I like to think of myself as green, but apart from plastic bags, here’s a partial list of the things I use and see around me , which have plastic in them…the list goes into the hundreds each day. I started with the morning and moved through the day:

My bedside lamp. Toothbrush/Toothpaste tube. My “home” slippers. A lot of items in my kitchen…spatulas, jars, containers The containers of all my cosmetics, my combs My mobile phone, my earphones and my bluetooth device All the electrical/electronic devices at home (refrigerator, television, modem, laptop, wires, and so on) Since I don’t want to use leather, all my handbags/backpacks, luggage, and shoes/sandals My umbrella All the electrical switches Parts of all kinds of motorized vehicles and cycles, too My timekeeping gadgets: watches, clocks in the home My water bottles The packets of various food items, snack items and sweets The covers of magazines that are delivered or sold So many components of the public transport that I use Reflectors on the road, advertisement banners, sheets used as shelters

I stop at this point, as the list seems unending. Plastics are here to stay, and we cannot be hypocritical and say, “Ban plastic”. I don’t think it’s possible…it’s too useful and cheap material. We can only try to regulate its use.