Day 39: Cheese.

It's time to talk about cheese.

I didn't realize when I was giving up plastic that I would have to give up cheese! Had that been part of my original deal with myself, this whole project may never have happened. As you may know, I really love cheese.

I have looked in stores and delis across Portland and other parts of Maine, and scared and harassed several deli clerks with my strange demand of plastic-less cheese. There is essentially none to be found.

I figured I could go to a deli like Rosemont or somewhere, and get them to cut a piece off a big piece, and sell it to me in paper. But I discovered that due to health code, they would then have to re-wrap the entire hunk in new plastic afterward my sale. That defeats the purpose.

I found one, ONE cheese in foil at Hannaford, but it was a blue brie. Ick. Not really my scene.

Remember the little small wheels of cheese you used to buy as a kid in wax? Now they make them in wax, wrapped in plastic, in a plastic bag. BUMMER.

K. Horton's, in the new public market, really wanted to help. But it's all in plastic.

I could make my own, but the rennet and citric acid come in plastic!


And so, dear friends, I am basically cheese-less. I did find cream cheese that comes in cardboard and foil, which is nice, but not the sharp cheddar I need to make it through a week.

The irony is, cheese isn't even meant to be kept in plastic. It doesn't let the cheese breath, it is bad for it! But it is ALL in plastic. Why? Because people prefer to buy what they are seeing.

I am in search for a store in the woods somewhere that sells cheddar from a big cheese wheel under a glass display and will give me some without plastic. Until then, I am counting down the days until Lent ends and I can have some crackers and cheese.