I guess I could format this post in a "Cheers and Jeers" style, but that seems a little clichéd. See I was replacing the ink cartridge in my HP J5780 printer (which is a fine unit, I might add). So on the one hand I was miffed that the "starter" ink cartridge was so tiny. But to my surprise I discovered that the replacement cartridge came with a prepaid return envelope for sending the empty cartridge back to HP.

Recycling cartridges isn't anything new. Office stores have been doing that for a long time. They refill them with ink and sell them to you again (at outrageous prices). But what is impressive is that HP took a step to make it so darn easy. I'll shamefully admit that I've never recycled my cartridges before because I just never remember. I rarely go to office stores and even then I never remember to take the empties. So they just end up in the trash, which isn't good. This obviously is better.

The one question I have though is whether shipping this cartridge to Nashville, Tennessee is better for the environment than either A) sending it to the local landfill or B) dropping it off at the local Staples and sending a whole bunch of cartridges to Nashville. I imagine B is more efficient, but I'm not sure about A. But since I lack the resources and/or willpower to research it, I'll just send off this old cartridge in this handy dandy green envelope and assume that I'm helping the planet. Helps me sleep better at night, you know.