Reducing - just because you have indoor plumbing doesn't mean you can waste the water. It only means you don't have to pump it and carry it home.
Turn the faucet off when brushing your teeth. By the way, toothpaste used to come with usage suggestions on the package but they no longer do that. Instead they show you repeatedly commercials that would suggest you put an inch long DQ swirl of toothpaste on your brush and put all that in your mouth. The crummy bastards would love for you to waste that much of their product in an attempt to get the Hollywood teeth they lure you with. You only need a pea-sized amount of toothpaste on your brush. A pea is about a quarter inch in diameter. That's a tiny amount compared to what the "common knowledge" would have us believe. It is NOT the toothpaste that cleans your teeth, it is the water and the action of the brush. The toothpaste is only there to assist the water in the washing away of what your brushing action removes from your teeth. I learned this from my dentist. Your tooth brush is a hand tool, stay focused on your hands and the action of the tooth brush. This is not a good time to be in the habit of just brushing away and going through the routine. Picture each tooth as you brush it. Only brush and floss the teeth you want to keep. Even the best, most focused and comprehensive brushing will reach only 2/3rds of your tooth. You gotta floss. I also suggest you put your hand under the slowly running faucet to hold the water and sip the water from your hand to swish and spit. There is nothing so bacteria laden as that glass or paper cup that you bring up to your foamy mouth and then set on the sink. Also, you dry your hand, you dry your mouth, dry your tooth brush off before you put it away. Actually, rinse it and dry it off before put it away, you will be putting it back in your mouth again after is sits for about 12 hours. 12 hours is a long time for bacteria from your mouth to set up housekeeping on that moist, food rich toothbrush.
Most folks use a dishwasher and lots of studies have shown that it uses less water than hand washing. Personally, despise dish washers but I accept the less water argument. I trade off the less water usage with the less electricity usage. If you have a family and generate a lot of dishes, get the family to all take turns washing the dishes. It is good for the soul to understand from a young age what it takes to get a human being through it's day. If you dirty a dish, you should get it that the dish needs to be cleaned. Everyone should know what is involved in maintaining the lives we lead. (sorry if I'm preaching, it's my intent to teach but sometimes I do slide up on the soap box) If you open the dish washer and can smell the chlorine based cleaner you use, there is a lingering residue of chlorine on the dishes. Chlorine is exceptionally volatile, which means it diffuses easily into the air. Chlorine has been linked to breast cancer, by the way. Our lungs are designed to give our bloodstream the benefit of all we breathe, oxygen in particular, but any volatile chemistry is also going directly into our blood when we breathe it, whether we can smell it or not. Also, that residue on the dishes will stay right there until you put hot food on it and release the chlorine again so we eat it. Please don't use chlorine based dish washing soap to wash your dishes, but if you choose to, use HALF of what the box or bottle suggests you use for a load of dishes. We are being played by these manufacturers. Doesn't that make you mad? It does me.
Reusing - especially anything plastic is a good idea, but keep in mind that over time and with reheating and freezing, plastic breaks down. It sheds plastic molecules and they aren't good to ingest. I reuse plastic containers with the nice snap on lids a lot like we all do, but don't be afraid to toss them in the recycle bin after they start to feel rough inside. I never nuke plastic, don't trust that there isn't a hot spot that makes the plastic leach into the food. I wash out and reuse plastic ziplock bags but only reuse them a couple times before I rinse them one last time and toss them in the recycle bin. Once they start to get creased or cloudy looking, don't trust that they aren't starting to flake away on the microscopic level. I know glass bottles break, but I reuse glass jelly jars, etc to store left overs and to make up single serve portions. I toss them in the recycle bin when inside the lid starts to look roughed up where it seals with the top of the jar. If, after washing, it looks a bit dark, like a dark green mold color, I toss it in the recycle bin.
