The Zero Waste Closet

 

Last week was April 15th! For most it meant tax day. For me: Biannual clothes shopping day. The day I refresh my worn out basics and add some zing to my wardrobe. I wait and prepare for it for months at a time. I love fashion and I only shop twice a year: April 15th for spring-summer, and October 15th for fall-winter.

Zero Waste Dog -or Rat ;)

http://www.petco.com/petco_Page_PC_storelocator_Nav_2.aspx

Zero Waste is a family affair... like I said before: in our home, everyone is on board, and that includes our dog.

Meet Zizou. He joined the family about 3 years ago.  We wanted a dog that would be small enough to not only fit in our small house, but also accompany us everywhere we go, whether it is by plane, car, bike or foot - we also chose his coat color to match the floor so that his shedding hair would not show :). He now can even sit with us at restaurants with outdoor seating!

We figured a chihuahua would give us just as much love as a big dog. Zizou has been the answer to all our pet needs, and despite a taste for street trash, as a rat would have ("Rat Boy" is his nickname), he has more than exceeded our expectations of the breed. Our biggest mistake was only to give up our search in rescue centers and getting him from a breeder, when 30 chihuahuas showed up at the local SPCA a month later. And although we love our dog, it makes me sick to my stomach that we passed the opportunity: We should have been patient and waited for the right rescue to pop up.  Note:  We did rescue both of our previous dogs.

Zizou does not need much, and in a society where, despite the recession, sales of pet products and services rose 5% in 2009 to reach $53 billion (sales are projected to reach $72 billion by 2014), we like to keep things simple, minimal and zero waste for him too:

- He does not have a regular dog bed. He sleeps by the fire insert in the winter, in the bubble chair or on the warm wood deck in the summer, and on the kids beds at night.

- He has two toys: A tennis ball we found (good for running/exercising) and a rope chew (good for cleaning teeth). Dogs have faves, pick a couple, donate the rest to a shelter (the latter also accepts old towels and sheets by the way). My mother-in-law makes one out of old socks tied together for her dog.

- Once a month, we wash him with castile soap (bulk), and clip his nails (compost).

- We usually buy kibbles in bulk at Rainbow or New Leaf (a 50 lbs. bag from the pet store would take our dog years to eat and we do not have room to store such quantity) and since these two stores are hard to get to, I have requested it from our local pet stores, but it is not yet available. For these two reasons I had to buy a small bag last week (with a feeling of being a total zero waste advocate failure), I emptied it into our dog food container and washed the bag. I am filling it with thrift shop donations.

- We add garlic powder to his food for flea control, the garlic breath dissipates after a few minutes ;)

- We occasionally feed him our food scraps, because he is a trim and can afford to do so. He is bummed that our meat consumption is down to once a week, but he approves of the white meat (say "chicken" and witness instant excitement).

- We buy treats in bulk (Petco or the local pet store) but you can make your own dog biscuits too.

- On walks, we pick up his poop in paper from the recycling can (that's if we can find it, because his poops are tiny and he likes to go deep into ivy... a prude one this one). For a big dog, I would use a few sheets, for Zizou, a receipt will do;). Note: One does not need to justify their newspaper subscription for the need of the free plastic poop scooper. If you still receive the paper, you probably also still buy packaged products. Frozen veggie bags, cereal liner, meat wrapper, etc... can do the job just fine too.

- When we can find the excrement in the yard, we scoop it with a metal trowel and flush it down the toilet. For the longest time, I read mixed opinions on the subject, but my local water treatment plant assured me that it was OK to do so.

- I have yet to try it, but in one of my foraging classes, I was told that a tea of mugwort could be sprayed on pets for poison oak prevention before stepping in the wild...

I told my younger son, I was writing an article about zero waste dog and asked him what made Zizou zero waste. He replied: "Easy, he does not bring anything home" ;)

While it is true that he does not bring any junk into the house, he does however bring in loads of affection. Affection that we reciprocate.  After all, what a dog needs most is love... and there is nothing more zero waste than love :) is there?

Zero Waste Lifestyle: time and money consuming?

Soon after the New York Times article came out about our lifestyle, I received comments on the blog about time and financial concerns related to the Zero Waste Lifestyle.

"I wonder exactly how much time/money you put into the effort?" wrote Julie K.

