Way out here in da country, we burn a lot of our non-recyclable trash in our burn barrel. Today’s “Musings from the Burn Barrel” episode is about the difference between burning paper and burning styrofoam. I know, you’re not supposed to BURN styrofoam – well, I don’t make it a habit, but last night it was a bit necessary. Anyway, fire from paper (like old paper plates, etc.) is that lovely orange and yellow color and the smoke is light greyish. However, fire from styrofoam is a sickly red-orange color and the smoke is a horrible BROWN color. If you ever needed any convincing of why styrofoam is not necessarily the best thing ever invented, just burn some of it and you’ll see. And no… I didn’t breathe in. But I did learn even more appreciation for the friendly fire in our wood-burning stove!