Going to Bulgaria

A couple of weeks ago, I went to the movies with a couple of friends, and when we sat down I distributed some bags of trail mix and chocolate pretzels to everyone. (Yes, I realize this makes me seem like a soccer mom.)

My friends went on and on about how delicious it was.

"It's from the bulk area," I said.

My friend misheard.

"It's from Bulgaria?"

So now, I think of the bulk area as "Bulgaria."

Bulgaria is my favorite part of the grocery store. Stores with small Bulgarias? They just upset me. As processed foods have come to prominence, it seems like most stories have given up their bulk sections, or cut them down to just a few bins of peanuts. But a good bulk section can cut your costs and your waste.

In fact, it can even cut your waste to a couple of handfuls a year, as this California family shows:

What I want to know is, where did they get bulk wine?

You Gotta Have a System

As I've slowly adopted more sustainable lifestyle habits over the last year and a half, I began to realize that my home wasn't set up to accommodate them. For example, when I used to use paper towels, I didn't need a special place to put them when they were used. Their special place was known as "the garbage." Once I gave them up, however, I suddenly needed a system to take care of clean and dirty rags.

Over time, I've devised many such systems:

Our town has some curbside recycling, for plastic, cardboard and paper. I keep a bin right outside the door for these items. Bottles have to be taken to the recycling center, so I keep a bag under the sink for those.

While there's probably no real justification for it, I don't like to put dirty rags in the laundry with my clothes. I put used rags and washcloths into this basket. I use a lot of rags because I spill a lot. Clean rags have a bin in the kitchen.

Sometimes (oh, horror!) I forget to bring my reusable bags to the store. If the place doesn't have paper and I can't just carry out my purchases in my hands, I get plastic bags. They get re-used for cleaning the litterbox. (True story - this box with a nice useful hole in it was named "The Funbox" by the company that manufactures it. I'll wait until you can stop tittering)

Because I don't want to put paper outside in our tropical, humid clime, I keep a separate bin for paper that's going to get recycled. The bin is for magazines and flat paper. The garbage can is for shredded paper, which also gets recycled. I sometimes need to print items for work, so paper that has been printed on one side goes into the printer to be reused.

These shelves in the kitchen hold reusables. The red fabric bin holds paper bags. I use those to put the magazines out to the curb for recycling, or to hold the bottles (also for recycling). The produce bags get reused for more produce or go back to Central Market for recycling (I'm really trying to cut back on these.) Once a Zip-loc bag is used, I wash it out and use it again. A Ziploc bag also holds tinfoil that can be reused. (I realize this paragraph is making me sound like a Depression-era granny. Good! They really knew how to reuse!)

What systems do you have to keep your green life organized?

Note: Sorry I've been absent for so long, Greenies! I've been sick with a bad cold, and have been pretty much reduced to staring at the TV for the past week. But I'm on the mend and hope to be posting more regularly!

Greening My Closet

Recently, I received my weekly Gorgeously Green newsletter to find an article on how being green demands a certain level of forethought and organization. This resonated with me, as I've noticed that eating fewer processed foods, saving energy, and consuming less all involve planning. For example, those savvy Light Green readers who have followed me from the beginning (you know who you are!), may have noticed that July should have been another No-Buy Month for me. Unfortunately, my lack of planning has tripped me up.

At the beginning of this year, I resolved that every third month, I would not buy any non-consumables for thirty days. January and April were successful, and some friends even joined me in April. However, because I didn't even realize that July was here until the third (which, I think, speaks volumes about the degree to which I am wrapped up in So You Think You Can Dance, to the exclusion of, you know, actual reality) I was not able to prepare for No-Buy Month. I realized that I needed some additions to my professional wardrobe for an upcoming conference. What's a girl to do?

I decided that although I was going to have to make a couple of purchases, I should not go about it willy-nilly, but attempt to be a better planner and truly evaluate what I actually needed and what I did not. To do that, I had to get a sense of what I owned that was appropriate for five days of professional dress. That would involve ... CLEANING MY CLOSET (cue opening strains of Thriller).

This has become the Holy Grail of Household Chores around here, because my clever cat, Wily, has discovered that it is fun to pull things off the shelves in the closet. I shove the clothes back onto the shelves without folding them, resolving to clean it up on the weekend. This has been going on since January. You can probably visualize the mess that's been created, but if not, here's a look-see:

Wily surveys the destruction he hath wrought.

Throughout the process of cleaning my closet, I came up with a few organizational tips that you might be able to use if you want to green your closet, garage, etc., all going back to the three R's (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle).

1) Reduce. Or ... Lay your embarrassing level of consumption out on the table (or bedroom floor as the case may be):

In contrast to many Americans, I think I have a low-level of consumption. My apartment and car are both small, and what I can buy is limited by the amount of room I have (or don't) to stash stuff. Nevertheless, I find that twice a year I'm a little sickened by how much I've accumulated. The key is to really get a good look at the stuff, and evaluate what can go on to another, happier life. I happened to throw my stuff all over the bedroom, then asked myself the following questions:

2) Reuse: Can your stuff help someone else?

When I evaluated my things, I found there were lots of things I didn't need, but that others could use. That big pile in the middle of the floor? That all went to Goodwill. I choose to give to Goodwill, because I like the focus of their work, but there are many charities that also need your donations. You can find one that suits your sensibilities.

3) Repurpose and Reuse: Can you use your stuff in a new way?

These T-shirts were too grungy to go to Goodwill, so I was going to throw them away. But then I realized that they could make lovely cleaning rags, thus reducing my dependence on paper towels.

4) Re (or Up)-Cycle: Can your stuff be transformed?

Due to my long-running fascination with boho chic, which has once again become de mode, I had a lot of clothes made out of cool vintagey fabrics, with beautiful screen prints, or that were too sentimental to give up. I did not want them cluttering my closet however. These, I boxed up for upcycling. They can become the linings of knitted handbags, embellishments on clothes, or the raw material for handmade greeting cards.

Here's the finished closet:

I was happy to discover that, after all of that, I needed to buy only a cardigan and a blouse to create the five days of professional outfits that I needed. And I'm much happier every time I look in the closet.

Just a note: This week we passed 1000 hits! Huzzah! Thanks for reading, and keep coming back for more.

Coming up: As promised before I sprained my hand, recipes for homemade hummus, and an Auntie Chronicles. Also, a few thoughts on greenwashing.