Red Solo Cup

Red Solo cup, I fill you up, lets have a party!  Now this song has been stuck in my head most of the day because another cup topic has been on my mind.  I’m talking about reusable coffee cups.  Over the years I have tried to become more mindful about my footprint so I switched to reusable water bottles two years ago.  This was because I drink copious amounts of water (usually over 80oz a day) and I noticed the encroaching amount of empty plastic water bottles in my car building up.  So I went to Costco and got a nice and nifty reusable water bottle with a clip so I could hang it off my purse to carry everywhere.  How proud I feel to cut down my use of plastics! Just call me Captain Planet, you know, without the greenish blue skin and that poor fifth kid who only got ‘heart’ as his power, total rip! But I digress…

Despite my pride in using reusable water bottles, I have realized I am still polluting the planet in a BIG way everyday and several times to boot!  Now those who know me or recently read my Timmies blog, know I am a huge coffee lover.  If it came in an I.V. I’d be the first to sign up!  Now this coffee love affair usually has me buying 2, 3 and sometimes even more coffees a day.  That’s quite a few cups over the course of a week and a hell of a lot in a year!

So let’s break down the average coffee cup!  Most of us believe it is paper and therefore recyclable, WRONG!  It is paper, but lined with wax or plastic liners to keep the coffee from bleeding through the cup (though not always effective.)  The lid is plastic and therefore not recyclable in most cities because of its recycle number (I think its 6.)  Finally at some coffee places you receive a cardboard sleeve to keep your hand from being scalded.  Extremely useful, but still another piece of trash.  So this is my vow, to buy a reusable coffee cup! Go Captain Planet!  

Yeah… not as easy as it sounds.  Never mind how weird some of them look.  I mean really, how could you possible think a skinny, reusable mug that’s over 12” tall is a good idea.  Aside from the esthetics, I have a problem with functionality.  I like coffee, it isn’t a secret, so I need a reusable mug that holds an extra large and one that will fit in my cup holder.  Simple request, yes??  Wrong again. This is like asking for world peace apparently.  Every reusable coffee cup I’ve seen falls short of holding an XL by about 4oz, that’s HALF a cup my American friends.  Frustrating?  Why yes it is.  I don’t need to buy more coffee just to fulfill my normal daily intake because my cup doesn’t hold it, plus I am paying for these 4oz but not getting them.  Granted most coffee places give you a discount for using your own cup, but secretly I think it’s a push between what you lose and what you save.  Also, what is with these handles?  I understand the purpose of handles, they’re very helpful, but not when they go so far down the cup as to obstruct its seating in the cup holder.  I am curious to know if people who design these cups actually drink coffee, because they need to up their doses.  So readers, I am at a loss.  If you have any suggestions please let me know.  Who knows, maybe I just need to carry around a Red Solo cup.  And fill it up.  Let’s have a party!  Damn song is like the plague…