Comments on: Confession of a Fast Food Addict who ate at Amanda’s and forgot to BYO.

By: Noel Kehrlein

Noel Kehrlein — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:51:01 +0000

I actually had to go (almost) plastic-free because the fumes make me sick. so I am happy to find this website. Keep up the good work.

By: Kate

Kate — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 18:34:53 +0000

Oh wow, I want one of these in my area. Although I agree, it would be nice if there wasn't anything even going to compost but I do have to say this is a really impressive fast food restaurant. If all fast food restaurants had all of their waste go to compost, I am sure the landfills would be smaller.

By: mother earth aka karen hanrahan

mother earth aka karen hanrahan — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:03:02 +0000

what if there was a hot-line called Mickey-Ds anonymous?? …when the urge strikes you just call in….and they'd keep you from committing McDonalds suicide!!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:15:28 +0000

Rosa: I live in NYC. I think it's disgusting to drink out of a public bathroom sink, let alone one in NYC. Also, most places here don't have water fountains. It's not like in surburbia where I can walk the corridor of my mall and get a drink.

By: Rosa

Rosa — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 02:43:55 +0000

Wow, Lara, that's gutsy.

I usually find a drinking fountain if we're out & about without a bottle of water - or, barring that, anyplace with public bathrooms will have a sink where you can cup your hands & get water from the faucet to drink.

By: Lynn from organicmania.com

Lynn from organicmania.com — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:41:51 +0000

Beth, I was afraid to read your post because I hold you in such high regard - my Saint Beth of the Non Plastic Sisterhood - that I was afraid my image of you would be ruined.

I have to say it is not ruined. You are so devoted, so incredible, such an inspiration - but I still say if you had kids it would be a different story unless you moved to a commune or sent them to a Waldorf School or something!

Anyway, now that the REST of us have red faces from bearing our eco-sins, can you forgive us, Sister Beth?

By: Lara S.

Lara S. — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:29:09 +0000

Ivy,
when I'm really thirsty and don't have my own bottle, I just enter a restaurant or similar place and ask for a glass of water. Who could deny you a glass of water? Depending on the type of place you're in, they might give you a glass cup or a disposable one. So it's better to ask this in a place where they don't use disposables. Even if you get a plastic cup, though, it's less wasteful than a water bottle because it's filled with tap water.
Of course, you'll have to stay in the restaurant until you've finished your water, so as to return the glass. But if you're not really shy, you won't have an issue with that, right?
I've never had any problems with this, give it a try!

By: SusanB

SusanB — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 16:32:40 +0000

One could go into serious place envy reading your confessions, Beth -- except for McD's and BK, those are ones I can pretty much easily avoid.
Small primarily takeout businesses, especially family-run shoestring operations, are really in a bind. The ethnic ones I patronize are already minimally staffed. Most of their customers want their food packaged, and they are set up to deal with trash (compost for the more enlightened). In the right location, maybe someone could make a business of converting these businesses to less plastic if the price was right and the composting options were available.
Ivy, re people with reusable bags filled with shopping bags, me I'm one of them. Because not all plastic shopping bags are recyclable here and they have a long life, because sometimes they are unavoidable or impractical to avoid, and because it makes shopping easier to have plastic bags to hold drippy stuff, wet/dirty stuff, and having a plastic bag to reuse may prevent me from getting a new plastic bag. Or (it just occurred to me) maybe you are talking about people filling up their reuseable bag with new shopping bags filled with new products?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:32:49 +0000

I was just wondering what you do in this situation. I was out shopping all afternoon and I left my Kleen Kanteen at home. I was dying of thirst (not to mention that dehydration triggers my migraines) and I bought a plastic bottle of water. I felt so wasteful. I felt even more wasteful when I threw it away in store w.o thinking about refilling it in one of their water fountains. What do other FPF readers do in this situation? I think I am going to purchase a 12 ounce Kleen Kanteen and keep it in my bag for emergencies.

Also, what is up w. shoppers who have ecofriendly bags but, the bag is filled w. plastic shopping bags from different stores? I just don't get it.

I saw so many bags that could be reused for other customers being thrown away. I worked in a bookstore about 10 years ago, and I always asked if the customer needed a bag or not. Sometimes, I would hand them their purchase and tell them to tuck into as shopping bag they already head.

--Ivy

By: Lara S.

Lara S. — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 23:49:20 +0000

That veggie burger sounds like something I could feed on exclusively! Please send me a ton of them to Argentina-- and I don't care how much fuel is used to ship it here ok?!

You're great, and your tiny eco-sins are just what it takes for the rest of the world to see you as a human being and not an overobsessive crazy "eco-nun" (great concept by Emily!), who would be a lot less loveable!!
I think time will come when someone will create Beth Terry's fan club, and I'll join it for sure :-)