I definitely prefer squirt bottles over spray bottles for cleaning solutions. Reuse the squirt bottles of lotion, catsup etc and put your cleaning chemistry in them. The spray bottles diffuse the chemistry into the air and that is a waste. Much better to squirt the cleaner directly onto your cloth and clean from there. When you spray glass cleaner onto a window, for instance, you loose a lot of it to evaporation and to gravity taking it to the floor or window sill. Also, after you spray, the very next thing you do is lean your face right into the cloud of cleaner to reach the window with your cleaning cloth. Not a very good design. Squirt your cleaner on your cloth, squirt the toilet bowl cleaner right on the porcelain or on your cloth when you wipe the seat, etc. You use less and breath less. Besides, the spray device is made up of various kinds of plastic and has a metal spring inside it, I doubt it recycles that well and most of them leak when exposed to warmer temperatures (the warmth expands the chemistry and air inside the bottle, forcing the liquid up the tube and out the nozzle and all drippy down the side of the bottle - I love physics). One important note, anytime you put any chemistry in a different container than what it came in, you must write the contents and the dilution on the bottle with magic marker so it won't wash off. Always, safety first. You have to know what's in that bottle and if it is full strength or diluted.
I am a big fan of reusing the pump dispensers that foam up the soap. Method brand does make a good quality pump device. The pump is substantial and the base of the bottle is wide so it sits securely. We've used the same pump bottles for many years at the kitchen sink and both bathroom sinks. I suggest you buy the largest, most cost and packaging efficient bottle of liquid soap, dilute the liquid soap by at least half with water to make the most of the pump/foam design. By the way, hand soap, dish soap, it's all the same chemistry (emulsifiers and surfactants). Buy what ever is cheapest and is least scented, cut it half with water and only use as little as is necessary to get the job done. You'll save money and you'll use less packaging and send less chemistry down the drain, into the public sewer system, through the sewage treatment plant and out into what ever big water is near your home.
Recycling - here are a couple great sites that talk about the particulars of the curbside single stream recycling in Lewiston and Portland and an article about an electronics demanufacturing facility in Auburn. http://www.ci.lewiston.me.us/index.aspx?NID=205
http://publicworks.portlandmaine.gov/recycling.asp
http://bangordailynews.com/2011/08/17/news/lewiston-auburn/new-law-enables-auburn-recycling-firm-to-expand/
So, beyond the curbside recycling that is happening (see previous post Mid November - Thanks for Recycling for all the reasons why to get in on this most excellent public service paid for by your tax dollars) I do have some ideas on recycling.
Use the backs of junk mail envelopes for making to-do lists or for grocery lists.
I found a wool carpet runner that had been chewed on by moths. I used it in the garden as a ground cover. It completely decomposed in 2 years and kept the undergrowth down. I also use cardboard and black and white newsprint as ground cover in the garden.
The ultimate in recycling is composting. If you aren't in the composting habit yet, coffee grounds and tea bags are a good place to start. Toss the grounds and spent tea right on the ground, either under and around your plants or just out the back door to accumulate. When you're out in the yard, spread the pile around, these ingredients are excellent for your soil. City folk have to be concerned about their composting attracting city wildlife, skunks, raccoons, ground hogs, etc. I've found that if I grind up the kitchen waste before I take it out to the compost pile, the animals don't consider it food. We have a nice meat grinder that works really well for that purpose. You could chop up your kitchen scraps to quicken the decomposing and to dissuade the wildlife.
The Holidays is such a great time to rethink our consumer habits. Re-gifting, buying tickets to events or certificates for a service instead of items and giving gifts of food and flowers are all ways to take gift giving into the next century. The current extreme of consumerism has only been a recent event in human history. Don't let it define us, it certainly won't sustain us. I think of it as a cultural experiment, just as feudalism and imperialism had their day and got done, so too will consumerism. The other "societal constructs" became unsatisfactory because they inherently created upper and lesser classes of people and divided the population into dominators and the dominated. Unchecked consumerism is creating a society of the poisoned and manipulated dominated by the extremely wealthy. This can't last much longer, the poisoned and manipulated always rise up to shake off their tormentors.
Re-gifting - if you're a parent of grown kids, gift them with little items from around your home that will give them memories of when they were kids. Old friends would surely enjoy getting an old photograph of days gone by. Use coffee cups or chipped crystal wine glasses as a vase or plant pot. (If you put a live plant in a container that does not have drain holes, put a layer of sand or fine gravel in the bottom and don't over water.)
