Finding the chase and cutting to it

It’s Sunday, in March, and I’m cooking a 1.7kg medium(!) chicken from Waitrose. Why on earth would you do that?  So much for trying to be carbon neutral! Actually, we’re going to get four meals out of this chicken. And that’s excluding the stock, which I will use for a soup tonight and pie later […]

The UK news channels are all extolling the arrival of spring. Yes, we have finally have had sunny days and today the temperature did rise above 6°C, in fact it is a barmy 16°C. But with a low front through the early part of next week, it’s short lived and all the flowers triggered by […]

Yesterday, on our second train of the day, the TGV from Lyon to Lille, there was a proud poster which I could read while queuing for the loo: using this train is by far the best way to travel to reduce the impact on the environment. Indeed, https://www.sncf-voyageurs.com states that France’s electric trains cost 3g […]

On paper, January looks like the end of winter, the days are getting longer, work is in full swing, all should be good. The problem is, in the UK at least, the December pay check comes a week early and, for many, the next pay check is the last working day of the month… January’s […]

My rental properties were all on rated water bills: this is where a guess is made on water usage based on the number of people living in a property. So, this was a little frustrating at the time, but when I bought a house, this was one of the things I really wanted and got […]

If, like us, you are putting off having food for as long as possible today, due to overeating yesterday: I don’t blame you. But as I sit quietly with my family, I wondered how much energy did we use yesterday, catering for a large number of people and being in each other’s company all day? […]

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to kick back my heals, and I am currently sitting in my lounge, planning some lunch, watching my favourite cookery programme. I’m a foodie. I have always liked delicious food – after all, who doesn’t. I love food combinations when I am doing something special. My everyday […]

One of the things you hope for when ripping out your gas boiler and putting in a heat pump is things are not going to be worse for you. Obviously, having our own solar generation capability means that unlike distilling our own natural gas, we can generate our own electricity. So, if it’s sunny and […]

I am from the UK. That means many things but ultimately, we’re a discrete people. Quiet, laid back, we don’t like fuss. We do like to talk and share, but, you know, through quiet means. Eh, what, what’s going on? ‘Morning. Just about to talk about what’s happened since we had our gas meter removed […]

Few people like surprises. Some say they do, but when you ask them, it’s about fun things not things like a spider dropping down on a thread before their eyes while they watch TV. Really, do you have to? Sorry <shame>. One of the things we were not expecting with our Smart Meter when we […]