Thursday, January 29, 2009

Going Green


I am not terribly ecologically minded. Well, actually I am but I constantly go back and forth between being green and being well, nearly broke. We recycle and yes reuse. I have cut down on senseless driving considerably(which blows sometimes cause we live in the burbs-no sidewalks and scary traffic on the main roads) . Heck, sometimes I even try composting. I love thrifting or as I call it-scrounging. And not that long ago I purchased for my greenie pleasure a slew of green bags to use instead of paper or plastic.

Now it is an effort for me to remember to use those green bags-I have to take them inside the house, unload them, take them back out to the car, remember to take them in the store AND THEN remember to tell the bagger to use the damn things. That is a lot of stuff on top of trying to remember what I was even at the store for in the first place.

So I go to my local grocery store- not my favorite but the closest(remember I was feeling green)-to get a few things. Mine was a short list and I did not expect to be at the store long. And I would not have been except for one tiny incident.

The bag boy put my groceries in plastic bags.

I had put my green bags out for him to use and he used the plastic bags.

Now did I scream, pitch a fit or go off on a rant about saving the environment?

No, I acted like the wonderful grown up lady that I am and rebagged all my groceries.

Yes I held up the line-and yes it was long.

Yes I threw the plastic bags at the bag boy.

I am not that grown up and I was feeling green dammit!

6 comments:

Nej said...

We have, over the course of the last few years, collected a number of 'green' bags for use at the grocery store. Unfortunately, we remember to take them about 1/2 the time. I can't just leave them in the car, because sure as sh*t, we'll take the truck to run to the store. Or vice versa.

I think I need to accumulate a few more, and keep a set it in each vehicle.

Our grocery store is VERY good about using them if we bring them in. They even give us $.05 refund for each bag we bring, whether we use them all or not sometimes. :-)

Brook said...

Our grocery does the refund too-but I am pretty sure I did not get it this time!

Nej said...

All the more reason to throw those bags back at the bagger. :-)

WanderingGirl said...

I have a friend who leaves the bags in her car and just has the grocery store use no bags. They put the unbagged groceries back in her cart, then she bags them how she wants them when she gets to the car. She still has to remember to take them back out after unloading in the house, but it's one less step and she's sure her bread doesn't get crushed!

Brook said...

I have done that often-complete with funny stares because yes, half the time I forget and leave the bags in the car.

Huff Daddy said...

This has been on my to do list now for two years now. How lazy is that. I see people in Ingles bring in a pile of random canvas bags for that purpose. I have plenty of totes from work conferences. Just no ambition. The plastic bags don't go to waste though. The local day care takes them, gladly.