What I Carry

Since I have decided to pursue a reducing waste life style I have been rethinking a lot of the things I do everyday.  

I used to not carry anything with me. Just my wallet, and phone.So when I went out for coffee I would get once per use items. When I ate food I would usually end up with disposable  forks and spoons. And I used a bazillion different Kleenexes. So I reevaluated how/what I should cary with me everyday. 

My thought is that if I come prepared everyday with the basics I need I won't create as much waste. I don't notice the amount of waste I create it just disappears into a large bin outside, or at the place I bought it. So I decided to be more aware and to start carrying a few basics with me. 

My bag is a hilarious cotton tote, with a jazz festival ad on it from 1996, it made me laugh so I bought it. Now I use it as a purse and it's perfect.

Here are a few things I carry around in my bag now:

-A spoon/fork combo. It's not a spork but it serves the same purpose

-I carry a large cloth. I bought it at ten thousand villages and it was meant to be a gift wrap. I use it as a napkin, a spare cloth bag (by tying the corners), or as a hankie.

-Either a nice to-go mug I got from Starbucks for a dollar, or a sturdy thermos. It depends on what I anticipate the day will bring.

-Sometimes I carry a reusable straw with me. 

-I also try to bring a Nalgene water bottle with me. Hydration is important! 

-For our wedding we were given some reusable produce bags and I carry one of those around with me in case I stop by a grocery store to grab a couple things.
-I also carry my keys and a hair tie

These things all take up about half of my bag, so I can use it to put things I purchase, so I don't have to take a plastic bag with me. It takes a tiny bit more effort but I like being able to use my own things and to avoid landfall waste. 

A lot of these ideas I got from other blogs or youtube videos. I plan on creating a post with a list of some of them so you can see my sources and see what it looks like when you've been living waste free for longer then a month! 

Being Prepared

Snacks are my favourite road trip ritual Unfortunately my habit at stopping at a gas station, getting some bad coffee, and as many snacks that can fit in my hands as possible creates an insane amount of trash. This is a breakdown of a typical raodtrip snack haul. One coffee, one cold drink, one bag of chips, one bag of candy, and probably some jerky (shout out to the Longview jerky store I love you.) Technically I could probably recycle the cold drink container, but I never do. So that means eleven pieces of trash, if you include the two creamer, two sugar packets and weird stir stick thing I used for my coffee. Depending on exactly what I bought that's half a grocery bag of trash. Not to mention the arm and the leg they charged me for those snacks, which also sucks.

This weekend Josh and I drove down to the pass to celebrate our nieces birthday. On Friday I had no work and it was another perfect opportunity to practice no waste.

Basic truth about Bronwyn: I love snacks. Problem: the snacks I usually buy are unhealthy, create a lot of waste, and are expensive. I would like to mention that me liking snacks is not the problem, I need food to sustain my body. Food is not something I want to attach words like 'problem', 'bad, or 'guilty' to, that creates a negative thought process around something I need to live. I'll probably write more about that later, I just wanted to clarify. Food=sustenance, how I buy food=problem.

My solution: make snacks ahead of time. Sounds easy but when your habit is a ten second mad scramble around a 7-11 the thought of prepping ahead is a little daunting.

So I made cookies. After ten seconds of googling I found an easy recipe for chocolate chip cookies. I had all the ingredients, I had tons of time. Easy. This took about 20 minutes not including how long it took to cook. Not the most healthy thing but better then inhaling a whole bag of Swedish berries and regular lightly salted chips.

I recently learned how to make smoothies. (Lol @ me I should have learned this skill way earlier in my life). I made one for breakfast with enough left over for to bring two mason jars of smoothie along for the ride. Cold drinks covered!

My only regret was not bringing along a to go mug with coffee, or for coffee, my last road trip essential. So I just didn't get a coffee. Don't worry I survived.

Replacing my old habit will take some time. But when I do the work I am happier with the choice I made and enjoy myself more! I replaced my gas station frenzy with some home made snacks, and drinks. I saved money, created less waste, and felt more accomplished!

Bulk Barn aka my new best friend

I went to bulk barn. In my reading I found that most 'zero waste' enthusiast shop bulk with their own jars. The idea of doing a whole shopping trip and bringing enough jars and cloth bags and produce bags seemed very intimidating to me. I didn't know how many jars I would need, I didn't know where exactly to buy things bulk. 

Earlier this week I had a small trip of errands to run. I needed three things: milk, trail mix, and icing sugar. A good practice run. 

I tried to find a way to buy milk that is totally waste free and most of the places I looked said to make your own. I am pretty stoked about zero waste, but Josh and I drink milk at an astronomical rate and if I had to make us milk I would never stop making milk. The two litre jugs are recyclable and thats good enough to me. If I ever try to make my own milk I will let you all know. I probably won't.

While at superstore picking up milk I saw some sweet mason jars, they were also on sale, and I bought them. They are wide mouth ones, a bit bigger then the ones I had to pick up trail mix with. I am very excited about them because I might try to make soup in a jar for work. That's another story, moving on. 

