In what way are you naughty?

[Ratty]

4 (This one is pretty bad) I don't recycle! In my defence, the first time I put my recycle bin out it got stolen (I live en route to a high school) and I've been waiting since then (maybe about 3 years) for a new one from the council. That said, I do try to buy things with little to no packaging. Since I don't drive it would be tricky for me to carry a bunch of stuff to the closest public recycling bins so what waste I do produce goes into the wheelie bin I'm afraid.

On balance though, I think I'm doing well. As I say, I don't drive (I walk, bus or use the train and only occasionally get a lift, and even more rarely a taxi) and I don't use any household chemicals or synthetic based toiletries. (My only failing here is toothpaste. I've yet to find one which is eco-friendly and effective enough) I'm a strict vegetarian and only use organic/free-range dairy and eggs and since discovering this board, I've successfully made the switch to Fairtrade on chocolate and sugar.
I also try to buy local whenever I can.
I think as long as we do what we can, to the best of our ability, then we shouldn't feel too guilty about the naughty things we do! There's always someone naughtier, and there's always someone greener!

Ring your Council's recycling department immediately for a replacement bin! And if you have a bike or can walk then you can recycle. I've recycled glass & tin (as a minimum) for over 15 years now (since I first left home) and I don't drive at all! Our local recycling collection doesn't take glass nor tetrapacks nor carrier bags but we still recycle them! I have friends who live in areas with NO recycling provision but they give recycling to friends who visit who DO have recycling facilities. Sorry but I think if there is recycling in your area then you should make use of it!

[Urban Ayisha]

1. weedkiller and slug pellets (on lettuce seedlings mainly)

2. cheap maternity clothes over the last few months

3. lifts to the allotment... although i was using my bike up to about 5 months! now people dont let me walk/cycle so its not really my fault...!!!

4. takes about 20 minutes (more after I've dyed it!) in the shower to wash my hair (long dreadlocks) but only once a week !

5. vanish oxiwhite stuff to whiten the OHs work shirts... he works at an italian restaurant and comes back looking like the 'before' in a daz advert! coffee, red wine, spaghetti sauce, biro.. u name it! have just bought an 'earth friendly' one off natural collection, so will compare!

[Minnesota]

OK, I know this thread is 18 months old.
But Rosendula brought it up in "the first thread you posted" post.
and I wasn't here 18 months ago.

I like to eat Processed Red Meat.
---I know, I know...Factory farms...the Animals are treated poorly,
all the growth hormones and chemicals shot in them,
besides all the chemical preservatives
added during processing and packaging.

[liskeardjane]

I own a grande punto multi jet - so very fast! but don't use it to commute as I use the train - but I love it.

[KathyLauren]

1. I drive to the hardware store when I need nails or something instead of walking.

2. Chocolate. I don't care that there isn't a cacao tree within 5000 miles of here; chocolate is one of the four food groups. I have to have it.

[brett53]

god this thread would be a psychologists dream , why are you all on a guilt trip ?? even the worst i have read bears no comparison to those in society that just don't give a c*** - and carry on in their materialistic ways

my attitude is when i see our politicos and supposed movers and shakers REALLY trying and setting an example -THEN - i will feel a twinge of any sort of guilt - until then :

i smoke - so sue me

i hoard stuff

i don't believe in ALL the hype put out by science - so sue me

i am cynical as hell about many things

i do what i do not for some vague "save the planet" ego trip / feel good factor / what ever the PC motive is - I DO IT TO SAVE MONEY !! - PURE AND SIMPLE - NOOOOOOOO APPOLOGIES

i buy stuff with lots of packaging - but do recycle it

i eat processed food - ready meals - junk food as and when i feel like it - don't care about my health or living till i am 90 ** - have bad teeth ( well compared to every one you see on TV - vain sods ) - like chocolate - eat chocolate - NEVER read all the c*** on the back of food packets about % of fat - sugar etc - don't eat five a week - let alone five a day ( unless i count my usual banana ) - have a BMI that makes my doctor cringe ( I'm not fat I'm big boned ) - i have no time for experts , pussies , politically correct people , particularly PC PUSSIES !! - people that tell what i SHOULD do ,be doing , have done - take no notice of pretty bureaucracy - stupid rules and regulations - hate the EU - NEVER listen to "perceived ' wisdom as there is ALWAYS better way to do things - am considered by many as a compete and incorrigible maverick - don't believe in ANY god , - religion - or gurus - like animals better than people most of the time ..........................................

and i sleep nights ( well except when my arthritis keeps me awake )

so in all i am such a baddddddddddddd person - i don't have time to feel guilty

( note to any psychologists reading this - yep i am your WORST nightmare !! )



well you DID ask - am i naughty enough ??????

