Gag Me With A Spoon!

I was recently at a meeting where a bunch of women were discussing ice cream. Flavors, textures, brands. One woman started to describe how she eats her ice cream.

"I only eat ice cream with a plastic spoon! A regular spoon gets too cold and doesn't allow you to really taste the flavor. Try it...you'll never go back!"

The women began to oooh and ahhh. I started to gag. Was this woman serious? She was buying bags of plastic, non-biodegradable, chemical-based utensils because silverware chilled her lips and tongue? Really? Where does she store her metal spoons -- in the Arctic?

I imagined all of these women running to the store, buying plastic spoons, grabbing pints of ice cream and eating like they'd never eaten before. And then, haphazardly throwing the spoons away.

The Pacific has the infamous island of plastic (that floating mound of trash the size of Texas). New York would have a sculpture of plastic in Central Park. "Form of a Giant Spoon!"...The Wonder Twins would say.

Unfortunately, I didn't know these women well enough to say anything...not that that has ever stopped me before. But it was a professional organization and I thought that I'd better keep my mouth -- which avoids plastic spoons like the plague -- shut.

Ironically, that night, John wanted an Italian Ice from the corner deli. As I reached into the freezer to get one, I saw these little "to go" Ben and Jerry's and Hagen Daaz cartons that had a little plastic spoon right in the lid. Companies like these are touting better ingredients and sustainable company practices but they're not considering the packaging. That's half our problem!

We create so much waste! Take a frozen dinner. The box, the plastic film and the plastic tray. Even though the box can be recycled, the rest goes into the landfill. Let's hope that Swanson's doesn't start including a knife and a fork.

The plastic spoons made me realize that convenience, waste (and now apparently taste) and global warming all go hand-in-hand. I told John we had no hope if what got people excited was plastic spoons.

The next day, as I ordered my lunch, I made sure to ask the cashier to not put any plastic utensils in my bag. "I have my own, thanks!" I had brought my own metal utensils from home. As I took my first bite, I could only hope that I didn't burn my mouth on the fork or wind up with my tongue stuck to the spoon.