I took my first plane ride and saw that they give the complementary drinks out in plastic cups. Obviously glass isn't a good alternative in this situation...metal? Does anyone take their Klean Kanteen on board and request that it be filled up? Even though I have lots of optimism that the used cups make it to the recycle bins, it's still a mis-use of plastic.
Any thoughts?
Monday, January 19, 2009
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Purchasing struggles
Laundry Detergent and Kitty litter are two things that I struggle with.
Laundry detergent: I've leaned towards the animal friendly, earth friendly, biodegradable ingredients, plant based, no dyes, etc. version. It comes in a plastic container. I'm guessing that the better option would be the powered version of detergent that comes in the cardboard box. I've only looked at Costco for the powdered version of the "friendly" detergent and it is no where to be found. My hunch is that I'm going to have a hard time finding it. One alternative is something called Soap Nuts. These are interesting. There are 4 or 5 nuts that you put in a cotton bag and toss into your washing machine. I couldn't argue with the cleanliness of the clothes, but I couldn't attest to it either. There was no smell. We are trained to follow our noses on this. If something smells like "Summer Breeze", "Lilac and Vanilla" or "Mountain Fresh", then it's clean. That's how we know...we sniff it. With soap nuts, there is no residual odor at all. It's kind of weird. Super J. and I agreed that while we want to do what's very best for the environment, we're not quite to that point yet. Which brings us to the NEXT best thing and also the problem. Is it better to buy animal and plant and earth friendly detergent in a plastic container.....or get a cardboard box and buy something that was probably crammed into a bunny's eyes before hitting the market? Which is the lesser of the evils?
Kitty Litter: I'm guessing clay is better for the earth, and it comes in a bag. Yay! Unfortunately, I took a household poll, and Super J., Jack, Peeper and I all agreed that the clay litter is not our favorite. Our favorite comes in a plastic tub. Jack offered to start going outside. I reminded him he is not an outside cat. He said he wants his favorite litter then, he doesn't care what it comes in....and he's not trying the Pine version again either. Ok Jack.
Anyway, things that I struggle with while trying to reduce plastic seem to be things that I'm guessing the typical consumer would also struggle with maybe even for a moment.
What's the answer? Should we even have to decide? Is there still a need for animal testing, or does is still make sense to produce detergent that is NOT earth friendly?
Is there any reason that kitty liter can't all come in paper bags, no matter what kind it is?
The answers will come apparent as I continue my trek into a plastic free life, but right now they seem kind of big.
Laundry detergent: I've leaned towards the animal friendly, earth friendly, biodegradable ingredients, plant based, no dyes, etc. version. It comes in a plastic container. I'm guessing that the better option would be the powered version of detergent that comes in the cardboard box. I've only looked at Costco for the powdered version of the "friendly" detergent and it is no where to be found. My hunch is that I'm going to have a hard time finding it. One alternative is something called Soap Nuts. These are interesting. There are 4 or 5 nuts that you put in a cotton bag and toss into your washing machine. I couldn't argue with the cleanliness of the clothes, but I couldn't attest to it either. There was no smell. We are trained to follow our noses on this. If something smells like "Summer Breeze", "Lilac and Vanilla" or "Mountain Fresh", then it's clean. That's how we know...we sniff it. With soap nuts, there is no residual odor at all. It's kind of weird. Super J. and I agreed that while we want to do what's very best for the environment, we're not quite to that point yet. Which brings us to the NEXT best thing and also the problem. Is it better to buy animal and plant and earth friendly detergent in a plastic container.....or get a cardboard box and buy something that was probably crammed into a bunny's eyes before hitting the market? Which is the lesser of the evils?
Kitty Litter: I'm guessing clay is better for the earth, and it comes in a bag. Yay! Unfortunately, I took a household poll, and Super J., Jack, Peeper and I all agreed that the clay litter is not our favorite. Our favorite comes in a plastic tub. Jack offered to start going outside. I reminded him he is not an outside cat. He said he wants his favorite litter then, he doesn't care what it comes in....and he's not trying the Pine version again either. Ok Jack.
