Saturday, September 19, 2015

September 19

Today I threw out: this popcorn bag from Trader Joe's.



Could this trash have been avoided? I usually make popcorn at home, but a) I wasn't at home and b) look at that bag. Cheddar and caramel popcorn mixed together! It's like they know me.

There was some kind of misprint on the bag, though—six servings? No. Not even close.

I also, sad to say, disposed of some stuff at the local tea shop that I neither photographed nor recycled: a straw, a napkin, a muffin wrapper. It just doesn't occur to me to take things like plastic straws home for recycling, though maybe it should.

I did save some stuff from landfills today: a book on cupcake decorating ($1), a toy steering wheel ($0) and at least 20 Matchbox cars ($3). The little cars will be doled out at appropriate intervals, maybe when we start potty training?

In some ways I feel like I am falling short of the ideal by continuing to produce trash, and even buying things (like junk food) that I know will just produce more trash. However, some of the people that put themselves out there as the zero-waste ideal seem a bit insufferable. Like one woman who seems to be developing some kind of lifestyle brand, who suggests leaving shoeboxes at the store (that doesn't actually cut down on waste) and getting jars to takeout places in which they can package your food. I would be very interested to see how that request goes. And yet, in some ways it is the insufferable people who push the conversation forward and end up getting Walmart to stock organic produce.

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