Convicted

They say that you shouldn't make a career out of a hobby because once it becomes work, you wont love it any more. I'm not particularly good enough at any of my hobbies to make them a job, so I'm good there! What I have noticed lately is that choosing my career path (Environmental Policy/Public Administration) is perfect me because I chose something essentially based on a conviction.

While I find environmental issues extremely interesting, I am even more convicted by them. I notice every single thing I don't recycle. I cringe at styrofoam. I drive 400 miles each way to school. Packaging. Oh my. Packaging may be the end of me.

You can get a 2 pack of Philadelphia cream cheese for $2.38 or $1.78 each for the Great Value brand. What would the holidays be without copious amounts of cream cheese? So in respect for budgeting, I get the two-pack. Then I get home and open it.

 ^^ Original Box

 ^^ Two boxes in a box??

^^Then a foil lining (which I guess is understandable...)

So many layers for one little thing of cream cheese. Why not 1 box with wax paper separating each block? You could have 6-packs if you wanted to. The point is, I don't get all of the packaging. If you recycle, this is in no way more convenient. What is worse, is the paper for the cream cheese box doesn't actually fit into the "paper" category for our city's recycling, so I can't recycle it anyway. This just makes me feel bad. Real bad. I hate throwing things away. I'm convicted by it. 

But in the end, this is really a good thing. To be convicted by your career choice. It's unbelievably motivating. And God bless my poor husband. He is really supportive of all (well, most of) my crazy schemes.

It can also be a little inhibiting. For example, for the past couple of days I have turned off the heater. Not too bad of a decision because yesterday was a high of 60 and I lit a fire. I never had a fire place as a kid growing up and I think a fireplace smells heavenly. I also sleep like a baby when the house is cool and I am under the covers. Poor Pistol and Matt are probably shivering while my REM cycles are taking off. This morning I get up, light a fire, enjoy the smell and go about my day. But it's still really cold. So I make the fire bigger. Then I shut all of the doors in the house. Shivering. Look at the outside temperature. 39 degrees. Look around and ponder. Begrudgingly walk to the thermostat. Temperature is pretty chilly. Ponder. Turn on the heater. To 70. Put another log on the fire. Now I feel bad.

I go through a daily struggle. How do we find the point where the lines of planet stewardship and living in the modern age enjoying the technological advances of man cross? My carbon footprint may be lower than the majority of others because I think about it so much, but in reality if the average American consumer is at 100, I'm probably hovering right around 97 due to every day consumption, food shipping, flying, travel in general, home heating and cooling, and the list goes on and on. 97 isn't good enough. Not for as much as I care. Not for the sustainability of the planet (because the planet doesn't care what I think).

I am blessed that I found a career I find fulfilling  I hope to make a difference on a large scale, collectively lowering our carbon footprint. I have serious concerns about climate change and I sincerely do not want to suffer the effects of a changing environment. Seriously, people were wearing shorts last week.

I'm working hard on my degree. I hope that I will yield an impact on my community at the very least as a result of these efforts because Lord knows it's hard on my time, my ego, and a variety of other circumstances which sacrifice for me to have the opportunity to go to school. In the mean time, I'm going to go pick up my food from the food Coop this evening. I'm going to make my family crazy by taking all of the tape off of the wrapping paper and poor Matt will have to look through the review mirror with bags of it to recycle. But I am doing my best and I am motivated by the goal. I appreciate the conviction.

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