Well I made pumpkin soup for dinner tonight and it was devine! Just before Peter came home on leave I bought a whole bunch of veggies with every intention that we would use them for delicious home-cooked dinners. But with all the meals we ate out (at the hotel, his parents, his brothers's fiance's parents, Binna Burra, takeaway pizzas one night when friends came over) we just didn't get the chance to use them all.
I'd bought half a pumpkin (wrapped in gladwrap) because I knew we wouldn't get through a whole one. I left out in our 'cellar' area and even though it's cold and dry it started growing mould. Yuck! So I popped it in the fridge and figured I'd work out what to do with it later.
Well fast forward almost a fortnight, last night, and I cut out all the mouldy parts (it wasn't actually that bad, just on the seeds) and peeled and chopped the rest of it. Then tonight I chopped up an onion and two cloves of garlic and sauteed them in about a tablespoon of butter. I added two cups of vegetable stock, two cups of water and the pumpkin, brought to the boil then simmered while covered. I think I had too much liquid for the amount of pumpkin I had and I ended up taking the cover off to boil off some of the liquid. I then used my stickmixer to give it a smooth consistency. I added a spoon of sour cream and heaps of pepper after plating it and it was devine! I do like lots of pepper with my soups though.
I heated a wholemeal breadroll that I'd bought from the bakery and it was the perfect accompanient. I really have to cook more often, I forget how much I enjoy it. :)
My menu plan has changed around a bit but that's okay, it's a work in progress! Lunch for tomorrow is ready to go: celery and carrot sticks, salami, cheese and crackers, and a pear. Then I'm having chicken stirfry for dinner. Yum, yum, yum!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Monday, August 18, 2008
New eco-targets for this week
I'm a bit sad tonight missing my boy. I love him so much and I just can't wait until he's home for good. Unfortuantly that's a while off yet. I've been really busy with uni, readings and assignments since he's left and think maybe it's because I've stopped and breathed for the first time this afternoon? The first major assignment has been handed in and I've made a start on some other ones but there's still plenty more work to do.
It's funny then that I have a renewed desire to immerse myself in cooking, cleaning, housekeeping, gardening, worm-farming.... as I don't have time to do much beyond the basics! Still, it's only three and a bit months and then it's all over. :)
Petrol:
- Good one! I didn't drive on Wed, Thurs or Fri. On Saturday I made the planned trip to the baby shower (via my parents to pick up my grandmother) and another trip to my parents to work on assignment stuff. On Sunday I made the planned trip to the study meeting then again to my parents to work on assignment stuff.
- This week I want to be car-free Monday through Friday and minimise trips (if any) on the weekend.
Electricity:
- I did well at keeping things turned off last week
- This week try to get into bed with lights off by ten
Rubbish:
- Much better about recycling (only threw out one thing)
- Put what I can into the worm farm to reduce wet waste
Water:
- I did great at four minute showers
- Keep an eye on running the tap while I wash my hands (I am quite excessive in my water use - Peter picked me up on this one! My ways are rubbing off on him :))
Food:
- I did end up throwing some stuff out because it took me awhile to getting around to cleaning out the fridge
- Keep working at not throwing food out
- I need to cook the pumpkin, use the cucumber and lettuce, cook/freeze the bacon, use the broccoli, use the sour cream and use the tomato paste
And there we go! Now back to the washing up and cooking (and then more washing up because I refuse to let it keeping piling up each week!)
It's funny then that I have a renewed desire to immerse myself in cooking, cleaning, housekeeping, gardening, worm-farming.... as I don't have time to do much beyond the basics! Still, it's only three and a bit months and then it's all over. :)
Petrol:
- Good one! I didn't drive on Wed, Thurs or Fri. On Saturday I made the planned trip to the baby shower (via my parents to pick up my grandmother) and another trip to my parents to work on assignment stuff. On Sunday I made the planned trip to the study meeting then again to my parents to work on assignment stuff.
- This week I want to be car-free Monday through Friday and minimise trips (if any) on the weekend.
