How Listening To Macklemore and Ryan Lewis Can Help You ‘Go Green’
“Kermit, you are wrong.”
I don’t often make a habit of arguing with Muppets, but today I feel it necessary to disprove the famous frog’s notorious words, “It ain’t easy being green.” With today’s technology and available services, it is easy being green. Through a quick look at Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ music, lyrics and words, we will explore some tips on how to go green.
ON EFFICIENCY
As a homeowner/renter/human being, you want to get the most out of everything you own. Contrasting this desire, we live in a disposable decade where anything and everything is thrown out, just to be replaced by a newer, ‘better’ model. A newer, ‘better’ model that will just be thrown out a couple months later. Macklemore’s ‘Thrift Shop’ is all about re-using, re-purposing and reprocessing. If we can apply this hand-me-down mentality to our own lives, we can ‘go green’ in countless facets. Maintain your water heater regularly: this will save you not only from having to call a plumber or plumbing company, but it will extend its life. If you ever sell your house, a healthy water heater is a bonus selling point–consider it a hand-me-down to the next homeowner.
ON CONSERVING ENERGY
There was a time before TV, a time before Xbox, a time before lights and electricity. We survived without power before, so it should be easy enough to use just a little less every once in a while. It’s hard to say, but there was even a time before plumbing, plumbers, sewer rooters and plumbing companies–*a single tear falls down my cheek*. Macklemore recalls, “One kid in a four-block radius had a Nintendo — there was no Internet, there was no computers, it was like ‘Cops and Robbers,’ ‘Capture the Flag,’ let’s use our imagination and kick it outside. That’s something that unfortunately is kind of lost in this generation. We have so many distractions on an immediate level, indoors” (Source: https://youtu.be/DKknhHVVIiY). I’m not saying sell everything you own, disconnect from society and join a pack of wolves for the rest of your life–just make conscious decisions everyday. Embrace natural light, turn off lights and unplug appliances when they are not being used. Installing low-flow showerheads will not only save you money, but conserve energy and water as well.
ON ENJOYING NATURE
“I grew up in the 80s,” said Macklemore. “So it was really before this age of technology that gave you purpose and reason to stay inside all the time… We kicked it, we played games, we did sports. Everything was done outside. So there was an appreciation for nature” (Source: https://youtu.be/DKknhHVVIiY). Escape to the great outdoors, get outside and enjoy a world that is lit up by the sun, instead of by electric light bulbs. Take a vacation and breathe in fresh, mountain air instead of trying to recreate it with a powered plug-in from Bath & Body Works.
So sorry Kermit, but sometimes it is easy being green. And thank you Macklemore for reminding us to go green in our everyday. Together we can make St. Catharines, Grimsby, Niagara Falls–dare I say it, the entire Niagara Region, a greener and more efficient place to live! Thanks for tuning in this week for this plumbing blog!
