It’s not always easy getting out the door and up the mountain
{inner and outer storms, missing mittens, spilled tea, etc.}
The adventure begins when we give in, and give way…
{I said Cora needed a nap, he said if we hurried we’d get first tracks.}
…When we learn to glide through the realm of what is.
{He was right.}
Sometimes, not always, but sometimes, we find our way.
{So was I.}
For the days of hard work and the sweet rest that follows;
for naps with my little one, and the time we spend awake before even the roosters next door crow;
for a return to pen and paper and the stories my heart wants to tell;
for the challenges of tension and hardness that gives way to connection and softness;
for the icicles crashing from the northern eaves of this home and the leaves poking from wet earth like the return of old friends;
for the cycles of creativity and fertility that move us from production to fallowness, and from speaking to listening;
for the mystery of all of this unfolding,
I give thanks.
::
I made this little scene with cutouts from a calendar years ago, and sadly have forgotten the name of the artist. Do any locals recognize the work?
a couple of my favorite pieces of plastic…
and the places they take me.
Given this scheme of ours to not bring any new plastic into our home for four months (and beyond), you might have thought this was easy for me. You might have mistaken me for some kind of hard core enviromama with a baby in wool nappies, a kitchen full of sprouting trays, and a candle lantern glowing in the background. Well, I won’t say that I haven’t tried any of those things, but let me just remind you that a few short months ago, I did most of my shopping at Trader Joe’s. Enough said. For the sake of balance, (plastic gets such a bad rap on this blog!) I’d like to give all my favorite plastic things (at least the ones I know of no alternative to) a little shout out:
:: Gloves, ski pants, parka. You guys are the greatest. Backcountry skis and tele boots. Adjustable poles. Hell yeah.
:: Vauum cleaner. Especially the hose…
:: Helmets! Bike pumps and tires. Carseat. Car, too.
:: Water bottle sport cap, I can’t believe the level to which I love you. Please do not break or start leaking any time soon.
:: Camera, computer, pens. Guitar strings and tuning pegs. Oh geez, the stereo!
:: PLU diaper covers. Snappi. Nylon backpack.
:: Ziploc freezer bags full of apples, tamales, green chile.
:: Buckets. Diaper pail. Salad spinner. Toothbrush.
:: Oilcloth – you of the incomparable beauty and usefulness.
Plastic is, as you no doubt know, amazing. It has given us many wonderful gifts in the last sixty or so years. As a nurse, I’ve used it to save lives. As a citizen of the world, I know the time has come for me to see how far I can go without it, if not to save the planet, then at least to stop harming it in the simple ways available to me. This list is short, yeah? Plastic is great, but it’s far from everything.
What’s on your list?
A handful of love from the land,
snow covered and sleeping, now,
but ever and always life giving.
That thick blanket of snow will soon give way
to rivers and returning birds,
to waking animals,
sprouting seeds and budding flowers.
—
The turning wheel pauses for an instant
as we look around with love struck eyes
at the bountiful lives we lead.
Oh, friends, this life isn’t always easy, is it?
Here we are doing the best we can,
and then someone comes along and tells us to use less plastic.
Or to be a better mother.
Or ____ .
Whew.
Maybe it’s ourselves doing the commanding, or maybe it comes from outside.
Maybe it’s an unwelcome burden.
Maybe it’s an opening and an opportunity.
Sometimes it’s both.
Either way, maybe this can help:
Beginning Anew means expressing our regret for mistakes we have made in the past coupled with a deep and transforming energy to act differently from now on. Because we know that we can act differently, we do not need to feel guilt.
The principle meaning of the practice of Beginning Anew is to bathe in the water of compassion.
–Thich Nhat Hanh Touching the Earth
::
May you –and I and we–know compassion for ourselves as we discover our capacity for Beginning Anew.
Again and again and again.
The day came when I really wanted vital wheat gluten. I assure you it seemed absolutely necessary. At one store it was sold in plastic bags. So of course I didn’t buy it. At the next store I saw it in a cardboard box. Jackpot!
Not quite.
I’m not sure if it was my all consuming desire that blinded me to the fact that inside that little box would be a plastic bag (like 99.2% of food sold in cardboard boxes). I thought it might be like baking soda, or mac and cheese, you know. But of course it wasn’t, and I got twice the packaging I would have ended up with if I’d just bought the plastic bag.
Here’s the kicker. A week later, back at the first store, I found it in bulk. Ack! (True to my principles, I had looked for it in bulk, but at the second store, not the first. Confused? Yeah.)
Now, I don’t go beating myself up for these accidental transgressions. It just annoys me that my unintentional “slips” are for things like vital wheat gluten instead of, say, blueberries (which we are really missing these days).
So what is the takeaway message from this little goosechase? I’m tempted to say it’s don’t give up–Just say no! So, so many of the things we need, excluding printer cartridges and that sort of thing, can be found in a plastic-free form. But for me the real lesson was to just keep on keeping on…and not worry too much about my lack of x-ray vision.
Which reminds me that I’m still looking for a plastic-free source of wool stuffing. If you happen to know of anyone who offers it in a paper bag, do tell.
Seems like I could go on and on forever musing about the poetic and philosophical reasons to reduce plastic waste. Yes, it’s lovely to live in a way somewhat approximating my great grandmother’s youth. Yes, I’m baffled at why it took me so long to make simple changes that bring me so much pleasure, not to mention a whole new understanding of what it means to live more lightly on the earth. Yes, the light reflecting on the snow is beautiful. Etc. Today I’m postponing my regular programming for a bit of practical, nitty gritty advice on how to get by without plastic.
