Fuss In Boots

 I am so very annoyed with Boots right now. Have you seen this?

Initially it sounded good "Boots are going to recycle blister packs" said Bob "and our two nearest stores are collection points" Then we looked into it further...

IT IS "GREENWASHING", PRETENDING TO BE ECO FRIENDLY FOR APPEARANCE SAKE.

They say it is simple, but it isn't really. You need to have the app and scan all your blister packs. Once they are approved, you take them to the store. 15 packs will earn you 150 bonus points - but you only get them if you spend £10 within three days of donation.

If I've understood it correctly, donating 20 packs will still only get you 150 points [I may be wrong there]

Bob and I, between us, have a lot of daily meds

We drop our used packets in a box in the bedroom drawer, and there are always at least 10 per week. This appears to be a normal figure among the many OAPs I know [who often discuss their pills at the Church Café! ]

BUT a high proportion of these friends do not have smart phones or use apps. [Or bother with loyalty cards] So they can't use the scheme. Younger friends who perhaps only have 1 tablet a day will take months  to accumulate 15 empty packs.

Furthermore the reward scheme mostly benefits Boots! They are in effect saying "you need to spend even more with us to get points off your subsequent spending" 

I'm not fussed about reward points, I just want to recycle for the benefit of the planet.  This is far too complicated for me to bother with. And I suspect Boots know this, The management of a scheme like this will be complicated and costly for them to implement. So a few months down the line, I suspect it will be cancelled, and they will tell us that they did offer this environmentally friendly option, but customers didn't take it up. 

Some Superdrug stores have drop off points. No incentives or loyalty points - just the opportunity to help the planet.

We are fortunate to have Tony at our church. He takes all our packs  to a charity [I have forgotten which] who then sell them on to TerraCycle. So we will continue to do that.

I think most people who want to recycle want the simple Superdrug system [or a mate like Tony] saying "Leave your packs here, and we will ensure they get properly recycled" without apps and offers. An easy way to have a positive impact.

Come on Boots, surely you can do better than this!

Now I'm wondering what will happen if I take my bag of empty packs into Dereham Boots and try and sneak them into the box without using the app...

A Month Of Sundaes?

Firstly, thank you everyone for the kind birthday wishes for Rosie yesterday, she is definitely making the most of her celebrations. On Saturday we went on a family tenpin bowling trip, followed by lunch. If you have younger children, I can recommend the Bowling House in Norwich. This is the quirkiest bowling alley I have ever visited. A while back, we looked after the girls one evening, while Liz and Jon visited this venue [For cocktails and food, which they enjoyed] There are just five lanes, at BH and all half-length, so it suited the girls. The pop-up seating is recycled from years ago when this building was a cinema. I took three shots of Rosie bowling, and inadvertently got pictures of Jess as the seat folded up on her!

We went on to a Pizza lunch [I pleased to have discovered that I can eat pizza with vegan cheese]  and the girls enjoyed desserts. Jess was intrigued by the inverted waffle cone in her ice cream sundae.

I have four glass sundae dishes at Cornerstones, They were given to me about 35 years ago- my friend was having a new kitchen and decided to clear her clutter. "You can only have them if you promise to use them" she said. I promised!

I still use them on a regular basis. 

Even the most boring pud is greatly improved by fancy serving, I frequently put a scoop of plain vanilla in the dish, topped with some fruit, and home made yogurt and a 'boudoir biscuit' [I think in the US they are called ladyfingers] Occasionally there is fruit sauce or chocolate sauce too, or some crumbled cake. The girls think this is a real treat, especially when I give them the longhandled teaspoons. 

In my current, ruthless kitchen declutter, I can assure you that my sundae dishes are staying! I must lay in a box of waffle cones before the Easter holidays though.

Rosie said Saturday's treat was her 'quarter final' birthday. Monday [the day itself] was to be the 'semi final' and the 'final' will be her party on Saturday - a Clip'n'Climb event with schoolfriends 

Rosie Is Nine!

 We have had such a great week together - but now she is back to school in London. Growing up so fast into a thoughtful, gracious young woman. We are so blessed!

We All Need Hope...

 

A Funny Thing Happened ...

 ...On The Way To The Forum 

In between our trips to the Forum for the Science Stuff, there have been some hilarious moments which have caused much laughter.

