Saving Green and Going Green

Taming Hillbilly Heaven

2011-03-10T10:40:00.000-08:00

It's spring, time for spring cleaning and decluttering. As I looked around, my thoughts turned to those hillbillys who live in trailers and shacks with junk all around, inside and out. It's not that bad here but it still feels overwhelming today.

Over the years, we have accumulated many things. Almost nothing has any resale value and if it does, it would be things like an old sofa or table. It's just stuff. There is plenty I like, plenty we use, plenty with good memories and some that belongs to others and not us. But sometimes it feels overwhelming.

Miles and June are moving soon and we are getting their beds for bedrooms that do not have one. Each time the kids have moved in and out, they take their beds but do not bring them back. We do have many of their belongings. But belongings take up the space where the beds were. As our lives change and people move in and out, the stuff accumulates.

The decision becomes what to get rid of and what to keep. It's hard for me because I get attached to stuff a little bit just like many people do.

It's like a huge puzzle, the kind where you have to slide one, or many pieces out of the way temporarily to slide something where it needs to go before sliding the other pieces back where they were, sometimes sliding them other places first, then into their place. Over and over it goes.

My goal is to give away or throw away at least one item every day, including one thing daily that has been here for a minimum of 6 months and is not a regularly consumed item, (such as throwing out a paper towel I just used). Most days, it is possible to get rid of half a dozen to a couple dozen items. Most are small,but everything counts.

Lots of items go into transitions stacks. I'm building one of towels right now. As I do loads of laundry, worn out towels are pulled and put into the stack. When there is a group, these will find a new home as a group or be used for washing cars and messy clean ups then be tossed when in too bad a shape to be used. Going green.

Like things are gathered into groups as they are found and dealt with in ways appropriate for the group. Duplicates, as they are found are donated to the appropriate place. It is like a big puzzle. In a sense, this is a part of going green. I am not filling landfills with things that still have use for somebody. It is a kind of recycling. Some of the stuff I uncover, I use up myself and do not have to buy more quite as soon. Here's an example. That Christmas red plastic wrap I bought on clearance very cheaply several years ago does not have to be saved for Christmas and can be used up. It works just as well as the clear plastic wrap.

Most people are comfortable visiting our home, so it is not that bad. A few are very critical and do not understand why we are the way we are and have such poor manners they have to say so to us and everybody else. Since I am not fond of criticism from people who have no business criticizing in the first place, I am selective in inviting people over.

That, too becomes like a big and complicated puzzle. If I invite certain people, other people will be "hurt" or feel entitled to come over too and those will be the critical ones who feel they have a right to question and make nasty comments about my home. I'd rather stay on good terms with those judgmental kind and not have them over. My words may seem overly harsh but they are not if the reader knew the horrible and abusive statements people have made about me and to me that are really none of their business. I think every aspect of everything I have had, from the carpets to the colors of the walls, to clutter on a table, my garden shed and the inside of the cabinets (yes, they go snooping), and every other thing has been criticized at some point in my life. To top it off, those who are so unmannerly sometimes feel so superior, they actually help themselves to our belongings without permissions. (Yes, they are arrogant thieves) Some people are just abusive, they can't help it. But they have no right to tell me how to live or be critical or judgmental. Furthermore, many of these kind of hateful people are also gossips. They go and announce their hateful opinions to everyone. It's just a horrible experience.

But there are good people and many good people have been in our home. We have a houseful at Thanksgiving and sometimes other times. Most people like our house and are comfortable here.

But back to today. In the bright sunlight, some things just look faded. Time for them to move on.

So I'm taming Hillbilly heaven a little bit at a time. I'm doing it the green way.

Decluttering #4

2011-01-29T16:39:00.000-08:00

We got rid of a few more things today, 2 big old computer monitors at about 20 pounds each, an old TV weighing about 25 pounds and an old scanner weighing about 5 pounds.

The total of those items was about 70 pounds.
Add that to the 80 already gone and about 150 pounds of things are gone so far.