Electricity:
- I did well at keeping things turned off last week
- This week try to get into bed with lights off by ten
Rubbish:
- Much better about recycling (only threw out one thing)
- Put what I can into the worm farm to reduce wet waste
Water:
- I did great at four minute showers
- Keep an eye on running the tap while I wash my hands (I am quite excessive in my water use - Peter picked me up on this one! My ways are rubbing off on him :))
Food:
- I did end up throwing some stuff out because it took me awhile to getting around to cleaning out the fridge
- Keep working at not throwing food out
- I need to cook the pumpkin, use the cucumber and lettuce, cook/freeze the bacon, use the broccoli, use the sour cream and use the tomato paste
And there we go! Now back to the washing up and cooking (and then more washing up because I refuse to let it keeping piling up each week!)
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Menu Planning - Week Ahead
I have decided to try menu planning again so that I can eat a more balanced menu, ot waste food or throw it out, incorporate a bit more cooking (as opposed to 'read to eat' foods), be a bit more frugal, and replace some of my meat meals with vegetarian meals:
Monday
Breakfast: Yoghurt, museli, strawberries and rhubarb
Lunch: Salmon and tomato pasta
Dinner: Pumpkin soup and breadrolls
Tuesday
Breakfast: Porridge with fruit
Lunch: Sandwiches and soup
Dinner: Chicken stirfry with celery, broccoli and carrots
Wednesday
Breakfast: Yoghurt, museli, strawberries and rhubarb
Lunch: Chicken stirfry, sandwich & salad
Dinner: Boiled egg, toast, salad, cheese
Thursday
Breakfast: BLT
Lunch: Sandwiches and soup, cheese platter
Dinner: Freezer meal with extra veggies
Friday
Breakfast: PB Toast
Lunch: Sandwiches and salad
Dinner: Chickpea and potato curry
Saturday
Breakfast: Avacado & Tomato toast
Lunch: Meanjin conference
Dinner: Chickpea and potato curry
Sunday
Breakfast: Egg and cheesies
Lunch: Sandwiches and salad
Dinner: Mum and Dad
Ingredients
Strawberries
Porridge
Avocado
Breadrolls
Bread
Monday
Breakfast: Yoghurt, museli, strawberries and rhubarb
Lunch: Salmon and tomato pasta
Dinner: Pumpkin soup and breadrolls
Tuesday
Breakfast: Porridge with fruit
Lunch: Sandwiches and soup
Dinner: Chicken stirfry with celery, broccoli and carrots
Wednesday
Breakfast: Yoghurt, museli, strawberries and rhubarb
Lunch: Chicken stirfry, sandwich & salad
Dinner: Boiled egg, toast, salad, cheese
Thursday
Breakfast: BLT
Lunch: Sandwiches and soup, cheese platter
Dinner: Freezer meal with extra veggies
Friday
Breakfast: PB Toast
Lunch: Sandwiches and salad
Dinner: Chickpea and potato curry
Saturday
Breakfast: Avacado & Tomato toast
Lunch: Meanjin conference
Dinner: Chickpea and potato curry
Sunday
Breakfast: Egg and cheesies
Lunch: Sandwiches and salad
Dinner: Mum and Dad
Ingredients
Porridge
Breadrolls
Bread
Friday, August 15, 2008
The Devil Came On Horseback
If you can see this movie - buy it, borrow it, see it at a function, whatever which way or form - see it. And if you can't see the whole movie then watch some of the footage that has been put on YouTube.
The Devil Came on Horseback - Trailer
Interview with a Refugee from Darfur
Another interview with a refugee. This woman is a mother who lives many members of her family including a daughter to the Janjaweed, a militia sponsored by the Sudanese government to carry out ethnic cleansing.
Testimonial from an ex-solder of the Janjaweed
You can read some stories of Sudanese refugees who now live in Brisbane. One of them is story of a man named Kunda, he is 25 and hasn't seen his family for over 14 years. I'm 22 and I see my family at least several times a week.
The BBC's Q&A: Sudan's Darfur conflict provides a solid basic background to the genocide.
