This is what I am coming from...

We got rid of Pay TV the other day. Not so much because we couldn't afford it (although, the money will be great!!), but moreso because, as I said in a previous entry, I wanted the kids to spend more time outside and doing things and being people; and less time watching consumerist rubbish and meaningless rot.

I will hasten to add that I have no issue with TV. I watch it, as does G and I have lots of DVD's etc for the kids. What I *do* want to stop doing, is paying $121 per MONTH for them to watch more of it.

So. Apparently I am *cough* depriving my children. Can you seriously believe that people?? Depriving my children by not letting them have Pay TV.

For some reason it made me really angry. My family are such ignorant people that it infuriates me. Bugger me, how is that even remotely right or normal? I even explained how I would much prefer them outside with me, doign things, playing with each other/together etc than watching telly. Can you believe that I was even given "oh, but how boring is that"?

This sounds like it should be coming from a 14 year old girl. But I'll tell you right now, that it's coming from a 54 year old man. That is scary. A whole generation of people have been sucked in by this whole stuff means you ARE something lifestyle. If you have the perfect hair, the perfect skin, the perfect house, the plasma....then you are obviously successful.

I could cry.

I want you to all meet my lovely dog. His name is woofie. Well, it's not really, but that is what I call him. He is such an adorable dog.

We had his brother too, until early this year. He had a disease called SLO which, in itself, wasn't life threatening as such as it was life hindering. My poor baby at that time had already had kidney stones, 15 grass seeds (not at once obviously) and had 85% of his stomach removed due to him eating a banksia husk. He was only 7 years old. I couldn't bear to put him through bi-weekly chemo - for it to maybe not even work. So, bawling my eyes out and wondering whether I was making the right decision, we put him to sleep.

Now, Woofie is so clingy it's worrisome. He always *was* desperate to be near someone, but since his brother left, it had taken on a whole new ball game. I love him to pieces and I wish I could bring his brother back for him. But he's back eating now and he's starting to show signs of being the Woofie of old - so hopefully we're on the up and up. I hope so, I couldn't bear to lose both of them.

I also wanted to show you our greywater system for our bath water.

It hasn't been used much in Winter, as I have been bucketing water to use for the washing machine. It's only the kids bath water, and the water is still warm - so I'm, by rights, getting a warm water wash!! But in summer, it makes my watering job so much easier. All our excess / saved water gets chucked into the bath of an evening, and after the kids have gone to bed, I head outside and spend a half an hour watering what needs watering and checking all my plants.

I look forward to summer with both anticipation and trepidation this year. Will my garden get through another summer? I think it will, as it's pretty well thought out and planted; but I love my garden now and I couldn't bear to lose it.

My azaela is flowering and it is such a beautiful sight. I transplanted it before I had a clue about plants and gardening. Yet, it's been lucky enough to have been planted in precisely the right spot. It's looking marvellous and I am just so pleased with it.

Tomorrow I have a baby market that me and a couple of girlfriends have organised a stall at. It is the perfect opportunity to get rid of all of this excess toy rot that we definately do not need. G called on the way home from work to say that he had to work tomorrow and I was quite upset by it.

I'd had all the stuff ready to go into the car etc, and now I couldn't really get rid of any of it!! And it wasn't like I could ring my father and ask him to babysit his grandkids whilst I go and sell all their toys...imagine how deprived they would be then!!!!

So, my sister is coming over and will probably taken inventory of all that is now gone for my parents who will want to know what their darling grandchildren were left with. What did mummy leave at home for them???