Some things that I use up or give away really don't count. For example, I buy teddy bears to give to people I visit in the hospital. I keep a few around all the time for that purpose. I gave one away yesterday. I gave away some candy and other little items too.

The weather was very nice so I decided to use up a bit of the caulking I have around on the windows while it was warm outside. That led to taking the windows apart and cleaning them, thus using up a bottle of mostly gone window cleaner. Two more items used up, caulk and cleaner. And now the windows are cleaner.

I got rid of 4 cd's which really is no weight at all. But each little thing counts as progress. I got rid of several tiny odds and ends, maybe everything weighed a pound.

In the process of decluttering and getting rid of things, I am cleaning things up and moving them to different locations also. I'm find things buried under clutter or in the back of cabinets and using them. It's working out very well.

One son has promised to take a chair that had been his great grandma's. It weighs about 50 pounds but we can't count it until it is gone.

The total so far is about 151 pounds.

Decluttering # 3

2011-01-27T19:11:00.000-08:00

Some days are slow. Yesterday I threw away a few old college, and other catalogs and papers for about an extra 4 pounds. I added several items to the give away bag but they only weighed about a pound total.

Today I gave away several items but the total weight was about a pound, not much. Add that to the 74 pounds and

the total so far is about 80 pounds.

It's going a bit slower than I hoped but I have been very busy outside of the house doing things. I am finding things I had forgotten I had and putting them to use. While this does not add to my weight of things gone, it does have advantages.

Today I went shopping with my mom and probably brought in 3 pounds worth of things that are not food or consumables. I need to watch it.

Decluttering #2

2011-01-25T11:42:00.000-08:00

It is almost overwhelming, the amount of stuff to be sorted and tossed. I am taking a short break. I sorted through the magazines in the living room and have a sack that weighs 23 pounds to give away.

Sorted through the newspapers and some of the mail. The sack to recycle only fills a paper grocery sack. The rest is in a 33 gallon trash bag that is 80% full of paper items. I'm still going through old papers and mail from just one spot where I was storing it. The sack will be full. Wonder what it will weigh?

Did enough decluttering for a while. The trash sack of miscellaneous papers weighs 51 pounds and is stretching the plastic when I pick it up.

TOTAL so far 74 pounds !!!

I rearranged the furniture in that room today to make more space. There was room to dance, so I danced. The dog thought it was wonderful and jumped around as I danced.

Clutter

2011-01-24T18:40:00.000-08:00

I just read an article about a woman who decided to clear out some clutter in her life. her goal was to get rid of 500 pounds of clutter in a year. I have probably gotten rid of that much in the last 6 months and still could get rid of another 1,000 pounds.Books weigh a lot and we have many.

Recently we decided we did not need the piano any more and sold it. I do not know what an upright piano weighs, but it is pretty heavy. We had 5 40 lb bags of sand my son left that have now been used. A son had a broken exercise gym with all the pieces that probably weighed close to 100 lbs and a man took that to recycle. My son took 3 large old computer monitors to be recycled weighing about 20 lbs each. We had a large solid wood headboard for a king size water bed that the DAV came and got. I've given away about 20 books in December. Just those things get pretty close to 500 lbs.

In addition, in the last 4 months I have given away 3 car trunk loads of sacks to the DAV, Children's Home Thrift store, etc,(probably 20 paper grocery sacks plus 6 33 gallon trash bags and a few plastic sacks) full of clothes, shoes, seasonal decorations we do not use, and all the odds and ends that accumulate. Those things were not all that heavy, except for the clothing. It possibly weighed about 100-150 lbs.

In addition to that, I have gone through my cupboards and thinned out things we probably would not eat or use that someone else might and given away about 8 paper grocery sacks totally full since December, many cans. Some of the things were cleaning products or hygiene products. There is still a lot more in there that someone could put to good use so I am not done yet.

I don't know if it counts that I gave away things I bought to give away, eventually. There is a lot more here I need to distribute. I get things free or buy them very inexpensively for the purpose of giving away. Sometimes it takes me a while. Today I delivered items for the Pregnancy care center that I picked up 2 and 3 years ago. Decluttering means going through things and making sure the items get to the places intended.