The Devil Came on Horseback - Trailer
Interview with a Refugee from Darfur
Another interview with a refugee. This woman is a mother who lives many members of her family including a daughter to the Janjaweed, a militia sponsored by the Sudanese government to carry out ethnic cleansing.
Testimonial from an ex-solder of the Janjaweed
You can read some stories of Sudanese refugees who now live in Brisbane. One of them is story of a man named Kunda, he is 25 and hasn't seen his family for over 14 years. I'm 22 and I see my family at least several times a week.
The BBC's Q&A: Sudan's Darfur conflict provides a solid basic background to the genocide.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Some thoughts on my course, education and globalisation
Peter has been and gone and I miss him already. The house feels so empty and lonely without him! On a positive note, since he's left I've been able to make some real in-roads to my uni work. I only feel a little bit behind now (rather than desperately behind) and while I think it's impossible to ever 'catch up' in a unit like this one, I'm much more on top of things.
My head is so full of ideas for classroom and teaching. I want to help students think, to expose them to new and challenging ideas and concepts, to explore these new ideas with them, to share learning. I want them to engage with ideas of sustainability and social justice, to feel that they can have a say in the way of things, that they can make a difference.
I am always thinking about new things I'd like to try - negotiated curriculum, brain gym, the use of music and lighting, different behaviour management strategies, using poetry in the classroom, snack attack, using drama and music and media texts to help students learn, getting students really involved in sustainability studies by having a class garden and looking at where our food really comes from.
In one of our subjects (which was a socio-cultural perspective) we are talking about globalisation this week. Another student pointed out the negatives of globalisation (e.g. McDonald's replacing local food, loss of Aboriginal languages) and my response was:
I agree that it's true that globalisation can be extremely problematic from a cultural, environmental and economic perspective. To add another example to the ones above, look at what's happening with the American sub-prime crisis and how it's affecting the Australian economy! Also, food security is another question that ties in very closely to globalisation - there is a global shortage of rice and several countries have banned rice exports - one factor in this shortage is Australia's drought. With a fast-changing world that is affected by globalisation on so many levels I think it will be sooooo important to help students realise what the ties and links are, realise the effects, and combat the negatives and build upon the positives of globalisation.
The SOSE syllabus contains ideas of action and participation and I think these link closely to the 'agenda' of globalisation - there's no escaping it for better or for worse so we must be able to understand it, participate and reflect on it and equip students to do so.
In the reading I loved the ideas of Sustainable Schools, I think this will become more and more important in future years. I love the idea of schools that are open outside of the hours to 8:30-3, schools that are a living, breathing part of the community. Access to the school library, meeting and recreational facilities; a place for like and different minded people to meet, socialise, participate and debate; a place for community gardens, farmer markets, craft stalls, adult education courses (both academic and vocational). A sort of community utopia if you will but one that will require a very different modus operandi (or however you say it!) from the way we operate now e.g. children banned from play equipment before/after hours as they might fall and hurt themselves leaving the school liable! Although in some places/schools we are moving towards this e.g. my service club meets at a school after-hours as do many extra-curricular clubs.
The chapter also thought that international travel will increase. I wonder what the effects of climate change will be on international travel (and the rammifications for globalisation) since air travel is so polluting. Dozens and dozens of airlines are shutting down across the USA and most airlines are majorly subsidised by governments. If this changes, how will air travel change? I can forsee a huge decrease in air travel but I think our improving ICTs will help us stay 'globalised' and connected to other parts of the world (e.g. the increase of blogs and how this can help us connect to others like us and different in other parts of the world and also access news and information from non-traditional media sources
---
I have soooo many resources and readings from this unit that it's overwhelming, I can't imagine what it'd be like after four years! I am going to have to find a way to organise all my hardcopy stuff and download all the softcopy stuff off Blackboard and organise it electronically.
I am extremely thankful that I made this choice - I am constantly interested and engaged in what I learn but also challenged and stretched. Good stuff!
