Weekend Challenge Time!

Okay, it's been a while since I posted one of these; and I thought it's time I did.

Since 'The War on Waste' series began, they've been talking about single-use plastic bags and how dreadful they are for the environment.

This post is for those bags and the end of them in our houses. What I want you to do is pull out all of those bags from every nook and cranny of your home, put them into a large reusable bag and take them to your nearest recycling centre or Coles (it's a grocery store here in Australia) and put them into the recycling bin outside them. 

Now, before you think that there's no bags to use, at Coles and other places around, there'll be reusable bags on sale. I've been collecting these styles of bags for years - before the outlawing of them came through in the past year. I took my own bags shopping and people used to laugh at me at the checkouts. Now, the same people are wondering why they didn't think of it sooner. 

I have found that the Coles red and white shopping bags may be made from 80% of recycled material, but they are not good for the environment - so if you're in Australia and you are offered one of these bags, say no! Please try to take your own or buy a hessian one from the place. 

Okay... this is the challenge for the weekend. You'll be surprised how many plastic bags you'll find in your house. 

Also, throughout the week, you'll be getting some out of your fridge too - you know when you finish up with your veggies in the crisper. Now, what you do is, air them out until they're dried out, and put them in with the other single-use plastic bags. You can take them to the recycling bin as well, along with bread bags too. I'm doing my very best to recycle as much as I can these day. And this is one way to do this. 

In the next week, why don't you all let me know approximately how many bags you found and are recycling and where you found them... it'll be a good exercise to keep an eye on how much plastic we're using too.  

Late Night Decluttering Sessions

It's wonderful when it's late at night, quiet around the place and I really don't want to head off to bed yet. 

Yep, it was 10pm last night and I had turned the tv over to a science show on the discovery of Earth-like planets and found I really just wanted to clean up the living room - and I got into it and did it. 
The laundry was folded, and the clothes horse was put away, along with other things which needed to be put into the storage facility, and then I grabbed a rubbish bag and filled it with things that had been sitting around the place for weeks! Boxes, old news papers, plastic crap and other junk which has been invading my floor and - before I knew it - the bag was full and I tied a knot in it and set it off to one side to put out in the rubbish the next morning. 

I pulled the big cloth bag from next to my dinner table and went through it. There were reusable bags in it which I had been looking for. So, I pulled them out and put them to one side. The big cloth bag is going into my car (with the reusable bags) and the other bag with the other plastic bags and bubble wrap has been set off to one side for a moment - until I get a shelving unit to put that onto the top of. 

But I didn't stop there! I pulled the rubbish bag from the bin the kitchen and took that outside with the junk bag out to the big bin and ended up locking up the house by 10:45pm. Yep, it was a good clean-up. The science show had finished as well. I set out the rest of the cockroach traps around the house and took the laundry upstairs to put away - seeing I had folded it ready to do that.

When I came downstairs this morning, the living room looked and felt less cluttered and more like I know what's what and that I know which direction the living room is going. It's a good feeling to get back into this again. It's going to take me time to get back into the whole declutter thing after a little while away from it... but bear with me, and we'll be back on track again. 

War On Waste - Series Two!

It's back on! The War on Waste is back on for everyone to take part in and you can see it on the ABC on Tuesday nights at 8:30pm.

I caught it by chance and loved every minute of it.

I remember the hype it got during the first series last year and totally went all out talking about it to everyone, so much so, I think all my friends and relatives got a little tired of hearing about it from me.

But I've been working on this blog and on my own personal war on waste around my house and life, making sure I recycle what I can and up-cycle as well. 

It's well worth a look into to see what you can do around your place to see what little things - which can turn out to be big things - to make your life easier and more likely change everything.

This year, I have stopped using plastic straws to see how many I used to use... and believe me I found out that in the past two months, I used to use 2 straws per day, every day! In the two months I'd normally use 2 straws a day there'd be 56 straws going to landfill! This plastic doesn't break down, and more often than not sticks around for decades. So, I have a pantry filled with straws which I have no use for - I might give them to my art school and see who grabs them first to recycle into an art installation. 

Now, the next thing which was boycotted from my home was single-use plastic bags. I collected them all together and put them into the big green recycle bin outside my local Coles Supermarket. 
I now only use the reusable shopping bags and my folding bags... they are now housed in my bag-holder in the kitchen, which is great! The best thing is that just as I boycotted those single-use bags from my Coles, they stopped using those very bags themselves! What a great place, right? 

Anyway, these are the two big - or little - plastics which are now vetoed from my house. I no longer use them and don't want them in my house. The straws are going to be dealt with next Monday - and I'll have more space in my pantry - and I'll be looking out for paper straws to stock so they break down.

So, do tell, what is your war on waste you're going into battle with? Have you boycotted something in your house and stuck with it? These aren't the only things which have been boycotted from my house - chemical cleaners, like bleach cleaners, is another - is another I'm working on getting rid of from my life and house. 

The Plans of Mice and Men

As with a lot of plans, not everything this week has turned out the way I planned. My sofa-bed didn't end up being picked up by any charity I had in mind. Nobody wanted to buy it or take it off my hands for nothing. And I couldn't just leave it outside my unit/townhouse complex (as that's illegal in my area). 

Nope. I thought the Browns Plains Smart Tip would take it off my hands... but oh, was I in for a surprise there! 

Dad and I arrived there and the guy at the weigh station asked if anything was wrong with the lounge and we said, 'A small tear.' he said, 'Nah, they won't take that, it has to be dumped.' 

I mean... what????

Aren't we supposed to be trying not to adding to the landfill? 

As you can well imagine I was mad as all hell after we dumped it. There wasn't anything wrong with the lounge... just that 20cm tear in the top of one of the arms. How pathetic can it get?

It's taken me over 24 hours to really get over this. I've never felt so let down over how society's ego can be so big over a tiny tear in a 30 year old lounge. Exactly what do they expect me to do, spend $3,000 on it then sell it for $300? I don't think so!

Well, today, I slept in because I felt so exhausted and had had nightmares about all the fruit'n'veggie places I visit normally being filled with oranges and lemons (things I can't eat) and a city burning down while I stood by and watch and everyone else panicked, screaming and running around me. I woke up exhausted and didn't want to get out bed.

When I got some of the housework done, I looked at my Donation Box and found a lot of the things in it could be donated, some of the things in it could be recycled and a little could just be tossed in with the general waste. Once it was all sorted out, I packed the car and went off to the local Vinnies and donated it all... yes, I felt better. Then, I found 2 pairs of jeans, a work basket, a lovely set of coasters and a gorgeous decanter... all up, I spent $24. Not a bad day at the Vinnies at Underwood. I could have easily bought all the craft gear there... as there was a deceased estate of it all there sitting on a table.

But I'm trying to keep my craft gear to a minimum; and I'm more looking at collecting oil paints and brushes than glue gun glue and beads. So, I was good today.