I am far from OCD. Very far from it! But there are certain things that will bother me for days if I waste even a little bit. (Oddly, money ISN'T one of them). Sometimes it might be because I have run out before and hope to avoid that as long as possible. Buts thats a guess. If I smoke a cigarette I either won't stop until its all gone, or I'll put it up and save it. Even if there's only 2 or 3 drags left, I always smoke it before I light another one. My husband threw one out that was almost half of a cigarette. When I was about to pick it up off the ground I realized how fanatic I am about it. If there is any coffee in the pot after I'm done with it for the day, it goes in a cup, in the fridge. I'll heat it up and add more to it in the morning. And, the last one I can think of at the moment, is alcohol. It doesn't matter what it is, liquor or beer. If there is enough for just one swig, it goes in the fridge until the next time I drink. Do you have anything like that?
I do the same thing with my coffee. Normally I brew a lot of coffee at once and never drink all of it. If I poured it all out once I had the first cup, I'd be wasting a lot of money every day. Everything needs to be used to the last drop. Turn the bottle over, slice open the tube — whatever. Every penny or fraction of a penny saved . . . they add up.
Wow, you guys really don't let a single drop go to waste, or should I say you don't let much of anything go to waste. -and here was me thinking I ought to be proud of how much I try not to waste food. You seriously put me to shame LOL We always have a little bit of coffee left in our filter machine, but it goes down the drain. I'd hate to have it next day because it wouldn't taste the same. Whatever drink's not finished goes down the drain, because if I keep it, it's likely to go flat and spoil. Everything else, as long as it's still good to eat; If I don't eat it, I give it to the security guys at the gate as they are on hideously low wages and sometimes can't even afford lunch.
Ha, yeah I hate wasting food or rather products in general but sometimes it's just too much of a hassle. Like with the Nair, I can only get out so much Nair before I need to just get another bottle. I also don't drink all of the goat's milk because once you get to the bottom there's always a chunk in it. I'm not going to drink the bottom of the carton unless I'm really desperate. Also if I find out I don't like something I'm just not going to eat it. Unless it can be easily given to someone, it's going in the trash.
The way some items are packaged it causes alot of waste. Often when you think something is empty it isn't. Toothpaste tubes and lotion tubes have alot of the product still in the tubes, they just don't squeeze out. I cut the tubes to get to the stuff that is still in the tube before I throw it out.
I have this same behavior. I don't know where I picked it up as I don't remember my family being that anal about it, but it personally grew up to be more obsessive about wasting things. I usually feel very bad whenever I leave a certain amount unfinished and have to throw it away, although as I've grown I've learned to weigh the benefits and disadvantages a bit better, such as opting to just leave food or drinks instead of contributing more to the deterioration of my health. I think to myself that I'd rather be a little wasteful rather than end up having to pay more in hospital bills later on just because I have to finish every last bit of junk food.
I guess mine would be that I always finish my meals up to the last piece of rice lol. I am known to my friends as the plate cleaner. Whenever I finish eating, you will see my plate clean and free from any food. I especially do not like wasting rice and would eat every bit of it. This is just something I learned while living with my aunt.
I am fanatical about cleaning my plate. My youngest kitty was living on the streets when I found her, so she's the same, and if I don't finish my food, she will. If she doesn't eat something, I will share it with the stray cats. I add water to my cleaners and detergents to get the most out of them, and do the same with my shampoo. I used to save the brewed coffee and make iced coffee with it, but nowadays I just pour it down the drain. That's probably because I'm trying to cut back on my acid intake, though.
I am like that, too. For instance, if there are still a few drops left in a dishwashing liquid bottle, I will put some water in to make sure that I use it all up. I hate wasting stuff. My mom taught me that.
I honestly feel a lot better knowing I'm not the only one. I used to not have a problem wasting. But since I became responsible for my own bills, I've realized exactly how much it really does add up. It doesn't taste as good the next day. But the more I realize I can't afford to waste anything, the better day old coffee starts to taste. Its become 2nd nature now. If you cut the tubes, I've noticed you can hold off on buying more for a couple of days. Sounds silly, I guess, but that couple of days matters. And if I can't get any right away I can at least relax, knowing I did everything I could! Yeah, I know that trick. Pour a little water in it, shake it like crazy, and pour it in the sink with running water. You can get an entire other load of dishes done.
I also dilute shampoo and dishwasing bottles, it can extend for a few days more if you do that. I try to increase the amount of soda I get to drink by putting ice in it when it's already cold, so it lasts a bit longer because ice is an extender.
I do that as well, but with conditioner! I have so much hair that even the «conditioning water» helps. And hair products are so expensive. I even tried to learn how to make my own but gave up eventually because I needed to have «chemistry apparatus».
I'm a tube scraper too, especially when it comes to toothpaste. Although the tube might appear empty, there's usually at least another 5 days worth of paste stuck to the side. I also stand sauce bottles upside down so every last drop comes out. I got into these habits a couple of years back when I was absolutely potless and now if I don't do this, I feel as though I am throwing money away.
@sissibombix, I have not used a conditioner in months. Do you have curly hair? I figured that you can tame that with hair iron, and those irons are quite cheap too. So you get to save on conditioner.
