Plastic Free July – Update & A Refresher

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Posted on July 13, 2013

Today I am reviving an older post that should help in our quest for Plastic Free July and also in the future.

Do you buy pure butter in a compostable, paper wrapper? Or are you like the majority of the population and buy margarine or some type of spread in a plastic container? Want to stop getting those plastic containers? Here is your answer.

I have been reasonably successful in sticking to plastic-free options so far this month. My list of items containing single-use has been updated with a couple more items. You can find it here.

Last night we ate out, at our local pizza restaurant. There was no plastic involved as they use proper crockery and cutlery, however, the soft drink always is served with a straw (plastic). I thought of this before I went so when we ordered our drinks I specifically asked for no straw. I should really have taken it a step further and explained why I chose not to have a straw.

I was discussing this with The Duke and said that for Plastic Free July to have any real value, I needed to push the boundaries and not just do plastic free things that are part of my normal routine.

Have you done anything different this month?

Started and Finished

Nothing At All

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Posted on July 8, 2013

That’s right. Today’s post is all about nothing.

I went to work.

I wore clothes that I owned yesterday.

I travelled by train and my ticket is prepaid.

I took my breakfast and lunch from home.

I drank water (free from the tap).

I spent nothing.

I acquired nothing.

The day was plastic-free.

Dinner was omelette, avocado and cherry tomatoes – all plastic-free and zero food miles.

Tomorrow will be a little different. I will be buying my lunch, as a group of us are going out to lunch to celebrate the life of our colleague’s mother who passed away recently. It is our way of supporting a friend.

However, most of my work days are like today. What about you?

A New Year (Financial)

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Posted on July 1, 2013

30th June 2013 coincided very neatly with the end of the weekend so a new week, new financial year and a clean slate. Time to take a fresh look at the finances and goals – tax, superannuation, savings, mortgage payments and other debts.

Even though we constantly track what is happening with our money, it is good to take some time and look at the big picture. Where are we now and where do we want to be in the future?

By the way, July 1st is also the first anniversary of the introduction of the carbon tax in Australia. This says it all.

And the world is still spinning on its axis.

A Challenge – Plastic Free July

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Posted on June 29, 2013

I know I said I would be back on Sunday evening with my next slow living blog post. I will do that but in the meantime I wanted to share something which I heard about today.

Plastic Free July started in 2011 as a community initiative of the Western Metropolitan Regional Council in Perth, Western Australia. From that small beginning it has spread with individuals and groups all over Australia and New Zealand becoming involved. 2013 is the year it has gone truly international.

I only became aware of this today. First, I read an article in the ReNew magazine which is published by the Alternative Technology Association. Later, I saw a link to the website posted on Simple Savings.

It seemed as though I was meant to find out more about this and I checked out the website and signed up for the challenge. Will you?

Individual bags

We do not use a great deal of single-use plastic in our home but I will be keeping track more closely over the next month and blogging about our progress every Saturday so make sure you pop in and see how I am going. It would be great if you can join in too and share your story.

Wet Washing

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Posted on June 27, 2013

Although I have a tumble drier, I try to minimise the use of it. My reasons are twofold – the electricity it consumes and also the wear and tear caused to our clothes.

We have a rotary clothesline in the backyard, however, that entails carrying a basket of wet washing down a flight of steps and around to the opposite side of the house from the laundry. This is not terribly practical and for that reason I mostly use the clothesline which is under the verandah. I can walk out of the laundry and wheel the basket of washing in the trolley to directly next to the line.

This was mounted and in place when we moved here. It is an Extendaline and potentially could be longer but it is in the available space between the wall and the edge of the verandah (about 2 metres). This means that I have 10 metres of line space and I can generally fit 1 – 1.5 loads of washing one here. Each line is long enough to hold 3 business shirts.

