Bag Lady

The first stop we always make on a trip to France is to go to the grocery store, so that we can stock the fridge at our house for the week. There is a Casino superstore in nearby Pamiers, and while it is not my favorite food emporium, they usually have everything that we need.

One thing that struck me is that everyone was using these recycled bags. A lot of us do that in San Francisco, but you still see a fair amount of paper and plastic bags going out the door. Not so here. At this huge grocery store (sort of like a Target Greatland) not ONE person used a paper or plastic bag. In fact, they were so far hidden underneath the counter, that I thought that they might have done away with them altogether.

This was an amazing and inspiring thing, and new since I had been there just 2 years ago. We proudly used our Casino recycled bags everywhere we went that week, and left them in the house for the next guests to use. Can you imagine if everyone in the United States adopted this practice? It really takes little effort, and I am sure makes a huge impact on waste and the environment, not to mention the profitability of the store. And in these tough times, all businesses could do with a little more profit.

50 Ways To Leave Your Yoga Mat

Sometimes your yoga mat gets a little too funky to use any more (or in the case of one of mine, I was drying it on the back balcony, and it fell off - never to be heard from again...). But it feels bad to just throw it out - after all, you went to all that trouble to find eco-friendly rubber, now it's just going to sit in a landfill?

I came across this helpful list from Gaiam, one of my favorite sites for yoga supplies and products (very nice organic cotton pants and tops).

Some of my favorites are:

#2. Dog & cat dishes stay put. Cut to size required. – A. O., Trumbull, CT

#5. While taking my dog to the vet or groomer or just for a ride with the top down, her feet would scratch the leather going around curves. So I decided to take an old yoga mat and roll it out over the back seat of my car. Viola! She is comfy and can do her own version of Downward Dog without scratching my seats! – L. S., Powell, OH

#24. Place it under your sleeping bag for extra padding when enjoying the outdoors. It reduces pack load for those who like to do yoga on camping trips. – S. F., Brooklyn, NY

#37. Plug up drafty places and save energy — windows, doors, under window air conditioners. – R. N., Minneapolis, MN

I love that all of the ideas came from customers - it just goes to show you that when we put our minds to it, we can all be creative when it comes to recycling. Your own trash may be your treasure in diguise! And when all else fails - donate it (to an animal shelter, for example) - there are down dogs out there just waiting to snuggle up to your old mat.