Try a little harder

Or perhaps, try in the first place. I have seen many SUVs in the past weeks and it dawned on me that each one is choking the planet a little bit. I´d like to say that´s an overstatement, but those foolish things guzzle down gallons of gas and spit out CO2 at an aweful rate. Why is it that Suzy homemaker has to have a Suburban to cart the kids around (or whatever the newest, biggest thing is in I-need-a-bigger-vehicle-than-you world)? What is she toting around? Apparently people aren´t too worried about the price of gas either. Perhaps having an SUV has become an even greater status symbol than before, as it now has a certain ¨I have enough money to pay for this 12-mph white elephant, and don´t you wish you did too?¨ quality.

I had hoped that after graduating and having a job for a while that I would be able to purchase a smart fortwo; plans have changed and I´m certain that won´t happen now. Why you ask? It´s not as if I drive a behemoth; I drive a little white ´04 Civic. No, I want a Smart so that I can in a little way offset the vehicle purchasing habits of my fellow Americans, knuckle-dragging fools though they may be. I have changed my light bulbs to CFLs and turn off most electrical appliances when I can, unplugging others when that is feasible. There are other things I would perhaps consider if it weren´t for the fact that I live in a rental house. 1/2 flush toilets come to mind. I´m also trying to find a relatively cheap low-flow showerhead. There are some that are around 1.8-1.5 gallons per minute, and with the water problems we´re having in North Carolina that´s highly appealing.

When will people start to wake up and make some changes in their wretched routines?

And to close out, have a look at this interesting mp3 player I came across today. Not a contender in the looks department, but cool nonetheless.