"Be man enough to admit that you are a selfish jacka** with a massive sense of self-entitlement who doesn't give a s**t about anybody but yourself. At least I'd have to say you had some courage of conviction, even if that conviction is way off the mark. Right now, all y'are is a selfish, boorish jerk."

The above is part of a comment I received on a recent blog post in which I stated that I like my full sized pick-up truck. I'd like to reply to the above comment:

Why I might be considered selfish for owning my truck is a mystery to me. My 1997 Chevrolet pick-up truck put food on the tables of American workers, and dollars in American pension funds. Trucks like mine have provided jobs all across North America. Gosh, we who own domestically made trucks are very sorry about that.

Just about everyone is talking about something "green" these days. Whether it's green cars, green buildings, or just the green focused lifestyle itself, you can hardly turn around without someone pushing some green concept in your face. It's enough to turn a person, well, green.

I have always tried to maintain an earth friendly outlook myself. For me, that vision has been absorbed in the lifetime pursuit of trying to plant at least enough trees to offset the trees that have been utilized to serve my needs. Of course, I'll never know for sure if I've accomplished my goal. That's one reason why I haven't stopped planting them yet. That's also the reason why a particular blog post, from WeHeartWorld, piqued my interest.

The lively folks at WeHeartWorld, put together a list of ten companies which claim they shall plant at least one tree for each purchase of a specific item, or which facilitate the collection of donations for tree planting purposes. It's an absolutely fantastic effort, and I wish a host of companies would jump on that bandwagon. For instance, the "Plant a Tree for Me" campaign, sponsored by Dell, encourages consumers to make donations for tree planting. The claim is that a $99 donation to the Dell effort could provide a person with a one year carbon offset.

Okay, I'm cheating a little bit. This one's only available to residents of New York City.

The New York City Housing Authority, in cooperation with NYC Parks and the New York Restoration Project, has launched Million Trees NYC, a program dedicated to planting trees all over the city. Over the next ten years, this initiative plans to plant and care for a million trees across the five boroughs.

This is a public/private program; 60% of the trees will be planted by the city of New York and the other 40% will, ideally, be provided by private citizens. Mayor Michael Bloomberg and David Rockefeller have started the ball rolling with a joint pledge of $10 million, which will go towards the planting of 18,000 trees. The hope is that this program will help clean New York's air, increase property values, and help provide shade during New York's brutal summers.

If you live in New York City and are interested in having a free tree planted in your street, park, or building complex, you can contact Million Trees NYC either at the address above or by filling out this form. Even if you aren't interested in getting a tree in your neighborhood, Million Trees is looking for volunteers, soliciting donations, and offering internships. If you're interested in improving the city, this is the perfect way to get involved!

Bruce Watson is a freelance writer, blogger, and all-around cheapskate. He's spent a lot of time sitting under trees and has the bird poop stains to prove it.

Every day, WalletPop will be bringing you information about a fantastic freebie. Like what you see? Check back tomorrow for more!

Here's one that will make the green-lovers feel all warm and fuzzy: Planting America will mail you the seeds to plant your very own tree. They currently have Colorado Blue Spruce, Englemann Spruce, River Birch, Paper Birch, and Red Spruce. They have all the information you need to figure out which tree will work in your climate. From the site:

Why do we give away free seeds? In an effort to plant as many trees in as many places around the country as possible, we are offering a variety of free tree seeds. Look at the list below and find a tree that suits your area and your needs. Please refer to the sowing instructions we have supplied for the best chances of success. Fill out our order form and you will receive a minimum of 250 seeds in a few days for free!* If you do not plan to plant your seeds immediately upon arrival, please refrigerate them, but they do not have an immense shelf-life and would most likely survive if planted in the spring. Thanks for helping out the Planting America cause and making your community a bit greener. We ship our seeds on Fridays.

Someone should tell the Earth Day people that the Arbor Day people are trying to muscle their way into their territory.

I mean, here it is, Earth Day, and someone from the Arbor Day Foundation sends me this information about an 11-year-old named Michelle Holiman, from Stillwell, Oklahoma, who won their 2008 National Poster Contest about trees (that's the winning poster over there on the right). That's nice that they have this contest, and that this little girl won a $1,000 savings bond, but again, it's Earth Day. Arbor Day isn't for another few days, and aside from creating most of our oxygen for us to breathe, what can Earth Day possibly have to do with trees?