Living Green in the Land of Plastic and Styrofoam

In general, I love living in the Dominican. One of the things I dislike, though, is feeling like a supremely wasteful human being. A small part of me dies every time I toss a receipt, water bottle, or milk carton in the trash. No more! Well, not as much, anyway. 

Recycling isn't really a thing here yet, but I can tell the populace's consciousness about caring for the earth, specifically the marine ecosystems that surround us, is rising. Puntos verdes (dropoff points) are popping up in more and more places. 

I told myself when I moved back into my house I'd get some recycle bins and do my part, so I did. Now, I get a little spark of joy every time I toss an IKEA catalog, empty laundry detergent jug, or tin can into the recycling. 

White: paper/cardboard

Grey: plastic

Black: glass, tin, aluminum, and Tetra-Pak cartons

The bins were getting full-ish, so one of yesterday's pre-home service prep errands was to a certain branch of a chain supermarket where I knew I could empty them. 

The lane to pull up by the curb was irritatingly blocked off, so I parked illegally in a spot for pregnant and nursing mothers and made it snappy. 

The attendant saw my hesitation at the very small slots and my very large quantity of recyclables and carried them around back to what I'll assume were larger-mouthed receptacles...but could have been a giant Dumpster ;)

I'm giving myself grace in this, aka not digging through my neighbors' trash or loading my suitcase down with brochures and water bottles to bring home when traveling. I also still flatly refuse to compost; there are enough chickens, rats, cockroaches, and stray dogs without purposefully stockpiling food scraps!

Until next time, blessings in Christ!