New Green Habits

Not so long ago in a galaxy no so far away . . .

A person walks into a store to buy stuff. The clerk says "Paper or Plastic?" Person says, no thanks I brought my own. Clerk says "Huh?" "Really?" or "Why?" Clerk tries to wrap things in plastic before putting them in the reusable bag. Clerk puts 3 items in each reusable bag and then tries to put the rest of the items in plastic. Person gets tired and sad of always explaining the merits of reusable bags to clerks.

Now, it's much more common to see people carrying their own bags. Or declining a bag when they buy just one or two items. Hallelujah! Praise God, Jesus, Allah, Buddha, and Brad Pitt. It's about time! Sure, there's still a LONG way to go, but we are making progress.

I have been carrying my reusable bags to the store for years. I was hit and miss for a while, but I made a conscious effort to focus on making the task a habit, and lo and behold, it became one pretty easily! (The key is having lots and lots of bags. Leave some in every vehicle at all times and hang them on the doorknob to the garage after you unpack so that can't help but put them back in the car.) If you leave them in the car while you are in the store, make yourself go back outside to get them.

For my first new green habit, I thought that it would be fitting to kick it up a notch. I had seen people using them, but never managed to get any of my own. I would try not to use produce bags, but sometimes it was inevitable. Now I am the proud owner of these re-usable produce bags:

I can highly recommend them. They are lightweight but sturdy. Get over to www.3bbags.com and get some of you own!