Getting Crafty:

Recently I realized how wasteful I can be sometimes. Whether it's putting way more than necessary amounts of toothpaste on my toothbrush, leaving the water running while I'm brushing my teeth, leaving the lights on when I leave, using too much soap when I'm washing my body... All of these things are wasteful and sometimes subconscious things we do without thinking about it.

It makes me think back to the times where my dad would scream because all the lights in the house were on, or when my mom would tell me that I didn't need to use 1/2 the bottle of ketchup for my burger, or use a squirt of shampoo the size of 10 quarters instead of one to wash my super short hair.

Lately, however, I have become very thrifty. I use every drop of toothpaste I can squeeze out of the tube and I never use more than a penny size blob of shampoo to wash my hair. I don't know whether it's because I'm cheap, poor, or just more aware of the world around me. I am tired of being wasteful, tired of throwing away food because I never got around to cooking it, and sick of not doing my part to be greener.

This week, for example, instead of going to the store and buying groceries, I'm clearing out my refrigerator before buying anything new.

I had 6 eggs, 4 pieces of bread, 3 oranges, 2 potatoes, a green pepper, two onions, a little pasta sauce, fresh asparagus, and one small package of ground lean pork. When I thought about it, this was enough food to last half the week!

Last night I cut up the green pepper, scrambled some eggs, and made toast for dinner. I cooked the asparagus, ground pork, and potatoes and brought them for lunch today. Tomorrow I'll have the rest of the eggs for breakfast, and pasta and an orange for lunch. Either way, now I don't have to throw these things away because I never got to them. I have really been enjoying budgeting so much money every week for food, eating out less, and cooking at home more.

It's the little things lately that I'm paying more attention too.