Define Your Terms

Material Content (outer shell): 70% acrylic, 30% polyester
Material Content (lining):  100% polyester
Country of Origin: China

Look at this person... caring about the animals, not wanting them to suffer... We have to wear fur because it's fun, but fur is bad, so we'll make faux-fur and be just as cute and trendy, but AWARE. This cute vest says, "Look at me. I want the look, but I'm of a higher consciousness, so I would never wear the skin of a poor tortured animal. I'm above that. I'm enlightened."

Good.

Now let's re-visit the other information up there. All material in this enlightened piece of clothing is made from chemicals. Water-intensive processes. Stuff and crap that will never biodegrade, because you have to be bio to biodegrade. Nothing there is bio. So, while no animals were killed directly in the making of this item, let's think about the eco-suffering that may commence as the result of the pollution caused by making this product. Let's think about the cancer from introducing unnecessary chemicals into the world, because you are too enlightened to wear the hide of an animal. And how about where it is made? China. There are awesome factories in China, and then there are others that might not be quite so ideal. From which is this? The clean, fun to work in, great factory? Or the horrible condition, slave wages, foul dirty disgusting polluting one? Don't know? Shouldn't you? I mean, if you care so much about the animals that real fur would come from, shouldn't you care about the people that are making this product? No? Not your problem? I see. Caring about animals doesn't extend to humans. Humans have free will, after all.

Here's my argument: purchasing leather or even fur at a thrift store is the most eco-friendly thing you could buy. Anti-fur people would never do that, even though that product has already been made and used and is not a new resource-consuming  thing that has to be manufactured. No new processes or chemicals are getting introduced into the world so that you can be warm. "But it's fur!!!" Yes it is. And it is already there. Your not buying it in favor of some chemical product vs. natural will not change that. You aren't killing animals. You may be saving some, actually. You are actually promoting awareness. Afraid someone just like you will come up and throw red paint blood on you before you have a chance to explain yourself? Hmm... maybe we should think about that.

Do I wear fur? No. Do I want to wear fur? No. Do I condone wearing fur? No - although go ahead and tell me that farm-raised chinchillas have a bad life. I do wear leather. It's better than pleather and that crap, though I realize it is also a very water- and chemical-intensive process. I limit it. Most clothes I buy these days are in second-hand stores and all cotton. It's not organic cotton, yet, because that's not really going to be found second-hand, yet, but it's a fuck of a lot better than buying something new. 

Just sayin'... be AWARE. THINK about your actions. THINK about the consequences. REALIZE what is behind and underneath. Define your terms. You say you are being eco-friendly and Earth-conscious and enlightened. Define that, tell me how. Prove it. Show is you put thought into it. We'll wait. 

Envirosax - Some Good Words for a Change!

Let me begin by saying no, they are not paying me or bribing me. I love my Envirosax bag all on my own.

What do I love the most? (How do I love thee? Let me count the ways! LOL) Is it that it rolls up so small (They say on their site, the size of a piece of sushi!) that I can carry THREE of them in my admittedly huge purse and still have room for everything else, so that I am never without a reusable bag? Is it that it is SO strong that I have to make sure it's not too heavy for me when I pack it full of stuff? Is it that the handles are big enough to sling over my shoulder? Is it the flourish with which I unsnap and unroll it, with the beautiful colors causing people to notice, so I can look at them with a "Yeah I bring my own bags, you should too" look? Is it the admiration of the cashiers, who almost always comment on it?

I think it's the flourish. That's the part I love the most.

Envirosax (http://www.envirosax.com/faq) is a strong, sturdy, pretty bag that is HUGE but folds up SO nice and small. It's waterproof. It's made out of polyester.

Wait, what??? Yeah I know. Polyester bad. Why am I carrying this bag, then? Because I know it is going to last for YEARS. Literally, years. That's a lot of plastic bags I won't be using. It's a much more sustainable thing. And the company itself is a very environmental gig. They have other products that aren't made of polyester, and that's a good thing too. But I'm OK with my bag. It's very durable. It's easy to hand-wash it and it dries quickly. It is a move in the right direction, as they say in the FAQ's. I agree. The material is good for the bright designs and colors that make them attractive to people, so maybe they WILL use them more. The inks and dyes are eco-friendly. And if your bag has gotten past its prime, you can send it back to them and they will recycle it.

So, yeah, it's made from polyester. And I will continue to use it. And I will gift them to people. This is one of those times when convenience isn't an evil word. It is VERY convenient to toss this bag in my purse, in your backpack, your messenger bag, laptop bag, etc... it is easy to roll up, people notice and and maybe think about getting one too. I totally love the look people get on their face when such a small little thing becomes this huge bag that holds everything. I love that my husband is OK with carrying it because it isn't too girly. And I love that this company is trying to do things right.

Holidays are coming. This is a Good Green Gift alert. The company started in Australia and yes the bags are made in China... PLEASE go to their FAQ page to find out how those are good things. The link is above. Not everything made in China is completely evil, either. Expand your knowledge. It is your best arrow in your quiver.

And start your holiday shopping at Envirosax. Sure, I'm a big fan of the bags, but they have other cool stuff to check out as well. If enough of us use things like this, then we are teaching by example. When we whip out these bright bags, people will be curious and maybe even ask. If we gift them to people, they will use them instead of plastic throw-aways. (Well, we hope.)

These guys and this company and this product CAN help. So, yeah, I have some good things to say for a change. Nothing but good. And my Yuletide gifts? Guess!

Famous for Nothing, Richer Anyway

I'm not a shoe-whore. Oh, I love me my boots and suffer a lot of boot envy, and I'm not turned OFF, per se, by shoes... I just don't feel the need to have a whole ton of them. I don't faint in DSW or Off Broadway. I like to go in, but generally it's just when I need to replace a pair that has worn out. Because of this general attitude, I was not paying much attention to ShoeDazzle.com. This is a site by one of the oh-so-famous for no-reason-whatsoever Kardashian sisters. I guess it's been around for a few years. It JUST got a major investment infusion of 4 million dollars. For those of you good, cool people who aren't aware of this stupid company, here's the nutshell... apparently, you sign up, handing a credit card over before you even see pictures of shoes, and you are given a "personal selection" from someone who tailors the choices right to you (uh huh), and for this $40/month you get a pair of shoes that you pick from that selection.

Why should I care? So what if people buy shoes? $40 for a pair of shoes may not be bad. Unless they are super-cheaply made crap shoes. I'll tell you why I care. Because I suspect they ARE cheap pieces of crap, from the looking-around I did, and they break easily so they'll just get tossed, and they are mostly made in China, who knows if by exploited workers or what. I care, because aren't we supposed to be stopping this kind of thing, rather than throwing money at it? Aren't we supposed to be moving towards fair trade and quality? Did I miss a point?

(I think all I missed was greed. I generally miss that.)

I hesitated to even talk about this, because, you know, I hate to publicize things that suck... but then the whole needing-to-make-good-people-aware-of-the-bad always overrules. MY PEEPS! Call to action! WHAT can we do in the face of this line of crap?? Cuz I'm at a loss. All I can think to do is write about it. And not use the site myself, of course, but my not sending $40 isn't going to do much in the face of the 4 million dollars. Karma? Anyone? Anyone???

Guess we just sit back and continue to be annoyed by this stuff. Geez, I gotta get famous so I can fight on a level field.

Hee hee.