Ellen Jackson's Blog

Coffee Anyone?

If your family buys coffee, make sure you buy shade-grown brands. Shade-grown coffee is farmed on land that provides habitat for birds and other wildlife. It also requires less fertilizer than sun-grown coffee.

Get Leaks Fixed

If you have a leaky faucet, get it fixed. In the meantime, catch the drips with a pan, bowl, or cup. Use the water for cooking, drinking, or watering a plant. One leaky faucet can waste 2,300 gallons of water a year.

Check For Computer Errors

Save paper by using your spell checker. Before you print, run grammar and spell check. Once you've corrected your mistakes, preview the document (print preview) to make sure everything looks good.

One Small Step

It's hard to break old habits. This year, make one resolution to support the environment. Can you bring a cloth bag to the grocery store instead of using plastic or paper bags? Can you resolve to use both sides of a sheet of paper? Can you ride your bike to school just one day a week?

Honor People's Feelings

Don't dismiss other people's feelings. Let them know you understand why they feel the way they do, even if you don't feel that way yourself.

Just Say No...

...to the Yellow Pages. It takes 19 million trees and billions of kilowatts of evergy to produce the yellow pages each year. You can find the same information on yellowpages.com. To learn how to stop receiving the yellow pages in your area, go here</?a>.

Greener Next Year

After Christmas is a great time to purchase energy saving LED Christmas lights. If you're planning to go to the after Christmas sales, look for gift wrap and cards made from recycled paper.

Keep Peace In Your Heart

Try to live a more peaceful life. Whenever you find yourself getting upset, breathe in and say "peace" then breathe out and say "peace."

Keep Moving Forward

Everyone makes mistakes. Don't waste time thinking about what you did wrong or could have done better. Don't think about the things you don't have in life. Regrets do nothing but weigh us down. Just keep moving forward and learning and growing.

Rinse And Recycle

Before you put cans and bottles in the recycling bin, rinse them out so they don't attract insects or flies.