Think Globally, Date Locally

By Dr. Charlie Glickman • Oct 23rd, 2008 • Category: Blog

I was reading the always-fabulous Violet Blue’s blog today, and found a link to a fascinating piece on Slate about the environmental impact of long distance relationships.

I hadn’t thought about it, but of course, those long-distance relationships are tough for more than the people separated my miles. All of that travel back and forth has a significant carbon footprint, especially since (as that article points out), the greenhouse gases that planes emit are thought to have a higher impact than ground transport. Even if your long-distance sweetie is within driving distance, that’s still a lot of gasoline that you’re using up. See the piece on Slate for the relevant links, if you like.

Now, I don’t think we need to berate folks in long-distance relationships. It’s a tough situation to begin with and they don’t need anyone making it worse. Instead, I agree with the author of that article. As much as you possibly can, date locally. You’ll be able to see each other more often, which is good for you. You’ll be able to use less oil, which is good for everyone. And if you do find a new love who happens to be further away, use public transport. You can spend your travel time writing sweet notes, fantasizing about your lover, or plotting a romantic evening. That way, everyone wins.

Dr. Charlie Glickman >> Dr. Charlie Glickman has been working at Good Vibrations since 1996, when he joined the staff at our Berkeley store. Currently, he is our Education Program Manager and (among other things) runs our in-store After Hours workshop program, our Off-Site Sex Education Program, trains our Sex Educator-Sales Associates and writes copy for our website. In 2005, Charlie received his doctorate in Adult Sexuality Education from the Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, Ohio. In addition, he offers classes on sexuality for psychotherapists and workshops on teaching for sex educators.
All posts by Dr. Charlie Glickman Word count for this post: 221

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