Not that I particularly choose to pick on you, Julie K, quite the contrary. I completely understand your concerns and feel that they represent those of many readers. I started out just like you (running an average household that filled a number of trash bags a week), and a few years back, I would have raised the same objections to the Zero Waste lifestyle. I would have let those concerns stop me from making waste reducing changes, stunted by the picture of a lifestyle that seemed so unattainable. But here is what I found out thru the course of our metamorphosis (the quotes all belong to Julie K):

TIME:

"Making of balms, cleaners, etc. and sorting through the trash, etc are very time-consuming for many people who work 1-2 jobs":

- The 1^st step of going Zero Waste is SIMPLIFYING (a bonus if you do work 1-2 jobs and can benefit from any simplification at all), which is figuring out those items that you do need and those that you can live without (remember the 80-20 rule?), and narrowing it down to your personal staples. At one point I made cheese, and then found out that it was not worth the amount of time and money involved when I can just get it from the store straight into my jar. Simplify! You might not need that balm like I do and I am clearly not saying that you should make balm or mustard if you don't need them! More power to you, if you do not need them!

- Zero Waste is also an ever changing journey, where one can adapt according to the also ever-changing market and/or family tastes. A couple of weeks ago, a new store opened and I found yogurt in bulk... Do you know what that means? I don't make yogurt anymore. Also, my son grew out of his taste for soy milk... Do you know what that means? I don't make soy milk anymore either.

- "Sorting through the trash": I don't have any to sort. That's the point of all of this. If you stop it before it comes into your home, it does not even need to be addressed.

- Did I ever mention that I work 4 part-time jobs? If I can do it, you can too... all you need is "to care" to get started.

"Many of your readers with little extra time may see some of these changes not as a fun hobby, but rather as a chore"

- Caring for the environment is neither a chore nor a hobby, but rather a citizen's duty. Look around, and get informed. Educate yourself about the impact of our society's wasteful habits, it will soon become clear to you that we can't keep on doing things the way we've done them for generations. If you don't want to do it for yourself, then at least have some compassion for those that will succeed you.

So, how much time do I really spend working on our Zero Waste?

A couple of hours a week, Friday afternoons...That's when I grocery shop and run errands that might take me to a store. While dinner is cooking, I might squeeze oranges for OJ or once in a blue moon make mustard.

And this blog helps you access information that took me a couple of years to figure out. Now, that's a time saver!

MONEY:

"Many specialty shops like Whole Foods are quite pricey"

- Whole Foods, you already know, is not my favorite store (see a "Letter to Whole foods" or "Difficult trip to Whole Foods" article). But it is the largest bulk vendor in my town, and many others. So, while I try to shop as locally as possible, I consider it our main option (I have not been to Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco for three months). If you have a better (and more ethical) option than Whole Foods, please go for it!

-In Whole Foods defense though, it is hardly "Whole Paycheck", if you stay away from the prepared foods and cut down your meat consumption. In the past 2 years, we've seen our grocery bill significantly decrease. About a 1/3 less than what it used to be (How did we ever think that packaging was free? Did it ever occur to you that it is included in the products price?)

"In the past few years I've also noticed a huge rise in the prices at the farmers' market"

- Inflation hits not just the supermarket, but every business, and that includes the farmers' market. As for organic, I believe that they are worth the upfront investment: the more you buy organic, the more likely we'll see those prices drop. It's a simple economic rule.

- Quality veggies and food, like anything else of quality, does not come cheap. In the long run, it is better for you than "Top Ramen" and is worth it, but you know that already.

-That said, the best time to shop the Farmer's market is at closing time, when farmers slash prices. They rather sell their produce for less than pack it to take it home!

"The glass and stainless canisters you use are expensive when compared to the (free) plastic bags at the store"

-One does not have to purchase a glass canister to reduce their waste, on the contrary. Please reuse those that you have... That empty pickle jar would be perfect for buying olives in bulk. Many other options also abound in thrift shops. No excuses. I personally have been collecting the french jars mainly from thrift stores for 7 years and have loved their versatility (waterproof, durable, heatproof, freezer compatible, universal and interchangeable tops, and available in many different sizes). But no need to comply: Find what works best for you and your budget.

- Our stainless canteens are one of our best buys. And so you will hear from those who have made the same investment. Canteens pay for themselves in only a few months from what you saved on water bottles! (Not to mention that bottled water is essentially tap, and that you eliminate plastic leaching into your drinking water.)

- As for the "free plastic bags": Nothing in life is free... find out what the real cost of free plastic bags is! (http://www.reusablebags.com/facts.php?id=2)

"All the things you do are admirable, but maybe not possible for the average person to take on (at least not all of them at once.)" That last bit in parenthesis is one thing I could not agree more with! Bit by bit is surely the way to do it.

Besides the environmental benefits, is it all worth it? Just for the sake of our health (knowing the outcome of packaged/junk food, and the effects of plastic packaging on our health ;), I would do it all over again. And while I thank you, Julie K, for your valuable comment, I do hope that you too will take steps to reduce your waste... You'll be amazed at what you'll find out about yourself.

