Plastics are Victorious

Collin Buntrock Section 311-Vanessa

All it took to be eliminated from the plastics challenge was for me to roll out of bed onto a nice, polyurethane-coated wood floor. I’ll admit that my household is smothered with plastic items, most of which are essential for a college kid to survive. After I tip-toed my way into the shower, I encountered another challenge―my shower curtain and shampoo bottles are both made of plastic. Instead of using the curtain, I left the shower wide open and let the water puddle up on my bathroom floor. Unfortunately, I had to use the shampoo because it’s vital for me to keep my hair fluffed and fully feathered (yeah, that’s not really the case. I just wanted to avoid being a filthy dirt bag today). On my way out of the house this morning, I noticed that all of my breakfast items happened to be hugged by plastic wrappers and containers. I decided that today would be a good day to “forget” to eat breakfast. From that point on, I knew that today was going to be a long day (it certainly was).

Once the cold air hit my face outside, I began to notice fewer plastics in my surroundings. There were garbage cans and a few plastic soda bottles that littered the ground, some which appeared to be there for quite a long time. When I arrived to my first class, another wall stood in my way of the plastics challenge; I was required to use a computer for three hours. The computer monitor, keyboard, and mouse I had to use were housed in a hard plastic shell. There was really no way me to escape, and yet again, plastics came away with another win. After class, I became very skeptical of my surrounds in hopes to get a win over plastics. Alas, at lunch time I achieved a victory. Instead of eating a prefabricated plastic-wrapped product, I decided to prepare some freshly cut fried potatoes and plain macaroni noodles which happened to originate in cardboard box. I ate my lunch on a ceramic plate instead of using one of my “microwave-safe” plastic plates that are coated with dust in the back of the cupboard. Honestly, victory never tasted so dull.

After lunch, I needed to use an ATM machine. I elected to not receive a receipt with my transaction because we learned that printing paper is coated with BPA (Also, It was a relief to not see my account funds after all of the Christmas shopping last week). Now that I think about it, my debit card is also made of plastic. Man, this is hard. While keeping my optimism, I frolicked to my next class thinking that I was still able to live a partially plastic-free life.

During my last class of the day, I began to feel very ill and I knew that plastics would soon dominate my life once again. After fighting all day, I collapsed in the battle against plastics. I’d like to think that I angered the plastic gods by competing in the challenge, and as a punishment, they felt that it was necessary to emphasize the need for plastics in everyday life.

Right now, I’m lying on my couch while typing this diary with my plastic-housed computer. There’s a plastic DVD playing on my TV and DVD player (which are built from plastic); there’s a plastic-cased thermometer in my mouth; and I’m drinking 7-UP directly from a 2-liter plastic bottle while eating crakers from a packaged plastic bag. Maybe I should have received a flu shot (which is housed in a plastic syringe) or have purchased a gallon of orange juice (which is in a plastic container). Then, maybe I would have been able to avoid more plastics for the day. Of course, is it logical to use plastic items to avoid plastic items? I don’t know, I think plastics are finally getting the best of me. This challenge was a great learning experience. In today’s society, plastics are a part of us (both literally and figuratively), and no matter how active or engaging you decide to be on a given day, you will encounter a plethora of plastics. Every person should try “the plastics challenge” to see how a simple substance can influence their life in so many ways.