NOFA NY conference

I am at the NOFA NY conference in Saratoga Springs; well, actually in my hotel after day one of the conference. This is a meeting of organic growers, producers and tradesmen with classes and round table discussions about sustainability in agriculture. I am sad to say even in this group of greenies many just do not get the plastic thing.

There is a Chinese raffle, and most of the items are wrapped in plastic or have plastic bottles.

At the tea and coffee station there were Styrofoam cups, with the ceramic ones way in the back.

One grower of organic nuts and chocolates had everything in plastic containers.

All the dairies had cheese, yogurt and milk samples in plastic wrappers, tubs and bottles.

Many of the companies selling organic soil amendments had them in plastic bags or bottles.

I see a real need here for plastic education. I would not have thought this would be a group which needed it. Plastic is so ubiquitous that even environmentally sound people do not question its use.

Yet another critter

This is not about plastic. I just thought it was funny.

My husband is a bleeding heart. The man swerves the car to miss frogs and butterflies, I kid you not. When I caught the $&*^&^% mink which had been killing my chickens, he made me release it rather than drown it. He is a big softie, which is an endearing quality.

We had a squirrel in the walls of our house, and we could hear him chewing away in the evening and afternoons.

So we set up a live trap and tonight caught ourselves a red squirrel.

Well, "we can't take him anywhere and release him, he would starve". I have no idea what he was thinking he would do if he caught it when he set the trap up in the first place.

Sooooo...

We now have a temporary new pet. We put him in the old rat cage, with a nest box and lots of food, which is funny because only last week we moved the rats to their new condo. Tomorrow I have to go buy him (or her) a water bottle. Come spring we can release him far away from our house. In the mean time....at least he is in the house in a contained way rather than chewing his way through the walls.

And here I was trying to reduce the number of critters around here!

Getting Busy

Last week started getting busy; I went to school one day, an all day doctors appt/errand run another, volunteered at the church to make banners a third. So what happened? I didn't make bread for three days or make granola or yogurt for a week, we ran out of milk and we ended up short of ready to eat food.

I am at the threshhold. I am out of many of the foods we eat which come in plastic, and have not found alternatives yet. Cheese. Meat. Cereal. I went to the store today after church and there was nothing to buy.

I am looking at buying local foods as well as plastic. I question what the difference is between 0.1g of plastic wrapping compared with the petroleum used driving those naked oranges 3000 miles. Thus, in the dead of winter in which I did not prepare for food wise, I am out of food options. There are next to no truly green food choices.

I bought a frozen can of apple juice concentrate two weeks ago for granola and when I got it home read on the label "From China". We live in the North East, arguably the home of the best apples in the country, if not the world, and we are shipping them in from China?!

I start school full time tomorrow. I will be heading up the organic certification of the entire Ag program (crops, pasture, dairy and veg production) as well as running the greenhouse and veg field production and taking a class. How am I going to be able to manage running a plastic less household while being gone 5 or more days a week? Next week I will be gone to a 3 day organics conference, what is my family going to eat?

I guess I am depressed about this. It is such a hard path. Everything in the entire store I normally shop in outside of a few limp veggies shipped in from CA is wrapped in plastic.

The good news is I have managed for the second week in a row to keep the plastic output down to one grocery bag full (not including recycling but including everyone else's plastic-4 people). I have only added a couple of new plastic bags. I started a double batch (4 loaves) of oatmeal bread, and we already had a great meal of baked Orange Roughy with sun dried tomatoes, basil and garlic (came wrapped in paper at the store), cappalini with homemade sauce from tomatoes out of my garden, and homemade biscuits. Everyone is full and there are leftovers. I am also going to start growing some food for us in one of the side rooms in the greenhouse. Call it a perk of running the place.

I am finding organization is key to this endeavor, especially meals. I think maybe it is time to resurrect the other blog to start looking at plastic free meals and recipes. This is worth it t me, but it is work. And sometimes, like all work, it gets you down. I can see how so many people decide it isn't worth the trouble.

Shopping trip

I has left my purse at my brother- in- laws, so to make the trip (40 min) worth more I decided to run some errands in Canandaigua, which is 15 minutes further. Since we live in such a small town, trying to get to any decent stores is an hour trip in any direction, so we try to make it count when we do go.

I went to a pet store to stock up on dog food and other supplies, and since I don't feed my dogs junk that means going to a premium store. I found scoopable wheat cat litter in a large paper bag, so I am giving it a whirl. I think I got 20 lbs for $14, which all things considering is not bad. I will be able to compost it directly rather than find a spot in the weeds way out back, which will be nice. Of course, the idea of using a food for the cats to crap in seems a little, well, indulgent, given that there are starving people in many parts of the world. However, since their own governments, not I, are keeping them in that condition, I think I am safe to say my cat litter choices will not likely effect the situation.

