Now, just before I encountered that lovely display mess described above, I headed over to Kroger to drop off three months' worth of empty bottles. While waiting the customary 15 minutes for my turn, my thoughts turned to the friend who was actually responsible for bringing the bottle return option to Michigan, and hence, the country.
Michiganders around my area know the name Pam Frucci well. She is a top environmental activist, proud of using the old New England proverb: "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without." One of her most interesting traditions was sending the same recycled Christmas card to a certain friend of hers every year, inscribing a new message for the year wherever there was space. The friend would do the same in kind. I actually attempted to do this a few years ago, but she never caught on to my plan.
Additionally, when her cars finally break down, she takes them to the local "auto smash" and watches them being made into a hot steel liquid that can be recycled for use in a new automobile. I really believe this is a good idea to do to all cars, once the most useful spare parts are removed.
Recycling is first & foremost on her agenda, and she single-handedly speared Michigan's 1976 "bottle bill" that turned bottles into instant cash for the handlers. However, I can still remember when all bottles were labeled "No Deposit, No Return". These excess bottles were actually more fun to get rid of when I was younger, as the Krogers of the day had a huge manual conveyor where you placed the six-pack carton of bottles, and pushed it down the track from the other side. I loved doing this, especially when the carton had a long way to go, and would finally make contact with something, or else fall off & break.
Pam recently commented that although the original bill went a long way, she'd like to see it applied to water & fruit juice bottles. I couldn't agree more. These bottles are made of plastic, just like the pop bottles I recycled today. Why does the liquids inside them determine whether or not they can be recycled?
Additionally, I spent seven years working with her on over 100 different local cable TV shows - her name was a household word. I really enjoyed working with her, and wish she still had her shows on. Ironically, the order for her to stop the shows came from me, but this was due to a job decision I needed to make when I was a TV coordinator.
She is 73 and is still active as ever. Pam always pops into my mind whenever empty bottles get scooped out of my trunk, and that's a good sign for all Michiganders. Measly self-profit aside, it's doing wonders for an environment we've been accused of not protecting enough.