** and seriously , i dont give a hoot about living till i am 90 or even 70 - since my lovely wife passed away - i have come to realise that money -possesions - wealth - standing in the community - and all the other c*** that people value soo much mean absolutly nothing - that suppsed 'freinds " are usually nothing of the sort - and that very few people actually give a c*** about their fellow man - ah they talk a good story - but in reality ??

( you will get used to me - or crack yourself up trying to figure me out )

[liskeardjane]

Hi Brett - you're talking my language! I do what I do to save money, always have, I make my own compost as it's free and I like that price and grow my own veg and save marg tubs as seed trays all because it saves me money. I don't like waste and think materialism is pointless and I don't care what colour your sofa is; you're still the same person even if you had to sit on the floor! My car will last us for ten years or more and it's lovely, cheap to buy, insure and run (diesel and we're older) and we can go off camping in the warm weather whenever we like as we have a car. No I don't feel guilty - I don't drive to the co-op 'cos I'm too stingy with the fuel to take the car if I can walk. I burn waste wood which I 'liberate' from skips and pick up at the side of the road and I don't care what people think. I wear clothes to keep me warm not fashionable and know when I'm gone no one is going tocare much about my opinions so I might as well get on and do things my way, whether people think they are green or blue! See my blog if you want to know what a tight wad I really am!

[southeast-isher]

I left my 4 x 4 running on a full tank of petrol in my drive when i nipped in to get my wallet - i fell asleep! The damn thing was running for hours, and in the red on the petrol gauge when i finally woke up.










































[not really]

[Minnesota]

and all the other c*** that people value soo much mean absolutly nothing - that suppsed 'freinds " are usually nothing of the sort - and that very few people actually give a c*** about their fellow man - ah they talk a good story - but in reality ??

Sometimes I think I get a little cranky
I'm gonna have to save a link to this thread and brett's post.

[Harasimow]

Okay here gos (gulp)

1) I eat at Mc donnalds on occasion
2) I eat meat which isnt free range when its in somthing else (like a pie or pizza topping)
3) I drive into town when theres a bus every 15 mins (to save time becaue the bus goes all over the place)
4) I smoke
5) I eat stuff out of season thats flown in from miles away
6) I have baths and they are full and warm.
7) i use slug pellets
8) I shop at supermarkets because of their convienient opening hours.

hmmm i should make some lifestyle changes methinks.

[Annpan]

My biggy is haribos... tangfastics to be precise.... no idea what the heck goes into them but I currently go through a few packets a month.....
I am pretty good when it comes to organic, home made, home grown, etc, etc, etc, but I cannot walk past an open packet of haribos.... it is an addiction....

Other than that we have a few forgivable ones... like supermarket shopping, our local shops have very little range and don't stock local produce anyway (we do use the butcher and the baker) and they are a mile away, I don't drive, have a toddler and a million things to do so at the weekends we go to the supermarket.

The very occasional curry or chippy tea (supporting local business )
Crisps and fizzy juice at christmas (though it is Mackies crisps and Irn Bru now.... supporting local business )
Drive to have frequent days out in Edinburgh or Glasgow - when we could just as well walk around aimlessly here, in the Lanarkshire countryside for 5 hours... I think I am still a city girl at heart

[ElizabethBinary]

Embarassing fact about me: since I grew up in Mexico nobody ever taught me how to recycle. I know it SEEMS straight-forward, but I don't get why I can't put styrofoam or certain plastics but not others in there. I tried for awhile when I dated some psycho would-call-me-names-if-I-didn't-recycle **** and of course could never get it right (he'd never explain it to me) so I just gave up after I told him where to take his attitude. I try with big packaging, like my kitchenaid boxes and moving boxes.. but when it comes to little things, I just gave up.

I'm with whoever said I'm not doing it to save the planet either.. BUT I do like that it's a byproduct of what I do. I don't do it to save money either. I do it because I like it and because it makes me feel like Mother Nature. When I was 17 I found out I couldn't have children... when I grow food it makes me feel like I DO have children, these plants. I can plant them as seeds and get excited when their first leaf shows and I show them off to my friends and I can offer the fruit of my labour and love to others as a symbol of love. I am very spiritual about my gardening. I don't use tools if I can help it, I use my hands. I use organic.. not for me so much as the plants. I love them and want them to flourish healthily. I can't stand flower bushes or things that I can't eat... so my garden is entirely edible and nearly everything is from seed.

