I want to smell like I'm not destroying the environment, actually.

Whew--such a title for a little observation! I'm sorry, I just have a kvetch about deodorant. I use it, you, probably use it, millions of people are using it. And thank you, all, really. You should. I mean, we humans put out a funk. I do not need to smell funky people wherever I go, and I know you don't, either. I use deodorant so I am no more funky than my natural wit and and deliberate pose of hip/cool/'n'withit allow me to be. I recognize the importance of pheromones, but I'd rather come across as a cool mountain breeze or the olfactory equivalent. My "realness" has a definable limit.

But I found myself thinking about how the deodorant packaging works--or doesn't work, in terms of waste and refuse. I have a personal grudge against needless rubbish, and it seems like deodorant packaging is, well, kind of rubbish-y. You get, generally, something short of 3 oz of product, in a plastic thing with a lid, a dial to push the product up, a little screw mechanism--take a good hard look at your deodorant tube. It's kind of weird. I mean, it does usually deliver the product in a convenient way--although I have had packages of deodorant that were supposed to dial up a useful gel but the little dial did't work--and so I had to squeeze, but of course, it wasn't designed for squeezing, so a good deal of product was simply wasted. But is it really necessary?

I like gels, myself. I am not a big fan of solids, because of the white residue issue and they feel "gummy" to me. And I have not used an aerosol since the 80's, when the word "chloroflourocarbon" was first explained to me. But at least the aerosols came in recylable aluminum. Solids and gels come in these plastic push-up things. And cost a bit, really, for a staple of our hygeine.

I wonder if it would not be possible for deodorant manufacturers to utitize a less sexy, but way more environmentally less impactful packaging. Like a jug, with a pump, made of recyclable plastic, in a quantity of, say, a liter--seriously (no, I kid--say a good 8 oz). People use this stuff everyday--maybe twice a day if they are going somewhere good. So you squirt a smidge of deodorant in your hand, like you would a liquid soap or an antibacterial handwash. Swab the pitties. And maybe you used a little more product, but you have a little less packaging, and the saving in packaging might reduce cost?

Maybe? (Or whatever--the test would be in offering the package change, and advertising what the landfill difference would be. Either people are turned on by getting a bulk amount of product they regularly use at a decent price, or they love the wasteful little plastic tubes at a higher price. It's a reasonable consumer test.)

This is the kind of weird thoughts I have whilst swabbing my pits. I know it's probably dumb, but I have considered my rubbish footprint, and it is...definitely wider by some tubes of deodorant. I want my pitty swab more, better, smarter, and in a recyclable jug.