I'm in the process of changing my Misfits day from Wednesday back to Friday in the hope of better choices and delivery.
So this means a couple of extra days before I get the next box, next week. Which I'm using to see if I can get ahead of the vegetables in the freezer, by means of soup.
Hence today's leeks, yay the last of them, spinach, parsley, onion, garlic soup with diced yellow potatoes added. Chicken stock cubes, Old Bay, salt. After it's blended I may add in a bit of hot sausage.
And the many times rewashed and reused self sealing bags, draining. Enough plastic comes in uninvited that it's years since I bought containers or bags. I wash and reuse parchment paper and tinfoil, too, unless it's been around chicken or sausage.
I've been doing this for many years, back to the first Earth Day, when people ridiculed it, with dismissive names like cheapskate. Times have changed, younger people are more aware, and it's ages since anyone made dismissive remarks. So in this way, at least, things are better.
Take joy where you can find it! While I was writing the labels for this post, predictive text, seeing the word reuse, helpfully suggested I meant apple streusel. I might consider it. I do have apples in the freezer. Not right now though.
You go above and beyond! I applaud you!
ReplyDeleteI reuse all my plastic too. Bags and containers. I hang the bags out to dry and put them back in rotation.
ReplyDeleteI bet that soup is going to be good.
Good for you! When I was a child no one gave it a second thought. It's just what was done. Bread bags were a big one that we never threw away. There are so many uses for them. I remember once it snowed and I wanted to play in it but I didn't have boots. My Dad put bread bags over my shoes and I had a blast!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your saving the Earth tips!
ReplyDeleteSaving those resealable bags is something I didn't consider. It is a Fantastic practice I will put to good use.
I save and wash my plastic bags and foil too, always have. I used to make my own paper bags out of waxed paper for the kids' sandwiches and chips when they were in school and taking their lunch. all their friends wanted to know if their parents were hippies. and I bought my first cloth reusable bag back in 1970. I'd even same the plastic produce bags and take them with me to grocery shop reusing them. I got many a snicker and eye roll from the cashiers. we had a paper plant near where we lived that would buy and reuse paper. I'd wait til I had a small truck load, never enough for them to pay me but I didn't care. the local grocery store had containers for recycling glass and aluminum long before anyone else even thought about recycling and I'd lug all my glass and aluminum cans down when I grocery shopped. then the schools started collecting newspaper and other paper. I was thrilled when the city finally started curbside pick up. now I live in a small town that only collects paper, cardboard, plastic bottles, and aluminum cans while the grocery stores take plastic bags. I when the pandemic started and they would no longer let you use your reusable bags, I put boxes in my trunk and just have them load the groceries back in the cart and I load the boxes. doesn't take me any more time to do that then it did to secure all those bags.
ReplyDeleteI was among the first to bring my own bags and clerks would try to force me to accept their plastic bags, packed into my cloth ones! Force of habit, I suppose.
Deleteyes, you tell them NO bags and still they manage to sneak one or two in. putting things back in the cart brought that to a halt.
DeleteMy grocery quit packing our carry in bags when Covid came. Customers could pack their own, but I was so slow I had half the store lined up behind me.
ReplyDeleteWhere I shop some clerks refuse to touch the bag, others pack it. I buy few items but outside Misfits, so I don't hold up too many y while I pack for the checkers who don't.
DeleteI also have a few plastic grocery bags I've been using repeatedly for years.
plastic store bags make the most amazing insulation. No joke. I've been making catbeds for years with it, they love the crunchy noise and it gives them back their own body heat. When we take down an old plaster wall Im right there with the kitchen knife and bags of plastic store bags to stuff in between the lathes. The pink stuff is fine, but it doesn't adapt well to old post and beam houses, so this fills in the spaces very nicely. Recycling at its finest.
DeleteBetween the woodstoves, the compost heap, and the walls, not much makes it to the landfill.
Since covid hit we haven't been allowed to bring our own bags and most stores won't allow you to take the carts out to your car so we're sort of forced into plastic bags. We had an over abundance and used them to pack around some dishes we were sending out to our family and they were thrilled to get them. They need to put used diapers in them for disposal so they are always needing more than they get.
ReplyDeleteWe bring own bags but a lot of checkers won't touch them so we pack for ourselves. If we couldn't take carts to the car I wouldn't be able to shop. I can't carry multiple things as far as that. Just as well almost all my produce comes to the door.
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