# What do you save, or waste?



## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

On another forum, I mentioned saving Christmas tree tinsel year after year after year in the old days. Another member wrote: "Yes, I remember it, just the way you described it.....putting it back in the box. There was a time when people wasted nothing. One saved paper clips, rubber bands, darned socks, had shoes, clothing and appliances repaired. When people got something from the bakery, they untied the string and it was saved it in a ball and put it in a drawer in the kitchen that contained every kind of odd treasure the world could possibly contain...at least, to a child such as myself. Scraps of paper with phone numbers without names that conjured a feeling of distance, vastness and mystery and were a little scary; marbles, magnets, nails, emery boards, a few clothes pins, Elmer's glue, assorted bobby pins, a jack or two, a protractor from Woolworth's, carpet tacks, stubs of pencils with erasers worn flat, small foam rubber balls from a paddle-board toy, needles in small folded card stock sewing kits that looked like large matchbooks, a piece of Bakelite waiting for its chance to repair whatever it came from. And since it was a wooden drawer, everything smelled of wood. People saved everything and waste was unforgivable."

What do YOU save today? Should you? What do you waste?


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

I waste food that is left over if there's not much of it and it can't be integrated into meals readily. This is in reaction to my mother, who can't waste food; she's 94 and has memory problems and there are still cups of remains all over her fridge and she can't remember when and where they came from. It's a worry. 
I also think that it's more of a waste to eat it oneself and get fat; it's better in the dustbin, since I can't *actually* put it on a train and send it to starving people. 
However, I try not to buy more food than I need, and I make most meals from scratch.

I save - wrapping paper, padded envelopes, blue-tac, the postman's elastic bands that I find on the pavement, coffee jars to store rice, oats or sugar, re-usable scent sprays to put rose water into, plastic pots and boxes that might do as containers for coins or jewellery, and jokes from Christmas crackers. (I fold the jokes into the money that I give to my violin teacher.  )


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## PetrB (Feb 28, 2012)

KenOC said:


> On another forum, I mentioned saving Christmas tree tinsel year after year after year in the old days. Another member wrote: "Yes, I remember it, just the way you described it.....putting it back in the box. There was a time when people wasted nothing. One saved paper clips, rubber bands, darned socks, had shoes, clothing and appliances repaired. When people got something from the bakery, they untied the string and it was saved it in a ball and put it in a drawer in the kitchen that contained every kind of odd treasure the world could possibly contain...at least, to a child such as myself. Scraps of paper with phone numbers without names that conjured a feeling of distance, vastness and mystery and were a little scary; marbles, magnets, nails, emery boards, a few clothes pins, Elmer's glue, assorted bobby pins, a jack or two, a protractor from Woolworth's, carpet tacks, stubs of pencils with erasers worn flat, small foam rubber balls from a paddle-board toy, needles in small folded card stock sewing kits that looked like large matchbooks, a piece of Bakelite waiting for its chance to repair whatever it came from. And since it was a wooden drawer, everything smelled of wood. People saved everything and waste was unforgivable."
> 
> What do YOU save today? Should you? What do you waste?


LOL. that was when Xmas tree tinsel was _lead,_ heavy, it hung, draped wonderfully, weighted the bows beautifully, and it also 'behaved well' when lifting it off and then handled readily enough so you could easily put it neatly back in the box and later re-use it. _Try that with some electro-static magnet plastic film, no, no, no._

Now, people are saving their artificial snap-together Xmas "Trees" and using them year after year 

I have (and consume) so little, there is little to either save or toss.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Ingélou said:


> I waste food that is left over if there's not much of it and it can't be integrated into meals readily. This is in reaction to my mother, who can't waste food; she's 94 and has memory problems and there are still cups of remains all over her fridge and she can't remember when and where they came from. It's a worry.
> I also think that it's more of a waste to eat it oneself and get fat; it's better in the dustbin, since I can't *actually* put it on a train and send it to starving people.
> However, I try not to buy more food than I need, and I make most meals from scratch.
> 
> I save - wrapping paper, padded envelopes, blue-tac, the postman's elastic bands that I find on the pavement, coffee jars to store rice, oats or sugar, re-usable scent sprays to put rose water into, plastic pots and boxes that might do as containers for coins or jewellery, and jokes from Christmas crackers. (I fold the jokes into the money that I give to my violin teacher.  )


There's some food in the back of my refrigerator that dates back to 1990, the year Bernstein and Copland died.
I keep it for its historical and sentimental value. It's my way of remembering them.


