Hey, if anyone is still checking, I am obviously not writing right now. I am too pregnant and tired to even write BLOGs, pathetic really. Check back in may or june, I am contemplating starting again the new year of enough monthly in august and want some people to sign on to try it too….. coco

I am looking into how to distinguish what is what in the plastics world. Its actually fascinating. The numbers on the bottom of bottles are not intended to give us safety information but to describe what type of plastic is used and how to sort and recycle them. They do describe what type of plastic or the combination of plastics used in the making of them, they are called resin ID codes, For example:

1. PET is used mostly in beverage bottles and then when recycled, used in carpets, textiles, etc:ie as polyester.

2. HDPE: is used for its stiffness and good barrier qualities, also holds up well in various temperatures -ie milk bottles and household cleaning items.

3. PVC: can be used as both rigid and flexible plastics, anything from shrinkwrap to pipe siding.

4. LDPE: mostly used in flim and some flexibile lids and bottles, packaging

5. PP: used with hot liquids, high melting point and strong, used for yogurt containers and condiment botttles, caps etc.

6. PS: again, can be rigid or soft, low melting point, used for packaging, bottles, food containers

7. OTHER: this is used to describe a package made of resin, more than one type of plastic or a combination of some of the other 6 listed above (these are all from the americanchemistry.org website)

I intially heard there were 11 kinds but I only found descriptions of 7.

So, you have to know in your area what kinds the recycle truck will pick up and recycle, you can look it up.

My big question is about safety and how to make sense of which kinds are safer than others, and can we really heat up food or drinks in these containers without having it leach into our bodies or give us cancer? In my searching, I got overwhelmed unsurprisingly.

I liked this practical question and answer series from the washington post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2008/04/15/DI2008041502361.html)

 I gleaned some basics: BPA, not so good and now can probably be avoided by using certain number plastics (i know what I said before but these reccomendations are consistent over websites that # 1,5 6 id codes describe a type of plastic that are better for BPA content than the others). Why is BPA not cool? It seems recent research has indicated there is some concerns that exposure BPA had negative effects on the brain, behavior, and prostate gland in fetuses, infants, and children at current levels of exposure. There is also talk about it causing breast cancer, prostate cancer and early puberty. Also it seems, microwaving plastic-don’t do it because why should you do it when there are other alternatives such as glass that are known to be perfectly safe.

When I was freaking out about the baby bottle question, I use this website to replace all my bottles and tupperware with BPA free plastics by type

http://safemama.com/2007/11/22/bpa-free-bottle-and-sippy-cup-cheat-sheet/

I also just found this site that looks interesting and reviews sippy cups and bottles

http://www.naturemoms.com/blog/2008/01/21/bpa-free-sippy-cups-part-two/

Thats an update for now. I decided to do plastics for two months partially because it is a huge undertaking and kind of crazy to sort out what the heath issues are and the environmental issues without oversimplifying which I tend to do anyway. I will say that I gave up on the glass milk container already and its mostly because of the congealing fat clumps that make it seem there are butter lumps in my coffee. No can do. Wax paper half gallon containers can be mulched in the green bin.

Here we are. Its time for me to deal with all the packaging and plastics I use in life. This month is not actually about not using plastic, although I am sure I will become aware of all the time I do use it. Its more about trying to consume less and produce less waste. To the extent possible, I am trying to only use plastic that I can recycle, has been recycled, or reuse what I already have. This obviously makes grocery shopping a bit of a project. I already did a small trip to a major trendy grocery store( I will not mention due to their supposedly bad labor practices) and was able to get through a lot of it without using new bags (I brought some old ones I had at the house) but I know I can do better. Also, I didn’t buy yogurt, milk, or really too much processed stuff yet. I don’t think I can get through the month without those individually wrapped yogurt squeezes they make for kids, how sad is that? This, like any other of the enoughmonthly challenges, takes foreplanning (kind of like foreplay but less racy) on my part. I have to keep bags in my car (or purse, not cute) and bins to put bulk stuff in but I think its do-able in the long term.

Okay, I just looked on the electronic interweb for information and already learned some scary shit. Did you know that most of the plastic we curbside recycle does not get reused to make the same kinds of containers to recycle over again? Many containers we put in our bins get burned, put into landfill, or made into secondary products such as textiles or plastic lumber that don’t ever get re-recycled and eventually may end up in the landfill anyway. Also, most of the packaging we buy in plastic is made from “virgin” materials, not re-cycled plastic so this creates an illusion for the consumer that we can just consume and recycle and it creates some kind of loop that reduces our use of natural resources. Not true. Another interesting factoid, those arrows on the bottom of your container, don’t always mean your plastic container gets recycled. They have to print that on all of them but there are actually 11 categories of plastic, some better than others- this information is all from the Ecology Center’s Plastic Task Force information (http://ecologycenter.org/ptf/misconceptions.html).

okay, now I am already overwhelmed. SO I have a month, I will try to tackle 

-the water bottle issue (why do we buy water in bottles, the cost of this, how many end up in landfill, how much oil etc. it takes to manufacture water in bottles, the leaching of the plastic into the water etc). In the meantime, I urge you to go out and buy a reusable water bottle).

