Earth Day, Today!

[The Comedian]

In the US we have this hippie-tree-huggin' holiday/observation called Earth Day. And it's one of my favorites -- no gifts, no Wal-marts, no cake. . . .just a smidgen of greening humility

and. . . .

A recommended reading list:

Thoreau -- Sure Walden, but has anyone ever read the first chapter of his Cape Cod? Worth reading -- it describes his walk along the beach after a shipwreck that occurred in sight, just off shore.

Gretel Ehrlich, her short novel The Solace of Open Spaces about life as ranch hand in Wyoming in the 1970s. Beautiful little read.

Edward Abbey -- practically anything, but you should read Desert Solitaire. It's brutal, hilarious, and moving. Abbey's an unrecognized master of non-fiction.

Barry Lopez -- again, practically anything, but Arctic Dreams is a book that is utterly engrossing. If you like travel writing, Lopez's National Book Award winning masterpiece takes you around, in, and on the Arctic Circle and offers a range of insight that is dazzling.

And, of course, no Earth Day is complete without spending a pinch over three minutes watchin' this by Carl Sagan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wupToqz1e2g

[cacian]

Interesting should there be a sun/moon/stars day too, after all they are all part of earth.
Without them earth won't be.

[LadyLuck]

I just saw this on my calendar today. I don't know why I thought it was another week off, and now I find I don't have any activity to do with the kids like I had planned.

[NikolaiI]

I just saw this on my calendar today. I don't know why I thought it was another week off, and now I find I don't have any activity to do with the kids like I had planned.

When I read this I thought you were saying you thought you had a week off for Earth Day at first.. :p

[Calidore]

My favorite Earth Day statistic comes from here in Chicago some years ago, when we had a big Earth Day celebration in Grant Park. Afterward, city crews cleaned up 400 tons of litter the Earth-loving crowd left behind.

[prendrelemick]

Hang on a minute, it's St Georges day today as well.

[The Comedian]

My favorite Earth Day statistic comes from here in Chicago some years ago, when we had a big Earth Day celebration in Grant Park. Afterward, city crews cleaned up 400 tons of litter the Earth-loving crowd left behind.

Sounds like the average amount of waste from one family Christmas. :wink5:

[PoeticPassions]

Yeah, most Earth-dayers are litter bugs. I base this off of no real statistic, but pure personal opinion.

Besides, Earth Day should be every day. I feel like making it into one special day will lead to its commercialization. How much energy and cotton from plantations does it take to make Earth Day t-shirts? Or maybe the better question is: how many little Indonesian or Chinese kids does it take to make 100 t-shirts?

I don't have anything against Earth Day in particular, though. It's a good way to raise awareness and push people to be more environmentally friendly. But I'm also really grumpy today... and I think I just threw several plastic bags into the trash.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

That Earth Day falls within such a close proximity to 420 is fitting.

[The Comedian]

The past couple of Earth Days I've had my family -- wife and two young daughters -- do a "good deed for the earth"; this year, I hitched up the utility trailer, equipped ourselves with gloves and bug spray, and picked up trash along our country road. We divided the recyclables from the trash. Then we took the recyclables to the local animal shelter [they collect 'em to raise money].

Last year we all picked out trees from the local nursery to plant in woods in the outskirts of our house.

I know it's corny, but I like the humility that it often promotes. Just like Christmas, at its best, reminds us to give unto others; Yom Kippur to atone for our sins of the previous year. . . .true, we should be doing these things all the time. But for most. . .well, for me at least, I forget; I lose track. And ritualized observances of character and morality are healthy calls to action, for me. Not just for 4-22 but for a good duration afterwards. Sure my focus will fade in time, but that's what these holiday rituals offer for me: reminding and realignment.

Not all environmentalists are crazy, irrational advocates of never using resources and thereby doomed to hypocrisy. That's just cheap politics talkin'.

[Helga]

Today (the 23rd) is the day of the book and Shakespeare's birthday, here on the ice the whole week is filled with cheap books in every bookstore and a check into every house for a certain amount of money you can use to buy books (if you spend a certain amount of course).

[Ingrid37]

http://www.heritems.info/avatar2.jpgInteresting should there be a sun/moon/stars day too

[PoeticPassions]

The past couple of Earth Days I've had my family -- wife and two young daughters -- do a "good deed for the earth"; this year, I hitched up the utility trailer, equipped ourselves with gloves and bug spray, and picked up trash along our country road. We divided the recyclables from the trash. Then we took the recyclables to the local animal shelter [they collect 'em to raise money].

Last year we all picked out trees from the local nursery to plant in woods in the outskirts of our house.

I know it's corny, but I like the humility that it often promotes. Just like Christmas, at its best, reminds us to give unto others; Yom Kippur to atone for our sins of the previous year. . . .true, we should be doing these things all the time. But for most. . .well, for me at least, I forget; I lose track. And ritualized observances of character and morality are healthy calls to action, for me. Not just for 4-22 but for a good duration afterwards. Sure my focus will fade in time, but that's what these holiday rituals offer for me: reminding and realignment.

Not all environmentalists are crazy, irrational advocates of never using resources and thereby doomed to hypocrisy. That's just cheap politics talkin'.


There are just as many crazy environmentalists as there are any crazy people in any group :)

I do agree that these types of days can be a reminder... I just worry that as the 'holiday' or cause grows more popular it also runs the risk of being completely commercialized, kind of defeating the purpose. (this always makes me think of all the products with Che Guevara's face on them... it became such a fad... I think Che would be rolling over in his grave).

In any case, cheers to you and your family for all that hard work you did. I think it's great generally to do kind things for the planet, as well as for others... btw, why are there no cartoons and shows these days like the ones I used to watch in the 90s!? CAPTAIN PLANET, for example... 'captain planet, he's our hero, bringin pollution down to zero!'

yeah,anyway... entertaining cartoons with a message... where have they gone?

[JuniperWoolf]

That Earth Day falls within such a close proximity to 420 is fitting.

I always thought that was just a Canadian protest movement/excuse to skip school or work to get high. I'm pretty certain it originated in Van. In the United States do you guys do that thing where a couple thousand of you smoke weed on the lawn of the whatever-the-American-version-of-a-provincial-building-is (state building, maybe)?