19 August 2007

spending our way to climate change...

I know a little bit about climate change, and think about my impact on the environment quite a bit. I've thought a lot about how my parent's and grandparent's generations "made do" a lot more, by mending broken things, using hand-me-downs, buying second-hand. Goods were relatively expensive then, and it was more about home economics than anything else. It bugs me that goods are artificially cheap now, and that can't go on forever (the cost of labour will need to go up in manufacturing countries at some point, and I'm positive petrol will go up in price as we run out of it). I'm talking purely from an economic point of view here - however I've known that consumerism has a "carbon footprint", but not really known how much.


The results of a study by the ACF and Sydney University hit the press yesterday:


"Wealthy families in suburbs such as Woollahra, North Sydney, Mosman and Ku-ring-gai, who can afford to install solar power and large water tanks, still have the biggest ecological footprint because of the goods and services they buy.
Shopping habits represent such a large part of greenhouse gas emissions that even if every household switched to renewable energy and stopped driving cars tomorrow, total household emissions would fall by less than 20 per cent, the study found. On average, every additional dollar of consumption was responsible for 720 grams of greenhouse gas emissions and 28 litres of water."



Part of me says "Thank god someone has quantified this", part of me says "SHIT!". I've clearly got a long way to go. Here's what I do to reduce unnecessary spending/environmental impact:


- don't use detergent unless necessary, and use less than is recommended
- turn off all electronic equipment at the button/plug most nights
- use a blanket/extra jumper if cold
- shower every 2nd day or longer if I can get away with it
- drive only when I can't walk or catch train/bus
- I'm mindful of the miles the goods I buy at the supermarket have travelled
- increasingly buying organic (if the above is not too high)
- I'm restrained from buying stuff for the sake of it, including for our minor birthdays. E.g our CD player is circa 1990, and the speakers and amp we have are 2nd hand and many years older and we see no need to get a new one until it stops working.
- mostly use nappies made from recycled/renewable plantation/biodegradable material
- only use the clothers dryer for large things like sheets in wet, cold weather
- have changed most of our light globes over to energy efficient ones and have a water-saving shower head in our shower.
- we recycle everything we can (not just waste - keep every little paperclip etc that comes available to use later)
- we share/offer to share baby resources we've grown out of (clothes, bottle sterilisers etc) with friends


But:

- We use disposable nappies
- I have nowhere to compost my food waste and only a small area to hang clothes out to dry (not having a garden and only having a small balcony)
- I have to use some plain moisturisers that are pure petroleum product (a bit like vaseline, with no additives, scents etc)
- I don't seek many 2nd hand clothes when shopping for clothes
- I don't eat as much vegetatian food as I thought (so I found out last night when we had a Piscatarian to dinner, and I ended up cooking fish, despite intending to do vego food and combing my recipe books for ideas...)
- we waste some food each week


I'm sure the list goes on, but this is what comes to mind for now.

17 August 2007

Gunna do, wanna do list!

To do list:

-Make a 3 course meal (including pumpkin pie) for dinner party on Sat night
-Knitted toy snake (part way through), Monkey and Koala
-size 1 pants (part way through first pair), more on way
-Necklace
-Cover for record player/stereo (to stop/muffle E-chan when he's whacking it)
-Take up the legs of a few pairs of pants
-Fix C-chan's shorts

This is not including the un-fun things that have to get done in the next week (ie cleaning before we have guests, it being my turn to cater for staff meeting,

Work whinge averted by amusing editorial

A post about workplace discontent was bouncing around in my brain but I read this funny article about GenY workers and decided I couldn't top it: Baby boomer takes a swat at Gen Y!
I had noticed this difference between my generation (X/Y borderline) with our "screw you, I hate it here, I'm leaving" attitude and that of my my parents, who trudged along in the same job for years, moaning away but keeping going. But never really thought about it from this point of view!!
Feel like someone has shaken my shoulders and told me to snap out of it!!

16 August 2007

E-chan update

It's been a while since I've posted about E-chan's antics, I realised. So, he's 14 months old now, crawling, standing, cruising, chatting and saying the odd word, but very expressive with noises and actions. He's generally a cheerful and friendly chap, has a cheeky streak, loves fetching us books for us to read to him, and loves having baths (to the point where we have to spell the word out unless it's bath time, because he goes straight to the bathroom door and bangs on it otherwise, expecting a bath any moment soon).

He's not walking unsupported yet, but will do with a trolley to push or if we hold his hands. He mostly gets fed by us, but will feed himself chunks of cooked potato, bread, muffins, crackers, and cooked peas. He alternates between trying to use a spoon (ie banging, flinging, and tantruming if we try to shove food in his mouth) and just letting us feed him.

He seems to like going to child care, but sometimes reaches the end of his tether towards the end of the day, and wants to be at home with us (I don't blame him - I feel much the same!). He's learning to play with other kids, has great toys and a large outside playing area to play in (that we don't have at home), and best of all, likes the carers and will be settled and fed by them.

