Tightening up on discarded waste!

Scene from South Park Season 14, Episode 10

A few days ago, I wrote a post concerning how much throwing stuff out drives me crazy. A friend of mine heard me talking about this and cautioned me to be careful. She said that’s the way many people who become ‘hoarders’ start out. I told her that I remembered a show done on South Park "Insheeption" about that. Pretty funny actually! But, very sobering too! So, perhaps I am walking a tightrope here, even though all I really want to do is become a more responsible citizen in the area of recycling. That’s a good thing, right?

Problem! Who's got a problem?

I think my ‘affliction’ with this area of recapturing used stuff began some years ago as an offshoot of my hobby in backyard gardening. While growing veggies for the table, I started a small compost pile and then watched in amazement as kitchen scraps turned into dark soil! At that point, I was hooked! I’ve been composting ever since and perhaps was ‘pre-infected’ with the idea. After all, composting is recycling on the most organic level, is it not?

Today, I like the challenge of making purchases at the grocery store last for more than just one use. Plastic bags have now been discarded in favor of paper, or better yet, for one of those canvas tote bags that I see other people beginning to use more and more often! (These days, I try and make sure to keep one in my auto for those times when I’m going to purchase a small amount of stuff). Otherwise, it's ‘paper please’ at the checkout counter from now on!

Well...at least the tray is made of paper!

This idea of reusing items that I purchase also extends towards products I select to take home with me. Whenever possible, I opt for glass containers over plastic. Failing that, I try and avoid anything that will end up at the transfer station and thus condemned to a landfill. Take TV dinners, for example. I try and purchase items like Aunt Jemima’s Scrambled Eggs and Sausage breakfast meal mainly because they use a paper tray. (Even thought the contents of this meal totally suck, they do have the right idea when it comes to packaging)!

What it all boils down to is choice. Even if scientists were to discover tomorrow that landfills are a ‘good’ thing, I would still be opposed to filling them up in the manner that we do. It sickens me that some of this crapola will still be hanging around when generation 20 is out walking the earth!