{"id":5812,"date":"2018-12-16T22:03:56","date_gmt":"2018-12-17T03:03:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.susanvogt.net\/blog\/?p=5812"},"modified":"2021-12-10T14:14:55","modified_gmt":"2021-12-10T19:14:55","slug":"%ef%bb%bf365181-recycling-christmas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.susanvogt.net\/blog\/%ef%bb%bf365181-recycling-christmas\/","title":{"rendered":"\ufeff365+#181: Recycling Christmas +"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n\r\n\r\n

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There are several layers to Recycling Christmas:
<\/strong>I’ll start with the traditional religious and gift-giving concepts and the go on to those that fit the more classic ecology dimensions.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"\"<\/a>1.The<\/strong> SUPER-SPIRITUAL<\/strong>: This approach goes back to the basics and reminds us that Christmas is about the Christ coming into the world as a human being. It is not primarily about buying presents. The focus is on being generous and remembering those who are born into poverty as Jesus was. This is all true and good but the spiritual only approach risks being inhuman if taken to a judgmental extreme as your family calls you the Grinch yelling \u201cBah Humbug!\u201d Besides, the joy of family gatherings and gift-giving is not bad, even though frequently overdone.<\/p>\r\n

\"\"<\/a>2. The<\/strong> SUPER-FRUGAL<\/strong>: This approach is akin to the super-spiritual but the motivation is not only getting back to the basics but doing it cheaply. I have been accused of this by my family since by natural temperament I tend toward frugality. (They have less neutral term for it.) For ideas on this style see Frugal Gifts for Family & Friends <\/a><\/strong><\/span>and Nothing New Christmas<\/a><\/span>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

\"\"<\/a>3. The<\/strong> SUPER-ENVIRONMENTAL<\/strong>: Serious environmentalists can be hard to live with at times. They take their water bottle everywhere, refuse straws and plastic bags, may even carry their own reusable silverware, etc. (I plead guilty.) But there are other issues like what about all the boxes and transportation involved in online shopping? For a closer look at complicated decisions like this, click here<\/a><\/span>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

The above are all legitimate things to think about as we approach Christmas, but for the weary or lazy, I offer two simpler and less extreme ways to be a good person who accepts that Christmas involves giving gifts but still is conscientious about reducing one\u2019s impact on the environment.<\/p>\r\n

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4. THE PRACTICAL:<\/strong>\u00a0If you are hosting family for Christmas (as we are this year) it typically means cleaning the house. My own modest cleaning this year revealed<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n