Midway . . . Hopeless Tragedy or Catylyst for Change . . .

 

Seeing these photographs of dead albatross full of plastic on Beth Terry's website, Fake Plastic Fish now called, My Plastic Free Life, changed my life forever. 

Chris Jordon, Photographer

Chris Jordon, Photographer

I would never again stroll on the beach without picking up trash. I would never again look at the tide break and mistake tiny pieces of plastic for sea life. I would never again buy something in plastic and feel OK about my purchase. 

I have lessened my use of plastic drastically but I have a long way to go to be plastic-free. As a matter of fact, it may never happen. Plastic is everywhere in my life. My printers, my telephone, my contact solution, the tags on my cats . . . even my camera. The list is endless. It may not be realistic for us to become truly 'plastic free' in our culture today but I do believe we can have a drastic impact just by being aware of the mess we've created thus far in the name of cheap and convenient.

If everyone of us picked up some trash every time we stepped outside it would make a difference. If everyone of us was intolerant of littering and it became an immense social stigma, it would make a difference. If everyone of us purchased an item in glass, or cardboard or something that is truly being recycled, instead of plastic, it would make a huge difference. If everyone of us was aware of the overwhelming destruction plastic has on our environment, we could make a difference.

Disconnect left lying on the beach . . .

Picturing Excess . . .

I added another video that Chris Jordon created for TED Talks. In this powerful 11 minute talk, Chris shows his photographs that represent 'excess' in our culture.

 

 

Chris gets his message of cultural excess and disconnect across beautifully using a universal language ~ pictures.  I don't see the need to expand too much here on his message as he has done such a beautiful job.

If you're enjoying this blog, consider leaving a comment, I'd love to hear from you via this blog . . . thanks! 

Livin' at the Beach . . .

tee shirt day . . .

Update on the stranded elephant seal pup . . . 'Sweet Rock'

'Sweet Rock'

Phil, the seal guy, generously sent me an email to let me know that the baby elephant seal we saw resting on the beach last week hauled out again and was taken to the Marine Mammal Center by another volunteer that lives in Bodega Bay, on March 26th. Phil and Jean were out of town when 'Sweet Rock' was spotted on Doran Beach appearing malnourished. 

Go to the Marine Mammal Center web site and click on 'Current Patients' to follow the progress of 'Sweet Rock' and other patients undergoing rehabilitation.


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beach trash

more beach trash . . . so much Styrofoam . . .

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Another movie about plastic is coming out in April, 

'Bag It'.

I'm excited to see creative, passionate film makers tackling this subject and getting the message across that we have a serious issue with plastic waste.

A pioneer blogger on the subject of plastic trash is Beth Terry.  On her blog, 'My Plastic Free Life', Beth wrote about the film 'Bag It' .

"What I LOVE about this film, as compared to films like Addicted to Plastic, which I reviewed in 2009, is its emphasis on consumer empowerment and cutting consumption. The film sums itself up with the following take-aways:
1) Reduce single-use
2) Don’t drink bottled water
3) Choose less packaging
4) Buy it used
5) Bring your own
6) Buy less stuff
7) Reduce, Reuse, then Recycle
8) Clean it up
9) Avoid #3, #6, #7PC
10) Simplify your life"


If you want to know when the film is playing in your area go to the Do Something Reel website and enter your zip code to see a list of theaters and show times in your area. 

I plan to take my son when the movie is playing in town. More than likely it will be a surprise . . .

it’s what I can do . . .

It makes my stomach hurt when I see blue plastic dog poop bags flying around at the beach. What’s worse is to find a bag full of poop lying in the sand. I know that if I don’t pick it up it will most likely be snatched by the next high tide and taken out to sea to eventually join the rest of the plastic soup. So hesitantly, I pick it up.

Following the lead of my mentor, Beth Terry, from her blog, ‘My Plastic Free Life’, http://myplasticfreelife.com. I contacted Sonoma County Regional Park Service and began an email conversation with ‘James’. At first, 'James' politely gave me the brush-off with all sorts of facts about why they used the little blue plastic bags and that these bags are ‘biodegradable,’ and “thank you for your concern”, and have a nice day, leave me alone . . . that sort of email conversation.

But ‘James’ doesn’t know me. He doesn’t know that I’ve taken these blue plastic bags on as a personal mission. He doesn’t know that I walk the beach where I live several times a week and that I’ve developed a sort-of ‘ownership’ about this beach. He doesn’t know that it was not only my livelihood but my passion that had me doing years of research, writing, and educating about environmental destruction and animal welfare. He doesn’t know that I set up a ‘Rethinking Plastics’ table for CoastWalk, http://www.coastwalk.org/index.htm during Coastal Cleanup Day at one of our local beaches last September, and it was a huge success because people care about our beaches. He didn’t know all this but I think he’s getting it.

After my third or fourth email reply to ‘James’ his last response was enthusiastic and encouraging. He sees the possibility for change and I am thrilled!