Sometimes even I sweep some things under the ‘green carpet.’ However, I’m going come out (ha!) and admit that i’ve been having a hard time giving up the disposable cup. While for more than a year I have been proudly disposable water bottle free when I go out to eat at my three core quick service food establishments: Panera, In-N-Out, Chipote …I always leave with a disposable cup.

I’ve argued that since the cups are usually made of paper it can’t really be that big of a deal. But that is a lie. Think about it. Not only is there a cup, there is a plastic top and a straw, every time. At Panera, they still even use polystyrene cups (although recently I’ve seen paper ones as featured above). I cringe every time I get a soft drink there.

What is the solution?

My handy dandy Nalgene bottle. Honestly, I’ve wanted to do this for a while but just didn’t want to have to deal with the awkwardness of explaining to the casher that I do want soda but I don’t want his/her cup. Well, it’s about time to just get over it. I’m already socially awkward, so one more awkward moment isn’t going to hurt me.

To improve the quality of your daily experience with the world, I will keep track of what establishments will allow you to purchase drinks without collecting a disposable cup!