Anyway, things that I struggle with while trying to reduce plastic seem to be things that I'm guessing the typical consumer would also struggle with maybe even for a moment.
What's the answer? Should we even have to decide? Is there still a need for animal testing, or does is still make sense to produce detergent that is NOT earth friendly?
Is there any reason that kitty liter can't all come in paper bags, no matter what kind it is?
The answers will come apparent as I continue my trek into a plastic free life, but right now they seem kind of big.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Amazon
I'm a little late on the uptake with this, but I thought Christmas day would be a good springboard for this topic.
I just heard a couple of days ago about Amazon's "Frustration Free" packaging program. Basically, they work with the manufacturer and drop products straight into boxes instead of fiddling around with plastic molding, plastic windows, plastic clam shells. Just the product and a box. Now, if the product itself is plastic, that's on you.
Frustration Free Info
So, you can save on plastic by ordering your stuff through Amazon. What about the fuel usage? It's still better to reel in your buying altogether.
I mean, really, how much "stuff" does one person really need?
If your family is like mine, at some point today you were surrounded by mounds of wrapping paper, bits of transparent tape and lots of plastic packaging that contains lots of stuff. With the New Year coming around, now is a good time to start looking at ways to adjust, cut back or avoid all together the plastic that seems to hold our lives together. Don't bother making a resolution, you know you'll break it. Just try to be a little more aware.
I just heard a couple of days ago about Amazon's "Frustration Free" packaging program. Basically, they work with the manufacturer and drop products straight into boxes instead of fiddling around with plastic molding, plastic windows, plastic clam shells. Just the product and a box. Now, if the product itself is plastic, that's on you.
Frustration Free Info
So, you can save on plastic by ordering your stuff through Amazon. What about the fuel usage? It's still better to reel in your buying altogether.
I mean, really, how much "stuff" does one person really need?
If your family is like mine, at some point today you were surrounded by mounds of wrapping paper, bits of transparent tape and lots of plastic packaging that contains lots of stuff. With the New Year coming around, now is a good time to start looking at ways to adjust, cut back or avoid all together the plastic that seems to hold our lives together. Don't bother making a resolution, you know you'll break it. Just try to be a little more aware.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Christmas gifts
It turns out that my favorite presents I bought for people were the ones with no plastic. It worked out nicely like that. I got my mom a cow creamer from an antique mall, a couple of people got bowls made from tree root (Target has these, I love them), someone got some organic cotton tea towels, and a very, very lucky soul got a gift basket from LUSH. It seems that the "sellers" are moving towards a more organic, meaning non-plastic, but life related, genre. It's coming in small increments but I see it. There is bamboo everywhere, and recycling is very chic. I saw a product at Williams Sonoma that allows you to make your own carbonated water. You get to save money and the energy used in the production, shipping, filling and shipping of bottles.
Even though I'm seeing, perhaps through rose colored glasses that there is a movement towards things less plastic and more "real", there is still a lot of plastic out there. Some of today's most fun things are plastic. The Wii-plastic. The remote control indoor helicopters-plastic. The ipod and iphone-plastic. What to do about those things? Is it sensible to deny ourselves that indulgence on sheer principal? Is there a middle ground and these thing are considered more utilitarian and therefore easily justifiable?
I dunno. I do know that I really wanted that remote control indoor helicopter. It was made of plastic and packaged in plastic. If it not been for a tiny remote control car incident 4 Christmases ago, that Super J. reminded me of, I would be buzzing that thing around her head right now.
Even though I'm seeing, perhaps through rose colored glasses that there is a movement towards things less plastic and more "real", there is still a lot of plastic out there. Some of today's most fun things are plastic. The Wii-plastic. The remote control indoor helicopters-plastic. The ipod and iphone-plastic. What to do about those things? Is it sensible to deny ourselves that indulgence on sheer principal? Is there a middle ground and these thing are considered more utilitarian and therefore easily justifiable?