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## SarahNorthman (Nov 19, 2014)

I save paper and plastic bags, twisted ties from bread and such, those bags you get the newspaper in, as odd as it may sound I save boxes and change. I however don't save milk. I am odd, I hate the stuff, but I won't eat cereal without it. (I drain it off the spoon first. And just toss the milk.


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## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

I don't waste food; I plan my meals around the leftovers and things that need to be eaten first, so there is absolutely no waste :tiphat:

I don't waste clothing. When I buy something, I wear it until it no longer looks as crisp as I like to appear. I am presently wearing a pair of jeans that I cannot do up without some difficulty. I had bought two pairs on sale two summers ago: one pair wore out recently and the other pair is unworn, but has gotten a bit tight. I hold them up with a belt and will wear them until I feel that I have gotten my money's worth  Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a sale.

I save envelopes, scrap paper, twist ties, elastic bands, plastic bags, nails, screws, buttons, etc.: things one occasionally needs but for which it makes no sense to buy a box or package of.

I save all beverage containers and claim the deposits regularly: these have financed _most_ of my music collection  Neighbours often give me garbage bags full of their refundable containers. I don't tell them what I do with them :lol:

I don't save old junk that is useless and/or worn out. I don't have old computers, television sets, power tools, stereo equipment, furniture, books, etc., that I no longer require or that have broken down. When I replace or am done with something, it is set out _immediately_. My place is very tidy, streamlined and minimal: I like space, not dust and clutter.


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## ahammel (Oct 10, 2012)

I regularly cull everything that takes up space. I don't live in a big enough apartment to hang on to too much stuff on the off-chance that it will come in handy some day.


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## Guest (Dec 27, 2014)

Well Ken, I tend to *waste my time* when I should rather be *saving my breath*.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

In UK we waste an awful lot of food.

The implementation of 'best by' and 'use by' dates were in the laudable interests of health and safety but there are hundreds of food items which can be quite safely consumed beyond their 'dates'.

I grew up before the start of 'by' dates and used my eyes and nose to judge if something was safe to eat and I still do and I hardly throw any food away. The only exception is shell fish as it's notorious for causing food poisoning and I do throw away any leftovers.

The most ridiculous example of how stupid these dates can be? 2,000 year old rock salt - use by xx/xx/xx.


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## Krummhorn (Feb 18, 2007)

Paper documents which I must keep for a number of years, I will scan and store them as PDF's on my PC or on a CD-RW disk. 
We routinely recycle everything we can - we have a separate curbside container for trash and recycle items. 

Leftovers from a prepared meal are either consumed within within 6 days or tossed on the 7th day if we haven't frozen them. 

We make most of our meals from scratch - using natural ingredients. Too much of the pre-packaged things are just so full of preservatives that they lack flavour. 

Kh ♫


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## Taggart (Feb 14, 2013)

sospiro said:


> In UK we waste an awful lot of food.


We plan meals and buy accordingly. If we only need a small quantity for a meal e.g. eggs, then we will plan other egg meals. We don't multi buy unless the sell by / use by dates are good. We watch the offers and multi buy staples or non-perishables in different weeks according to the offers available. We don't use much bread so we freeze it and get it out a slice or a roll at a time as we need it. We keep a fairly full store cupboard but make sure that it gets used up.

We now put more in the recycle bin than the rubbish bin because they've changed what can be recycled.


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## PetrB (Feb 28, 2012)

hpowders said:


> There's some food in the back of my refrigerator that dates back to 1990, the year Bernstein and Copland died.
> I keep it for its historical and sentimental value. It's my way of remembering them.


