Athanasios Giogakis

I have eaten food all my life. I have never really focused on mindful eating or learned about it until I looked it up. And what I learned has made me interested. Many people have different definitions when it comes to mindful eating. Some say mindful eating is enjoying your food when it comes to appreciating the look of it, all the way to savoring each bite like it is your last. Others think mindful eating is fewer distractions on the table when eating. Spending the time with your breakfast, lunch, or dinner without any distractions like cell phones or work. I have recently started savoring my food and taking some time to appreciate the hard work that went with putting that chicken in the air fryer, and the time it took me to turn that chicken into a sandwich as well. That is why I savored every spicy bite. I first took some time to glamour in its presence and to faint in its sight. After that, I went and took one bite, chewing the sandwich in my mouth for several minutes before swallowing. I then ended up eating the rest as soon as possible as I was late for a class meeting. Usually, the first bite is always the best one. I differ in mindfulness in that I take my time when it comes to cooking. I love to cook, but I ain’t no chef. I take the longest time when it comes to cooking, but that is because I have no idea what I am doing half of the time. When it comes to something familiar I may cook quicker. But, regardless of all of that, I take my time when cooking my dinner. I also try to make it look as appetizing as possible. The look of the food matters to me. If I end up making a hot mess, I don’t simply throw it out, I eat it, but try to figure out what happened last time, so next time it can look more appetizing. After that, I always savor the first bite. The first bite is always the most important, as it tells you if the dish is bad or good. Luckily most of the time it turns out good, while other times, it turns out bad but only for me. I sometimes find meals that look delicious, but turns out I am not a personal fan of them. After that, I am always late for something which is why I eat the rest of my meal as soon as possible. But, I always savor the first bite. I also tend to not use any technology on the table anymore, which I'm not really sure if it's a good thing. I tend to find myself bored when eating without watching a new show or movie. But, you can’t practice mindfulness without being completely out of the technology loophole. 

I see LED as an energy-efficient alternative to incandescent light bulbs. I have had incandescent light bulbs for quite some time and only recently have changed them to LED light bulbs. The reason for the change was because of the very cheap sale they were put on thanks to Central Hudson. They were so cheap I ended up buying more than I needed for emergencies even though LED bulbs are meant to last longer. After switching them, I have noticed that they are not only brighter but save me money and time. Because of their long life, I won’t need to replace them as often as LED bulbs. They also look neater than regular incandescent bulbs. My next step on the road of energy efficiency is a road I am not very familiar with. I have many options to choose from replacing all of my light bulbs around my house, including the ones outside. To even going all solar on my property altogether. I will have to do more research on whether or not my area qualifies or even supports solar panels, but that is research to be done on another day. I also have an option to invest in local solar panels in my area in hopes of lowering my energy bill, but would that really count as energy efficiency? I am no expert in this field and have no clue as to what I am talking about is valid. What if I bought an energy-efficient car, would that count. As I had said in the previous reflection, I am a broke college student, I have no money for an electric tesla. I do not even have enough money for some solar panels. I do believe however that it is cheap to invest in solar panels that are not connected to your house, like a solar farm or something like that. But, does that count as being energy efficient as it is not directed at my house, instead, it is at a farm. In reality, the only logical thing to do for me at the moment is to change all the lights all over my house including the ones outside that are more expensive. I do have changed about half of my lights, so changing them all out shouldn’t be that much of a hassle. So, as of right now, my next plan is to switch all of my incandescent lighting and not just half of them. This will make me as energy efficient as I can be at the moment. Maybe sometime in the future, I can look for some solar panels, or just research solar panels, and see if they are right for me.

Zero-waste cooking is something a little new to me, at least I thought. The concept is of course not new and something I had done, at least my mom has tried to do and teach me. She would usually say, “Don’t waste your food! There are kids suffering in other countries, not being able to eat and you can’t finish your broccoli? You better eat up, or else no dessert!” She would often tell me this as to not waste any food. I would often listen to her because the ice cream was always great after dinner. She always used up everything she could, besides the parts that were not meant to be eaten or that she just did not like. In general, zero-waste cooking means not wasting any of the ingredients when making food. For example, most people use the top of the broccoli when cooking dinner and never use the stems that are on the bottom. They take those unwanted parts and simply throw them out. Other people usually eat the inside of the watermelon, but did you know that you can eat all of it? Many people throw it out, and never realize that they can just simply eat the entire thing! This is what makes zero-waste cooking different. It means cooking with zero-waste. Why not make a spicy stir fry with the entire broccoli cut up into small pieces. This way, the unwanted parts that are all completely edible, can not be wasted at all and can be used to achieve zero waste. Every day, so much food gets thrown away. Something my mom wanted to achieve has been contributing to her whole life. She would throw out the part of the watermelon that so many people would do the same. Why not make a smoothie out of it. Make it into an edible soup bowl. So many different ways to utilize the worst part of the vegetables we despise, making it possible to contribute to zero waste. Make a veggie burger utilizing the entire broccoli, including the stem. So many options, so many things to do, so much to save!

Ever since I got my license when I was 19 back in March of 2018, I had driven every day. Now, not so much, but I still do it as it is and has been a necessity in my life, everyone's life, in general. Driving a car has not only turned into a necessity but also want. People need to drive a car, people need to get to where they need to go. Over time, it was not a problem, but now it has become a problem. Here is where electric cars come in. Not only are electric cars healthier for the environment, but they can be our saving grace with exhaust emissions. But, like everything out there, there is a small problem, they are expensive to get. They can go anywhere from $30,000 to over a good $100,000. They are expensive for a reason. When it comes to using no gas, it tends to cost more to make. But, for a family of four, it is an affordable car. Not so much for students who may not even have a job or who don’t make enough money to get an electric vehicle. The price is not to dismay me from getting one, eventually. At the moment, looking at my options as a broke college student, I can safely say that electric cars are not for me. But, they can and will be for me someday, just not at the moment. Now talking about motivators that inspire me to eventually get an electric car are many. For starters, they may be expensive as I said before, but in the long term, they are well worth the price. Not only will they be cheaper over time, but will save the environment too! That is what we call a double whammy. They also look cooler and can potentially turn futuristic someday. It means we are a step closer to something spectacular, only seen in movies and on the big screen. Style has always been a big motivator factor for me. If the car does not look cool, then it ain’t the car for me. Can’t say that for now, as I drive a really old car, but if I had the choice, I would definitely pick a cool-looking car. Some cool electric cars are any Tesla. Tesla is basically the coolest electric car company out there, they always can’t seem to run out of cool styles it seems. Especially when it comes to their Cyber truck. The future is nigh, and if it does not look or sound like the future, I ain’t buying. Other motivators include speed, as I am pretty fast when it comes to driving, faster than I would like to admit. Basically fast enough to not be slow, but slow enough to not break any laws. There, that sounds better. Now, speed is the key and electric cars deliver. Tesla specifically can reach 60 MPH in a couple of seconds. That is something useful when it only comes to getting on the highway. But, it is still important to me nonetheless. If I can’t beat people when going from a two-lane into one lane, then I am very disappointed in the car I would be driving. Now, the last motivator I will talk about has been talked about already, it was the price. Electric cars are just too expensive to get and being a college student, sort of hard to get, at an affordable price that is. But, the main point, the point that is, is that even though I may not get an electric car right now, I can still use a bike or other means of transportation that can help lower exhaust emissions. I may have not used a car as often as I had before, but besides that, I can still use a bike to travel. An electric car is cool and all and meets most of my motivators, but riding a bike on short journeys is still as impactful as driving an electric car. Someday, one day, I will get an electric car, it just isn’t the day for me, yet.