sleeping naked is green

by vanessa farquharson

this fellow canadian
began a very brave journey

1 eco-change for every 365 days of the year

she records these changes
on her blog
www.greenasathistle.com
and, lucky for me,
she has also created a book
which fans, including me, refer to as snig
sleeping naked is green

what i truly admire about this book
is first and foremost
vanessa's sarcastic yet brilliant approach
to environmentalism

i was also tickled that she
brought obsessive purists to the spot light
people who believe that once you declare yourself
an environmentalist
there is no room for slip ups
for uh ohs
for flipping the bird to the sun outside
grabbing yourself a bag of cheetos
throwing them in a plastic bag
driving home and idling outside your house
while you eat them
(perhaps a little excessive but you get it)
indeed, these obsessive purists seemed to have
quite a bit feedback on what they saw as
failed attempts
but any attempt is still an attempt, no?
yes.


i also enjoyed that she was upfront and honest
about money
eco-products are expensive.
organic foods are expensive.
soy clothing is expensive.
as i perused this book i began to wonder
how in the heck is this young woman
living on her own
in a nice lil place
and affording all these green changes?!
and then she comes clean:
she sold her car.
who needs a car when you have a bicycle?

my only beef (sorry, vegan environmentalists!)
is that she was originally
inspired by
al gore.
now, any inspiration
is brilliant
especially considering what vanessa accomplished

but, al gore?
really?
he may have brought some issues to the table
but this table was heavily scaled towards him
throughout his entire documentary
al gore will gain my respect
when he creates a well-rounded and fair documentary
that is more so about the environment
and less so about his life.

all in all
big standing ovation to vanessa
and in response
i will be posting green tips (some mine, some hers!)
on my blog
(shift eyes to the right and voila)
do comment if you have any you want to share