Do you regularly use disposable plates?

[TinklednPants]

Very surprised to see how many people eat off of paper plates and use plastic untensils somewhat regularly.
Personally, I won't eat off of a paper plate.

 

[AKL_Megs]

Very surprised to see how many people eat off of paper plates and use plastic untensils somewhat regularly.
Personally, I won't eat off of a paper plate.

Like NEVER? Like you'd starve first?

Do you eat at McDonalds? Do you eat at Disney World? You are eating off of a PIECE of paper at those places. Or, do you carry Corelle in your purse?

 

[mhsjax]

Like NEVER? Like you'd starve first?

Do you eat at McDonalds? Do you eat at Disney World? You are eating off of a PIECE of paper at those places. Or, do you carry Corelle in your purse?

Ok, now you own me a new computer, or at least a cleaning. I just spit my coffee out. that was classic.

 

[Rora]

We use it for pizza and other foods like that. Sometimes if I'm feeling lazy we'll just use paper regardless.

 

[mjkacmom]

You missed the going to the store to buy them regularly, taking out the garbage more, spending more in garbage bags, possibly dragging another garbage container to the curb, and for some of us going to the city and buying additional garbage tags.

Hmm - I put them on my weekly shopping list, so it's not like I'm taking an extra trip to the store for paper plates. I'm in and out of the house all day, my cans are next to my van, so no extra trips outside with garbage. The cans are 5 feet from the curb anyway, and one of the perks of having the highest property taxes in the country is the fact that we get twice a week pickup (once a week recyling pickup), with unlimited amounts we can put out.

And my 10 year old dishwasher required that you pretty much must clean the dishes before putting them in.

 

[scrapquitler]

But I don't get the people who say they run their dishwasher multiple times a day. I do that maybe twice a year. The rest of the time, it's four-five times a week. I ran it Saturday and Sunday and will not run it today. It will run tomorrow, probably not Wednesday, will run Thursday, etc. And I'm always feeding four people and sometimes five or six.

You must cook and use dishes a lot more efficiently than I do. I have four people at home, I cook breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks every day for four people (lunch for 3 only). I do use some paper plates. And I have to run the dishwasher at least once a day. It's actually more like 3 loads of dishes every two days. I probably do 10 or 12 dishwasher loads each week.

 

[goofy4tink]

We use paper plates for quick stuff....especially if there is only one person eating. I tend to use a paper plate for my sandwich lunch. Other than that...nope.
I just had to buy all new dinnerware. I was so thrilled to find exactly what I wanted....service for 8, in a white squarish bone china at a really good price!! Everyone likes them so much, the paper plates are being used a lot more slowly now!!!

 

[tlbwriter]

I can answer this from the stand point of my mil and fil. They are 87 and 85. Both have the hand shakes - BAD - and over the last 10 years, have dropped and broken/chipped the dishes they have had for 30+ years. This was causing my mil stress, upsetting herself because she couldn't control her shakeness. To ease this, we bought them the plastic dishes, thinking they would use them and throw them away.

But, having grown up during the depression, NOTHING was ever to be wasted and thrown out, so for them, washing and reusing those plastic bowls, plates and cups is not wasteful.

But there a nice, unbreakable plastic plates and drinkware that would solve this problem without washing cheap, flimsy, meant-to-be-used-once disposables.

Maybe it is southern thang, but bbq's don't get fancy tablecloths, candles and such. Guess it is where you are from. no one I know would serve hotdogs on anything but a paper plate.

Maybe that's why my SIL dug out the paper plates at my house - because she's from the south, and because we had grilled the pork chops. I can't stay it's a custom I'm thrilled about, having tried to eat a steak from a paper plate while sitting on the couch... it doesn't work!

 

[SaraJayne]

I had no idea either. We only buy them for birthday parties--and as often as not not even then. The environmental impact of so many people using them as a primary item must be enormous.

Which is why we only use them a few times a year. I can't imagine using paper plates/cups and PLASTIC silverware every day. Just thinking aobut it makes me shudder.

And I don't know about anyone else, but *my* hotdogs deserve their own REAL plates.

 

[mhsjax]

But there a nice, unbreakable plastic plates and drinkware that would solve this problem without washing cheap, flimsy, meant-to-be-used-once disposables.


