Recent Comments

1. Slap a Ticket on an Urban 4x4 - 20 Mar 2006

   Sounds a bit Stalinist to me. I drive a 4×4 and live in a town. I’m a commercial photographer by trade and spend a lot of time lugging a lot of kit up and down the UK. In fact recently had me, my kit, two film crew and there kit in the “urban tractor”. in case you are wondering, we were covering an event at 6 locations around the UK Don’t just assume that every 4×4 is owned by blonde doing the school run…some of us use them to work. And no a van is not a practical alternative.

   Engage brain…open mouth.

2. Make Your Own Greetings Cards - 22 Mar 2006

   My wife is mad on this, they are really good as well…..I have to say that thou. She puts a lot of effort into each one and makes it much more personal to the receiver. Tradition has it that a card was sent if one could not offer the greeting in person. Today our nearest family are over 100 miles away so her cards add the extra touch. If you have creative hands do this, its fun, if you don’t feel brave enough go and find a charity shop that is selling local handmade cards..they cost a bit more but they say a lot more.

3. Get Rid of Your Car - OK, ambitious, but... - 22 Mar 2006

   I applaude anyone that can do this practically..it also makes me slightly ashamed as I can’t do it because of my work. It will only ever be fully practical when we have a proper and full intergrated public transport system. I once turned up a Peterborough Station to go and do some work in Newcastle….to be told I could not board the train with all that equipment!!!! OK so it was three large cases and an overnight bag. I had to drive up instead. ask yourself does this journey really need a car? or can I get there another way. I’ve cut back on car use as much as possible, but sorry it will have to stay.

4. Recycle Your Inkjet Cartridges - 24 Mar 2006

   The objective here is RECYCLE not refilling as I discovered to my horror recently. went into a certain high street chain that some of you have mentioned…..got the refill….then paid over the odds on what i’d paid for new cartridges. After all that the print quality was so bad that I would never do it agin. However, my supplier – who is a specialist stationary supplier does send all the empties back to the relevent companies, although what hey actually do with them….well thats anyones guess.

5. Slap a Ticket on an Urban 4x4 - 27 Mar 2006

   John, a van is not a practical alternative because we only have ONE vehicle in the family. And a decade ago i was 14 so it wasn’t an issue. Had an MPV for a while -A 2.6lt (my freelander is an 18ooD) – but I kept getting stuck in country lanes and needing a real tractor to get me out. I’ve also mentioned in another section that I was once turfed off a train for having to much with me and ended up having to drive. The truth is that until we get an intergrated transport system in the UK we will never solve the problem of cars. And please don’t talk Hydrogen power to me. Far to much energy involved in building the cells so currently not an alternative. The oil age will end one day but the altnetaive has to be PRACTICAL.

6. Go Ethical With Some of your Savings - 29 Mar 2006

   Until this moment i’d never heard of Triodos, but i’ll look them. With the help of an IFA we were able to put our Baby bond into ethical….whatever you do with them… and we both have ISA’s – doubling up as pension funds – in ethical schemes. It may suprise you that the Isa’s are with Invesco and we are getting good returns, we could get better returns but the fees are decent. I did like the look of what the Co-op were offering but felt the fees were a bit high. My dream of retiring at 50 has been shot to hell…but i’d probably get board anyway.

   Nicki, if the bank is causing you problems with the account move just threatening to report them to you local trading standards or the financial servcies onbudsman, they’ll soon shut up.

7. Get Rid Of Some Of Your Books - 29 Mar 2006

   I discussed this my wife before christmas….it got a bit heated. I lost, the books stayed. However, I’m now working from home and so far she hasn’t noticed the shelves looking a little bit thinner. hehehehehehehe I’m going to be so much trouble when she does. Please pray for me.

8. Know your local political leaders - 30 Nov 2006

   I got to know my current MP very well just before the last General election. I sued him, and the local conservative party. It was a breach of copyright issue and they paid up after my letter before action threatened to name him personally as the defendant. now you might think this not a good way to start a relationship but since then I’ve had breakfast with him on several occasions and coffee and We alse stop for a quick chat if we meet on the street. In truth he is very in tune with the community – and for a tory mp it pains me to admit I was wrong about him.

9. Can't ditch your car? Switch it! (To LPG) - 01 Feb 2009

   There are pros and cons to this and to be honest I haven’t looked into both sides fully.
   However, In January 2009 there were two accidents on the M1 in Northamptonshire involving LPG fueled vehicles.
   Fire service SOP for this is to throw up a 100mt cordon around the vehicle which means closing the road in both directions. Now I’m told that the systems have a slow release valve and the tanks are stronger than normal fuel tanks but when the fireman is running from a scene faster than you its usually best to follow. been there, done that http://pa.photoshelter.com/c/paul_j_lashmar/gallery-show/G0000KDd4kpDPsXk

   The other thing I learnt last year was that Euro tunnel will not allow LPG vehicles on board and neither will some ferries.
   but when all is said and done if its a small car for few or shorter trips then this may be the answer

10. Hold off on the heating - 07 Dec 2009

    My wife says i’m a scrooge anyway as the thermo is set to kick in the heating at 17C, that meant this year the heating was not coming on at all in September only a couple of mornings in October and didn’t start the regular routine until early November.
    Add in children who at this time of year seem to constantly have damp clothes (“come on daddy lets go splash in the puddles!!!”)…I gave in at that point.

    My comment would be get a decent thermostat which you can set min and max on and time settings so that it is off all day only on in the evening and off all night unless the temp drops to a certain point. to echo Rosie above you should also consider who is in the house. And consider other peoples health and well-being

11. 'Grey' water your garden - 07 Dec 2009

    In our village we have been fighting one of those really stupid planning applications where they build houses in such a way the rest of us get flooded because the runoff water has nowhere to go anymore…we lost – you can’t fight 2 jags – apparently somebody made him the UK climate change champion or some such position.
    Anyway:
    It got me thinking, why hasn’t legislation be introduced that says all new build houses must have grey water cisterns and garden water systems as standard? along with solar hot water…it just makes sense.

    Oh yeah, I tried to fit one of these but all the pipe work was boxed by the previous owners…AHHHHHH!!!
    I have been told I can’t rip it our unless there is a problem. And I do what she tells me.

12. Stop Taking Plastic Bags From Shops - 07 Dec 2009

    We did this and I was really proud, done something positive and then realised that we’d been using the odd plastic bag to line small waste bins etc.
    oops.
    fortunatley our council has finally got its doorstep recycling sorted so now we have bins to put things in rather then everything going in the same bin. (you sit in the office and scrap paper would go in with apple cores; not anymore)

    I’m not in favour of banning things, this govt has spent 12 years passing laws banning or taxing everything we do – I swear i’ll taxed for breathing one day- Its about education and getting people to think about what they are doing and how there own small actions can be of benefit or detriment to themselves. sorry but most people work on the ‘whats in it for me’ principle and thats what you have to target.