Now let’s turn our attention to the topic of lights. I will always remember having to spend a large amount of time pulling the old strands of lights out of a box and then unwinding the tangled cords. While these lights might work fine and still have their wonderful glow, they are nowhere near as energy efficient as they could be. Many of these light strands were made many years prior to the current power specifications and could be eating up a large amount of power. Multiply that times the amount of houses with trees or other lit decorations and it adds up. This does not have to be the case if you are willing to invest in new strands of lights like LEDs or light emitting diodes. Putting a strand of LED lights onto your tree can help reduce energy consumption by 80 to 90 percent and last close to 100,000 hours. They do cost a little more than the standard bulbs used in holiday lights, but the savings made in energy and replacement costs seriously outweigh the initial investment.
This is also the time of year to give presents to family and friends. Many of us have someone that is difficult to shop for which means traveling to many different places. These shopping excursions will add large amounts of carbon dioxide and other pollutants into the atmosphere. The easiest way to avoid this is to shop online. There are thousands of stores on the internet that carry what you’re looking for and will ship it either to you or the recipient. If you don’t want to make the purchase online, then try calling ahead to be sure that your item is in stock. A simple hold request will ensure your item if ready and waiting. Throw in alternate forms of transportation, like buses, bikes, or even skies depending on the local weather, and you can shop as much as you like without even turning on the car.
As children, we all looked to the holiday season with eyes wide open and it can still be that way now that we’re adults. The wonderment of the season can be increased if we make a decision to try to celebrate it in a way that is not harmful to the world around us. It could be low energy lights on the tree or shopping online but every bit helps when it comes down to making this a green holiday season for all of us.
