Can I really just recycle the whole thing without tearing out the plastic?

Yes.

About five years ago I attacked Mount Paperwork over a 3-4 week period, shredding and recycling everything more than 7 years old and filing the rest. I watched all of H:LOTS on DVD while I was doing it. Now I set up folders in my filing cabinet every year for utilities/bank and credit cards/tax stuff/insurance/retirement, and shred the folders that just passed the 7 year mark (except for tax return records, which I shove in the bottom of the cabinet). Once the folders are set up, it's pretty easy to take the important parts of the bill records and shove them in the right place. Within the folders they're a bit cluttered, but I figure it'll be easier to put my hand on one of 12 power bills from 2008 than to dig through a bazillion scattered envelopes in a drawer somewhere. Which was my pre-2005 accounting method.

I have shredded three shedder containers full and on the last batch I jammed it up! grrr.

Off to pick up mac and go to the library with him and his GIRLFRIEND! or at least the girl he has a crush on. I will try to be nice mom and not HORRIBLY EMBARRASSING MOM!

Can I really just recycle the whole thing without tearing out the plastic?

Yes.

That is seriously SO exciting! Although now I wish I'd thought to ask about it years ago.

Oy! mac crushing! Too adorable!

I have derby practice tonight. I should shave my legs. And take a picture of my awesome, greening bruise before it fades completely.

Ooh, Kathy, I hope you feel better soon!

I've cut down on paper bills to almost nothing. Everything gets paid automatically from my checking account by my bank's online pay system or by automatic draft from the company. Including credit cards, to which I make a modest-but-more-than-the-minimum regularly scheduled payment, and then at the end of the month I see how much more I can afford to feed them. This way, my bills are paid and I don't have to think about it, because if it's up to me remembering to pay on time, it won't get done. I check my bank account a couple times a week to make sure I'm not close to edge, and review the bills themselves every few months to make sure I didn't get charged extra for something. The only paper that comes to my mailbox is advertisements (thrown away before I get into the house), charitable contribution solicitations (thrown away unless the few I regularly contribute to), and catalogs (into the bathroom for later perusal). And bills from doctors/dentists/etc for amounts in excess of what my insurance will pay, which are about the only things I write checks for anymore.

Checked my Youtube account. Owen apparently plugged in the Flip this morning, uploaded an old video, titled it, typed a description and everything while I was in the shower.

I should know better by now, shouldn't I??

DJ, I am boggled that you have to use your marriage license as proof of identity. Did you have to show proof of ID when you applied for the license? We didn't (in MA) -- just had to swear that we were not related to each other. I think we probably did have to put down our SSNs, but at no point did we have to produce any form of ID. Which also seems weird, right? We could have said we were anyone! Or used someone else's SSN.

I can't remember. It's been nearly 14 years since I was married. I'm just not getting why I need proof of name change when I have my birth certificate, passport and ID in married name to get my SS card.

That is seriously SO exciting! Although now I wish I'd thought to ask about it years ago.

I think technically, it's better to tear it out, but recycling systems have gotten more sophisticated in recent years.

Checked my Youtube account. Owen apparently plugged in the Flip this morning, uploaded an old video, titled it, typed a description and everything while I was in the shower.

Owen knows how to do stuff I can't do.