As a tree hugger, I just have to say.... AMEN!!!! On May 24, 2013 6:41 PM, "bullcreek.com" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Since it is Friday and it has been "one of those weeks" I feel compelled > to put what an (older) friend sent to me here. I do live in Austin, TX, > after all (where plastic bags are now banned, and you get charged for paper > bags - Except at Target, apparentyl) > > ......... > Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the me the > other day, that I should bring my own grocery bags because plastic > bags weren't good for the environment. > > I apologized and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in > my earlier days." > > The clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did > not care enough to save our environment for future generations." > > She was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day. > > Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to > the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and > sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and > over. So they really were recycled. > But we didn't have the green thing back in our day. > > Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags, that we > reused for numerous things, most memorable besides household garbage > bags, was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our school > books. This was to ensure that public property, (the books provided > for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings. Then we > were able to personalize our books. But too bad we didn't do the green > thing back then. > > We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every > store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't > climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two > blocks. But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day. > > Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the > throw-away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling > machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry > our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from > their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that > young lady is right, we didn't have the green thing back in our day. > > Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every > room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief > (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana . In > the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have > electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile > item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion > it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up > an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower > that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to > go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. > But she's right; we didn't have the green thing back then. > > We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup > or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled > writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the > razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just > because the blade got dull. But we didn't have the green thing back > then. > Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their > bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour > taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire > bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a > computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 > miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint. But > isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we older > folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then? > .......... > > Phil Bautista > http://www.wwrug.com/contact_phil.html > 512-731-0304 > > > _______________________________________________________________________________ > UNSUBSCRIBE or access ARSlist Archives at www.arslist.org > "Where the Answers Are, and have been for 20 years" > _______________________________________________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE or access ARSlist Archives at www.arslist.org "Where the Answers Are, and have been for 20 years"