Not all green products are created equal: What was I thinking?

When you start greening your life, one of the first items on your shopping list of reusables is, a travel cup. So, a few years ago, I decided that I needed to have one to carry around my green tea.

But, I was not going to let just ANY cup showcase itself on my bare shelf though.

So I shopped around. Back then, it seemed that options were mainly restricted to stainless (which makes sense if it is completely constructed of stainless, for its lightweight and insulating capabilities). But all those I found had too much going on: A large obstructive handle, or an (advertising) logo, or a plastic interior (???), or a leaking top or/and bottom…

I was determined not to settle for less and would share my husband’s until the right option arose. I found his at a thrift shop: steel interior, plain exterior (it had a Starbucks logo but I removed it with steel wool), great insulation, and right price… just an unnecessary large handle. Pretty close to perfection though, for just $1.50. It was worth every penny, especially considering its zero manufacturing footprint (the advantage of buying used). Too bad, it did not come with a twin (the disadvantage of buying used).

While I kept on searching, I visited the San Francisco Green Festival. And there, amidst the “granola” filled aisles, I found it: The “I am not a paper cup” (a cup with a name!). Boy did it stand out. It seemed that this object answered all my prayers. Its reusability, its ceramic and silicone material (a change from the usual stainless), its white and clean design, and its reference to modern art, a bonus! (Its name is a take on Magritte’s surrealist piece entitled “Ceci n’est pas une pipe”). In our home, where we choose to live minimally and only surround ourselves with objects that we love and that fit the décor, this cup was all I wanted in a cup.

Who knew that a simple ceramic piece could sum up our house so beautifully!

I had fallen in love with, a cup… but not its packaging: An unrecyclable clear plastic box on a cardboard stand evidently simulating that of a museum art display case. So I bought the shelf sample and welcomed it into my white house.

Gosh, did it look pretty on my cupboard shelf, a piece of art.

The next day, I was meeting some friends for a hike. Time had come to take my warm cup of tea for a walk and Zizou (my dog) too. On my way to meet them, I crossed a couple of trendy looking women, paper cup in one hand, an oversized purse in the other. And it dawned on me…

Instead of being an example of green living, was my new acquisition supporting the paper cup as a fashion accessory? Was I trying to emulate one of the stars mentioned in the Foxnews article "Hollywood’s Hottest Accessory: The Big Coffee Cup"? “The venti embodies everything about the American lifestyle,” Yanoshik said. “Not only is it trendy, but it’s big and out there. People take notice of it.”

What was I thinking going out with this in my hand! I don’t even have the purse to go with it ;). Had I purchased the ultimate wannabe accessory?

And just like that, the object that I had so much loved for one day became one that I despised. I had fallen into the trap of purchasing a sustainable product carrying a contradictory message.

Sadly, it seems that in a world where fashion is so ephemeral, the coffee cup has remained the strongest accessory since Starbucks. Only in a disposable and media focused society, driven by excessive consumerism, can such a destructive trend survive…

Last year, D Squared based a whole runway show on the “Olsen-twins chic” (Nicole Phelps called it), a big purse in one hand, the Starbucks in the other (one would think that there would be room in those large purses to carry a travel mug…). Going down the runway with a cup is one thing, but a disposable one? Couldn’t the label have taken this opportunity to come up with its own reusable design and show some environmental compassion?

People magazine is filled with stars sporting the disposable: Do you ever see a reusable one? I have yet to see one (I admit, I look at People magazine once every 3 months at some doctor’s office…but still, I have not particularly noticed a consciousness raising trend from Hollywood’s most watched individuals over the last few years).

I saw a well-known musician at Whole Foods a couple of months ago. I was waiting for the deli counter, struggling with my jar, when I spotted the public figure and watched him fill a paper cup. You would think that someone, who knows that he is being watched, would at least care to be an example and make better eco friendly choices. He even has the power to make “green” cool! Don’t ask me if I said anything to him… I did not and still regret it.

Ironically in this java driven society, and after years of searching (and many new plastic options on the market later...), I still have yet to find the perfect cup.

Although, I confess: Not finding it, has been a minimalist’s blessing… it has given me time to reflect: Do I really need one? Probably not. My favorite way of enjoying a hot tea outside the home, is with my friends at La Coppa anyways. Luckily, Mill Valley is perfect for that with its European style cafes, outdoor sitting, and ceramic cups… I can donate my fake paper cup to the local thrift store, for wannabes in need of "Olson-twins chic", to reuse.

Coffee or Tea anyone?