We saw this tote bag in Barnes and Noble today. It looked interesting to me, so I went close and looked at it. This is made from empty juice boxes that were recycled. I was really tempted to buy it and it took a lot of strength to stop myself. I found the price to be a little steep for a tote bag. I mean, my mom always sewed tote bags, from gabardine pants that my brothers wore out in the knees. We used those to buy dry groceries. Plastic bags for carrying groceries was a foreign concept to me when we moved from India to New York State in 1974. I wanted to take those bags back to buy groceries in them, but I was told that it looks cheap. So instead, I started using them as liners for small garbage cans in our rooms. We were still buying the big hefty bags for the kitchen and for leaves. Then somewhere in the eighties, supermarkets started giving back 2 cents per bag we used over again. Still my friends told me that we get looks from the packers if we brought our own bags. So I felt ashamed. So we all went with the flow and hardly recycled anything until almost the end of last century, when we started bringing our own bags. Now why did I go with the flow? Fear of looking cheap?Last time when my son came home from Hawaii, I told him how I am a closet environmentalist as I washed and saved plastic forks. He laughed and said that everyone is into recycling, I do not have to be ashamed any more.
Would I listen to myself ? Now why did I feel ashamed to recycle when I come from a place where recycling is the way of life? We left India to make a better life. Does it mean that we start copying the elite ? Well, who are the elite? I would not know.
The snowstorm of last month left us without power for forty hours. Then there were people without power even up to a week. So a lot of people went to hotels, but some hotels and businesses did not have a working generator. People were forced to do without refrigeration and hot coffee and even heat. They had to make use of blankets and live minimally. Then they realized how difficult it is to do without resources. Now just about everyone, especially the elite, is trying to be careful with hot water and heat and electricity.
How often do we need storms like these?
14 comments:
It's good to be an environmentalist. If we are to have a world for the children to live in someday, we each have to do our part today. That includes recycling.
Don't be ashamed to go about doing good for the environment- we need to all be doing what you are doing. I know an elderly German couple who re-use baggies and paper towels-
We used to make fun of my Mom for washing all the plastic, keeping containers forever, reusing wrapping paper...I could go on forever. Now she's in style and considered a hero for helping save our planet! I went without electric this Summer for a few days and I found out a lot about myself, my resourcefulness, my love of Thomas Edison for inventing electric and now I'm always grateful when my shower has water and heat.
I'm so glad that recycling is considered the norm these days. The children are even taught about it in school.
I am always finding ways to reuse whatever- like plastic bags, jars, etc.
I don't reuse baggies or straws, but most stuff I do.
Every winter, I am without electricity for a while. One year it was a week.
I have well water, so am always aware of my water usage.
My mom always recycled things so I guess I picked it up from her. :)
We have recycled since the late 1980s. My mom has tupperware that is twenty years old! She saves old aluminum foil and reuses it. She never wastes anything! It is good you wanted to recycle when no one else did! I listen to people sometimes too, I think we all do. It is nice to see a blog from you Munir. Hugs.
Hi Munir .. being brought up after the War - we were careful with everything .. the problem is most people don't know how to repair things, fix them or just want new items when the old ones will do ..
.. we all do what we can do .. and coming from where you came from in India - you appreciate poverty better than many of us .. cheers Hilary
Somehow paying a fortune for a bag made of recycled juice boxes is just a sign of our environmental stupidity.
My depression parents raised us on common sense recycling. "Waste not, want not" was their motto. It shouldn't cost a lot of money to be frugal. That bag is only practical if we make it ourselves. Just sayin'...
Actually, I was to be moving to a different place with my husband after childbirth, and then I was determined never to use plastic bags at my new apartment. I thought I will keep a separate grocery bag to buy things and reuse it. But I know we still can't be going without plastic.
It was recently in news that some scientists in Dehradun have developed some technology to recycle plastic to produce petroleum products. That was a good news.
I'm so excited! I finally got on your blog! For some reason when you post it never leaves a return link but it did today! Yeah!
As for your recycling... I don't see why things have to be thrown away while they can still be used! Thanks for coming back over my friend.
About 7 years ago my Dad brought me a reusable grocery bag from Australia. At first I felt weird carrying it. Then about 5 years ago our grocery store started selling them. Slowly people started using them. I'm so glad! It really does make a difference on our environment.
That is a good looking tote bag but Iike you I wouldn't want to pay big bucks for it. Recycling is virtually non-existent where we live. I try not to be wasteful but need to do a better job reusing my resources...Good post, and yes, feel free to use any of my Thanksgiving riddles. Enjoy!
Yes, that was some nasty storm; hopefully it will be the last one for ahile? ...we can hope anyway!
I had a friend in college who made a rug out of gum wrappers...she'd been making it for years and years and it was quite extravagant!
Have a blessed Thanksgiving Munir!
What a funny story. I have found that often times when you do the right thing, people will give you weird looks. I think you have to just press forward and try not to care. I think my parents raised us in a way to not be ashamed of standing out. In fact, I rather prefer it sometimes. Good for you for sticking to your recycling guns (even if you took a few years off :) ).
PS How did you find my blog?
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