My New Sofa

摘要

After a long wait, my new sofa has finally arrived. Some visitors to our home might have mistakenly thought that we were holding onto our uncomfortable twenty-year old sofa because of an emotional connection to its faded leather and deformed cushions. In reality, we had wanted to get rid of it ever since we discovered that the cushions contained polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) at several percent by mass, but we had been unable to do so because it had been impossible to purchase furniture in California that had not been treated with chemical flame retardants. Thanks to a policy change made in 2013, furniture manufacturers are now allowed to sell flame retardant-free furniture. Believe me: a sofa is a lot more comfortable when you no longer have to worry that it might be exposing you and your loved ones to a persistent organic pollutant.