An important date is coming up soon. For many of us during this pandemic, the only safe way to vote is by mail. And voting is not just a right or privilege; it’s a necessity if our democracy is to work.
It’s not too early to request a vote-by-mail ballot. Here’s a chart of deadlines for the states so you can submit your request for an absentee/mail-in ballot in plenty of time. Put it on your calendar. Better yet, send in your request today.
Learn how to atop junk mail at Eco Cycle. Meanwhile, recycle it and newspapers. Each mature tree this saves will consume thirteen pounds of carbon dioxide per year. And the energy saved by recycling a single ton of paper can heat your home for six months.
[For more easy, eco-friendly tips, download a FREE copy of Green Riches: Help the Earth & Your Budget. Go to www.Smashwords.com/books/ view/7000, choose a format, and download to your computer or ebook device.]
Remember as a child exchanging letters with a pen pal in another state? How fascinating to learn what kids in far-away Texas did for fun, or how Joey got to play in the snow for several months in. . . where was that now? You were able to experience someone else’s life. Thanks to The Web (or snail-mail, if you prefer), you can do the same thing today on a larger scale. Find out what life is like in Albania or Argentina, Croatia or Costa Rica, Ghana, Rwanda, Uganda, or Viet Nam. In return, tell about your own life. Find names by asking people at work or church who have relatives in other parts of the world. Check www.mylanguageexchange.com (international pen pals practicing a foreign language) and https://ppi.searchy.net (Penpal International). Or do your own online search. If you do, though, avoid singles sites and ones that show pictures of women who hope to become foreign brides. After awhile you’ll develop a friendship, discovering mutual interests that prove that ours is, indeed, a tiny, interconnected world.