It's STILL tough and not getting better - so how are we coping?

thriftmonster

Morning all,

Congratulations to Gailey and to Taplady's ds2.

Hugs to Kezlou, Naranbankeater and anyone else who needs one. Sammykaye - can you get a kip in whilst Ben is at school?
Finger crossed for Taplady's ds1 - at the very least it's great experience for the CV. One girl I worked with got into radio via volunteering on hospital radio shows - don't know if that's an option.

Can't really comment on the population thing as I have the "standard" 2 kids - would have liked 3 but dh wsn't keen and to be fair, I hate being pregnant. But I agree with the idea that large families don't seem to me to consume the same amount of resources as a strict multiple as smaller families. I know quite a few families with 4 kids (seems more common here in NI) and they certainly don't have every child in a separate bedroom etc.

I also agree with the building on currently derelict sites. There is a house near here which has been derelict since we moved in 12 years ago and it's being renovated ATM and it makes me so happy to think that it will be brought back into use to house people. Our house was in a terrible state when we bought it and at the time I said to dh that it wanted us to buy it to bring it back from the brink. Of course he thinks I'm mental.:D

Interesting fact on the population - dh works with a lot of Chinese and some of them were telling us that if as an academic, you worked outside China for more than two years, you were legally allowed a second child |(to fit into Western culture??). Hence a lot of Chinese academics tried to fit in at least two years in the US or Europe to have that option. I don't know how true it is but it's certainly interesting both as government policy and for individual choice.

kezlou

Hmm interesting discussions and lots of various ideas associted with them.
I believe we are currently headed towards or are currently in the "bottleneck" theory, this terminology is where it descrobes al spieces of life i.e from grass to humans etc.
The basic idea is throughout periods of Earth history they are strands which thin out and expand. During the thinning out species die,mass extinction, strange weather, etc. Apparently according to some historians and ecologists this happened during the dark ages with the black plague. species died out, mass death due to illness.After the lifting of the plague population expanded, species re-surfaced.
The suggestion of the bottle neck is currently being suggested because of the mass extinition of certain reptiles and ammphibians, tsunami's which are becoming for fericous, new and/or addtional variations of diseases spreading.

Right now according astrologists and scientists were currently in a period of global dimming, this means the sun outputting less rays over earth and may last a period of 10 years. Patrick Moore spoke extensively about the topic on the programme he presents called the "sky at night". So this actually coincides with the instances of the dark ages, i.e plague,crops dying.

Recycling - we try and recycle everything out council will take. We put out about 1 black bag a week in the communal bins. Me and my partner have religiously taught the boys now how to recycle. So they wash they plastic pots out themselves and put them in the recycling bag, tins in the box. you name it they do it. Shame the collections are only every fortnight as we have to store it in the house.
I personally think people should be fined for NOT recycling. My mother doesn't recycle, they is only her, my brother and a dog in her house and she puts out 2 wheelie bins. I told her to her face i'd fine you for doing that. She just laughed at me and said its good job your not in power then.
People can't understand why me and OH stripped down a mattresses, old appliances, when the council take them whole. Our response well its better to break it down otherwise it just gets shot in the landfill otherwise.

I would love more children, but due to personal circumstances, we only have two. We struggle financially, but its our wish. We were poor when i fell pregnant on the pill, and were poor now. But were rich with memories and experiences that other people don't have. These feelings/ events are priceless, people should be allowed to have the freedom to choose decide/ limit/ expand have as many children as they want. After all we live in democratic society, supposedly, if someone tried to tell you are only allowed one child i'd tell where to go. I'd see it as an invasion of my human rights.

congratulations Gailey and your OH!!! My friends 9 weeks preganant now with her second child. so were all excited here for them. Me and OH adore their first child, as he's so cute.

Well the boys are still in bed, we were round our friends parents house last night arranging funerals etc. Ended up staying till after 1am, so the boys are shattered and am i. OH has gone to work, so he'll have a sleep when he's comes back in.
thanks everyone for your well wishes, we all really appreciate it. They all brought a tears to my eyes xxx
Managed to throw loads of things out yesterday so now i have my middle room back whoo hoo!

Today i will be carrying on in that vien. If the boys wake up i'll take to school for the afternoon session, maybe.

Right i'm off for a cuppa, have a good day all!

flipperOSN

Hello all. A bit grey and autumnal in yorkshire today, but yesterday was lovely and so I washed and dried the kids bedding and a load of normal washing too. The bottom of the wash basket has been revealed!!

As for kids, we have two but I have no intention of any more. I thought the official number to retain current population levels was about 2.16? This based on not every child reaching adulthood (something I don't want to think about) and others either choosing or unable to have kids. It's odd really, a very large number of my friends have simply chosen not to have children and I am viewed as unusual. Between us we are not over-populating!! I love kids, always have done even though I'm not a very girly girl in other ways. Two is a lot of work (and money!) though, and mine were both > 10lb and they don't get smaller. It's very hard to view having kids strategically or in planetary terms, hormones get in the way for me. I'm always excited to hear about others with a bundle on the way.

