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Get Outa Here, Plastic!

Maybe over the last month a slew of things lead me to a plastic rampage the other day. It's everywhere. It's excessive. Plastic cups, straws, balloons, cans (ok aluminum too) all over the beach. Snack packs at Publix have made me maybe the most outraged-- wasteful packages with 3 pieces of cheese and some nuts or a spoonful of salsa with 5 tortilla chips in a double decker plastic bus for convenience? Bleh. I'm actually writing Sabra to express my extreme discontent with their entire company. I'm so feisty about this! I'd close em down if I were president.
End rant, onto action. 
So here's how I'm starting out. 

Drinking and Eating 
Keepin' on with the Nalgene everywhere and also taking my own coffee cup to cafes. Apparently several (Dunkin for one!) will give discounts too. 
Saying no next time I want ice cream at school if they only have plastic options. Ice cream can wait, can't it, Earth?
Take my own container for leftovers at restaurants. 
Straws? I would get some of those glass or steel straws but I just won't use them. Also why in the world are some cafes making goals to get rid of them by 2020? Why does it two years to do that? 
Skipping any plastic drinks 

Fruits 
Certainly nixing the plastic bags 
Getting little reusable baskets for the strawberries, blueberries, etc. and filling up at the farmer's market
Spending a couple extra minutes to cut up my pineapple to forget that container

Eggs 
Getting from the farmer's market and throwing them in a wire basket. 
Kinda crazy the organic, free range, hippie eggs come in the most intense plastic container. 

Grocery Shopping
Reusable bags are a given.
Taking my own containers to fill up sugar, flour, rice, nuts, cereal... I have some like these and these.  Lucky's is one store that definitely does this. Let me know of any others! 

Meats and Seafood
I asked Lucky's if they would put them in my own container and they said no, so I'll be checking out the local butcher and seafood market this weekend. I've missed this cozy aspect of European life, walking to the butcher or market, but I can actually make it work here! Mike's Butcher Shop, I'm coming for you!

Trash
I want to try to eliminate plastic trash bags by composting, so we can put all the dry trash straight in the basket sans bag. If anyone has tips on this, let me know. Cuz what about like raw meat?
Share any tips on composting too! 

Poop Bags
Decomposing ones like these guys

Save the Shipping 
Forget Amazon/online ordering when I can go a little out of my way to buy something without extravagant packaging. Will have to weigh the options with things like this though, considering the previous mention of poop bags-- looking at stores, the packaging for decomposing poop bags doesn't look decomposable... Anyone 

Cleaning
Bar soap. 
Gotta look into shampoo, detergent, etc. 
Minimizing/cutting out paper towels?

What tips, recipes, businesses, etc. do you guys have? 


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