Sharing the Problems

 Do I mean problems? or dilemmas? or issues? Oh I don't know, it's just making the most of sharing what we need and want.

I was over at my sister's examining my shopping list and realised I hadn't put food wrap on it! 

'Oh,' she said 'I think I've got some I won't use, do you want it?'

I gratefully accepted and watched as she opened her under sink store and proceeded to bring out this lot...

I now have enough food wrap for months - we were puzzled though about when she might have got it as she doesn't use it at all...

Then we compared shopping lists - it would seem that many items we buy are the same or similar and we have often both commented on the quantities needed to get the best deal - mostly more than our two small households require.

Month 4 - Bite 26

Neither of us want to buy and then have to store extras, especially when they're part of a BOGOF/Buy One Get One Free offer or in a large pack that we won't use up before its best before/use by date. 

It makes sense then to combine our lists. It won't work if there's too long a gap between meeting up and going shopping, but there are lots of occasions when we can buy from our lists and split both the amounts and the cost. 

That makes the current task writing my list and sending her a copy so she can tell me anything she wants to go halves on.

Month 4 - Bite 27

That led me onto thinking how many other things we might have that it would be more economical to share. There's plenty of large items that we could swap between neighbours, family and friends that would cut down on buying, storing and so on. That's without the contribution it would make to the environment if less of these needed to be produced.

I know in our garage and shed there's a whole host of stuff that can be shared around.

                                               

So for the next on the list it's off to the shed where I'm sure we've got a heap of empty plant pots that we won't use. They can go next door to my neighbour for her seedlings. We then get the benefit as she always has more than she needs and we get free plants for the garden.

I'll also dig out our shaker that we use to spread feed on the lawn as I know the neighbour the other side is about to do hers.

Sharing the Problems, More like Sharing the Solutions...