I am proud to say that I was never even peripherally associated with the purchase of a robotic singing mounted bass. Some of you young people may not even remember how popular these things were. I have to assume that many of them are now taking up space in landfills. Some of them may even be in the ocean.
They are always the first object that I think of when I am thinking about pointless plactic novelty items that should never have existed. Disco Santa is number two on the list. The latest thing from China is a USB drumming Santa. It is awful.
I am hesitant about suggesting Christmas presents because of all the expectations and emotional baggage that exists in most families. The really young would probably get a lot of joy from a wooden farm animal set.
Today is Buy Nothing Day. This is a special day that can be observed with very little effort. Some people go above and beyond with their lack of consumption, even giving out free samples of nothing in mall parking lots.
I am not going to buy anything today, besides a bit of food. Other people have a different tradition known as Black Friday. It looks like this…
I was inspired by a post over at Eco Child’s Play about wooden blocks. Blocks are certainly a must have toy for early childhood. I would suggest that you avoid painted blocks, especially with vintage used blocks. I used to work at a sawmill and I provided a private school with blocks made from scraps. Maple is the best wood for toys. Aspen doesn’t splinter. I donated a bag of scrap wood that I cut into 4″X4″X1/2″. Kids used this for imaginative play and for arts and crafts.
At home, I had some leftovers from a project that looked a bit like telephone receivers. I sanded them up a bit and gave them to my 8 year olds. We have a delightful family anecdote related to the use of these blocks. The blocks that are pictured here were a very popular item at a school that my children used to attend. They are awesome toys.
There’s not much of a plastic reduction angle to this. I just think it is kind of cool. This solar powered coffee roaster uses focused energy from the sun to roast coffee beans. I noticed that they do use paper bags to package the fresh roasted coffee. This seems like a great business model for people that enjoy attending summer festivals. It must really suck when there is a cloudy day during a scheduled event.
I first heard of these guys a few years ago and at that time they were looking for a winter home for this machine. They are a Colorado based venture and they have a limited roasting season.
I may have some more focused blog posts on this topic later. For now, I am just going to throw up some numbers related to how long you can expect household stuff to last…
Vinyl flooring could last for ten years or more compared to a century for hardwood flooring or ceramic tile.
I’m seeing conflicting numbers with reference to washers and dryers, but 8-12 years has been suggested by several sources. If the initial quality of appliances accounts for a year or two of that range in lifespan, you could be saving yourself the cost of an appliance or two by getting a higher end item. With these energy consuming appliances, the cost of operating them far outweighs the purchase price. Going for an energy efficient model is the right thing to do. Also ask yourself if you really need a clothes dryer. They have solar and wind powered clothes dryers that are a reasonably inexpensive purchase and cost nothing to operate.
I saw a range of 5-25 years for fridges. Obviously quality of components and construction must play a role there.
I had a very inconvenient fight delay in Britain last year and I relied on the Marks & Spencer as a source of good food during my time at the airport. They have a lot of organic and fair trade products. It’s good to hear that they are taking the important step of charging for plastic bags. 5p should be enough of a disincentive for many shoppers who are just grabbing an item or two. It will also help get regular shoppers into the habit of bring cloth bags with them.
Shoppers who might be turned off by the idea are being bribed with a free M&S Bag for Life with each food transaction during three weeks leading up to the implementation.
I jokingly suggested this product as an alternative to a squirt gun last week. I should make a serious pitch for using metal buckets instead of plastic for general chores and gardening.
Having tried both plastic and metal for pet dishes in the past, I can assure you that metal is better in every way. They make a lot of noise if your dog has a chain, but you get used to that. I loved the fact that you could pour boiling water on them as a regular sanitizing routine.
PIRATES off the coast of Somalia were/are in possession of a tanker ship full of benzene. One of the main commercial uses for this chemical is plastics manufacturing. It is carcinogenic. A warship fired on the vessel before finding out that it contained the explosive and very hazardous substance.
It is frightening to think about how many tanker ships and tanker trucks are moving around keeping the global economy chugging away why putting the actual globe at risk. Using less plastic ultimately would mean less of this risk. I wonder if a shipload of benzene was traveling to a country where lower wages and less restrictive environmental standards meant it could be put to more profitable use?
