Magazines

Over at my other blog, I am talking about my sad addiction to magazines. I realize that this isn't a very green addiction so I'm here to ask for your ideas.

What do you do with magazines once you are done with them? If you don't subscribe to any or even like to read them, just pretend that you do.

I have several options for the magazines that I have around my house. Some are recycled when I'm done. This is usually if my daughter has cut out all the pages and used them for her weekly homework assignments that require cutting out pictures that begin with the letter they are studying for the week. So, really, I get another use out of them before they get recycled.

Another option is to donate them. Whenever I have a dentist or doctor appointment, I call ahead and ask if they need any new magazines in their waiting rooms. I've never had them turn me down. I black out or cut out my name and address on the front and take them in. Everyone wins here because the ones I have are usually more recent publications than what are usually the waiting rooms. We also send them to my husband's friends who are deployed. We ship them over and one of his friends will either put them in the lounge of the dorms or fitness centers to be shared.

The last option that I have is to keep them. I try to only do this with magazines that I know I will use or look at again like cooking magazines or ones with articles that I found helpful for whatever reason.

Tell me, what do you do when you're done?

Bad Hair Day

Hi, I'm Heather and I'm addicted to hair products. A lot of hair products. My basket overfloweth.

I'm at your mercy, Internets. I can't go green in the area of the hair products. I've tried several greenish shampoos and conditioners and they just leave me ugly. Like, frizzy and Frankenstein ugly. I haven't even attempted to change in my old hair styling products for the green version because I'm scared.

Yes, I said it. I'm scared. I don't like to be ugly, frizzy and Frankenstein.

Come on, you know you don't like it either.

This is where I turn to you. For the love of all things healthy and green, please tell me if you have a product that you use and love. For the record, I have naturally curly and dry hair. I straighten it a couple of times a week. Help me.

Paper Towels and Me

It's time for a confession. I suspect that there will be a lot of those as we take this journey together. I have an abiding love of paper towels. It's one of those things that I struggle with on the green journey.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a "roll a week" girl or anything. We don't use them for drying our hands or for spills, usually. So, what in the world is it that makes me hold on so tightly to them?

Almost every job they do around the house can be replaced with something better for the environment and more economical yet I still have them sitting on my counter....just. in. case.

The one job that kept me stocking my supply of paper towels was cleaning mirrors and glass around the house. Nothing else worked to get the streaks off and I hate streaks with a Windex blue passion. While I was in Heaven Target last week, I picked up this product by Method. I was skeptical but I trust Method so I figured I'd at least give it a shot.

I cracked open my microfiber cloth on mirror/window cleaning day and it really didn't look like I thought it would. From the look of the box, I expected it to be more like a sponge. Instead, it's a rather unassuming little cloth that's shiny on one side. I was sure it wouldn't work after taking a look at it. I assumed it would just smear the liquid cleaner around on the glass like a pair of pantyhose.

I was wrong. This little thing is awesome! I used it for my mirrors and the french doors in our living room. The same doors that my kids insist on using as licking/looking/hand wiping glass. They were clean an streak free. I even used it to shine my faucets in the bathrooms after I cleaned the mirrors. These are things I'd have used paper towels for before that day. Also, I have to use less cleaner with the cloth. It's reusable and washable. In a word, it's awesome.

All that to say that I'm trying to kick the paper towel habit. I am. I don't think I'll ever be without paper towels in my house but I can tell you that our uses for them have diminished and we are finding other options for most jobs.

What about you? Paper towel addict or paper towel free? Have you tried other things to take the place of them?