Well, anyone who knows me personally knows that I take things pretty calmly and think my own way. Today, a small, inconspicuous thing managed to get me to take off! A trivial placemat that you put under your plate to make it look pretty and avoid spill accidents and red wine drips.

Where do I start? I think with this textile sign on the back:

This is the logo for the international Oeko-Tex Standard 100, which this article complies with. It was manufactured in India.

These are the washing instructions. It says: 1) do not wash, 2) do not tumble dry, 3) do not bleach and 4) do not iron.

"Hello Miss, can you please explain how to wash this placemat?" Answer: "Not at all, it's ecologically produced." -

"And how do you get it clean?" - "Not at all, it is thrown away after use." - Pause.

"Do you think it's a good idea to produce something in an exemplary eco-social way in India, cart it several thousand kilometers to Europe, use it there a few times, not be able to clean it and then simply throw it away? After all, this simple pad costs €3.50 (the equivalent of NZD 5.50)." - "Yes, that's on purpose, so that no detergent gets into the environment." -

"Even if I only want to clean it with lukewarm water?" - "Yes, that saves water consumption."

I returned the table mat to its place and left the store, deep in thought and with a palpable, rising resentment. I don't think we need table mats and would rather keep on spilling.

And I think something had gone really wrong somewhere, or was about to. 🤔