I sometimes worry at what a marketing concept “green” has become. When something gets that popular, it usually eventually gets just as unpopular, and everyone swings in the opposite direction. It’s all just fads to them - trends to play with. A big game.

As we … READ MORE

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Years ago, an office I was working at switched to recycled toilet paper in the restrooms, and it was horrible. Scratchy, painful stuff. Seventh Generation, maker of recycled paper products and environmentally friendly cleaners, acknowledges their own bathroom tissue used to be like that, but … READ MORE

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When I was a kid, the way we got chilled hands warm in the winter was to stick them under warm running water. There were two problems with this plan: one, that a lot of water got wasted while we waited for it to run … READ MORE

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If you think you need to wash your clothes every time you wear them, you’re wasting water, energy and money, and shortening the life of your clothes.

Here’s the rule: if you sweat in it, go ahead and wash it. If you get something on it … READ MORE

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As my regular readers will know, I’m a big fan of getting off junk mail lists. My real mail is quite enough stuff to process, file, scan and shred. The last thing I need is more paperwork!

My new carrier is not respecting my right to write … READ MORE

Posted in Going Green, Scam Notices No Comments »

A few months ago, I swore off bottled water and switched to drinking filtered water through a Klean Kanteen. I thought I should go ahead and review it in more detail in case any of you are thinking about buying a Klean Kanteen.

I wanted to … READ MORE

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You don’t have to buy expensive plant food mixtures full of additives from gardening shops. Making your own homemade plant food is very easy, using common, inexpensive ingredients. Of course, composting makes great rich soil for plants, and since it uses your trash it’s totally … READ MORE

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If only I’d seen this before I bought barbells so I could exercise my upper body without paying a gym membership. Danny Seo made dumbells out of old CDs, a threaded rod and some bolts:

150 CDs, about 75 on each side, on a threaded rod … READ MORE

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My family always reused plastic and paper shopping bags as garbage bags, long before “going green” was even a term. We did it to save money. We thought people were unbelievably lacking in common sense to throw out perfectly good bags and spent money buying … READ MORE

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Vinegar is amazing. I’m finding it’s just about the only ingredient I need for cleaning. It’s safe, inexpensive, green and less obnoxious than scented cleaners or harsh chemicals like ammonia.

In these tips, “vinegar” means distilled white vinegar unless it says otherwise.

1. Garbage disposal seals and trash … READ MORE
   
   

   Posted in Cleaning, Frugal, Going Green 1 Comment »