Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Probably most people have heard of Frankenstein, though I guess more people have seen one of the films rather than read the book. I've just read the book and thought it was very interesting. It has been called by a lot of people the first science fiction novel. Written during a time period of significant scientific discovery, it points the reader to think about the relationship of humans to their environment and about the responsible use of science. Frankenstein creates a monster and then accepts no responsibility for either its well being or its future actions. The monster in its turn is shown to have clearly started out as having a moral sense but the negative reactions of humans towards it caused it to attack people. Its a book that has a lot to say in today's world of GM science.

Powerful

It's easy to feel that as individuals we're not powerful. That we don't matter in the face of the vested interests of governments and big businesses. That what we do can't make a difference. But it's not true, we can all do our bit, to reduce our impact on the environment, to improve our neighbourhoods, to stand up for injustice. More importantly though we can join together, by all doing our bit, by adding our voices to campaigns and protests, by blogging about what we care about. If we all make our voices heard, then together we are very powerful. If we all make a conscious attempt to live more environmentally friendly lives, then we are even more powerful.

Powerful for Sunday Scribblings

haiku

magpie
waddling along the gutters -
searching.

First Christmas Cards of the Year

I've made my first Christmas cards for the year, three different robin cards! The background paper is patterned with stamps from Michelle Ward 's Green Pepper Press . The cards are made from old business folders, the robins are cut from Birdlife - the magazine of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Workshop at FREAK event, Edinburgh

I'm hoping to do a workshop on creative responses to environmental issues, with a practical crafting session at this event in Edinburgh. Free and Reactive Edinburgh Art Kollective is holding the event, which is free and will run from 10 -13 October in an old warehouse in the Granton area of the city. The event has an open access policy that will incorporate local residents’ art, performances, a showcase for local bands and DJ’s and also workshops where visitors can learn new skills from circus tricks to clothes customisation, dance to drama. It will be an opportunity for creative expression to become more accessible to everyone from all walks of life and of all age groups.


My workshop should be at around 2pm on the Saturday. I'll report back here to say how it went!

How to Reduce Plastic Use

Even when I buy lunch from the organic shop near my office, most of the products are wrapped in some form of plastic. Plastic gets everywhere. When its disposed it often finds its way into the sea where it can end up part of the Garbage Patch (please follow that link!). We need to reduce our dependence on plastics, here are some ways to start:

Refuse plastic carrier bags in shops - take your own reusable fabric carrier bag - I have two in my handbag so that even the most unexpected purchase can be carried home without a plastic carrier.

Avoid products that are packaged in plastic

When possible if buying vegetables, avoid putting them in plastic bags. This is easiest with items such as courgettes, which are often bought singly and are relatively clean. If you have a choice use small paper bags to wrap veg in rather than plastic bags. Cosider taking your own reusable produce bags.

Paper bags of course lead to litter too, but paper is biodegradeable and doesn't accumulate in oceans and destroy whole colonies of sea creatures. Ideally minimise all packaging and recycle or reuse whatever packaging materials you can recycle.

Another way to avoid so much packaging is to buy less stuff.

Some blogs committed to reducing use of plastics:

Fake Plastic Fish
Plasticless
Bring Your Own
Conserve Plastic Bags
Make A Bag
Bean Sprouts recently shared Ten Things You Didn't Know About Plastic Bags.

haiku

blackberries
fresh from the bush -
juice on chins.


Juicy for One Deep Breath