Plastic Free: Day 13
All the little tiny plastic things
Once you start exploring the zero waste world, you’ll find that there’s a strange fascination with straws. There’s Strawless Ocean, legislation to ban straws all over the place and probably hundreds of non-plastic straw options. Which is great, if you use straws. Straws have already been banned in national parks and other places where wildlife can accidentally ingest them.
But why are people using straws at all? I’ve heard that supermodels use straws so that the endless amount of Diet Coke they drink doesn’t stain their perfect teeth. My teeth are yellow-white from years of coffee and red wine so I don’t feel like that’s a justification. Skipping straws is probably the easiest zero waste move I could make because I literally never want a straw.
Here’s another thing I never want: party favors. My son’s birthday is November 3. Because it is so close to Halloween, I never gave out party bags at his birthday party when he was little. At his 5th birthday party, a kid from his preschool class demanded that I give him a party bag and I am pretty sure I laughed in his face. The last thing those people needed were more treats. We are awash in plastic rings, whistles, stickers, erasers, kazoos and tiny baggies. These items are manufactured for the sole purpose of being sent to the landfill. Please do not buy them and please do not…
