Why CFL bulbs aren't on my holiday gift list

So I'm totally sympathetic to the eco-holiday spirit that, say, drives people to give CFL bulbs as presents.  That said, I don't actually think CFLs make such hot holiday gifts, in the same sense that I don't think tube socks make very good gifts. I mean they're useful, and they last a while, but they're not -- you know -- exciting.

Not that all gifts have to be exciting -- or that we have to always give each other material gifts at all. I do, however, sometimes struggle against the feeling that environmentalists can seem Grinch-like: Dirt cheap, with a predilection for the grungy or dowdy. Prone to impromptu doom-and-gloom lecture-giving at parties. Against holiday fun.

It's hard, of course, to know where to draw the line. Sure, lots of people are starting to question whether children really need all those shiny new toys -- especially as so many seem to come coated with lead these days. And I can't wait to see "What Would Jesus Buy?," a film that pokes fun at our consumer culture and promises a "Shopocalypse."

It gets murkier, though, when you get to stuff like holiday decorations. One person might be all psyched for the annual tree-decorating fun, only to be deflated by a "Do you really NEED a tree?" by a well-meaning but off-putting environmentalist.

And once that starts, the enviro-grinching of the holidays can begin to take over. After all, can we say we really "need" most things we expect around the holidays? Do you really NEED lights? That's a question that came from one of my readers. I mean, those things sap energy from the grid! Do you really NEED gifts, even if they're "eco-friendly" gifts? Aren't you just contributing to our rampant consumer culture with every gift you give or receive? In fact, do you really NEED to burn all those fossil fuels to fly to see your family? Do you really NEED holidays at all? Should you really be celebrating anything when the earth's warming over and polar bears are dying and hurricanes are killing people?

Take eco-preaching to its extreme and all the joy suddenly gets sucked out of life. What's the point in living, really, if there's nothing to celebrate? How do you draw the line?

Aside from the few who really are quite grinch-like, most environmentalists seem to tread a murky line of their own invention. They may hold back on Buy Nothing Day but go crazy during the remaining shopping days. They may shop like everyone else, but take their own bags. They may opt for more eco-friendly decorations, like a locally-grown holiday tree with LED lights. They may forgo a tree but decorate with poinsettias. They may carefully select gifts that are earth-friendly and fairly-made. They may only give out "stuff-free" gifts. Or, of course, they may give out CFL bulbs.

How are you greening your holiday season? How is it different from last year? Will there be a CFL bulb in your stocking?

Photo by Siel

Comments

[Roxanne]

I'm doing a few things to "green" my holiday. I will be getting a tree because that's the thing I can't do without. But I purchased LED lights for it. And this year no lights on the house I'll get myself some poinsettias for decoration instead.

I will not be using wrapping paper. I will use either natural gift bags that my loved ones can reuse or of course I will be giving plenty of gifts in dirtBags from Happy Monkey Planet. I'm a newbie to the eco-friendly lifestyle (other than recycling etc) and I intend to have a festive and fabulous Christmas. I may be going green but I am no Scrooge.

[Holly]

I'm doing a few things differently this holiday season. I asked a good friend who sews tote bags to make a few for me. I plan on wrapping all my presents to friends/family in those bags. Also, almost all of my gifts are handmade. I've found Etsy.com very wonderful for finding gifts, but a complete TIME SUCK! hahaha...I've wasted hours on that site. It's good to ask these questions nad continue to challenge the core idea that we need to consume. I personally enjoy giving gifts that reflect green values, but people will enjoy.

[toby]

I'm eating Guacamole to help the environment.

Every two weeks I make guacamole, then take the seeds and grow them on my balcony, and when they get big enough, I plant them in my neighborhood (my neighbors LOVE them).

They also make an awesome gift, people love them when the plant is still growing out of the seed (it grows out of the seed for like 3 or 4 months...if not longer).

So I'm eating the green for the green.

[Jeb Eddy]

Here is a variation on the comment immediately above. We use pieces of cloth, over and over, to wrap presents for other family members. We have assembled a collection of a dozen or so, in various colors and patterns, and in different sizes. For small things, we also use cloth napkins or dish towels. This practice greatly reduces the mountain of shredded wrapping paper we used to make. Try it! Send some cloth to friends, to start their own collection.

