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What is a Toy?

I was fascinated this week when I saw a report on BBC Breakfast about a ‘back to basics’ experiment in a UK nursery which, it’s reported, has stimulated creativity and improved communication amongst the children involved (especially the boys, apparently) – and decluttering the rooms in the process. I also found an article about it in the Mail Online (published back in March of this year).

Matt Caldwell, the Head of the nursery was, apparently, inspired by similar schemes in Germany which replaced plastic toys with everyday items and real size objects – so, for example, instead of a miniature/child-size/toy version of a musical instrument, they would have an adult-sized, real one to explore.egg-carton-575692_1280

lavender ovalOther items were day-to-day objects such as kettles, bottle tops, egg boxes, corks, pine cones, conkers, lavender and pots.

The backs were taken off electrical items so the children could see how they were constructed. Continue reading “What is a Toy?” →

Attenborough on Plastic at Glastonbury 2019

I wasn’t at Glastonbury this weekend, but I did see a recording of Sir David Attenbourough’s spot.

He’s amazing – so respected – able to hold the attention of such a large crowd, many of whom were 70 or more years younger than himself – that’s no mean feat!

He’s lost none of his energy and passion – yet, I think he delivers what he says in an understated but serious manner – without talking down to anyone.

A great role model, not only for what he’s doing for us all and the planet, but also for any of us who might be wondering how we might be/behave in our own later years perhaps ..?

If you missed it, here’s a recording I found – it’s less than 4 minutes:

Plus a great comic-style article which a friend sent me recently which you might like, too – click here.

use, re-use, recycle or mend…

single-use

Very pleased to hear Sir David Attenborough and others speaking out at the UN climate summit in Poland last week.

I’m also glad to see ‘single-use’ as the Collins Word of the Year, highlighting our throwaway mentality which needs challenging for the sake of our planet – aimed, particularly, at our use of plastics. Continue reading “use, re-use, recycle or mend…” →

Alone or Lonely?

alone or lonely

On one of my seafront walks recently I noticed someone sitting by themselves on the beach, gazing out to sea – much like the person in the photo here.

Given my particular interest in suicide prevention I needed to make a judgement call as to whether this person seemed in distress and, if so, whether I would approach them. In this case they seemed just fine.

But it started me thinking – they were there alone, perhaps by choice, but maybe not.

Continue reading “Alone or Lonely?” →

Waste Not, Want Not, Tie The Knot!

I just want to share another great example of frugality and recycling that I read about in the Express recently – and all done without losing any of the joy and celebration in life:

wedding-rings-150300_1280.pngA couple, Cherie Harris and James Mainwaring, approached their wedding arrangements in a rather different and heartening way.

Instead of paying the usual cost of a wedding breakfast for their 140 guests, they spent a mere £6 a head by sourcing a delicious meal from food that would otherwise have gone to landfill via The Real Junk Food Project.

Other eco-friendly touches included home-made invitations and decorations, a wedding dress lined with bamboo pulp and gifts of seeds as wedding favours which their guests could then plant afterwards…

Doesn’t this just show what can be achieved with a touch of imagination, ingenuity and co-operation. winking-face_1f609

Wonky Winners

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I’ve written about food waste before (War on Waste and Hugh’s War on Waste: The Battle Continues) because I think it matters.

These days it’s so easy to be drawn into buying only the fruit and veg that look ‘pretty’, that conform to a standardised idea of what they ‘should’ look like.

So I was really pleased to read at theguardian.com this week, that sales of wonky fruit and veg have been an important element in the current success of the UK supermarket, Morrisons.

Continue reading “Wonky Winners” →

‘To Wrap or Not to Wrap?’ – that is the question…

dustbin-95180_1920.jpg

This morning my street is lined with wheelie bins as the first post-Christmas rubbish and recycling collection is due.

I wonder how much of the contents will be wrapping paper.

Apparently, a recent survey found that half of us in Britain would be happy to receive presents unwrapped in order to cut down on waste.

This is about saving on paper, recycling and saving the planet – and for many of us, now, this extends to doing away with physical Christmas cards, too.

Of course, it’s too late to change what we did for Christmas this year, but a good time to think about what we might want to do differently in 2018. Continue reading “‘To Wrap or Not to Wrap?’ – that is the question…” →

Are You an Orchid or a Dandelion?

orchid-2265587_1920Orchids are beautiful but sensitive flowers.dandelion-16656_1920

They require protection and nurturing to blossom.

On the other hand, Dandelions can thrive virtually anywhere.

I came across this way of explaining how some of us develop differently from others when I was catching up on old episodes of Channel 4’s ‘The Secret Life of 4 Year Olds’.

It’s based on a Swedish metaphor: ‘amaskrosbarn’, a “dandelion child” and ‘orkidebarn’, an “orchid child.”  Continue reading “Are You an Orchid or a Dandelion?” →

All Her Possessions Fit into One Carry-on Suitcase?

suitcase-2148812_1920.jpgI smiled when I heard the author Amanda Prowse on TV recently, plastic boxhaving been asked if it were true that all her possessions could fit into a carry-on suitcase, reply:

“… all of my possessions can fit into a 2.5 litre plastic box.”

As if this weren’t impressive enough, she then went on to say that when she travels anywhere she takes only 3 outfits with her:

“… one in the wash, one to wear and one spare …” Continue reading “All Her Possessions Fit into One Carry-on Suitcase?” →

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