January 2, 2010

pile of my 2009 (non)garbage

pile of my 2009 (non)garbage

my 2009 (non)garbage in a bag

my 2009 (non)garbage in a bag

Happy New Year!  My 2009 zero garbage challenge is over. Thanks to all of you who supported me and cheered me on during this fun and educational experience!

I worked all year to reduce my garbage to nearly nothing, and learned a lot in the process about priorities, compromises, and how to make changes without feeling like I was sacrificing.

The garbage items that I did accumulate are in the pictures above (with my cat and dog, for perspective).  This pile weighs about half a pound.  The average American throws away about 4 pounds of garbage per day. That’s more than 1400 pounds per year.

And as we enter 2010… will I go back to throwing things away?  No way!  This has become too fun to turn back now.  And there is lots more to learn about landfills, recycling, and how to best use my consumer powers.

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December 31, 2009
October through December non-garbage: Here is a group shot of my non-garbage from October through December (excluding holiday garbage, which is in a separate entry).  More of the usual bits of plastic.

October through December non-garbage:

Here is a group shot of my non-garbage from October through December (excluding holiday garbage, which is in a separate entry).  More of the usual bits of plastic.

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Holiday non-garbage: My friends and family have been very supportive of my challenge.  But still, some of my gifts were wrapped in disposable packaging this year.  This is a grey zone for me (see more about this in my Grey Zones entry). One gift that I received for Christmas is an Autoseal travel mug, which I had featured on my blog in February as an alternative to disposable coffee/tea cups.  It turns out that the Autoseal came with a plastic wrapper.  So in hindsight, it’s probably best to buy travel mugs from a local coffee/tea shop, where you can get them without packaging (see more about this in my Online Purchases entry).

Holiday non-garbage:

My friends and family have been very supportive of my challenge.  But still, some of my gifts were wrapped in disposable packaging this year.  This is a grey zone for me (see more about this in my Grey Zones entry). One gift that I received for Christmas is an Autoseal travel mug, which I had featured on my blog in February as an alternative to disposable coffee/tea cups.  It turns out that the Autoseal came with a plastic wrapper.  So in hindsight, it’s probably best to buy travel mugs from a local coffee/tea shop, where you can get them without packaging (see more about this in my Online Purchases entry).

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October 11, 2009
September non-garbage: A few of the usual items.  Nice shiny gold and silver to go into the collage!

September non-garbage:

A few of the usual items.  Nice shiny gold and silver to go into the collage!

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September 7, 2009
August non-garbage: Sometimes you just have to have butter!  The temptation was a biscuit at my favorite breakfast restaurant.  And it was worth it.  As for the bullion wrappers… soup season has begun.  I hadn’t planned ahead, or I could have made my own broth.  So at the store, I looked at my options: I could buy broth in a can, but it’s expensive and does not taste nearly as good as bullion.  I could buy bullion in a box, sealed in a plastic bag - or in these little silver paper cubes.  I prefer the silver for my garbage collage.

August non-garbage:

Sometimes you just have to have butter!  The temptation was a biscuit at my favorite breakfast restaurant.  And it was worth it.  As for the bullion wrappers… soup season has begun.  I hadn’t planned ahead, or I could have made my own broth.  So at the store, I looked at my options: I could buy broth in a can, but it’s expensive and does not taste nearly as good as bullion.  I could buy bullion in a box, sealed in a plastic bag - or in these little silver paper cubes.  I prefer the silver for my garbage collage.

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