*Cryogenic Copland Casserole?*


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

Taggart said:


> We plan meals and buy accordingly. If we only need a small quantity for a meal e.g. eggs, then we will plan other egg meals. We don't multi buy unless the sell by / use by dates are good. We watch the offers and multi buy staples or non-perishables in different weeks according to the offers available....


I should point out that with Taggart, shopping is an art form! I've had to accompany him on recent trips so that he doesn't lift heavy loads and risk a hernia again, and he's the best shopper I know, man or woman. Which is fab, as shopping bores me.


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## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

I put out as much as I can for recycling and anything that's left after that gets chucked - out of my general rubbish the ratio's approx. 2.5 to 1. I do re-use carrier bags and once they're falling apart I take them to a carrier recycle bin in the local supermarket (I might have to stock up as I gather the supermarket in question might be charging for their bags in the near future. 

I do have some larger items that are long overdue being dumped - mainly conked-out old electronic stuff. I've also got an intact set of springs from my old mattress that needs chucking out - I stripped it down as I wanted to re-use the coconut fibre stuffing to bulk out some throw cushions.


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## Jos (Oct 14, 2013)

We don't waste food in our household. Leftovers are eaten the next day for lunch or after sport. There is always a teenager around with a big appetite. And after that there is always the dogs.....
We also have these drawers with the items the OP described, elastic bands, bicycle computers, combs, tie-raps, anti mosquitospray, supermarketvouchers, used screws and paperclips.
On the permanent to-do list are clothing, books and, according to my wife, elpees. Complete nonsense ofcourse, but I do agree with the clothing clearout, and the shoes !!! 38 pairs, I tell you, and she is still buying them


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## SarahNorthman (Nov 19, 2014)

Ingélou said:


> I should point out that with Taggart, shopping is an art form! I've had to accompany him on recent trips so that he doesn't lift heavy loads and risk a hernia again, and he's the best shopper I know, man or woman. Which is fab, as shopping bores me.


We are some odd women then. I hate shopping.


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

Jos said:


> We don't waste food in our household. Leftovers are eaten the next day for lunch or after sport. There is always a teenager around with a big appetite. And after that there is always the dogs.....


Ah yes, indeed - lucky you! - how I miss our dogs. We had dogs for twenty five years, until October 2013. I still find myself saving segments of satsuma or crusts of bread to give to them. And it was so much more satisfying putting leftover morsels into a dog's mouth than into the kitchen waste bin.


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## geralmar (Feb 15, 2013)

sospiro said:


> In UK we waste an awful lot of food.
> 
> The implementation of 'best by' and 'use by' dates were in the laudable interests of health and safety but there are hundreds of food items which can be quite safely consumed beyond their 'dates'.
> 
> What you write is particularly true of canned goods. Not long ago I ate with no ill effect from a can of beans that "expired" seven years ago. A month ago I found an old can of vegetables in the basement and was all set to try for twelve years, but my wife threw it out.


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## pianississimo (Nov 24, 2014)

i save the little brushes you get in hair dye packs and give them to people to clean their computer keyboard.
I keep plastic bags to cushion my breakfast banana in my bag for work
I keep elastic bands from the postman to pack up my lunch for work
I save the ends of veg in the freezer to make soup occasionally
I fix stocking holes with nail varnish
I collect rainwater to water houseplants
I fix socks and gloves when they get holes in 

other than that I waste too much and use things I shouldn't - same as most people from the opulent and decadent west.


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## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

geralmar said:


> ...there are hundreds of food items which can be quite safely consumed beyond their 'dates'.
> 
> Not long ago I ate with no ill effect from a can of beans that "expired" seven years ago.


