This is not my... Week 29 07
26/07/07 - Galvanised into action
25/07/07 - Man can not live on toast alone...
24/07/07 - "Yes, it is a rather lovely tie "
This Section; Background; The point
26/07/07 - Galvanised into action
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And it didn't go too badly... |
After the 'toast pile' shock I was determined to branch out.
I mean, how hard can cooking be?
Well - as it transpires - not that hard.... if you have all the ingredients.
Which I didn't.
Sure, cooking is creative, but if you are making tuna pasta (ambitious) with nothing more than tuna it can be tricky (tuna on toast...?)
Anyhow - once my lovely friend Kim had arrived with all of the things I had forgotten it was actually alright.
I was thus inspired to track down some new recipes. So started with seasonal things.
Found a great site for veggie box scheme recipes (to help you use up all of those odd box scheme foods that no one quite knows what to do with).
But not sure it is 100% for me... as I don't have a box scheme. (It's complicated. I don't have a door through which to put one. Plus - I only eat toast.) So that would mean I would have to go out specifically to find Kohl rabi and kale...
Which brought me back to the old favourite, Eat the seasons.
My next cooking excursion is not till next month so have been checking out Augusts suggestions. And I am thinking:
Wood pigeon!
That sounds like it'd have to be organic.
Not sure where I would find one in Peckham though.
Hmmm.
Normal pigeon?
Lots of those in town.
Just need a big net and a trip to Trafalgar Square...
Hmmmm.
Actually - not sure about that.
It would seem kind of wrong... and may lead to incarceration...*
Road kill?
x
*Mind you - if this video is anything to go by - it looks kind of fun. (And that prison break guy's pretty hot...)
http://www.poetv.com/video.php?vid=19841
25/07/07 - Man can not live on toast alone...
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Or can we...? |
Realised quite how much toast I eat the other day.
My house mate was away and so I was left to my own devices. Or, more accurately, to fend for myself without being able to nick all her leftovers.
And it was then that I noticed.
It seemed like days had passed since I had done the washing up. And they had. But all there was to clean was a neatly stacked pile of plates covered in bread crumbs.
A huge pile.
I had managed to go the whole week without cooking anything but toast.
Is that bad?
Anyway - regardless I was reading the Guardian article on beef a minute a go (beef is very energy intensive to produce) so might start claiming that my laziness is - in fact - a sacrifice in order to save the planet.
Which would work better if I hadn't had my first McDonald's in ten years on Friday night!
(It was late. There was nothing else. I only had a small burger. I was distressingly far from any toast making facilities. And - to lay insult to injury - it was utterly unsatisfying.)
Oh dear.
Must work on that hypocrisy... and the urge to eat steak...
x
24/07/07 - "Yes, it is a rather lovely tie"
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"I made it out of toenail clippings and half a packet of Dorito's..." |
Ah those creative types.
My book has scooted on to consumption. Highlighting the huge amounts of debt people get into in order to buy a new car / TV / coffee from a train station in central London etc
It goes on to suggest that it is the simpler things in life which provide us with much more pleasure. Such as, time spent with friends, idling in the sunshine or using our imaginations in wierd and wonderful ways.
All of which are free.
And we don't have to work for years to pay off.
Which seems eminently sensible to me as, in addition, these are often better for the environment too.
But we do need some things.
It would make life tricky (though perhaps more interesting) if none of us wore clothes, used crockery or decided that we would trial DIY surgery.
So maybe we just need to be a bit creative about it? (Well - with the clothes and crockery at least...)
I keep meaning to try but am a little frightened of impending disaster. I once made a pinafore for a teddy bear but I am not sure if that totally qualifies me to take the scissors to my wardrobe...
If you are feeling inspired, though, there are quite a few website's which provide brilliant hints and tips.
Try threadbanger.com or craftster.org for a start.
Lara also mentioned that you.tube has some good tutorials.
Anyhow - I'm off to book the upholstery course I've been eyeing up for a while.