-how to find products packaged out of “recycled” materials.

-the plastic bag issue including more information on why there is talk about banning them in various cities, how they end up in our oceans and animals, and why on earth we need everything separated into its own plastic bag.

-the 11 categories of plastic and what they mean

-health risks associated with various kinds of plastics

Well, I have finally gotten used to writing 2009 on my checks. It seems to get easier every year as I accept earlier and earlier that there is no fighting time.

I have done pretty well this month. The one thing I did buy was a new pair of crocs. The feet are swelling and it ain’t cute. Speaking of cuteness, thanks for the responses from the last post. For those of you worried about me turning into the older Berkeley therapist version of PAT, give it up. You know I will hold on to some version of my vanity until the grave. I already told my sister that I swore off linen outfits, comfort shoes (except of course crocs and clogs-all those that begin with the letter “C” are okay), and big jewelry on the outside of sweaters. Its cool, with all the money I didn’t spend on clothes, plastic surgery and cosmetics, I can get sweaters for my 10 little dogs.

Its probably good I am not shopping because also, anything I buy now I will hopefully never wear again. Its not because I am Paris Hilton (maybe I am actually the size of 2 Paris Hiltons right now?) but because this is the last pregnancy, I swear. I could definitely sit on any of you and make you turn blue at this point. Enough of that.

I decided to do plastics next month and I will try to do some more reporting on the good and bad kinds, ways to use less, and find out more about that floating trash island. I have already begun saving plastic bags used from previous months and am thinking about ways to do more bulk food shopping and purchasing less processed and probably healthier food items (can you buy chocolate in bulk?). This means probably that Trader Joes is out (I feel like this entry has some wierd product placement vibe) which is okay. They have gotten a tiny bit better over the years about not individually wrapping all of their fruit in plastic, haven’t they? Let me know if you all have any tricks you want to share. I have to get used to the milk in glass bottles thing. Is that wring around the top just fat or what?

ps Dave, I like your BLOG, great photos!

So I apologize if anyone reads this because my fervor and excitement for blogging has dwindled as I prepare for a new baby. I guess this whole cleansing and looking at my life is connected to bringing another being in this world but my energy to think clearly, write, work and do enough monthly has dwindeled. The one thing I seem to be able to do is continue to listen to NPR. It seems that with the shift in the economy, the warming of the globalness, the activism of environmentalists, and the sheer inovation of people, trends are emerging (or at least being more reported about on public radio). I have been hearing interesting stories about urban homesteaders, “locavores”, people who don’t eat or buy anything unless they met the person who made it, etc. etc. Its kind of cool and it fires me up to continue to do this project. 

So back to this month. I have done pretty well. I know I am supposed to see different sides of the story including the fact that so many people are losing jobs, and that our entire economy revolves around us buying tons of crap we can either not afford or don’t really need, but I am still pretty inspired about the idea of people being more conscious and even conservative about their consumption habits. I myself feel the worry in my own family about the reality of lay-offs, continuing to make mortgage payments or affording things we have considered “basic” for the last 5-7 years. Its scary for sure. I know I needed a reality check about using my credit card or thinking I should be able to just buy things as I wanted them in the past. What was I thinking? I realize what a social event shopping for things had been for me. Its something I did with my girlfriends, my sisters and my fellow a’mer’cans. I used to pride myself on being somewhat of a professional (for those of you who don’t already know this story, I once got an entire wardrobe for myself in Ross Dress For Less in San Luis Obispo in 20 minutes, for under $100.00 without the use of a dressing room) (mom if you are reading this, I actually credited this skill to you at the time and stand by that credit today). So do I miss it , yeah kind of. I miss feeling cute, getting something new, purchasing an idea that I would be stylish and perhaps ageless in someway. Oh no, here comes the age thing…. I think the lesson of this month sadly and maybe even of my late thirties is that “its time to let it go.” The skin is going, the latent adolescent image of myself is going, the being a sexual object (as much as I pretended to detest this, see Corey- the college years) is going going gone and it feels pointless to keep it going with all the skin products, age in-approrpriate outfits (no more shopping at Forever 21 ladies) and nostalgia about being in a band. I want to be one of those older women with short hair, no make-up, serious but design-ish reading glasses, and a kick ass garden. How unsexy is that? But who really cares anymore? I would trade in all that shopping time and money I spent in the last 20 years to have my 401K back. 

