Day 1

   Living deliberately, easier said than done. In my college writing class, we have been discussing the environmental impacts of our daily lives. And in my first day of the experiment, I have realized why it is such a problem. We depend on everything!
   Let's go down the list of my experiment and I will tell you all about how I broke every rule on the list. Well, almost every rule. When it came to transportation, it was a nice day and I was planning to go out with my friends. Perfect scenario for a walk to Tenley town metro instead of using the shuttle...accept my friends are not easily convinced that the walk would be nice. Food, no meats but so much plastic! Having breakfast in the morning, I realized that the boxes we get in our cafeteria, TDR, are not recyclable. Dining at Cosi, I realized that the bowl that contained my salad was made out of plastic. Plastic everywhere! One rule that I thought I would not break was the Consumerism part, besides the fact that it is my roommate's birthday so I had to get her a card and I ran out of shampoo. Well, it was a nice thought. But surprisingly enough, technology was the easiest part of this long and hard day. I had to use Skype to wish my sister, who lives in Ukraine, a happy birthday and other than that, I did not really go on Facebook too often so I did not break the 3-hour laptop rule. I checked my e-mail on my phone once in a while. And last but not least, I found an old notebook that I will use as my journal.
   When I was planning the project and thinking about it, it seemed so simple. Throughout the first day, I realized how hard it is to be environmentally friendly simply out of convenience. It is easier to put salad into a plastic bowl rather than wash a bowl after the meal is done. I've also started paying attention to other people and their habits. And my day 1 of the experiment ended with a simple conclusion, we produce TOO much trash. In my own experience, I realized that all those readings we have done in class and all those people talking about high waste, they were not over exaggerating. It seems that my project will be shifting and instead of concentrating on all the 6 parts of it, I will mostly concentrate on the consumerism/plastic problem while still trying to follow the other 5 bullet points. Wish me luck!