An Effort in Green

I'll start with the apology. I haven't posted in 3 weeks! So if I have any loyal readers yet, I apologise to you. I'm promising myself that I will catch up this weekend. I'm posting this at 6:30 a.m., not because I'm a morning person, but because I never went to bed. I can't wait to graduate.

Anyway, on to the real topic. I'm a strong believer that the little things really do add up. So they are still worth doing. What made me think of this was a toilet paper roll. I finished a toilet paper roll in a bathroom at school, and instead of a regular cardboard tube, there were two smaller ones, and they still held the roll together fine! Maybe that's common, I don't know, but I'd never seen it before. It made me think: Imagine how much cardboard we'd save if every toilet paper roll in the world had no middle section! We'd be removing roughly a third of all cardboard used for that purpose, and there are a lot of toilet paper rolls in the world.

There's no big, inspiring point or anything. Just a reminder, like the one I was given by that toilet paper roll, that the little things matter. So don't give up!

• 1 orange juice carton (plastic lid and spout)
• 1 raspberries container (PETE 1)
• 1 Cool Whip container (PP 5)

• 1 container from pizza dipping sauce
• 1 Mini Eggs bag (actually ate them last week but forgot to put the bag in my collection)
• 1 Swedish Berries bag
• 1 icing container from cinnamon sticks (with pizza) (not pictured)
• 1 perogies bag (not pictured)
• 1 bread bag (not pictured)
• 1 pill package
• 1 dried mangoes bag
• 1 orange juice seal
• 1 toilet paper wrapper
• 1 microwave popcorn wrapper
• 1 icing container from cinnamon buns

Recyclable Items (5):

• 1 peanut butter jar (PETE 1)
• 1 Tim Horton's lid (PS 6)
• 1 orange juice carton
• 1 tub from candy necklaces (PETE 1)
• 1 dip container from mozza sticks at bowling alley (not pictured)

• 1 taco shell bag
• 1 bread bag
• 1 fudge bar wrapper
• 1 plastic fork -- I need to start carrying cutlery.
• 1 package from combo lock -- I needed another one for use at the pool/gym at school
• 1 toothpaste tube
• 3 mini Laffy Taffy wrappers
• 1 bag from mini Laffy Taffys -- They were delicious but I'm glad they're done messing up my plastic count!
• 1 of those plastic things that holds can drinks together -- We got 2 cans of pop with a pizza deal and they came with this. I ripped it up so birds don't get their heads stuck in it.
• 1 orange juice seal
• 1 microwave popcorn wrapper
• 1 floss container

• 1 veggie sticks bag

One of the big things I've learned on this journey is that the majority of people don't care, and don't even realise they should. It makes me sad. But all the more reason to carry on, and hope to change some people's minds!


A recent incident that really demonstrated this point to me:

A few days ago I went to Costco with my mom. They give out free samples there, in little paper cups. A woman was giving out little cookies, and she offered me one. Since she had the box of cookies right beside her, I asked her if I could have a cookie just placed in my hand instead of put in a paper cup and then put in my hand. She didn't seem to understand. I rephrased. She still didn't get it. She took a cookie out of a paper cup, handed it to me, and then crumpled up the paper cup, saying "I still have to throw it away. I can't use it again." I sighed. The last thing she said to me was the part that caused me the most surprise and dismay. She said "it's OK, these get thrown away by the thousands all the time." As we walked away, I said to my mom, "oh, well that makes me feel better then."


This just goes to show that there are still a lot of people who don't seem to even realise what's going on. And then there are also people who think they do, who recycle at home, and turn off the lights when they aren't needed, but who don't blink an eye at the thousands of paper cups being thrown in the trash every day, or who throw recyclable bottles, etc., in the garbage when they're out because there isn't a recycling bin around. We've got a long, long way to go.

• 1 salad tub top (PETE 1)
• 1 margarine tub (PP 5)
• 1 orange juice carton
• 1 2L ginger ale bottle

• 1 gingerbread man wrapper -- my last of the season
• 1 toilet paper wrapper
• 1 Booster Juice straw -- this one kills me because I just got my Glass Dharma straw, and then I forgot to take it when I went to Booster Juice. :(
• 4 Laffy Taffy wrappers
• 1 bag from triangle buns
• 1 cracker package
• 1 dried mangoes bag with top
• 1 mint wrapper
  
• 1 veggie chicken wrapper
• 1 frozen vegetables bag

• 2 granola bar wrappers
• 1 chip bag

• 1 orange juice carton with plastic spout and lid
• 1 package from watermelon -- pre-chopped watermelon is definitely not something I would ever buy myself*
• 1 honey tub (PP 5)*
• 1 package from combination lock (cardboard and plastic)
• 1 popcorn jug (PETE 1) -- a huge jug that lasts many months

• 1 wrap from rutabaga
• 1 top of dried mangoes bag -- the bag itself will show up later
• 2 wraps from boxes of tea bags
• 1 packet from shredded cheese*
• 1 7-11 candy bag
• 1 cough medicine bottle -- amazingly not recyclable*
• 1 Riesens bag*
• 2 toothpicks with colourful plastic wrap on the ends -- I've been trying to get into the habit of asking them not to give me these (they're from my favourite café) but I forgot this time.
• 1 wrap from toilet paper
• 1 bread bag
• 8 mini Laffy Taffy wrappers
• 1 microwave popcorn wrapper
• 1 Styrofoam plate
• 1 piece of Scotch tape from my prescription -- I asked them not to give me the unnecessary paper bag with staple, and they were nice about it, but then they taped the boxes together instead, haha.
• 1 plastic seal from concentrate juice

• 1 face mask bottle (LDPE 4) and lid (PP 5) -- I don't use it much so this is like a once or twice a year thing
• 2 envelopes with windows from my Visa bill -- 1 recycled, the blank one set aside to be reused
• 1 2L pop bottle -- I had some pop from a bottle at my boyfriend Jonny's New Year's party. -- re-purposed as dog toy (Indy doesn't eat it so it's ok, she just likes to attack it), then recycled
• 1 raspberries container (PETE 1)

• 1 bundle of scotch tape
• 2 video game wrappers -- Christmas presents
• 3 popcorn wrappers
• 2 burrito wrappers -- I was at work and didn't have a lunch. There were individually wrapped burritos in the freezer...
• 1 pen -- also a rare garbage item
• 2 plastic forks -- one from a holiday party and one from cake at work
• 1 Styrofoam plate -- from holiday party
• 1 package whose origin I don't recall...
• 1 caramel apple pop wrapper
• 1 dried mangoes bag
• 1 package from lasagne box -- why are so many boxes wrapped in plastic?
• 1 apple bag
• 1 Riesens bag -- Christmas candy
• 1 bread bag -- not pictured as my mom threw it out
• 1 Pot of Gold wrapper
• 4 mini Laffy Taffy wrappers
• 1 plastic twist tie -- will be reused
• 1 package from rechargeable battery pack
• 1 pill package
• 1 Mini Eggs bag -- Christmas candy
• 1 icing container from cinnamon buns
• 1 veggie chicken wrapper