Trying to Live a Day Without Plastic
Is it possible to live without plastic? A. J. Jacobs, a journalist living in New York, tried to spend a day without it. This is his report.
Every morning, I check my smartphone. But on my no-plastic day, I had to do without this since smartphones contain plastic. As I walked toward the bathroom, I stopped before entering.
“Could you open the door for me?” I asked my wife, Julie. “The doorknob is made of plastic!”
She said okay and then added, “This is going to be a long day.”
I had to give up my morning habits. I couldn’t use toothpaste, toothbrush, and soap because they were all in plastic cases.
Then I wanted to get dressed, but it was a challenge. My sweater was no good because it contained plastic. So I pulled on my wife’s cotton sweater.
“You’re going to stretch it out,” Julie said.
“It’s for planet Earth,” I reminded her.
Everything appeared threatening. I couldn’t use the toaster or microwave, so I went out to get some fruit at a store. As I filled one of my cotton bags with apples, I noticed the stickers on them. This was a violation.
At the cashier, I had a problem. Using credit cards was a violation. So I began stacking coins as quickly as I could.
“I’m really sorry this is taking so long,” I said.
“That’s OK,” the man said. “I meditate every morning so I can deal with this kind of situation.”
For lunch, I visited a sandwich shop and requested my salad in the glass container which I had brought along with me.
After lunch, I took the subway to Central Park: another violation due to the plastic parts in the trains. However, instead of sitting on one of those plastic seats, I sat on my fold-up wooden chair. One young man shot me a strange look.
In the park, I spotted plastic waste here and there.
Back home, I was tired by 10:30 p.m., so I lay down on cotton sheets on the floor, as my mattress and pillows probably contained plastic.
When I woke up the next morning, I felt good. After all, I had survived my ordeal. At the same time, I felt like I lost because I had broken the rule so many times. So I called my friend for some encouragement.
“You can drive yourself crazy,” she said. “Remember, plastic is not the enemy. The enemy is the single-use of plastic.”
I’ll try to avoid single-use. I’ll start with small things, and build up habits step by step.
Is it possible to live without plastic? A. J. Jacobs, a journalist living in New York, tried to spend a day without it. This is his report.
Every morning, I check my smartphone. But on my no-plastic day, I had to do without this since smartphones contain plastic. As I walked toward the bathroom, I stopped before entering.
“Could you open the door for me?” I asked my wife, Julie. “The doorknob is made of plastic!”
She said okay and then added, “This is going to be a long day.”
I had to give up my morning habits. I couldn’t use toothpaste, toothbrush, and soap because they were all in plastic cases.
Then I wanted to get dressed, but it was a challenge. My sweater was no good because it contained plastic. So I pulled on my wife’s cotton sweater.
“You’re going to stretch it out,” Julie said.
“It’s for planet Earth,” I reminded her.
Everything appeared threatening. I couldn’t use the toaster or microwave, so I went out to get some fruit at a store. As I filled one of my cotton bags with apples, I noticed the stickers on them. This was a violation.
At the cashier, I had a problem. Using credit cards was a violation. So I began stacking coins as quickly as I could.
“I’m really sorry this is taking so long,” I said.
“That’s OK,” the man said. “I meditate every morning so I can deal with this kind of situation.”
For lunch, I visited a sandwich shop and requested my salad in the glass container which I had brought along with me.
After lunch, I took the subway to Central Park: another violation due to the plastic parts in the trains. However, instead of sitting on one of those plastic seats, I sat on my fold-up wooden chair. One young man shot me a strange look.
In the park, I spotted plastic waste here and there.
Back home, I was tired by 10:30 p.m., so I lay down on cotton sheets on the floor, as my mattress and pillows probably contained plastic.
When I woke up the next morning, I felt good. After all, I had survived my ordeal. At the same time, I felt like I lost because I had broken the rule so many times. So I called my friend for some encouragement.
“You can drive yourself crazy,” she said. “Remember, plastic is not the enemy. The enemy is the single-use of plastic.”
I’ll try to avoid single-use. I’ll start with small things, and build up habits step by step.