PS: I didn't use the car today! Tomorrow is more of a test though as I have uni and a Rotaract meeting. But I can take the train and bus to the former and walk to the latter. I have also been very diligent in rinsing recyclables and putting them in the recyling. I think I've only thrown out one recyclable since my last post which is not quite great but definitely an improvement!
My head is so full of ideas for classroom and teaching. I want to help students think, to expose them to new and challenging ideas and concepts, to explore these new ideas with them, to share learning. I want them to engage with ideas of sustainability and social justice, to feel that they can have a say in the way of things, that they can make a difference.
I am always thinking about new things I'd like to try - negotiated curriculum, brain gym, the use of music and lighting, different behaviour management strategies, using poetry in the classroom, snack attack, using drama and music and media texts to help students learn, getting students really involved in sustainability studies by having a class garden and looking at where our food really comes from.
In one of our subjects (which was a socio-cultural perspective) we are talking about globalisation this week. Another student pointed out the negatives of globalisation (e.g. McDonald's replacing local food, loss of Aboriginal languages) and my response was:
I agree that it's true that globalisation can be extremely problematic from a cultural, environmental and economic perspective. To add another example to the ones above, look at what's happening with the American sub-prime crisis and how it's affecting the Australian economy! Also, food security is another question that ties in very closely to globalisation - there is a global shortage of rice and several countries have banned rice exports - one factor in this shortage is Australia's drought. With a fast-changing world that is affected by globalisation on so many levels I think it will be sooooo important to help students realise what the ties and links are, realise the effects, and combat the negatives and build upon the positives of globalisation.
The SOSE syllabus contains ideas of action and participation and I think these link closely to the 'agenda' of globalisation - there's no escaping it for better or for worse so we must be able to understand it, participate and reflect on it and equip students to do so.
In the reading I loved the ideas of Sustainable Schools, I think this will become more and more important in future years. I love the idea of schools that are open outside of the hours to 8:30-3, schools that are a living, breathing part of the community. Access to the school library, meeting and recreational facilities; a place for like and different minded people to meet, socialise, participate and debate; a place for community gardens, farmer markets, craft stalls, adult education courses (both academic and vocational). A sort of community utopia if you will but one that will require a very different modus operandi (or however you say it!) from the way we operate now e.g. children banned from play equipment before/after hours as they might fall and hurt themselves leaving the school liable! Although in some places/schools we are moving towards this e.g. my service club meets at a school after-hours as do many extra-curricular clubs.
The chapter also thought that international travel will increase. I wonder what the effects of climate change will be on international travel (and the rammifications for globalisation) since air travel is so polluting. Dozens and dozens of airlines are shutting down across the USA and most airlines are majorly subsidised by governments. If this changes, how will air travel change? I can forsee a huge decrease in air travel but I think our improving ICTs will help us stay 'globalised' and connected to other parts of the world (e.g. the increase of blogs and how this can help us connect to others like us and different in other parts of the world and also access news and information from non-traditional media sources
---
I have soooo many resources and readings from this unit that it's overwhelming, I can't imagine what it'd be like after four years! I am going to have to find a way to organise all my hardcopy stuff and download all the softcopy stuff off Blackboard and organise it electronically.
I am extremely thankful that I made this choice - I am constantly interested and engaged in what I learn but also challenged and stretched. Good stuff!
PS: I didn't use the car today! Tomorrow is more of a test though as I have uni and a Rotaract meeting. But I can take the train and bus to the former and walk to the latter. I have also been very diligent in rinsing recyclables and putting them in the recyling. I think I've only thrown out one recyclable since my last post which is not quite great but definitely an improvement!
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Time for Change
At last night's Rotaract meeting Anna Keenan came to speak to us. Anna is a Community Outreach Officer with the Australian Conservation Foundation and an impressive and passionate speaker.
In November 2006 Anna Keenan was the youngest (aged 21) of 85 Australians to be personally trained by Al Gore as part of 'The Climate Project – Australia' to present an Australian version of his now-famous slideshow 'An Inconvenient Truth'.
