If you're warming up by the outdoor fire pit, do this: Save the ashes. One cord of wood can produce about 50 pounds of ashes, and those ashes have a number of beneficial uses around your property. If you grow tomatoes, sprinkle ashes around your plants and rake them into the soil; tomato plants love the natural calcium in wood ashes, and they will thrive. You can also spread the ash as a border around the garden; it acts as a natural barrier to slugs and other pests that can damage your crop.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

You might have a small piece of clean aluminum foil and wonder: Can I recycle this, since aluminum foil is recyclable? There's a simple rule of thumb: If it's smaller than a credit card in size, the answer is no. This also includes bottle caps, paperclips and "recyclable" coffee pods (even if they have a recycling mark on them). These small items can often jam recycling equipment and cause entire sorting machines to shut down. It's such a huge problem that recycling centers often will shut down over a dozen times a day to clear jams caused by small items. Instead, toss these small pieces into the trash.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

It's great that you use your reusable water or hot beverage bottle every day, but you still should do one thing: Wash it properly every day as well. Germs and bacteria love moist environments, so when a bottle stays wet and doesn't get washed, illness-causing spores can germinate and sprout. It's not enough to swirl hot water around a bottle to get it clean; you need warm water and soap to properly disinfect both the inside and the parts that touch your mouth. The best method is to toss it in the dishwasher to make sure it's clean and properly disinfected.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION