Tuesday February 5th 2008

I have been neglectful. I have found other places to visit. I have found like minded people. The book will get written soon but it is not as easy as I had initially thought. I need to discipline myself to get it done but I am happy to report I am still bin free. I have been told 'the trouble is if you do it then they will expect us all to do it and then none of us will have a bin collection'. I have also been told ' you are doing people out of jobs'. The reasons I do what I do is personal. I feel happier not creating land fill. I know full well it is impossible for most people to achieve but I also know it is possible to get half way there quite easily and every plastic bottle counts. Other countries have tetra packs of milk. We desperately need to cut down on our plastic consumption and milk and pop bottles account for a tremendous amount of land fill. The onus has to be on the government and the supermarkets. No one asked for milk and pop in plastic bottles so find an alternative that can be disposed of by burning in a power station or something. Anything but the plastic bottle that will destroy our oceans and our land. We need our land, we need to leave it in good condition for future inhabitants of this earth, some of whom will be here as a direct result of our actions. I intend to start a campaign to dispose of plastic milk bottles. If it can be done it should be done. I will be back :)

Aftermath - January 14th 2008

It is January 14th 2008. I have still not used a refuse bin. I have some cans from Christmas and a few bottles in the recycling bin which I will put out for the recycling next week. I have had my weekly fire since xmas and thoroughly enjoyed the experience as usual. I shall continue for the foreseeable future without putting out a refuse bin as I cannot revert to the plastic life I left behind. Edwin still delivers my milk, the popman still calls and the market beckons me back without a thought for a supermarket. I will continue to tread the path I have for the last three months plus without even thinking about it. I also intend to write a book on what I did for the simple reason if I can get it printed it might help to pay off the legal fees we incurred fighting the gas plant in my village and lots of people have nearly begged me to put it in writing including a full list of what I avoided and what I purchased together with recipes. So lets give it a go. I have published two books in the past but both have been on History. Lets see how I can get on as auntieplastic. Who knows perhaps more people will lose their need for a bin. That I would love. I did not embark on this journey for anything other than to prove a point. I was on the welsh radio last week and was totally amazed at how people were so shocked that it can be done. I cannot stress enough how easy it is to do, how in control I felt during the three months and how I could not give it up for all the tea in china willingly. I can wealk around shops looking at goods and just writing them off without even thinking about what is inside thd packaging. No I cannot buy you I say to the shelves and I merrily walk on with a smile on my face. This is the life for me, guilt free and charges free if they start to charge for the amount of waste produced. I shall continue to get phone calls off my personal butcher. My quilt will be put together soon and I have materials out of my box for a skirt to beat all skirts. I saw on the '(INEBG) It's not easy being green' web site which I am now attempting to join a joint effort of some people not to buy anything new in 2008. I think I might join them and take personal satisfaction in creating things from thrown away items. We are starting a drop in centre in our village one day a week on Thursdays. Refreshments and crafts. We intend to teach one another skills to enable people to create, for in creating we find peace and contentment and control of the finest sort. I shall be back but lets get writing :)