Hello and happy Sunday,
I’ve come to terms with the fact that as a human in this world and in this country and at this time, I am ingesting plastic constantly (among other harmful chemicals*). And what makes that reality so scary (and also at times easy to ignore), is that these plastics and chemicals are just part of our lives at this point; invisible and entering our systems without much acknowledgement or warning.
*That’s is a link to a diary comic—a new paid feature of this newsletter.
Well, the other day the plastic entering my body made itself very known:
This is the point at which I laid on my couch and wondered whether I should rush to the ER or not. I’m trying to calm myself down while also making sure I don’t lose sight of the preciousness of human life—my human life to be exact. And how when it comes to keeping myself alive, I really don’t want to be cutting any corners. But also it’s kind of a pain in the ass to go to the hospital…
And when these equally urgent and reluctant (lazy?) counterparts emerge, there is only one thing to do:
So, I had (almost) eaten one piece of plastic and one piece of plastic only (I am obviously choosing to ignore micro-plastics at this time). A miracle.
And ever since this event, I’ve been noting all the foods I eat on a semi-regular basis that are decidedly sharper than this frankly flimsy lid fragment. Just so my intestines can rest easy the next time it happens.
A PSA to check your takeout containers for cracks. Stay safe.
💘Ariella
Ok this JUST happened to me this week only with glass and without finding where it came from. The fact that it has been a week makes me feel like I’m finally out of the woods 😅
Alright because I’m a pretentious millennial and buy into the whole zero waste hype, my husband and I have been on a carousel talking about our mason jars and glass storage containers that get chipped. He says we must throw them away because once they’re chipped, you’re likely to slice your arm off when washing a marginally flawed container or cut open your esophagus from tiny glass fragments when drinking from a minimally flawed jar. I say it’s just a tiny notch, it's fine, it's retro, it adds character! Why waste a perfectly good rest of the container because of one measly little chip? And what about the lid?! What will we do with the perfectly fine lid?! It's not exactly a plastic fragment, but your story has me thinking I may be starting to come around... but can you settle this before it gets violent?