Jeb Eddy, Palo Alto

[tarbubble]

i'm not sure how "green" i really am for Christmas. i may break down and get a small (3-foot) tinsel tree. yeah, it's probably made in China out of yucky chemicals and then shipped over here in a big metal box on a gross-polluter leaky mega-cargo-ship. or i could kill a tree that required a lot of water & polluting pesticides to grow, and which will then be replaced by another seedling that will require a lot of water & polluting pesticides. but at least it creates oxygen. so should i buy a small tinsel tree that i'll use for years & years & then make a donation to TreePeople?

i bought 2 strands of LED lights. i like Christmas lights.

i have a large extended family. thankfully, my half has vocally recognized how ridiculous the x-mas gift-giving has become. we're now doing children only and pulling names out of a hat. the other rule is books only - no toys. so i have to buy books for two children. thrift-store gifts are happily accepted, so we're doing the recycle/reuse thing AND keeping it cheap. i may break the rules a bit and sew stuffed animals for all the kids (out of recycled fabric of course).

hubby's family will continue the stupid tradition of "we're giving everybody a dang gift because that's what you do at Christmas and who bloody cares if you want it or not?" we will probably get quite a few tasteless toys and noise-making electronic books.

at least x-mas eve dinner will be almost animal-product free.

oh yeah, i forgot that i sew fabric gift bags. they're really easy - a flat rectangle with a grosgrain ribbon tie about 3 inches from the top. slowly eliminating the waste of wrapping paper & tape.

[Enlightenment]

My goal is to cook reindeer meat on December 25.

[Babbette]

I don't know why people object to real christmas trees. They're gown as a crop (they aren't extracted from forests) and when you're finished with them you can use the remains for a variety of projects in the garden. This is very green. Also, when using real trees as you can always grow more. With fake trees, even though they last longer, after two or three years they start to look ratty and out they go even though they were bought with the idea of using them forever.Also, people toss the fake ones when a new style or more 'real' looking one comes out. Fake trees cannot be recycled so can someone tell me again how they're better?

[Cameron]

hi siel

i agree with you that us eco-aware types can come across very grinch like and anti-xmas and the whole festive season.

i think it is hard not to be when you look around and see SO MUCH meaningless and needless consumption and waste for a holiday that is based on a dangerous myth that causes all kinds of problems in the world.

having said that!!! LOL. i find it is not very constructive to go all out and challenge that. in the lead up to last xmas, some colleagues were discussing buying everyone a copy of 'the god delusion' by richard dawkins and calling for an end to the mass delusion and planet damaging consumption associated ... it was an interesting discussion and got me personally thinking.

i sat back and thought about xmas and the history of it.

it is only really the last 50 years, in the decade of hyperconsumption, that xmas has become what it is today. it isn't a very long tradition in terms of redefining it.

what xmas used to be more about - and what i think most people actually crave - is a dedicated time to catch up with family, reconnect with community, relax and take a deep breath, reflect on the year, etc. it is time for friends, family and fun.

no where in there does it include 'buying gifts'.

anyway, i got to talking about this with my mother and other family members and for this year - and here on:

* my mum and i are committed to buying things from the oxfam unwrapped offering - buying something for each other that gives to others, not us. we don't need anything. xmas is to give to others, birthdays are for personal gifts. we are going to do it and infiltrate and influence those around us to do the same. we want to turn our family xmas in to a time that we give to others - focused on family time together, friends, sharing meals, and investing in a better world together

* my step family is going for a kris kringle option where we each only buy one gift for some other family cluster ... we all get one thing, instead of each of us having to buy 8-10 gifts. a good step.

* i'm taking my dad on a road trip to visit the grave of his dad and my grandfather. that is my present to him.

so i'm working to keep it positive. hone in on the underlying things we value at xmas and emphasise those while subtley challenging the purchasing consumption waste ...

doesn't mean every time i see a house lit up from a mile off with xmas lights that i don't want to run up to their door and ask them if they know they are killing people in developing countries and their own kids and grandkids through contributing to global warming ...

cameron

[Bryan]

There's actually quite a lot to know about CFLs. So Cal Edison has a great site where you can learn more about them and even take a pledge to replace a regular bulb with a CFL. Check it out: www.sce.com/pledge