...or mail from relatives. today i got an email from brasil and a letter from okinawa. fu fu fu...i feel special. suddenly it just came into my head that last year in japan we ran into distant relatives from brasil. i know i got one of their emails but i wasn't sure where i put it. i couldn't remember their names but i thought for a moment and did some searching on the internet and wrote to the email i found. today the reply came so success!

my cousin's wife in okinawa wrote. i hadn't heard from her in awhile so i was a little concerned (maybe she didn't receive what i sent her) but figured she's busy with her kids and stuff. true enough, that's what her letter said. she included a small street zine (so it appears to be) and it's pretty cool. it's more like an insert for a newspaper i suppose. that size, a few pages. it's called "30 byo de sekai wo kaechau shinbun" (the newspaper that will change the world in 30 seconds). it's an environmental paper that raises awareness about global warming. there is a comic and tips on what you can do. they mention that japanese go through many wooden chopsticks a year so you should carry your own pair with you. also, carry a plastic bottle and fill it with your favorite drink instead of buying drinks all the time. also, having a slow day where you don't use electricity or don't drive and things like that. they mention a restaurant in tokyo that is doing that.

this comic suggests not wasting your food and reducing meat consumption

i was surprised to see, or not see, an important tip. it's the one tip i always see in america. that is to use energy star appliances and energy saving lightbulbs. i'm sure there are many different things that we can each do but i was trying to think of the little things i'm already doing that help or things that i should be doing. if you're in control of the thermostat at work, don't be wasteful. recycle everything you can recycle. (i feel frustrated in this area.) also, not just recycle but reuse! don't throw away items if you can still use it. the paper and plastic bags you get when you buy groceries are great for trash bags. in fact, i haven't bought trash bags in months! those bags don't hold much so there is less chance of food spoiling in the trash, stinking up the place and attracting unwanted creatures.

also, all those damn receipts one gets when buying lunch and other things for which you don't need to keep a receipt. you can reuse those. you can take notes on them. put them on one of those metal things that you see at restaurants that they put the orders that are done. i can't describe it! well, maybe you don't need that thing but you can keep the receipts by your phone and write down phone numbers or by your computer and take notes when needed. if at work your fax machine outputs a confirmation page and you don't have a recycling program, you can use those pages for test printing or print out driving directions on them, etc. you can cut them up for scrap memo papers. or what about all the junk mail in your mailbox? with tape you can make envelopes. if you need a clear space to write the address, use the backside of one of those receipts! i know there's more you could do like make book covers out of junk mail but i'm not in k-12 anymore so i don't need book covers for textbooks.