Eating Daisies.

At the moment, I need to keep reminding myself that my emotional response to things is out of proportion to the actual reality of the situation. I am indeed overreacting.

There is a course starting in September just up the road from me, run by Sensory Solutions. It is a year long herbal apprenticeship (not cheap, but worth the money) and if I was in the country I would be all over it like an overenthusiastic labrador! But I ain't.

Now what I will be doing is wicked and amazing and a chance of a lifetime, and it isn't like I don't want to go. I just think it's fecking typical that this kinda thing crops up now when I won't be here.

And like I said, I am disportionately disappointed about it. Not entirely sure whether this disappointment is from the fact I have finally found a course that I want to, or that I should have been doing this type of work on my own and just got on with it. Is my procrastination kicking me up the arse again?

The thing is, yes, I could have probably done it on my own, but it is nice to speak to like-minded people that don't think you are bonkers and can help you out if the need arises.

And finally, Daisies taste of Happy and Rocket(Arugula)

Really snoresome update.

Couldn't think of a title, and general update is really boring. So random keys it is.

Since the last time I have updated, there hasn't been that much news. Am slowly, slowly getting the garden sorted, even if the slugs and snails have eaten one of my corguette plants. (Gits) Will send Hubs out for a crappy beer or something, and hopefully drown the buggers. So far I have french beans, runner beans, petit pois, corguettes, pumpkins, peppers, chillis, strawberries, raspberries, an apple tree, a pear tree (although those I don't think I will get any fruit from yet). I also have oregano, thyme, lovage, basil, parsley, chives, chamomile, lavender, rosemary and dill growing in various pots.

I need to clear up around the pond, and see if I can resurrect it. It would be lovely to have an actual pond, rather than the stagnant swamp I have at the mo. It has a buddlia at the back of it that I planted last year which is growing well, and I have some broken clay pots at the back as DIY toadhomes.

Other than that, the lawn is awful, with bare patches. But I will get there eventually.


Kiddywinks are well, Hubs is doing okay at work. They really do like him there which is always a bonus. However, we have come to the decision that we HAVE to be moving next year. It will either be because the maternity leave that Hubs is covering will finish and the woman will come back, which will be the end of the Christmas term. Or preferably, Hubs will take his current year 10s through year 11, and we will be moving in the summer hols. We still really have NO idea where, but we will just have to see where the jobs come up. Obviously we have preferences, but it is really just a case of wait and see.

Hubs' dad is still suffering, but he is off to his consultant tomorrow, so hopefully they will be able to offer him something that helps.


I was down in Cornwall the last weekend of May. It was lovely down there, just wish I could drive (and had a car) so could have got around more. However it was very peaceful, the B&B was nice, and we are hoping to get down there again for the Summer hols. My friend's wedding was lovely, but it was a bit weird not having Hubs and the kids there.

This weekend just gone, we went to the Colchester Mediaeval Faire (Oysterfaire) it was nice, but I think DD got a bit hot and tired, so was grumpier than I appreciated. The stuff there was really nice, and I could have bought lots of things, but since we really don't need any of it, have nowhere to put any of it, there was no real point. (Boooo) However we did get DS a Robin Hood outfit (it looks really cool) and DD had a Fair Maiden's headpiece thing. Didn't get anything for myself. Which was disappointing. However some of the stalls are online, so I will be perusing those while Hubs is in the mood for spending money! :D

Perhaps at some point I will have some interesting and outstanding news...This isn't one of them.

The UK General Election

is 2 days away. I have absolutely no enthusiasm for it. That doesn't mean that I won't be voting, I definite will be. Unfortunately I have no enthusiam for who I will be voting for. It will be a tactical vote, made to help stop unwanted candidates from getting in.

What this election has done, is opened my eyes up to see there are things that I had previously realised, but have really become obvious in the last few months. I have always known that I must be wired differently for the majority of other people, but politics is the one area where that difference becomes very apparent.

My politics are Green, and I cannot get my head around the fact that there are people out there that don't believe in Climate Change, don't realise that the Environmental issues are probably going to be the most important factors for EVERYONE in the next 100 years. I don't understand those that think the Economy can grow and grow, and we became richer and richer, consume more and more, and it not have any kind of impact? What planet are these people living on?

I am sick of short-term knee-jerk politics where politicians and big business look only to line their own pockets and never see further into the future to see what impact their policies have on our lives.

I do not understand people who blame economic downturns on a particular type of people. We are not in a recession because we have too many immigrants, or because the politicians took liberties with their finances, we are in the shits because the b(w)ankers took the royal piss out of us all, took our money, lost it, and then expected us to give them more of it, without ever giving it back. Yes, politics should be clean and transparent, but you know what? So should fucking Banking! Give us our money back, you shitheads!

(My inner conspiracy theorist found it very interesting that the politicans' finances fraud neatly replaced the banking fiasco story. You know, the one where the banks lost BILLIONS of our money, compared to the politicians' smaller amount. Now I am not saying that the politicians shouldn't have been brought to book about what they did, but in the big picture, why wasn't more done about the b(w)ankers?)

I read the Green Party's Manifesto. It makes sense to me. But I wonder how many people out there have actually read the manifesto of the political party they are going to vote for.

Am I really so weird that I try to make informed decisions about things in my life? Am I really so odd that I can see the bigger picture and want to do something about it? Why am I wired so differently from so many other people?

*People I am friends with tend to also see the big picture and care about stuff, which is probably why I am friends with them in the first place. Just a shame most of them are only on the interwebz*

Now We Are Free

And as Hecate says, What If Relationship Is The Point?

My New Year Resolution...

I am going to try and do something different this year. It is only a 3-week resolution. I am going to be vegan for 21 days. On my 101/1001 list, I stated that I would try for a week, well I decided to up the anti, and follow this programme. http://kickstart.pcrm.org/

I will try and blog my progress, and it will be interesting to see what changes it makes. Will I become more intuned, spiritual, etc, etc...

What I won't do, is turn into one of those holier-than-thou Veganites who tries to make everyone else feel bad about what they eat.

But it is something I have wanted to try for many years now, so I am going to give it a go.

Wish me luck!

:P

Climate Change

This isn't a big rant about stupid people and the denial of climate change, as that would just go on for too long.

However, I thought I would share this with you. Write a letter to your MP about Bangladesh and the effect Climate Change is having on the country - via FACEBOOK

I have done it, and if others could too, it would be fantastic. If you add a personal message to the C&P'd text, then it will get past their C&P filter. It is UK orientated, but it wouldn't take a lot to change to work for whatever country you come from.

*sighs*

When you vote for a political party, do you expect to agree with every single policy that they have, or do you choose the party that is closest to your views?

I have heard from several people that they didn't vote Green because they disagreed with one or two of their policies. Huh? So you agree with every single policy of the party that you voted for? Really? Considering the alternatives that were available?

Realistically, if the Green party ever got in, it would probably drop some of their more contentious views. (Embryonic Stem Cell research, etc.) However, what it might mean is that there would be more discussion about the pros and cons of such research, rather than the current "well, you will do what we think is right!" attitudes which current and previous Governments have had.

Would you consider actually joining the party that shares most of your views, and actively try and work with them at changing policies? Or would that mean actually making an effort?

Why can't we stop being so apathetic about these things and actually do something?

VOTE GREEN

I am begging you, from the depths of my soul, VOTE GREEN!!!!!!!!!!

Why? Because they are the only ones with any idea of what problems we will be facing in the future. And they are the only ones with any sensible and practical ideas to solve them. We NEED them in positions of power in Europe. Not the Tories, New Labour, Lib Dems (I am sorry to say), the UKIP, or gods forbid the BNP.


THE GREEN MANIFESTO

READ IT! Even if you have no intention of voting Green, read it so at least you know what you don't like!

IT'S BELTAINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And on a more personal, but as important level, it's my husband's BIRTHDAY! Happy Birthday!

I am happy to say it actually FEELS like Beltaine today. It's sunny, warm, the blossoms are out, and it is lovely. I am sitting by my patio doors listening to birdsong. It looks like we are finally going to have a proper Summer this year.

I almost killed myself yesterday. Seriously. But not intentionally. I have a serious allergy to Brazil Nuts, but it is pretty rare that I come across them. However in an innocuous cereal bar yesterday, I did. 6% worth. Not a pleasant experience, but fortunately I could tell as soon as it went in my mouth, and I had anti-histimines on me, so I was ok. But yeah, back to checking the labels for me!

Back to Beltaine.

I won't go through all the history since we all really know it, and there are plenty of other sites that can give you that information. To me, it is the start of Summer. We don't usually have the weather to go with Summer, but it feels like it today. I even have pictures of what I think is blossoming Hawthorn on my phone, but typically I can't find the lead to connect it to the pc, so you will have to wait. I think we are going to go into countryside this weekend. I feel the need. We live quite close, but don't go as often as we should.

Here is some Beltaine Mood Music from Youtube.

Profit is God part 2

Gaia Sculpture - Oberon Zell

Post Earth Day thoughts...

I wonder what the state of the world would be in, if our "world leaders" had put the same kind of money into green fuels, averting climate change, etc etc that they have in their desperate efforts to save Capitalism as we know it?

It is so reassuring that the "people in charge" have the right priorities in mind. (That's sarcasm, btw.)

United Kingdom - 03/08/08

Will nothing be done?




Spread the word.

An example of my blackthumbedness.

It looks like I have killed my chilli plant. :(

Being green, a personal view

I am really trying hard to live a green life, and I will admit sometimes it is a fecking struggle. I would be greener if I could be, but I feel that my home does conspire against me on occasion. We have a leasehold maisonette, ex council, and it is bloody awful really. We need a new boiler and central heating system, but can't afford to change it. We have really badly installed double glazing. So while we try to manage our heating responsibly, sometimes we are fighting a losing battle. We have a tiny, shittily laid out kitchen which I loathe. Seriously, I think it was laid out by someone that never cooked as it really isn't sympathetic to cooking. Which is a bit daft for a kitchen.

We do cook from scratch a lot though, which makes a small and messy kitchen worse, but it is worth it in the long run. It means that I know what my children are eating, how much it costs, and nothing goes to waste. We still occasionally get take-out, but it's not often and very much outweighed by the good stuff.

We recycle a lot. And it gets a bit ridiculous in a tiny kitchen. What we need is a larger kitchen with beeegbins! But it isn't really going to happen. So we have piles of cardboard, paper and plastic bottles in a corner of the kitchen. Oh, and don't get me on about fecking plastic bottles. (Evil things!)

We are on our 2nd compost bin. A big one which I am quite proud about. Just unfortunately, our garden is soggy, so don't get out there as much as I would like. We would have a waterbutt, but our gutters are enclosed and made of something very hard and unbreakable. We don't have a roof for solar panels, and a mini windturbine wouldn't work either.

Oh, another thing I don't do! Clean! LOL! Sorry, not really. But I am not so worried about keeping the place spotless. FFS, I have 2 kids, a cat and a dog, and a Hubs who teachs Tech! Tidy ain't ever really gonna happen! I am slowly decluttering the flat though. We are looking to moving in a couple of years, so the less crap we have the better. Finally got rid of our table and chairs on Freecycle, and have replaced them with my nan's old table and chairs which takes up a lot less room. I realised looking around my living room that there are only two items of furniture that aren't second hand. I really am not bothered by the "new and shiney" so will happily make do with quality second hand stuff.

I don't drive and we don't have a car. I do say that's because we are really green and worthy, but really if I am honest it is down to lack of opportunity and cost. But still, if it gives me extra greenie points I will be smug about it! :P It is a pain in the arse though sometimes, like today, when I have to get to Bishops Stortford with children in about an hour! Might be do-able. Will just have to do it and see.

We are looking into getting an allotment. We did start trying to grow stuff in our garden, but it is really too damp and dull in there. We have huge leylandii that I am trying to love. We didn't put them in, and they are so big now it would cost us an absolute fortune to get them removed.

I think that's what I am moaning about really. All the things I would like to do would cost money, we can't do since we are a leasehold, or we just don't have the space. When we move, hopefully all the plans that I have in my head will be able to come to fruition. In the meantime, we do the best we can and I know we are at least trying.

The obligatory introduction post...

Introductory posts always leave me a bit cold. I never know what to say, and really no-one cares that much. People want the interesting anecdotes and wry observations, not the reasons behind another new blog. However, I will give it my best go, and hopefully something interesting might come to light.

Who am I? Well, apparently to some of the other mums at the school gates, I am the prim and proper one, the quiet one who doesn't swear. Needless to say, these women don't really know me that well. I am the slightly overtired mother of two beautiful children, who are completely fantastic and adorable, and have driven me ever-so-slightly round the bend. I am married to a decent bloke. He is one of the best example of what a man should be that I have ever come across, so I am pretty glad that I married him. I am the daughter of an intelligant and hardworking mother, and a troubled father. I am a Pagan Witch, who follows no particular creed or tradition. My politics are very liberal and green, however I do find deliberate ignorance and arrogance very offensive.

What do I want? I do have other blogs elsewhere, but sometimes I want to get my thought of different issues down "on paper". Hopefully they won't just be a pile of wiffle and might hold something of interest.

If anyone ever reads this, hopefully they will get something from it...