Week 6
I used a beeswax wrap to wrap my sandwich to take to university. It felt good having a beeswax cloth wrap and not plastic glad wrap 😊
I also took a mug to use for cups of tea and water so I didn’t need to use a plastic drink bottle.
Later, I went to get a drink bottle to take to university for the gym and saw an empty barkers fruit syrup bottle, that will do nicely. My new glass drink bottle at no extra cost to me.
After work, I bought food from Café 101, and instead of taking it to the library, I borrowed cutlery from the café and studied there. I also brought my glass drink bottle to university today for study time. Trying to buy a ‘plastic free’ drink bottle online is very expensive, so this is a great student alternative.
I looked up and went to Bin Inn for the first time. How have I never been here before!!! You get to take your own container and they weigh the container and then weigh it at the end with the product in it. Plus you get a discount when you bring your own container! I bought a glass container to put washing power in so there is no more plastic packaging for my washing powder 😊 Once again achieving my weekly goal! It doesn’t have Wheat-bix though, so I have had to change to the only muesli they have without nuts, which is $1.39/100g, so more expensive. I will see if that lasts or whether I find a good way of using the wheat-bix liner bags.
Bin Inn is a major enabling factor that allows me to get to a large number of my groceries plastic free. I also got lollies, because now I can have them without packaging, when I thought I would have to give them up, not that I eat them that often. But I think when you can’t have something, even if you didn’t want it that much anyway, you want it more. By buying the lollies, it was a way of rewarding myself for my good choices, giving me positive reinforcement to go back there.
And then just as I was doing so well, I got given free food left over from the café… all wrapped in plastic. Can’t say no to free food, right? Then the butcher was closed when I got there so I had to buy my meat from the supermarket. I suppose I could have not bought meat, as I did the other week. But I had already set my mind on having burgers and had told my flatmates so I didn’t want to disappoint them, also I really wanted burgers. I managed to bring my own snap lock bag for the buns and not have any other plastic apart from the milk for my dinner flat shop. Even still, I felt really bad for not being onto it enough. My guilt acted as emotional punishment which reinforces my desire to get it right next time.
I went to get a quick lunch with Mum at the container mall, there were plastic containers or plastic cutlery at nearly every stall. We managed to find a dumpling place that could serve them in a cardboard container with wooden chopsticks. But only after asking.
Also, I only just noticed this when I went into the Trade Aid store, the Trade Aid chocolate has compostable packaging and is not plastic but made from vegetable starch. We sell this chocolate at the café, so I’m excited that there is another thing that I thought I would have to avoid because of the plastic packaging, I can get guilt free (again not a frequent purchase and sugar consumption is not a concern of mine, at this stage…).
At the Winter Warmer Night Market there was a stall that was selling plastic alternatives, I bought cotton buds that have bamboo instead of plastic, and cardboard packaging. I also bought a bamboo veggie scrubbing brush.
Although this week wasn't perfect, I can see my plastic consumption decreasing as I am becoming more aware and gaining more information and resources along the way.
Until next week...