Plotting to renovate myself some furniture... at least that way I wont have to wear the result...
x
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It's that tricky old question again... |
Been contemplating life.
I don't let myself do it often.
Much like brain storming.
(Overactive imagination. Still concerned about the 'learn to slay dragons' entry in my note book...)
I can get lost for days.
Still - did a bit of an overhaul with a couple of friends and it was great.
It is all too easy to get swept along without stopping to think where you are going, what you want and the things that are important to you.
Which led quite nicely into a sneaky trip to Waterstone's (I can't resist the 2 for 3 offer... I reckon they plant sirens...) and the purchase of "How to be Free" by Tom Hodgekinson.
Not, in case you are wondering, a particularly crazy hippy type book but one by the editor of 'The Idler' a man who has dedicated his life to the pursuit of doing as little as possible.
Brilliant.
Anyhow - basically this meant I took the quote:
"Like it or not you are free. The real question is whether you choose to exercise that freedom."
Quite literally and - instead of doing the work I had planned yesterday evening - headed out to some gigs and didn't get home till late.
Not the most responsible manoeuvre... but it did feel good!
Anyhow - now on a quest.
Going to explore what makes people happy and - if this means that I have to sacrifice myself to undertaking a series of wild and amazing pursuits along the way - then so be it.
All suggestions welcome!
Right - best get a wriggle on.
So much fun to be had...
x
This section will be a daily, well - Monday to Friday daily, editorial. (Have to keep some time aside to keep up the ritual wine drinking / dancing as if being chased by bees.)
I promise to make it my mission to investigate something each day on exciting forays to find new stuff, fun stuff, ethical stuff and anything involving break dancing men with extremely toned physiques.
Let me know if you think of something I should go and visit or if you have any great ideas or information. (Any dodgy suggestions will be politely declined... or not so politely, depending entirely on what they are!)
For today, though, please just have a look below to find out how this whole thing came about. I hope that you are having a lovely morning.
See you tomorrow,
Susie x
Background to This is not my...
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What is this site all about?
Well, as all good ventures do, it started in the pub with the ominous words "I know, why don't we...?" |
What was different, though, was that it still seemed like a good plan in the morning (and somewhat less injurious than trying out extreme ironing, the other suggestion...)
Anyway - once again we had been supping beers and putting the world to rights when someone mentioned the unmentionable, despite our disaffection with the state of the world, none of us was actually doing anything positive to change it.
Whether this was complacency or apathy, who knows - but we were definitely leaving it to others to make decisions and take action for us on issues about which we felt strongly.
We live in a free society, but often things seem to happen as a fait accompli. The war in Iraq, ID cards, the fact that we will eventually succumb to watching some of Big Brother no matter how hard we try...
And we just go along with it. But that is ok, right? I mean, we aren't exactly encouraging the abuse of others - are we?
Ok - so maybe my new top might have been made under less-than-perfect conditions and I suppose that means I am supporting those conditions, but - I have to buy something to wear, so what other choice do I have?
And that was the problem. What - and where - are the choices?
So we decided to investigate. Surely in this free society we have other options; we just need to know how to find them.
So we went online. There are some great directories already for ethical and/or environmentally friendly products, but for us these didn't go far enough. We were on a bit of a roll and decided that these products deserved more active promotion.
We wanted to make as many people as possible aware of the practical things they can do to live life in a better way.
So on this site we will provide information about easy, positive and ethical consumer choices. These are choices that won’t necessarily cost you more, either.
In our directories you will find environmentally friendly and ethical companies and products across the following categories:
Clothes
Energy
Food and Drink
Health and Beauty
Home and Garden
Office
Recycling
Restaurants
You will also find plenty more to lure you back to the site on a regular basis. So come back to have a wee look.
Plus we will be working on video's, events and curious antics to keep important issues in the public eye – and provide us with much entertainment and amusement at the same time.
Give us a shout if you want to get involved!
Anyhow - take a look. Explore… investigate… probe away.
We hope you like it; we hope you use it.
