G is for Green (the Concept, Not the Color)

Today is Earth Day. In my school days every year we would have to watch The Lorax (the nightmare-inducing cartoon from 1972 not the sugar-coated children-can't-possibly-enjoy-this-without-fart-jokes atrocity that is the current Universal Animation Studios incarnation.) Strangely, I don't ever remember being taught the point or even the history behind Earth Day in school.  Either my conservative school district had a rule in their charter about never mentioning hippies inside the classroom, or I was so scarred after watching The Lorax year after year (and the subsequent teasing that occurred after the lights came on and everyone saw that I was crying because of a cartoon we'd all seen a 100 times) that I blocked it from my memory.  All I understood about Earth Day was that people were evil and destroying the planet so much that when I grew up there would be no more trees or cute animals if I personally didn't do something about it like recycle my soda cans, and all the dolphins and seals of the world would strangle to death and go extinct if I personally didn't make sure that every known soda can yoke was cut up properly. I highly doubt that that was the message my teachers were trying to instill, but what do you expect to happen when you show a cartoon made in the 70s to a young impressionable girl who suffers from undiagnosed mental health issues?

Well, it turns out that we celebrate Earth Day because it is the anniversary of the birth of the environmental movement.  The end.  That's what it is.  It's not National Make-Jess-Feel-Like-A-Bad-Person Day that I long suspected it was as a child. Call me a "bleeding heart liberal" or a "tree-hugger" or whatever, but I do care about the environment. I always had an interest in animals and nature even before the annual mental scarring that came with the many viewings of The Lorax. We recycle, we use vinegar to clean instead of bleach or other chemicals.  If we had the room and easier outdoor access, Boyfriend would have us compost (seriously) otherwise it's too difficult to do in NYC without yard access. If Boyfriend had his way, we would have our own solar array and collect rain water and have an herb garden, these things are tough to have in such an urban environment.  It's one of the many reasons we're considering moving to Los Angeles this year.  I don't know if it will happen this year, but if it does, we can drive around in our hybrid or electric vehicle eating our food we grew ourselves. Just as exciting, we can be that much closer to what I like to call "Nerd Mecca" and maybe I could get a job at Sony or Naughty Dog or Pixar or somewhere amazing like that.  

Wow.  I sort of got off topic a bit there. Um, so to sum up: 
The Lorax destroyed my psyche as a child.
California houses Nerd Mecca.
Happy Earth Day!



Boom! Childhood ruined.
Source



(And you thought I would do "G is For Gaming" ha!  Crap that would've been better, huh? *sigh*)