It wasn't that long ago that paper towels were not common. The idea of throwing away a towel after every use has become common place in my own lifetime. I don't know when, but what I can tell you is my grandmother didn't even keep them in the kitchen. If your experience is similar to mine, you probably can't think of a household right now that doesn't have a roll easily accessible around the kitchen counter or under the sink.

We need to change our thinking.

For routine cleaning like wiping down the kitchen counter, you can use a sponge or a kitchen towel. Not only do reusables like this help save trees, they save you money in the end. My preference for cleaning up spills is a microfiber cloth. Microfiber is very absorbent and is available in the big box stores cheap. There is a trick to making microfiber perform like a paper towel, DO NOT use fabric softener when you wash it. In fact, whatever type of cloth you might decide to use will absorb better if you skip the softener.

For windows, my first choice is newspaper if you subscribe. Remember the paper can still be recycled after cleaning windows. If you don't subscribe to a print newspaper, do what I do and use a microfiber cloth. Microfiber works really well. I can clean about 10 windows with one washcloth size towel before it is too wet to do a good job. To avoid lint, don't wash them with other laundry, get enough that you can save up a load of just microfiber rags and dish towels.

On the go, try to minimize your paper towel use too. How many towels does it really take to dry your hands? Try just one or two towels, and use the whole thing out to the edges. You may be surprised at how well they work. In fact, you might find that just one will remove enough "big drips" that your hands will air dry the rest of the way in just a minute or two.

My favorite TV personality, Alton Brown, is always talking about multitaskers in terms of kitchen appliances. This line of thinking applies other places too. Multitasking items help avoid excess production and transportation. This reduces the overall impact on the environment. As an experiment, try keeping a few rags folded neatly next to the paper towels, you may find a dozen ways to avoid using paper and discover what a great multitasker a good cloth rag or towel is.

By the way, I think Kleenex is going the wrong way with their new hand towels. If you washed your hands, then you are removing clean water from your hands. They want you to think that a damp towel might be full of germs or not remove enough moisture to dry another set of hands. I am personally amazed the product even hit the market.