I often marvel at the amount of time that disposable items serve a purpose for us before we discard them. If it takes hundreds of years for plastics to break down , surely we would hope that the useful life of that plastic would reflect its slow decomposition rate. Sadly, if that were the case I probably wouldn't be writing this post. Plastic garbage bag - 2 weeks of collecting waste and then sent to landfill (out of a potential 23,464 weeks before decomposition) Plastic wrap - 1 week to hold your leftovers and then sent to landfill (out of a potential 23,464 weeks before decomposition) Balloon - 3 days (if your lucky) before it deflates and then sent to landfill (out of a potential 164,250 days before decomposition) Styrofoam cup - 30 mins to drink your coffee and then sent to landfill (out of a potential 236,500,000 minutes before decomposition) Plastic straw - 20 minutes to drink your beverage and then sent to landfill (out of a potential 236,500,000 minutes before dec...