So in theory I love the hippie lifestyle. I think recycling is great, reuseable bags are genius, and people who do green things are more admirable than people who don't (yup, I just said that...). The thing is, I am a huge hypocrite when it comes to being green. Embarrassing.
FACT: I've lived here for 2 months, and up until last week I didn't recycle. boooo, hissss Ash!
FACT: Things have changed!
Now I'm not as gung ho as THIS girl (big props + love her!, but I'm not there yet...), but there were some things that needed adjusting in my house.
First of all, paper towels. I still have a couple of rolls around the house (and admit to using them more than I'd like), but for cleaning, I have switched to rags. I have a small laundry basket that I toss them into when I'm done and every week or two I throw all of them in the wash. I normally let them air dry, then put them back into the wicker basket in my kitchen to use over and over again! They're super convenient and make me feel better than using 400 paper towels to clean my kitchen counter! Next up, cloth napkins-- but I haven't made the jump yet.
Secondly, recycling. Easy, breezy. Done and done. I scrubbed out the recycling container that was left here by the previous tennants (it was grrrroooosss), and now am a happy Allied Waste recycler. They pick up the bin every 2 weeks, but it fills up quickly (!!)...and they accept clear glass bottles, but not colored glass ones (red wine?); they accept paper, but not cardboard (cereal boxes?). So of course I'll have to make a trip or two a month to drop off those things, but it's totally worth it not to feel so guilty about being such a lame-o when it comes to my carbon footprint. Wa-tothe-hoo!
Thirdly, composting!! I DIYed a compost bin using these easy (cheap!) instructions- Seriously, so simple. Seth helped me tear up the newspaper and he LOVES adding stuff to the bucket. We keep an airtight container under the sink for food scraps, then transfer it out to the bin every few days. Hopefully I'll have enough amazing soil to start an organic veggie garden next year :)
So that's how we're getting green around here these days.. what do YOU do to get green? :) cheers!
Yeah! I was just thinking about how I need to do an "update" post about family cloth -- I really do love it! ;)
ReplyDeleteAND -- I am getting ready to make a compost bin a la YHL. Composting to us right now means taking out the food scraps & burying them in the ground. Lol. I'm excited about it... now I just need to do it!