Monday, April 11, 2011

Loads of Crap

While doing research for this project on excess and things we have but don’t need. I began thinking about how much crap I have and how much I’ve thrown away, or given away and on occasion even tried to sell. I have 41 pairs of shoes, yes I counted. I think about these shoes and then I think about projects like Toms Shoes, where every pair bought another gets sent to a child in need. My shoes are not helping anyone, in fact they barely get warn due to how uncomfortable they are, which is even worse.

Another thing I came across was how much trash we produce due to how much stuff we have bought and the idea of recycling. Side note- Did you know that the Toyota Prius Hybrid is potentially doing more harm than good to the environment because of the way it’s produced. With just the ribbon we have thrown away each year we could have literally tied a bow around the earth. Realizing how unnecessary but ascetically pleasing ribbon is I go to my project. I want to make something from these things that we have an abundance of that are actually useless to our survival, whether I find these things that are still good in the trash or from my own collection of crap.

20 comments:

  1. This is something that always crosses my mind, but I still tend to overlook it, even when I really want something that I do not need. It all comes down to Wants vs. Needs. Sometimes wants DO become needs though.

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  2. We all have way too much stuff, that is definitely true. I liked your last statement - that you said you would find things in the trash or in your own collection. I think it's interesting to compare yourself and your 'collection of crap' with other people and their 'collection of crap'. I'm not talking upper class vs. poverty view on what's important and what isn't - I'm saying compare your collection with somebody who is just like you. Sometimes it is so different what we value! It might be interesting to explore that for your project.

    Also check out:
    www.foundmagazine.com

    It's an interesting look at what was mistakenly (or maybe not!) throw away/misplaced and found by someone else.
    [For some reason, the site is not currently working on my computer. Hopefully that's just my computer's problem - it's an awesome website.]

    They also have books:
    http://www.amazon.com/Found-Tossed-Forgotten-Items-Around/dp/0743251148/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1302574631&sr=8-2

    http://www.amazon.com/Found-II-Tossed-Forgotten-Around/dp/0743273079/ref=pd_sim_b_1

    You can 'look inside' a little on the second one.

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  3. I'd be interested to see what you can do to accomplish your project. I'm guessing it'll be printed on paper. But if there's some way you can either comment on that use of material, create your own paper, or find a way to use recycled material, I think it'd strongly support your position.

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  4. Interesting point on the Prius.

    I can't speak beyond America, but we are not a culture that willingly gives up the things. In Skokie, garbage is set in the alleys and when I go walking (yup, I walk for no reason at all) and I shudder and so much of the trash I see. I think about this being just a small piece of the country and there looks like so much trash. I worked last year for an estate liquidator and being an odd duck he would throw out some fantastic stuff, vintage stuff that was perfectly useable, I know because I would use it. Things like vintage table lamps, cabinets, office equipment. This really bothered me because I would have taken it and used it, but he didn’t just let us take stuff. We had to ask and he would start to get weird about us (the guys throwing all this out) taking things. My god, the waste, I would think. Whoops, slipping into rant mode.

    But I digress… I do that. I am interested to see how you take this topic in the direction of design. It will be interesting and absolutely topical to our world.

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  6. It does sometime cross my mind how much waste we have. The fact that there are literally miles of land specifically devoted for a place to put trash baffles me. But it's not just Americans, I remember seeing a documentary on India about the large economic gap and how people search through these plots of trash looking for useful things to sell or keep. I wonder how this project is all going to turn out for you.

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  7. What's even more messed up is the fact that most areas in the city (including my area) do not have the option to recycle! We used to have to keep our recycling and drive to to the closest neighboring city (evanston) but now thats not an option due to them closing their plant. Goodness.

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  8. http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/calculators/

    Above is a link to a site that allows you to take a quiz to figure out exaclty how harshly the earth is effected by one's personal lifestyle.

    Living in excess is definetly an issue, especially when considering the consumer driven society that we call America! A particular aspect that I find interesting is hoarding- perhaps a reason for all the build up of stuff is because we place too much emphasis on materialism and a good way to cut back is to really assess the difference between "wants" and "needs" from a practical standpoint

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  9. I know what you mean!but i love my shoes(haha!)but seriously, they might probably be trash at some point. Or at least the packaging they come in will be, and what really gets me--plastic! We use natural matter and turn it into something that the earth can never take back. It's even shocking for me to walk down the sidewalk and see cigarette butts, cans, wrappers, and other trash literally every two feet. we live in such a disposable society. We are so quick to throw something away as soon as something better comes out.

