The Grass is Finally Greener

You'll have to excuse us newly minted hybrid car drivers. We're both slightly distracted and a bit smug.

With our lease expiring on our reliable five-door this year, my husband and I opted to exchange it for a hybrid Camry. We've only had it a few weeks, but already the changes it's produced in us are remarkable.

First, you must understand that never in a million years did I see myself driving a sedan. The word "sedan" is entirely too close to the word "sedate" for my liking. Second, in spite of a brief, but meaningful relationship with a red Tiburon back in the (pre-motherhood) day, I've never really liked driving much. Driving is incredibly boring, but it requires your full attention - or at least, that's what the officer who caught me trying to catch up on the latest issue of New Scientist told me.

Meanwhile, my husband, who's never met a train he didn't like, has an innate suspicion of anything that doesn't blow steam or require a third rail.

So it comes as a great surprise to find that we really enjoy piloting our hybrid. I say "piloting" because it feels like you're on board a starship. The regenerative braking sounds like you're dropping out of warp, and it's completely silent at stop lights and stealthy in parking lots. As it comes with push button controls and digital readouts, plus a way to pipe your cell phone calls through the dash hands-free ("Scotty! Are you there?"), my husband is seriously debating getting new plates that read NCC-1701.

Thus far, we've only discovered two drawbacks to our new car. One is that the feedback system encourages you to play a 'video game' of sorts with yourself while driving, by scoring you on your consumption. You find yourself constantly watching the fuel use meter, trying to drive with a feather foot, and thinking of more efficient routes to work. Do not be alarmed if you see me doing a little victory dance in the driver's seat when I rate an "Excellent!"

That's the distracted part I mentioned earlier. The smug part is when you silently glide up beside the big, noisy, fuel sucking SUV driver who impatiently pulled out and around you two blocks ago. You see him jump in surprise, and then watch him realize he's no further ahead than you in traffic but about $20 poorer to boot. I think I may have to develop a special dance for those occasions too.

The second drawback is that now entirely too easy to rationalize a trip into a Tim Horton's drive through because you don't have the carbon footprint induced guilt associated with idling as you wait. If we're not careful, our doughnut weight gain will more than offset our fuel efficiency.

Chocolate glazed overdoses aside, what really strikes me about the hybrid and other more environmentally friendly products is that the market is finally getting it. It used to be that the only way to be kinder to the Earth was to be a Certified Hippie. You know, the people who actually wore those coats made out of recycled plastic bottle pieces, could find time to make all their own cleaning products and who lived in reclaimed transport containers.

These days there are all kinds of choices out there. Want to reduce electricity use? Store shelves are full of low energy, long life bulbs. (Bonus: Fewer trips up the ladder.) Worm composting to reduce your kitchen waste not your thing? (And let's face it, worms should not be present in any kitchen that also has toddlers). Get a low wattage electric composter. (Bonus: In two weeks you'll have enough soil to re-pot the petunias your toddlers discovered).

Tired of the energy drain that is the ironing pile? Behold and hallelujah, we've invented no-iron shirts and pants. (Oh c'mon, tell me you don't think that ironing is toxic to *your* environment.) And I don't know about you, but I've already picked out my mid-life crisis car: the all-electric Tesla.

Not easy being green? That was so twentieth century. There are all kinds of easy to implement changes that can make a difference right now.

Let's hop to it.

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And you thought I was kidding:

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