She is currently the Chair of Queensland's Youth Environment Council and International Coordinator with the Australian Youth Climate Coalition. Anna actually attended the UN negotiations in Bali for the next phase of the international climate protocols and watched as Kevin Rudd ratified the Kyoto Protocol. Out of her message, one of hte most memorable stories for me was an anecdote about Bali when the US was blocking proceedings. The representative for PNG, Kevin Conrad, spoke:
"And there's an old saying 'if you're not ready than get out of the way'. And I would ask the United States, we ask for your leadership, we seek your leadership, but if for some reason you're not ready to lead, leave it to the rest of us: please get out of the way." [Shorter YouTube video][Longer YouTube video]
Personally I think there's a message in that for all of us. :)
The take home message that I, well, took home, was that while big, bad things will happen with climate change, we're not yet at the point of no return (although we will be soon). We're all in this together and we can all make a change together.
I know I need to step up my own game. I am by nature an extremely lazy person - sometimes I think the reason I make my life so crazy busy is because if I didn't fill it up with committments everywhere then I would never do anything and I'd miss out on all the fun I have. Unfortuantly it means that if I don't keep on top of things then I get wasteful out of nothing but laziness... so it's time for a renewed committment:
Petrol: I want to declare next Wednesday, Thursday, Friday petrol-free. I already have a committment to go to the coast on Saturday for my cousins's baby shower (two sisters are pregnant and are due days apart) and on Sunday I have a study group meeting at a place that I can't easily get to without car. But I will make the Saturday and Sunday those trips only. Monday and Tuesday are also out. Still, three days is an improvement on what I'm doing at the moment! Baby steps.
Electricity: We're doing pretty well here, I just have to keep on top of turning off powerpoints when not in use. At the moment we have the fridge, modem and phone running all the time but everything else gets turned off.
Rubbish: Don't be lazy and rinse out food containers straight away before they go yuck so that they can be recycled!
Water: Make sure I'm having four minute showers still - it's tempting to have fourteen minute showers when it's this cold!
Food: Do a clean out of the fridge today and after that I can't throw anymore food out for the next fortnight. In other words, be organised and don't let food go bad!
I think that should be enough to get me started. :)
In November 2006 Anna Keenan was the youngest (aged 21) of 85 Australians to be personally trained by Al Gore as part of 'The Climate Project – Australia' to present an Australian version of his now-famous slideshow 'An Inconvenient Truth'.
She is currently the Chair of Queensland's Youth Environment Council and International Coordinator with the Australian Youth Climate Coalition. Anna actually attended the UN negotiations in Bali for the next phase of the international climate protocols and watched as Kevin Rudd ratified the Kyoto Protocol. Out of her message, one of hte most memorable stories for me was an anecdote about Bali when the US was blocking proceedings. The representative for PNG, Kevin Conrad, spoke:
"And there's an old saying 'if you're not ready than get out of the way'. And I would ask the United States, we ask for your leadership, we seek your leadership, but if for some reason you're not ready to lead, leave it to the rest of us: please get out of the way." [Shorter YouTube video][Longer YouTube video]
Personally I think there's a message in that for all of us. :)
The take home message that I, well, took home, was that while big, bad things will happen with climate change, we're not yet at the point of no return (although we will be soon). We're all in this together and we can all make a change together.
I know I need to step up my own game. I am by nature an extremely lazy person - sometimes I think the reason I make my life so crazy busy is because if I didn't fill it up with committments everywhere then I would never do anything and I'd miss out on all the fun I have. Unfortuantly it means that if I don't keep on top of things then I get wasteful out of nothing but laziness... so it's time for a renewed committment:
Petrol: I want to declare next Wednesday, Thursday, Friday petrol-free. I already have a committment to go to the coast on Saturday for my cousins's baby shower (two sisters are pregnant and are due days apart) and on Sunday I have a study group meeting at a place that I can't easily get to without car. But I will make the Saturday and Sunday those trips only. Monday and Tuesday are also out. Still, three days is an improvement on what I'm doing at the moment! Baby steps.
Electricity: We're doing pretty well here, I just have to keep on top of turning off powerpoints when not in use. At the moment we have the fridge, modem and phone running all the time but everything else gets turned off.