Have an "Art in the Attic" swap, a take-off of a Yankee Swap. Most of us have cool stuff in the attic. Get together with friends and neighbors and swap your art for something new and different from someone else's attic. One of the cool things about the US, is that with the exception of the Civil War, there hasn't been any major destructive force that has swept through and done massive damage. Meaning, just about anything that was here is still here, up in somebody's attic, basement or storage space. Shop from your own stuff.
Here's a quick list of services you may not have thought about giving as a gift that would keep your money in your neighborhood...
seamstress/tailor, dog groomer, hairdresser/spa time, housekeeper, landscaper, auto detailer, massage, yoga sessions, life coach, event planner, music lessons, drivers ed teacher, lessons in tennis or any sport like archery, skeet shooting, etc. Maybe you have a skill that you could teach. Write your own gift certificate for an hour of babysitting time, or 3 pool playing lessons, or go over to your old auntie's house and offer to read aloud her favorite book of poetry to her over tea. What a great present that would be to give and receive. There are many interesting classes available through Adult Ed, Continuing Ed and University outreach programs that would make a great gift. Let's feed our minds and feed our bodies instead of feeding our income to an unstable and ultimately self destructive system.
Then, of course,you could just go out. Take your friends and family out for a meal or drinks at a local drinking and dining establishment. Try someplace you've never been and wouldn't usually think of going. Then you'll have "remember when we went to that strange museum? or that weird ethnic restaurant?" memories to share.
Happy Holidays, may your days be merry and bright and your nights be filled with what ever you like.
Reusing - especially anything plastic is a good idea, but keep in mind that over time and with reheating and freezing, plastic breaks down. It sheds plastic molecules and they aren't good to ingest. I reuse plastic containers with the nice snap on lids a lot like we all do, but don't be afraid to toss them in the recycle bin after they start to feel rough inside. I never nuke plastic, don't trust that there isn't a hot spot that makes the plastic leach into the food. I wash out and reuse plastic ziplock bags but only reuse them a couple times before I rinse them one last time and toss them in the recycle bin. Once they start to get creased or cloudy looking, don't trust that they aren't starting to flake away on the microscopic level. I know glass bottles break, but I reuse glass jelly jars, etc to store left overs and to make up single serve portions. I toss them in the recycle bin when inside the lid starts to look roughed up where it seals with the top of the jar. If, after washing, it looks a bit dark, like a dark green mold color, I toss it in the recycle bin.
I definitely prefer squirt bottles over spray bottles for cleaning solutions. Reuse the squirt bottles of lotion, catsup etc and put your cleaning chemistry in them. The spray bottles diffuse the chemistry into the air and that is a waste. Much better to squirt the cleaner directly onto your cloth and clean from there. When you spray glass cleaner onto a window, for instance, you loose a lot of it to evaporation and to gravity taking it to the floor or window sill. Also, after you spray, the very next thing you do is lean your face right into the cloud of cleaner to reach the window with your cleaning cloth. Not a very good design. Squirt your cleaner on your cloth, squirt the toilet bowl cleaner right on the porcelain or on your cloth when you wipe the seat, etc. You use less and breath less. Besides, the spray device is made up of various kinds of plastic and has a metal spring inside it, I doubt it recycles that well and most of them leak when exposed to warmer temperatures (the warmth expands the chemistry and air inside the bottle, forcing the liquid up the tube and out the nozzle and all drippy down the side of the bottle - I love physics). One important note, anytime you put any chemistry in a different container than what it came in, you must write the contents and the dilution on the bottle with magic marker so it won't wash off. Always, safety first. You have to know what's in that bottle and if it is full strength or diluted.
I am a big fan of reusing the pump dispensers that foam up the soap. Method brand does make a good quality pump device. The pump is substantial and the base of the bottle is wide so it sits securely. We've used the same pump bottles for many years at the kitchen sink and both bathroom sinks. I suggest you buy the largest, most cost and packaging efficient bottle of liquid soap, dilute the liquid soap by at least half with water to make the most of the pump/foam design. By the way, hand soap, dish soap, it's all the same chemistry (emulsifiers and surfactants). Buy what ever is cheapest and is least scented, cut it half with water and only use as little as is necessary to get the job done. You'll save money and you'll use less packaging and send less chemistry down the drain, into the public sewer system, through the sewage treatment plant and out into what ever big water is near your home.
