It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it,
and I feel fine.

It’s hard to believe it’s been 20 years since REM released that song. I really don’t know what Michael Stipe had in mind when he wrote it, but I distinctly recall thinking it was another great anthem to adolescent angst and independence. Even though I was well past my own adolescence at the time, I prided myself on knowing all of the lyrics, often singing them at the top of my lungs, sunroof open, carefree.

Well into my middle age, I no longer equate the end of the world as I know it with a lack of parental intrusion, staying out till the wee hours, listening to loud music and drinking myself into feeling decidedly un-fine. Now that I’m armed with more knowledge and a better understanding of global warming, ozone holes and dwindling supplies of fossil fuel, the lyrics conjure up an entirely new image. Now when I hear the refrain, I wonder how I am going to stave off the end of the world as I know it; lessen my carbon footprint; reduce, reuse, recycle ... be “green.”

Apparently I am not the only one who is concerned about the state of our planet; an entire industry has sprung up to meet the demand for more natural, earth-friendly products. Take a minute next time you’re in the neighborhood discount store, and you’ll find “green” products from dishwashing liquid to organically grown, unbleached-cotton underwear. If there is a need for it, someone is making it ... and making tons of money off of it!

While certainly these companies’ founders may have started with the best, most altruistic intentions, the bottom line is the bottom line. So can the average consumer afford to go green? Yes. Expensive doesn’t necessarily mean more earth-friendly. You don’t have to go to a specialty shop or order from a trendy catalog to live a greener life. You need look no farther than your kitchen for a remarkable, earth-friendly product with a myriad of uses.

It’s vinegar. Plain, old white vinegar. On the store-brand gallon I have, which cost just under $2, there is a top-10 list of ways to use white vinegar around the house. At the top of the list? Vegetable cleaner. You can clean fresh produce with a mixture of four tablespoons of vinegar to one gallon of water. That’s a gallon of veggie cleaner for pennies! A cotton ball dabbed in vinegar will ease sunburn, bug bites and assorted rashes. Need to freshen up the house? Pour some vinegar in a cup, and leave it out overnight. No need to purchase expensive and artificially scented plug-in air fresheners. Mix equal amounts of vinegar and olive oil to create a dandy furniture polish that will even remove water marks!

Add a little vinegar to the final rinse in your dishwasher, and you will get rid of those unsightly water spots that Aunt Martha always fusses over.

A little vinegar added to the rinse cycle of your washing machine neutralizes any remaining soap.

Vinegar and boiling water will clear a slow drain.

A cloth soaked in vinegar will keep pests out of the garden.

And the list goes on.

Number 10 suggests building a volcano. I say build it in the toilet. Mix vinegar and baking soda — $1 for a two-pound box — and you have the natural, less expensive alternative to ozone-depleting, aerosol-canned scrubbing bubbles.

A clean, earth-friendly house for $2. Now don’t you feel fine?