North Carolina Nesties
Dear Community,
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Living Sustainably...
For me, this isn't JUST global warming, it's reducing our reliance on foreign oil and respecting the earth God gave us...I'm curious to know what you ladies believe...
Do you recycle?
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new)
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park?
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood?
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life)
Anything else?
Re: Living Sustainably...
Do you recycle?
Yes, between DH and I we generate one grocery bag of trash every week (sometimes week and a half)
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new)
Yes, basics like: use my own coffee mug/water bottle/glass, reusable bags of course, frequent the library for new reads, luckily I like antique furniture so we repurpose a lot
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park?
Probably, even if we had great access to a park
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood?
I did once for about 9 months and loved it, but I was single, I am pretty sure I could do it again. I don't think DH could.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life)
I would like to think this is a definite yes, but there are limitations to schedules/stops/etc. I'd love the option of a downtown trolley in WS thought.
Anything else?
Luckily, I get to be a big advocate for living sustainably with my career. I am trying to work on people who think global warming is a myth, because there are so many other reasons to be responsible in the way we live. like religion, world politics, and generally rethinking how we got to be such a consumerist society
Do you recycle? Yes, the typical items like newspaper, soda cans, beer bottles, etc. But anything that could be recycled that isn't picked up at the street we throw in the trash
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) We are trying more than before. We have reusable bags we try to use for grocery bags, Nalgene bottles for water, and DH's old shirts for rags. But I'm sure there are other things we could do as well.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? I would miss having a small patch of yard for our dog. Being able to open the back door so he can run out and do his business is great. But I wouldn't need as big of a yard if we had a great public park close by (within a few blocks).
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? Yes, yes, yes!!! If only we could afford it. We want at least a 3 bedroom place and couldn't afford that in any urban environment that we researched.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) I don't currently use public transportation because there is no train and the bus can't get me to work (I would leave at 6:30 and get to work at 2:30pm and not be able to get back home). I would LOVE for a public transit system in Raleigh. I would be willing to drive 5-8 min to the nearest stop to hop on the train. What a relaxing commute. I wouldn't utilize carpool or vanpool regularly though. For some reason, that just seems weird and I don't think it would be as flexible as my schedule requires.
Anything else? I so hope Raleigh gets a public train system. Not only would it be great way to commute, but it would be a great way to get home after some drinking downtown.
Do you recycle?
Yes - but we just started at the new place because it is actually easier to do so. We also have 2 trash cans due to the move. That helps!
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new)
We don't have cups at work so you have to bring your own. I reuse my water bottle at work and home. I need to get better about bringing a bag to the stores so I don't get the plastic or paper ones - but even those we end up using again.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park?
We currently live in a vibrant urban neighborhood and we have a park across the street. Green space is a must in my book.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood?
Yes and currently love it.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life)
When we moved, we did it with the hopes to ditch a car and have me walk to work to save money. So far, I've really enjoyed walking everywhere - I actually love not driving and excited to know our carbon footprint will be less. I do enjoy our lightrail system and hope that they can expand it - it would really help with traffic!
Do you recycle? Yes. We are pretty good about always recycling cans, bottles, plastics, cardboard, magazines, that sort of thing.
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) I make coffee in a reusable mug and when I remember I have reusable grocery bags, but I admit I am probably pretty bad about this.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? yep.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? I honestly don't think so. I grew up out in the woods and the hubs is kind of a country boy and we would love to own a larger chunk of land someday. I just don't think I am cut out for living in a city. Durham is plenty big for me.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) I don't right now because it really isn't an option. If a bus came by my house I might take it to work, especially since parking is such a pain. I used the bus a lot when I lived in Chapel Hill, especially as a student. I also griped all the time that they should bus Duke employees in from a park and ride lot in Chapel Hill. It would cut down on the morning traffic headed to Duke campus and it would be more environmentally friendly. Just a thought. When it gets warm again (soon!) I hope to start riding my bike more places when I can.
Do you recycle? Yes
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? We stopped buying water bottles a long time ago. We use reusable bags, and we give away stuff to Goodwill instead of throwing it out.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? No. I grew up in a big city in an apartment without a yard. I'd go back to living in the city in a heartbeat.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? Yes
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? From having lived in a large city, I actually did use their public transportation very often. Here in Charlotte though, public transportation is very inconvenient for my current work situation, so I haven't used it here.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park?No-- since I've lived in apartments we don't really have a yard- just a sidewalk. But there are so many areas that we can walk to that have so much more-- there is a pool and tennis and basketball courts very close to our place, and plenty within walking distance.Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood?YupDo you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life)If it was more available. DH and I carpool right now (we only have one car) and it's not a big deal. This week he's out of town, so I'm catching rides w/co-workers for the week. In order to ride the bus, I'd have to walk 1 mile from my house w/all my stuff, and then 1 mile to work from the bus stop. And then do it all over again at night, and that's just not really workable for me right now.Anything else?I could definitely do more. I could recycle at home, and more at work. The big issue for me is convenience. If I have to spend 30 minutes to complete and extra task, a lot of times it just won't get done because there are more immediate, pressing things going on.