I also stopped at the Cananaigua Spice Co., which was said to be a bulk spice shop. The web site, www.canandaiguaspice.com has a long list of things the store does to be environmentally friendly, and the idea of getting spices in bulk appeals to me. I got there, and everything was in plastic. When the owner came over and asked if I needed anything, I told her about the avoiding plastics, and she started telling me about the regulations and laws governing bulk food sales. Apparently they are getting so stringent businesses cannot afford to keep them going. She then offered to take my list and fill it directly from the bins in the storeroom into paper bags, if I did not mind hand written labels! She then said if I plan on coming again and know what I want, I can call ahead and she will have it waiting for me, or I can have the bags refilled when I get there.
We also bought a bottle of Wet Fart Hot Sauce! I have been collecting hot sauce bottles, like Kick Yo Ass Hot Sauce and Hellfire Wing Sauce. I love the names, pictures, and descriptions on the bottles. She had several more kinds there, so I think I will pick a new one up every time I go. We use the hot sauce in chili, popcorn, and other concoctions.

She was very nice, she sourced local and organics as much as possible, and I plan on stopping by there whenever I am in the area. Turns out there is a Wegmans, Lowes, Pet Depot, drug store and the spice shop all within a 1/2 mile, so I can combine a trip to see family with all my errands for a month. Seems like a win win to me!

Oh, and I used my canvas bags all night, they worked great.

Shoes

This started as a response to Fake Plastic Fish's post on running. I started getting windy, and figured I should just make my own post.

Shoes. Are their plastic free alternatives? Birkenstock are the closest I can think of, but are not the most practical shoe ever. They are clunky, not waterproof, and useless in winter.

So, since I cannot get away from synthetics in shoes, my motto is buy few, make them last.


I think buying a really good pair and taking care of them is the most important thing we can do. I used to buy cheap shoes and would go through 2-3 sneakers a year, plus a pair of boots and dress shoes. I now buy Merrill's or Keens, which last me several years. I also have the problem that if I wear shoes which are flat or really worn out, I get shooting pains in my legs, so good support is a must.

I have five types of shoes I 'need'.

Daily cool/cold weather shoes:

* edited to add-upon thinking, I could have worn a really good pair of lace up hiking boots and for both winter boots and winter shoes. I did it last year. But LL Bean came out with PURPLE mocs. I was weak. I couldn't help myself. I shall flog myself daily for a week.

My last three pairs were
Merrill Mocs: bought in 2003 in Malibu when teaching at a dog camp. Wore daily year round for 2 1/2 years, then occasionally until the sides tore out.
Merrill light hikers: bought early in 2006, worn for over a year daily, still good other than the back started fraying and bunching from not untying my shoes to take them on and off.
LL Bean Winter shoes-Purple!!!- bought September 2007, worn daily for 4 months, no sign of wear.

Daily summer sandals:
Ok, this is a tough one. I have lost many sandals to the Bull Terror, who once in a blue moon with get lonely, bored AND locked in the sun room and decides to console herself with my shoes. Usually sandals. Usually only one so I have to throw one perfectly good sandal away, and can remember how nice they were. Of course up until this last pair I bought cheap Walmart shoes. This year I paid a lot for my sandals and they are really good shoes, so her royal hienyness and I had a long talk, and she seems to understand how important this is. Now I wouldn't consider sandles a need until I started kayaking. I would go barefoot but this summer my son stepped out of his kayak for a break and landed on a muskrat trap. Luckily he was not hurt(screamed like a banshee though!), but it goes to show that you never know what is on the bottom of a river, and shoes are a good thing. Also, we got out of the kayaks to go to the bathroom and get more ice, and I needed shoes to go in the stores. Keens can get wet repeatedly without damage, so they seemed a good option. They also float, another good feature.

Keen's: bought March of 2007 with my kayak, worn all summer, look brand new.

Winter/barn boots: I live in upstate NY, so I need warm, dry boots. I went through many cheap pairs of boots which were never warm and never lasted until I found these. They are mostly made of plastic, but given how long lasting and totally waterproof they are, I am using less plastic with these over the long haul. My brother Bob said they are not good on cement for 8 hours a day, they will not last. In that case a good pair of work boots is better. I also wear them on the farm and on other farms, so I can wash them with chlorahexadine and they do not care. They also make Arctic Muck's, which are good down to sub zero temps. My friend has a pair, but I like the idea of only having one pair of boots, so I just wear more socks.

*edited to add-in order to meet biosecurity rules for school and possibly a later job, rubber boots were a requirement. I could probably otherwise use a nice pair of laceup workboots or hiking boots and they would cover both winter boots and shoes.

Muck boots: bought in 2005, still like new.

Hiking boots:
* Edited to add-this seems like a want, and it is, I guess since I don't have to hike. However if you are going to hike, you really want a good pair of boots. I could get away with using a good pair of laceup workboots, but it would be a risk. Hiking mountains means lots of ups, and more importantly downs, which cram your toes into the toes of your shoes. I have worn my hikers as winter shoes, and they worked fine and lasted well.

Merrill high topped hikers: bought 2005, still in excellent condition.

