Just a few, short years ago, I would have regular “discussions” with my husband about the value of recycling. We wouldn’t actually fight about my attempts to recycle newspapers, plastic, aluminum, etc, but we were definitely not in agreement!

Pre-Apri 2007, I recycled aluminum cans & plastic bottles, pretty much for the cash (what little that was). I would also collect the previous day’s newspapers from my workplace and neighbor and recycle them, more for the principal of it, rather than the .01 or .02 cents per pound profit.

My very intelligent and witty husband, was not of like mind, in the recycling arena. He reluctantly rinsed his soda/beer cans, but insisted that this was “my project” and he was not participating in getting them to the recycler.

The newspaper recycling was even more of a sore subject with Ken. Considering, I didn’t accumulate much in newspaper, when I did recycle them, I would secure a whopping .38 cents to maybe .50 cents for my booty! Ken used to say to me, “If, you let me throw the newspapers away, I’ll give you the .38 cents myself.” Naturally, I was NOT humored by his “generous” offers.

Then, in April 2007,  I watched Oprah’s Earth Day show and became inspired to be more environmentally conscious, which included amping up my recycling habits. It was still a little touchy with Ken, but as time progressed and he become more educated about environmental issues, he was a more willing participant.

Then, in April of 2009, we purchased a home that was larger than the home we had been living in. With some of the new space in our garage area, I expressed to Ken that I would like to have a larger recycling area. As, I’m sure you might of guessed, that didn’t go over too well. There was some ongoing bantering for awhile, prior to our moving. But, lo and behold, once we got moved into our new home, my husband lined me (us) all up, with a recycling area in our garage!

As you can see from the pictures, there definitely isn’t anything fancy about this area. All the receptacles are used cardboard boxes or old plastic bins, etc. But, it’s my own little recycling area and it works!

The moral to my story is: Never give up, if  it’s the right thing to do, do it! And, keep on doing it! Eventually, those who are around you, will see the light and convert also.

Note: In case you’re wondering, the county that I reside in, currently does not have curbside recycling. I make a recycling run about every other week to our local recycler, Western Recycling in Fruitland, ID.