I was I the bathroom with Jess. She was explaining that the Treasure in the rubber duck's chest is not real gold, it is just chocolate coins. She asked me what I thought he would say. I held him to my ear and said "I think he just said Quack! Quack!". Jess was having none of it "No Grandma, he's saying I'm calm and collected " 

Where on earth did she learn that expression? We have adopted a new Spoonerism this week.  Rosie requested a drink of squash.  Bob offered her a choice,  orange or berry juice.  Except he said Jerry Buice.  It has been called that for the last four days! 

A lady stopped me in Norwich, and said "I love your jacket. In fact I love your look, wish I could wear that" I thanked her for the compliment. I was in my biker jacket, sweater dress, leggings and boots. Nothing fancy. Bob says the "Granny Biker Chick" look suits me. Not so much amusing as astonishing.

But the funniest thing was as we were pulling away from traffic lights in Norwich. Rosie was watching pedestrians on the other side 9f the junction. She started giggling. "That man, he was carrying an avocado in one hand and a bottle of beer in the other, and when he started crossing the road, his trousers fell down!" "What happened next?" "He dropped the avocado and grabbed them!" "That's awful" "No, it was OK, he was wearing Nike Underpants"

We're all still chuckling about the incident!

*AFTHOTWTTF was a 1962 musical comedy written by Stephen Sondheim. Then it was made into a film. I know nothing about it except the opening song "A comedy tonight"

A Busy Day At Home...

No trips into the Forum on Thursday, just lots of activities with Rosie at home. She had a very creative to-do list forvthe day... 

• Make Whoopie Pies
• Build circuits with the electricty set
• Make friendship bracelets
• Decorate the new iPad cover 
• Make concrete with Grandad
• Design and decorate a tee shirt
• Learn to use Hama beads

And we managed everything except the bracelets!

I was given the sticker at the Science Fair. But, as Rosie explained to Bob "Grandma doesn't really like the American spelling!"

The end of a super stay ‐ Liz, Jon and Jess arrived in the evening, and will be around till Sunday. And Monday she'll be back at school [on her birthday]

Thank you Ro for a lovely week!

Science Superheroes!

 

This event has been brilliant, On Monday Bob and I went with Rosie to Norwich School for "Amazing Animals" 

Nate from the Braintastic Team challenged us...Could you solve a puzzle quicker than a dolphin? Test your intelligence against the world’s most incredible animals in this fun show from Braintastic! Science. Packed with interactive games and activities, you’ll get the chance to complete real life animal intelligence challenges as you help to solve tricky logic puzzles. From parrots to primates, discover the amazing abilities of our animal cousins and learn more about the diversity of life on Earth.
That was fascinating - and 'the girl in the rainbow jumper' was the first one picked to solve a puzzle, and did it instantly. We were very proud of her.
On Wednesday I took Ro in very early, and we began with "Light Up The City" a workshop about electricity. This time, she was chosen to be the switch in the circuit. I cannot decide if it is her smiling face, glowing red hair, enthusiastic arm waving, or a very distinctive jumper - but she was often the one called upon to answer the questions. After that we had elevenses then spent hours visiting all the stands in the Forum

I loved

• the table of capes and masks provided for the photo-op. 
• Hands-on activities [bird masks, key rings, colouring, making paper aeroplanes and more] VR headsets
• Gifts- bags, pens, colouring books, badges
• Ticketed events, in venues across the City Centre - many where the child pays for the ticket- but the accompanying adult has free admission.
• Adults spending time enthusing about their specialisms in a language understandable to children
• Special shout out to UCL, who had come up from London to promote science/STEM subjects. "My parents work at UCL" said Ro, proudly, "and my sister is in the UCL Nursery"
• And RW, the German company currently constructing the Norfolk Offshore Windzone, running their pipeline across the county [and through the edge of our village.] We found Cornerstones on their detailed map - and noted its proximity to the work.
• Rosie absolutely loved her day, and learned a lot. "That's the best explanation of offshore wind turbines I have heard from a child this week" said one scientist.

This event happens every February half term, and families come from all over the county. It is so well planned, and offers something for everyone. Yesterday we left home at 9 and arrived back at 5!

I know things like this happen in London - but to have such a superb opportunity out here in "The Far East" every year, is utterly splendid. 

Do you have anything like this where you are?