Dress shoes:
I do have dress sandals which I rarely ever wear and will likely not buy more of. I do not have a job I need to dress up in, so I cannot vouch for dress shoe brands. I would assume, however, that if you buy simple, plainer shoes they would last through fads more often. To me, refusing to buy into fashion is a major way to cut wasteful spending and usage. But then again, farmers don't care what you wear, so I am at an advantage in this pledge. Weddings and funerals I am still on the fence about. I use the one pair of dress sandals for all fancy summer shindigs, and have been lucky no one has died in the winter in a while.

Sandals: can't remember the brand, wooden base and leather uppers, plastic only a thin coating on the bottom and sole, and a pad on the heel. 2 years and they look like new.

I have 5 pairs of shoes, plus two old pair I keep around for painting and the like, but which would be uncomfortable for daily use. Part of taking care of our shoes is wearing older ones for messy activities, which prolongs the life of our new ones. That is it. Upon reflection I could lessen this to 2 or 3 pairs by not replacing the winter shoes and Muck boots and just wearing the hikers. We do not need a closet full of shoes, and shoes do not need to become obsolete because some French guy labeled them out of fashion. I will definately think before buying another pair.

My grandfather used to get his shoes repaired, and at one point filled the sole of his shoes with glue to stretch them further when they got a hole. I could learn a real lesson from him, and he only ever had one pair of shoes.

Buy good, simple shoes which are made for what you need to do, and take care of them. Untie them every time to avoid damaging them. Clean them off when muddy, don't leave them out in the sun or weather. And for Pete's sake, don't leave them around a Bull Terrier!

The battle has begun.

I didn't even think there would be a battle. I assumed my family would merrily carry on their plastic buying ways, I had no intention of telling them what to do. I was simply looking for alternatives for my own usage, and if in the process any of these things worked for them, it was a bonus.

Today after church my husband and I stopped at the store because he wanted to pick up some things. Turned out he wanted to make us breakfast, and wanted bacon and eggs. I asked him if we could just make pancakes or coffee cake, and he said no, he couldn't cook those, and asked if there was a problem with what he wanted. I said bacon comes in plastic wrap, and I had been trying to avoid the plastic. I said it nicely, then realizing he just wanted to do something nice, I said go ahead and get bacon, it is not like this is written in stone or anything.

I also am trying to eat better post surgery too, but again, once is not going to kill me so I didn't even bring it up. We got the bacon, and since my hens are on their slow winter laying schedule we picked up eggs in cardboard. Naked veggies and some canned cat food and we were done. Of course I did not have my bag with me, so there went two more plastic bags in our house, but again, since my husband was being very nice offering to make us breakfast I let it go. No point in making all of us miserable, we certainly wouldn't last long.

He started pointing out over breakfast all the things I am going to have a hard time buying. He said there is no use trying because it will be a drop in the bucket for usage. That I cannot make any difference so why bother. That it cannot be done because plastic is ubiquitous (that means everywhere-I had to ask) That it would be a full time job for me to do this, it was too much work, and not worth the effort.

I asked him not to be discouraging, and he said he wasn't, he was being reasonable and realistic.


Maybe he is. I know I cannot change the world, I had no intention of changing the world. I just wanted to make changes of myself. The idea of living without plastic scares people and that is really depressing. It saddens me this happened, but I guess it does not suprise me. It just makes me more determined to reduce plastics to the perimeter of my life.

Of Mice and Pens

Alright, as I settled in last night in my evil bed with a logic puzzle book and a black pen, I had made a discovery. Not a good discovery, but an "oh crap why couldn't I have stayed blissfully ignorant" discovery. I looked at my right hand and realized I was holding a tube of plastic, which came wrapped in plastic with 19 other tubes of plastic, inside of which was another tube of plastic containing black ink. Yes, my pen is entirely made of plastic.

Big deal, some may say. Well, I have a long tradition, started by my father, of doing my crosswords and logic puzzles in capital letters drawn in black ink. Why? You just do. It could be because pencil smudges on the recycled newsprint the puzzles are typically printed on. It could be because of the way pen smoothly rolls across the paper, or the nice contrast between the bold black capital letters marching across the nearly white paper. Or it could be because pencils are for sissies and wafflers. John Kerry uses pencils on his crosswords. So does Mitt Romney. Ron Paul? A pen man. Probably black. You can just tell.

I use black pen for everything. Checks, copious pages of notes for school, puzzles, lists, you name it, you will find it done in black pen. So just use a refillable pen? Nope. I have one, a metal Harley Davidson pen given as a gift, and the refills are plastic which come wrapped in hard plastic.

Here is a true story. When the space race was going on, the Russians and Americans both had a conundrum. Pens do not work in zero gravity-how were the astronauts going to do research with no way of recording the results? So the Americans spend millions of dollars using their best engineers to design a space pen which would work even in zero gravity. The Russians gave the astronauts pencils.

So that is what I will have to start doing. I need to use pens for checks, but I can borrow the pens at the stores. I would have to use them for bills, but there are Internet pay options for most of our bills, and I have been thinking of doing this as each stamp is now 39 cents. I can use the mouse as my pen, and although it is plastic it will be used for many years for many things.

It just is not going to be the same using a pencil for my crosswords. Maybe if I ripped the eraser off it?