So much of what we have around here simply needs to be used up. I have plenty of yarn for knitting hats for children, which I give away. In December I gave away about 35 hats. I have enough yarn to make well over 100. I am using it slowly. In the last 4 weeks I have knit 6 hats. Lots of stuff around here is like that. The sand was too. It needs to be used up some.

There is the trash clutter too, the stuff that nobody would want that just needs to be pitched. It tends to weigh less because we recycle when possible on the heavier stuff.

I'm making progress but there is still a long way to go. Tomorrow I hope to sort through magazines again, it has been about 6 weeks, and there is a lady I give them to who distributes them to others. The amount has outgrown the 3 racks so it is time. The newspaper stack will be recycled this week.

If we ever decided to move into a different house, moving would be very difficult with so much stuff. I do not intend to move for quite a while, but I do think about it. So when I look at an item, I think, would I really want to move this? If the answer is no, it doesn't get to stay. Books are harder. Not sure why. I just love books.

Each day, it is my goal to throw away, give away and use up something, preferably several somethings that have been around a while. It's working out pretty well for me. Most days I can do just that.

I'm glad Valentine's day is coming. I found a stack of valentines and I want to use them up and give them all away. In November I found all the cards in different places in the house and put them all together by type, not it is time to use them up or give them to someone who will. They do not need to sit here for yet another year. But there are people who will enjoy getting a card.

I can give out the penny type valentines at random to people I see regularly in coffee shops, grocery stores or such on the 14th too. They enjoy things like beads on mardi gras, candy canes at Christmas, suckers any time, bells at Christmas, tomatoes in summer from my garden, etc. I give away anything I have loads of around.

The schwann's man likes to stop at my house because I give him things like homemade candy, fresh tomatoes, etc. I don't really buy anything though. I don't need to keep buying things. A person can only eat so much and I already eat more than is good.

The candy was made with things I got on clearance after Christmas last year. It was supposed to be for a women's group fund raiser but the women's group disbanded. It was still good, not past date or anything like that, but I had to use it up and give it away, so I did. My husband's coworkers think I am wonderful because I sent goodies with him many days before Christmas. I gave some to the man who fixed the roof, the man who fixed something outside, the men who cleaned my chimneys, my sons friends who stopped by, family and anybody else who showed up on the doorstep.

Because my house is a bit cluttered, I do not invite people over much, although some come anyway and that is okay. Family, a few close friends, people who need to talk, young adults and others. There are people who come to see us and visit. They do not care about whether the magazines are overflowing or the carpet hasn't been vacuumed for a few days or there is a bunch of mail on the dining room table or the ceiling needs painting. My house is fairly clean and relatively clutter free in comparison to many homes but you don't go to somebody's house to see the house usually. Unless it is something unusual or fantastic.

Then there are the people who believe it is their duty to evaluate other people's homes and critique them. They are not there to visit, they are there to give their opinion and judge. They go out and tell everyone they meet about every flaw they find. I've had a number of these types in my homes over the years. In my case, most have been church people. One lady, who came over to my house years ago in another town and said what a horrible mess it was, did not go to our church but she was a faithful church attender. She came over to ask a favor of me and not by invitation. There have been several such people, rude and unmannerly types who believe themselves to be above it all. I do not invite people over who think too highly of themselves or those who may be inclined to gossip. They have a problem and I am not interesting in allowing their abuse and boorish behaviors.

But I am going to clear out the clutter, for me, so I can find things easier, so there is more room to move around, so things get put to their intended use or are given away to bless somebody else. I'm making room to dance, because I love to dance.

Windows to the World

2009-09-16T12:46:00.001-07:00

The temperatures outside are beautiful today! We are taking advatage of it by having the windows open and the ac turned off. The sound of the breeze in the trees is so comforting and soothing. One of our family members is catching a cold. The fresh air is so good and healthy for all of us!