Do you recycle? We are just starting to. We did not have available recycling programs that were affordable/convenient previously (rural garbage service did not provide and the recycle center was 45 minutes from us). Our garbage service is now picking up plastic and aluminum. We burn cardboard.
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? We use newspapers for our birdcage. We use recyclable bags as much as possible and the plastic ones we do get, we resuse a few times for DH's lunch, trips to farmers' market etc. We use Brita pitchers instead of bottled water.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? As much as I would like to give up the yardwork, I do not believe in neighborhoods.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? Nope.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) I WORK in Public transportation. If it were actually economical and convenient to do so, I would use it. However, traveling TO a bus stop would cost as much as driving to work as they are the same distance and there isn't a bus stop near where I work either.
Anything else? Sustainability encompasses far more than living in urban neighborhoods, recycling and using public transportation. (and I know that's not what you were implying at least I hope its not)
I GROW MY OWN FOOD, support local farmer's for animal products, have compost piles and rain barrells, companion plant and use very few pesticides etc. We share food with neighbors and friends. We can and freeze foods and try to keep our electricity down by using blankets and/or opening windows etc. You can sustain on land and be a responsible contributer to the environment. If more people would grow food and rely on local avenues, we could do a lot more to sustain ourselves and reduce dependency on foreign oil, goods etc. than just everyone living in cities.
Do you recycle? Yes
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) I use reusable grocery bags, and we are big on fixing things that can be fixed.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? Yes
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? Not really sure what all this entails, but we like our own big backyard & privacy
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) I probably would if I lived in a place where it was convenient. Public transportation is nowhere near me, so it's out of the question for now.
Do you recycle? Yes, but we aren't always as good about it as we could be.
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) Somewhat, though I'd say that more often than not it depends on what something costs to repair, it's current value, and the benefit we get from fixing vs. upgrading/replacing. I'm bad about using plastic bags for animal waste & for lunches. While I could re-use one plastic bag for a couple days of kitty litter scooping, most times I just bring it straight out to the trash b/c 1. It smells and 2. If I twist the top the bag gets kind of steamy and when I untwist it is wet and kind of gross. We are also kind of vain about our house and replace functional items with ones we like better (like light fixtures). We have bought a lot of wood furniture and refinished, though, and I'm not above buying used for a lot of things.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? Yes, I think I would. I value quiet and when the trees have leaves our yard kind of feels park-like.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? I could, but not permanently. ETA: I don't know that I would ever find an urban neighborhood that I would like that would be in my price range!
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) I would, if I lived in a place like DC, NY, or Chicago where there's a more extensive train/bus system and it's more difficult to get around via car.
Anything else?Do you recycle? Yes. The county where we live now has a great recycling program so it's nice. Where we lived in TX, we didn't recycle as much, because the option wasn't there (they didn't take any plastics, the only paper they took was newspaper and its inserts - no magazines, junk mail, etc.). We kept our cans in an extra garbage can and had to take them to a scrap metal place.
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) Probably not as much as we could. I do have reusable shopping bags for Target & the grocery store. I could be better about also using them for other shopping. I do refuse a bag a lot of the time (i.e. if I'm just buying a bag of dog treats at Petco & can take them straight to the car, or buying something small that will fit in my purse).
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? Right now, our yard is not fenced, so I have to walk River on a leash either way. If I had the option for a fenced yard to just let her out when she's in a mood where she wants to pee 12 times a day, or just go out to chase birds, I'd prefer that.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? Yes. When we are finally able to move out of the IL's house, our top choice for an apartment complex is actually a "town center" development with retail & restaurants right in the complex. Unfortunately, the grocery store in walking distance sucks, so we'd probably still end up driving for groceries & to Target, but we'd be able to walk to go out to dinner, to the movies, etc.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) I don't use it as much as I could. The Metro ride to work is over an hour. Since I mostly commute outside of rush hour, it's actually faster for me to drive. Since I have free parking, it costs me about the same. I feel a little guilty about driving but given that I get off work 2 days a week at 8:15 PM, there's a huge difference between getting home at 9 (if I drive) and 9:30-9:45 (if I take Metro). Also, if I didn't leave exactly at 8:15, I missed a train and had to wait 15-20 minutes for the next one, which stressed out and made me feel like I was being rude to our clients because I was always rushing to leave. If we end up moving closer to my job, I'll reconsider. I do take it when we head into DC on the weekends, it's way more convenient than driving in that case - parking is expensive, and can be a nightmare.
