8.25.2008

CHALLENGE...........bag it

Don't let yesterday's post fool you. I am not all that resourceful. I mentioned how canning peaches was so much easier than I thought.......
Apparently canning is sorta like child birth. The excitement of the end product makes you forget the long, hard, back-breaking work. And it was my friends, a very long day.




Many, many times today I contemplated the necessity of my day's project.

Wouldn't it be easier and make just as much sense to simply use the coupons I clip every Sunday and just buy the fruits & veggies- already washed, peeled, canned and ready to eat? The actual expense isn't that different.
The time it takes for a novice like me is great. All day long, my children were left to their own devices. The babe spent the day in the same onesie she spent the night before. There was a lot more TV and a lot more..... shall we say, creativity? This meant a messier than usual family room and lots of snacks. Apparently my starving daughter can make a PB sandwich by herself. Who knew? I was super excited to discover this makeshift kitchen on the carpet. Something like that.

Speaking of coupon clipping-
Each week, I gather the newspapers into a pile.

Each week, I have great intentions to take these papers with me to drop off at the recycling bins in town.



Each Thursday morning, I take the piles of newspapers out to the trash for garbage day, and think to myself, next time I will recycle. I seriously have guilt about my newspapers. Silly, ridiculous guilt.
A few weeks ago, in one of my many time-wasting, blog-stalking moments, I clicked to The Story of Stuff. This is a web-video all about production, consumption, environment. Now, generally, I lose interest in such things after a few minutes. This story is a full 20 minutes long- almost an eternity by internet attention span standards. I watched the whole thing. There was a statistic given about the football field sized areas of trees being cut down at an insanely fast rate. It has stuck with me.

The grocery store that I go to requires customers to bag their own groceries, in exchange for cheaper prices. I usually double bag, almost always use plastic and use more bags than I need to.....on purpose so that I have the bags to use at home as garbage sacks. Please don't hate me. I keep thinking I will maybe try out those re-usable shopping bags, but frankly, I have been too lazy.
But that video- that dang video.

CHALLENGE......bag it

Take your own bag to the store this week. It doesn't have to be the grocery store. It could be the dollar store, produce market or your candy bar fix at the gas station.

Maybe you all are much more "aware" than I am and have already been doing this- if so- well, I have a different challenge for you.

Use a coupon. Don't just clip the coupon, but actually use it.

So, some of you probably already are coupon queens. Couponing is all the rage right now. So, how about another one.....

Recycle something that you normally don't. I will actually take my paper pile to the big blue bins. Maybe I will get all crafty and make something new out of something old. Don't hold your breath on that one.

Really? You already recycle too?
I would type what I am thinking, but then this blog wouldn't be quite so family-friendly.

I am running down the road to catch the environmental awareness bus. Ok- maybe speed walking.

I know! Use cloth diapers instead of disposable.
HAAAAAA! I kid. If any of you really do that- I bow to you. And really don't envy you.

So basically, do something, anything this week, to be a little better of a steward of this lovely Earth........even if it just means simply not double-bagging your groceries.

I would love to know what you already do, what you have good intentions to do. If you complete this challenge, come back here and leave another comment and tell us all about it.

You might just be surprised at how a simple little something can make your heart happy too.

Are you in?

11 comments:

  1. I do the bag thing already! The hard thing for me is remembering, and I get so mad at myself when I forget!

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  2. I too use my own bags, but nothing bothers me more than when the clerk doesn't appear happy because I'm messing with her routine....hello, I'm just trying to save the earth!

    I'm also a huge recycler, but it's easy to do because they pick-up on the curb every friday. Nothing feels better to me when I know that my read newspapers or finished ketchup bottle will be re-used.....seriously!

    ~Stacey

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  3. HEllo,
    I have had good intentions to get my own bags just haven't written it into the budget. I will make great effort to do that, I also don't know how to find information on where to recyle and what can be recycled to do more like that. I too cut coupons and then let them sit around until they are expired then throw them away. Sorry can't even imagine the diaper thing yet, maybe next child. :(

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  4. I am not being even vaguely serious about the diaper thing- I think that even in dire circumstances I would still find a way to use disposable diapers.

    dysfunctinal mom & stacey: wow. I am impressed already and it is still morning. I hope someone else out there is a slacker like me! I am really behind on doing my own little part......

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  5. Today I actually took my plastic bags into be recycled. I save them, with the intention of doing it, but always forget. So, I had a BUNCH to recycle. I aleady recycle everything we can, replace bulbs with the energy efficient ones, use material bags when we don't have a lot to get, goodwill everything we don't use, use enviromentally friendly soaps and stuff. One of my friends is so into it that she *makes* her own detergent. I'm not that committed yet.

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  6. I did cloth diapers for a while with both of my children. It really isn't THAT bad... And I put my daughter in cloth training pants at night instead of pull-ups (I use the plastic diaper cover over the training pants. I'm glad she has drastically reduced the number of nights that she wets!

    I could try the bag thing. I'd be more likely to make my own shopping bags than buy some, and I might not do enough for our entire shopping trip. We stock up for food storage every shopping trip, so that would be a lot of bags. But I think I could easily make several bags to bring for shopping.

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  7. I'm so in. I don't do anything go so this is a start for me!!

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  8. Hey those reusable canvas bags are the BEST! They are $1 each, you HAVE to give it a try. They hold 3x more than plastic (volume, not just weight) and that means less trips to lug it all back in the house, if you know what I mean. Awesome. The only hard part is remembering to take them to the store! Good luck!

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  9. I am definitely going to use my shopping bags this week - I have been given a few and I'll make a habit of keeping them in the car, so that they are with me. And as for disposable diapers, I haven't had a break from diapers for 8 years solid (and we just had our last baby - so I've got at least 2 more to go). Each and everyone one of those is disposable - so I am a slacker too! :)

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  10. holy cow I don't do ANY of those things!!! Please don't tell!

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  11. Okay, I have never done anything before, I will even go so far to admitt I have rolled my eyes at "tree huggers" who want to save the world. But truth be known most enviromentally smart people aren't crazy, so today I knew this challenge and wanted to do this. So today when I went to the grocery store, I spent 3 bucks, and got the reusable canvas bags (which hold a ton!!), and will start using those. In fact my grocery store gives you back a nickel for every canvas bag you use. In fact it wasn't bad at all. Oh yeah, I also usually re-do furniture. I don't know if that is recycling or nnot but i have gotten old set of bunks beds, and with a little tightening of screws and a little re-finshing they are adorable and honestly it didn't cost me a dime, because I already had the stuff.

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