restaurant "gifts"

Alright, I know it's Thursday. And I only have a decent excuse for not posting last night. I took the afternoon off work because I wasn't feeling well and promptly slept most of it away. And then I was just lazy.

Anyway, here we go on this week's eco suggestion.

Take what you can from restaurants! Now before you go putting plates and spoons in your purse as you leave, continue reading. Restaurants are pretty notorious for bringing a stack of "extra" napkins the height of the Sears Tower. But if you don't use them all, they all still get thrown away. So take the ones you don't use! What's the point of letting unused napkins go in the trash? Bring them home, keep them in the car or in your purse, or put them in your desk drawer. Napkins will always find a way to get used. Extra straws? Extra plastic utensils (which are really a beast unto themselves)? Bring them with you!

Sugar/Splenda packets are also fair game, if you request some and they bring you more than enough. But I can't advise dumping the whole sugar caddy in your bag. Sorry!

And if you're in a fast food restaurant, don't throw those extra seven ketchup packets away! If they give you a handful, use the whole handful, even if that means six months later you're using that last packet that's been sitting in your fridge.

The whole point is to use what the restaurants gave you and would throw away if left behind. They can't use your leftovers for public health reasons, but you can use them! And napkins and ketchup packets add up quickly and come in handy. Right there, you've saved a ton of waste from landfills, without costing you anything more than the price of dinner.