September 09, 2009

I spent my determining years following the way people lived in the 80s. I was, as a result, one of the few who wore like baggy or really tight leather pants, bright colored shirts, army boots and used plenty of hair wax for punk looking hairstyles. In my time, I've seen a couple of trends come and go. Lately, though, it seems like something a little more meaningful has taken off almost everywhere and become quite a trend - going green. How else can you explain the booming sales of Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs), environmentally friendly cars, shirts, bags, books, and even green music concerts?
All this publicity and coverage required me to look at how I work together with my surroundings and what sort of effect I have. So I did a little scrutinizing. Turns out that, according to my calculations over at ‘Calculate Your Impact’, I emit somewhere around 8.65 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year. Well, not me, physically (that would be horrid), but my family, trips we make and cars. We get macrobiotic when it's convenient. We don't own enormous, fuel-gulping vehicles and take them on frequent road trips. We hardly fly. We don't stand around glaciers with heat ovens, or hunt penguins for lunch or unload toxic waste into the few lakes we have in our city. I'd say we're just about average - we're not going to be responsible for saving the environment but we're not going to be liable for the defilement of it either.

But what else can we do?

I'm all for taking on the big solutions. I urged my dad to put up solar panels so we wouldn’t have to keep using the geyser, plant our own vegetables (since mum loves gardening), carpool, use paper bags, rain water harvesting, make my own clothes, books and lipsticks, buy stuff only from nature friendly businesses, and mount a wind turbine in the back porch. But those things are also a) costly or b) a bona fide splinter in the ass. And I think that - being a splinter in the ass - is what prevents most people from acting. Most of us (me included) are acquisitive to some degree and inclined by the idea of instant indulgence. There's nothing awful about that. But until we get over ourselves a little, there's a point at which we can't become much greener.

So, I am trying! Not perfect but making the effort at least.
Last week I'd given the ‘Anarbor’ track a spin which is a breezy trip through modern American pop-rock. I know that sounds like a mouthful of adjectives, but that is really what this song is. So yes, to respond to your question, they are the ideal band to listen to when you want to shake your shoulders a bit. 'The Brightest Green' is a very upbeat and catchy track and, as a result, more of a pay-off to the listener. Not to forget, there's something about it that stays with you. Something good.
From the intro to the way that the song builds, there’s just not much else you could add to make it into a better song. To be sure, this song is best listened to at a very loud volume.
Until next time. I’ll keep posting as long as you all continue to listen to good music. Peace out. Tell your friends and check back often.