Anything else?Do you recycle? Yes
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) Yes, I try to reduce before recycling. I do all of the above, and if I'm looking for a specific item that I don't necessarily need or want brand new, I check Craigslist first to see if there is a gently used one that will do.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? Yes, I'd miss my personal space and our yard. However, I grew up with a teeny tiny yard, but I was around the corner from a great city park, so I feel like I've lived in both worlds. It's hard to say which one I like "better," because they are two such different experiences.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? Yes. And I have. I would do it again, but unfortunately "vibrant urban neighborhood" often means "sky high property costs/rent/cost of living"
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) YES! One of the things I miss the most about living in the city is mass transit. I would use trains, commuter rails, etc. in a heartbeat if they actually had them and they were efficient at getting you where you want to go in the Triangle.
Catching up on sports news...
Do you recycle? Yes... I recycle everything I can think of. That includes plastic straws that come in fountain drinks.
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? We use the plastic bags that we have accumulated from grocery stores to put our recycling in.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? Honestly, no. I would love to live in an apartment in Manhattan or a small condo on the beach.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? Already have. I sometimes regret moving.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) I would if I had to, yes. I used to take the bus to the mall all the time before I learned to drive. The only thing that I don't like about public transportation is the smell... sometimes the bus is pretty stinky. I *love* taxi rides! I've only been in a taxi a few times (when I was out on Las Olas and too drunk to drive lol) and it was a blast!
Anything else? N/A
Do you recycle? Yes. It always surprises me when I go somewhere and they do not recycle. We have been recycling for years.
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) Yes. We have cloth grocery bags and I also have another reusable bag that I take with me when doing other shopping. We have reusable travel mugs and water bottles. We use dryer balls instead of dryer sheets.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? I do not currently have a yard, so I will say no. We currently live in a condo and I do not miss yard work.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? YES. I love living somewhere walkable with access to parks, shops and restaurants.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life) Not right now, but I used Metro when I lived in the DC area.
Anything else?
We use CFLs and turn off appliances when not in use. We bought an Energy Star washing machine. We are considering buying a townhouse or a condo instead of a single family home.
Do you recycle? Definitely. In fact, I tend to freak out on DH when I notice he's put something in the garbage that's recycleable.
Do you REDUCE before you recycle? and how? (example, reusable bags or repairing something that you already have before throwing it away to go buy brand new) Yes, we try to reduce/repurpose before we see if we can recycle it. I've been using the same re-useable grocery bags since 1997, Dh and I make a conscious decision to walk as many places as we can, we plan our trips in cars as much as possible so that we're not just running out for just one thing, normally it's several things. We unplug as much as possible when it's not in use. There are many other things that I'm forgetting right now at the moment.
Would you miss your yard/personal land if you lived in a vibrant urban neighborhood with a great public park? A great public park? well...yes and no. I would love the park, but I would miss having my own garden. I would probably join a garden club or something to get my "fix" in that situation.
Could you live in a vibrant urban neighborhood? DH and I have talked about this--if it weren't a permanent move, then definitely. If it were less than 5 years, we'd be game. And while we couldn't live as urbanites forever, I wouldn't ever buy a new home--I would always buy one that had previous owners.
Do you or would you ACTUALLY use public transportation? (expand on answer, why or why not, circumstances that you would have to have to make it a viable option in your life). Yes, when I worked in W-S, I would take the regional transport bus from GSO there. However, I did have to drive to the depot, because as many of you complained, the local bus routes aren't always efficient. Dh and I also already use a still under construction bike path here in GSO to help with our errands and his commute to work. I am considering joining a gym that's near my work so that I could ride my bike to work, shower at the gym and not get too sweaty on the short ride back to work.
Anything else? I agree with Buckin in that there's a lot more to living sustainably. Though I'm not nearly the green thumb she is, I had a nice little garden last summer and hope to have a more successful one this year, both in terms of our yields, but also in terms of growing things we like and can share with neighbors. I'm a big advocate of supporting the local farmers. I buy milk and eggs that's produced locally (it's SOOO much tastier than other milks and the eggs are so much richer tasting) and support meat farmers that treat their animals ethically and don't pump them full of things not naturally fed them (cows aren't natural corn eaters--they like grass!!) I agree with you 715 though, that my big struggle is getting people over the hump that even if global warming isn't necessarily the correct science, just because we have something doesn't mean we have to use it all right now until we run out. To me, it makes so much more sense to invest in technology that exploits resources that we'll ALWAYS have--sun, wind, rain, etc etc and make it available to the common man. And honestly, I think there are just a lot of lazy people out there. A one mile walk would normally take about 10 minutes for most people. I conducted a very casual "experiment" on some of my coworkers a few years back. They took more time just conversing/discussing who will drive, walking to their cars, and then finding a parking spot than the total time it took me to walk to the particular destination.