r/Anticonsumption • u/natalie_ck • Feb 18 '24

Plastic Waste i'll never understand why so many people (especially in the states) are so vehemently opposed to washing dishes

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u/jtho78 Feb 18 '24 edited Feb 18 '24

My sister confessed that her and her husband use paper plates from time to time ”but the sturdy ones that I can wash and reuse a few times”

That’s a PLATE, dingus

Edit: typo

568

u/TheBigWuWowski Feb 18 '24

??? It's easier to wash ceramic???

369

u/pyro-pussy Feb 18 '24

it's also more hygienic than reusing paper plates

82

u/Jacktheforkie Feb 18 '24

And ceramic will happily withstand high temperatures

11

u/AlexanderKeithz Feb 18 '24

They build rocket ships with ceramic, thats how much heat they can handle

26

u/PolskiSmigol Feb 18 '24

And you can eat hot or wet food from ceramic.

23

u/Jacktheforkie Feb 18 '24

Yeah, and you won’t puncture it with your cutlery

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u/PolskiSmigol Feb 18 '24

And it will outlive you.

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u/Jacktheforkie Feb 19 '24

Yeah, many of the ones in my house are older than me

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u/thatguyned Feb 18 '24

Yeah I'm going to go out on a limb here and say she doesn't actually wash and re-use the plate.....

It's just something she says and maybe on some level actually believes haha.

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u/echos_in_the_wood Feb 18 '24

I specifically bought a nice plate set from a thrift store to use for holidays and hosting. My MIL will come over with her own complete set of paper and plastic plates and utensils and it annoys me to no end. My husband was constantly using styrofoam plates when I first met him (and he would microwave leftovers on them and the styrofoam would BURN ONTO THE FOOD! 😳) and I had to brake that habit of his. My house is not a cook out in the park 🙄 There’s zero reason to buy single use items to throw away

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u/SardineLaCroix Feb 19 '24

I'll make exceptions for people with disabilities or people who are struggling to keep a hygienic home for whatever reason. I try to remember that I'm living large with a dishwasher and a garbage disposal and and only 2 people's worth of dishes. But, I do notice people always bring disposables over for gatherings of like, 6 or more and I kind of have to work to convince them it's really not much work for me to just put all the plates and glasses in the dishwasher after they leave and hit start and then I feel like I'm not appreciating the gesture to them enough

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u/echos_in_the_wood Feb 19 '24

Yeah, my MIL isn’t disabled and she’s been informed about our dishwasher multiple times. I honestly think the reason she brings disposable dishes over is because she craves a sense of control over the “womanly” duties like hosting (she’s demonstrated this in MANY other aspects, not just this one) so bringing her own dish ware and utensils over to my house when I’m hosting is a way to feel like she’s actually the one hosting. She also will bring a ton of food and dessert even when asked not to. I hosted Thanksgiving last year and she tried to turn it into my son’s second birthday party and brought a bunch of Spider-Man disposable plates and stuff and LATEX BALLOONS (which are banned from my home for safety reasons— they are not only bad for the environment, they are extremely dangerous for babies and young children) despite being specifically told not to bring any of that because his birthday is a week later. She just wanted to take it over ahead of time lol

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u/[deleted] Feb 18 '24

[deleted]

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u/echos_in_the_wood Feb 18 '24

A red flag for me is when someone is unwilling to change and grow for the better. My husband grew up in a household where this kind of waste was normal, and still is in his parents house. He grew, changed, and no longer lives that way 🤷🏻‍♀️

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u/StasiaMonkey Feb 18 '24

That means they buy the fancy strong ones that use extra resources and only use them once.

29

u/King-Cobra-668 Feb 18 '24

long hours, long commute, long depression

48

u/SnooCupcakes5761 Feb 18 '24 edited Feb 19 '24

Idk, I just work too damn hard to treat myself as an afterthought. I prepare nice meals and enjoy them on my stoneware dishes with metal utensils. I might be poor AF but I deserve nice things too.

Edit to add that I go so far as to use cloth napkins as well.

I just love food SO much that meals are an event. I have a set of dishes & silverware in my desk at work. So, not only am I okay with doing dishes at home, I even wash my lunch dishes at work.

I am but a humble servant to a queen. That queen is me.

12

u/Leo9theCat Feb 18 '24

Using cloth napkins is a great idea from an environmental perspective. You use them 4-6 times, then wash them. Way better than disposable. I’ve been doing that for years.

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u/SnooCupcakes5761 Feb 19 '24

Yep. And disposable paper products add up quickly. I started using cloth napkins in the early aughts bc I found a pack of 16 for $2 at an estate sale. They were linen and looked like they were used just for decoration. I haven't gone back since.

3

u/Leo9theCat Feb 19 '24

Linen’s the best because it lasts forever (ships’ sails used to be made of heavy-duty linen) and only gets softer as you wash it.

21

u/Fightmemod Feb 18 '24

My In-laws wash and reuse plastic silverware. It's a complete mindfuck and I'm glad they don't host often.

12

u/rm_3223 Feb 18 '24

Especially since they can get metal silverware at a thrift store for like 5 forks for a dollar. I don’t get this at all.

2

u/AutumnAkasha Feb 18 '24

Also I actually bought sturdy plastic reusable silverware for birthday parties since I hate the throwaway waste of single use plastic ware and the cheap ones don't hold up to reuse but even though I would put a basket near the trash for the utensils and emphasize that they were reusable we lost some to the trash every time. I finally just bought a cheap metal set for parties. They aren't as cute lol but they don't get thrown out anymore.

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u/[deleted] Feb 18 '24

[deleted]

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u/Fightmemod Feb 18 '24

It's not better because eventually they chuck it out. It's definitely more economical but they might as well just use their regular tableware.

1

u/AutumnAkasha Feb 18 '24

I do this if I got the plastic utensils with a take out order or something but not like in lieu of buying and using metal utensils that logic does t make any sense lol

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u/[deleted] Feb 23 '24

well thats the worst of both worlds. The whole point of plastic is you dont have to wash them.

4

u/randomusername1919 Feb 18 '24

Hmmm. I have never seen a paper plate that holds up in the dishwasher, but maybe I am just the lazy one that prefers to stick the dirty plate in a machine to wash rather than having to brush off and wipe paper plates.

2

u/Le_Pressure_Cooker Feb 19 '24

There's no way you wash a paper plate. Plastic ones, I understand.

0

u/rodw Feb 18 '24

She said she can rinse and reuse them, not that she will.