• Home
  • About The Arners
    • Contact
    • FAQs
    • Arner Adventures Resources
    • Press
  • Blog
  • Podcast
    • Episodes & Show Notes
  • Wanderlust(ing)
    • Travel
  • Mental Wellness
    • Mindfulness
    • Self-Care
    • Anxiety
    • Grief

Arner Adventures

In Low Waste minimalist decor Minimalist Lifestyle ·

Cancel the Waste

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

Over the past few years, like most people, we have grasped the “e-bill” or “save a tree” version of signing up for the digital format of our bills or whatever it is that we need to receive notice. If you aren’t at this point, I mean, who are you, and why don’t you love the earth? Seriously though, it’s time.  

Cancelling the paper mail you receive is the easiest step you can take to reduce your carbon footprint, but of course, you can literally help save trees. Did you know that 100 million trees are destroyed each year for junk mail? Billions of gallons of water are wasted to produce junk mail. If those facts don’t matter to you, how about the fact that most Americans spend about 70 hours/year dealing with paper and junk mail? What else could you be doing with 70 hours? Hopefully, your time is more valuable than to be spent dealing with paper.  

This year, perhaps having more time on our hands, we have become acutely aware of the excess that comes in the mail, and we don’t even have that much. Even our mail carrier, Mack, laughs when he puts the junk in the mailbox, because he knows that I (Shannon) detest it. I have even yelled at him, in a joking manner, I mean, I know it is no fault of Mack’s that we get this junk that comes to us, especially at this point. Don’t even get me started about the crap that was coming to us, in droves, during election time. Despite all of our attempts, there are still some things that are unavoidable when it comes to waste in the mail, but it won’t stop my attempt to cancel the waste. We should start a new kind of #cancelculture, am I right?!

What can we cancel? Let’s talk about it.

  • First, your bills. Yes, let’s get back to that. We challenge you, at the beginning of next month, March, whichs starts tomorrow, go through each of your bills, and sign up for e-bill, paperless billing, and if you cannot find it online, call and ask for it. There are a couple of bills that we have where it was not offered online, and when I called, they told me they could send it via email each month upon request, and voila! Done! You just have to ask. 
  • Second, magazines and catalogs. Seriously. All of that stuff is available online. Besides, anything you order, you are going to be ordering online anyway. When was the last time you actually ordered something using the order form in a catalog and mailed it in? That’s what I thought. If you are getting magazines in the mail, just sign-up for the digital version to arrive in your email. It’s just as shiny and pretty- promise! Those catalogs? They are old school and dated. Just call and unsubscribe from those. I get some of those arriving randomly for people who used to live at our address years ago, and I unsubscribe by using Catalog Choice. It is a free service, easy to use, and once you register your name and address, you can just easily enter the catalog you want to unsubscribe from each time you receive it, and they take care of the rest, even if it is a previous resident- not your own name.  
  • Previous Resident Mail– speaking of those previous residents- it may seem easier to just throw that mail in the recycle bin, despite it being junk or not knowing what it is, but whatever it is, mark through the name and write, “Return to sender/not at this address” and put it back in the mail. It goes back to the mailer, and removes that person from the mailing list. Problem solved. 
  • Election Mail– it may seem like you cannot control this, but you can. Each time Mack brought a new postcard with some politician’s face on it, I found whatever lobbying office, or campaign was paying for that mailer (it is usually at the bottom of the mailer) and told them to remove us from their mailing list. I also found that organization online and sent it in writing via email, or on their website. Yes, it took about 5 minutes each time we received one, but it was worth it, because after a few weeks, when everyone else kept getting all of those mailers, ours stopped. 
  • Unsolicited Credit and Insurance Offers– the FTC recommends going to OptOutPreScreen to register to remove yourself from these lists. You can remove yourself for 5 years, or permanently. This reduces a ton of those offers from entering your mailbox. 

These tips won’t stop everything. Mack laughed, even today, when he dropped off one of those mailers with coupons that he is to deliver to everyone on the route. He knows that they drive me crazy. Before you ask, no, Mack isn’t a cruel man. By law, even though Mack knows how much I despise junk mail, he has an obligation to deliver it to me. I give the coupons to my neighbor who adores them. Anything else, and I mean anything else, I am either calling the company it came from and instructing to be removed from their mailing list, or finding a way to be removed from their list online. The really great thing is that after just a bit of additional effort, our mailbox stays empty most days of the week. 

