Free Stuff

Yesterday my family headed over the the 2008 Global Green Expo at Liberty State Park to learn all about conservation, organic farming, recycling and the many, many things we can all do to make the world a better place.  I thought it would be a great way to introduce these things to my kids... and learn a few things myself.  And I guess it did some of that. 

Benjamin learned about composting; though he was more excited about the "pet worms" he was allowed to take home.  The girls nibbled some organic snacks, checked out the horseshoe crabs, and slathered on samples of chemical free lotions scented with essential oils.  We stopped into the Children for Children (www.childrenforchildren.org) tent and decorated our own reusable shopping bags and helped paint a community mural.  

But then there was the "expo mentality".   All the free stuff they give out so that you'll stop at every booth.  And, for some reason, we all seem to get caught up in collecting it all.  Because it's free.  

At any other expo I suppose it would seem perfectly normal to grab whatever beach ball, refrigerator magnet and mouse pad  that was offered.  But this was supposed to be about limiting waste and clutter and garbage that will end up in landfills.  I mean, really, do we really need another plastic frisbee (even if it was made from recycled bottles)?  It was a little alarming watching people loaded down with shopping bags, grabbing stacks of coloring books and coasters and plastic water bottles and starlight mints.  And yet I also found myself thinking "we could always use more pens in the office".

That said, it was nice to go to an event where organic veggie and chicken wraps were offered.  But we had to laugh when we saw the line for hot dogs and Philly cheese steaks.  Ahhh... ain't that America...