He's mastering attention seeking, and has a set of things that he know's he's not supposed to do that he does when he's bored or if he thinks we should stop whatever we're doing and play with him - namely pressing buttons and twirling dials on electronic equipment, playing with the vertical blinds, banging things, and clearing out bookshelves.

When we're out and about, we noticed he's frighteningly like us in some ways. For example, we're out at the playground, and we notice he's just sitting there watching the older kids play and try to encourage him to play a bit and crawl around. Then I notice I'm doing exactly the same thing - sitting and watching the other kids play! Is that learned or innate behaviour, or innate reinforced by watching us?! Many other examples of him copying me in subtle ways. But one thing that impresses us is his strong sense of self, stubbornness, clear sense of what he wants to do and how he wants to go about it.

Giving me the knits!

Thanks a lot*, Seagreen... you got me hooked on knitting again after a 20 year hiatus! All I did was comment on how mobile a craft it was compared to beading or sewing, and a weekend visit to her place resulted in a lend of some needles, spare wool, a book on how to make soft toys from simple squares, and a quick lesson on how to cast on, and I'M HOOKED!

(above - blurry image, but not bad knitting for someone who hasn't knitted since Grandma came to stay and taught me around 20 years ago...? I don't seem to be able to cast on very evenly, but am getting there...)

Anyway, since Sunday, have knitted the head plus three body segments of what will hopefully become a snake!! Very soothing occupation for those moments where you want to sit, chat, maybe listen to music or the telly but be productive at the same time!

* no really - thanks!

emails schmails

I don't know about you, but I find emails are mostly a really unsophisticated medium of communication. People treat them casually, as if because they are easier than sending a letter, they therefore don't have to be as formal. As a consequence, they don't always think as hard about how they are recieved at the other end. I have received countless terse emails that come across as narky when they needn't be or aren't intended to be (accountants are usually best at this - sorry but it's true). People run off emails in the heat of a moment and send them off, where they probably should take a moment to calm down, or even better, should just pick up the bloody phone and sort miscommunications out once and for all (far quicker too). Even the most casual and friendly emails, almost sms-like in briefness, can be misinterpreted in this way. And worse of all, the type of email that is a mighty battle of egos, deflecting blame (under the guise of "clarifying"), complete with people's bosses cc'd in.

One of my bosses over the past few years taught me something useful namely his discipline of always writing an email like a letter, complete with a "Dear ____" at the start and a proper signing off at the end. It makes a huge difference I think. I mean, as pressed as you are for time, how hard is it to add these to emails? Writing something properly first time around can save you a lot of time in the end. Yes, these lines can be blurred with good friends of course, or at the end of a friendly e-discusssion, or if you are just emailing to say "thanks!". But for most work emails, I think this is extremely important that people email carefully, even with people who work together all the time. Or am I just in an industry of bad communicators?

* yes I just got a terse email from someone at work that's upset me a bit

05 August 2007

Snapshot of suburb #2(?)

Old man sitting at bus stop whistling perfectly - good enough to be the whistling parts of "Jealous Guy" or "Dock of the bay". But he is whistling the tune to: "If you're happy and you know it clap your hands!"

------------------------

Middle Aged man walking down shop-lined street on a Sunday morning, singing his heart out, made me smile. Good voice too*. Drew a lot of stares from those who expect the ordinary.

------------------------

Walking up past a row of 2-storey terrace houses late one afternoon, and the balcony of one of them is full of student-aged people. On the street opposite, there is an Alfa Romeo parked, and a young man is seriously checking the car out - walking around it, looking at the detail. Then comes a shout from the balcony, a posh woman's voice with a private school accent:

Posh Voice: Naice car, isn't it?!
Car Enthusiast: Yes!
PV: It's Mine! My Dad bought it for me.... for my birthday!
-pause-
CE: How old are you?!!!!
-pause-
PV: 18!

That, I thought, is the ugly side of wealth. That someone so young that they couldn't have earned an expensive car in their own right, shamelessly yells out to anyone who listens that her Dad bought her the car for her 18th birthday; that her voice almost seemed to be jeering at the young guy who may never be able to afford such a car, possibly challenging him to come up with a better story.

Even if I was moderately wealthy, I would try and teach my children not to take wealth for granted, not to disrespect or flaunt it to those not so fortunate, to think how they could use their wealth for the good of society. They would not get a car for their birthday - they'd have to save up for one if they really needed it.


* Does anyone from 'Delaide remember that busker who used to don a barber-shop hat and red and white suit and sing light-operatic songs in Rundle Mall? Well he had the same kind of voice.

04 August 2007

Rant about unit design...

Apartment design is one of my pet whinging topics. It just gets me so AAAAANGRY when I see such poorly designed unlivable dwellings! Don't bring this up when I'm feeling a bit passionate and have had beer or two, as I probably won't shut up. No doubt designed by someone who never lives in an apartment, built by someone who never lives in an apartment, sold by someone who never lives in an apartment, and owned by someone who either never lives in an apartment, or lives in it for 6 months before moving back in with Mum and Dad once the 1st home owner's grant can be claimed. I know everyone involved is trying to eke out the biggest profit possible, but there has to be some point where places with solid walls that can actually be lived in get built and are affordable for people to buy.

