Fighting the tide of plastic . . .

admittedly on a tiny scale but if everyone did it . . .



We have become slightly obsessed with second-hand yogurt-makers - they turn up at all junk emporiums and boot vide greniers, usually sporting a fine 1970s livery of orange/red/mustard, etc.
We have three now - a mid-yellow one that cost two euros in a local boot-sale, a large circular mustard-coloured one which is only suitable for really for large yogurt events (?) and our new find: orange-red, called SEB and fitted with a pleasing smoke-coloured plastic lid. This is definitely the best yet - a fine, even yogurt and just the right sized jars and it only cost THREE euros!
We haven't purchased yogurt in plastic pots for years now, and at a rough estimation, if we had, and had kept them all for some weird reason, there would be probably enough to fill the kitchen or at least the shed.
Having seen yet another distressing bit of film this morning about whale death due to plastic, one of the many, many answers is to make more stuff at home and buy less packaging - washing up stuff/shampoo etc, purchase 'loose' from bio shops, fizz-up tap-water with a soda stream and of course, the yogurt-maker - pint of milk (bio works best), a bit of the last yogurt to get it going, or a small sachet of 'culture powder' (wonder what other sorts of culture could be dried and reanimated) a minuscule bit of electricity and off you go . . .

Vide Grenier (car boot/garage sale) season

And we're off to a good start with this 1970s juicer in perfect working order and with a motor that sounds like it could operate a draw-bridge (think, or maybe don't) of the wood-chipper scene in Fargo . . . I asked the woman how much she wanted and she shrugged as only the French can "Beh . . . trois euro?" I asked if it worked and she eyed me in a friendly but defensive way, "Mais OUI!" It was a bit stupid to ask but I didn't want to lug home a giant piece of orange plastic to find out it would fuse the whole house.
And it didn't. We had fun with withered apples, celery and oranges and the machine duly dribbled out foamy and delicious juice, and deposited a nice brightly-coloured mulch of fibrous material in its box at the back which the chickens went mad over. Cleaning it was a challenge as the special 'key' was missing to demount the various bits but hero husband found a pair of scissors do the job admirably.

                            

Other Vide finds: the lad found found a vintage phone to take apart to make a microphone from (?) and I bought an ancient wooden rocker blotter with which to blot my inky drawings with - the total sum: seven euros for a nice stroll about and a chat with stall-holders.
The last stall had a rather lovely plaster Madonna (Jesus's mum . . . not singer). I asked how much she was but he shook his head: "Pas a vendre, Madame." Apparently, she has accompanied him for forty years as young and older market man; placed out on his tarpaulin along with his goods, overseeing his health and fortune.
Going back to the juicer, think I might approach the Guardian re doing a new column about OLD kitchen gadgets. I love Rhik Samadder's reportage, but I think we need info about vintage, unloved useable gadgets too . . .

P.S: scroll down to find my poet-materialism site which I don't have time to do much on - more old stuff-usage, etc, on there.