I also want to say that I do appreciate a handwritten note. I still send thank you notes by mail, I mail packages when necessary, and want the US Postal Service to stay in business. I just want to eliminate the unnecessary, especially the junk.  We do get to see Mack most days though, on our midday walks as he is delivering mail to our neighbors, and as he drives by, he beeps and says hello, even if he isn’t delivering any junk mail to us.

Related posts:

May Minimalism Challenge: You May Accept
Striving For Zero Waste
Making the Switch to a Safety Razor: A Low-Waste Shaving Option
Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

1 Comment

About arneradventures

Hi, we are Shannon and Gerry Arner, and our rescue, fur baby, Betty White. After owning our own business, working 24/7, we made a lifestyle change and decided to make the most out of life. We sold our house, downsized, and moved to the coast. We are wanderlusters; we live life minimally, but fully. We live each day as an adventure, and enjoy sharing them with you!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok
  • YouTube
Arner Adventures Free Travel Prep List

Looking for something?

Arner Adventures Declutter Challenge

Arner Adventures

It's #podcasttuesday and our #sparkinourlives  It's #podcasttuesday and our #sparkinourlives guest today is @shaunanuckles founder of @advocationsystem
🎙️
Shauna Nuckles is a public relations industry leader and founder. Shauna spent her career rising through the PR agency ranks. She was determined to move to the top of an industry she loved and put in the hours and dedication to do so. At the point where it looked like she’d “made it,” the toll that job-related stress took on her health told a different story. Her doctor told her that she had 6 months to keep working like she was now or her body would force her to stop.
🎙️
Through this process, she realized she wasn’t alone in feeling overwhelming stress and heard stories from others who shared their anxiety, stressed-induced hospital visits, and panic attacks. 
🎙️
Her mission suddenly became clear. In 2019 she founded Advocation, which is now paving the way for industry change by working with PR agencies to reduce stress without sacrificing results.
🎙️
We chat with Shauna about:
☑ Rising through the public relations ranks, and her passion for the industry.
☑ Experiencing burnout, and how she pivoted after her health crisis.
☑ Starting Advocation and what led her down the path as a founder.
☑ Compassion fatigue and how she maneuvers through it.
☑ The Advocation model and what is in store for the future. 
☑ Shauna answers our “Fast Five” questions and the most important question, “What does a life well lived mean to you?” Swipe left to hear her answer! 👈🏻
🎙️
For anyone who is still in the hustle culture mentality (we've been there, so we get it 🖐🏻) this is a MUST listen! Tons of helpful and inspiring nuggets in this convo!
"Everybody can be great … because anybody can se "Everybody can be great … because anybody can serve. You do not have to have a college degree to serve. You do not have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Once my favorite bag, now my favorite pillow. 🤎 Once my favorite bag, now my favorite pillow.
🤎
This was a gift from @scoutsobel - an amazing woman, @emotionalentrepreneur and CEO/Founder of @scoutsagency
🤎
I carried this tote everywhere and when the handle recently broke (I overload it most of the time) I knew that the message was one that I needed to see every day in my office.
🤎
If you know me, you know I cannot sew, but with a bit of patience (it's truly a virtue), I was able to sew it into the most endearing pillow.
🤎
In case you didn't know, you ARE safe in your emotions. Now go read Scout's book, #TheEmotionalEntrepreneur and practice some self-love this weekend!
This is just a friendly reminder from Betty White This is just a friendly reminder from Betty White to celebrate every win! Big or small, all wins are important!
🐾
January can be challenging for a lot of people. With the struggles from the holidays, whether expectations were set high, or post-holiday letdown, January leads the year with the highest depressive episodes.
🤎
There are also factors such as holiday bills coming due, less daylight, and cold weather.
🤎
Take a moment today to breathe, give yourself a great big hug, and write down 3 things you're grateful for in your life.
🤎
We're with you, and #BettyWhite is definitely with you!
Follow on Instagram

© 2023 ARNER ADVENTURES LLC | Terms and Conditions | Privacy Policy | Affiliate Disclosure | Consulting

🍪We use cookies (yum!) to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Who doesn't love cookies?! Ok