I am just astounded at how badly places are designed. Bear in mind that for a 2 bedroom unit, many tennants will either be 2 housemates sharing, or parents with a kid, or a couple with the spare room as a guest room/study. For this to be liveable, the living area needs to be big enough for a dining table, lounge area. If the 2nd bedroom is occupied, the living area needs to be also big enough. Don't even get me started obout the lack of 3br units around. So here are my issues with just about every unit that I've seen that has been built in the past 10 years:

- No laundry cupboard. When I looked at one apartment to rent a few years back, I mentioned that there wouldn't be anywhere to put a vacuum cleaner. "Wardrobe?" was Real Estate agents' reply. "Well that would be full of our clothes, as it would barely fit 2 people's clothes," I said, thinking out loud. "Well," said RE Agent, showing how out of touch with reality she was, "most people have cleaners these days!". (Der - you still need a vacuum cleaner). Aside from the vacuum cleaner, you need somewhere to put a laundry basket, clothes airer, and those of us who iron (not me if possible!) need somewhere to put an ironing board and iron.

- No linen cupboard. Every household has sheets, towels, blankets, and often medicines, odds and ends, tablecloths. Therefore, why isn't it standard to have a general use cupboard built into the living area??

- Bedrooms too small or badly shaped. We have one massive bedroom but it can only be laid out one way. We could perhaps fit more stuff in our bedroom if we had a double bed instead of a queen, but we don't, and neither do many couples. The main bedroom has an ensuite (which we could easily do without - a pointless luxury as far as we're concerned), yet the 2nd bedroom is so puny it would barely have room for a single bed, a wardrobe and a chest of drawers.

- Bathrooms from mars. Apparently the plumbing in our main bathroom/laundry has an experimental plumbing set-up unknown to any trained or accredited plumber, which leaked into the kitchen below us. That's all fixed now, and the problem was all down to shoddy workmanship apparently. However, it's great to have a bath, enough room to air clothes inside on a tiled floor, and a place for a washing machine, as many units don't. In addition, check out this picture:


Our washing machine is medium sized, and is in the only place it can be - under the washing machine taps. Now look at the toilet. My not terribly large bum presses up against our washing machine every time I sit on it. And I often wonder why the toilet roll dispenser (which I might also add is cheap and frequently falls off the wall) needs so much room??






- small living room spaces with not enough walls to put your furniture along. Most furniture and audio visual equipment needs to go against a wall. Our living area isn't bad in this respect, as we can separate it into living, dining and computing. Many other places I've seen are small rectangles. When they are open for inspection, they only have the bare minimum furniture on display, to make it look roomier than it is.

- Common/outdoor areas that are useable. No echo-ey outdoor areas where people are tempted to drink late and keep everyone else awake. Our common area is not used as much as it could be as it's bright, tiled, unshaded, and half the units look down off their balconies onto you. Not very relaxing. Oh and it'd be wonderful to put my compostable waste somewhere other than the garbage bin...

- Somewhere to hang your washing outside where it won't get stolen. Some councils in Sydney have the most ridiculous and environmentally unfriendly LAW that if someone complains about your washing/bedding being aired from outside the building, you can get a warning, and a fine if you do it again. And the unit comes with a energy inefficient clothes dryer that you are supposed to use instead.

- No stairway option. Lifts are necessary in multistory apartment buildings for prams and wheelchairs. But able-bodied people should also have an option to use stairs. That's right, some of us like using our legs!! We have a fire escape that we can use to leave the building, but not to enter.

03 August 2007

I must be sick...

I have no appetite whatsoever.

Gastro. Stay away from me!

Bummer!

02 August 2007

Thanks, and talking about long term relationship habits....

Thanks for kind expressions of sympathy about my Nan. I didn't go to the funeral, but took a moment somewhere by myself to say goodbye.

My RL friend Seagreen was talking about family relationships. Kind of in a similar vein... Both my sets of grandparents reached at least 50 years together, and no doubt created a few dynamics of their own in that time.

I thought it was interesting to hear, amongst the grief, what my Gran had to say about losing Grandad many years ago, and (superficially) how my Pop has changed after losing his partner of 60 years.

I think my Mum's parents were truly happy and content together. Nan did all the talking, and Pop was quite quiet - e.g. "How are you, Pop?" "Oh, well thanks, dear!". And that was often the limit of his conversation. Mum says after Nan's funeral last week, he just started talking all the time!! Mum was suprised!! Perhaps he always talked more than we knew, but mostly when alone with Nanna?

My dad's dad was a bit, well, traditional (didn't talk about emotions and at times said insensitive things). But all in all, I think they were fairly happy companions, until Granny started to get alzeimers. Anyway, years ago I was visiting Granny just before Grandad's funeral, and one morning, after a sleep in, she said "oh, it's sooooo nice to sleep in! I haven't done it for 50 years!!". (She used to do a lot for Grandad, who had hurt his back during his life and was quite an invalid for the last 10 or so years).