Paper Redux, Part Two: Junk and Other Mail

The outcry began almost a decade ago, but now there are finally several options for reducing the flow of unwanted catalogs. Catalog Choice users select catalogs from the list provided, and the site takes care of removing users’ names from the mailing lists. As more people use the service, Catalog Choice says it will be able to acquire more catalogs for its list.

GreenDimes costs $20 for a several-year benefit but includes a larger list of catalogs and other junk mailings. I know people who have used this service and are satisfied with the results. If you are swimming in junk mail, what could it hurt?

SmartMoney.com has a useful article on other ways to stop junk mail, including those pre-screened credit card invitations some people can’t resist.

One final tip for stemming the white tide: pay your bills and receive you banking, credit card, and investment statements online. Many institutions now provide checking and savings accounts with free online banking, so ask at your bank first before making a switch. Financial institutions take many precautions to insure, as much as anyone can, that your identity is protected, and not having to deal with the paper copies is a priceless benefit. Above all, remember this: you’re helping the environment with every piece of mail you avoid.

Just One Thing: Less Packaging

This idea often aligns with the Less Plastic tip, but I believe it’s important–and powerful–enough to mention on its own. The best way to avoid individually-packaged foods is to buy in bulk. This does not necessarily mean buying extremely large quantities; even buying a “family” size reduces package waste when compared to using several smaller sizes, and the former is often, as many people know, the cheaper route. I live in an apartment in which we cannot store bulk anything, but think twice when buying the individual yogurt cups, and you’re on your way.

Keep this one thing in mind: according to the American Museum of Natural History’s Center for Biodiversity and Conservation, nearly 50% of human waste production by volume can be attributed to packaging alone.  Yikes. Resist the individually-wrapped prunes and chicken cutlets, my friends; it’s just not worth it. Besides, then you have to exhaust yourself opening that little plastic wrapper, and we all know how much fun THAT is.

Paper Redux, Part One: Reading Online

The day seems to have passed when some forecasted the death of the book and the reign of the e-book. Many pundits now claim that the book is safe, and I join those who agree. Yet no matter how enduring the printed word, electronic reading materials definitely have their place in the green girl and guy’s arsenal. In addition to their obvious tree-saving benefits, e-books and e-magazines join online news in being easier on the bank account, as well. Below are some resources for happy web reading:

• Project Gutenberg. The original source for free e-books, now with over 25,000 titles on its own site and over 100,000 in its affiliate network.
• Questia Online Library. More than just a student’s or teacher’s resource; scroll to the bottom left corner for “FREE BOOKS”–more than 5,000, to be exact, in a pleasing e-book format.
• The Online Books Page. Links to over 30,000 free books on the web.
  
• Access the Great Books showcases 240 of the greatest written classics found online.
• World Wide School. A plethora of classic literature and educational books.
• Bartleby.com. A classy and searchable collection of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and reference materials; especially good for finding a poem or poet easily.
• Internet Sacred Text Archive. The self-described “largest freely available archive of online books about religion, mythology, folklore and the esoteric on the Internet.”
• Zinio. Subscribe to your favorite magazines, but read them in a digital version. Caution: Turn on “Safe View” if you want to skip the mature magazine covers as you browse. While this isn’t generally free or cheaper than print (like my above links), I thought it was worth a mention for the green aspect. Along this line, check out Amazon’s new, wireless, e-book gadget Kindle, where you browse, order, and read books from one handheld device that supposedly mimics the book experience with an electronic paper display.

Of course, there are many ways to purchase e-books, from Amazon to ebooks.com, but I wanted to focus on the fun and free. What do you think of digital reading? Will Kindle-like devices become more popular (especially if the price comes down from $399)?

What to Do About the Organic Food Dilemma

The New York Times recently reported on the quickly rising prices of some organic staple foods, like milk and bakery products. Grocery prices in general rose last year, and organic farmers are beginning to abandon the organic label, citing expensive organic feed for livestock and a shrinking profit margin over conventional foods. Compounding the difficulties are rising fuel prices and a lengthy process for obtaining organic certification.

Many people try to decide which organic products are really worth the price–which provide the most reduction in pesticide exposure? This question has become even more relevant in the current economic climate, and resources abound. Check out Dr. Green’s Organic Prescription for his take on the most crucial organic buys, particularly for families with children. (Can you guess the top must-have?) And be sure to get the new pocket guide to what to buy in the produce section, courtesy of the Environmental Working Group. They even score the level of pesticides in fruits and vegetables. (Preview: organic onions are a waste of money.)

Driving Saner

It’s time to face facts, friends. By all accounts, gas prices aren’t going away. While you can chase the best prices near you with GasBuddy.com, the more time-efficient solution to saving money at the pump is watching your aggressive driving. You may immediately say, as many people do, that you are an above-average driver who doesn’t speed or tailgate or commit any other bad road behavior. But if you really think about it, when was the last time you drove with a little chip on your shoulder? Today? Don’t worry; you’re not alone. With all the other aggressive drivers surrounding you on the roads, it can be hard not to blend in with the crowd in the name of self-defense.

Think with me now, however, of the benefits of conscious driving. Hopefully you are already aware and alert behind the wheel; I am talking about a reflective driving style that pays off in dollars and sense. Fueleconomy.gov and ConsumerReports.org both offer excellent online resource centers about increasing gas mileage, and besides keeping your car’s maintanance current, I think the most important takeaway messages are these: drive slower, and idle as little as possible.

