More rail travel....

If anyone out there doesn't have a family rail card there is a discount code for 10% off until the 31st Dec - FAMILY10 - just key it into the promo code box. The card is now £26 which I think is pretty steep - you really need to be making some long journey's or very regular journey's en famille to make it worthwhile. In any event, every little bit helps so thought I'd post it here.

Better rail travel for all.....

A friend has just sent me a link to SMART, a local group campaigning to improve rail travel in our area. Apparently there are moves afoot for there to be a direct line link from Huddersfield to Slaithwaite.

I don't know about you, but struggling around train stations with push chairs, young children and piles of books, crayons etc to keep them happy is not my idea of fun. We love travelling by train, don't get me wrong, and we're all really happy once sitting down with our coffee/sandwiches/books and crayons (or wandering up and down the aisles with ds2 who is 2). It's the in betweeny bits which can be a total pain.... no lifts at stations, only long flights of stairs, long waits for connections and no waiting room or horrible urine smelling waiting rooms. Anything to improve this is welcome and clearly a direct line to a main destination will help.

Posting Comments

Hmmmmm, I've had a couple of reports that people have tried to post comments and can't. Has anyone else had this problem? Anyone know a way around it? I've just tested it and it works for me, but I have a google account. Not at all sure how this all works, will work on it. Ahhhh the trials and tribulations of technology..... grr.

Great bread and Allotment woes

Wow, I just can't believe how lucky we are to be able to get such delicious food nearby. I've been splashing out on bread from The Handmade Bakery recently and I don't think I'll ever be able to eat cardboard bread again. It's just in a totally different taste league. Luckily the kids and even hubby seem to prefer supermarket bread and we can afford the odd loaf of the handmade variety.

This weekend has seen us yet again clashing in our goals to 1. save the planet and 2. raise a young family. As per usual, the allotment has suffered. We started out with great intentions and then our little one got a fluey cold and those good intentions turned to custard. We have enlisted the help of a friend, so next year should be better than this, and we remain determined that one day in the not too distant future we will have our plot looking like our neighbours (and he'll be asking us for advice ;-), but for the time being, we do our best and it never seems to be quite good enough. We've had some decent onions and french beans, but keeping on top of the slug problem around here is more than we are up to. Apparently they don't like leeks and so we've got a whole load of overwintering leeks in for the spring.

Green Martyrdom.... does it exist?

Really interested in everyone's views on this one.....

This story hit the headlines today "Tim Nicholson: A Green Martyr". I think it's a fascinating debate to be having, on two levels:

• First, what is a company doing employing a someone with beliefs which are inconsistent with those of the company in order to push forward an eco policy? and:


• Second, is the term "a philosophical belief in climate change" useful to the cause? If not, is there another way Mr Nicholson could be defending himself against dismissal? Why should he want to be working for this company which is so clearly not in line with his beliefs?

My response to the second of my queries is that I don't believe his defense is at all helpful. To put climate change in the same pot as religious belief in terms of the law is extremely misleading since one has a growing body of irrefutable proof and the other can never be proved.

I'd love your views...... F


PS Yesterday I meant to post a link to this.... Woman's Hour included a really interesting interview with Tamsin Osmond of Climate Rush about direct action on Climate Change vs taking the political route. It's about 20 mins into the show I think.

Ringing the changes.....

Anyone who looks at my other blog will know that I've been fiddling around with blog templates.... You're not in the wrong place, it just looks a bit different.... hope you like. ;-)

Being Eco means Being Veggie

Over the past few months I've managed to decrease the family's meat intake hugely ..... without them even noticing ;-) My hubby is a red blooded meat eater; whenever I present him with a veggie meal for lunch he expects meat for dinner (and vice versa), amidst crys of "I'm 6ft 3 you know". I'm going to struggle to make totally veggie, but I have managed to cut down the amount of meat going into his meals by watering down the meat content with beans, soya mince and lots of tomatoes and ratatouille... he doesn't seem to even have noticed..... te he he.

Did you know a vegan car driver makes less CO2 emissions than a meat eating non-car driver! In other words, to rephrase an old vegitarian catch phrase.... Meat is murder-ing the planet.

Time vs using the car

When you have young children, time is at such a premium ..... now I've conditioned myself to feel guilty if I use the car unnecessarily, I'm faced with so many dilemas. Today I'm guilty ;-( I popped down to the post office to collect a parcel when I could easily have gone on the bike and taken 10 minutes more..... I have lots of issues around patience and time management to work through!

Has anyone seen the news today? It sounds like the new Govt Chief Energy Scientist, Prof David MacKay might be about to shake things up.