Random fact #51

Today I realized I can't write barefooted. Whenever its time to dig into it, I get up, put on flip-flops or sandals or slippers, then sit back down and open up the word documents and get to it.

I have no explanation for it.

I got a letter from the government the other day, I opened and read it, it said they were suckers

Aquafina is tap water, and now they have to label it as such.

I buy bottled water on occasions -- during road trips, when I'm out on my bike and I forgot a water bottle, summer outdoor activities when dehydrated -- but for the most part, I drink public water. It is the most ethical choice for me, personally, to make sure the majority of the water I consume comes out of a tap. Because bottled water: 1) produces large amounts of unnecessary plastic waste; 2) furthers the gaps between those with privilege¹; and, 3) as the study above shows, is paying extra money to big corporations to drink out of the tap anyway.

I'm not anti-filtration systems, either on spouts or in pitcher forms. I am slightly less bothered by water coolers. I am anti-hundreds of disposable plastic bottles of fake fancy water. And actually, I know lots of people who buy cases of individual bottle water and these are people I know and love and I never say anything because everyone has the right to make their own choices. Plus, it would be annoying to hear me prattle on pretentiously about politics whenever someone generously offers me a beverage while I'm visiting their home. But these are the things that go through my mind on a consistent basis and inform my own daily life.

I don't think this is just my fascination with Peak Oil Survival talking here.....water rights is a big unaddressed issue and connects lots of ideas, like public access to utilities, private ownership, renewable resources, economies in developing countries, capitalist consumption, truth-in-advertising, etc. Ok, ok, I guess water is my 'crackpot issue' -- the one Issue to Unite Them All. I should start writing my weekly letters to the editor now.


¹: Is the water "bad" in your area? Then I believe its better to do something about it in a way that helps everyone -- pay attention to who's on the water commission, write letters, join watchdog groups, call the EPA, whatever. Because maybe some of us can afford to spend extra money on buying drinking water on top of paying the water bill, but not everyone in your community can afford that, so if everyone with money starts buying outside and no one does anything about the public supply, guess who gets left behind? The people who already have fewer resources anyway, including kids.