CHANGE - Our lifestyle today

Stumble upon some blogs, I found some inconvenient truth about human. It is so scary that the way we live today has impact to our environment. I am extremely happy that I read that blog or watch YouTube videos about some lifestyle that different from the usual. It makes me think and consider the way I lived that is so harmful for others. 

Easy, Fast and Cheap Plastic

This is what our society want for their life. They want everything fast, convenient to bring, convenient to eat, and have a cheap price. For example is plastic bag and water bottle. When you want to buy something, even for one or two items, you want to have a plastic bag to carry your groceries. Even you can put it in your own bag. "It's free in Indonesia anyway, why should I refuse?", that's the way we think when we get them. You will think that you will reuse them to collect trash in your home, but 50% of it will just go to the trash bin without you think twice. As for water bottle. This is quite tricky if you life in Indonesia. Because we cannot drink tap water. It is not safe for us, that's why plastic water bottle is so convenient for us. You can just buy it everywhere and throw it when you finish. Bring your own water bottle everywhere and refill them seem to be burdensome for us.

I am trying to reduce the number of plastic I use these days, and I realized that it is SO HARD. When I went to supermarket to buy something, I am so shocked that everything is covered by plastic. My favorite biscuit and snack, spaghetti, rice, flour, spices, even fruits and vegetables. They all packed in plastic. It is so easy for us just to take all that we want, and throw away the packaging. We think that everything that covered by plastic will look better, stay longer, and not spoiled. But what we do with our plastic after we come home? We just throw it away. When you need some plastic? You can buy it since it is so cheap.

Fast Food

Another "creation" that human make is to make everything fast. I do realized since I don't have enough time to cook, fast food is my best friend. You name it, the sausage, cornet, instant noodle, chicken nugget, instant spices, french fries, frozen vegetables. All of it is a food that you can prepare in 5 minutes. So fast. And we love them. But, you  know if you gain something, there will be a consequence that you pay. 

The concern about fast food is HEALTH. Do you know how they make the food? What they put inside? Please think that if it goes long way than the usual food, they must put something to increase the lifetime. We read a lot of article that warn us the damage of fast food, yet we still eat it. Why? Because it is so easy and taste good. I admit, I am a big fan of fast food, and I am lazy to prepare my food. That is why, when I want to change my lifestyle to reduce the amount of plastic that I use, food is my main problem. What I eat today? My usual food is the fast food, which I am trying to reduce. The easiest way for me to do is to eat out. The price of food in Indonesia is still affordable. But I realized that I cannot eat out everyday. So, the next thing is learn to cook. It is healthy for you and cheaper. Let's see how it goes

Fast Fashion

You may be familiar with fast food. But fast fashion? What is it?

Based on the definition from designcouncil.org Fast Fashion is " the trend for fashion retailers to buy their merchandise closer to the season, and respond to trends as they emerge". 

Just to simplify, in my opinion, fast fashion is affordable basic and disposable trend. You supposed to follow the trend, and buy a new clothes every season, every month, every week to become fashionable. The retailer make a trendy and cheap clothes so you will buy the clothes again and again. Even you don't like them or it doesn't suit you. You buy and wear it just because it is trendy or cheap. 

But, do you ever think why they can make it cheap and fast moving? Have you ever ask who made your clothes? Normally, if you make your own clothes, how many hours you spend to sew it? Fast Fashion retailers usually have issue in human right, cheap labor, child labor, unhealthy environment and etc. 

Next impact? You have a closet full of clothes that you didn't like and you throw it away. Usually cheap clothes use chemical that harm our river and sea. Fish will eat it and it become toxic for them. It harmful for environment and for us.

It is so sad to realize that this lifestyle is normal for us. We did it like they mean nothing. But, we make some impact here. And if we don't pay for it, our child, and the future generation will be the victim.