Tiny Choices Survey: Lauren!
By tinychoices | April 24, 2009
Vital statistics (name, age, location, link to website/blog)?
Lauren Sommerer, 39, Seward Nebraska www.lloydandlauren.com
How do you reside (apartment or house, roommates)?
House with husband and two useless cats.
Are your housing decisions dictated by choice or necessity? Please explain.
By choice. We rented when moving back but wanted to buy to stop throwing our money away and own property. We bought 12 years ago when housing prices were down and interest rates were good, and it will be paid off in less than two years.
How do you travel (transit, car, etc)? Are your travel decisions dictated by choice or necessity?
Please explain. My job is 12 blocks away and my husband’s is 35 miles. I get a a ride with him in the mornings and either walk back or get another ride from him on the way home. I stopped driving my truck when Hurricane Katrina hit and gas prices went way up. Plus - honestly - it’s 12 blocks. No one needs to drive that little every day.
Tell us about a Tiny Choice you’ve made in your life.
Reusable bags are my guilty pleasure! I absolutely love the ones that pack up tiny and hold a ton. I have some ChicoBags (regular and Vita), Envirosax and one mini Rume, and always have at least three in my little purse. I love how bringing home groceries is like unwrapping presents.
What is the one environmental dilemma you personally struggle the most with?
I’m not sure I’m really struggling with anything personally. I’m just doing the things I can to make things a little better. I get cranky with how wasteful people can be - but I’m guilty of that myself.
What is one Tiny Choice you can make in that direction?
I’ve really cut down on my shopping and now get just as much pleasure from ‘visiting my stuff’ at stores than bringing it home.
What is the one environmental Tiny Choice you make that people question (in either a positive educational or a negative hassle way) you the most about?
I’ve been using the same foam coffee cup from a gas station since Christmas. My boss watched me wash it out and said, “You WASH that?” Hey - it’s still good.
What is the one environmental Tiny Choice you would like every single person to adopt?
Buy less plastic. Think about the Tic Tac boxes from your childhood. Those are still out there somewhere.
Do you feel like you make sacrifices for environmentalism? Please explain.
No. I do the things that interest me, and it’s like a game with money. My electric bill is less because I air-dry my laundry, and my water bill is less because I take Navy-style showers. My husband takes showers that could drown a hippo, but I’m not going to try to change him.
Are you generally: optimistic, pessimistic, neutral about environmentalism and the future?
Optimistic. I teach preschool, and they really got into the idea of recycling this year, and it’s nice that the rest of the world is swinging in a positive direction.
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Topics: Surveys |
Our tic-tac boxes are still out there… that’s a fascinating and horrifying realization.
what a wonderful idea: opening presents from our reusable bags after shopping, i knew there was some reason i loved using these bags! thanks for the visualization!