I dunno. I do know that I really wanted that remote control indoor helicopter. It was made of plastic and packaged in plastic. If it not been for a tiny remote control car incident 4 Christmases ago, that Super J. reminded me of, I would be buzzing that thing around her head right now.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Christmas Shopping
Super J and I went Christmas shopping last night. I was in a bit of a crunchy mood due to a headache and a long day at work. For the record, Christmas shopping with your spouse and a bad attitude do not mix. I got checked fairly early on. :)
We were shopping and getting ideas. Super J. would pick something up and say "How about this for ..." . Before she could finish I would interrupt with "Plaaaaaastic."
We ended up buying some wood bowls. Today we're going to an antique mall to look for some gifts. This is what we came up with as a solution to buying new, shiny plastic stuff. We will buy old stuff that used to be shiny, perhaps is still plastic but hopefully will be made out of some other material like cloth, glass, wood, metal, something that if the recipient hates, they can toss it in their backyard and it will return to the earth.
We were shopping and getting ideas. Super J. would pick something up and say "How about this for ..." . Before she could finish I would interrupt with "Plaaaaaastic."
We ended up buying some wood bowls. Today we're going to an antique mall to look for some gifts. This is what we came up with as a solution to buying new, shiny plastic stuff. We will buy old stuff that used to be shiny, perhaps is still plastic but hopefully will be made out of some other material like cloth, glass, wood, metal, something that if the recipient hates, they can toss it in their backyard and it will return to the earth.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Thanksgiving
My tofurkey was wrapped in plastic. I'm guessing that there is a recipe out there so I can make one myself next year.
My Mom in law served all but Thanksgiving dinner in paper plates and solo cups. What could I say? I didn't want to clean up after 8 people either. And the woman actively recycles and has a compost bin that she's dedicated to.
My Christmas tree that I bought from the big orange box was also wrapped in plastic netting and then tethered to my car with saran wrap. Hmmm. Next year we're bringing our own rope.
There's a lot of plastic. I'm feeling a little discouraged.
My Mom in law served all but Thanksgiving dinner in paper plates and solo cups. What could I say? I didn't want to clean up after 8 people either. And the woman actively recycles and has a compost bin that she's dedicated to.
My Christmas tree that I bought from the big orange box was also wrapped in plastic netting and then tethered to my car with saran wrap. Hmmm. Next year we're bringing our own rope.
There's a lot of plastic. I'm feeling a little discouraged.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
A day in the life of a consumer
I mentioned in my last post that my world had been turned a little upside down and I didn’t really have time to think about being plastic conscious. This past weekend was the first weekend I had that was normal again. I realized that I had become very lax about being plastic free plastic free.
Here’s a recap of my weekend and all the plastic that happened:
Saturday morning: Coffee. I usually use my reusable container. But my kitchen sink was clogged up and I didn’t have a way of washing it, other than the bathroom sink and that kinda grossed me out. Anyway, one medium coffee, with a plastic lid.
Later Saturday morning: Trip to giant orange box that sells hardware and lumber. I purchased a circular saw, some hinges, a flashlight, a latch, and a sheet of plywood. The plywood was the only thing that didn’t have some kind of plastic packaging.
Saturday evening: Dinner. I ordered a martini. I suspected that they would also bring me water, so I requested it without a straw. Go me. The martini olives were impaled with a little plastic cocktail skewer.
Sunday morning: Shopping trip. I hate shopping for clothes. Consequentially, I usually find myself in dire need of clothes when the seasons roll around. That fact coupled with my overtime pay called for a shopping trip.
I won’t name off all the places I went, but I will say that every clothing item I bought had a plastic tag on it. I’ve gotten very good about asking the cashier to skip the bag but sometimes I just get ignored and sometimes I get tired.
