The Illusion of Going Green

PHOTO: happy earth day! on Flickr by love-janine CC BY

As Earth Day 2009 neared, eco-chic took over everything from entire cable networks Even producers of Jon & Kate Plus 8, the antithesis of green living and population control claimed the family was “going green” in their own very special, solar panel-clad Earth Day episode. What they fail to mention is the energy expeditures of producing the show far outweigh the ecological reductions involved. That and the family of 10 constantly uses styrofoam plates and multiple washing machines.

Water bottles have gone aluminum. Soleil Moon Frye is selling eco-friendly baby clothing online. Even Ed Begley Jr. now commands his own reality show on Planet Green. And then there are the recycled shopping totes.

While I spend my day job teaching, the domestic geek inside of me has been slowly breaking free for years. I delight in grocery shopping, cookbooks, dinner music, coupons, and aprons while cleaning. I aspire to be a green domestic goddess. However, while I cook from the Veganomicon on a regular basis, I also admit to having eaten a McGangBang.

This juxtaposition is enough for anyone to call “hypocrite” on my organic buying, yet junk food loving lifestyle. While the domestic geek fills her grocery carts with locally grown produce and items like polenta, I think nothing of a quality hot dog at a Mets game I’ll drive 5 hours to attend. I have eco-friendly dishwashing detergent, counter wipes, laundry supplies, designer Vera Bradley market totes, an even a “green” debit card made from recycled plastic. But in my quest to buy all these things, I somehow did just that. I bought things, a lot of things, and I keep buying them just as those targeting my domestic geek demographic want me to.

I suppose its very American of me to fill my cupboards with as many green products as possible, creating the illusion of “green,’ but what I’ve found it that in my quest I, and other Americans have purchased more than not buying anything at all.  I already had old bags I could have easily brought to the gorcery store. In fact, I’ve been saving and reusing large shopping bags for years. But now, I need to carry specific bags for specific stores—and even Wal-Mart sells them. Pot. Kettle. Black.

I’m not saying that is bad to actually care about the environment. I truly do and often incorporate it in the classroom.  If I could afford a Hybrid, it would be mine. However, my current car would still be on the road eating gas, once some other owner drove my Honda off the used lot. While the Hybrid would truly be the yuppie, statement-making car I have always wanted, it would also be exactly that, another car. I’m better off riding the vintage bike I bought off of Craiglist.

While my pantry looks like the Wild Harvest section of Shaw’s, I wonder how many recycled bags the purse loving, grocery toting side of me will need to feel truly “green.” My fiancé even came home from the CitiField team store with his own recycled Mets tote. We have more Sigg bottles than we had plastic ones. I suppose geeking out on green is good in a way; it does show that I care. However, now that my closets are brimming with a crinkled plastic tote party, I wonder at what expense.

Jillian Thiele is an English teacher, writer, and new media enthusiast from Derry, NH.