GreenThrifty's Profile

Many stores (Walmart, Target, Big Lots, and numerous other stores - even some grocery stores) sell bundles of cotton terry-type wash cloths for no more than $3.00. I purchased such a bundle a few years back for $2.88 - there were 30 cloths. I use these as an alternative to toilet paper for "#1" and reserve TP use for "#2". Since my bladder must be the size of a walnut (thus frequent pees), this practice has cut down tremendously on my TP usage (at least 75%, if not more), and that makes me feel better that I am taking a constructive step toward environmental conservation. When I launder I just throw the cloths in with the normal/heavy wash items - works just fine. These cloths last for years (much like the old-fashioned cotton baby diapers) and are a good size for the purpose. I live alone, but can't see why a system can't be set up for multi-person households. As far as I'm concerned, the great satisfaction of outwitting corporations that deplete resources for one-use items, then have the gall to downsize their product while pumping up the price to the consumer 50% to 100% over the course of a year or two vastly outweighs any perceived inconvenience to the consumer. As a society we have become grossly addicted to the products marketed to us by irresponsible, greedy, and destructive corporations through a lot of clever marketing and mass bombardment advertising strategies. Think about it - what did people use in place of toilet paper centuries and millenia ago? We need to break out of the consumer mindset by which we have been programmed to function. "Going green" needs to include a certain amount of rebelling against corporations who thrive on environmental destruction. Hit them where it hurts - in the pocketbook.

Okay, okay, I hear you - enough of my preaching. To close, I'll mention another advantage of using cloths: I had found some toilet paper to be harsh (I wonder what chemicals were in that stuff), whereas my skin has never been irritated by the cotton washcloths.
Happy loo time, everyone!!