Bags

No, I don't have a picture of bags. The photos are supposed to be pointless, remember?

This will (hopefully) be short, because I'm currently in the state where (as I told Wheat) I'm not sure whether it's more important to be sucking on the lozenge to calm down the sore throat, or... well, breathe. Hard to breathe while sucking on a lozenge when your nose is stuffed.

These are the dilemmas I deal with, folks.

Anyway, bags. A couple of weeks ago I actually got excited enough about a reusable grocery bag to text Wheat about it. I know, I know, it sounds pretty weird. Bear in mind, though, that I work at a nature centre. We're trying to encourage people to stop with the plastic bag dependency as much as possible, so when a person finds a well-designed reusable bag it's something to share with the coworkers.

Ok, maybe it's not worth getting excited about, but it's still important.

Does anyone out there in my vast reading public (all two of you) bother to use reusable bags when shopping? I don't normally get preachy about things, but it's something you should all be doing. There's no excuse for the amount of plastic bags we're going through in this country, you know.

I do most of my shopping at a store where they charge you for plastic bags, so I bring my own bags just as a matter of course. I also carry a reusable bag in the belt pack I use as a purse, so I always have something available for the smaller items I might be picking up in the non-grocery stores. It gets used, too.

I'm not saying that I never use plastic bags. I have my lazy moments. I also tend to use plastic grocery bags for my garbage, so there's always a few around the house (I think it'll be a tough sell to convince people to reuse their garbage bags. Encouraging biodegradable bags, though... yeah, I should do more about that). I do, however, use my reusable bags a lot. And it's not hard, people.

All it takes is to create a new habit. Get some reusable bags. Put them in the trunk of your car. REMEMBER TO TAKE THEM INTO THE STORE. That's all there is to it.

They have their advantages, those reusable bags. They'll usually hold more without the worry of tearing. They generally have more comfortable handles. And, in the case of my new bags that caused so much excitement, they're squared-off like paper bags so they don't fall over in the car on the way home.

Wonderful things, don't you think?

I was a grocery cashier back in the dark ages when plastic bags first came in (yes, I'm old. And yes, I did actually have to ask people paper or plastic). I remember how much people hated plastic bags when they first arrived. Do you suppose it would be hard to remember that old hatred and refuse to use them now?

I don't.

And if you want to see a photo of my new bags, just let me know. I can arrange it, if you want to share the excitement.

[/not-short post. Why is it that I blather longest when I don't plan to?]