big ambitions

I had every intention to write something before this. Alas, as my dear husband knows, I am not exactly good at following through with big ideas. I thought that might be an interesting topic...

Just in case you didn't know, I am a serial job-hopper. I go from one job to the next, then I may go back to a job, then I leave again. I don't want to say I'm never satisfied, but maybe that is actually my problem. My excuse is always something like, 'too boring!' 'too stressful!' 'too much work!' 'not enough work!' 'too far!'. I am at my third go-around at my current company, promising myself that I have to put in at least two years this time before I check out again (I'm at 9 months and counting).

I've thought of joining the Peace Corps, starting an eco-business, running an eco-lodge, working for an NGO abroad, teaching high school, helping my husband's business from home, teaching Chinese, working on a farm, going back to school, anything that is different from my dreary life between kissing my husband goodbye in the morning and greeting my dog in the evening. I've come up with so many ideas that whenever the words, "you know what I think is a good idea, honey?" come out of my mouth, my husband is already halfway through an eye-roll, checked out. "No really! this is really good!"

Our latest trip to Savannah has further inspired me to pursue something out of the ordinary. We met some really interesting people (our age!) who do some pretty amazing things with their lives. They took chances and those chances paid off. It makes me want to leave my current life and just start over in a small town with a lower cost of living and less materialism. We would sell our house, sell tons of junk on ebay and be free...

More on that later.

not just another blog about the environment

Most of my friends know that I am pretty passionate about the environment. I think it started when I went to Portland to visit my mom back in 2000 and, after commenting on her elaborate recycling system (Portanders don't mess around), she gave me a horified look and asked, "you don't...recycle?" I admit, I recycled only when it was convenient. Apartment living is not the most conducive to sorting garbage. Looking back, I didn't exactly spend much time in the kitchen anyway, so maybe I didn't have too much to recycle (justifying...). Upon my return, I began recycling in ernest, begging my roommate, "can you please just peel off the label from your cans before putting them in the bin?"

My moment of total realization came when I took a class on sustainable development at GA Tech. My professor, a model for moderate living, inspired me to look at how I was living in a whole new way. Called an 'ecological footprint', it measures the impact my way of life has on the earth. From that moment on, I became a bit crazy about eco-living. Not that I do everything right, mind you. I love traveling so much and I know it's bad for the environment. So I try to travel in ways that aren't as destructive. And let's face it, sometimes I just get lazy.

I am lucky that my husband has very similar values when it comes to living. We try not to get caught up in keeping up with the Joneses. Cars, clothes and toys aren't as important. Our house, way to big for us at 2400 square feet, is the only source of slight embarrassment for us (our last home was 1300 square feet). Luckily we justify (again) this because not only did Darren build it, but he built it so that it included many green (and clean) features. More on that later.

Anyway, this blog is for friends and family who have asked me about eco-living, and who just want to keep up with my life. Mostly it is for myself as I document my life and remind myself what's important. Enjoy!