Windows Live Spaces Eco Trip 2007

As we got off the bus at the Meadowlands, we were sucked into the vortex of Live Earth!  The crowds were gathering, getting funky, and making their way into the venue.

(making out way into Giants Stadium on 07/07/07)

We were fortunate to have access to the MSN hospitality tent (as well we should!) where we were able to stay cool and have a drink and a snack before heading to the nosebleed section of the stadium.  Yes, it's true:  Live Earth is so big, even the Eco Trippers could only score upper deck seating.

(above: the MSN hospitality tent.  Can you say "open bar!" I can! below:  my view from section 323 early in the day.)

Knowing that the show was going last over eight hours, I paced myself and tried not to get too excited too early.  Although I am not an avid hip-hopper, I appreciated the energy Ludacris and Kanye brought to the stage.  Since I play guitar, I admired John Mayer's facility with this classic rock and roll instrument.  Later in the day, Melissa Etheridge would come to the stage and tear it up.

And although the concert was pretty rockin, I felt this nagging feeling that something was wrong with the whole scene...

Click below to join the journey:

Come back soon to reach the peak in Part 3: The Green Lining.

Seven-seven-o-seven was a bit relentless!  Marshana and I made it to do an early morning interview with WABC - channel 7 here in New York.  More than past segments, this one really focused on our "eco tips" to help people reduce their waste and use of pollutants. 

(Above: WABC is a real New York City news room! Below: Marshana waits in the Green Room.  I love that they call it that.)

We brought in a variety of props and talked through them.  First, we displayed the blue tote bags that are quickly becoming America's favorite way to replace plastic shopping bags. 

Second, I told them all about the neat corn plastic (PLA) containers that biodegrade.  To my surprise, the hostess asked me how long they take to decompose.  Also to my surprise, I knew the answer! (in "industrial composting conditions" - 140 deg F + 90% humidity - it takes about 90 days. In your backyard compost pile? I have no idea). 

Lastly, we showed off our collection of "green" household cleaning products.  Seventh Generation, Mrs. Meyers, and Shaklee all make great products that use vegetable-based surfactants rather than petroleum-based.  They are also biodegradable and tend to use natural scents and no dyes.  I highly recommend the first two brands (I use them myself!) but haven't had experience with the third, although it does have a good reputation. Of course, cleaning your floors with warm water, some lemon juice and baking soda does the job, too!

Okay, okay, on with the show:  After a nap back in Queens, I took our good old public transportation system into town to meet my colleagues so we could get underway with the concert festivities.  But then, this video can speak for me:

Stay tuned for Part 2 of my Live Earth experience.  It gets better and worse and better again.

I think a lot of us understand "doing the right thing" cerebrally but sometimes lack a direct connection to the value of our lives.  There's an obese alcoholic man down the block who seems to be standing in the same place panhandling every time I walk down Queens Blvd.  I don't have any animosity toward him but I don't feel that he's using his gift of life very well.

I went out for a run Thursday evening after our green challenge.  It was raining but still hot outside.  Although I was initially hesitant to go and get wet, I immediately changed my mind once I set foot to the pavement.  I can't express what a glorious, invigorating sensation it was to know run through the streets and to be alive and to feel the big drops of rain pelting on my hot skin.  I was totally in the moment and felt a heightened state of awareness for those twenty minutes or so.  I felt like I would really miss that physical sensation after I die.

Sometimes it hits me how insignificant one human life is in the scope of the universe.  One human's 80 years in comparison to the 4.5 billion years our planet has been around is like a drop of water in the ocean.  Yet sometimes a single person can destroy countless others (Hitler), inspire the world (Gandhi), or discover a breakthrough that helps all of humanity (Jonas Salk).  So even though a lot of people (sometimes myself included) feel like their efforts don't matter, we cannot write off any single person.  Never underestimate the impact one person with a vision can have on the world.

We've all been given time on this planet - some more than others.  It's up to each individual to decide how to use it despite the economic, racial or educational cards we've been dealt.  For me, I feel best - the most "whole" - when I live according to my convictions.  And having run through Mother Earth's rain, I know I need to keep that rain pure and our earth healthy, so I'll keep doing my damndest to tread as lightly as possibly and convince others to do the same.

And if you're reading this and not feeling inspired to live bigger, please ask yourself this: If I die tomorrow can I look back and be proud of what I did with my time on Earth?

I hope the answer is yes.  If the answer is no, that's great too.  There's time to turn it around.  But that time is now.  Carpe diem.