We’re Not Plastic Anymore: Part 1

One sunny afternoon this summer I returned from my home away from home (the beach) to find an email from my friend Lynell. “Diane,” she wrote, “I saw this and thought of you.”

She sent me an article from the United Kingdom about a woman who gave up plastic for a month. (Apparently, my friends know me too well - they are forever sending these tidbits my way.) For one month this woman saved all of the plastic she consumed and counted 640 pieces of plastic. The following month she went sans plastic. The article was intriguing, and for those of you who have read my other articles here at Burnside, you know I love a good challenge. This one seemed do-able unlike the “give up corn-based products for a week” challenge. But I decided not to go this one alone.

“Hey Lynell,” I replied, “I’ll do it. Would you like to join me? Let’s begin September 1.”

Lately I have been learning a lot about caring for the Earth, yet I never gave a second thought to consuming plastic. Now I found myself wondering, “What do I do with plastic? What is my role as a Christian using plastic?” A few days later Lynell and I met at the local brewery to brainstorm about all the things we will not be able to buy in September. What would our boundaries be? We both have nightly prescriptions to take and they are in plastic bottles. Could the pharmacy use our old containers instead? Probably not, so we conceded this one small thing that the government controls. As we continued I had to admit I did not think this challenge would be hard. Mentally I went through my house and realized I was in pretty good shape: I already had shampoo, laundry detergent and dish soap. This would be easy. But then I began to wonder, what if I really wanted to buy lotion that was not wrapped in plastic? Would it even be possible? We did agree that we would not stockpile on items prior to the start date (although I secretly think Lynell bought new deodorant).

We sat in the sun, me drinking my summer Shandy and Lynell the delightful Rubaeus, when she popped up and ordered us pretzels and cheese. They were served in plastic cups. “Oh no, Lynell, what do we do when we go out to eat? Bring our own Tupperware? Ask for everything to be served in glass dishes?” She countered with something that simply shattered my world, “Diane, you will not be able to buy cheese or tortillas.” I knew then this challenge was beyond me. I do believe the earth stood still for a moment as this news began to sink in. I was getting so smug knowing that I could go a month without my beloved carrot juice (Lynell said I could buy a juicer, but I told her the juicer is made of plastic) or vegetables in a bag. But cheese and tortillas are two main staples in my vegetarian diet. And they are wrapped in plastic! I began to despair.

Two days later found me at Lynell’s eighth annual “Mojito, Margarita and Madness Party.” Guests were invited to bring a mixer, liquor or a Mexican dish to pass. Earlier that day I bought groceries and realized I could not find a coffee cream that a) was not sold in plastic b) did not have corn in it or c) was not made of soy. In a single shopping trip I was weaned from Nestle’s coffee creamer -much to the delight of another friend. A few aisles down I could not find a margarita mixer that was not sold in plastic. I was beginning to see something I had not before: plastic is everywhere. All the alcohol was in plastic, as were the mixers, and the chips. Lynell had already purchased biodegradable bowls, but the table was covered in plastic!

Later that evening as the chill outside moved us indoors, Lynell was telling her friends about our No Plastic September. The men left the room when one plastic subject in particular came up. I enticed others to join us but we have no takers yet.

Both Lynell and I have already started to make the switch. I bought milk (I do miss my creamer, I’m just saying) in a carton and found corn tortillas wrapped in paper. At Farmers Market last week I asked my local-raw-milk-cheese-supplier if he sold his cheese in anything other than plastic. He said, “Yes, but you have to order it ahead of time and drive out to our store to pick it up.” Breakfast was proving to be a challenge until I remembered that my friend Holly makes raw-milk yogurt (giving up yogurt is where I draw the line) and she will exchange her yogurt goodness if I sew her kitchen curtains.

I am getting nervous because it simply seems impossible in 2008 to live without plastic. While I am cranky at the thought of a month without chips, Lynell is wondering how to get through the month with no new clothes. Even the price tags to our clothing are affixed with plastic.

The first week of September will prove to be particularly difficult for both of us. Lynell is driving from Grand Rapids to Seattle with her sister, dropping her off and then flying back to Grand Rapids. Road trips are the ideal scenario to consume a lot of plastic: coffee to go, chips, candy, and bottles. Lynell plans on taking along her coffee mug and liquid containers and I even suggested that she take along some Tupperware. And for me the first day of school is September 2nd. I always have to buy stuff for my classroom and most of it is likely to be plastic. The both of us have to sort out what our plastic boundaries will be. Hopefully it will not be an insurmountable task.

All of this plastic talk has me thinking about being eco-friendly. At this point in my green lifestyle I am willing to believe not all plastic is evil. I would rather buy something that is made of sturdy plastic and reusable than something that is convenient for the moment and non-biodegradable. For example, I would rather buy a Kitchen Aid Food Chopper made of shiny red plastic (I may or may not have purchased one over the summer) than buying frozen pizza wrapped in plastic because I am too tired to cook when I get home from work. Or I prefer to store my lunches in plastic containers and pop them in my lunch bag instead of swaddling them in plastic wrap.

I have taken quite seriously God’s command to care for the earth and I am sorting out what that means in my life. On one hand, plastic is reusable and recyclable. On the other hand it will never biodegrade. Not to mention the fact plastic is made from oil. In order to best follow God’s command to care for the earth, what do I do with plastic? If you want to keep up on my fast, check out my updates here.