I did visit Lush and got some solid perfume. I’m intrigued by the little tins with solid perfume in them. Fascinating. I think one of my favorite things about Lush, it that it seems, that the employees are just as passionate about their product as they would be if they owned the store themselves.
So..THAT purchase was not only plastic free, but it was also vegan. Awesome!
Anyway, my point is that without thinking much about anything, just shopping and having a “regular” weekend, like any middle class schmoe I purchased a lot of plastic.
2 Plastic coffee lids
6 plastic bags containing hardware
3 plastic ties and a plastic guard that came with the circular saw, which also has plastic on it but is metal for the most part
1 plastic casing that held the flashlight
1 plastic olive skewer
11 plastic clothing tags (just a teeny bit of plastic but it’s still plastic)
1 plastic sock hanger (the hanger that they use to hang socks on display)
1 plastic casing that held 8 c cell batteries
Super J wanted some cinnamon rolls from the mall. I participated:
1 plastic straw and lid
1 plastic fork
several shopping bags that I could have been more aggressive about not taking
Whew. All that within 30 hours or so.
This is a process. There’s no doubt about it. I’m finding similarities to becoming a vegetarian. It was a gradual thing, until one news broadcast sent me over the edge of no meat (with legs that live above water). I’ve notice that seafood in my diet has decreased a lot in the last year or so. I think I’ll find that to be the case with plastic.
Here’s a recap of my weekend and all the plastic that happened:
Saturday morning: Coffee. I usually use my reusable container. But my kitchen sink was clogged up and I didn’t have a way of washing it, other than the bathroom sink and that kinda grossed me out. Anyway, one medium coffee, with a plastic lid.
Later Saturday morning: Trip to giant orange box that sells hardware and lumber. I purchased a circular saw, some hinges, a flashlight, a latch, and a sheet of plywood. The plywood was the only thing that didn’t have some kind of plastic packaging.
Saturday evening: Dinner. I ordered a martini. I suspected that they would also bring me water, so I requested it without a straw. Go me. The martini olives were impaled with a little plastic cocktail skewer.
Sunday morning: Shopping trip. I hate shopping for clothes. Consequentially, I usually find myself in dire need of clothes when the seasons roll around. That fact coupled with my overtime pay called for a shopping trip.
I won’t name off all the places I went, but I will say that every clothing item I bought had a plastic tag on it. I’ve gotten very good about asking the cashier to skip the bag but sometimes I just get ignored and sometimes I get tired.
I did visit Lush and got some solid perfume. I’m intrigued by the little tins with solid perfume in them. Fascinating. I think one of my favorite things about Lush, it that it seems, that the employees are just as passionate about their product as they would be if they owned the store themselves.
So..THAT purchase was not only plastic free, but it was also vegan. Awesome!
Anyway, my point is that without thinking much about anything, just shopping and having a “regular” weekend, like any middle class schmoe I purchased a lot of plastic.
2 Plastic coffee lids
6 plastic bags containing hardware
3 plastic ties and a plastic guard that came with the circular saw, which also has plastic on it but is metal for the most part
1 plastic casing that held the flashlight
1 plastic olive skewer
11 plastic clothing tags (just a teeny bit of plastic but it’s still plastic)
1 plastic sock hanger (the hanger that they use to hang socks on display)
1 plastic casing that held 8 c cell batteries
Super J wanted some cinnamon rolls from the mall. I participated:
1 plastic straw and lid
1 plastic fork
several shopping bags that I could have been more aggressive about not taking
Whew. All that within 30 hours or so.
This is a process. There’s no doubt about it. I’m finding similarities to becoming a vegetarian. It was a gradual thing, until one news broadcast sent me over the edge of no meat (with legs that live above water). I’ve notice that seafood in my diet has decreased a lot in the last year or so. I think I’ll find that to be the case with plastic.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
