I completely forgot to blog yesterday.

Yesterday was blog action day -- and the topic was the environment. What's Blog Action Day? you ask...well, it's one day a year when everyone who blogs is supposed to write on the same subject. To promote brotherhood or some such nonsense. But it's blogging about the environment and you'd think I'd be all over that.

Except that these drugs I'm on make me vague, easily distracted, and frustrated. (don't worry, will be calling the dr today to see if I can switch. I'd be better off on pot. For reals.)


So I'm going to blog really quickly (at 6:50 am on TUESDAY - a day late, sorry) about how saving the world has become so trendy. Not that I'm bothered by the trendiness - a little awareness here, a little action there...and voila- you've got some habits that stick and we're cutting down fewer trees, having access to more sources of healthy water, and hopefully preventing the death by drowning of several thousand polar bears who don't understand what's happening to their home. Seriously - I've always been sad about things like Deer and rabbits and squirrels whose homes have been demo'd in the interested of the newest suburban sprawl (and we all know how I feel about sprawl...) but the thought of polar bears drowning because their home is melting makes me want to cry.

One thing that does bug me: I've been a "Take my own bag" girl for years. My mom was a "take my own bag" woman for years before that. It seemed like the thing to do - she goes to the ALA conference, gets a boat load of canvas totes and instead of leaving them in the closet to take up space and collect dust - she leaves them in her trunk to carry bread, cheese, etc in. No plastic or paper pile up at her house, either. Because hauling plastic bags back to the store to be recycled was something we always forgot. We'd get to the store, see the bin, and smack ourselves on the forehead. Taking our own bags became habit before the city started curbside recycling.

I have a ton of bags picked up from various locations - ALA conferences, container store, the grocery in Dusseldorf where you have to buy your own bag - plastic or canvas and I thought "Badass souvenir! Canvas please.. four of them, since they're only $0.25E!" And I drag those with me everywhere. Will actually be taking them to the butcher today.

And then some genius thought up the idea for this:




And suddenly taking your own bag is popular because it makes a statement that the world can see. So those of us who have been quietly taking our own bags to whole foods and the farmers market and the butcher, etc, seem...passe? for not having a cool bag... Or we're seen as slobs because Yes, I have seen this bag. At Central Market. Being carried by a glamozon with perfect hair, makeup, heels, skinny jeans, and a humongous rock (probably from some questionable mine in Africa).

I'm either jealous that I didn't think of it or pissed that it trivializes what is actually a very environmentally-impactful gesture (how many of these bags will be collecting dust in the closet in a few seasons? I'd wager over %60)

And then I saw this:



That's a bag I'd buy. I'd probably get double the "brought my own bag" discount at my Whole Foods. Or maybe I'm just bitter ;-)

Shower time! (oooh -- and the coffee's ready...)