Day 261
The big news from Starbucks, the world’s largest pusher of caffeine in a nice atmosphere, is that they are now selling some sort of reusable cup for a dollar to cut down on waste. I learned this after I wrote about my travel mug last week. In any case, this new cup seems like a pretty good idea on the surface.
Except
OK, I’m just going to say it out loud. Why don’t we just bring the mugs most of us already own? Why do we have to buy something special, marketed by our pals at corporate headquarters in Seattle? I guess if we forget our own mug it gives us a shot at environmental redemption.
Amen
It’s exactly like those reusable sacks sold at the grocery checkout. I own quite a few of those bags, but I frequently forget to bring them to the store. Before, The Simple Year, in a feeble attempt to do the right thing, I would frequently just BUY MORE of those non-disposable bags because they are ONLY a dollar which sort of defeats the purpose, since THOSE would start to stack up. Now, I can’t buy them, so on days that I forget to bring eco-friendly totes, I have to suck it up and accept the disposables and slink out of the store with my thin plastic bags that appear as if an army of giant jellyfish has swallowed my groceries.
On these days, I always feel like shouting at anyone whose eye I catch, “I’M GOING TO RECYCLE THEM.”
Because somehow in my mind, I’d rather them think I am a ranting crazy person instead of environmentally irresponsible.
I’d like to report that the experience has sharpened my recall and kept me from forgetting, but I still have swiss cheese bag memory.
So, it is an interesting circular pattern we find ourselves in, buying things to buy things. This is closely related to buying thing to begin some sort of self-improvement, which in the past might have given me an excuse for inaction. The following are ALL thoughts I have had during in my lifetime:
I’m going to start taking my own HEALTHY lunch to work just as soon as I get that adorable insulated lunch tote.
- Result: My reusable storage containers don’t fit well in the tote, so I end up taking some sort of old handled take out bag, or a bag made of Capri Sun containers I bought at a garage sale.
I’m going to start taking my own mug to the coffee shop now that I have bought this one.
- Result: Did I just say buying things to begin something was a thing of the past? This was last week.
I’m going to feed my family healthier meals after I buy these two new cookbooks.
- Result: I’m not sure I have actually used any recipes out of those books. I most often look up recipes online
I’m going to organize the laundry room, just as soon as I buy some canvas sorting bins and a specialized hanging rack.
- Result: Bought the canvas stacking bins from specialty container store, didn’t fit in the laundry room, moved to closet, later moved to basement, not sure if we still even own them.
I’ll lose weight after I buy this food scale/work out gear/new shoes/ bike/diet book.
Ghosts of diet books past found at a thrift store
Try as I might to rely on a purchased solution, I guess for all of these scenarios the answer is the same– me. The bags aren’t going to remember themselves and maybe I don’t need to buy shiny new gear to improve but rather just get started, always easier said than done.
So very very true. As much as I want to remember to bring my reusable bags to the grocery store, I still end up forgetting or needing more than the bags that I brought. I reuse the plastic jellyfish bags for trash, and when they start overtaking the undersink storage, I take them to recycling centers, but man….guilt.
On a positive note, I’m glad that checkers and baggers are more inviting of reusable bags now. I feel like five years ago I was getting eye rolls when I’d pipe, “I brought my own bag!”
In Italy (at least in 2004), they charged 5 cents at the grocery store to give you a plastic bag.
In Washington, DC and Montgomery County, MD (just north of DC), we have a 5¢ bag tax too. My boyfriend and I each have one of those reusable bags that folds into a little pocket in its own side, so it can be kept in a purse/coat pocket/etc. so you don’t forget it. I don’t carry a purse though, so it’s not usually on me.
When I forget my reusable bag, I figure that means it’s a “just the essentials” shop, and I carry my stuff out in my hands or put some of it in the bag I’m carrying the current knitting project in. I’m pretty sure I’ve been known to tell “helpful” baggers in the county where I work (where there’s no bag tax, so they just assume you want a plastic one), when picking up a single cup-noodles thing for lunch at the office, “I have hands, what do I need bag for?!”
My new mantra for wanting to buy things in order to do other things is to actually build the habit first and THEN buy the gear. If I want new workout pants or a yoga mat, I have to first actually reliably work out or do yoga in the pants I ALREADY HAVE for at least a month first. Then I can invest in pants.
Because somehow in my mind, I’d rather them think I am a ranting crazy person instead of environmentally irresponsible.
This really did make me laugh out loud. Me too!