Karen's Low Impact Goals, Day 2

My four goals were:
1. I want to use my paper recycle more effectively, and keep old paper to use later.
2. I want to reduce the amount of pages that I print and that I use for homework.
3. I will try to put my computer in sleep mode whenever I am not using it.
4. I will try to eat everything on my plate, move towards less processed foods, and eat leftovers rather than store bought snacks.

I am changing goal number four, because I realize that trying to truly stay away from processed foods is not a very realistic option in my house, especially considering I do not make my own lunch. I will still try to eat snacks that are healthier for the environment, like fruit, or just snacks that I make on my own rather than that come directly from the package. However, part of my new goal will be to start taking care of a plant, or a piece of our garden, so that in the future I will be working towards eating more environmentally friendly food, rather than going off more processed options right away. Tomorrow, I will hopefully be able to choose a section of our garden or a plant to focus on, and begin integrating that into my low-impact goals. Yesterday night, I did go to the trouble to make myself my own snack, using tortillas, cheese, and chicken. I guess these are still processed foods, but at least I was not using something that came directly out of a package, already created. The first goal, the paper recycling, seems to be going fine except that I do not really feel that the goal requires me to do much. Now that the paper recycle is set up, all I need to do is put whatever paper I see in it. Printing less and using less paper has been a more active goal, since I have been really trying to write smaller and use less paper for my math homework, as well as for the notes I take in class. I am trying to use only sheets that already have a little written on them to take notes, rather than start anew. I had a lot of trouble with the computer goal last night. My computer apparently does not have a sleep or hibernate option, so I ended up shutting it off for awhile instead. Today I learned that I can start my goal again by trying to shut off the monitor of the computer, while keeping the rest of the computer on the whole night. This is how I will proceed with the goal tomorrow. Now that I have reached the third day of the challenge, and the second day of reflecting, I am starting to see my goals change to become more effective and usable for the rest of the challenge.