Well I can't help myself. I've done something to make me fell a little better about the world, and I want to share with the class.
This is my plate.
I bought my plate for 25¢ at the local Value Village. It is 12" in diameter, made of Melamine (which will not kill you), and is very ornate with no less than eight sea creatures gracing it's shiny concave surface. As wonderful as it it this plate alone will not help me save the world.
This is my spork.
Although it is called a spork it would be more fair to call it a sporknife, as one of the tines of the fork has a serrated edge to allow you to cut through a chewy side of beef or sever your arm in case of emergency.
Anyways...My sporknife set me back $3.00 at REI, which is enough to buy twelve melamine plates at Value Village, but since I had no need for thirteen plates I bought the sporknife instead. It is 6" long, made of heat-resistant Tritan™ (a copolyester material with a name that pays tribute to the man who carries a big fish eating fork and lives in a phallic castle, Triton), and weighs more than a paper clip but less than a 29'er tube. It has been tested by experts to determine whether or not it is a better implement than than a Niner carbon fork in the conveyance of peas from plate to mouth, and I'm happy to say that regardless of the lack of the individual's ability to adjust the tangential angle of vectoral approach by inclining his support structure in a forward direction the sporknife beat the Niner carbon fork hands down.
Tritan Success!!! Carbon Fail!!!Why am I bothering you all with this?
I decided I'm going to bring my oceanic themed plate and overpriced plastic grayware to all the endurance races I attend this year. Most of them offer some sort of pre/post race meal, and usually it is served on styro or paper that will be in use for less than ten minutes before it is pitched and left in a gaping hole to rot over the next million or so years. Think of all the styro trees that will be cut down just to support our endurance racing season this year alone... staggering, isn't it?
I have to admit I got the idea from Chris Scott, head honcho at Shenandoah Mountain Touring and promoter of events like the Wilderness 101 and the Shenandoah 100. I seem to remember he asked us racer folks to bring our own plates and such to the race for our spaghetti pre-dinner and burgers and fries post-dinner in an attempt to cut down on the amount of waste that has to be removed from the property after the race. It was an easy thing to do, and when prompted I joined in with my small'ish camping plate and my brought-from-the-kitchen-drawer silverware. It seemed like a good idea, and quite a few others joined in.
So this year I decided to take the show on the road. I've invested in some quality Melamine and Tritan, and I'm packing it in my duffel when I head out to events. I've already used it at DSG, and let me tell you it's already proven that it's worth the extra effort. Being that a typical paper plate is @ 9" across my seafaring dishware dwarfs it's disposable cousin by having almost twice as much usable surface area. As servers marvel at the wonder of my seahorses and mussels (and no doubt my muscles) they are overcome with joy and the serving spoons come hot and heavy in my general direction.
One may bring up the matter of clean up, but that's why we have tongues people. Since we can't catch flies with them I can't imagine what else they're for.
So get with "the program" (not to be confused with "the program"), buy a cheap plate, and join me at the table with all my other self righteous friends so we can talk trash about SUV's, Rush loving Republicans, and sustainable pencil erasers.
Morning weight report:
134.8lbs
7.8% BF
134.8lbs
7.8% BF
Posts
14 comments:
Bravo on the plate idea...but you're still an anorexic freak
REALLY!!??
Come on Dicky. Think of what is required to mine the titanium you ride around on. Don't you get a new frame each year? Why not just recycle those? Or the Aluminum parts you use and throw away after each race? How about the fuel used to attend all these events which serve no greater good to the planet.
Bottom line is that we are consumers, but if carrying around your own plate and sporknife makes you feel better about your contribution to this planet, great. Just look at the bigger picture.
GO RUSH! Global Warming is BS!
Agreed on all points, but to be fair I don't get a new ti bike every year, I don't throw away aluminum parts after every race (I recycle them), and my Element has been converted to a solar powered hovercraft (to reduce my tire consumption).
I guess if we can't fix everything, might as well do nothing??
Glad you're makin the effort Dick.
Nice work Dicky. Every bit helps, and truly the only way to stop using natural resources is to be dead, and that's not really a sustainable solution if you're into living. So, doing what you can will help. If everyone lived consciously and rode their bikes to work at least one day/week and used their own coffee cup at the cafe on their way to work and brought their own sporknife/plate to races, it will help. Anon 9:24 seems to live by the "who cares, we’re all polluters, the earth’s been abused for centuries, why try now?" philosophy. Ignorance is what it is. To be honest, Anon 9:24, I like Rush too. And even Rush would support the sporknife.
