This letter arrived in the mail. It’s going back Return To Sender. But note the rather ominous text on the envelope. Debt collectors? Overdue medical test? What could it be? (No cheating/Googling now.)
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Category: Home life
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When not to use CFLs
Letter the other week in The Age: Not worth the cost AM I the only person having trouble with expensive ”green globes” alleged to last 10,000 hours? Used eight hours a day, a globe should last more than three years. I have replaced the globe in one lamp four times already this year. I want ... [More]
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Why are they surprised?
Why are hawkers and chugger surprised that I don’t want them to waste my time?
And now for something completely different. Glasses. I’ve got a few different types of glasses in my kitchen, many of them remnants from previous collections. From left to right: (1) These used to come as IXL jam jars. You’d use up the jam, dispose of the label and the lid, and get to keep the ... [More]
Often when I listen to Radio National, I’ll learn something I didn’t know before. In this case, I was listening to Saturday Extra last week. Cutting power consumption? One item talking about electricity efficiency noted that enormous amounts of money are being invested in distribution networks, instead of being spent on measures to cut consumption ... [More]
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Using less water
My latest water bill arrived, and I’m feeling pretty smug about it because without even trying, my water consumption has dropped by about 20% compared to a year ago. A few years ago household use had been around 250 litres per day. A switch to a water-efficient showerhead in 2007 saw it drop by about ... [More]
I’m sure most men wish they could flick a switch to stop their facial hair growing. Yesterday, for the first time in well over a decade, I tried blade shaving. I had been pondering switching back from electric, since my Phillishave shaver’s rechargable battery is wearing out, and it needs a new blade and filter ... [More]
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Brief things and followups
Star Trek TNG — We started watching them all about a year ago, and are so far up to season 6. I wonder if in remastering for DVD, they changed the framing of some shots — it’s surprising how often we spot a boom mike in shot. (Reminds me: Must watch the “Car Pool” interview ... [More]
During the school holidays, the kids and I will often leave the car at home head out to not just attractions in the CBD, but also to parts of the city we might not normally get to. Partly for the joy of exploration, but also partly because Jeremy is keen on hunting down secondhand video ... [More]
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The heat in the house
I spent the day working at home yesterday rather than venture out into the world of 43 degree temperatures and train heat troubles, though admittedly I also missed out on comfy air-conditioning at work. My house doesn’t have air-conditioning. It does have internal blinds in most rooms, the exceptions being the kitchen and the bathroom, ... [More]
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Smug – the washing machine
Should I peel the water/energy rating stickers off the new washing machine, or leave them on for continued smugness?
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Moving house (literally)
I hate moving house. Glad it’s not me.