Soup of the Day

CATE: Week 3 challenges

Unfortunately this weeks CATE challenges have left me scratching my head and wondering how on earth I’m going to able to achieve any of them. Add to the fact that I seem to have worked myself into a cold and not much was done at all this week other than lay on the sofa playing PlayStation.

Challenge : Got to brick a cistern or two

Put quite simply this challenge is impossible for either myself or Siân to do as our toilet cistern tanks are embedded in a wall and have no access to them what-so-ever without taking a sledge hammer to the wall. As much as I’m fond of CATE challeneges, breaking the wall down seemed one step to far. So sadly our cistern system is exactly the way it was when we moved in. But on a plus note, our toilets are eco-toilets anyway, flushing with less water than the average toilet flush.

Challenge : Pass bags on

This I can claim more success at because we’ve been recycling our plastic bags for a while now. Every month when we get our major shopping in we receive a world of nasty plastic bags, but then we pass the old bags back to the store to re-use. Additional plastic carrier bags get handed in at the Eighth Day, a local health food and vegetarian shop who happen to do a whole line of Ecover products (more on that later). So I would say that I have done well in this challenege and will continue to do so.

Challenge : (Micro)wave of Progress

Once again this is another challenge we cannot do because we don’t have (or have room) for a microwave oven. I totally understand the rationale for this challenge would would try to do it, but unfortunately without a Microwave I can just sit and watch in envy as others zap their food.

Challenge : Forage

Starting to become a running theme this, but working during the week from home and then getting a cold has meant that I have only been out and about this week twice. This hasn’t given much of a chance to forage and when I have been looking it is very clear that Manchester City Environmental Services are very quick to remove anything they deem is not part of the fabric of the city, leaving foragers with little to discover. However, last year we did ‘borrow’ a small poof from a local bar, but I’m not sure stealing can even slightly be disguised as foraging.

Challenge : Funrifice

Aha! Another we have already been doing. All of our clothes are dryed naturally hanging in our flat in winter and on our balcony (when there is room) in summer. It is always nice when a funrifice comes along that we have been doing for ages. For the record, our washer does have a dryer facility, but we choose not to use it.

So all in all a mixed bag of success this week. Hopefully week four will prove more productive as my workload as dropped some and hopefully this cold will be gone by tomorrow. (Hopefully)