Green for Valentines?
2:51PM on February 10, 2009
Going Green On Valentines this Year ?!
Green is the latest catch phase in many of our lives now a days! So if you have a person or persons who wants to be more “Green”,or maybe you just wish to be “green” What do you get them for a special gift for V Day? Well first of all you need to know what does green mean!? So here goes a little definition of “green”. Green means using less of the worlds resources, recycling, leaving less of a carbon footstep,using less energy! O k, you kinda remember this from school, don't you? How we collected cans, paper, and plastic for big companies to recycle them to keep from using oil,raw metal, or wood make more of these things right! Yes ,you are getting the idea ! So here are some nifty gift ideas for your “green” person or for you to be more “green”!
1.Give a gift of Trees Uh you want me to pick out a tree and put it in a package? No you donate money in your friend's name to the Nature Conservancy Plant a Billion Trees campaign in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. Each tree cost only a Dollar and your friend gets a card telling them how many tress you planted in their name! Get this they even email it to save paper heres a link to do this! support.nature.org/site/PageServer?pagename=brazil_gift_aaa They have many other good causes to give as a gift many which are green! Save the Earth and all her life forms including us!
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Give your time and or Donations to local charities in your friends name and give him or her the certificate with a recycled gift card you make yourself!
3.Make a gift use only things you already have! Recycle that old pair of jeans into a tote bag. Make your plastic milk jug into a bird feeder! Make a bracelet from old buttons ! Make new soap from you old soap scrapes! You say you don't know how, go to the library and borrow a book on the subject! No time to learn how, well buy it from some else who does it !? One of the best resource I have found for recycle hand made items is a place called Etsy, if you only want green items well you just go to etsy.com and put that in their search engine! You can even local for Local dealers just add your home town I searched it for Texas and got 5 pages to look though! You will be going green in no time and helping a small business person who makes handmade items as well!
4.Buy local Why? Well anything you ship from somewhere else means emissions in transporting it, so buy things grown or made local as much as you can ! This also helps the local economy! Places to buy local Farmers markets http://www.localharvest.org/ or you can do on line search for local Arts and craft events near you! I also hit my local organic grocery store Sun Harvest http://www.sun-harvest.com ( in Texas only) or Whole foods markets http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com! Or Google for local one near you!
5.Buy vintage,or antique its already past the test of time wont use any more energy you can always personalize it with a bit of paint a ribbon or redo it ! Or if you have an attic, garage full of stuff or storage unit,hunt for a used gift that you can recycle or up cycle, (upgrade rework) ! Go to local Flea markets, antique shows, garage sales or estate sales! Yes, I do re gift too! If you get 3 toasters and you only need one !?At the last Christmas party I got a great photo frame for a wedding! I have already been married 10 years and its my 2nd his 3rd marriage, so we didn't need that any more !So guess what ?I re gifted it to newly weds, who loved it! When I don't have a a gift, I frequently hunt though my house for stashed goodies and make a gift box or basket with what I have in storage! Only 2 taboos on re gifting is don't give same gift back to whom ever you got it from !Don't pass on food that you had since last Year
6.Give organic or natural, free trade , or fresh food items! Hand made by you, picked out of your garden and canned or locally grown these are never wasted! I am a big time cookie baker and since I am on a organic, healthy living kick , my goodies are too! So past on the good health to your friends! Make it extra sweet include the recipe! (see item 4)
7.Be creative with the packaging! Paper isn't the only thing you can wrap with ! I tend to forget to get paper or only have the wrong kind! I have done the brown paper bag thing where you draw pictures or paint with a potatoes. I wrapped in scarves, put things in bags I got from someones else's gift ,used a basket or pretty box, wrapped it in tinfoil, its shiny isn't it? I have used ever greens or flowers instead of bows, I have put part of the gift on the package as a decoration instead of wasting money, I didn't have on bows! Big leaves from your garden with a few herbs would be great to! Its fun and creative and folks are always amazed or at least amused! I know my gifts are remembered !
8.. Give a service ! Give a massage ,give baby sitting, give a good house cleaning to someone who can't ! Give your co worker a month of rides to or from work or both! Give a friend a hand with buying groceries, when her moms in the hospital! Cook some extra food and bring it to their house for dinner! Do the physical work someone else cant, (mow the lawn, shovel the walk, move the furniture) Do the letter writing another cant! Walk the neighbors dog, feed your sisters cat! So many of us think we have to buy ,when we can give service that is very much needed ! This isn't just Green you know but much more it is caring and heart felt!
9. Give of your self! In this day an age of rush and hustle the best gift is of you, your time! Spend more time, less money and less of the world resources and give folks what they really crave more time with you! Read to you kids, play with your pets and kids, talk to your friends, do things with your family, cuddle with your mate, forget the gifts! When you spend time that is what people will remember ! Giving of ones self is the best gift any of us can give!
These are just a few things I hope you get the “green” picture ! I guess I was “green “ long before I knew what “green” was! Have a wonderful Day with your honey , family or firends how every way you spend it!
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