One person's green is another's waste

A number of local and international sites I follow are big into green shopping. People selling things from food, carrying bags, and even a rickshaw in London touting a "I'm green, hire me" theme.

What many don't consider is how 'green' homeless people can be. Some call it 'frugality' the systems they come up with to reduce cost and recycle things others would throw out. One system in particular of mine is how I cooked six years ago that I still do today: I try not to use the oven.

When we were a family of six living in a cramped hotel room, I'd invested in a large toaster oven. A few months ago after seeing increases in electricity I began looking at ways to cut down costs and realized I was using the range oven...when I still had the toaster oven.

I also changed out every lightbulb in the house from 40/60 watt bulbs to energy efficient ones that use around 13 watts. I began setting my iPod's alarm to remind me to turn off the air conditioning at certain times as well as checking weather forecasts in advance...if it's not necessary and planned, it doesn't come on.

Add to this closing every bedroom door when not in use to avoid larger air pockets having to be cooled that affect the thermostat reading when it's in use.

All of these green systems contribute to immediate monthly savings. For some, homelessness occurs due to immediate financial distress due to lack of planning...my aim: never being homeless because I had to choose between which bill to pay for something I didn't need to use in the first place.

In the end, being green can prevent homelessness.