The first steps

I used to be filled with frustration and guilt where we used to live as I just didn't have the space to recycle. We were in a 2nd floor flat, with the kitchen in a corner of the living room and my daughter was still a baby. I had to carry the rubbish bags down the stairs to the communal bins - and NOBODY recycled! Moving from there after our son was born I tried making half hearted attempts at recycling, but the kitchen was the size of a postage stamp, and there was nowhere in the living room I could put a bag without the kids getting into it. Again, it was communal bins.

When we were moved to a house finally, I was able to recycle - yay! It's easy, I have 2 bins next to each other, though it is annoying that the council don't collect so much stuff that CAN be recycled, they just DON'T. Still, I've got our rubbish down to 1-1 1/2 recycling bags and 1 landfill bag. Not bad for a family of 4, though I hope to bring that down even further by concentrating on buying less packaging.

I was going down our street on bin day this week and looking at the piles of bags in the road. SO many people had no recycling bags, and when you look at how much was going to end up in landfill it was a real eye opener. Bit ironic really, as a few weeks ago we had a Conservative newsletter round saying there were plans to create a gravel extraction site just across the road from our estate, and then use it for landfill in a few years. Everybody kicked up a right fuss over that one, but they don't seem to be doing much to reduce the need for mre landfilf sites.

After setting up th recycling I was able to get something i've wanted for ages (but was a bit difficult with not having a garden) - a compost bin! It's great fun sticking all the food, bits of paper, grass mowing etc in there and watching what happens. I'm hoping it will be doing nicely by the time I get allocated an allotment. The kids are fascinated bythe cloud of fruit flies that escape whenn you take the lid off, and all the slugs in there. My daughter tells whe what's going on in it now. We did have a colony of ants last week, but I think the pile of damp grass cuttings sorted that out. Apparently ants means the bin is a bit on the dry side and could do with being watered. Need to get out and turn it over a bit in there soon - once it stops raining for long enough!

Talking of the garden, Paul (hubby) and I have been bitten by the growing bug. I can't wait to get an allotment, so have indulged myself by planting strawberries (that are still minute), lettuces, peppers (I think) and spinach. My sweetcorn haas ben munched, as has Pauls peas. His potatoes are doing ok, and his tomatoes are really taking off! My cucumbers also got munched, though it could have been the courgette as I can't remember which is which and they both look the same. Oops.

Note to self: make plant labels!