Maybe that's why my SIL dug out the paper plates at my house - because she's from the south, and because we had grilled the pork chops. I can't stay it's a custom I'm thrilled about, having tried to eat a steak from a paper plate while sitting on the couch... it doesn't work!

Oh yeah, even I don't go that far. I do have some standards. lol

 

[mjkacmom]

Ok, I really don't care. You don't have to convince me. As I said, to each their own and I'm not getting all up in arms about it. I couldn't care less if you eat off of cardboard boxes or antique china.

I think I took offense to your use of the word "lazy." I do fondly remember my single days, living alone in my own apartment, and how blissfully easy meal preparation, cleaning, laundry, etc. were. I wouldn't trade my extremely hectic life for anything, but life before kids were my vacation years. My children give me great joy, but having 5 kids comes with a lot of grunt work.

 

[mhsjax]

I am just curious as to how a hotdog, (and we all know what is in them) actually deserves a real plate. Did it work hard for you, did you work hard for it. Last time I checked hotdogs were junk food. I don't think junk food deserves the time and effort of a "real" plate. But wait, if I am using it, I can touch it, and it holds my food, isn't it real, It isn't make believe, it really does exist. Therefor it must be a "real" plate.

 

[mhsjax]

I think I took offense to your use of the word "lazy." I do fondly remember my single days, living alone in my own apartment, and how blissfully easy meal preparation, cleaning, laundry, etc. were. I wouldn't trade my extremely hectic life for anything, but life before kids were my vacation years. My children give me great joy, but having 5 kids comes with a lot of grunt work.

Same here. I don't have 5 kids but I have 3. Anyone that lives alone or with 1 child or with a spouse only can't talk about it not taking any more time than real plates. Not with schedules the way they are, not with teenage boys.

My son probably eats every hour when he is at home. He is 14, somewhere between 5'9" and 5'10" and wears a 29 waist jeans. He is a teenager and he eats, he is an eating machine. When he makes himself a snack or a sandwich he uses paper plates, otherwise I would have anywhere form 5-10 plates a day from his alone. In my world, this isn't going to happen, I am way to busy for this.

I don't care what people use, but I use paper for certain things, I will always do this, my food doesn't"deserve" anything except to be enjoyed. and if someone can't enjoy a hotdog or hamburger on a paper plate, well then good thing they aren't friends with me.

 

[tlbwriter]

I am just curious as to how a hotdog, (and we all know what is in them) actually deserves a real plate. Did it work hard for you, did you work hard for it. Last time I checked hotdogs were junk food. I don't think junk food deserves the time and effort of a "real" plate. But wait, if I am using it, I can touch it, and it holds my food, isn't it real, It isn't make believe, it really does exist. Therefor it must be a "real" plate.

When I eat a hot dog, it's usually covered in chili and cheese. No way I'm eating that off a paper plate. And if it's not, it doesn't need a plate at all - I'll just wrap it in a napkin.

But really, it's not the food that deserves the plate. It's the diner who deserves the plate. I like to have a real plate, no matter what I'm eating. I don't care what anybody else likes to use. You can eat your food out of a cone made out of newspaper and it won't offend me (though I do have to laugh at people who are claiming disposables are more environmentally friendly). But I like me a real plate.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

< grew up in a house where real plates were used on Sunday. Paper was used every other day. We've used plastic cups for years but always real silverware... The switch mainly came from the ever present fights over dishes and took us from a 2 load a night family to 1 which solved most of the issues

I keep to the same code except I prefer plastic silverware as I don't eat at home much (free food at work) so the 1 spoon I generally use a day its easier to throw away

 

[SaraJayne]

I am just curious as to how a hotdog, (and we all know what is in them) actually deserves a real plate. Did it work hard for you, did you work hard for it. Last time I checked hotdogs were junk food. I don't think junk food deserves the time and effort of a "real" plate. But wait, if I am using it, I can touch it, and it holds my food, isn't it real, It isn't make believe, it really does exist. Therefor it must be a "real" plate.

I'm finding it amusing how much this topic upsets you. We're talking about dishes, not world peace.

I don't eat hot dogs, but yes, all of my other food deserves a "real" (ie, non-disposable) plate.

Interesting fact. Our neighbors across the street are a married couple and don't recycle. Our garbage is picked up every two weeks, our recycling every four.