In other news I think this weekend I'll have a look and see if I have any potatoes. I stuck a few in the ground on a whim really, big sprouters from the bottom of the bag. They grew very tall and had those strange potato fruit, but whether they are edible is another matter. My carrots have grown well at least. Next year I hope to have the confidence to grow a much larger crop (still in pots though due to my limited space). My son ate a couple of the baby ones raw and was raving about the taste

Oh yes, recycling and rubbish! Last year we had a bin man strike and the council had to get in contractors which meant our bins only got collected every two or three weeks. After three weeks we were running out of bin space but not up until then. I was genuinely shocked to see the piles of rubbish outside neighbours houses, wondering how on earth they produced so much? We have a green bin too, but it's plastic and cardboard and our main vice is bottles :beer: which I carry down the road to the bottle bank.

jackieglasgow

We have a once a month collection for glass, for which we have a half size wheelie bin, my back garden looks like the place where wheelies bins go to die!

Re the population thing, I simply don't think anyone has any right to interfere with the free will of others when it comes to having a family. If we manage the world more efficiently, then it would not matter how the popluation is expanding. The point nobodyspecial made about single person household being potentially more damaging really made me think, and Maya made another good point. Ceridwen, you really need to make up your mind whether your decision not to have a family is based on some sort of altruism, some sort of environmental awareness, not meeting the right man, or simply not wanting children. I have seen you give each of these reasons as being the "real reason" behind your decision, and personally, I don't care or mind which it is, not having them is your business, as having 2 or 9 is everyone else's - but people might start to take your arguments a bit more seriously if you are honest about it.

maryb

All the predictions are that world population will stabilise eventually and not carry on increasing exponentially. The challenge is to plan for that level of population so that we aren't robbing future generations of their birthright.

I always wanted children, knew I couldn't ultimately be happy without having a family, and I hope that they will give me grandbabies before too much longer (well in DD1's case anyway, DD2 is only 15!!!). It seems natural and right.

On the level of a whole society I sometimes get the feeling that the socities where birth rates are declining fastest actually seem to hate themselves and that lack of self belief and optimism affects the way people plan their lives

greent

Wow! Some really good posts here today

I have 4 children and won't apologise for it. I was happy at 2, 3 was a happy accident, 4 was planned, as I've said. We can afford them. We live in a 5 bed house and have 2 new cars - we're very lucky, I know. However, they aren't spoilt with the latest gadgets etc - never have been. DD now has my old laptop in her bedroom, but she is at senior school and does use it for h/work. It also has timer controls set on it for internet use - 5.30-8pm only - so she can't spend all her time on there (and doesn't spend even that amount of time on there) I regularly see here 12 yo friends posting on f/book at up to 11pm at night - and that includes school nights!!

I have no problems with people having several (or more) children - but do wish that people would think about the costs. Accidents do happen, but it's planned pregnancies where people can hardly afford to live as is, without adding another mouth to feed/ clothe that worry me. Both DH & I came from poorer backgrounds (DH's was worse - he had cardboard in his only shoes etc) - no money = no food . No heating, no school trips etc. Neither of us would want our children to be in that situation. Thankfully, should we ever need to, we have enough equity in this property (through d**n hard work) to downsize to a 4 bed mortgage free - when he was made redundant for the 2nd time in 7 months the ONLY State help that we received equated to under £40/ week after tax for 3 months for a family of 6 (bitter? - me??? )

I do also have some problems with immigration - not from any racial prejudice, but from a 'limited resources' view. But if people want to come here and work hard and contribute to the economy, then that's great

Enough possibly controversial comments from me for the morning! Just over an hour until I get DS2 from his first morning at school - I can't believe he's at school - he's far too little!!

parsonswife8

Apparently, Russia has entended the export ban on wheat products until next year's harvest.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/Russia-Wheat-Export-Ban-Vladimir-Putin-Extends-Ban-On-Sale-Of-Grain-Sparking-Food-Price-Fears/Article/201009115712762?lpos=Business_First_Home_Article_Teaser_Region_5&lid=ARTICLE_15712762_Russia_Wheat_Export_Ban%3A_Vladimir_Putin_Extends_Ban_On_Sale_Of_Grain_Sparking_Food_Price_Fears

flipperOSN

Looks like we will be cold, poor and hungry this year. Perhaps the grain product to stock up on is whiskey!

parsonswife8

The wheat problem is pushing the price of meat up..

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11153827


Meat prices have been particularly hit and are at their highest in 20 years.

Anyone have a few spare seeds for a lamb tree?

lauren_1

If I was brave enough I would keep dual purpose chickens.

Any more doom and gloom?