Bulk Buying

2009-08-07T10:01:00.000-07:00

Some items, such as tea, some seasonings and rice can be found in bulk packages in Asian food stores at a lower price than the smaller packaging. It saves green two ways, it costs less and there is less wated packaging to handle.

Health food stores have much the same deal. You buy items such as beans, nuts, grains, herbs, spices and other items in bulk. You choose how much you want here and put it in a simple paper or plastic bag. Some places let you bring your own containers for things like water and honey.

Saving Water

2009-08-06T11:14:00.000-07:00

Replacing our aging toilets with low flush models and our shower heads to water saver showerheads, plus fixing a drippy faucet, cut our water useage in half.

I run both the dishwasher and the washer when I have enough to fill them so we do not waste water or electric there.

I do not save rainwater because there is no way to keep it from attracting mosquitoes. I could buy a rain barrel but, around here, they are quite expensive. In the case of rain barrels, green does not save green (money).

We do not water our lawn hardly ever, but I do water my small vegetable beds when there is a time of no rain. I use grass from the lawn mowing as mulch to retain moisture and plant the plants close enough together that it shades the ground somewhat.

Lids and Laundry

2009-08-06T07:55:00.000-07:00

I read that plastic is not always as healthy as we would like for some people. Who knows? Cutting back on it's use can save money too. Instead of covering food with plastic wrap, I have discovered that corelle plates and saucers fit over the top of their bowls perfectly. They also fit on other bowls as a lid. I'm throwing out a lot less plastic wrap these days.

Any time it is possible, I store food in glass jars instead of plastic. The jars come from items from the grocery store that are used up. They can be used over and over.

A relative saves aluminum foil, washes it, and uses it over and over. This may have been a common practice years ago.

A foreign exchange student once asked me why we wash our clothes after we wear them whether they are dirty or not. In his country, they do not do that. Only dirty items are washed. It was a really good point.

At one time, we washed towels after every use. This is a good idea if a shower is followed by wiping up the floor or if it is very dirty. For normal showers, we reuse towels before washing them, sometimes several times. Towels take a lot of energy to wash and dry so it is a savings.

Reuse

2009-08-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

New is not always necessary. I buy many things used.
Books. I buy used books or check them out of the library. I also borrow books from friends or swap books. I give away my unwanted books to groups and people who want them.

Clothes- Resale shops have wonderful bargains on really good clothes. I go to the DAV thrift store, Salvation Army, humane society, non profit groups and other thrift stores. I own fully lined 100% wool jackets, silks, designer labels and many nice things for which I paid pennies on the dollar.

There are resale shops for just about any item a person might want. This saves green, because the things cost less, and it is going green because things unwanted by someone are being used by someone else.

Garage, yard and tag sales are another way to go green.

Health and Green

2009-08-05T20:23:00.000-07:00

I take my own ceramic mug into coffee shops and have them fill it for me. Sometimes I take a plastic travel mug if I want the coffee to go. I like the feel of a ceramic mug. Some places give me a discount for bringing my own cup to. It saves trash in the environment because there is nothing to throw away. In some cases where paper cups are not being used, it may even be healthier. I take my mug to work and to church with me too.

When cloth shopping bags go on sale, I buy them then I use them in most stores. They hold a lot more and are sturdier than the plastic kind. It gets old dealing with all of those plastic shopping bags. I save those and reuse them and give them to nonprofits, but a person can only use so many little plastic bags. My husband uses the plastic bags to take his lunch to work. We also reuse plastic sandwich bags. Some of the local grocery stores give a 5 cent credit for every bag I bring in for my own groceries.

My Sister is Going Green Too

2009-08-05T20:18:00.000-07:00

I have something to add. Since I have not been in my house in L F, all the lights are off, and the only thing that is working is the fridge, the automatic sprinkler system, and the water heater. The electric bill was $17.85. The gas bill was $3.00 When we were living there, the electric bill (without A/C) was about $80. The gas bill in the summer was about $7. I'm just pointing this out as a comparison. Now that I know $20 was my baseline, the $87 I was spending wasn't too bad.