I have a variety of other options for hanging and drying clothes. Here you can see my other rotary clothesline. It is designed for camping and we bought it from Kathmandu. It folds up completely, comes with its own carry bag and is very lightweight. In the background you can see the mobile hanging rack which I use for ironed clothes but is also handy for finishing drying clothes in front of the fire.

This is much better than regular clothes airers as the lines are high enough to allow you to hang towels, jeans and even single bed sheets.

These hangers are perfect for drying sweaters and cardigans as there are no peg marks.

Here is a small clothes hanger with pegs attached. I bought it in Japan several years ago but I believe you can buy them here in Australia now. Apart from hanging rewashed plastic bags to dry, I use this for socks, handkerchiefs and underwear.

Finally, I have a clothes airer on castors which lives on the verandah and I often wheel it inside to dry things in front of the fire.

This post is for Kim who asked about my washing line under the verandah. It is quite timely as the forecast here is for showers and rain for most of the next week.

What strategies do you have for getting washing dry in cold and/or rainy weather?

Step Outside

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Posted on June 25, 2013

Most of the time I write about things that I do in and around our own home. These include many things that can be bundled under the guise of simple living such as growing fruit and vegetables, sewing and mending, cooking from scratch and decluttering.

There is certainly enough to keep us occupied in our own corner of the world, but what about the bigger picture? Whatever the reason, I do not think it is healthy to withdraw from the world around us. Developing and maintaining connections with your neighbours and the broader community are vital to our well-being and possibly our ultimate survival. If everything turns pear-shaped the first thing you will need is the support and co-operation of those around you.

There are so many exciting initiatives that have developed from a seed of an idea. Some, such as Freecycle and LETS are relatively well-known, however, there are many less publicised ventures that are worthy of promotion.

I am planning a series of posts to highlight some of these ventures and how you can become involved and make a positive contribution to the community in which you live. If you have any particular favourites that you would like to suggest please leave a comment or email me if you prefer.

Long Forgotten Original

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Posted on June 18, 2013

Once upon a time there was a recipe for Oven-Baked Sausages. I think the book has been moved along to the op shop in one of the culls of my recipe books, however, the general idea remains.

The original recipe consisted of a sweet/sour/spicy sauce made in a saucepan. Sausages were grilled, cooled, sliced and added to the sauce. Pasta spirals were cooked, drained and added to the mixture and combined. Finally, the entire contents of the saucepan were placed in a large casserole dish, topped with grated cheese and breadcrumbs and then baked in the oven.

This was a filling meal for a hungry family but being time-poor I quickly cut out what I regarded as unnecessary steps. It really did not need to be baked in the oven as all of the ingredients were already well-cooked. Once the mixture was combined in the saucepan it was ladled directly into serving bowls. If I was feeling particularly generous I would sprinkle a little grated cheese on top. The casserole was always received enthusiastically so the cheese was not really necessary.

The original recipe for the sauce is a little hazy but here is the general idea.

1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 can tomato soup
1/2 can water
1/3 cup fruit chutney
1/4 cup worcestershire sauce

I remember that I was always checking that I had fruit chutney when I wanted to make this.

Like many recipes, this one seemed to run its course and then was forgotten once the girls left home.

I thought of it not long ago and have made it a couple of times recently with some amendments.

Some of these were necessary because I now eat a gluten-free diet. Canned tomato soup contains gluten so I substitute home-made tomato paste and some additional water. Naturally I no longer mix pasta into the dish. The sausages I buy are gluten-free but you would need to check that, too.

The jar of tomato paste looks over full as I store it upside-down in the refrigerator which inhibits the growth of any mould. This also applies to commercially produced tomato paste as well.

The recipe has evolved and varies depending on what is in the cupboard/refrigerator. I made it this morning using the following ‘recipe’.

1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
Remainder of tomato paste (home-made) – about 1/4 cup
Water – enough to rinse the jars and create the right consistencey
Handful of sultanas
Vinegar – about 2 tablespoons
Rosella jam (home-made) – about 2 tablespoons – bottle rinsed out
1/4 cup worcestershire sauce (home-made)
Tomato sauce – home-made (remnant in the bottle) – rinsed out

Here are some of the jars – on the left is the worcestershire sauce. The middle jar is the rosella jam mixed with vinegar and the last of the tomato sauce (empty bottle on the right).

