2131 backwards by summerfield

2131 backwards

for this week's plastic theme.

at yesterday's lunch meeting, i asked our catering people for a drinking straw. they gave me a box of neon coloured paper straws. i wanted the usual white plastic straws but apparently the city has banned plastic straws. the paper ones, however, won't stay in the can too long and they start to disintegrate. moreover, they have a strange taste probably because of the colouring used. and they have a smell. the box says they are made from recycled paper materials. uh-huh.

and there i was sitting at the meeting, staring at the straw and mulling over the "recycled paper" thing. what came to mind were crumpled tissue papers with lipstick, snot and worse phlegm. i hesitated to put the straw in my drink. then another thought lit the bulb over my head: toilet paper. do you think they recycle those? i examined the straw with neon pink stripes. and then the other with neon green stripes. it was interesting because the meeting i was in was the health and safety committee. i put away the straws, took a drinking glass (that's made of glass, thankfully) and poured my drink in it. well, after i wiped the lip thoroughly. it's for my health and my safety after all.

i saw that video that's been going around that started this ban on plastic straws. i wondered how such a long object could've gone inside the tortoise's nostril, unless it was deliberately inserted by some cruel ignoramuses.

i'm still for the plastic straw, and i promise you i dispose of my trash properly. i sort out my recycling and, get this, i actually wash my recyclables before they go in the bin. that, they should make into a law.

-o0o-

have you read your horoscope for today? what's your zodiac sign? are you a fan? do you believe? "zodiac" is this week's theme over at five plus two. check it out here: https://365project.org/fiveplustwo/365/2018-09-12
So… This is obviously not a straw. What is it? It does seem to fit the theme nicely.
September 13th, 2018  
Great detail on that lid!
September 13th, 2018  
In Oz they were selling metal straws!!!!!!!!!! how the heck do wash those to keep them hygienic?? SO bring my own straws next week then?
September 13th, 2018  
heaven forbid that we should have to move our mouth towards the drinking vessel in order to draw liquid from it! ;) Although straws are recommended by dentists who want us to avoid sugary liquid from contacting our teeth. So it is put away the straws AND put away the sugary drinks. I am totally with you on the washing of recyclables.
September 13th, 2018  
Oh my, Vikki. I will never use another paper straw. Ugg. I think the glass was definitely the best option.
September 14th, 2018  
What horrible visions in my head now. I hope they use paper like I recycle. Clean, nothing that has food or body fluids on it. Can't believe that straws are made from recycled paper. I just quit drinking with a straw for the most part, but there are some beverages (milkshakes come to mind, as well as ice cream floats) that probably need a straw.
September 14th, 2018  
Quite the narrative you posted! I don't think they recycle toilet paper - it is pretty much decomposed with the rest of the 'fertilizer' that gets spread on fields. (Now that should give you nasty thoughts that will chase your straw mullings out of your head!!)
I also rinse my recyclables. I do not really believe in the value of recyclables but I will do anything I can to keep garbage from going into landfills - I value the land far too much to see it wasted as a dump!
September 14th, 2018  
BTW - I notice that your plastic shot does not have a recycling symbol on it...
September 14th, 2018  
Sorry to hear about your straw trauma Vikki, but I must confess to being strongly in favour of paper straws rather than plastic. I had a milkshake after golf today and was rapt to find the club no longer uses plastic straws.
September 14th, 2018  
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