Recycling - here are a couple great sites that talk about the particulars of the curbside single stream recycling in Lewiston and Portland and an article about an electronics demanufacturing facility in Auburn. http://www.ci.lewiston.me.us/index.aspx?NID=205
http://publicworks.portlandmaine.gov/recycling.asp
http://bangordailynews.com/2011/08/17/news/lewiston-auburn/new-law-enables-auburn-recycling-firm-to-expand/
So, beyond the curbside recycling that is happening (see previous post Mid November - Thanks for Recycling for all the reasons why to get in on this most excellent public service paid for by your tax dollars) I do have some ideas on recycling.
Use the backs of junk mail envelopes for making to-do lists or for grocery lists.
I found a wool carpet runner that had been chewed on by moths. I used it in the garden as a ground cover. It completely decomposed in 2 years and kept the undergrowth down. I also use cardboard and black and white newsprint as ground cover in the garden.
The ultimate in recycling is composting. If you aren't in the composting habit yet, coffee grounds and tea bags are a good place to start. Toss the grounds and spent tea right on the ground, either under and around your plants or just out the back door to accumulate. When you're out in the yard, spread the pile around, these ingredients are excellent for your soil. City folk have to be concerned about their composting attracting city wildlife, skunks, raccoons, ground hogs, etc. I've found that if I grind up the kitchen waste before I take it out to the compost pile, the animals don't consider it food. We have a nice meat grinder that works really well for that purpose. You could chop up your kitchen scraps to quicken the decomposing and to dissuade the wildlife.
The Holidays is such a great time to rethink our consumer habits. Re-gifting, buying tickets to events or certificates for a service instead of items and giving gifts of food and flowers are all ways to take gift giving into the next century. The current extreme of consumerism has only been a recent event in human history. Don't let it define us, it certainly won't sustain us. I think of it as a cultural experiment, just as feudalism and imperialism had their day and got done, so too will consumerism. The other "societal constructs" became unsatisfactory because they inherently created upper and lesser classes of people and divided the population into dominators and the dominated. Unchecked consumerism is creating a society of the poisoned and manipulated dominated by the extremely wealthy. This can't last much longer, the poisoned and manipulated always rise up to shake off their tormentors.
Re-gifting - if you're a parent of grown kids, gift them with little items from around your home that will give them memories of when they were kids. Old friends would surely enjoy getting an old photograph of days gone by. Use coffee cups or chipped crystal wine glasses as a vase or plant pot. (If you put a live plant in a container that does not have drain holes, put a layer of sand or fine gravel in the bottom and don't over water.)
Have an "Art in the Attic" swap, a take-off of a Yankee Swap. Most of us have cool stuff in the attic. Get together with friends and neighbors and swap your art for something new and different from someone else's attic. One of the cool things about the US, is that with the exception of the Civil War, there hasn't been any major destructive force that has swept through and done massive damage. Meaning, just about anything that was here is still here, up in somebody's attic, basement or storage space. Shop from your own stuff.
Here's a quick list of services you may not have thought about giving as a gift that would keep your money in your neighborhood...
seamstress/tailor, dog groomer, hairdresser/spa time, housekeeper, landscaper, auto detailer, massage, yoga sessions, life coach, event planner, music lessons, drivers ed teacher, lessons in tennis or any sport like archery, skeet shooting, etc. Maybe you have a skill that you could teach. Write your own gift certificate for an hour of babysitting time, or 3 pool playing lessons, or go over to your old auntie's house and offer to read aloud her favorite book of poetry to her over tea. What a great present that would be to give and receive. There are many interesting classes available through Adult Ed, Continuing Ed and University outreach programs that would make a great gift. Let's feed our minds and feed our bodies instead of feeding our income to an unstable and ultimately self destructive system.
Then, of course,you could just go out. Take your friends and family out for a meal or drinks at a local drinking and dining establishment. Try someplace you've never been and wouldn't usually think of going. Then you'll have "remember when we went to that strange museum? or that weird ethnic restaurant?" memories to share.
Happy Holidays, may your days be merry and bright and your nights be filled with what ever you like.
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