Recycling
Posted: Fri 7 October, 2005 Filed under: Domestic, General, Green 1 Comment »Over the course of this year, I’ve got more and more into recycling and general Green stuff. I’ve always been into it to a degree, but I found that while living in Manchester it was something that was seriously difficult to do, as there were no decent local recycling banks, and the paper-recycling collection was – well, sporadic, to say the least. In fact, there was little to no chance to recycle stuff while I lived there – something I hope has changed a bit now, but while I was there it was definitely difficult to do.
Since moving to Bracknell though, it’s become a lot easier. First of all, the council actually do a regular collection of recyclable stuff, and just that simple fact makes it all a lot easier. We can get rid of all our cardboard, paper, and plastics in this way, and they collect once a fortnight. On the alternate weeks, they do a “garden waste” collection, which goes off to be composted – although they charge for the bags in which to put the waste, which always strikes me as a bit of a scam, considering the amount we’re already paying for council tax, which includes rubbish collection. Still, we don’t use that one that much, as most of our garden waste goes back on the compost heap anyway.
Herself is also a fairly avid recycler and so on, so the garden already had a serious compost heap (well, one of the plastic compost bins, which then ended up being two bins as one was always full, and has now become a proper heap in its own container) where most of the garden waste and raw food waste went (veg peelings and the like) and the basic stuff was already in place, containers for the plastics, papers, etc., so in that way as well it’s now a lot easier to do the recycling stuff than before.
Of late, we’ve also been watching the BBC series “No Waste Like Home“, which has made for interesting viewing, and helped to show just how much people in general chuck away that can be recycled.
As a result, we’ve also just bought a wormery from a company called Wiggly Wigglers (I swear I’m not making this up) which will also help on breaking down food waste (both cooked and raw) into decent compost. We set it up last night, and so far it’s all looking pretty good.
I’m sure there’ll be more posts about this kind of thing as time goes on, so I’m also going to add in a new category, just titled “Green”.
Dubious
Posted: Tue 4 October, 2005 Filed under: General 2 Comments »Why is this news?
Sometimes the sheer triviality of the cult of “celebrity” leaves me utterly cold, and more than slightly befuddled.
WW
Posted: Tue 27 September, 2005 Filed under: Geeky, General, Thoughts 2 Comments »Today’s post contained a serious goodie – well, two goodies if you count the photos from the weekend’s Murder Mystery Party.
But no, the main goodie came from Amazon, that I’d (almost) forgotten I’d ordered – Season Six of “The West Wing“, which hasn’t even made it onto E4 yet over here, let alone Channel 4. Yes, I could’ve downloaded the episodes, and watched them after they came out, and I could even do the same with the current Season Seven, but I either keep forgetting, or can’t be arsed – I know it’ll come out over here as a box-set, so why hurry and then have to wait even longer?
Still, it does mean we’ve got plenty to watch over the oncoming darker nights.
And yes, I suppose I could/should wait ’til my birthday for this kind of thing when it’s come out barely a month before, but well, some things can’t wait. The West Wing is one of them. Sad, but true.
Oh Bugger
Posted: Wed 14 September, 2005 Filed under: General 1 Comment »I hate forgetting friend’s birthdays – it’s a silly thing, but it really annoys me wen I realise I’ve done it.
Mind you, “Sorry, I was in Amsterdam” is, as these things go, a bit of a better excuse than just “Bollocks, sorry, I forgot”. Well, I think so, anyway. No idea whether they’ll feel the same though.
Yowch
Posted: Fri 9 September, 2005 Filed under: General 4 Comments »I saw this a while back, but thought I’d delay the post, just for the hell of it really.
I defy any male to read this story about a controversial “anti-rape” female condom without wimpering slightly. The picture in the story doesn’t help much either.
The device, concealed inside a woman’s body, hooks onto a rapist during penetration and must be surgically removed.
Ms Ehlers said the rape trap would be so painful for a rapist that it would disable him immediately, enabling his victim to escape; but would cause no long-term physical damage and could not injure the woman.
Personally I think it’s a good idea, but all the same, ouchy.
Gated Community
Posted: Thu 1 September, 2005 Filed under: Domestic, General Leave a comment »Earlier in the year, we started work to sort out the garden, primarily by splitting it in two, and making one half “dog-friendly” while letting the other half end up with decent grass and “human-friendly”. It’s been a fairly hefty process, involving two tons of gravel for the dog-friendly half (it’s easier to pick the dog-shite off gravel than it is in grass), a skip for removing all the turf from that half, putting in fencing to divide it all up, and some other stuff.
Over the summer we kind of took a break from it, but while we’re away next week we’ve got a friend who’s going to finish things off – stuff like putting in a new gate within the fence, which’ll finish off the divider between grass and gravel. He’s also going to do some other odds and sods – finishing off edging the flower beds with railway sleepers, that kind of thing.
Anyway, yesterday it suddenly occurred to us that with all this happening, and with us being away as of tomorrow, we’d really best buy the gate that’s going to be fitted. And of course then get a 6′ by 3′ iron gate home. In a Ford Focus.
We managed it – pure comedy, and some creative organisation/positioning, and lo, we now have a gate.
Vroom
Posted: Thu 25 August, 2005 Filed under: General, Travel 2 Comments »Yes, the new car got picked up last night – and very nice it is, too. And just in time too, as Herself is away to Somerset this weekend to help the charity we work with. They’re doing a “holiday weekend” which should be fun.
And I get to look after Hound.