Common Measure - Life in plastic: is it fantastic?
Most bags here just have other bags in them; The bag under your counter where you keep The plastic bags you got when you forgot Your tote. These ones will be illegal soon (Imagine the lost good Canadian jobs). Inside your suitcase, ten months of the year Another suitcase nests, inside of which One more, a little carryon, the three Little nesting dolls: potential practicality— For three weeks of the year they do their job, Three more, they wait to be unpacked, The rest, they decorate your bookshelf house. I bought these bags to keep my objects in, But now I rent a storage room for them. ContentThis is Marijke’s client’s cat. I hope they don’t object to me posting a photo of it. It is in one of the insulated bags Marijke uses for grocery shopping for her business. Last week I sent you a maxim about how many things you ought to have. This week is about something you definitely have too much of. The poem is clearly about how many bags we have. It’s a pretty literal poem, but I suppose the bags are also a symbol for like, “consumer culture.” I genuinely think, though, that the literal bags are worse than late-capitalism. I think that terminal capitalism should be a symbol for how many bags we have in our homes, because the actual bag problem is the real existential threat. There is nothing worse than gigantic ball of bags, bursting from the seams of your sink counter. It is so engorged that it has started to tip the little recycling bin over, spilling beer over the painted particle board which, you know, is eagerly absorbing the scent. And worse is knowing that this giant bin of plastic bags was generated while an equally annoying nest of tote bags spawned in the hall closet. These bags put the “nest” in the poem’s “Little nesting dolls”—not so charming after all. I did genuinely have 3 suitcases nested like those dolls, though, for about two years. I moved home to Canada from England at the beginning of c0v1d. Marijke had bought me a large, orange, Amazon Basics suitcase. It primarily carried books—I brought home perhaps 75; we left about a hundred more. It was sheer lunacy to have acquired so many within the short fourteen months we lived there… but I worked in a bookstore, so at least our addiction was 40% off. Our neighbours loved receiving the books, though, as we prepared to high tail it out of town. If I’m not mistaken some of them left notes to us—or, I think, even told Marijke—that it was really comforting to receive them, just when it seemed like the world was going to shit. I hope my old neighbours are safe and well, and, postc0v1d, have just as terrible a book addiction as I. So yes, for two years, the giant suitcase, and then a medium sized suitcase, and then a like carryon sized one nested in my in laws’ basement. I think actually they are all currently in use though… so, progress. ContextI honestly think no plastic bags is fine. Plastic bag ban ok with me. It’s not really necessary to have plastic packaging once you get the groceries out of the store. The goods have already done the toughest part of their journey (perhaps warranting some plastic for hygiene and protection) and just need to ride in the back seat of the car. If you forget your tote bag you can buy a new one or just carry your groceries by hand. New tote bags should be ten bucks: ten bucks every time will teach you to remember your tote, fast. For an economic argument, I think that production should shift from making tons of shitty plastic bags to making fewer high quality containers, and optimizing last-mile delivery. Same amount of economic activity, fewer horrible bags spilling my dishwasher pucks into a beer puddle. |
Key phrases
Older messages
I'm the Marie Kondo of poetry
Tuesday, August 30, 2022
A maxim from my book of maxims
Are novelists better at psychology?
Tuesday, August 23, 2022
Yes. 🧠 Find out why they're better at psych than psychologists.
A poem by Monroe Lawrence
Tuesday, August 16, 2022
From his book About to Be Young, with original commentary.
A poem + some important news!
Tuesday, August 9, 2022
Stay til the end for the announcement and, um, sorry for being late today.
Photographs when no one's watching 📸
Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Learning about someone through their digital artifacts.
You Might Also Like
Kendall Jenner Nailed *Two* Iconic Met Gala After-Party Looks
Wednesday, May 8, 2024
They deserve your attention.
Carve Your Core in Just 90 Days
Wednesday, May 8, 2024
Mens Health Shop logo Sculpt epic abs in 90 days! Are you tough enough for this 90 day challenge? A seriously strong core requires getting serious about your plan of attack. A few rounds of crunches
The Best Thing: May 7, 2024
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
The Best Thing is our weekly discussion thread where we share the one thing that we read, listened to, watched, did, or otherwise enjoyed recent… ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
And The #1 Pedicure Color For Spring 2024 Is...
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
Sun's out, toes out.
This Android Malware Can Take Over Legitimate Apps 🚨
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
Use the 'Five-second Rule' to Declutter Faster. Microsoft has discovered a major Android vulnerability that allows bad actors to take over legitimate apps with malware. Not displaying correctly
100+ STEAM Activities For Kids
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
special offer from our friends at Popular Mechanics special offer from our friends at Popular Mechanics Encourage Them To Be a Maker and a Doer! View in Browser 100+ Steam Activities Kids Won't
Kylie Jenner Rocked A Cone Bra At The Met Gala
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
Plus, your horoscope for Tuesday, May 7.
From Stanley Tucci to Dolly Parton, celeb food brand deals are getting tired
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
This pizzeria is the real winner of Drake/Kendrick beef
The Best, Worst, and Weirdest Met Gala Looks
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
What's new today on the Cut — covering style, self, culture, and power, plus interviews, profiles, columns, and commentary from our editors. Brand Logo TUESDAY, MAY 7 MET GALA 2024 The Best, Worst,
New from Tim — "Craig Foster of My Octopus Teacher — How to Find the Wild in a Tame World"
Tuesday, May 7, 2024
The latest from author and investor Tim Ferriss