My friend Adam has recently started a blog about his attempts to live a more sustainable life in the Boston suburbs. I could sidetrack myself here and start ragging on the jargon word "sustainable" (aren't we all living sustainable lives merely by managing to stay alive?), but I do understand that we are lacking a concise vocabulary for the attempt to become more conscious of our individual influence on the planet at large. In any case, I respect Adam's decision to chronicle his attempts because, as he immediately makes clear, we're all fuck-ups in this regard.

I was pleased, if surprised, to discover that, Adam lists Tracing Paradise in his bibliography of influential books on the subject. Yes, there I sit, right next to Michael Pollan and Bill McKibben. Who would have thought? I am certainly no guru of green: like everyone else, I throw too many things away and buy grocery-store fruit from California. But I ponder the problem, which, if not a solution, is at least an awareness of error. In other words, I think I'm not complacent, even if I am wicked. One of TP's chapters, "Clear-Cuts," focuses specifically on ambiguities of sustainability; and I'm planning to read sections from it in October, when I participate in a reading on 350.org's Climate Awareness Day. Once again, Milton (and Satan) are pertinent in the so-called real world.