Earth Day Giveaway: Reusable Grocery Bags

Have you “been meaning” to incorporate some greener practices into your life lately, but just haven’t gotten around to it? Earth Day – scheduled for April 22 – is a perfect time to get started. I admit, I wasn’t always a “green” person. And I’m still not perfect. But here are some of the things that I do. They don’t take much time, and they help me feel a little better about the not-so-green things that I do (like using disposable diapers).

1. Recycling. I recycle paper and cardboard at my house, because that’s what generates the most waste. I have several cardboard and plastic boxes in my garage that I collect the recyclables in. It’s a great spot because I can drive into the garage and just chunk the junk mail into the boxes before it can make its way into the house. We don’t have curbside recycling where I live, so I have to take it to my county precinct once a month or so.

2. Buying organic. I don’t buy every food item organic by any means. But I do make an effort to get organic produce and milk whenever I can. Supporting organic farmers, who don’t use pesticides or other fake stuff to produce their wares, keeps harmful stuff off of the planet. And it’s better for you to boot.

3. Using CFLs. These compact fluorescent light bulbs use less energy, reducing my electric bill and reducing the load on the grid. See my post on Earth Day deals for info on how to get CFLs cheap this week.

4. Reusable grocery bags. It seems like every store sells them these days. I have quite a collection now. To make sure I always have some with me, I take them right back to my car immediately after unloading my groceries. I even bring them to department stores like Kohl’s.

5. Other tips. The H-E-B family of stores has a great list of other ways to go green for Earth Day. Check them out!

Now, on to the good stuff. H-E-B has generously offered to send three of my readers one reusable grocery bag each in honor of Earth Day. To enter, simply leave a comment on this post listing a green practice that you plan to put into effect in celebration of Earth Day. To get up to two bonus entries, do these things:
1. Tweet this on Twitter: “Go green with a giveaway from @fwcheap! https://bit.ly/btuZMb”
2. Become a fan of Fort Worth on the Cheap on Facebook.

The first entry method is mandatory – i.e. you can’t use Twitter or Facebook to enter unless you’ve used the first entry method. If you decide to do the bonus entries, leave a separate comment on this post each time you do. Like you can say, “I Tweeted!” and include a link to the tweet. If you’re already a Facebook fan, then just leave a separate comment saying so.

I’ll draw for the reusable bags on April 25 at 11:59 a.m. so get your entries in before then. Winners will be contacted via e-mail. U.S. residents only, please.

Good luck!