(hug a tree. you know you want to.)I kind of enjoy change. Except when it involves pain, agonizing choices, or packing and unpacking boxes.
This year, for me, it's all about changing my perspective - especially when it comes to my buying habits. Not that long ago (just last month, in fact) if I needed something new to read I would simply go to Amazon.com, pull up my five-page Wish List, and select at least $25 worth of books so I could qualify for FREE Super Saver Shipping!!! (some restrictions apply)
Then I would browse through the helpful recommendations that Amazon compiled exclusively for me, replenish my Wish List for next time, skip over to the Toys & Games department to see if there are any new toys I must must must buy for the grandbaby, hunt around the Gourmet Food section just for the heck of it, and then look up recipes using Hawaiian Black Lava Salt, which sounds very intriguing but looks like little black pebbles in a jar.
It was all quite time-consuming.
But very easy.
So now, since I'm buying nothing new this year, I simply printed out my Wish List. I carry it in my purse in case my car is magnetically drawn to either the library or Half Price Books (a local book resale shop).
That's easy too!
"But what does this have to do with Wednesdays" you may be wondering, if you even remember the title of my post after all this rambling. Well, I'll tell you. I discovered a terrific website called Reduce Footprints that issues a weekly challenge called Change The World Wednesdays.
This week's challenge is to only use reusable mugs/coffee cups/glasses. That's super easy for me, since I have no life and rarely leave the house. I'll bring a travel mug to church on Sunday (our church has a fabulous coffee bar - I love a church that smells like coffee!!).
Easy!
In fact, I'll also stop using styrofoam plates for my English muffin in the mornings. Awful habit, I know. Sorry.
I'll do better - one baby footprint at a time.
~~~
13 comments:
I love those ideas....we recently bought those plastic leftover containers advertised in those infomercials, but you know what? We have saved SO much money on NOT buying baggies or ziplock bags because we use the other containers instead over and over..they came in a bunch of sizes on a round storage shelf so they are always handy...and we just wash them and use them over and over....I will have to go to your site to get more ideas! Thanks!
Hawaiian Black Lava Salt? Wow! (lol) I see now that your "buy nothing new year" is, indeed, going to be a challenge! :) Actually, I think it's brilliant and I'm looking forward to reading all about the experience!
Wonderful that you're giving up Styrofoam ... it's truly a nasty substance!
Thank you for mentioning our Change The World Wednesday challenges ... and for joining in the fun!
Take Care!
Small Footprints
I like the cup challenge (staring at my Starbuck's drink as I type). Thanks for posting the links, too.
I commend you on the "buy nothing new year". Liked your post!
Giving up styrofoam, hmmm. I'm bad about using styrofoam plates for my paint pallets. They work so well! I do stick to one or two a week, though. On the other hand, we always use reusable beverage containers and hubby often carries his lunch to work in an old salsa or peanut butter jar! They are easy to warm as is and easy to wash! We also use the blank side of all of our junk mail for items we print on our printer.
Retired One: Great tip! I use lots of ziplock bags, even though I have little plastic containers on hand. Gosh, there are so many bad habits I could easily change!
Small Footprints: I'm happy we have discovered each other's blogs! I have a feeling this will be quite an educational year for me.
PCDee: Thanks! I love the challenges on Small Footprints because they're just for a week - but they just might change some of my lazy habits.
Ramblin Mama: Oh wow, using your junk mail in your printer is a brilliant idea! Love it.
A Styrofoam plate for an ENGLISH muffin? What an insult! I'm so glad you're ditching those.
I used to have the Amazon habit too. Now I put the names of books I like the look of into my mobile phone's 'to do list'. In bookshop. Out comes phone. And lots of money.
Congrats on making this change. It's a biggie, and I'm looking forward to reading about it!
(Also, I was reading your older posts and saw you have a goal of writing a chapter of a book. You should look into NaNoWriMo if you don't know about it already. You sign up to write a novel during the month of November. Surprisingly fun! You don't have time to think about it being overwhelming or un-doable. You just do it!)
Fran: Oops, I'm sorry about the styrofoam faux pas. I'll use my mom's English bone china instead! That's only fitting for an English muffin, I suppose.
What A Card: Thanks, I'll definitely look into that!
Great idea! You're not one of those people who rinses out Ziplock bags and reuses them are you???
Oh my blog post with your "teeth" paragraph is finally up!
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