>#1: I believe in the three Rs, with a twist. This one is TRUE.
Reading, and Writing (‘riting) and Math (‘rithmetic) are the basis for many learning skills. However, the three Rs to which I refer are actually Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.

My family likes to tease me about my penchant for reusing instead of throwing things away. I don’t hoard junk (at least I sure try), but I re-use a lot. For example, I haven’t bought file folders in years. I often run copies for my class on the backs of old, unused papers. And yes, I buy from used book stores and clothing consignment shops, as well as donate our no-longer-usable clothing and household items to local thrift stores.
I recycle a lot, too. On the rare occasion when we order a pizza delivered, I will recycle all parts of the box that did not touch food particles. Tissue boxes? Tear out the small piece of plastic and recycle the rest. Finish off the cereal? Recycle the box, compost the inner wax paper lining.
Compost is another form of recycling. Grass clippings, food scraps (within limitations), coffee grounds, and more, will end up in the compost bin instead of the garbage can. Seeing the natural process of decomposition and knowing that I’ve contributed in a small way to lessening landfill use is very, very satisfying. Tilling the finished compost into my small garden in the spring is a part of this. We’ve reused that which we recycled, and in the end we’re reducing our purchases of vegetables trucked in from elsewhere, which reduces… well, you get the picture.
Think globally, act locally. It works.

>Or maybe I’m just taking a nap. It’s so much easier to be “green” in the summer when the weather is warm and I’m not working full time. The sun comes up earlier and stays out later, so I can be outside instead of using up energy with lights and television and computer. Laundry gets done at off-peak hours so the washer and dryer don’t heat the house when it’s already hot outside. I can compost my coffee grounds and kitchen waste. The bunnies graze on grass and chow down on the garden leftovers.
It’s not easy being green in the winter, but I still minimize my impact a little bit whenever I can. The sweatshirts and sweatpants are hanging over drying racks at the moment, and the load of jeans will hang up, too, when the washer is done. I’ll put all of these heavy items in the dryer on low for a few minutes at the very end of Laundry Detail.
One of my “cabin fever” projects this winter is the gradual purging of our old file cabinets. I stand next to one cabinet with a paper grocery bag and a box. Junk goes in the bag; anything that might need shredding goes in the box. Both eventually get recycled. I work until I finish a file drawer or fill the bag. The file cabinet will either get reorganized and used more efficiently or we’ll sell it at a rummage sale this summer.
The Christmas cards await the fun craft scissors. I’ll turn them into tags for next year in another “cabin fever” project.
I won’t compost my coffee grounds today (they don’t decompose much in the bitter cold, anyway), but I’m acting locally and thinking globally, in my own small way.