Nothing's Fine, I'm Torn

Here's one of those times when I get all mixed up. A seemingly good thing that is really actually bad? Or what I think is a bad thing that really is good? I'm really confused. Perhaps it is that I have lost perspective. Maybe I never had any. Maybe my brain just isn't wired right.

Flipping through a magazine (I KNOW, there I go again. I was on a plane. Gimme a break. I couldn't focus on my book.), I came across a fantastic product: disposable cloth napkins! ??? Good! Wait, what? These are rolls of tear-off cotton napkins. You know, for when you want to be elegant. Sophisticated. "Less pricey than linens" they say. They last for at least 6 wash cycles, they say. You can use them once, or wash them to use them again. They say they are natural, biodegradable and recyclable for other uses. Maybe, like, cleaning cloths, I suppose? That's good, right? Cotton good... so long as it is organic cotton... But I can't tell if it is... I don't think so, or they would say so... So... um... Let's look at them: they come 15-20 to a roll, and they run $25-36/roll. How much are linen napkins? See, I don't even know because making them ourselves is so very easy.

I GUESS these are an OK alternative to paper napkins? You know, no, I can't even get that to ring true as I type it. I think, in the end, I find these unnecessary. Yes. That's it. It could be argued that they are better than paper and on the right track, but I just can't buy into the idea. They are pricey to me. They might seem too easy to throw away... cloth napkins are so easy to have and use and wash and keep that I just can't wrap my head around buying them to use them 1-6 times.

Torn, but definitely learning towards NOPE.

Green Gifts: Day 3

There was a "Friends" episode in which the girls were broke, so they baked for everyone as the holiday tips. Of course, zaniness and hilarity ensued. Their newspaper guy tore up their newspaper and their mailman smashed their mail and Ross blamed their "bad" gift as the reason their Super wouldn't fix their heater. The joke of course was that the super LOVED the heart-felt-ness of the gift.

Baking some yummy treats show that you took time out of your life to put love and care into the gift. Put them in a cool reusable container or tin or basket, again with those nice cloth napkins. Baking doesn't have to be a big bad chore; make it fun and involve the family too. Warm up the chilly home! There are all kinds of benefits! You can control the ingredients, in case anyone has allergies. You can go to the farmers' market to get local ingredients. (That's a two-fer!) For those people that just love cookies, and maybe do not have the time or wherewithal to make them themselves, this is a GREAT gift.

They don't have to be cookies. Do cupcakes. Do banana bread, zucchini bread, whatever. Make it your signature. Make it something the recipients look forward to! There is a lot to be said for the homemade gifts. It's time we got back to things like that. Let's make this mean something again. It's what the holidays are about, or used to be anyway. Let's turn it around, and make life a little greener at the same time.