Every single pick up day, their garbage container can't be shut, because it's so full. We are a family of 4 that recycles everything we can.

We currently have three bags of garbage in our can at the curb (today is pick up), four large clear bags of glass/plastic and four paper grocery bags filled with paper.

As I look across the street, they have no bags of recycling (either paper or plastic) and have a bag of garbage sitting NEXT to their 90 gallon container because it doesn't fit inside.

So yeah, anyone that says using all those disposable products doesn't have an impact is lying to themselves.

 

[3boymthr]

We hardly ever use paper, not even for camping. I'll even transfer take-out to my china before I eat it. but I did use some for a cub scout den meeting the other day so I voted only for picnics, etc.

Why don't I use paper:

1. I can't stand eating off of paper,
2. I have a ton of real china and I paid a lot for it so I'm going to use it.
3. I grew up using "real" plates because my parents were poor and couldn't afford paper so it's an ingrained habit.
4. I have to pay by the bag for my trash but recycling is free. Since in my town paper plates aren't recycle-able those plates add up.
5. If I had plastic dixie cups and forks etc I'd have to wash them so I could recycle them so where's the time/water savings?

Truthfully, I only know one person who uses disposable plates all the time - my MIL.

 

[mhsjax]

I'm finding it amusing how much this topic upsets you. We're talking about dishes, not world peace.

I don't eat hot dogs, but yes, all of my other food deserves a "real" (ie, non-disposable) plate.

Interesting fact. Our neighbors across the street are a married couple and don't recycle. Our garbage is picked up every two weeks, our recycling every four.

Every single pick up day, their garbage container can't be shut, because it's so full. We are a family of 4 that recycles everything we can.

We currently have three bags of garbage in our can at the curb (today is pick up), four large clear bags of glass/plastic and four paper grocery bags filled with paper.

As I look across the street, they have no bags of recycling (either paper or plastic) and have a bag of garbage sitting NEXT to their 90 gallon container because it doesn't fit inside.

So yeah, anyone that says using all those disposable products doesn't have an impact is lying to themselves.

o


If this topic is just upsetting to me, then why are you still on here explaining the perils of using paper plates. As they say pot meet kettle.

I get upset, because it has been implied that we paper plates users are lazy, and our food must not deserve real plates. God I loathe the Dis, I don't know why I am still on here.

 

[mhsjax]

I'm finding it amusing how much this topic upsets you. We're talking about dishes, not world peace.

I don't eat hot dogs, but yes, all of my other food deserves a "real" (ie, non-disposable) plate.

Interesting fact. Our neighbors across the street are a married couple and don't recycle. Our garbage is picked up every two weeks, our recycling every four.

Every single pick up day, their garbage container can't be shut, because it's so full. We are a family of 4 that recycles everything we can.

We currently have three bags of garbage in our can at the curb (today is pick up), four large clear bags of glass/plastic and four paper grocery bags filled with paper.

As I look across the street, they have no bags of recycling (either paper or plastic) and have a bag of garbage sitting NEXT to their 90 gallon container because it doesn't fit inside.

So yeah, anyone that says using all those disposable products doesn't have an impact is lying to themselves.

deleted. THis is SOOOOOOO stupid.

 

[NikitaZee]

I'm finding it amusing how much this topic upsets you. We're talking about dishes, not world peace.

I don't eat hot dogs, but yes, all of my other food deserves a "real" (ie, non-disposable) plate.

Interesting fact. Our neighbors across the street are a married couple and don't recycle. Our garbage is picked up every two weeks, our recycling every four.

Every single pick up day, their garbage container can't be shut, because it's so full. We are a family of 4 that recycles everything we can.

We currently have three bags of garbage in our can at the curb (today is pick up), four large clear bags of glass/plastic and four paper grocery bags filled with paper.

As I look across the street, they have no bags of recycling (either paper or plastic) and have a bag of garbage sitting NEXT to their 90 gallon container because it doesn't fit inside.

So yeah, anyone that says using all those disposable products doesn't have an impact is lying to themselves.

LOL - OT but I thought I was the only one who noticed my neighbors who don't recycle. I mention it now and then to my husband, who laughs and basically tells me to mind my own business. But I can't help noticing anyway!