Recent Comments

1. Stop Taking Plastic Bags From Shops - 22 May 2006

   This is a great thing to do & I’m pleased to see so many people having a go. I’ve been trying to take my own bags with me for about a year now. It is a case of being persistant until it becomes habit. Shop assistants do look at me like my skin is purple with orange dots on when I say “It’s OK I’ve a got my own bag thanks”. I used to get a bit emabarrased but find it quite funny now.

2. Turn Off The Tap When Brushing Your Teeth - 22 May 2006

   This one’s already a habit for me. I was brought up with my parents telling me to turn the tap off & use a tooth mug for rinsing out my mouth. It bugs me that my man doesn’t do this so I’ve started going in when he’s brushing his teeth and turning off the tap for him!

3. Switch off and unplug appliances and chargers - 22 May 2006

   I am still trying to remember to this one. I do switch off my kettle, toaster, microwave & cooker and most other sockets. I don’t switch off my TV, video, dvd, sterio or able box as most of it has stuff stored in the memory which would be lost (ie. date & time). Am I right in thinking that? Also has anyone heard of the Sava plug? It’s for fridges & freezers as they don’t use all of the electicity supplied all of the time. This plug kind of regulates it I think. I don’t know anyone who has one but would love to hear from anyone that does.

4. Plant A Tree - 22 May 2006

   I have planted the apple seeds and can’t wait to plant out my treelings as soon as we have our own house (June sometime). We have bought as gifts acres of Rainforest from, www.rainforestconcern.org

5. Slap a Ticket on an Urban 4x4 - 22 May 2006

   Being Cheltenham based there are lots of people who do keep these vehicles just for town run arounds, but there are quite a lot that do live out in the wilds and venture into town occasionally. Other than standing outside of a school and ticketing the school runners I don’t think I like the idea of jumping to conclusions about all of them I see. I’m a car owner and think we should all be more considerate in our usage. If a journey is under a mile or two ask yourself if you really need to take the car? Could you spare a few more minutes and cycle or walk? Think about the money you’d save on not filling up so often! (shorter journeys are much more inefficient than longer ones). If, like me, you own a diesel car have you considered biodiesel? I buy mine from www.purebiodiesel.co.uk

6. Slow Down, Calm Down (Stick to the speed limit) - 22 May 2006

   I am trying to stick to this. I find it difficult if I’m in a bad mood and my evil alter ego takes over!!! Having read everyone’s comments I am going to try the soothing music in the car rather than my dancy CDs. I did recently get my first SP50 on the motor way so maybe should slow down for the sake of others and my wallet. We should all make an effort to take number plates and report them to the police for overtaking in builtup areas, especially if you are sticking to the speed limit so you know they are going faster.

7. Don't just recycle, Freecycle - 22 May 2006

   This is fantastic!!! I saw the freecycle link last week and went and joined. It is amazing what people are giving away. Within 2 days I’ve already given away 2 things I had no need for and collected 1. I intend to use this service forever more, it’s excellent. Thank you Living Generously for introducing me to this. I recommend that everyone tries it.

8. Become A Blood Donor - 22 May 2006

   It suprised me how many excuses I’ve used for not going in the past. A lot of my friends use the same excuses. I went for the first time in February this year. It wasn’t as horrendous as I’d expected, I did get a bit light headed and because they didn’t want me to pass out I got 2 packets of chocolate biscuits!!! My second donation is in 2 weeks time. I think we should encourage those who are still finding excuses, it’s not as bad you might think.

9. Give Your Unwanted / Unworn Clothes To Charity - 25 May 2006

   Like any recycling we’ve got to buy the recycled products, not just take the goods to be recycled. It’s OK giving loads to charity shops but not if there’s hardly anyone buying it! I agree with Jane B we should commit to purchasing a percentage of our clothes from charity/nearly new/vintage shops.