Rubbish: Don't be lazy and rinse out food containers straight away before they go yuck so that they can be recycled!
Water: Make sure I'm having four minute showers still - it's tempting to have fourteen minute showers when it's this cold!
Food: Do a clean out of the fridge today and after that I can't throw anymore food out for the next fortnight. In other words, be organised and don't let food go bad!
I think that should be enough to get me started. :)
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Still alive
Peter's home on leave and we've been enjoying being together. :)
I am excited over Rotaract at the moment, we have some cool things coming up. On Wednesday a woman is coming to give the "An Inconvenient Truth" slideshow to us; she is the youngest trained person in Australia, only 23 I think.
Then the week after that we are watching "The Devil Came on Horseback", a documentary about the genocide in Darfur. If you go to http://rotaractswb.blogspot.com you have I think this year we'll be doing some fundraising for Airfares for African Refugees, a group that provides interest free loans to refugees in Australia to help them bring over other family members and friends who have immigration visas but can't afford the airfares.
On the local front I think we will also be doing a blanket drive or similar for Brisbane Youth Services who work with homeless young people in Brisbane, in our side of town as well as the CBD. I think we will also be continuing our anti-graffiti on either a monthly or bi-monthly basis. After almost a year I finally went and really enjoyed it and hopefully I'll get there next month (although it sucks to hear that the area we did has already been regraffitied).
Uni is swimming along, I'm a bit behind but I'll get there. I'm enjoying our sociology course where we look at the culture of education, schooling and teaching practice within a sociological context (rather than psychological like most of the rest of our courses). It's fascinating reading about gender construction, socio-cultural divides and how education is related to social governance.
Although I am draining our internet quota listening to lectures online in place of going to them - on the plus side I get to cuddle while studying!
I am excited over Rotaract at the moment, we have some cool things coming up. On Wednesday a woman is coming to give the "An Inconvenient Truth" slideshow to us; she is the youngest trained person in Australia, only 23 I think.
Then the week after that we are watching "The Devil Came on Horseback", a documentary about the genocide in Darfur. If you go to http://rotaractswb.blogspot.com you have I think this year we'll be doing some fundraising for Airfares for African Refugees, a group that provides interest free loans to refugees in Australia to help them bring over other family members and friends who have immigration visas but can't afford the airfares.
On the local front I think we will also be doing a blanket drive or similar for Brisbane Youth Services who work with homeless young people in Brisbane, in our side of town as well as the CBD. I think we will also be continuing our anti-graffiti on either a monthly or bi-monthly basis. After almost a year I finally went and really enjoyed it and hopefully I'll get there next month (although it sucks to hear that the area we did has already been regraffitied).
Uni is swimming along, I'm a bit behind but I'll get there. I'm enjoying our sociology course where we look at the culture of education, schooling and teaching practice within a sociological context (rather than psychological like most of the rest of our courses). It's fascinating reading about gender construction, socio-cultural divides and how education is related to social governance.
Although I am draining our internet quota listening to lectures online in place of going to them - on the plus side I get to cuddle while studying!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Truck strike dramas and greenie-ness
So in light of the impeding truck strike I went to the shops yesterday and did most of the groceries for the next two weeks as there will be a special visitor at home soon and if the strikes end up affecting supermarkets, well he won't be happy to be here without any treats! (And yes, a dinner with fresh food is a treat.)
The exception is fruit and veg and bread as I haven't been overly sure what to do on that front since most of it won't be needed for another week. I bought some celery, a few potatoes, carrots, onions, avacadoes and some tomatoes but nothing else. We have some oranges and mandarins in the yard and frozen veg in the freezer. I might stock up on some apples, pears, beans, broccoli, a lettuce, tinned fruit and a loaf of bread. I also need museli! Then hopefully we'll be able to get some more fresh bread, some cold sandwich meats and salami (as I don't want to have meat in the fridge for too long unused) and extra tomatoes as needed.