I had cooked the sausages on Sunday night and cut them up ready so they were added and the mixture simmered for about 10 minutes.

Like so many casserole-type meals this sauce will benefit from standing and the flavours will develop further by the time we have dinner tonight. There is some home-made pasta in the freezer which The Duke will have with the suasages in sauce and I will have stir-fried shredded sweet potato with mine.

The Great Garlic Massacre & Other Dirty Tales

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Posted on June 16, 2013

We have finally had some of the glorious winter weather for which south-east Queensland is renowned – clear, sunny days and crisp, cool nights.

The majority of yesterday and today has been spent in the garden. I have previously shown you the 3 raised vegetable garden beds. One was planted out with seeds a couple of weeks ago. I planted 2 bean seeds together in each hole and they all germinated so I transplanted the extras. I am not sure whether they will survive the process but it never hurts to try.

We moved some lemon tree prunings which had been in this tank and filled it with soil from one of the old garden beds which is now redundant. The soil is fabulous and it would be a shame to waste it. We mixed it with some mulch (from the poinciana stump which we had ground last year) and also some mushroom compost. In the centre you can also see some bok choy seedlings. The bok choy seeds came up so thickly that I have thinned heaps of them and will thin them out again as they get a bit bigger. I could not bear to just throw the thinnings away so they were all transplanted. Some went into this old esky filled with soil and mulch.

I put some others in between the potato plants in the other raised bed. The bok choy will be well and truly finished before the potatoes take over.

The carrots, onions and beetroot have also germinated and are growing but are probably too small to identify in this photo. You can, however, see the beans and bok choy.

A few weeks ago I bought some organic garlic ready to sprout and plant. It has been languishing in a bag on the floor of the pantry but today was the day to plant it out. Firstly, we had to finish preparing the third raised bed. It was about 1/3 full of leaf litter, mushroom compost and shredded arrowroot leaves. Today we added some grass clippings after The Duke had mowed the lawn area area the vegie patch, more mushroom compost, lots of mulch and soil as previously described. Then it was time to plant the garlic. We peeled off the papery outer layer, separated the cloves and planted them in rows with the sprouting tip pointing upwards. You can see all of the shredded outer layers on the ground beside the bed. It really did look like something had been massacred. The bed is 2.4m x 1.2m and it is entirely planted with rows of garlic. If this is even moderately successful I should never have to buy garlic again!

I cleared some old cherry tomato plants out of another round tank, topped up the soil and mulch and planted these golden sweet potato plants that had been in a pot for ages since my brother-in-law gave them to us.

This is the old garden bed where we have been digging up the soil to re-use. There is still plenty left.

The pile of mulch which resulted from the grinding of the tree stump last year has been put to good use in the garden beds. We still have more that we can take from here to build up the next round of garden beds.

It is gratifying to be able to use and reuse everything from our own property in the gardens. Leaf litter, compost, mulch, soil and grass clippings all go into creating the next lot of vegetables for us to eat. Chickens, chickens manure and eggs are also part of the cycle. Trees provide fallen timber for firewood which in turn leaves ash that we put back into the compost heap or garden bed. Permaculture in action really is the circle of life.

Quilt Update

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Posted on June 13, 2013

I have done some more work on the quilt today. The blocks are all sewn together, the batting and backing are attached and I have machine quilted between the blocks.

Here is a view of the backing with the stitching.

This is the fabric I will use to make the binding.

I was undecided about the binding until I had the quilt assembled. This was a piece which I had planned to use when making reuseable Christmas gift bags. I will buy more if I actually need it for that purpose.

No more craft posts until I show you the finished product. However, I am pleased to have set myself this challenge otherwise this would still be a pile of fabric on the sewing table.