discussion title:
October Challenge - give it up!
message #:
1741.25 in response to 1741.24
I am not ready to give up paper towels for certain chores. If I have fried bacon in a skillet or grill I poor the excess grease in an emptied coffee can and use paper toweling to clean the remaining remnants and grease before cooking pancakes or eggs or putting it in the sink to wash. What I have done is to buy towels that are serrated every 6 inches rather then the standard 12. I find the smaller portion is adequate for most kitchen wipes. That automatically cuts the usage in half without having to improvise.
I keep sponges handy both hand held and the kind on a stick like a mop that have a squeeze mechanism which is very sanitary and can be operated from the handle. Small water, milk, coffee, soft drink spills can be soaked up and wiped away with the dish rag but I don't want oils and greases in the sink, dish washer or on wash cloths and fabric towels. I also use them to wipe the grill rack from the previous cooking after it warms up for the next usage. If one is really wanting to get additional benefit from them store them in a plastic grocery bag and use them as a fire starter for a wood fireplace or a briquette BBQ.
Every time I go to get my mail at the post office (live in the country) there is junk mail that if weighed would equal at least two rolls of towels. Much of it all shiny and glistening so quite obvious it is not recycled paper products. Some is product advertisement but much is looking for donations. It is obvious that names and addresses of givers to charity is passed around letting others know here is a potential sucker to hit up. Book publishers are using a lot of our forests as well. Seems everyone in the public arena is writing from one to six books and the world could survive very nicely minus 98% of them. JMOP of course.
Dick
