This. I went to Debra’s in West Concord to stock up on their amazingly fresh and reasonably-priced bulk spices, and as soon as I pulled up I realized that, of course, they can’t have bulk. They had portioned out spices and an employee was happy to wait with me and grab everything that I wanted, which was great, but I just don’t need that big a quantity and will probably end up throwing quite a bit away in a year or so.
And something simple like getting a couple of store-baked rolls for sandwiches at the supermarket just isn’t possible anymore. I rarely buy an eight-pack of rolls and my freezer is pretty full already so it’s hard to store the extras. Of course, I get that it’s just not safe to have self-serve in situations like that. (It’s still possible to get Iggy’s brioche rolls individually at their Cambridge store. Yay!)
I am proud that we haven’t bought paper towels at all during the pandemic and now really prefer using cloth for just about everything, so that’s been a plus. And, I am much more disciplined about using leftovers, which cuts down on food waste. I’m feeling more comfortable not putting loose produce in plastic bags and using my cloth bags instead, and am thrilled that we are finally able to bring our own bags again. I still feel like we’re using too much plastic, though.
