Saturday Shorts: Counting Down to Earth Day 2014

The coming weeks are full of significant days, religious and secular, for reflection on how we live our lives and the state of the world in which we live — Passover (April 14-22), Tax Day (April 15), Easter (April 20), Patriot’s Day (April 21), and Earth Day (April 22). 

The original Earth Day logo

On Earth Day we are not called to religious services or family gatherings; we do not have the day off; we are under no legal obligation to observe it. But I hope that, like me, you choose to celebrate Earth Day every year. 

On April 22, 1970, Americans observed the first Earth Day, an event envisioned by Senator Gaylord Nelson (D-Wisconsin).

Less than one year later, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) opened its doors. According to information on the EPA website, “EPA's mission is to protect human health and to safeguard the natural environment—air, water, and land—upon which life depends.”

Part of the EPA’s task is to educate citizens about ways in which they can save energy and resources. Each day during the month of April, the EPA has been posting a new action step on its blog. Here is a selection of previously posted tips. Click on the tip for the whys and hows.

• April 1: Change Five Lights.
• April 5: Caulk and Weather-Strip Around Windows and Doors in Your Home. 
• April 9: Take a Shower. 
• April 10: Recycle Used Electronics. 

Visit the EPA’s blog for more suggestions. You will find that these “Green” ideas will save you money, too.

Let’s all become a little Greener as we count down to Earth Day together.

Have a good weekend, and come back again soon.

Why Saturday Short Subjects? Some readers may recall  being dropped at the movie theater for the Saturday matinee — two action-packed feature films with a series of short subjects (cartoons or short movies, sometimes a serial cliffhanger) sandwiched in between. Often the short subjects were the most memorable, and enjoyable, part of the morning. That explains the name. The reason behind these particular posts is that we are all short on time. My Short Subject posts should not take me as long to write or you as long to read (or try).