Bottle Babies by Barbara Crowley
Barbara Crowley has spent a lifetime of creative writing for pleasure. She has written humorous poems for fun and profit. Liberty's Scrapbook is her debut novel. Revision 2 of Liberty's Scrapbook was released in August 2022.
Ms. Crowley dedicated the past ten years as a volunteer tutor for adult literacy. She spends much of her time gardening, reading or as a volunteer for Neuse River Writers.
Ms. Crowley lives in a small town in central North Carolina with her cat, Tulip.
Bottle Babies
An essay by Barbara Crowley
Do you remember toddler shaming? If you sucked your thumbs beyond toddlerhood, you were called a baby. Little kids also risked being taunted if they still drank milk, water or juice from a bottle or sippy cup. Does either situation strike a chord?
When I was a baby in the early 1950s, my parents were eager to wean me off the bottle. Our next door neighbors couldn’t seem to separate their youngest child from her sippy cup.
Those days of yore have seen a 180° reversal. Now, seemingly everyone buys their water by the case. It’s one cause of plastic waste that’s done irreparable harm to the oceans and wildlife. How did today’s adults get this way? Do they even care to care about their environmental footprint? Have we all become Adult Bottle Babies?
Whatever happened to drinking tap water by the – gasp! – glass? Unless your city water is known to be contaminated, I implore you to use tap water at home. Before you leave the house, fill a reusable vessel with your tap- or flavored-water.
What can we do about it? There’s no need to buy an expensive name brand reusable vessel. Simple, low-cost bottles are available just about everywhere; just be sure it’s BPA-free. This is how we can help preserve the environment and save money while doing it.
Check a box if you:
Know your town’s tap water is contaminated (i.e., Camp LeJeune or Flint, MI)
Think your tap water does not taste good (Is that a fact or an opinion?)
Are aware that plastic pollution is harming the planet
Are aware, but do not care, about the environment
Prefer the convenience of bottled water, regardless of the environmental costs
Always buy water by the six-pack or case for yourself or your family
Only buy water in bulk for meetings or special events
Occasionally buy individual bottles of water
Never buy bottled water
Based on your selections, which type of Adult Water Baby are you?
A water bottle recycler
A water bottle waster
Most of our purchasing choices are habitual. We just do it without thinking. A Google search answered my question, “How long does it take to develop (or undo) a habit?”
“The short answer: It depends.
One small study found that it takes, on average, 66 days for a new habit to stick, but even that research showed that the range among study subjects spanned from just 18 days to 254 days.”
Either way involves quite a time commitment. But rest assured that your water-buying habits can change.
So think about how you drink. Wean yourself away from bulk-buying bottled water. Instead, drink like an environmentally conscious adult by using a reusable bottle. No one will shame you for it.
