The 4 Rs

Today's post:::::::::: THE 4 Rs!!!!!!! Reduce, reuse, recycle, rethink. Sigh I love them so.

Note- there is a VERY good chance I will drone on and on and on about this topic since it's something I am passionate about (but have never written about?? What's up with that??). I will try to be concise, also something I am not great at. I'm TOTALLY going to be one of those old people who everyone avoids because I cannot stop talking about my grandkids, aches and pains, kids these days, what's the world coming to, etc.

Reuse- these were around our dangerous (and yes, still dangerous since it isn't filled in completely) pond. I'm giving them away on Craigslist. Also, that little bridge in the background is going too. Anything we outgrow, won't use, don't need we pass to family members or give away/sell on Craigslist. BTW, if anyone wants the stuff in the picture, speak now!!! We also have a free flagpole!!! Removal is all up to you though;)

Reuse- This is the guest room. Progress in this room has not actually been shared with the Internet so don't tell anyone you saw this picture:) We're saving a lot of those boards to make raised beds for our garden and for building stuff (bookshelves? I dunno, we'll see when time magically expands and we have more of it).

Recycle- This is all from the garage clean out. I need to go tear down those boxes before Thursday, then lug them down our LOOOOONG driveway for recycling. PS- see how the trashcan lid is slightly ajar? Don't do that when you have raccoon neighbors!!! I need to clean that up too now.

Recycle- We fill this little trashcan up 2-4 times a week and dump it in a bigger trashcan in the garage. When it's full, we drag it to the curb for Thursday recycling. Most recycling services offered by trash companies cost anywhere from $5-15 every quarter. That comes to $5 (at the most!!!) a month. The biggest reason I hear from everyone about not recycling is the cost. Pretty sure anyone could afford $5 a month!!!

And most recycling services don't even make you sort the trash!!! All we do it dump everything recyclable in one small trashcan in the kitchen then transfer it to our designated garage trashcan!! Our trash company, CGS, gave us a recycling bin but it's waaaay to small for the amount we recycle! Set the recycling container on the curb with your trash and be happy for your kids (or nieces/nephews)!!!! THEY are the ones who will really deal with all this crap we're putting in our environment.

Rethink- We don't use paper plates, plastic cups, or disposable napkins. Think about it: if you invest $20-30 in cloth napkins, that's pretty much all you'll spend for years on wiping your mouth while you are eating. PS- We do keep all those disposable things on hand for big parties. When you have 15-20 people over you might not have enough real dishes, cups, or napkins for everyone. Other things we do:

• Cloth diapers for C
• Compost our kitchen scraps
• Buy gallons of milk instead of 1/2 gallons
• Buy big bags of chips, cereal, large containers of yogurt, etc. instead of individual, smaller containers
• Installed a whole house water filter so we will NEVER have to buy bottled water. We have reusable water bottles for traveling.

Do you recycle? Please tell me that you do!! Sometimes I get kinda down about American society and our desperate need for stuff to fill our lives. We save to buy that shirt/game/thing we want but not to responsibly dispose of the trash WE create?

If you don't recycle, please consider signing up for it! Set a date (like April 1 or Earth Day, April 22) and commit to calling and getting recycling added to your trash service. And if they don't offer it, tell the company you would love to see it added. And then bag up your recyclables and cart them every few weeks to a public recycling facility. Fun...

PS- Have you ever watched The Story of Stuff? Very interesting!!!!