   My personal aim is to buy 50% + from second hand sources. Items that I buy new I’m sourcing from more ethical shops. A great online directory of ethical shopping is www.livingethically.co.uk/Pages/shopping.htm

10. Buy Presents That Make A Difference - 25 May 2006

    My Granddad has always included a gift that makes a difference. I’ve had cows, goats, apple trees, tools I think he mainly gets them through Send a Cow www.sendacow.org.uk TEL: 01225 874222

    We bought gifts of acres of rain forest for our families this year. www.rainforestconcern.org

    Also we adopted a turtle nest & had a turtle adopted for us. www.adoptaseaturtle.com

11. Get someone to join the Generous Community - 25 May 2006

    I’ve found this easy to drop into coversations. I’m always lobbying friends, family and colleagues about green things, what web sites to look at, shops to shop in, products t use. My fella laughs at me now as I try to mention it in nearly every conversation I have. I have had 1 success so far of a friend who said she’d applied to join.

    By the way I think we should all sign up to sustainable electricity suppliers, I use Ecotricity. www.ecotricity.co.uk

12. Put A Save-A-Flush Device In Your Cistern - 25 May 2006

    Anna/Andy my mum works for Yorkshire water and she said they do give the save a flush bags out (they expand to about the size of a brick when you put them in water. She said to phone 0845 124 24 24 and ask for one. If you don’t have any luck she said if you pass your details on she’ll post one out to you.

    I’m in the Severn Trent area where I ordered mine from http://www.stwater.co.uk/server.php?show=nav.5795

13. Phone a friend - someone who has sent you a card this year who you don't see often - 25 May 2006

    This is a fab action & definitely a reminder that most of us need. It’s so easy to go for years without contacting people, especially that live far away.

    I phoned a friend I haven’t spoken to for about 2 years, she’s now got a 10 month old little boy!!!

14. Make Your Own Greetings Cards - 25 May 2006

    I love doing this. At Christmas the other half & I sit down and form our own little production line, creating about 6/7 different designs. All of the materials I use are found around the house (except the card). Bits of foil from food packaging is excellent, old & odd socks cut up (and any other bits of clothing to past it for charity shop) etc.

    I’m not so good at birthday cards for friends & extended family but will now make the effort!

15. Make A Positive Lifestyle Change And Tell Us About It - 25 May 2006

    In the past 12 months I’ve made a lot of decisions to change my life positively. 1) Buy a diesel car & run it on biodiesel 2) Grow my own veggies (don’t have a garden so “borrow” a friends) 3) Any meat I buy must be free range & organic & local 4) Not to buy unnecessary stuff – re use what I’ve got 5) Recycle everything I can 6) When I need to make a purchase buy more recycled/sustainable items 7) Give helpful/ethical gifts 8) Use a sustainable electricity supplier 9) Smile more! 10) Whe we get our own house to do it up as enviromentally friendly as we can, to be as energy efficient as possible.

16. Shop Small (Buy local, Switch from the Supermarket) - 25 May 2006

    This is something I’m really trying to do. I do use the farmers market when it appears in Cheltenham (once a month), we stop at any farm stores that pass when we’re out and about, for things like washing up liquid, lemon juice, white vinager etc I use The Natural Grocery Store. I find it hard to get local & organic in one place, although I am starting to grow my own, any other suggestions? Cheltenham has got 2 fab second hand bookshops as well as the Oxfam one so we’re lucky with that. I don’t buy DVDs or videos I rent them from Les atTop Video on Prestbury Road – he’s ace & a fountain of film knowledge.

17. DIY vegetables! - 26 May 2006

    I don’t have a garden of my own, but luckily a friend of mine has given me the use of his, as he’s not very green fingered! I’ve built 3 veggie beds, filled 2 with well rotted manure from a friends stable yard & so far planted out garlic, onion seeds, spring onion seeds & spinach seeds. At home I’m starting in doors the tomatoes, broccoli, peas and something that I forgot to label!!! Can’t wait for some it to be ready for tasting. Watch this space…..

