Staying hydrated is important and you just can’t beat water for the price, these days. Of course we don’t yet know the price of water in the future, but we can somewhat ascertain the price we’ll pay in our personal failed health if we choose sodas and other sugary drinks over water. Save money now and in the future by making water your beverage of choice.
I’m not talking about bottled water. Sure, there is a time and place for bottled water, but rarely! Start cutting back with these 12 tips:
1. Don’t believe the hype. Yes, I’ve been to Evian in France where we had great fun joking that the bath water, the swimming pool, and the water at the car wash was ... Evian, of course! However, not all bottled water is of the mineral quality of Evian.
It may be shocking to learn that many bottled water companies package and sell tap water! Consumers are paying as much as 10,000 times the price of tap water to purchase ... tap water. In addition to being deceived at the cash register, consumers are leaving behind plastic pollution for generations to come.
2. Purchase a dry-erase marker if you live alone or if have guests, which just about covers everyone. Put a clean glass on the kitchen counter for each person every morning, writing the name on a glass. This will encourage reuse and reduce the volume of dirty dishes. Be sure to wipe the names off before the glasses go into the dishwasher. The high heat makes the marker tougher to remove afterward.
3. Place a glass pitcher of water covered in the refrigerator and add sliced lemons, cucumbers, or oranges. This is a delightful way to serve any beverage. Mint and rosemary stalks are also pleasing.
4. Keep a basket of personalized reusable bottles such as the BPA-free ones from KleanKanteen.com by the exit door as reminders to fill one up “for the road”.
5. Purchase glass canning jars or retain individual glass beverage containers from your favorite brands. Soak off the label for bottles that can all be washed repeatedly in the dishwasher. Fill with water and place in the fridge for a cool refreshing drink at home or on the go.
6. If water just doesn’t have enough “flavor” to entice you, place a huge jar of water with some herbal or regular tea bags in the sun for a quick brew of “sun tea.” A bit of honey and lemon will do wonders for your sun tea.
7. Tap water has been proven in many instances to be safer than bottled water, however you may prefer to remove impurities by switching to a water-purifying pitcher or faucet filter for your kitchen.
8. Rather than purchasing a plastic bottle of water to quench your thirst when you are away from home, seek out a public drinking fountain.
9. When traveling by commercial airline, instead of purchasing a plastic bottle of water at the airline gate area, carry a clean, empty bottle through TSA screening and then fill it with water at the gate-area drinking fountain for your flight.
10. Encourage children to drink water by including it in their school lunch. Purchase reusable plastic bottles that can return home in their lunchboxes each afternoon to save hundreds of disposable bottles a year.
11. For your kids on sports teams, send them to practice with a very large reusable plastic water jug labeled with their name. Fill it with filtered water, orange slices, mint sprigs from your garden, and lots of ice. They won’t be tempted to drain and waste several disposable water bottles from the team supply.
12. For carpool, keep a large reusable sport-top bottle of filtered water and a stack of paper cups in the car. What a relief to have each passenger quench his or her thirst with a small cup of water, instead of having each child take only two sips from a disposable plastic bottle, and leave you with five almost-full water bottles that will probably live in a landfill for 500 years.
Sherry Brooks is a healthy, happy and trim “Frugalista” living the lean and green life near Malibu in sunny southern California.
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