This is very true. I regularly buy food items that have been reduced in price, because they are within days of reaching their 'dates'. I usually consume them within a few days to a couple of weeks-if they are dry, canned or frozen goods that evidence no sign of moisture contamination, puncture, bloating, thawing, etc. Also, fresh produce is regularly reduced when a new shipment comes in, when it starts to ripen, etc. Actually, this is when it is most flavourful, but it must be consumed within a day or two, as it perishes rapidly. Yogourt can be used for about 2-3 weeks past the date; ripened cheeses even longer, given a factory vacuum seal. With fresh milk, cream and unripened cheese, however, a few days are about the limit. Spoiled milk and cream may be used in baking, though (if it smells bad; not if it is turning red and green, of course). The saving on my grocery bill is formidable :tiphat:

I think it is very risky to eat canned food that has been stored for as many years as you mention  At the very least, there can be a strong metallic taste and high levels of BPA, due to the breakdown of the can, and a risk of puncture and toxic spoilage. Listeria, botulism and salmonella produce no obvious 'bad' odour, I believe.


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## Jos (Oct 14, 2013)

Ingélou said:


> Ah yes, indeed - lucky you! - how I miss our dogs. We had dogs for twenty five years, until October 2013. I still find myself saving segments of satsuma or crusts of bread to give to them. And it was so much more satisfying putting leftover morsels into a dog's mouth than into the kitchen waste bin.


Yes, I remember, when I first joined here, your dog had just died.
Couldn't bear to be without them. My suggestion for 2015 would be to get yourself a new one. Save a lovely little mongrel from the assylum, or, if you're up to it , a puppy. What a joyful way (and a lot of work....) to start the new year.


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## GreenMamba (Oct 14, 2012)

I have never had big living spaces, so I tend not to hang on to much stuff. The exception is boxes. I occasionally sell things on eBay, so I save all kinds of boxes for that, and for my next move. I have way more than I'll ever need.

I waste parsley. I buy a big bunch and use a little. Then when I'm ready to use more, it has gone bad. I also waste thyme. And time.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

GreenMamba said:


> I waste parsley. I buy a big bunch and use a little. Then when I'm ready to use more, it has gone bad. I also waste thyme. And time.


My wife grows a few spices in flower pots on the patio. If she needs some thyme or rosemary, she just clips off what she needs. These things are easy to grow and require little attention. Saves a lot of pre-dinner trips to the store, which is probably more significant than the food savings! And of course you know it's fresh.


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## GreenMamba (Oct 14, 2012)

KenOC said:


> My wife grows a few spices in flower pots on the patio. If she needs some thyme or rosemary, she just clips off what she needs. These things are easy to grow and require little attention. Saves a lot of pre-dinner trips to the store, which is probably more significant than the food savings! And of course you know it's fresh.


I've grown herbs before. I'm now an apartment dweller without private outdoor space, but more problematic is that I live near rabbit- and woodchuck- infested woods. I'm assuming I'd have to battle them off.


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## SarahNorthman (Nov 19, 2014)

I'm kind of a novice when it comes to planting. But I would suggest trying smaller pots and growing them indoors. Maybe on a window sill?


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## Tero (Jun 2, 2012)

I got rid of nearly all pieces of junk as we are moving. I do have way too many field guides packed into a box. I am prepared for all natural phenomena. Passed on a few flower guides I had in hand, but weeds and grasses are well covered.

Have been frugal with heat. It is gas heat currently but will be electric at next house. I figure I will need to go protest in favor of nuclear power as my electricity is partly that. Can't we just burn the tar sands instead of piping it thru Nebraska?

Next house is newer and smaller so will save on overall energy.


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

GreenMamba said:


> I've grown herbs before. I'm now an apartment dweller without private outdoor space, but more problematic is that I live near rabbit- and woodchuck- infested woods. I'm assuming I'd have to battle them off.


Or whitefly on your mint. I have grown parsley & thyme in pots by the door, but when I tried mint, it just became a haven for whitefly. I googled 'whitefly on my mint' and got a dedicated site: the bottom line seemed to be 'Give up!' :lol:


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

GreenMamba said:


> I've grown herbs before. I'm now an apartment dweller without private outdoor space, but more problematic is that I live near rabbit- and woodchuck- infested woods. I'm assuming I'd have to battle them off.


 You can grow herbs indoors in small pots with maybe a couple of fluorescent bulbs of whatever type. Or easier, buy an AeroGarden. You can get it with a set of plugs with various spices. I used one of those for a couple of years. Burned out on basil...

http://www.aerogarden.com/?cid=ppc_m


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