For overseas readers, our truckies are planning a massive strike over new driver fatigue laws, rising fuel and rego costs, low pay rates and a general lack of recognition of truckies. In the story below they are talking about blockades and go-slows as well in areas close by me (i.e. Brisbane's biggest fresh fruit and vegetable market for wholesalers) and through the CBD. I think I'll be taking the train and bus to uni this week! It's a good kick up the backside to get back into public transport - it's just so hard sometimes when it takes 40 minutes to get to uni, park and walk onto the campus as opposed to 80 minutes on public transport.
Seriously, without trucks Australia really will stop. It's just a matter of seeing just how many truckies do end up striking as to the effects that this will have; I know of several that won't be because they just can't afford the loss of income.
It said in the article that they will be blockading oil refineries so I'll fill up the car tonight. I have also heard a rumour that they will be blocking the Gateway Bridge. Eeeek, can you imagine the chaos? I'm glad that over the past few months I have been slowly building up our pantry with extra tinned food, rice, pasta, couscous, etc - things that we eat all the time anyway.
I want to get more serious again about living more greenly, between uni, prac and overseas travelling I have been a bit lazy and gone backwards (Kate, I have used the drier more than once although granted one time it was raining!) rather than forwards. I am finding the the Prepared Tompkins site quite interesting and I am catching up on about two months worth of Rhonda Jean.
The exception is fruit and veg and bread as I haven't been overly sure what to do on that front since most of it won't be needed for another week. I bought some celery, a few potatoes, carrots, onions, avacadoes and some tomatoes but nothing else. We have some oranges and mandarins in the yard and frozen veg in the freezer. I might stock up on some apples, pears, beans, broccoli, a lettuce, tinned fruit and a loaf of bread. I also need museli! Then hopefully we'll be able to get some more fresh bread, some cold sandwich meats and salami (as I don't want to have meat in the fridge for too long unused) and extra tomatoes as needed.
For overseas readers, our truckies are planning a massive strike over new driver fatigue laws, rising fuel and rego costs, low pay rates and a general lack of recognition of truckies. In the story below they are talking about blockades and go-slows as well in areas close by me (i.e. Brisbane's biggest fresh fruit and vegetable market for wholesalers) and through the CBD. I think I'll be taking the train and bus to uni this week! It's a good kick up the backside to get back into public transport - it's just so hard sometimes when it takes 40 minutes to get to uni, park and walk onto the campus as opposed to 80 minutes on public transport.
Seriously, without trucks Australia really will stop. It's just a matter of seeing just how many truckies do end up striking as to the effects that this will have; I know of several that won't be because they just can't afford the loss of income.
It said in the article that they will be blockading oil refineries so I'll fill up the car tonight. I have also heard a rumour that they will be blocking the Gateway Bridge. Eeeek, can you imagine the chaos? I'm glad that over the past few months I have been slowly building up our pantry with extra tinned food, rice, pasta, couscous, etc - things that we eat all the time anyway.
I want to get more serious again about living more greenly, between uni, prac and overseas travelling I have been a bit lazy and gone backwards (Kate, I have used the drier more than once although granted one time it was raining!) rather than forwards. I am finding the the Prepared Tompkins site quite interesting and I am catching up on about two months worth of Rhonda Jean.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Always so busy
Uni looks set to be quite interesting this semester although very non-stop. It's a fairly heavy load in terms of preparation, background reading, and assessment. There's also other areas of interest that I want to pursue including supporting children with reading/writing difficulties in the classroom and gender in the classroom so I've stocked up on library books in those two areas.
On Saturday I attend an information/welcome day for the religion course I'm doing externally this semester that will allow me to receive accreditation to teach religion in a Catholic school - important since I want to teach in a Catholic school! But scary as it's another thing to add to the mix.
My brother wants me to play touch footy with him and some of his mates this semester, I've said maybe depending on the day. I've dropped Meals on Wheels because I can't do Thursdays anymore and they didn't need people on the Tuesday or Friday rosters, the days I don't have uni but I'm looking at doing some volunteer work in nursing homes through our parish. I also have Rotaract and Reserves of course.
I think I'm crazy doing so much sometimes but I'm looking forward to the semester ahead!
