Just Think About It

Well I guess by now I must sound like a really bad public service announcement, topped with a the thick layer of cheese (that I seem to apply so naturally to my writing ) which must be pretty hard to swallow at times.  But the problem is I do believe in all of this, cheesy or not, and I know there are others who care as well.  And I do firmly believe that every positive action we do in our day to day lives really counts.  For there is always a reaction to every action (sort of skewing Newton's laws of motion there, for every action there is an equal but opposite reaction).
Anyway so lets think about it.  Just because you throw something away doesn't mean it goes away (doing an action but not thinking or being aware of the reaction).  Like with the styrofoam containers or with disposable water bottles.  They all may leave your home but they go and stay somewhere else.  So I know reusable shopping bags are so like totally 2006, but lots of people are using them and that is great.  But there are other things, like water bottles, that we can start reusing.  OK so here is a really long quote, and I know that in writings you are not supposed to do this, but luckily there are no teachers grading me and I really think it illustrates my point nicely (and yes always shop around for info and facts).  Anyway here it is.  "In the United States, where tap water is safe, bottled water costs about a thousand times as much as tap water and consumes tens of millions of barrels of oil a year (I've seen estimates from seventeen to fifty million barrels); it's been likened to having each bottle of water one-quarter full of oil.  It takes three times as much water to make the plastic bottle as the bottle contains" (Safina, The View from Lazy Point, 290).  I know that tap water is not always safe everywhere, even in the U.S.  But I do know that it is generally not hard to find, especially in the U.S.  And there are alternatives rather than settling for bottled water.  Honestly I cannot think of any normal circumstances that would warrant a person to buy and or use bottled water.  Again I would like to make it clear that I am not asking people to go out of there way here, or spend lots of money, or do anything that drastically changes ones comfortable life.  Because I know that asking a lot is what makes change seem like sacrifice to most, and therefore change becomes very hard to accomplish.  But I do think that if you can pull together $5 or $10 bucks that you can buy a reusable water bottle.  And I know you may not want to spend that upfront but I do think that it is an investment that saves you money in the long run, helps the planet, and makes you look super cool (had to throw some cheese in again, I told you it just comes naturally to me).
We really do just need to start thinking more about where stuff comes from and where stuff goes.  In the Western hemisphere we live in such a disposable world, which we have distanced ourselves from thinking about or knowing where all the stuff we buy and use comes from.  Because the shops and grocery stores are always fully stocked there is really no need to think about it.  But if we do stop and think, we may change our spending habits, and maybe even buy a reusable water bottle.  So if possible stop using the water bottles, keep drinking lots of water from your reusable water bottles, and remember that you are lucky to be able to refill those water bottles.  And maybe just maybe if we stop using the disposable anythings we can help conserve some water and start sharing with those who need it.
Thanks.