An Effort in Green

Recyclable Items (8)

• 2 soy milk cartons
• 2 orange juice cartons
• 1 strawberry carton (PETE 1)
• 1 sushi container (PS 6)
• 1 disposable cup (PS 6) (normally I would avoid this kind of thing, but a little girl was selling cups of Kool-aid... how could I refuse?!)
• 1 package from picture hanging nails

Non-Recyclable Items (25):

• 3 Twizzlers bags
• 1 chocolate bar bag
• 2 perogies bags
• 1 spaghetti bag
• 1 pillow wrapper
• 4 carton seals
• 1 pill package
• 1 poster frame package
• 1 CD wrapper
• 3 DVD wrappers
• 3 waffle bags
• 2 turnover filling packets
• 2 icing packets

Total Items: 33

Recyclable Items (6)

• 2 orange juice cartons
• 1 honey jar
• 1 strawberry carton (PETE 1)
• 1 microwave dinner container (PP 5)
• 1 Chinese food container (PS 6)

Non-Recyclable Items (12):

• 2 orange juice seals
• 1 ice cream treat wrapper
• 1 noodles bag
• 1 ice cream carton seal
• 3 waffles wrappers
• 1 pill package
• 1 mint wrapper
• 1 Blush Berries bag
• 1 risotto bag

Total Items: 18 (a new record for a month, and pretty close to a record if you average out the weeks, too!)

Here come the several months of updates on which I've fallen behind, and then an announcement on some changes that are going to happen here at An Effort in Green!

Recyclable Items (10)

• 1 shower curtain ring package
• 1 knife package
• 1 package from bag clips
• 2 pieces of Styrofoam from toaster (PS 6)
• 3 orange juice cartons
• 1 cookie package (PETE 1)
• 1 soy milk carton

Non-Recyclable Items (28):

• 1 shower curtain bag
• 2 wrappers from shelf liners
• 1 wrapper from kettle
• 2 bags from popcorn maker
• 1 bag from pepper mill
• 1 package from paring knives
• 1 wrapper from toaster
• 2 bags from electric mixer
• 4 carton seals
• 1 Tostitos bag
• 1 Skittles bag
• 1 DVD wrapper
• 1 CD wrapper
• 1 brown sugar bag
• 1 wrapper from router
• 1 pasta bag
• 1 waffles bag
• 1 pill package
• 1 Soda Stream sample syrup package
• 1 icing tub
• 1 toilet paper wrapper
• 1 Mini Eggs bag

Total Items: 38 (still a lot of moving related stuff)

An explanation for my absence: In February I was feverishly job searching. Since then, I have been working full time, and in the process of moving. Now we're settled into our apartment, but we still don't have Internet set up. And that's how I came to be sitting in the St. Boniface library hurriedly publishing this post. Sorry for the delay!

Recyclable Items (10)

• 3 orange juice cartons
• 2 soy milk cartons
• 1 strawberry container (PETE 1)
• 1 soft drink lid from theatre (I don't always manage to convince them fast enough not to give me a lid.)
• 1 spatula package
• 1 scissors package (and then the scissors totally broke, so what a waste!)
• 1 package from cutlery set

Non-Recyclable Items (19):

• 3 wrappers from cookie sheets
• 1 takeout container
• 1 pill package
• 1 waffles bag
• 1 rolling pin wrapper
• 1 toothbrush
• 1 toothbrush wrapper
• 5 carton seals
• 1 taco shell bag
• 1 apple turnover filling package
• 1 icing package
• 1 chocolate bar wrapper
• 1 jelly bean bag

Total Items: 29 (Not too bad I say, considering all the packaging caused by moving.)

Recyclable Items (6)

• 2 orange juice cartons
• 3 soy milk cartons
• 1 honey tub (PP 5)

Non-Recyclable Items (20):

• 1 toothpaste tube
• 1 licorice laces bag
• 1 pill package
• 2 garlic bread wrappers
• 2 DVD wrappers (catching up on my seasons of The Office)
• 1 video game wrapper (a Valentine's Day present)
• 3 carton seals
• 1 strawberry turnover filling package
• 1 icing package
• 2 perogy bags
• 1 candy wrapper
• 1 mint wrapper
• 1 soda crackers package
• 1 rice pilaf bag
• 1 other wrapper that I can't remember the origin of (but it kind of smells like chocolate...)

Total Items: 26 (Which works out to only 6.5 per week! Not too shabby!)

Well, here goes. It's my first month of counting my plastic by month instead of by week. Since I probably averaged around 10 items a week before, it stands to reason that in a month I'd accumulate at around 40. Yet still I was not prepared. The good news is, I think this change will definitely serve its purpose of further motivating me to decrease my plastic usage. Seeing a month's worth of plastic piling up in the corner was just depressing.