Disclaimer! Partly why I’ve not given much how-to advice is because each of our needs are so different and I am confident that you can find the solutions and methods for your family. My only real advice is to Just Say No to plastic whenever possible. Buy food in glass or paper, buy it in bulk, or make your own. Inevitably, though, after I give my just say no spiel, I get asked:
But what about…
Plastic bags used for bulk food and produce? I was on the verge of bringing my glass jars to the store with me to fill with beans and rice when I thought of cloth. I made a few dozen drawstring bags in sizes that range from “enormous head of kale” to “poppy seed.” Durable produce keeps well in them for a week or so. Fragile greens like lettuce do well once transferred to the salad spinner or a lidded bowl or jar. Things like carrots and celery can be kept partially submerged in a bowl of water.
Milk? Look for it in a returnable glass bottle. If this isn’t available, it might be better to choose a recyclable plastic jug than a carton, which is plastic lined but not recyclable.
Cheese? Most grocery store deli sections will cut you a hunk of cheese from their bulk supply and wrap it in butcher paper. Bring a reusable container to cut back on paper waste. Lunch meats are also available this way. It is fun and surprisingly simple to make soft cheeses like ricotta and mozzarella. This book tells all, but an online search probably would too.
Yogurt? I’ve had my ups and downs making goat milk yogurt, then switched to a commercial brand sold in glass jars, and am now making my own from cow’s milk with great success and for impressive savings. You can use your favorite natural yogurt as starter, or buy the little packs (plastic free!) in the refrigerator section of your store (or online). No fancy equipment is needed, unless you count the thermometer, which is helpful. Also of interest is this company that recycles #5 plastic (which yogurt containers are made from), something that most cities do not offer recycling for.
Toilet paper? I get asked about this one all the time. Even big box stores sell individual rolls wrapped in paper. If you really want to get eco-groovy, though, cloth wipes are not as weird as they first sound.
Crackers? This was one of the things I was most concerned about how we’d do without because it was one of the few things my daughter would reliably eat. But for that same reason I was a bit relieved to remove them from our cupboard. Why are organic kid’s crackers made with white flour and sugar? Why? I’ve only found one brand of paper wrapped cracker in our town, and my daughter won’t eat them. Well, now that she’s forgotten all about those peanut butter sandwich ones, she’s starting to a bit more. Anyways, I make crackers every so often.
Bread? I make all of our bread with the five minute a day method. It feels a bit like cheating–no kneading–but is so good and easy that I don’t care.
Chips and tortillas? Try your local burrito shack—many sell them in paper bags, oftentimes made fresh. Also, look around your town for a Mexican bakery/grocery where tortillas get made fresh and can be popped into a paper or cloth sack. No luck? Here’s my post on tortilla making.
Body care items? My co-op offers many shampoos and lotions in bulk, but I’ve been enjoying making my own (my recipes are here and here). If that’s not your style, this company makes shampoo bars which I’ve heard good things about. Toothpaste is one thing I’m not ready to give up. Could it be one of the best inventions of the modern era? Look for it in a recyclable aluminum tube. Hint: Tom’s.
CDs and DVDs? Download music, rent movies.
Tupperware? This post discusses quality storage.
Everything else? Seek and ye shall find. Most of the time, anyways, if you’re patient and persistent–two skills I’m discovering my capacity for.
We’ll return to further Deep Thoughts…sooner or later, no doubt.
In the meantime, what ways have you found to reduce plastic waste in your home?
Selected excerpts from the introduction to Laurel’s Kitchen
(it’s called The Keeper of the Keys, but I think of it as the Manifesto of the Mighty Homemaker):
“I have begun to wonder, of late, about this belief that housework is essentially tedious. To what extent do you suppose it has been hoisted upon us by those same commercial interests who so obligingly provide us with dishwashers, dehydrated dinners, and disposable diapers – all meant very generously, of course, to relieve us of all that horrible work, obviously an evil in itself?”
“What really troubles us most about housekeeping is that in our desire to be freed from its tedium, we have welcomed a host of time- and labor-saving devices which have not only not eliminated tedium but cut us off from the truly pleasurable, creative side of our work…Worst of all, these labor saving products and devices represent an enormous sinkhole for the worlds diminishing resources. The world cannot afford this version of homemaking.“
“The less than thrilling side of homemaking will always be there. But as soon as we take into our own hands some of the tasks we’d previously consigned to machines and manufacturers, our work becomes vastly more gratifying.”
“Why compartmentalize our lives so that art is a thing apart? There is an artistic way to carry out even the simplest task, and there is great fulfillment to be had from finding out that way and perfecting it. To lead lives of artistry, we have only to slow down, to simplify, and to start making wise choices.”
::
No, I don’t sing my way blissfully through all the chores, but folks, these ladies are on to something. Last fall when we began preparing for our plastic fast I revisited this cookbook for practical advice. I found these words (and many others) that inspired and encouraged me at a time when I was struggling with the basic question of what to cook for dinner. I was a little skeptical at first, about how great it is to make lentil spread, but quickly found that they were right. The routines of cooking whole foods from scratch did seem to bring me to new heights of satisfaction and creative fulfillment. Partly this is because simple tasks like making bread and soaking beans are a part of something bigger–they speak to our collective need and longing to live in a more sustainable way. Reframed as such, how could this work that nurtures us and helps us nurture the earth not be gratifying?
Assuming you like lentil spread, of course.
(the toes are my favorite.)
Kyce Bello 
