Sustainable Archives — Page 13 of 13

Permission to Slow Down–Ending the Addiction of Busy-ness

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Sustainable

“There’s more to life than increasing its speed.” – Mohandas Gandhi

Thom & Kloe showing us one way to slow down.

It’s summertime here in the Coachella Valley where I live, and because it is the desert southwest, it is expectedly hot outside. While we locals have certain tricks and techniques to stay cool, most of the time the heat of the season makes me lethargic and under-motivated. While none of us like to think of ourselves as lazy, me included, maybe the season is both an invitation and permission to slow down, relax and enjoy life. After all, pushing yourself when it’s extremely warm (or cold) outside isn’t SMART no matter how you look at it. [Read more…]

It's nice and SMART to share! Thank you...

A Journey of Right-Sizing, or How Big Is Big Enough?

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Sustainable

Just over three years ago, Thom and I bought a new home in the “village area” of La Quinta, CA. We called it an experiment because we weren’t sure if we could live in a house that was nearly a 1,000 sq. feet less than the one we had before. Never mind that the new house had 1,400 square feet with three bedrooms, two bathrooms and was plenty large enough based on comparables around the world. But with huge changes happening in the economy, and our personal growing awareness in the “green” movement, Thom and I felt it was time to discover if the American obsession with size was just a habit we’d adopted or a true necessity. What we’ve come to know during the last two years is that smaller is plenty big enough, especially when it fits perfectly within your needs. [Read more…]

It's nice and SMART to share! Thank you...

What Does The “S” Stand for in SMART?

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Sustainable

Happy SMART Day Everyone!

It occurred to me that it would be wise to go through and explain what I am attempting to include with each letter in the word SMART. As some of you know, Thom and I have been actively involved in the “green” and sustainable movement for the last couple of years. We never, or at least I never, considered myself to be a “treehugger.” I still don’t. But what I have grown to discover is that living in a green or sustainable way means that you take care of what you have, you aren’t wasteful or inconsiderate with what you use, you honor the gifts that are given and don’t abuse them, and you realize what you give out you get in return. Not only does that philosophy apply to how we treat planetary resources, it also applies to just about every thing we do–physically, emotionally and spiritually.

[Read more…]

It's nice and SMART to share! Thank you...