Mama’s Got a Brand New Bag!

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My last great deed, JOIN A TEAM, was super fun … but man, am I sore. Playing a softball game took more out of me than I expected. I’m achy EVERY WHERE. Every movement is painful. It was especially excruciating putting on my bra. MLB players don’t have it this rough after a game. They don’t have to adjust a bra strap.

I decided to do a less strenuous good deed today. My poor body needs a rest.

Today’s good deed: BRING YOUR OWN BAGS TO THE STORE

I went shopping at one of my favorite stores: The 99¢ Only Store! For those of you who haven’t had the privilege, the 99¢ Only Store is a grocery store one step up from a mom & pop shop. There’s tons of stuff, from blueberries to gardener gloves, but everything is 99 cents or less. There are lots of items the public didn’t go for, like frozen Weight Watchers soup, but if you have a keen eye, you can get great stuff. I have a keen eye.

The 99¢ Only Store, like a lot of stores in California, now charges 10 cents per grocery bag. Bringing my own reusable bags saved me a few dimes instantly! That was easy enough.

I went online to see just how much of a good deed I was doing by not using the store’s plastic bags. Here are some facts I found from ReuseThisBag.com about plastic and paper grocery bags and why I should always use reusable ones:

The United States alone uses approximately 100 billion new plastic bags per year—the average person goes through between 350 and 500.

Thanks to their light weight, plastic bags are the debris most likely to fly away from landfills, settling instead in trees, storm drains, beaches, and the ocean.

An estimated one million birds and 100,000 turtles and other sea animals die of starvation each year after ingesting discarded plastic bags, which block their digestive tracks.

Made from petroleum products and natural gas, plastic bags utilize nonrenewable resources, ultimately helping to drive up fuel prices.

Think paper bags are better? The United States cuts down 14 million trees per year simply to supply the demand for paper shopping bags.

Over a lifetime, use of reusable bags by just one person would save over 22,000 bags.

Need more convincing? You can find a list of 25 reasons to go reusable at: http://www.reusethisbag.com/25-reasons-to-go-reusable.php

So … major good deed done with minimum effort! Btw, I went in to buy toilet paper and baking soda. I came out with Chip’s Ahoy, beef jerky, dried mangos and bagels. I really should stop shopping when I’m hungry.

Photo (Flickr CC) by Kate Ter Haar

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Holly Walker

Ms. Walker made her acting debut at the tender age of 8 in For Spring is the Season of Happiness. She almost turned down the role of Mother Nature (she wanted the role of "Spring") until she found out Mother Nature had the most lines. On that day, a diva was born. Holly has traveled the world performing comedy. She has been to more than 40 U.S. states and over 30 countries worldwide. She is an alum of the improvisational companies Boom Chicago and The Second City. Holly currently works on The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore as a writer and performer. She has been a part of the Rebel Storytellers family since 2009 and hopes to be with them for many years to come.

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