BYE BYE BAGGY.
Inspired by a generally simpler life (and by our friend Kalie's quest to be Zero Waste at All Things Homespun), Hannah and I have decided to start cutting back on plastic until we no longer have any in our lives. Recycling just seems insufficient, and encourages the further production of more plastic. We have little use for anything that doesn't biodegrade and that we can't turn into food or soil. Plastic, chemicals and fast food are all on that list. As Kalie writes, and what Hannah and I have quickly discovered about this venture, is that it's not easy. It takes a LOT of planning ahead, some sacrifice, and also a little acceptance that certain plastics will simply take time to rid from our lives.Our peat moss, for example, comes in a large block wrapped in plastic. We need peat moss or a similar substance for our soil mix, but we could do without the plastic. There are alternatives we could make or find ourselves, namely leaf mold, but we cannot have them immediately. This fall we will stockpile a giant pile of leaves to start their fungal decomposition, and it will take at least two years for that to break down properly then will have to be renewed every year. We are going to experiment with a few more alternatives such as decomposed tree bark, but until we find a solid option, we will have to continue purchasing that large, necessary block of material in its large, useless piece of plastic. If only this were the only example...We're coming to terms with the fact that a lot of our foods come in plastic bags, also. Our cheese is cryovac-sealed, our milk has a small plastic piece that comes off the lid then presumably goes straight into the ocean, all of our organic greens come in not-so-green bags. The obvious answer to all of this is to simply make our own, grow our own, or shop at the farmer's market––all of which we do, or we're in the process of doing. In the future, we'll have our milk cow, and we'll make our own cheese from her milk. In the (very near) future we'll have our own vegetables, and what we don't have, we'll buy in bulk or have to do without altogether. The less obvious answer to the problem of plastic is setting an example for not only other consumers but companies to stop packaging everything so heavily, because the surprising thing about not using plastic is that plastic is nearly unavoidable. Even checking out at the grocery store plastic-free is a challenge. The cashier will inevitably slip your sack of potatoes into a bag then look at you like you're suffering a stroke when you insist you don't need one. Bags in bags is tangible madness.Anyone else tried a similar change before? Have you any tips? Success stories? Criticisms or guffaws? Encouragement? Hannah and I, along with so many of our friends, want kids one day. To me, improving the environment, eliminating waste, and at least working towards a sustainable lifestyle will help to leave them a cleaner place to play.- Jesse.