Kleenex, Napkins, and Paper Towels

I used to use a lot of Kleenex to blow my nose and then one day a few weeks ago, I figured I would stop using Kleenex. Instead, I decided to get some handkerchiefs to wipe my nose. I mentioned this to my wife, and she told me we had some in the closet somewhere, so she dug them out and now I use them instead of disposable tissues! I use one for a few days until I use up all the clean surface of the cloth and then I wash them. I like the handkerchiefs; they work well at containing the snot and wash with the rest of the laundry (I have 4 handkerchiefs, so they last between washings). In summary, I think they're great, and I think they'll cut down on my use of paper tissues. The next step is to use cloth napkins instead of paper napkins.

In a related note, I floss my teeth in the bathroom at work after lunch so I stand by the sink for a couple minutes each day. Recently, I've been observing the bathroom users. Thankfully, almost everyone washes their hands before they leave (but maybe it's just because I'm standing there), but I also noticed that most people who use paper towels use 3 paper towels to dry their hands! I am positive that one does not need 3 paper towels to dry his hands; one is sufficient, and I usually just wipe the clean water on my pants. They take 3 paper towels and most of the towel surface is dry when they throw it into the trash (Keynesian economics at its best). I wonder if the same people who take 3 paper towels would do the same if they had to buy the paper towels themselves. I suspect this is just another example of waste caused by hidden costs. If every bathroom user is wasting 2 paper towels each time they use the bathroom, imagine the pile of wasted towels at the end of the day! Rainbow Light NutriStart Multivitamin Dietary Supplement Powder Packets for Children 6 Months to 4 Years 30-Count Boxes (Pack of 2)