3 Things You Need To Stop Using – TODAY

Did You Know? “Already, the ocean is filled with about 165 million tons of plastic. That’s 25 times heavier than the Great Pyramid of Giza.  By 2050, plastic in the oceans (is predicted to) outweigh fish.”

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One thing that drives me nuts is throw-away plastic.  I really can’t stand it.

And because it’s Earth Day this weekend I thought it would be a good time to address throw-away plastic.

3 Things You Need To Stop Using, TODAY

1. Plastic Serving Items:

Plastic plates, utensils, cups, bowls, straws – all need to go!  I can’t remember the last time I purchased any of those items.   I remember in the 19th century when we thought using plastic items was incredibly smart because it made clean-up easier, but that was the 19th century when we didn’t know how much that was effecting our mother earth.

Honestly, it takes two seconds to get everything through the dishwasher & once you get in the habit of it, you don’t even notice the clean-up.

Large garbage bags filled with plastic serving utensils is disturbing.  Not to mention half of it blows away or breaks in the process & isn’t even used.  Instead – use real, affordable, inexpensive items that you’ll easily be able to wash, store, & reuse.

2. Zip Lock Bags:

Zip Lock Bags are dumb.  Wafiq had a hard time letting go of these but after much trickery I’ve managed to keep them out of the house & he’s barely noticed.

I use these red containers for EVERYTHING.  I chop onions, broccoli, jalapenos, and other veggies – then leave them in the containers to easily pull out & use for a quick lunch or recipe.

This size is particularly awesome for the Oatmeal I eat every morning.

And the containers make your refrigerator look so organized!!  Much better than bags hanging out all over the place.  This size is the perfect portion for your meals, anything bigger allows room for too much food!

I also use containers to freeze meat. Rather than the whole package, I’ll separate the pieces & freeze them in portions of my choosing.

Time to ditch zip locks people!  These containers are awesome, $23 for a set of 40, and you can buy them at Target OR Amazon Prime!

3. Paper Towels & Plastic Water Bottles:

I put paper towels & water bottles together because I understand avoiding these two items completely is not realistic for some people.

As far as paper towels are concerned – you can no longer be the person who grabs a paper towel EVERY SINGLE TIME you wash & dry your hands.  My jaw drops writing that.  You know how many paper towels you use & go through?!  Buy a few kitchen towels to dry your hands & switch them out as often as you need to in order to keep them clean.  Period.  Paper towels should be more of a back-up option.

As far as water bottles – I never drink out of the plastic ones unless I’m desperate for water & forgot to bring my own, which is rare.  I always have a huge water bottle with ice that I carry around & refill.   Every time I leave the house & of course while in the house.  (I shamefully became a Yeti addict recently, nothing like a freezing cold drink of water.  I use a metal straw with mine. )  If anyone buys those God forsaken small, 8oz, water bottles still – It’s time to stop immediately. What a waste!

What do you think?  Anyone else have any obsessive ways to ditch trash/recycle build up?

I’m not a huge climate change advocate but it does break my heart to see what mother earth is going through, especially with some of our wasteful decisions – so I try my best to do little things that will hopefully make a difference. Creating less trash sounds like a good start.

Let me know your thoughts!

Have a great weekend & be thoughtful

Xx