Don’t get me wrong, I am not giving up, merely giving in to the inevitable and maybe our economy is too. We couldn’t go on this way forever people, face it. It was like living in a dream (dot com bubble anyone? Damn I should have gone into computers instead of people). We are all going to get old and die and it doesn’t matter what kind car we had and how many pairs of gucci loafers we had because you can’t take it with you anyway (okay, I better get off this track before the depression kicks in). Its not like I am not going to continue to buy things but hopefully I can do the kind of shopping and living that doesn’t make me feel bad later. When I look at some magazines or go into some stores, I feel like -Oh shit, I hate all my stuff and need to get rid of it and buy all new stuff thats updated, hip, cleaner, better and I feel lame, old, fat, and generally dissatified with life. Thats silly. Thats what I want to stop and this month is making it really clear. I don’t have to participate in that side of consumption if I choose not to. Will I continue to buy stuff for my kids, for my house, for my garden? Yes, but not if I am trying to be something I quite clearly at this point in life don’t need to be.

I have by the way gone shopping a few times with friends and even by myself and not bought anything. Its actuallly kind of fun. It takes the pressure off and I feel somehow virtuous that I didn’t buy more crap I probably don’t need (did I mention that I also don’t fit into anything anymore?). There are things I do need (like a face-lift, just kidding) and I will eventually buy them (like in February probably) and I will stimulate our economy in the future, I promise.

I cannot believe its already the new year, another one down. I think its true when your young the years go by slowly (especially September to June) but once you turn 30 its like the electric light year button gets pressed and before you know it your slogging another new years glass of champagne and trying to kiss someone with your crinkly wrinkly old lips before midnight so you don’t have to stay up that late.

I already declared this month no shopping or buying things months so I will practice this to the best of my ability. It seems that many american consumers not only pared down on the spending last month but will continue to do so into the New Year. Maybe this isn’t such a bad thing?

This was an interesting NY Times article about consumer spending being down in almost every area in December (except Gasoline?) http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/14/business/14spend.htmlpagewanted=1&_r=1

Whether you shopped at Tiffany’s or Target, you probably didn’t spend as much money as you used to there. Maybe this isn’t a bad thing? Did that drippy diamond tennis bracelet really make you feel more complete and happy? Even if it did, do you really need ANOTHER one? Personally my indulgence is striped socks, and while they really only cost about 5.00 a pair, I don’t NEED or even have space in my top drawer for another pair. 

Even though we had a “light” christmas as I am sure many of you did, I felt this weird mix of contentment and happiness with the gifts I did get and buy, and also a tinge of the “gimme mores” which as a learned behavior seems to peak about the age of 3 in our consumer culture. I watched my toddler open one present and immediately throw it down in hopes of finding another one to open. IT BUMMED ME OUT and I said, “hey man, your bumming me out.” Not that this helped any? I want to pass onto him and even into myself, a feeling that I don’t need anything more than what I have right now. Somehow I see that even if I act this way and try to teach it to my own child, there are plenty of forces and messages he receives that say the opposite. 

I do hope for 2009 that changes do come, not just in our government policies and attitudes but in us and that a scary economic crisis brings some wisdom to our fat american asses. 

Helloooo. Sorry I havent been writing. I guess I am officially taking this month off of my year long project. As the creator of this endeavor, thats my right. Its really just that work is hectic, the Holy-daze are here and I am too pregnant and cranky to deal with anything. I am thinking and planning however for the next two months which will be

January: no buying things (its good for my personal economy, and we will be broke from Christmas)

February: no plastic or at least a drastic reduction in plastic use

There, I said it and now I am committed. I am excited about the plastic thing but I have to organize some stuff for bulk shopping and wean myself from Trader Joes (why do they have to put apples in plastic containers?).

Does anyone have any suggestions on local farm boxes to share. I did planet organics for a while and it was a little to expensive for me but I would like to go back to the local farm box delivery. Let me know. If you need gift ideas for your loved ones for the holidays, I recommend a nice, tall, insulated, “to go” cup.

Well it happened that I slipped, as I do every month. Its true people, I am HUMAN and I err. The thing is, PETE’s coffee, as much as I like it, does not offer ceramic cups or glasses to use when you are sitting down to stay in. Thats wierd, don’t you think? I should have brought my own cup but I forgot and ended up using a paper one. I guess I could have spent another $16.95 on a to-go mug but it’s not the best selection there and that is one expensive cup of hot chocolate.

