Recycling, upcycling, but I refuse to get on a bike.

First let me make it quite clear that I am not a fan of the blogs who tell us what we should be doing, and how to do it.  Save money, clear debt, grow your own, bake your own, make your own, otherwise you will DIE.

For many years, long before it became fashionable, we have recycled.  In a quiet way.

Cans being crushed, not so quiet.

Where all my (empty) cans of Tennants go.

Can-Do was established in 1989 to promote the recycling of both aluminium and steel used beverage containers (UBC). In 1999 Can-Do were recognised as a model of excellence  in alu-recycling by ALUPRO. This web site provides details on the Can-Do project and aims to stimulate interest in conservation and recycling.

Can-Do processes aluminium and steel, food and drink cans, as well as aluminium foil and plastic bottles.If you Recycle your waste you can drop bags of cans and plastic bottles at our depot. We also have a very busy van that picks up from collection points located all the North-East of Scotland. For further information contact us 

When we had the bed and breakfast, Can-Do collected all our cans, now we are foot loose and fancy free we take them to their collection point.

We have, as long as it was possible, recycled newspaper, cardboard, glass, plastics, glass bottles (empty), and had a compost heap in which the vacuum was emptied of cat hairs, etc., food scraps, (not meat or fish, encourages rats - where possible make a soup out of them, not the rats , and orange peel, never been sure what to do with that but perhaps slugs dont like it? They dont like coffee grounds allegedly, but the compost heap does.)  Weeds, grass cuttings, etc.

Composting is an art, one has to say, keep turning, it is not necessary but if you have a man around and they can aim properly, urine is great to make it work.  Once it does, you do not need the man, or the urine, but you have a rich fertile loam to put back into your garden and get prize winning specimens and lots of good food, if you can forget about how it got there, but at least you know how it got there. (Unlike Tescos.)

When my kids were small they knew nothing of clothes shops.  We went to school and there was a great exchange of carrier bags stuffed with clothes, shoes, toys.   Like a Jumble Sale without any money exchanging hands.

We even got one of these.  Along with cat bowls, clothes, and an amazing load of stuff we promptly put in a carrier bag for the next school trip.

Now, in our older days, we utilise freecycle.  As well as continuing with the recycling.  I am still extremely chuffed that when we down sized we almost completely furnished a home for a family who had nothing.  

On a more mundane note we have/had bricks in our toilet cisterns, altho the posh alternative and pricey is the Hippos, basically just put a brick in your cistern or a water filled milk thing in , saves on water, if you are in a water metered area or if you are just like us trying to save the environment, it works.  You have a wee to get rid of, does it really need a gallon of water?

We were the first bed and breakfast to gain a Gold Award for Green Business Tourism, got a certificate to prove it, but certificates dont mean that much apart from advertising.....

And then we come to upcycling.  This is where you make something better than what it was, fit in more with todays fashions.  Hmmm,  Well, I dont think this actually saves you money.  By the time you have sandblasted, rubbed down, applied gold leaf, bit of candle wax, which you have to go out and buy, bit of paint, ditto, well, yes, its personal, a work of art even, cost a fortune.  If thats what turns you on so be it.

What this long blog is about is that no matter who you are, what you have, what you have not, we can all do our bit to help save our environment.  

And I really did not mean to preach, and you will not DIE if you don't do any of these things.

But ...... if we do not start to do our bit to save the environment well - who knows.