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  10. I come from a suburb and in my town we all do our best to recycle, when I moved to my apartment in Lincoln Park, I realized that there is no recycling at all and sadly I throw all of my garbage out together in one bag. I cringe every time I notice I'm throwing a can of pop or a plastic water bottle into my garbage instead of throwing it in recycling. Its something that I feel needs to be worked on in Chicago, maybe you can devise a plan on how people can recycle better in large cities like Chicago.

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  11. On the subject of cars and waste, I saw a news posting recently that Ford is going to start making formerly plastic car parts out of biodegradable mushrooms and other fungi.

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  13. On your point about the Prius, I've also seen research that argues the same about recycling. That recycling plants actually produce more pollution and harm than if the same items would go to the dump. It's hard to know which sources to trust sometimes. At this point, it almost seems like there aren't very many options to do good anymore. But back to your point. Excess. Totally. Especially in countries like America. Excess in food, clothing, cars, trash etc. I actually found the artist I was talking about in class that everyone should check out because he's pretty amazing:

    http://www.chrisjordan.com/gallery/rtn/#light-bulbs

    Make sure to click on the images to zoom in because they are enormous and you must see them close to understand the amount of detail. Really great comment on excess.

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  14. I have heard both arguments about the Prius and recycling. I actually heard about the recycling one almost five years ago from my Environmental science high-school teacher. Things about how recycling plastic is good but in the process of recycling it we release extremely harmful toxins. Its a lose lose situation. Of course, we don't really know if there is truth to these two arguments but it is definitely something to think about. I do feel that if the government took control and made recycling more accessible to the public in terms of having more recycling bins and such, it would help a lot. Lifestyle also has a lot to do with it too. I think things like that thing that filters water into four reusable water bottles (I see commercials all the time...I'm sure some of you know what I am talking about) is a good invention. It is an attempt to be more environmentally friendly but still thinking about how it can be integrated into our current lifestyles.

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  15. I think your project is really interesting and makes me think about the things that I take for granted.

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  16. http://www.chrisjordan.com/gallery/rtn/#light-bulbs

    My god...it's full of stars. I mean, light bulbs.

    I've heard the arguments for the harmfulness/inefficiency of recycling for the environment, and the idea of it is disheartening. I think it's because we want to feel that the stuff we throw away is being reused somehow, so that we don't feel so bad about throwing it away. It's a psychological thing, basically. It seems that a lot of steps that we're taking to try and be more efficient/environmentally-friendly are only ending up hurting the environment, but I guess that's just a price we have to pay for trying to find something that will be sustainable in the long run.

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  17. I remember reading an article about how a new hybrid car is actually more harmful to the environment than a very expensive, and completely unnecessary Ferrari. The reasoning was because whoever owns the Ferrari most likely will not be driving it everywhere, therefore less gas pollution is caused by the Ferrari and the hybrid will most likely be the main form of transportation for the owner, using up more energy. But my whole point about it was that whoever owns the Ferrari while they might not be driving it all the time, I'm sure they are driving something else the other half so they actually are more harmful.

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  18. When I went to Mexico this August I stayed with family members of different economic statuses. And even with all that I experienced what 'excess' meant to some people. However, I feel that here in the U.S we value ownership too much. In Mexico people were still materialistic too, but they cared more about being outdoors and enjoying the outdoor activities. Here we are always trying to find ways to not leave. For example, I saw a commercial for stamps "so you never need to to go the post office again". I didn't know that going there was a problem, but it's just an example of how we put a lot of value on being so lazy and wanting things we don't need.

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  19. I agree with Nina on the fact that it is difficult to know what sources to trust. I think living as eco-friendly as you can is important and is a mind set (at least for me) that needs to be kept always in our heads (not at the back), whether shopping for groceries or how to get to class the fastest in the morning. Will I really eat all this food? Or is it worth the cab ride to get there on time?

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  20. I'm more than happy to contribute some of my 'crap' as well!

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