In other news, this truckie strike is a bit worrying. Australia will stop without trucks I think; as a society in general we are so utterly reliant upon them. The pantry/freezer is pretty stocked up but when I do my groceries tomorrow I will buy a few extra bits and pieces and definitely top up on petrol.
Right, my house needs a good tidy up so I'm off. I have a busy,. busy weekend - work and study tomorrow, sister's 21st dinner tomorrow night, Cath Ed on Saturday, sister's 21st party on Sat night, anti-graffiti on Sunday morning and studying the rest of Sunday! At least if I get my house tidy now I won't have to worry about those on the weekend.
On Saturday I attend an information/welcome day for the religion course I'm doing externally this semester that will allow me to receive accreditation to teach religion in a Catholic school - important since I want to teach in a Catholic school! But scary as it's another thing to add to the mix.
My brother wants me to play touch footy with him and some of his mates this semester, I've said maybe depending on the day. I've dropped Meals on Wheels because I can't do Thursdays anymore and they didn't need people on the Tuesday or Friday rosters, the days I don't have uni but I'm looking at doing some volunteer work in nursing homes through our parish. I also have Rotaract and Reserves of course.
I think I'm crazy doing so much sometimes but I'm looking forward to the semester ahead!
In other news, this truckie strike is a bit worrying. Australia will stop without trucks I think; as a society in general we are so utterly reliant upon them. The pantry/freezer is pretty stocked up but when I do my groceries tomorrow I will buy a few extra bits and pieces and definitely top up on petrol.
Right, my house needs a good tidy up so I'm off. I have a busy,. busy weekend - work and study tomorrow, sister's 21st dinner tomorrow night, Cath Ed on Saturday, sister's 21st party on Sat night, anti-graffiti on Sunday morning and studying the rest of Sunday! At least if I get my house tidy now I won't have to worry about those on the weekend.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Canungra and Uni
Eeek, it is freezing. I'm going to freeze even more this weekend as I'm going to Canungra for an army weekend. My parents will be just down the road at Binna Burra, lying in their warm beds and laughing at me.
Uni starts back on Monday and I also have to get serious again about job applications. I have an interview with Brisbane Catholic Education in mid-August and I need to start preparing for that interview. I'm also going to get into contact with a local Catholic primary school as I have heard that they are in need of a teacher aide; perhaps I can work there one day a week.
My first semester went really well, I ended up with a GPA of 6.3 (out of 7) which I think is either the highest or second-highest semester GPA I've ever had! The new Rotaract year is underway and I'm trying to get as much basic organisation for the year ahead finished as I can so that it's not too stressful later.
I also had my tax return done today and I'm glad to say that I did end up donating 10% of my net income (just over in fact). I'll donate 10% of my refund as well. The rest (around $1400) will go towards paying off my trip. Crazy! Without any effort at all that'll be $1900 paid off. I have no doubt I'll be able to pay off the last $1100 before the end of the year.
To finish off with, a button from one of my favourite campaigns: One Punch Can Kill.
(Click on the website and then "The Campaign" if you want to add buttons of your own)
Uni starts back on Monday and I also have to get serious again about job applications. I have an interview with Brisbane Catholic Education in mid-August and I need to start preparing for that interview. I'm also going to get into contact with a local Catholic primary school as I have heard that they are in need of a teacher aide; perhaps I can work there one day a week.
My first semester went really well, I ended up with a GPA of 6.3 (out of 7) which I think is either the highest or second-highest semester GPA I've ever had! The new Rotaract year is underway and I'm trying to get as much basic organisation for the year ahead finished as I can so that it's not too stressful later.
I also had my tax return done today and I'm glad to say that I did end up donating 10% of my net income (just over in fact). I'll donate 10% of my refund as well. The rest (around $1400) will go towards paying off my trip. Crazy! Without any effort at all that'll be $1900 paid off. I have no doubt I'll be able to pay off the last $1100 before the end of the year.
To finish off with, a button from one of my favourite campaigns: One Punch Can Kill.
(Click on the website and then "The Campaign" if you want to add buttons of your own)
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