As those of you who read faithfully will by now have figured out, many of the Green Tips that I write are very directly influenced by things that happen in my life. So it should really come as no surprise that this first entry back in a while should be about Disney World! (Okay, there really was no need for the exclamation point at the end of that last sentence. It just feels like there should always be one at the end of Disney World! like the 2001 hit movie, Moulin Rouge!)
So yeah, I was in Disney World last week with my family and I had a great time! (Dang, that exclamation mark just won't go away! I guess staying a week in the happiest place on earth makes you more enthusiastic about everything!) But you aren't here to read about my personal life, you want to know how Disney World can be an educational tool for environmental sustainability! (If I just ignore it it will go away)
Well, there are actually several things about Disney World that can be used for Green Tips (hence the 'Part 1'). And I'm not just talking about all the recycling exhibits at Epcot or the wildlife conservation messages at Animal Kingdom (although it was fun to drive little model garbage trucks around and play recycling video games). No, I'm talking about the more obscure lessons that only an eco-nerd like myself would pick up on!
My first lesson that I learned from Disney World is that public transportation is cool! No, seriously, I defy you to name one other place on the planet that has as much mass transit! There's the buses that drive between the parks (awesome), the monorail (awesome on one rail), the ferry boats (floating awesome), the trains (too awesome for just one rail), the parking lot shuttles (really long awesome), not to mention the fact that all the rides are basically really impractical public transportation (awesome that always ends up where you started). And they make it all so much fun! Buses in Toledo are somewhat frightening sometimes with homeless people and drunkards, but the buses in Disney World are basically like warm ups for the rides!
So please, Audio-Animatronic replica of Walt Disney that runs Disney World, if you truly love us as much as I believe you do, start expanding your monorail system to encompass the entire continent. Because while a 20 hour car ride was horrible, a 20 hour monorail ride would just be awesome! Share the wealth!
Well, it is good to be back and don't forget that tomorrow!!!! is the start of the May Madness Bracket Tournament of Champions Green Extravaganza 2010: The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny!!!! (I love that song, don't sue me!) Tomorrow's match up will be (1) Recycling vs. (8) Political Activism. Can the underdog pull off the ultimate upset?? Find out tomorrow! And leave your comments about who you think will win!
Showing posts with label public transportation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label public transportation. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Green Tip #79: Hit the Bars
Do you ever have one of those moments where you realize just how unusual a certain part of life has become? Even though I've been writing the IGR for about 10 months now, I don't think I realized just how much it has warped my thinking about certain subjects. Just a few days ago and I had a really good idea for a Green Tip. But what happened was that I was actually afraid that my Green Tip was too practical to be put into the Impractical Green Resource.
Too practical??? What's happened to me? I have a good idea that will help the environment and I'm afraid to share it with you because it makes too much sense? Well no more I say! It's time to break the cycle and actually share with you a Green Tip that might actually be practical!
So I was recently inspired by a certain recent holiday that has a lot to do with going green but little to do with the environment. Or so I thought. I've always been a bit critical of a holiday that encourages people to search for four-leaf clovers and rip them out of the ground. Clovers are plants too! Leave them in the dirt where they belong!
But on Wednesday while I was driving past bar after bar and seeing all the cars that were in the parking lots, I suddenly saw a whole new side to St. Patty's Day. And environmental side! It seems from my experience that it's more or less impossible to get people to carpool or take public transportation. You just mention buses in this country and people immediately conjure up images of poor people and having to deal with a rigid schedule and the risk that there will be a bomb attached to the bottom of the bus that will explode if the bus drives slower than 50 miles per hour. Needless to say, Hollywood hasn't helped improve this image of buses and public transportation. Just look at what they've done with such movies as Taxi Driver (1976), Collateral (2004), Rain Man (1988) or Spider-Man 2 (2004).
But one (at least one) holiday a year, people find something inside themselves that makes them change their views on public transportation. And that something is alcohol. People have no reservations about riding a party bus all around town. These same people that want to ride the bus around town all night with a bunch of drunk people would never think of riding the bus around town all day with a bunch of drunk people.
Which brings me to my next point. Putting party before anything makes it much more fun. Party bus > city bus. Party City > Circuit City (who went bankrupt). Party in the USA (Miley Cyrus) > Born in the USA (Bruce Springsteen). Well, the jury's still out on the last one. You still haven't gotten back to me about that celebrity endorsement, Miley!
So next time your friends make you the designated driver, don't be upset about it. Just think of it as an opportunity to finally be able to get them to start carpooling like you are always bothering them about.
Too practical??? What's happened to me? I have a good idea that will help the environment and I'm afraid to share it with you because it makes too much sense? Well no more I say! It's time to break the cycle and actually share with you a Green Tip that might actually be practical!
So I was recently inspired by a certain recent holiday that has a lot to do with going green but little to do with the environment. Or so I thought. I've always been a bit critical of a holiday that encourages people to search for four-leaf clovers and rip them out of the ground. Clovers are plants too! Leave them in the dirt where they belong!
But on Wednesday while I was driving past bar after bar and seeing all the cars that were in the parking lots, I suddenly saw a whole new side to St. Patty's Day. And environmental side! It seems from my experience that it's more or less impossible to get people to carpool or take public transportation. You just mention buses in this country and people immediately conjure up images of poor people and having to deal with a rigid schedule and the risk that there will be a bomb attached to the bottom of the bus that will explode if the bus drives slower than 50 miles per hour. Needless to say, Hollywood hasn't helped improve this image of buses and public transportation. Just look at what they've done with such movies as Taxi Driver (1976), Collateral (2004), Rain Man (1988) or Spider-Man 2 (2004).
But one (at least one) holiday a year, people find something inside themselves that makes them change their views on public transportation. And that something is alcohol. People have no reservations about riding a party bus all around town. These same people that want to ride the bus around town all night with a bunch of drunk people would never think of riding the bus around town all day with a bunch of drunk people.
Which brings me to my next point. Putting party before anything makes it much more fun. Party bus > city bus. Party City > Circuit City (who went bankrupt). Party in the USA (Miley Cyrus) > Born in the USA (Bruce Springsteen). Well, the jury's still out on the last one. You still haven't gotten back to me about that celebrity endorsement, Miley!
So next time your friends make you the designated driver, don't be upset about it. Just think of it as an opportunity to finally be able to get them to start carpooling like you are always bothering them about.
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