We bought a bunch of those expensive little light bulbs that use less energy. Oh yeah - they are soooo worth it. I was a little miffed at hubby for spending $8 to $14 per bulb, but they seem to last forever (I haven't replaced any in over 2 years), and the utilities dropped by a good 20% immediately. I just got a good deal that San Diego Gas & Electric was trading out bulbs - if you gave them 5 standard bulbs, they would give you 5 energy saver bulbs for free. We were on it!

And we have those solar lights in the back yard. I keep one in the kitchen, too. It lights up after we go to bed at night (a night light). And it goes off when you turn the lights on. We bought a box of 20 from Sam's Club for $99. The one in the kitchen was discovered by accident. The stake broke off the bottom of it, and Mike set it on the kitchen counter until he could fix it. When I turned off the kitchen light, it lit up. Tada! So we left it there. Moths and beetles aren't attracted to it, so I can see when I go through the kitchen to let the dogs in and out without alerting the yucky critters.

My office is going green, too. We gave everyone firm-logo coffee mugs so that people can quit using paper cups. I will have a paint pen available so people can write their names on the bottoms of their mugs. Keeps the germs from spreading, too. And the office coffee mugs that we use for meetings are a different color.

I found kitchen glasses for about 75 cents each and bought 72 for the office so we have plenty for meetings and for people to use. Although I use my own. We got rid of the bottled water and put in filters instead.

Our vendors are always giving away pens with their names on them, so we collect those and don't have to buy as many. I use samples I get in the newspaper or the mail. I also pick up change I find on the ground. I shop at the farmer's market - much better quality and cheaper. I have a neighbor who has a garden in his front yard as well as his back yard. He's growing corn! I can't tell what anything else is, but it's a tidy garden on a lot that isn't too big. I'm impressed.

Green

2009-08-05T20:07:00.000-07:00

I'm going green but I'm also looking for ways to be frugal and use less. How much better when I can help both my bank account and the world at the same time.

I tried to buy a free standing clothesline to save electric by using the dryer less. We do not have the right trees. The clotheslines are very hard to find. "Green" box stores in the area do not carry them. They barely have ropes and clothespins. Hardware stores have a few of what I needed. They are pretty expensive too. My local store was out of the bigger sizes and only had small ones, but was getting more in soon. They hadn't exactly had a run on them. They order in about 3 at a time.

I heard on the radio that appliances use 70% of their total electric when they are turned off. It's those little led lights and keeping the appliance ready for instant on that uses it. I am going to buy surge protectors and put all appliances on them. That way I can turn them off when not in use totally. If I have anything that needs instant on, I won't plug it into a surge protector bar. And I'm going to wait for surge protectors to go on sale to get them.

I'm buying those little solar lights that absorb sun during the day and light up the house at night for outdoor lighting, on sale of course. We have a few but more would be good. They have to be in direct sunlight during the day for several hours to work, no shady spots.

I have put small gardens in my back yard to grow my own fresh food in small amounts. It is somewhat expensive at first so it really isn't saving any money this year, even though I waited for price reductions and used coupons. One of the things I used in the garden beds was special moisture retaining soil. I need to go and get more. That way, the plants do well with less watering. I am also adding vegetable scraps (composting) instead of tossing them out, for organic matter.

Whenever we replace something, we buy energy saving models on sale.

Awnings are not pretty but, if utilities go up a lot, we will be looking at them. That and those roll down bamboo shades to shield the house in summer and block the wind in spots in the winter even. Bushes around the edge of the house provide protection for the foundation. Trees provide shade in summer and drop their leaves in winter so the sun hits the house to help warm it. Tall plants near the house will also shade it in the hot summer. I will probably buy heavy curtains eventually, a few at a time, to block out the heat in summer and the cold in winter. Thermopane windows are cost prohibitive at this time and even with them, the sun shines in the windows and heats up the house.

Weather caulking is on sale this week so I should go get some to make sure the windows and other areas are sealed well.

Saving Green

2009-08-05T20:01:00.000-07:00

With things getting more and more expensive and the emphasis on conserving resources, I am starting a blog with ideas on how to save money and go green at the same time.