A Beautiful Day: healing momma earth

Wavy's comment asking for recycling tips wasn't the first I've received about it, so I'll assume for the moment you're all good if we segue into some talk about it and specifics about what we do here in Casa della Crazy.

Effective recycling and reducing your output is simple once you set yourself up for success. First, you need to know what's recyclable, or what's "in." This may sound silly, but until S did his own research and enlightened me there were things I never thought of as actually in. Such as certain bits of plastic on this or that or that pieces of actual aluminum foil you use to wrap things could be rinsed and balled up and were in. This website for a town DPW in CA is actually very good at explaining the different types of recyclables and how to prepare them for pickup - check out the numbered plastics section. What it comes down to is that you have to make it a habit to look at everything you're tossing out - train yourself to check for a symbol and do a quick coldwater rinse. Keep a copy of your town's recycling rules on your fridge.

I would think the next step is organizing your home so that you can recycle - our house, built during the energy crisis of the 70s, has quite a small kitchen - we have cabinet space for regular garbage and that's about it. Early on we'd keep recyclables on the counter with the idea that when it gets full, we'd dump it to the bigger recycle buckets in the garage. First we tried to use a box then bags then nothing and that whole concept ended up not working - I was frustrated with looking at a perpetual mess. From there I decided we'd have to walk a little further to dispose of these items, and commandeered part of our laundry room (by stacking our washer and dryer we gave ourselves quite a bit more space in there). I figured by making this a habit - by taking a few extra steps every time you had to dispose of an in item, we'd burn a few extra calories a day and keep the mess out of sight. And so far it's worked. I have a hanging plastic bag for plastics and foil/metals. I have a larger brown paper bag for cardboard and paper. Whenever these fill up I take them out to the garage to go in to the buckets. A few times a week S or I will transfer what's in these buckets to the very large trash recycle bins outside - we have two large for recyclables and one for regular trash. The typical smaller recycle bins you get from your DPW are too small for us - we invested in the monster-sized ones and now no longer have problems with overflow and trash blowing all over the neighborhood on a windy day.

Like I've said before, we made the decision to use disposable vs. cloth diapers (landfill vs. hotwater use/CO2 emissions? I'm still on the fence) and even with 3 kids, we still manage one barrel of landfill trash to every two recycled. We can do better, for certain. But it's a start. The next step is figuring out how to reduce even our recycling so that our total trash output is as minimal as possible.

One change I've instituted since the babies came is shopping twice a month at a local warehouse club - I'm driving less and by purchasing staples in bulk when I can, we're reducing the amount of packaging that we eventually toss out which really, when you look at your garbage, is what accounts for the bulk of it.

And while on the subject of reducing, the first area I'm making changes is in the bathroom - if you saw my vanity you'd be stunned by the amount of product I've got laying around from years of thinking I needed so many options (i.e.for moisturizer, color). Since the babies came it's been much easier to avoid picking up this or that - with constraints on my time my shopping outings lately are more of a mission than a browse-and-see-what-I-might-like trip. That and I'm only wearing makeup or hairspray on days that really matter. But still, there is so much I don't use in there. So much waste. It's time to clean it up, clean it out, give away what's not yet tainted with my germs and learn to remind myself that if I don't use it, then I don't really need it, do I. I hope to transfer that mindset to other areas of my world, such as my closets and the kids' toyroom. By cleaning it all up you learn what you really do use and need, and therefore can make better decisions about what you elect to continue to buy. I'll do a future post on what I find to be recyclable in there while I'm at it, if it interests you.

Finally, there's composting. Buy a composter. All your cooking leftovers (with the exception of certain proteins - if you're serious about it, here's a good link) can go in. Plan a garden for this coming growing season and feed your seedlings your nutrient-rich leftovers. This summer, enjoy a bountiful harvest - your plantings will help clean the air we breathe, your backyard will be more beautiful, and you'll be a locavore eating organic, fresh food that's soooo good for you. It's a win/win/win/win.

Does this help? I hope it does.
Happy recycling!!