Most people know that driving over 55 mph decreases your overall gas mileage, but the rate of acceleration is also a large factor. Hasty acceleration and braking simply use up more gas, which means lost fuel efficiency. Examine your own habits and you’ll probably laugh: how many times do you rev up the engine when you know you’re going from one red light to the next? And do you really need to go 70 up that hill? Allowing yourself to take it slow(er) will benefit your bank account and your peace of mind: by dropping out of the literal race on the roads, you are buying yourself some (relatively more) tranquil moments.

Idling is a more little-known gas waster, but it’s a serious problem, both environmentally and practically. Consider these startling facts from IdealBite: “An idling car creates twice the emissions of a car in motion.” “Idling 15 minutes per weekday can cost you up to $100 in wasted gas over the course of a year.” And, “American drivers use more than 2 bil gal of fuel each year while idling.” (Read the rest here.) The facts speak for themselves: turn off your car if you’re going to be stopped for a few minutes. I’ve even turned off my car at a really long light. Restarting your car is not bad for your engine (as some have thought), and unlike idling, it doesn’t waste some resources (oil) while damaging others (air and water).

I hope driving more mindfully brings greater peace into your commute and trips both near and far.

Fun With Next to Nothing

This is the first of probably many shout-outs to my parents. Growing up, I would declare boredom in waiting rooms, restaurants, backseats, and many other places. My parents would immediately come up with a game, or my father would create a flower or toy out of the McDonald’s napkins. When I smiled in relief, my father would often exclaim, “See? Fun with next to nothing!”

This was only one of the ways my parents taught me the benefits of frugality by example. Now, there are the extremely frugal–those who write books on living off the grid and such–who can be commended for living lightly on the earth. But practical frugality doesn’t require you to give up the investment possessions that may contribute to your happiness, whether to you that means a house or a T.V. or a chic trenchcoat or a new Jeep. What it does do is teach you to be happier with what you have–whatever that is. It also inspires creativity, and that’s something the world needs more than ever.

Yes, frugality can be fun, and it usually is, if you’re doing it right. Although I complain when I know I should live without the gourmet chocolates, most of the time it is enjoyable to see how little money we can spend on food and other goods. Everyone loves a bargain, and hunting for one is certainly a staple of frugal living. Here are few other ways to live more lightly on the earth and on your wallet:

• Invent a solution. Sometimes I’ve wanted things without wanting to pay the price. So, I’ve made my own flower press out of cardboard and rubber bands (which I still use today); I’ve made greeting cards out of pieces of other cards and leftover craft materials. In college, a friend made me a shelf for my coffee and filters out of cardboard, thumb tacks, and string. And a certain man I know made a camera bag out of an old sock. A good resource for making something out of nothing is The Complete Tightwad Gazette.
  
• Try less . . . and I don’t mean stop attempting things. Try to use less of any product you routinely use, and keep using less until you notice a difference. Chances are, you will be surprised how long it takes you to notice a different result, but you will notice the difference in how often you buy the product. Great things to try this with are shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, dishwashing liquid, laundry detergent . . . you get the idea. A related tip is to cut the remainder of a product with water to make it last longer. This works especially well with liquid hand soaps. Can you believe they are selling foam hand soap when you can make it yourself?
• Wash clothes in cold water. You will seldom have a time when you need to wash clothes in even luke-warm water. Cold water washes and rinses as well as warm or hot for all but the most obstinate stains.
• Play a game. Even though I have been wanting to get a coffee from the locally famous Queen City Creamery cafe, I keep telling myself, “wait some more.” It’s become a sort of competition with myself, and it adds an element of fun and accomplishment to frugality. The self-control game is not the only variation; try making dinner from what’s in your house right now. Many people don’t realize how much food is in those assorted cans, and this is another way to strengthen your creative (and culinary) powers.
• Find fun for free. Open your favorite search engine and type in “free activities in [city or place of choice].” There is an amazing wealth of parks, museums, and other attractions in most cities.
• Enact a moratorium. Yet another variation of the “play a game” tip above, this entails not buying any new books until you read what you have, or not buying new clothes until you’ve tried on and refined your existing wardrobe (stylists call this “shopping your closet,” and it’s all the rage right now). You can let yourself work around the moratorium, of course; for books, try getting library card. For clothes, try online clothing swap sites. For both books and clothes, try exchanging with friends.

More ideas will follow, but they deserve their own posts. Please share your own ideas in the comments.

Money Strategies for Uncertain Times

Today I’m starting a series of posts called Money Strategies for Uncertain Times. Some might not see the connection between saving money for oneself and benefiting the planet, but what I strive to do on this blog is connect simple and green living concepts as much as possible. I believe that someone is most likely to begin a nature-friendly habit that is also simplifying to their lives, and many times, this results in saved money. That is where frugality comes in. I interchange the terms simple and frugal for the purposes of being broad in describing this blog’s theme, and although they are not always the same thing, the places in which they coincide are the interesting places I want to highlight here.

In that spirit, this series will explore ways to save money and environmental cost at a time in which oil prices are obviously not likely to return to more reasonable levels any time soon, and in which the economy is experiencing some middle-aged ailments. We have come through the boom times of post-World War II productivity and the technology start-up era, and now the growth chart seems to be leveling out. Sadly, the rich truly are getting richer while the poor cope with an even greater gap between what they get paid and what it costs to live.

While my job, and my husband’s, are not threatened by layoffs and other volatilities, we are feeling the crunch along with everybody else. It will be a joy to share some of the positive ways we are dealing with limited funds–ways both practical and philosophical. It is my hope that this will be a time for us and all of America to learn how living within shortened means is better for the environment–and for our state of mind–than we ever expected.