The Smoking Litter Police
Today at lunchtime I was alerted by a colleague, to an uncommon sight: a uniformed officer of the law, smoking. A smoking plod is probably just as likely as a smoking anybody, but I can’t remember ever seeing an officer smoking in uniform. This one wore little blue epaulettes and a bright yellow arm band …
The £86888 Auction
As the largest food retailer in Britain, what Tesco does has a massive impact on the rest of the British food industry, however, Tesco are not a charity and their primary purpose is to make maximum profit (supposedly within ethical guidelines). The profit-vs-ethics problem is therefore one of ensuring that the right ethical guidelines are …
A few fairly well kitted stalls
One of our favourite TV Chefs (and surrogate conscience for Tesco) Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has just announced a Summer Food Fair at River Cottage HQ, this summer, naturally. Now, normally the idea of a fair, replete with wicker cutlery and forced vegetables is not my idea of heaven, but factor in the fact that there will …
I just work here
This is a true story. Two staff in a small convenience store are chatting as the queue I’m in slowly moves forward towards their dual tills: Shopkeeper 1: These plastic bags get thinner and thinner! Shopkeeper 2: Yeah.
Bulk Buying Eco-Friendly Products
Since we’ve owned our own home we’ve tried to always use environmentally friendly products for all cleaning and laundry tasks. This has been surprisingly difficult because the big four supermarkets in the UK have had a pretty poor record of having more than one “eco” product in any section at any time.
Whatever happened to the Kich’n Komposter?
According to the various fragments of promotional material I’ve seen the Kich’n'Komposter is a cross between a separating centrifuge and a waste disposal unit. It grinds up food waste, then separates it from the water so it can be composted. This may not seem particularly fantastic to some, but we try and compost everything, so …
Altitude Walker
A long time ago in a hamlet far far away, I shared a house, worked and drank an occasional beer with somebody who was slightly taller, but lamentably (for him) far less handsome than myself. His name was Andy and he was a rather impetuous boy: a life ruled by impulse and extremes, as evidenced …
One million road petitioners can’t be wrong, can they?
The experimental petition system that Downing Street is running has generated it’s first 1,000,000 signature petition: it asks the PM to “scrap the planned vehicle tracking and road pricing policy” and it’s a great example of how public opinion is not necessarily good for the public.
Gifts for Geeks
What are the best alternative presents for a geek? The typical geek has carefully selected and purchased their gadgets of choice, has a computer that’s tuned to perfection and needs no software purchased (because their entire suite is open-source) – so aside from comedy tee shirts with clever slogans that can only be understood by …
Essex council turns off the lights
Q: How many Essex girls does it take to change a lightbulb? A: The same number as before, but the lightbulb lasts longer because its used less.
Turbo Vermicompost
For over five years now we’ve been actively composting almost 100% of our bio-degradable waste in a small bin that lives in the garden. When I say “we’ve been composting” I really mean it – it’s been a team effort between me, Em, and about ten thousand worms.
Dr. Jeremy “Custard Pie” Clarkson
Jeremy Clarkson, the journalist who is most famous for hosting the BBC motoring programme Top Gear received an honourary Doctorate in Engineering from Oxford Brookes University today.
Big Brother: Small Mind
Britain is once again graced by three months of watching self obsessed people making themselves look stupid merely by their very existence, with little hope of achieving anything other than profit for the production and broadcast companies involved. Why is Big Brother such a terribly wasted opportunity?
Eglu Chicken Coop
There are some things in life that are just plain cool. Totally bonkers, but cool.