My Week in Sustainability: What Went Well, What Went Weird, and What Smelled Funny

 


My Week in Sustainability: What Went Well, What Went Weird, and What Smelled Funny

(Because living green isn’t always clean – or glamorous)

This week, I tried to be the eco-warrior the planet deserves. 🌍
I woke up with good intentions, several spreadsheets, and a vague memory of a compost bin that needed attention.

Here’s how it went…

✅ What Went Well

🌞 Solar Power Success

Glorious sunshine meant our 26 solar panels were working overtime.
The batteries hit 100%, and everything hummed along on pure, smug renewables.

Even the Whaly Coyote (our polypropylene electric powerboat) got a top-up.
And yes, I shouted “She’s at full charge, Captain!” to no one in particular.

♻️ Recycling Victory

I finally decoded the mystery of the plastics bin.
Apparently, “thermo-softening” doesn’t mean “just chuck it in and hope.”
I didn’t contaminate a single bin. The council didn’t send me a passive-aggressive leaflet.
Victory.

🥕 Eating Seasonal Veg

We ate only British-grown veg this week. Potatoes, leeks, and something that might have been a beetroot. Possibly a Turnip. No avocados. No mangoes.
The meals tasted… earnest. Like they’d grown up listening to Radio 4.

🤔 What Got Weird

🧼 DIY Washing Detergent

Tried making my own laundry liquid from soap flakes, bicarb, and lavender oil.
Smelled like a spa. Washed like… water.
Clothes came out just as dirty, but now they were aromatically earthy.

Back to eco detergent in a recycled bottle.

🚿 Timed Showers

I installed a 4-minute timer in the shower.
My son assumed it was a “challenge accepted” scenario and spent twice as long trying to beat the clock.
Now our shower time is a sport. Possibly an Olympic event by 2032.

📦 “Eco” Delivery

Ordered some bamboo toothbrushes online.
They arrived… wrapped in five layers of plastic and enough cardboard to build a small fort.
Still brushing sustainably. From inside my cardboard palace.

💩 What Smelled Funny

🌱 The Compost Incident

I thought it was ready. It was not.
I tipped the bin. A smell emerged that can only be described as “hot broccoli meets swamp regret.”
It moved slightly. I’m still not sure if it was alive.

We’ve renamed it “The Heap That Must Not Be Disturbed.”

🧘‍♂️ Final Thoughts

Sustainability isn’t perfect. It’s not always neat.
Sometimes it’s muddy. Sometimes it leaks. Sometimes it smells faintly of cabbage.

But this week, I:

  • Reduced waste

  • Saved energy

  • Ate what was in season

  • Didn’t throw the compost heap in despair (tempting though it was)

And that’s a win. Because Going Green isn’t about perfection.
It’s about trying, failing, laughing… and trying again.

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