I’ve got no say in how the climate change debate will play out and how much we’ll protect the Earth. What I read reminds me of the Environmental Issues class I took at University of Iowa. I remember being floored by the facts my professor passed along about our current predicament and what the future might hold. But culture in general didn’t seem freaked out by any of it, so I assumed my prof must’ve been overstating crises.

I can’t pass legislation, but I can do little things. I’ve been doubling my recycling efforts and trying to do the right thing in that arena whenever possible. I drink so many bottles of water and feel bad about it even though I blue bin the empties.

I promised myself I’d change to 5-gallon jugs this spring. Renting the coolers/dispensers really adds up, so I shopped for one to purchase. But plugging in another refrigerated device seemed like trading one waste for another. So I stumbled upon a ceramic dispenser from Walmart that serves up room temperature H2O. But, as an online reviewer suggested, I can just add an ice cube to each bottle full. The ceramic and the bottle I ordered arrived on Good Friday. Problem was – the bottle was empty. I didn’t expect that. Buyer beware. So now I was tasked with finding a refill station. After I let my cousin’s dog out this afternoon, I tried the Jewel in Old Town on Division and Clybourn. No dice. Searching online only led me to far flung places, the closest at 4600 W. Diversey. I resolved myself for a long drive. I passed the big Jewel at 2600 N. Clybourn and figured I’d pop in just to see. Sure enough they had a water station for 49 cents a gallon.

Filled ‘er up and headed home. I never go to that Jewel but it’s probably the closest one to my home. Big discovery for the future of my water dispensing. Had my first bottle of room temp water (forgot to make ice) and it tasted good. Happy Earth Day, Earth. I made the effort for you.