I want to thank all of our clients who responded so well to our water-bottle initiative. Discovering how many of our clients are concerned about the natural beauty of their communities is gratifying. One client alerted us to the existence of a local organization, the Clean Water Coalition of Indian River County, Inc., that is working to restore the surface and ground waters of our area. Their website is http://ourwaters.org. We provide the link for informational purposes only.
My wife and I grew up at the Jersey Shore, and over the years, the water became seriously polluted, primarily as the result of storm-water runoff, but also because of bad waste management by the State of New Jersey and the City of New York. The daily newspaper printed the fecal coliform report along with the tides and water temperature. During our last season there we didn’t buy beach badges (yes, they charge to go to the beach) because of the persistently bad water quality. Few things are more disappointing then anticipating a swim after work only to find out you can’t go in the water because of pollution. Since then, tremendous amounts of money have been spent restoring the beaches and waters at “The Shore,” and we can report that the sea-life has returned, the water is beautiful, and the beaches are again what we loved as kids. We are glad, but better planning to prevent the pollution in the first place would have been far less expensive, as good planning always is.
We spend so much of our time occupied with things that are out of our control that we often ignore those things that we can control and that are important. This is as true with our finances as it is with the environment. Cutting down on plastic use can be as simple as buying a stainless-steel bottle. My wife and I make our own non-stick cooking oil. We also bring our own reusable containers to the grocery store. Both of these things are cheaper and less of a hassle than getting rid of the pile of useless plastic we take home from shopping. A big one for me has been getting my newspapers on my iPad. When I first tried to switch, the technology wasn’t there. Now, many newspapers have great apps, particularly the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times. I love the ease and functionality provided by both of these companies. I always have my papers on the boat and everywhere I travel to.
We would be interested in any suggestions from our clients about how we could focus on other things that are important and under our control. Thanks again for your participation.