My personal favorite thing to do with the left over newspaper is to use it in the garden. Most newspapers now use soybased ink. So take 2-3 sheets and cut them to the size/shape you want. soak them in paper and put them down over the weeds (but not the flowers/plants). When you’ve got your weed barrier down you cover with mulch. The newspaper blocks the weeds from getting sun/nutrients so they die out. It also breaks down and feeds the soil. Check it out after the summer is done- your soil will be rich and dark! This is a great way to use your newspaper, and your weed barrier can last a couple summers if done right. The stack of paper in the picture is going to turn into great weed barriers in my garden tomorrow if the weather holds out!
OK- so you’re not into gardening what do you do? You can do traditional recycling. If you’re lucky like we are they come around on trash day and pick up our recycling as well. If you do not have your recycling picked up – locate your recycling center today.
If you have a few minutes of extra time to do something creative with your newspaper you can always make something with them. There is the traditional paper mache, or you can make your kids some sailor hats.
Find another use for those papers, don’t just let them grow and overwhelm your house, and don’t throw them out. If you can’t find a way to recycle them around your area, or you aren’t into crafting – maybe call a community center and see if they want them for their kids programs.
You probably know of me just from my blog, but I’m also a newspaper reporter at The Monroe Evening News.
Do not toss out the local news sections until you scan through them for the public service announcements. The PSAs may or may not all be in the Sunday paper – keep in mind most of the papers in SE Michigan publish at least twice a week. But they’re going to put those notices SOMEWHERE. Find out what that means for your newspapers.
What you want to look for, 99ers, are the following: new food pantries opening up, Angel Food Ministries locations and order dates, clothing giveaways, Christmas basket giveaways, school supply giveaways, grocery giveaways for needy families, scholarship announcements, job fairs, and community expos.
Every newspaper gets these announcements from the local civic groups, churches and agencies. It’s your job to look for them. They may be only a couple of paragraphs but they provide very important information.
I crosspost any PSA that is meant for Monroe County on Monroe on a Budget in addition to scheduling the newspaper notice; but, it’s fair to say that most frugal / financial / coupon blogs are hosted by freelancers who don’t have the professional connections in the community that a newspaper does.
Standing lists / databases of such resources also can be found at the United Way / 211 web sites. I also highly recommend Julie’s List for the SE MI 99ers who are looking for any available community resources – http://julieslist.homestead.com/