothing, nothing at all. Saves me money, saves the environment, I’m happy.
i live as my needs are. these hollywood types talk the talk, but surely dont walk the walk. they re just preaching to the choir then jet off in their private plane. but hey, its a free country to do as they please, free to be hypocritical also
the hardest thing for me is that people won’t stop bothering me about living green. they think i’m wasting my time and it hurts me. i won’t stop just because they want me to. that’s just letting them win.
I love my green life and I don’t find it difficult at all. The only thing that makes it challenging is when I see people who have very non-green lifestyles and are happy to flaunt it… especially to me since some of them know I work for an environmental non-profit organization.
You know the type, they drive Hummers, Escalades, and whatnot, and if you talk to them, some of them are actually going out of their way to be destructive to the environment as a way of rebelling against the mainstream (since the mainstream seems to be going green, finally!)
I think it’s similar to many smokers’ attitudes–many of them insist on smoking simply because so many people are telling them NOT to. (But maybe this is to cover up the fact that they feel they are hopelessly addicted.)
The most difficult people for me to deal with are the ones who deny global warming exists, are pissed that incandescent light bulbs are being replaced by CFLs, brag about their energy use… these people are probably direct descendants of the people who insisted the world was flat during the world is round/world is flat debate.
Baltimore Gas and Electric just hiked its rates for electricity today by 50%! If more electric companies raise their rates like this, and gas prices stay high, I think these global warming naysayers are going shut up and hop on the green bandwagon quicker than you can say, "Go green!"
I live in a rural area and we are low income. So, the hardest part of living green is actually being able to do it. I
recycle aluminum cans, but that’s all that’s available where we live. I recycle paper at home make paper, use it in the garden and composite it. I also make crafts from recycled items that’s about the best I can do for recycling.
The only car we can afford is a gas guzzling beast from HELL. We plan out trips to town so we make fewer trips. We car pool when we can. That’s the closest we get to mass transit here.
Even if we could aford organic produce we don’t get much here. We do have a small farm, so we try to produce as much as we can for ourselves. Substance farming is sooo not easy but it’s fun.
I use vinegar and baking soda for most of my cleaning. That does take a little more elbow grease then otherrs. We can’t even get the othe natural cleaners here letalone afford them.
I would have to say money, (like a pp) and having to buy disposable diapers. I don’t have a washing machine, and can’t afford a service. It kills me to think how much I am contributing to the dump every week……
I also work in a nursing home, and cringe when I see the dumpster full of disposable products.
money, it costs more to buy organic and natural products.
Well, I think I really couldn’t live green. Me and my friends take our dirtbikes out every chance we get, it’s already quite hard to go on for 3 days in a row without riding! Practically all the sons and daughters of my friends are also riding dirtbikes, and competing too, the youngest being 3 years old. So it would be a big part missing from all our lives, families included. Apart from that I live quite green actually, but I think none of us would ever consider giving up the dirtbiking!
For me it’s boycotting products. Every time I hear about a company doing something detrimental to the environment, or a product that is harmful to the earth I make a mental note to not purchase that anymore. But it’s so hard to keep track! I can’t continue boycotting everything!
There are not enough places around that show they care about being GREEN. I do what I can for the world…recycling, pre-cycling and all of that other good stuff. People NEED/SHOULD care.
I think it is living in USA. Because being a part of the consuming economy and very much depending on gasoline for moving from one place to other, consuming too much of water for all daily needs I think I can’t be eco friendly.
Not having the money or enough stores dedicated to selling green items.
I realize we have to approach everything with baby steps, but I certainly wish MORE people cared enough about the enviroment to give up some of their materialistic stuff and get greener things.
The hardest thing for me is dealing with the attitudes of others – people say we’re stupid and we’ll never make a difference. Even my own family considers us the ‘tree-huggers." Also, I know a lot of people who don’t even believe that global warming occurs – they tell me politicians make it up! Anyway, my husband and I know we do things for a higher purpose – preserving our world for our children and theirs.