I had a coupon for £5 off a £50 shop at M&S the other day, not a huge amount but worth having if you do need something, and as we needed meat for the freezer and that being the most expensive part of any food I buy, I decided to stock up on things that would make lots of meals.
I was also lucky enough to get a couple of 'yellow stickered' bargain items that fell neatly into my 'many meals for one packet' train of thought.
Of course I didn't just come home and pop all the purchases straight into the freezer. I unpacked everything that could be portioned up, individually wrapped things and then put them into labelled boxes. The little chicken things were open frozen first so they wouldn't stick together and then packed into a box.
The only thing I hate after doing this is the excess of packaging ... but as we were having a bonfire after tidying outside I just chucked them on there ... lazy me, you don't have to wash them out if you do that. They did start the fire well meaning that the damp newspaper from the henhouse burnt much better and quicker.
Out shopping with Mum yesterday in Sainsbugs I treated myself to the latest magazine, don't you love that they have altered the publication month so now the October magazine actually reflects things in season and available in October and is not a whole month ahead of itself.
Anyway I didn't notice at first but it came with a free silicone pastry brush, as soon as I did notice I swapped the magazine with the pink brush on it for one with a green brush :-)
Inside there were also a free drink and a body scrub, nice to get something for nothing and I will most likely be happy to use these.
What I don't like however, is the amount of leaflets that fall out of every magazine you buy in a shop and even those that come through the post as a subscription purchase. In a shop if the magazine is unwrapped I take the leaflets straight out and leave them in the shop, but this edition with it's freebies was in a polythene bag so I couldn't do it. So once home they joined the other annoying pamphlets and leaflets in the recycling bin.
More and more magazines are also sticking leaflets inside with that clear snot like glue (yes I love to peel it off ... but there my fun ends), or even including them in the staples ... The Radio Times is a big culprit of this, and this weeks edition even had the leaflet for something I never look what these are for, stapled in between pages rather than being in the centre, making it even more awkward to get rid of.
How much paper, ink and electricity are wasted in the manufacture of all these, not to mention the amount of trees cut down purely to end up in landfill or recycling boxes. A whole industry built on something we neither need nor want.
Arrgghh ... they are all driving me mad!!
I'm jumping off my soapbox now and looking instead at something with no excess ,,,, a perfectly formed miniature Cauliflower.
I had to harvest it as the slugs were devouring all it's brothers and sisters. There's absolutely no excess here, even with the full sized version you can simply cut off the very end and then use every little bit of your purchase or picking.
Phew ...... the world is not completely mad ....YET!!
Sue xx
Drives us mad as well. If we can't leave it behind in the shop, it goes in the compost or worm bin (if not too heavily printed) or in the recycle bin.
ReplyDeleteMy chickens would love that mini cauliflower. :) Plus, the slugs! ;)
ReplyDeleteOhh, how I hear you! I usually make my own shopping in Aldi (here in Ireland it's one of the best priced supermarket chains and the quality really improved over last few years). I love that I can buy a whole bag full of vegetables and fruit and pay really little for it! What I hate though... is that I'm then left with another bag full of... plastic trays and plastic bags!!! What a waste! What a waste of money, time and then it turns into a real waste and out into our beautiful countryside... I also hate the fact that I have to buy 5 apples, not 4, not 7 maybe, but 5... then 3 oranges - what if I need only 1 or 4? Not to mention that everything is so even, exactly the same shape - not like mother nature intended it to be... So then I'm thinking - what about all those wonky vegs...? Thrown away? And how much more of everything really it takes to produce such "perfect" fruit rather than those ordinary ones...?
ReplyDeleteEnough with moaning ;) I won't even go into the whole newspaper, magazine and leaflets business ;)
Enjoy your weekend!
A huge bug bear for me too. I've taken them out and politely handed them over at the tills before now. It does my head in when you open the magazine and they cascade over your feet! That's a very cute cauli
ReplyDeleteI agree about how ridiculous the packaging is. Rhonda on a down to Earth made her own fruit and veg bags to take so she didn't need the plastic ones, but sadly I'm not sure im that committed :(
ReplyDeleteThat cauliflower looks small but tasty!
I'm making a cauliflower and broccoli salad for a picnic on Sunday. Love the little cutie.
ReplyDeleteSome serious meat there *thinks of empty fridge*
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you about the advertising leaflets that come in all the magazines. Our postman also brings us lots of junk which is not even individually addressed. He evidently gets paid to push leaflets through the letterboxes along with the genuine mail. Unwanted paper is relatively easy to dispose of, but the plastic and cellophane packaging is another story...
ReplyDeleteI do understand your frustration with the leaflets Sue but I work on a magazine and appreciate that without the advertising the magazine itself probably wouldn't be financially viable so it is a tricky problem to solve.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely agree Sue, however, if it makes it any better the trees that are cut down for the paper industry are actually a crop.
ReplyDeleteTherefore, the more paper that is wasted actually results in more trees being grown, which results in an excellent short term sump for carbon dioxide.
Additionally, the paper industry loves to recycle for newsprint, cardboard, etc so if you recycle your paper it will definitely not be going to landfill.
It is like saying, save the potato, stop eating crisps. Now oak furniture - that is a different story. I shall now get off my soap box, lol. Wonderful blog, I have been back to the beginning and feel a bit of a stalker. Jx
I dislike packaging too. I try to reuse as much as possible but sometimes there no option but to throw it away. Our local authority only takes plastic bottles as recycling not packaging. I noticed a lot of the supermarkets put a bin by the magazines now. People were dropping them on the floor and unsuspecting people like me were slipping over on them. I was unhurt when it happened to me but it is a serious accident waiting to happen.
ReplyDeleteI think you have hit a raw nerve with so many over this wasted paper Sue. My latest moan is that the postman tries to leave us some now! We are lucky to be at home when he calls most days though and the look on his face when I first handed him it all back!! He doesn't bother now and we only get it through the letter box if it's a new postie or we're out. Love that tiny cauliflower, wonder if you could make a tiny amount of sauce for your individual cauliflower cheese lol. X
ReplyDelete