Now, I’m wrapping up the school year with only 8 days left to teach.  After that, I’m not sure of my next step.  This is a good opportunity for me to slow things down and take a step back to make sure I find a job I really want.  One thing is for sure, though – the Green Garbage Project is still underway, and I’m looking forward to my time off this summer to draft a manuscript about the project and what I’ve learned along the way.

I’ve been holding onto a few items that we have to add to our trash shoebox in May.  There are three new items:

2 Cracker Jack box inner wrappers: Maybe I’m crazy, but I feel like I remember a day when Cracker Jack came in a cardboard box and that’s it.  Not anymore.  Now, Cracker Jack come inside a fresh-seal foil-plastic composite pouchy thingie that’s glued to the inside of the original box.  Adam and I bought a three-pack of Cracker Jack one night when we were driving home from Washington.  It was late and we needed some car snacks.  We’re pretty limited in the junk food area this year as a result of this project, so we scoured the shelves looking for something that came in recyclable packaging.  We each cracked open a box and, much to our dismay, found these pouches inside.  I’m not sure why the foil pouch is even necessary, since apparently the company did without them for so many years.  All I can do is send a letter off the the company expressing my disappointment.  I sure won’t be buying these anymore.

A Cracker Jack box torn open to show the liner inside.

Used highlighters/pen: In my capacity as a teacher, it’s difficult for me to avoid pens and highlighters altogether.  I wrote about this issue back in September and received some good feedback about using colored pencils or fountain pens to avoid the garbage, but I must admit I haven’t been diligent enough.  The purple highlighter, at least, has lasted me literally years – I remember getting it when I was in college at the University of Washington (2007).  I had a fountain pen at the beginning of our project, but it managed to walk off about a month after I started bringing it to school…. 

2 highlighers and a used-up pen.

To remedy this problem, I bought a new pen while we were on the coast.  It’s handmade by a New York artist and it uses ballpoint pen refills, meaning drastically less garbage from pen use.

Styrofoam cup: This one is a bummer, and I hate to add it to the shoebox.  A couple of weeks ago during Teacher Appreciation Week, the student council bought and delivered mochas to all the teachers.  Unfortunately, the coffee came in a Styrofoam cup.  The coffee was purchased out of the kindness of students’ hearts, and it was a gift.  One of our guiding principles states that we must accept gifts and deal with the trash in the aftermath.

Until next week!  Update is planned for Monday night.  Thanks for reading!

After an uneventful week, I don’t have much to update about besides these two items listed in the post title. 

First, I must share with you a neat project I completed way back during my Spring Break, almost four weeks ago.  I’ve been saving any plastic wrapping we’ve incurred over the course of the year.  This plastic is intended either for Lou’s Upcycles or for my own upcycling projects, which I finally got around to.  Take a look at my new upcycled messenger bag made from recycled candy bags (the bags come from Halloween, when we decided to hand out candy, in spite of it being wrapped in garbage). 

Newly created bag made from upcycled candy wrappers.

The bag is made using the process of fusing plastic, which is essentially ironing two pieces of plastic together (sandwich the plastic layers between parchment paper first, then iron on a “rayon” setting).  Once plastic is fused, it becomes much more durable than a single layer would be, and this raw material can be used just like plastic.  If you search the Internet for fused plastic projects, you’ll find everything from raincoats to tarps to all sorts of bags.  I lined my bag with fabric and used a zigzag stitch to sew the whole thing.  It was pretty simple, really, and I like how it turned out.  It’s completely usable and the plastic makes it water repellent. 

For fusing plastic how-to, go here.

Also, I have to tell you about a book I’m reading.  If you’ve somehow missed out on watching Annie Leonard’s The Story of Stuff video, watch it now.  Then, pick up her book, also titled The Story of Stuff.  The book, filled with drawings and chock-full of information about how our “stuff” is made, is one of the best books I’ve read all year. It’s absolutely a must read.