One way to help save energy at home is to plant wisely when it comes to landscaping around the house. Avoid putting in plants that grow tall on the south side of your home; these tall plants can block sunlight in the winter months, which means your home can't take advantage of the ambient light and heat. And plant dense evergreen shrubs all around the house. They look good year-round and also naturally insulate to protect your home from the cold air outdoors.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

Ever buy an item online and it arrives surrounded by plastic "pillows" to protect it during shipping? There are two ways you can dispose of them. One, you can reuse them when you need to ship something. Or you can simply pop the pillows to remove the air and recycle them. The bins at the grocery store where shoppers can drop off plastic shopping bags for recycling will take deflated plastic air pillows, too. It's the same type of resin, and it'll get recycled into new plastic products.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

It's important to clean the inside of your reusable water bottle to remove grime, mildew and bacteria. But it can be very difficult to get a brush through the narrow opening and scrub the bottle clean. Instead, fill half the bottle with a mixture of white vinegar and water, then add several ice cubes and screw on the cap. Shake vigorously. The vinegar will disinfect, and the ice will agitate inside, loosening any grimy mess. Dump, rinse with water and voila! A perfectly clean water bottle.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION