Technology has come such a long way in such a short time. When I watch t.v. with my kids, they can’t fathom that phones didn’t have cameras, you couldn’t just watch whatever movie you wanted whenever and for my youngest, why people are not wearing masks.

For me, watching old Law & Order, SVU has become increasingly difficult. I am watching a New York that doesn’t exist anymore. A New York where there is constantly snow on the ground during winter. A New York where you can see Detective Munch’s (played by Richard Belzer) breath and you know it is winter. That is not the winter we are having this year, and at the current rate it might not be the winter we have again in New York City.

There are many reasons for this change in our New York winters, but one of the smallest reasons is idling cars. Yes, most of the climate change is due to large corporations, airplane travel etc. I am not hoping that we reverse our modern way of living, but we can make changes to our existing way of life. Turning off your car is the easiest thing to do, but yet people don’t do it. Right now I am trying to talk to as many people outside my circle to learn why this is such a prevalent thing to do. Is it just to keep warm in the winter, and cool in the summer. Is it some old belief that cars run better if you let them run for 20 minutes before you leave for work?

One fact that people don’t know, that the air inside the car, if you are not moving and just idling, is actually worse than the air outside the car. I can’t imagine how much worse it can be since it seems disgusting outside the car.

“Sitting in an idling car means you are breathing in more of the dirty exhaust that leaks into the car cabin. Any warmth you may get from a car heater is not worth the damage to your health.” https://www.edf.org/Zo38 via @EnvDefenseFund

Would people still continue to run their cars if they knew this? I mean people not care about things greater than themselves, but they do care about themselves. Maybe that is the marketing campaign the earth needs; “Don’t do it for the birds, the climate or the future-Do it for yourself.” Clearly my full time job is not in advertising.

But if you read this, you know more now and you can pass it along to others!! And one small drop can fill a bucket.