I will also report on the extreme measures I have taken to avoid using paper cups. This was a little funny. I went to a three year old’s birthday party at a “play cafe” in Oakland which will remain unnamed. I understand that because of the toddler factor, they do not have any glass or ceramic anything in the place to avoid liability and breakage but this means that everything comes in a paper or plastic to go containers. I ordered a cup of tea at the counter and asked for a glass cup. The woman behind the counter was like, “we don’t have glass” and I said, “well, okay forget the tea then.” Then she surprised me by asking if I would like to borrow her personal to-go tumbler that she uses for her own tea and coffee. Is this wierd? I said, why not and cleaned it out with hot water and had my tea. Unexpected sharing with a stranger? I can’t remember the last time this happened. Maybe its not wierd, maybe its totally awesome and nice but just unfamiliar. After I was done with my tea, I gave it back and she washed it for her own use. So maybe we wasted a bit of water with all the washing but saved some tree pulp and landfill space….

Over the weekend, I went to a cafe in Santa Cruz and we ordered in. Most places just assume you are taking your hot beverage to go and maybe mostly you do but you may want to consider slowing down a bit and just sitting for 10 minutes to relax and drink a hot beverage (in a “for here” cup) without walking, texting or driving anyplace. Its really nice. And, usually if you ask, a nice person behind the drink counter will produce a glass for you without any hassle, even if its their own personal one. 

I would love someone to give me a prescription to shop so there you have it. Splurge. Spend at least $14.99 on a mug you love and take it with you everywhere. Its should be pleasing to the eye, leakless, and feel good on the lips when put up to them. I love my big shiny orange one but alas, it often drips from the bottom and makes me mad at it several times a week. I may need a new one too.

Okay, so of course there is a website, BLOG and even a non-profit organization for EVERYTHING. I found one called Sustainability is Sexy, check it out  http://www.sustainabilityissexy.com/facts.html – you could even get a shiny to go tumbler for them, they seem to want you to buy stuff ?

I cannot actually tell whether or not it is run by Starbucks because it mentions them a lot (probably because they are taking over the planet) but it has some interesting and disturbing factoids and what looks to be research about why paper cups are bad. I will summarize below:

We use a lot of paper cups every year: these are pretty much made from non-recycled paper materials because the FDA is very picky about reused materials coming into contact with what we eat and drink. This means:

-paper cups have to be manufactured by cutting down trees, lots of trees. Washing them, using tons of water, and then making pulp, drying pulp, etc. and using machines and energy.

-these cups are lined with plastic resin to keep it all hot and unleaky which keeps the cups from being recycled and they go into landfill where they decompose and create a lot of greenhouse gasses. (if you like statistics, this is from the Sustainability is Sexy site: “in 2006, it is estimated that paper cups accounted for 252 million pounds of garbage resting in landfills.  Paper cup use in 2006 also accounted for 4 billion gallons of water wasted, 6.5 million trees cut down, and 4,884 billion BTU’s of energy used.  ”)

-yes its true that your stainless steel or ceramic mug is also “manufactured.” It appears that if you use this cup at least 24 times than you break even at the environmental impact of using a paper cup. Since you can use this re-usable cup for about 3000 uses, this will tip the odds in your favor.

-the last point they make is that it saves you and Starbucks money. Now I like saving money so I can spend another $3.75 on a super iced chai latte that of course I will enjoy in my own cup. 

WOW. Maybe its all the change in the air but I am PUMPED and also I am super excited to report that I have not used one measly to go cup yet this month. There are a few reasons why this is a bit easier for me at this moment in time. One is that I am not my ususal caffine addict self since I am coming off 3 months of nasea. That will really do something to your coffee cravings. The other is that I have been having insomnia which is another wonderful part of the pregnancy magic and mystery. This keeps me from having an afternoon cup of tea which was something I never skipped before. This cuts my “to go” situation at least in half everyday. I can attribute my success this month to my thinking ahead strategy: what I have taken to doing is- before I leave the house, I make sure that I have my big ass mug. Admitedly, this takes up space in my big ass purse (the theme this month should be big ass, at least that is how I feel inside and out) but it really isn’t that hard. There have been a few times where I had to go back inside and fetch my trusty friend from the kitchen sink and clean the old girl out, I have even gone lidless once or twice and its all okay.

The whole “to go” thing kind of sucks. Like other enough monthly challenges, it makes me realize how the convenience lifestyle does not always equal a better life. Its not that I don’t like convenience- what ever happened to those drive through ATMs they had for a few years? I really miss those. Its just that there seems to be a direct correlation between convenience and waste. I bet the landfills don’t think “to go” containers are a good idea? I know they don’t really have feelings but its still something to think about.