I spent most of the day yesterday polishing furniture. Whilst I lovingly worked the wax into the tatty looking wood I thought of my friends. One of whom, until recently, thought that furniture polish came in a spray can with a duck on and the other who has told me that she has never polished a pair of shoes in her life. This got my thinking: why is everything so disposable? It started off with disposable nappies, which is fair enough (being face to face with poop isn’t everyone’s cup of tea), but now it seems that everything is designed to be thrown out. You can buy disposable cleaning wipes (because washing out a cloth is such a hardship), use kitchen towel instead of a mop, use make up removing wipes instead of a flannel and the old favourite, Kleenex instead of hankies. I use the brand name here on purpose as the manufacture of Kleenex in particular is wiping out vast tracks of forest throughout the world.
The government is urging us all to recycle more but they don’t seem to mind that it is becoming increasingly hard to recycle and minimise waste. We are bombarded with easy solutions to domestic problems; advertising tells us to pour chemicals down our drains to clear blockages even though a simple plunger is far cheaper and better for the environment. Until there is more education to consumers about these wasteful products or the government brings in legislation to make all products recyclable then I can’t see how things will change. I suppose I’m rather old school, doing things the hard way and polishing my shoes and furniture to make them last longer. Most people my generation would just replace them. But there goes my guilt again, every time I throw something away.
