NOT BUYING IT! 2015 - A consumer holiday

greenbee

Our kerbside recycling facilities are incredibly poor. Cans, minimal plastic, paper and card. I walk to the bottle bank at the village pub with glass, so at least that's good exercise, but I suspect others just throw it out. Where I was before had kerbside glass collections.

I've just been staying with my parents, who have fantastic recycling facilities. Weekly food waste collections means the normal waste bin isn't smelly after 2 weeks (although I guess that might be different for anyone dealing with disposable nappies!), and their main recycling bin takes all plastics including yogurt pots.

Tetrapaks seem to be the most inconsistent thing to try to dispose of. My old tip used to take them, my new one doesn't.

Aril

Morning:j
Haven't posted on here in yonks but have remained mindful of not buying. However, Could Do Better so have set myself a mini challenge of following The Compact for a month which I started on 11th August. I'm keeping a little log of how I get on. My next challenge is going to be sourcing a birthday present and card withou buying new.
Today we've had exam results but the congrats card for my son came from the charity shop so small steps and all that.

I see I have a lot of reading to do- it's been ages since I've been on the boards- busy summer.
Hugs to all
Arilx

eandjsmum

May have to jump ship for a bit as I have been mindful of spending I have not brought coffee and cake out. So consequently am experiencing weight loss.


I have had to buy new bras.


DD has just got A level results 3 B's . UCAS tracking say that first choice uni has confirmed her place . The offer was AAB so as have not had confirmatory e- mail not sure what to make of that.:T

nursemaggie

eandjsmum It will probably be right as there is a large excess of places this year.

ivyleaf

Congrats to all who've had their results today - I hope everyone was happy!

Aril lovely to "see" you --I can't believe your son is now old enough to have done A-Levels :eek:

eandjsmum

Nursemaggie it was right. I think that I heard that there were fewer top grades again this year, also universities can take more students.


We are now looking for student bank accounts, bedding and stationary. Will leave everything else til we what the accommodation is.


Have already had to get books. We have a very, very large second hand bookshop here but no deal so had to use Ama$on. Used the market place even paying postage it was cheaper.


Today has been a soaking day we had the mother and father of all storms DS was home when a flash of lightning came across our garden and struck a tree next door.

grunnie

The peas I picked today are now on trays open freezing, Didn't blanche this lot so will do a taste test Grey Queen in a year's time and decide whether it is worth the bother to blanch. Roasting hot and bright sun up here today so trying to get all the veg and fruit picked before the rain comes north during the night. Off to pick sweetpeas as the rain will ruin them and the more I pick the more they grow. Who needs to buy airfresheners when a bowl of sweetpeas are available. :T

GreyQueen

greenbee wrote: »

Our kerbside recycling facilities are incredibly poor. Cans, minimal plastic, paper and card. I walk to the bottle bank at the village pub with glass, so at least that's good exercise, but I suspect others just throw it out. Where I was before had kerbside glass collections.

I've just been staying with my parents, who have fantastic recycling facilities. Weekly food waste collections means the normal waste bin isn't smelly after 2 weeks (although I guess that might be different for anyone dealing with disposable nappies!), and their main recycling bin takes all plastics including yogurt pots.

Tetrapaks seem to be the most inconsistent thing to try to dispose of. My old tip used to take them, my new one doesn't.

The council can only collect what they can sell, otherwise it is just an exercise in futility. Not all areas of the country have economically-affordable access to recycling facilities for all items. It's very frustrating. The landfill tax will mean that any LA will be looking hard for a way of adding more items to the recycling side rather than landfilling. We can do tetrapaks here, but we couldn't do them years ago, so there may yet be hope for your areas. I used to wash them and save them up and transport them on public transport to my parents' place across the country line, when their area did them and mine didn't (am hardcore about some things, lol).

Trouble is, manufacturers can do what the heck they like with products and don't have to consider the end result. I do try somewhat to avoid packaging on food, but there's a helluva lot of room for improvement in this aspect of my life.

grunnie, ooooh, sweetpeas, how lovely. I think you'll be well impressed with non-blanching. I don't blanch runner and broadbeans, carrots or leeks and have had no loss of colour, texture or taste as a result.

Thus far this month I have bought some food and paid some futility bills and that's it. Not feeling hard-done-by, either. Have returned one book to the central library after work and taken a crime thriller out, and have read half of it already. Book 101 of 2015.

And people wonder what I do without a telly..........:rotfl:

pm2326

GreyQueen wrote: »

And people wonder what I do without a telly..........:rotfl:

Have you ever had a telly GreyQueen?

I'm considering doing without if mine ever decides to fail. I've come to realise that although it's on, I hardly ever sit and watch anything. I have a intense dislike of soaps, reality TV, talent shows, home/garden/person makeover shows....that means I've just ruled out 90% of the shows available to watch on TV!

I have one programme that I like to watch, but I missed the last season and ended up buying the dvd's, nothing stopping me doing that in future, can watch it on my laptop

nursemaggie

pm2326 I don't have a TV either.

I watch BBC news every night before I go to bed on iplayer. I watch the occasional series on BBC TV and depending on what time I go to bed I either watch Newsnight before I go to bed or in the morning. I have watched a 4 part serial on ITVplayer this year, the one about the WI ladies during the war. I don't like any of the shows you mention either.

I do watch documentaries from BBC. If you don't watch live TV only catchup on a computer or laptop you do not need a licence. I watched nothing for 6 years and then I started watching odd bits on catch up TV.

You have to tell the licencing people why you do not have a licence or they will threaten you with prosecution if you do not have a TV. For some reason the growing number of people who do not have TV are treated as heinous criminals as I am sure GQ will attest.