My work requires me to drive a lot. I spent $150 on petrol this week alone. I used to own a V6, but now I have a 4cyl 1.8, which is a bit better. However, I do have plans to buy a 4wd AND a MACK truck.. like.. an actual MACK truck. My partner and I want to refurbish the back into a house that can carry the 4wd and two dirtbikes and then tour Australia. That way it has it's own kitchen but if there's places the truck can't go, we can pop out the 4x4 or if we really want can kidnap the dirtbikes in a really awesome mountain and play in the mud, which is very much not Ish. I mean.. dirtbikes are fun and use petrol, there is no need for them (or Mack trucks, really, lol)... so... but I love it. I love the feeling of the bikes and the mud and the wind and the bonding with my husband to be.

I also live in suburbia. I suppose that doesn't sound strange but... I live where people don't DO that. My neighbours once complained to the council that I hadn't WATERED my lawn and it was getting dry. I hate lawns. I can't eat them (see 'edible garden' above). I want to turn it into a veggie patch, but it's not my house.. so all my plants are in massive pots (see, not doing it to save money, all the pots are super nice - I like appearances too) around the front of the house. It looks like a little rainforest when you step into my entry-way. So yes, there's always the stereotpyical game of 'better than the Jones' in suburbia and I partake in that game from time to time. My partner and I are on an insane wage for our age and it'll only get better from here, so we often buy frivolous things. It's not a very healthy game to compete with the Jones', but it's hard not to partake in a place like this where the neighbours gossip about everything you have. (although one neighbour was SO excited about my chickens she promised to buy the eggs every week and send her kids over to help feed them so they could learn about them!)

Also, I drink a lot of coffee. Granted, it's organic and local.. but I drink so much I use the internet to type out really long messages nobody will read the entire thing of, which costs energy. Get it? Oh yeah, and I smoke cannabis fairly regularly.. which I can tell by the other thread is not a very good low emission crop! Bad me.

[kit-e-kate]

just don't give a c***

I'd like to confess that i had to read this twice before realising the the four letter c-word Brett used was not the one that came to my mind first.....

2. I love my classic car! (Sorry its staying!)

That is not a bad thing! Honest! New cars and (in particular) hybrid cars are TERRIBLE news environmentally! The best and most ish-y thing to do with cars (and actually, most machines) is to buy one and keep it going for as long as you can- with careful maintenance and repair!

Now, my confessions;

1. I also love my (future) classic car!
2. My husband loves his classic car too!
(Although i should point out we travel by bus for most things, work, pub etc!)
3. Probably the worst offence- my job! I work in technical theare (lighting to be exact) and it is an incredibly wasteful and not-very-green industry!
4. Eek! I am also one of the Kitchen Roll Gang...

How many "Hail Hamiltons" do i have to say????

[liskeardjane]

to Elizabeth Binary - how different some countries are - I live in 'Suburbia' - what we call and 'estate' a whole collection of houses coming off one road into cul de sacs and it's very 'respectable' . However, it's the done thing to be 'green' here in UK, green is a very 'middle class' (what ever that means!) thing to be. Lots of better off people have: water butts, compost bins, recycle, grow veg, keep chickens - it's the done thing. I suppose OZ is so big that there's room for food else where, here we grow what we can where we can. p.s like the soundof the up coming trips with the dirt bikes - What an adventure!!! you go and have fun!

[ElizabethBinary]

to Elizabeth Binary - how different some countries are - I live in 'Suburbia' - what we call and 'estate' a whole collection of houses coming off one road into cul de sacs and it's very 'respectable' . However, it's the done thing to be 'green' here in UK, green is a very 'middle class' (what ever that means!) thing to be. Lots of better off people have: water butts, compost bins, recycle, grow veg, keep chickens - it's the done thing. I suppose OZ is so big that there's room for food else where, here we grow what we can where we can. p.s like the soundof the up coming trips with the dirt bikes - What an adventure!!! you go and have fun!

Yeah most suburbs are like that around here minus the chooks bit, but a lot have compost bins and recycle.. I think I live in a bit of an Americanized suburbia. Perfect manicured lawns and delivery-dog-baths... really snobby. It's bizarre because I actually live nearly smack in the middle between two notorious drug-suburbs. But where I am is this road that goes off from broken street lights to SUBURBIA suddenly. I'm talking stepford wife and desperate housewife type suburbia.

To be fair, I like it. When I was young and poor and stealing food, I used to look at those houses and dream that I'd someday be rich like those people... I fully honestly believed it never rained in suburbia and it was always sunny and if I lived there someday, I'd be happy. So there's this poor homeless child inside me going, "Holy c*a* (for you kit) I made it!" ... and of course now that I'm here, the grown-up part of me just wants to settle down in a nice little smallholding with my husband and some chickens.

Thanks! I will have fun with the dirtbikes! I love them so. I do stunting, so it's super fun. I'm a strange girl.