My Dog Wears Diapers

I’m not a hardcore environmentalist, by any means. Moreover, I generally believe the eco-community stands to learn a great deal about marketing; environmental stewardship has, unfortunately, been sold largely through a curious mixture of alarm and guilt. Ultimately, I believe the best way to encourage awareness and action in this area is to find where eco-friendly changes intersect with money and time. Convice people that greening their homes will save them money and make their lives easier, and they’ll buy into that. Those very concerns prompted some changes at our home.

Last weekend, we headed out to one of our favorite places and purchased a couple of items that would likely be referred to in many parts of Texas (save Austin) as “hippie toys.” First up was a simple composter. The next was a rain water barrel. Below are a few pictures:

These additions are part of a larger strategy, believe it or not. The rain barrel, for one, is a no-brainer: Why pay the city for more water when nature is willing to provide? (I’m ignoring the terrible drought we’re currently experiencing.) We intend to put in more plants, and there are even plans for a garden of some type, so there’s no need to pay for something that falls from the sky for free. The 50-gallon barrel we purchased should help save a few bucks.

The composter will also help with our plants, but it actually serves a number of purposes—one of which relates to my lawn work. A few weeks back, I transitioned to an old-fashioned reel mower for cutting our grass. Like most, I had previously used power mowers, both gas- and electric-powered. With the former type, you have to put up with gas and oil, constant fumes, and the noise of a jet engine; with the latter, you trade in the petroleum products and smell for an annoying cord. I was tired of both, and my stepfather let me try out his reel mower.

In short, I love it. It’s easy to use, cuts the grass incredibly well (and doesn’t tear it, like a power mower), is quiet, etc., etc. One drawback, however, is that it doesn’t mulch, so long grass clippings get all over the place. The solution? A grass-catcher. But what to do with the clippings? Enter the composter. Combined with food scraps and other items that would, otherwise, go in the trash, those clippings will help us build a pretty decent pile of nature’s best. Better yet, I’ll soon have an organic fertilizer that can be used on plants and the lawn.

When it’s all said and done, the rather small amount of money we spent on these additions have a number of benefits:

• Less water consumption. As water is becoming a precious commodity in the Texas Hill Country, I see this as crucial.
• Reduced waste in our landfills. True, we still throw out a lot, but between composting and recycling, I feel like we’re doing our part.
• A green lawn with fewer chemicals. I’ve always felt a little iffy about tossing a lab creation all over my grass, so this is a nice (and free) alternative.
• Doing our part for God’s Green Earth.

Unfortunately, environmentalism does have political and social ramifications, but they need not be the primary focus. Hopefully, I’ve demonstrated other reasons why one might be inclined to go a little greener. Over time, I’ll add some updates on our progress, so stay tuned.