For too long I've just been counting my plastic. It's been at a standstill for so long that it often feels like I can't get the numbers any lower. Now I see that that has to change. Call it a New Year's Resolution, slightly belated. I need to put more effort into analysing my habits and finding concrete solutions. It's time to put the "effort" back in "An Effort in Green".

Recyclable Items (9)

• 3 orange juice cartons
• 1 M&Ms tube (PP 5)
• 2 tic tac containers (PP 5)
• 1 plain soy milk carton
• 1 chocolate soy milk carton
• 1 cannelloni container (PETE 1)

Non-Recyclable Items (32):

• 2 pill packages
• 3 cereal bags
• 1 Toblerone wrapper (when did these start coming in plastic?!)
• 4 bread bags
• 4 sponge toffee bags (ah, the holidays...)
• 1 garlic bread wrapper
• 4 drink carton seals
• 1 bag from a pre-ordered book (when did Chapters switch from cardboard to plastic for this?)
• 1 soda crackers package
• 1 wrapper from a box of After Eights
• 2 cheese slice wrappers
• 2 microwave popcorn wrappers
• 1 pilaf package
• 1 pilaf spice package
• 1 apple turnover filling package
• 1 strawberry turnover filling package
• 2 icing packages

Total Items: 41

Now, some analysis. First, a few items are holiday-specific, i.e. the M&Ms tube, the tic tacs, and the Toblerone. They were gifts that I wouldn't typically buy myself. The After Eights and sponge toffee are usually only available around Christmas, so they won't be common items either.

Next: What could I easily eliminate with just a little bit of effort? Answer: the bread and cereal bags. I can get bread in paper bags, it just takes a bit more effort and dealing with salespeople who don't understand why I wouldn't want plastic. Hence, my mom usually doesn't want to make that effort, so if I just went out and bought my own bread this wouldn't be an issue. As for cereal, I need to find a good bulk cereal to replace the Honey Nut Cheerios and Mini Wheats. It'll probably end up being better for me anyway. Also, popcorn. I have a hot air popper. I'm just too picky about my popcorn. Sure, the microwave one has more flavour, but it also has more weird chemicals. So I need to just get over it and butter my own darn popcorn.

At some point, I also want to learn to make homemade versions of the apple turnovers, strawberry turnovers, and cinnamon buns that Jonathon and I so enjoy. But that's a bigger project.

Happy belated New Year! (Actually it's only one day belated if you live in Russia, Ukraine, or a few other countries, and I'm actually early if you're Chinese! So yay!) It has been a crazy year for me so far. I just finished university, so I'm job searching, and getting used to a somewhat jarring (though definitely welcome) change of schedule. I'm adjusting, though, and I should have some new posts coming out in no time. So,without further ado, here's my tally for the last week of 2010:

Recyclable Items (1)

• 1 soy milk carton
• 1 cheesecake cover
• 1 advent calendar (plastic on the inside)

Non-Recyclable Items (5):

• 1 poster frame wrapper
• 1 sponge toffee bag
• 1 bread bag
• 1 Swedish Berries bag
• 1 soy milk seal

Total Items: 8

You may have noticed that this week is actually only 6 days. That's because I've decided to change how I do these tallies. As of the beginning of 2011, I'm going to go by month. The main reason for this is because I want to improve this blog, and I think that decreasing the number of posts that are just lists of plastic items is a step in the right direction. I'm hoping that this will allow me to focus more of my time and energy on other types of posts. Also, this means I'll have a month's worth of plastic piling up, instead of just a week's worth, which should give me some extra incentive to decrease it!

Recyclable Items (2)

• 1 orange juice carton
• 1 peanut butter jar (PETE 1)

Non-Recyclable Items (11):

• 1 cereal bag
• 1 video game wrapper
• 1 orange juice seal
• 1 piece of plastic wrap
• 1 shredded cheese bag
• 1 salad dressing seal
• 1 big piece of Styrofoam
• 4 miscellaneous pieces of plastic wrapping from Christmas presents

Total Items: 13

13 items is not great, but let's compare. In 2009, the week containing Christmas was week 2 of this plastic counting adventure. That week I threw away 37 pieces of plastic. So I must say, I feel pretty good about that 13. Sometimes I think I get too caught up in trying to beat my latest record, and forget about how far I've come.