Next stop was Bulk Barn. Which I already think is a wonder land. Using jars are super easy! All I had to do was to bring the two jars I wanted to fill to the lady at the front, she weighed them and put a sticker with the weight on the lid. Then all I had to do was walk around, fill my jars, and then take them to the front. It's only one extra step and I am not collecting two plastic bags that will just be thrown out! I love it. 

To me going 'zero waste' is not about creating no waste as well as no recycling. But to actually recycle my recycling. I learned that to day while figuring out how to buy milk. I put another bag under my sink for recycling, that way it is just as easy for me to recycle. 

I also learned that it is one more step in my shopping trip to reduce the amount of trash I create! I also really enjoy using jars and figuring out how many I'll need and using produce bags because it feels like a puzzle! I am loving this adventure.

Tooth paste and Kindness

My mother is a well spring of information and grace. I spent hours yesterday talking to her about reducing waste, saving money, and making food. She was a gentle listener, giving me time to work things through and then giving her advice. She was always kind.

In this journey I want to give that kindness to myself.

My first intentional step is toothpaste. I already have already been doing things that reduce waste, I use two wool dryer balls instead of dryer sheets, I don't really use paper towel, I like reusable bags over plastic (even if I forget them more often then not), and I would rather purchase second hand. These are a wonderful foundation! For the last week I have been squeezing the last bits of toothpaste out of my tube, it was well and truly empty at this point and i tossed it in to the garbage beside my sink. This is the perfect opportunity to expand my list of waste reducing habits.

We were given a bunch of jam this summer, I don't really know how but we have an insane amount of jam. Yesterday morning Josh finished one of the 10,000 we have and the container it came in was the perfect size to put a little bit of toothpaste in! Recipes for toothpaste are really easy to find with a quick google. I used this one. I didn't add stevia or mryhh because I didn't feel like it and stevia makes me nervous.

I had the perfect container and an easy recipe waste free toothpaste here I come!

Fun fact, after 21 years of using commercial toothpaste homemade toothpaste tastes real bad. I almost got discouraged, almost threw out the toothpaste, and almost just used Josh's toothpaste til we both ran out. But I remember my mother, and how I want to show kindness to myself. The toothpaste was a success because I was acting on my values! It was a success because I tried something new! It was a success because I like trying new things! I will be patient and kind to myself while I learn how to be more mindful.

Values

How I function in the world displays clearly what I value. The clothes I wear send a message about who I am. What I chose to eat, and how I chose to grocery shop is a message about values. I don't eat at my parents expense anymore, so I have to make choices for myself about how I want to consume. Is the way I shop ethical and sustainable? Do I have more than I need while others are in want? How can I use my privilege to promote equality?

Waste:
Do you ever think about landfills? Until I watched a video of a man who wore all the garbage he created for a month I never thought about them. It was disgusting. Within the first day he had collected a couple pounds of trash. To-go coffee mugs, granola bar wrappers, chip bags, plastic bags, it just kept coming. It never really crossed my mind how much waste I produce everyday. It was a very tangible example of how much garbage a single person sends to a landfill in a short period of time. Gross. After this I started thinking about landfills.

I have a lot of spare time right now, so I read a lot of blogs. I stumbled on a zero-waste blog. The first thing I saw was a picture of the author holding a large glass jar with some trash in it. That was the entirety  of the trash she had created in a year! I kept thinking about landfills.

I don't want to go from being 'wearing my garbage man' to 'my garbage is literally non existent lady' in a day. But I want to move towards being a more responsible consumer. The landfill is full enough without the 47 cups of coffee I drink every single day, the paper towel I use to clean my counters, and the plastic bags I horde from the grocery store. It may be more work to become 'zero-waste', but I think it's worth it.

Food:
One of the steepest learning curves of being married and adulthood has been eating/grocery shopping/cooking. What works for me and Josh in regards to meal planning? How can we save money on food and still eat stuff we like? What is healthy but also reasonable for our lifestyle? What is our lifestyle? We are learning.

Clothes:
A couple years ago I lived out of a suitcase for a month. Just for kicks. I wanted to challenge myself, to be more aware of what I need and what I can do without. The problem was that after that month I didn't donate the clothes I hadn't worn to the thrift store or change my shopping habits. I would walk to the thrift store near my house regularly and return with a pair of shoes or a sweater or some pants that I NEEDED. It didn't matter that I already had six of the same thing already at home. It wouldn't cross my mind that someone else may need that thing more then me. And I never thought about how my clothes were made, or who made them. The suitcase experiment was a failure because it didn't translate into real change.

I am trying to change my shopping habits, to reduce the amount of clothes I have. And so purchase 'slow fashion' items and second hand. Sustainable, ethical, fashionable.


Josh thinks I'm just a hippy who loves the earth. I don't see the problem.

I want to share my journey with others of what it looks like for me to reduce waste, grocery shop responsibly , and dress sustainably.