And last night was the night that I decided to dig through that milk crate.

All of the notebook paper that I did NOT use while I was in college... amazing.

Now some of you might wonder why I keep this old school work decided to dig through this milk crate. It’s simple. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, then you know that almost two years ago to the day I wrote an entry that talked about how I planned to use every disposable/short-term item in my possession before buying a new item of the same type. In other words, I don’t plan on buying any more blue or black ink pens until all of the pens at my disposal are used and gone. I don’t plan on buying any new highlighters or pencils until all of the ones that I currently have in my possession either run dry or run down to the eraser.

Why buy more of something that I have an abundance of already?

The picture above shows all of the excess notebook and loose leaf paper that I pulled out of my old college notebooks and random paperwork last night. I did this once before, but I only pulled out a few slices of paper (maybe 50 at most). However, once I had all of that old milk crate poured out on my bedroom floor last night, I figured that this was my chance to pull out all of the unused paper from the crate. And why pull out all of that unused, dusty paper?

To use it, of course!

Granted, I don’t have many uses for that paper in my at-home life. In fact, I’ve been working on depleting a stack of “scratch paper” that has been sitting on my bookshelf for the last two years. So I certainly don’t need to add to that pile. However, I’m going to bring that stack of unused college paper to my office and slap it on a clipboard to use when I go out for site visits to my clients or to take notes during in-office meetings.

Will it help prevent a tree from being chopped down somewhere on the planet? Maybe – I don’t know. But what I do know is that it makes a lot more sense to use the paper that I already have in my possession than to go out to Staples and buy a new pack of paper. Not only does that generate a greater need than is really needed, but it’s a waste of money.

So, what resources or items do you have laying around your house, closet, or storage unit that you don’t need to buy any more of any time soon? Take a look around. You might be surprised at what you find!