Did you see the one that looks like a wire mesh basket but spins like a top? Suddenly, I knew I had to find THAT one. Ebay, maybe. Or Etsy. But try as I might, the only one I found for sale was one from Storenvy that was missing the base that keeps it […]
What are you doing for Thanksgiving? Michael and I are going to a potluck feast at the home of our friends David and Nancy. Our contributions will be baked yams, mashed potatoes, and a persimmon orange pomegranate salad. And nearly all of the ingredients will be plastic-free: Salad greens, orange, pomegranate, persimmon, lemon, yams, and […]
Do you ever feel like you have a little Beth Terry sitting on your shoulder whispering into your ear things like, “Remember your reusable bags. Â Do you really want raw, organic cashews packaged in plastic? Â See if you can find them in bulk. Â Does that water bottle have BPA in it?” Â Well, now you can […]
It’s been a busy two weeks, and I haven’t had a spare minute to write a blog post. I shouldn’t actually be writing one now because I’m at a silent meditation retreat, and it’s not really allowed. But being here at the retreat center, a place I’ve come twice a year for the past 14 […]
Did you know Vita-Mix, the high speed blender that is so fast it can make hot soup, originally came with a stainless steel container instead of plastic? If you don’t have time to read this whole post, please click the following link to sign and share the brand new petition I posted on Change.org last […]
Artist Tess Felix creates amazing portraits out of plastic trash she collects near her home in Stinson Beach, CA. Â She reached out to me in early 2012 when I was finishing up the manuscript of my book to see if she could do my portrait for the book’s jacket. Â Sadly, it was too late for […]
On Blog Action Day, bloggers around the world all post articles on a single topic. Â This year, the topic is human rights, and as I sit here typing (or Swyping) this post into my Android mobile phone, I’m acutely aware that having a smartphone is very definitely NOT a human right. (Okay, this is going […]
I thought this was post was going to be another one of my triumphant reports about how I avoided buying a new plastic gadget because I was able to fix the old one. Like the tale of the rice cooker, or the umbrella, or the laundry basket, or even the washing machine. I imagined how […]
Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” is the process of extracting natural gas from shale rock layers deep within the earth by injecting highly pressurized fluids–including combinations of highly toxic chemicals–into the shale to release the trapped gas.  The process was exempted from the Safe Drinking Water Act in 2005, which means companies don’t even have to disclose […]
Tuesday morning, I met up with Daniella Russo, executive director of the Plastic Pollution Coalition, for breakfast at her hotel, the Hyatt Place near the Austin Convention Center. Here’s a photo of Daniella’s breakfast: From a distance, the dishes look like ceramic and glass, right? Nope. All plastic. Even the mug meant to hold hot […]