So are there any other downsides to being dead??
Rush is a fat idiot. He "non-preachy, non martyristic, non self-serving manner" etc...
self serving idiot.
He's probably the most socialistic communist idiot out there.
Probably pushes a button to get out of bed. Probably pushes a button to clean his ass in the morning. Probably pushes one button to feed his fat wrinkled carcuss. Then pushes the button to start his vehicle and open the garage door. Then pushes the button to turn on his microphone to preach his bull shit. Then does the same thing once he gets home.
He's an idiot. Anyone who follows his preachings has gotta stop taking drugs!!!
Anyhow, fully agree Rich. It's friggen tough being environmentally cautious and aware. Damn tough. Cause yah gotta think things through. Unlike the socialist-communist corporate welfare bastards that want to just push buttons all day and not lift a finger.
I ride to/from work every day. It's damn tough. It's my little part. Aside from trying not to use to much water or send stuff down the drain that shouldn't be thrown down the drain. I try to be a minimalist. Its damn tough, because the world now preaches consumption! It's our addiction!
We have 6,000,000,000 people on the planet. Never in the existance of humankind have we had so many people on the planet. Just thinking of the toilet paper we all use creates fear in my shorts! Not including the amount of flatulation and piss we send down the drain for fish to consume!!!
We are consumption hogs!!!
Humans have lived for millions upon millions of years without this thing we call the economy. We definitely can't live without the ecology. Mother nature is concerned about the planet, she really and truely doesn't give a sweet flying fck about us. The world will go on.
the next thing to hit us:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_oil
and the US doesn't own itself anymore due to all these bail outs (the things that caused the problems). China does!!!
(15 trillion in debt and counting).
that's just fcked.
Rush is an idiot. If he had to get off his fat ass and bike, he'd fall over.
We probably subsidize the idiot though through our tax dollars and he probably writes everything off. Including the shitter...
every little bit counts. Thanks a bunch for your efforts... I think everyone should do a bit more.
I am not going to get into the political fray on this, but I think it is a great idea and one I will implement in the future. Every little bit helps. But dude, 134 lbs? I think I weighed that in junior high. LOL. Great post!
Anonymous 9:24 signing in again:
To be honest, I don't even listen to Rush, nor do I care about Republican or Democrat BS. I just thought some of you tree huggers might get excited about that comment. And you did! My point is that going green is kind of like religion now a days. People seem to take what they like, the easy stuff, and leave out the stuff that is hard. I love the prius drivers that think they are doing the earth a favor, yet batteries are one of the worst things for the enviroment. Just saying, live it 100% or get off of the soap box.
I am not bringing a plate and fork to the next event I attend. I will be the one handing out recycled paper plates. I will also have a bin for all of Dicky's used parts.
-Peace
Anon 9:24
Welcome back.
I only mention Rush because he's an easy target, and I see him as more of an entertainer who does his best to keep himself marketable (even if it hurts people and spreads hate and disparity).
I don't think awareness hurts and if people bring plates, great. If they don't it won't be the end of the world.
For the most part I was bored and needed to pre-write a post Saturday so I could skip out this morning and run errands (yes, errands at 6:10am, and in my solar powered hovercraft). So I saw my plate and realized it was as good a topic as any.
Thanks for your POV. You can eat off my plate anytime.
Oh, and let me know what parts you need, and I'll dig them outta my "not ready for the scrap pile" box.
interesting site though:
http://www.lifeaftertheoilcrash.net/
never know when the end of the world is. Momma nature dictates that shit.
I like trees. They look better than man-made concrete. I can eat certain trees. Concrete, I can't do much with.
Man paints a picture. Nature builds beauty.
Man creates war. Nature keeps the planet in equilibrium.
Nature is the most capitalist bitch going.
everyone esle posted a bunch of longwinded crap, so this might have already been covered, but:
styrofoam doesn't come from trees dumbass. it comes from clubbed baby seals. although, technically, they are most frequently clubbed with wood, and wood comes from my pants, but it also comes from trees that were cut down. so maybe you're correct after all, in a transcendental sort of way.
So, because I can't do everything, I should do nothing?
I'll quit my job and apply for welfare tomm.
Thanks for the advice.
mb
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