Recyclable Items (3)

• 1 soy milk carton
• 1 lasagna container (PETE 1)
• 1 envelope with window

Non-Recyclable Items (2):

• 1 perogies bag
• 1 soy milk seal

Total Items: 5

Note: This is week 52! Holy mackerel! I've been doing this for a whole year!

Recyclable Items (1)

• 1 soy milk carton

Non-Recyclable Items (5):

• 1 advent calendar wrapper
• 1 Halloween candy wrapper
• 1 toothpaste tube
• 2 carton seals

Total Items: 6

Recyclable Items (1)

• 1 shampoo bottle (HDPE 2) (I actually use solid shampoo now. I just figured I should finish this bottle off)

Non-Recyclable Items (3):

• 1 cereal bag
• 1 pill package
• 1 fruitlets bag

Total Items: 4

Recyclable Items (2)

• 1 soy milk carton
• 1 hot chocolate tin lid (LDPE 4)

Non-Recyclable Items (5):

• 1 soy milk seal
• 1 Styrofoam soup bowl
• 1 microwave popcorn package
• 1 cheese slice wrapper
• 1 gingerbread man wrapper

Total Items: 7

Today I thought I'd write a quick post highlighting some of the more ridiculous uses of disposable plastic I've seen since starting this plastic-avoiding adventure of mine.

What you see to the left is probably my favourite (least favourite?) example. Those are t-shirts from the souvenir shop at the Assiniboine Park Zoo. They come in plastic tubes. Seriously. I don't even know what more to say about this one...

To the right, witness the plastic resulting from a meal at Salisbury House. This wasn't even take out. I ate inside. As if it wasn't bad enough having to navigate the meat-eaters-oriented menu, my butter and syrup come beside my pancakes in little plastic cartons. As a frame of reference, at other, similar breakfast-specialising restaurants, pancakes usually come with a pile of butter on the plate, and syrup comes in glass jugs.

And last but not least, we have this monstrosity, from Folklorama. Even if you just needed a spoon for your ice cream, you had to take a fork, spoon, knife, sugar packet, and napkin, all wrapped together in a big plastic bag. I chose to eat my ice cream without cutlery instead. Now that's dedication. (Actually it was pretty fun.)

Now it's your turn! Tell us about the worst uses of disposable plastic (or even packaging in general) that you've ever seen.

Recyclable Items (1)

• 1 orange juice carton

Non-Recyclable Items (3):

• 1 cereal bag
• 1 microwave popcorn wrapper
• 1 bread bag (not pictured) (thanks to a mix-up at the bakery)

Total Items: 4

Recyclable Items (0)

Non-Recyclable Items (5):

• 1 Styrofoam soup bowl
• 1 microwave popcorn wrapper
• 1 juice box straw
• 2 restaurant mint wrappers
  

Total Items: 5

Not a new record, but if I was weighing my plastic each week like Fake Plastic Fish it might be a new record for that!

Recyclable Items (2)

• 1 soy milk carton
• 1 focaccia bread bag (paper with a plastic window)

Non-Recyclable Items (12):

• 1 soy milk seal
• 1 microwave popcorn wrapper
• 1 tortilla wrapper
• 7 candy wrappers (The candy I bought was plastic-free, but I got these at work... Candy is my weakness.)
• 1 pill package
• 1 Clodhoppers bag

Total Items: 14

Recyclable Items (1)

• 1 orange juice carton

Non-Recyclable Items (9):

• 1 cereal bag
• 1 Tostitos bag
• 1 cracker bag
• 1 toothpaste tube
• 2 cheese slice wrappers
• 1 video game wrapper
• 1 pop can holder (Those plastic ring thingies... I normally avoid these like the plague! Make sure if you do use these that you cut them up after, because birds, fish, and other small animals can get caught in them otherwise.)
• 1 orange juice seal

Total Items: 10

Recyclable Items (2)

• 1 soy milk carton
• 1 doughnut container (PETE 1)

Non-Recyclable Items (2):

• 1 candy bag
• 1 soy milk seal

Total Items: 4 (another new record!)

Recyclable Items (0)

Non-Recyclable Items (5):

• 1 cereal bag
• 1 pistachios bag
• 1 carton seal
• 2 bags from pumpkin leaf bags

Total Items: 5 (a new record!)

Recyclable Items (3)

• 1 soy milk carton
• 1 Tim Horton's lid (I lost the lid from my travel mug, so I had to use a cup, and, unlike every other Tim Horton's I've ever been to, the one on campus wouldn't let me have no lid!)
• 1 orange juice carton

Non-Recyclable Items (12):

• 1 soy milk seal
• 1 Skittles bag
• 1 pill package
• 9 wrappers from various housewares (early Christmas presents from my grandparents)

Total Items: 15