Australia's latest fashion accessory

A new fashion accessory is gracing the arms of people across the nation since I've been gone. Its the go-green reuseable shopping bag and its everywhere. While I was initially delighted at this apparent sudden interest in plastic bag reduction, a little research into them has taken the shine off my delight somewhat. These bags are still very much plastic despite having a fake woven pattern and feel to them, and they are made in China. Now if the government was going to be smart about it, when they threatened to bring in a plastic bag levy (one of the reasons use of the go-green bag has taken off) they would have made sure there was a viable Australian made alternative. The fact that its still made of plastic can be rationalised by the fact that we are now using only one of them each year rather than 473 of the old single use bags. They do wear out however after about 3 years, and the real proof about how serious we are will become clear when they start wearing out and we have to make the effort to recycle them, or just throw them out.
Furthermore the only reason the major retailers are behind the go-green bags is because they are helping their bottom line; they make about 30 cents from each bag sold and reduce costs by having to use less of the old single use bags. And I've read reports where supermarkets are pretending they are out of single use bags in order to force people to buy the go-green ones.
Despite these things, this bag is still a win for the environment, as it has reduced the use of the old single use bags and that can only be a good thing. The bag itself is actually very good, its sturdy, holds more than the old bags, but you do have to remember to take it to the store. As for its contribution to Australian fashion, well, I'm not so sure about that.

Back in Australia

I'm back in Australia and enjoying things I haven't for a while, here's five things I love about Australia, and five things I miss about the UK.

Five things I love about Australia;
1.Leaving the house in a skirt, singlet and thongs and not freezing to death.
2.Supermarket checkout operators that have a sense of urgency, pack your bags while scanning at the same time, and manage to do all this while standing.
3.Paying AUS$4.45 for my Starbucks Caramel Macchiato instead of £2.50 (AUS$6).
4.Beaches
5.Laundries are a standard room not a luxury.

Five things I miss about the UK;
1.Proximity to Europe.
2.Public transport that gets you where you need to be in a workable timeframe.
3.An old building is over 500 years, not 50.
4.Pret á Manger (sandwich chain store with excellent food).
5.Proximity to Europe.

Loch Lomond

'You'll tak the high road, and I'll tak the low
And I'll be in Scotland afore ye
But me and my true love, will never meet again
By the bonnie, bonnie banks of Loch Lomond'
'Loch Lomond' Traditional song

Table Manners, August 05

August in Edinburgh is a sight to behold. Among other festivals, the
Edinburgh Fringe Festival is held, and the population swells by a million, of which approximately 16,000 are performers. I was lucky enough to be one of this latter group in a production of Table Manners (cast pictured above) produced by Living Stone Media, in last years' festival. Despite two and a half years training with Ensemble Studios in Sydney, my acting talent is at best sketchy, and this was probably the beginning and end of my esteemed acting career. But it was a fabulous experience; fun rehearsals, last minute changes, shaking with nerves and audiences that ranged from dead silent to breaking into spontaneous applause. I may never do it again, but I'm glad I did it once.

Amsterdam

I've just spent a nice couple of days in Amsterdam. As with most places its the stereotypes that jump out at you first; hash bars, ladies in windows under pretty red lights, Van Gogh, windmills and gouda. What I didn't expect but was glad to discover was the lack of seediness despite the aforementioned hash bars and ladies in windows, the interesting buildings, the ethnic diversity and the pancakes. Its worth visiting for the pancakes alone. Only word of warning - its a city ruled by bikes, pedestrians beware.