My House

Ground Breaking for construction of our house was last week on 10th September 2008. The actual planning has been one long project and until it is completed we cannot have any peace. Now here are some of the things that I'll be going for.

1. Pine Decking at the Back for those lazy afternoons and b.b.q's
2. Small pond for lotus, fish and water plants
3. Big Bulk under the decking for storage
4. A closed off cook's garden for the vegetables and herbs
5. A greenhouse for the plants.
6. Going Solar for all my lighting needs. Plan are to go completely solar but this move is heavily dependent on cash flow so most likely will go in installments.
7. Have solar A/C 's in all rooms.

We are trying to go green with our house and somethings of note are:
1. Growing own vegetables
2. Go Solar (Lighting/A/C's)
3. Have compost bins
4. Collect all water (rain) for all gardening and washing purposes.
5. Practice the 3 R's (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)

These are the plans anyway.

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Changing Routine

Something has been bugging me for sometime now... And usually I comment on it here and there but I finally decided to do something about it.

Ever since I started my new job I have been doing ALOT of traveling. Traveling as in driving to and fro from work!!! (No overseas trips yet)... I'm averaging around 1000KM minimum a week and that is some serious mileage.... With the recent increases in fuel prices and not to mention the frequent maintenance required now.... my Paycheck has a very sizeable dent in it before it comes to me :( (escalating car expenses)... Not to mention just how unhealthy my life has become of late...

So I've decided that from next week Monday I'll just catch a bus... (Its been ages since I've traveled in a bus so I'm looking forward to this :) )

I've been doing my research on the bus timetables and have found some good results. Only problem is that there is no early morning (5.00 A.M) buses from my home to town!!!

I'll just have to persuade Dad to drop me in town in the mornings and I'm planning to walk home (from town) in the evenings...

The total time that I'll spend traveling will increase by 1-2 hours but I think my carbon footprint will decrease considerably...

Hope this goes without a glitch.... (Keeping my fingers crossed!!!)

Things to do:

• Buy a foldable umbrella
• Sort out my stuff so that it fits one bag instead of one car!!!
• Get plenty of loose change
• Keep a change of clothes at work.
• Have to give serious thought to my laptop.... leave it at work or bring it home!!!
  

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Earthhour

There is alot of talk going on regarding Earthhour...


Here is a a simple explanation:

"What is Earth Hour?

Earth Hour is one designated hour which numerous cities around the world have decided to recognize as an hour for energy conservation. For 1 hour, between 8-9pm on Saturday, March 30^th, participating cities and countries are encouraging their residents to turn off all non-essential lights and electric devices.

- Cities around the world will join together in literally turning off the lights for one hour to offer leadership and symbolize their commitment to finding climate change solutions.
- Lights will be turned off at iconic buildings and national landmarks from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- Local businesses and restaurants will also be asked to turn off their lights.
- People at home can take advantage of the hour by replacing their standard light bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs."

For more information just checkout their website.
www.earthhour.org

I'll post more on this later...

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