18. Get Rid of Your Car - OK, ambitious, but... - 09 Jun 2006

    I have thought long and hard about this one as I do use my car a lot. I love the independence it brings me and the fact that I can get out of town to go horse riding (which I love). I changed my car in Sept 05 and opted for a diesel engine. I now run it on biodiesel (which smells fab if you like fried food!). I also now ask myself before I use it “do I really need to” ie. if the journey is within 2 miles I can walk or cycle. I do use it for work but have cut down from 5 days a week to 3 and now walk the other two days, will hopefully be more when after work commitments come to an end. Maybe when I stop cramming so much into my days will I be able to consider signing up to this one. I do admire people who get on with out a car.

19. Dry clothes outdoors. - 25 Sep 2006

    JoFlo – we’ve just spent 4 years in a flat and never used our tumble drier. We have an airer to hang the clothes on, takes up about 0.5m².

    susiefoster – I’ve heard that soap nuts are very good and you don’t require softener with them. Because they tumble around withyour washing they naturally soften the fibres (or something like that) http://www.naturalcollection.com/natural-products/Biodegradable-Cleaning-Grown-From-a-Tree—.asp http://www.gogreen.cellande.co.uk/shop/products/soapnuts/soapnuts.htm

20. Dry clothes outdoors. - 25 Sep 2006

    JoFlo – we’ve just spent 4 years in a flat and never used our tumble drier. We have an airer to hang the clothes on, takes up about 0.5m².

    susiefoster – I’ve heard that soap nuts are very good and you don’t require softener with them. Because they tumble around withyour washing they naturally soften the fibres (or something like that) http://www.naturalcollection.com/natural-products/Biodegradable-Cleaning-Grown-From-a-Tree—.asp http://www.gogreen.cellande.co.uk/shop/products/soapnuts/soapnuts.htm

21. See An Inconvenient Truth. - 25 Sep 2006

    For those of you – like me – there are no Cinemas that near showing it – it might be opening soon, check this link out http://portal.campaigncc.org/node/1493 I found out it opens in my town on 29th Sept.

22. Get a water butt! - 11 May 2007

    We bought ours this weekend just gone and connected it on Monday (including breaking the brackets on the down pipe and having to go and get new ones!). It didn’t rain until Wednesday and it was filled up in that afternoon! (I’m well pleased it doesn’t leak where we had to drill into it for the connector pipe) I’ll have to get some guttering on the shed and a 2nd Water butt and connect up a whole string of water butts with the extra-sava (see link below). Total cost to us including new downpipe bracket was £44.53. I think we got quite an expensive connector as ours didn’t come with it’s own, we bought a rainsava http://www.raindrain.ltd.uk/Product.html

23. Ladies: Consider a mooncup! - 11 May 2007

    I’ve had mine for nearly 3 years and I wouldn’t go back to tampons. A lot of my friends seem to think it’s disgusting – shame on them, it’s reduced my cramps massively. It’s so easy to travel with I wish I’d been introduced to it when I was still at school! Maybe it should be explained as an option in one of those “period” assemblies!

    I thoroughly recommend for all to try it.

24. Will the last one to leave please turn off the lights... - 06 May 2008

    I’m in a small office and always switch off lights behind myself. Have even persuaded a few others to switch off the kitchen & loo lights after themselves (which never used to be done).

25. Shower More, Bath Less - 06 May 2008

    Has anyone thought about how much water we’ve saved up to now? Must be loads.

26. Put Your Money Where Your Heart is (Bank Ethically) - 19 Sep 2008

    We have recently switched our joint account to Smile but my personal current account is with Natwest, Pension C&G and savings Nationwide. I don’t intend changing Natwest or Nationwide as both have always given good service to me, the pension though I have moved more of the shares into environmental and will be going to have a chat about more ethical options.

27. Resist Over-Consumption for Christmas - 07 Dec 2009

    We have as a (quite large) family decided to put names into a hat and draw one each to buy for. This has been done as we all got together last year and the number of presents under the tree was absolutely ridiculous.
    Also I have made presents for my very close friends and bought fair trade chocolate for the others.

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

    I’ve owned a turtle bag now for a few months & it’s fab!
    I got mine from
    www.emmiejay.co.uk/core-BagsPurses