The blog formerly known as   Fake Plastic Fish

Category Archives: Discussion Questions

May 29, 2008

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Blogger

I had planned to write a post about plastic on BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) tonight, but I’m tired. And a little depressed. Because I just got wind of the fact that one of my favorite bloggers, Crunchy Chicken, is going to retire from blogging for a while, take a mental health break because of serious stresses in her life, and part of me went, “Oh. Lucky girl.” Is that f@#$ed up or what?

Don’t get me wrong. I love, love, love Fake Plastic Fish. I love how much I’ve learned since I started blogging here, and I love and appreciate all the support and great ideas I’ve received from FPF readers. But I’m also a perfectionist. So each night before writing my post, I have to psych myself up for the task at hand. I’m not a natural writer who can whip up a frothy bloggy confection lickity split. I usually have to add a few drops of agonizing and whining before the thing is done.

A while back, several technology blogger… Read the rest

November 30, 2007

Quest for Questions

I got an e-mail today from a new reader who wanted the answers to some basic questions: What’s the goal of Fake Plastic Fish? Why am I doing this? When does the project end? What’s been the most difficult lifestyle change I’ve had to make so far?

I realize that unlike EnviroWoman’s plastic-free blog, Fake Plastic Fish’s goals have been less clearly defined, mainly because as I stated at the outset, this is a place for me to learn and to share what I learn with others. In the beginning, I really had no idea how much plastic I was consuming or how much I’d be able or willing to give up.

Anyway, it just so happens that I was thinking of writing up a FAQ for people who are new to this blog, so the reader’s questions came at a perfect time. As I mentioned a few days ago, Blogger’s capabilities don’t allow me to make the site as easy to navigate as I’d like, so I think a page answering basic questions would … Read the rest

October 27, 2007

Rethinking Plastics

No, I’m not rethinking whether or not to buy or use plastic. That’s just the title of the class I started tonight through Green Sangha. During the course, we not only learn a lot about plastic, its properties and problems, but also the best ways to present the issue to others. Next week, we’ll have a special guest chemist who can explain the science behind different plastics. Having received one of the only D’s of my life in this subject, I really need this one!

What I was left with tonight was the Green Sangha principle that everyone does the best they can with the knowledge they have. In presenting the history of plastic, Stuart Moody, the instructor, said some very nice things about some of the inventors of early plastic, praising the developers of Tupperware and saying they were people we’d enjoy having over for dinner. They didn’t know what problems their products would cause in the long run. If they had know… Read the rest

September 21, 2007

Weekend Challenge: Pick Up Some Plastic

As I walked around my neighborhood today doing errands (I don’t go to work most Fridays), I noticed a lot of trash, mostly plastic, along the sidewalks and in the gutters. And with that photo of the dead albatross whose stomach is full of plastic pieces burned into my brain these days, it’s physically hard for me not to reach down and start picking it up.

I wrote about “eco-running” in the beginning of August, where runners carry bags and pick up trash on the route. And Scott from Least Footprint set up a Google Group called PUP (Pick Up Plastic) Brigade to organize folks to pick up plastic in their neighborhoods.

I picked up a lot of plastic today (bottle caps, plastic bags, drink lids, straws, snack bags, even the face plate from a cell phone and a toothbrush) and used one of the dirty plastic bags I picked up to carry it all and dump it in the trash. And yes, I washed my hands afterwards! I know I’ve said I don’t like to th… Read the rest

August 31, 2007

Weekend Discussion Question: The Crazy, The Weird, & The Just Plain Useless

I’m getting ready to pack up and leave for Anaheim, CA. By the time you read this, I should already be there. Please send me some nice thoughts on Monday as I am doing my little experiment to see just how much punishment an insufficiently trained body can endure during a half marathon. I’m taking bets. Who thinks I’ll still be able to walk around Disneyland afterwards and who thinks I’ll need to be pushed in a wheelchair?

Who thinks ibuprofen is a good thing even if it comes in a plastic bottle?

I probably won’t blog while I’m down there, but I’ll be taking all kinds of notes on plastics while traveling, plastics in theme parks, plastics in hotels, etc. I’ll post my weekly tally some time on Tuesday after I get back.

So for now, I leave you with the weekend discussion question. Here’s the setup: this week, Michael forwarded me an article from the San Francisco Chronicle, written by a guy so flabber… Read the rest