Friday, September 21, 2012

Cleanup in the Paper


Potluck Supper @ Highbury Hall


YOU'RE INVITED!


Come and see the new improved Highbury Hall, meet up with friends old and new, and share some good food.

We are trying to help raise money for the renovation work and the Youth Cafe Project, so please empty your piggy banks!

Not sure what a Pot Luck Supper is? Simply bring along your favourite dish and put it on the buffet table for everyone to share.

Can't cook? Bring a donation instead! Can't come? Send a donation, or a Raffle Prize!

Tea and Coffee will be available, please feel free to bring your own adult beverages!

Contact 07506899337 or 07956295076 for more details.


T3 @ Harvest Festival

A few months ago my sister Carolyn and I found ourselves sitting in a living room and having tea and biscuits with the vicar and assistant vicar of St. Mildred's Church. As we left, she turned to me and said, "Did you ever in your wildest dreams think you'd ever be sitting in a living room with two vicars discussing the Harvest festival arrangements?"

For that is what we had been doing. At the time we were planning to organise a 'local food festival', kind of a 'Taste of Tenterden', if you will, and so the church were interested in combining that with their Harvest festival and co-promoting the whole shebang. However, the food festival idea fell through because even though we canvassed all the local eateries, food producers, etc. we only got a couple of tentative OKs, and even then it was like "well, I'll do it if other people do". Evidently someone tried to organise one a few years back and it was not a resounding success. The problem was that people were envisioning the same scenario as last time, i.e. that it would be in a big marquee on the Rec. We told them that our idea was to do individual offers at each restaurant or farm shop etc. and that no-one would have to send staff out in the field anywhere, but nobody seemed swayed by this because 'given the current economic climate, we can't afford to be giving discounts'. A fair point, I suppose, but more than a tad cynical.

So we shelved that idea for use at a later date. What we did do, however, was to plant the seeds for the Harvest Festival. Here's a little rundown of what you can expect to see.

Date: 6th and 7th October, at St. Mildreds Church, Tenterden

11 am to 4 pm


We will be located in our gazebo outside the church with a food miles activity, and lots of info about keeping it local and how that can save the planet. Become a locavore, grow your own, buy local, eat local and have fun! We'll also be handing out copies of our own 'local food map'.

Inside the church Tenterden and District Chamber of Commerce has organised displays of local fare from:
Arcadia
Chapel Down
Biddenden Vineyards
The Potato Shop
Nightingales Honey / Gibbet Oak Farm
Homewood School Farm

and more. In addition, the Chamber of Commerce is going to manage the refreshments stall outside the church after the Sunday service offering tea/coffee/soft drinks and a sample of some delights provided by their various members.

Come along!


Don't forget also that on Saturday the Church Tower will be open. It's a good climb, and if you want to burn some calories in a narrow confined space, with a really good view at the end, you cannot do it in a finer fashion!

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Clean Up Day - Postgame Wrapup

Well, folks, today was Clean Up Day and as usual we had a decent turnout (though not as many as before) and we found a diverse selection of rubbish. Oddly, there was more recyclable stuff (glass, cans and plastic) than there was ordinary trash - in the past it's been about half and half.

Normally when we've set up at the sports pavilion we have been on our own on the Rec, save for the occasional dog-walker. Today was different, however, as there was a kids' football game in progress, with lots of adults watching. Undeterred, we set up our table and all our gear to await the arrival of our volunteers. We were also awaiting Joanna, our local Community Warden who had the keys to the pavilion, which we needed to enter in order to make teas and coffees. Once inside we got the urn going and made a brew - it was a bit breezy out. It appears that autumn has made an early entrance.

This is what awaited the happy wanderers upon their return - tea, coffee, fruit, and cakes

I personally don't have anything against people who participate in sports or watch sports, but the people watching the soccer were irritating. Lots of little kids were oblivious to us, it seemed, and climbed on the pavilion's pillars and entered the pavilion, wandering aimlessly, despite us telling them that they weren't actually allowed in.


Jean and Brian get kitted out - with footie watchers in the background

Jan tests out her litter picker while Brian, Alan and Jean have a conflab


After we had had a good few people arrive and get kitted out with hi-vis tabards, sacks, gloves and pickers it was obvious to the footie folk what we were doing, but that did not stop them from leaving a pile of trash around the other side of the building when they had stuffed the existing litter bin to the gills. Then, a dad and his son went into the pavilion, again in spite of our protests, in order for the son to change into his normal clothes. People are just rude.

Jan sets off

Fiona brings us some broken glass. The T3-wagon in the background.

The Two Chrises hove into view

An action shot of Justin

Time to start sorting - one bag for glass, one for plastic and another for cans

Fiona picks litter while a passer-by looks on

Jean and Brian return with their haul


Jean, Jean and Jo take a load off

Clive and David return with their treasure

Jan comes back
We found some interesting stuff, as I said.

A manky old rug and a stinky blanket

Just a few of the hubcaps we found
Another old Coke can - not as old as the 34-year old one we found last time, but still with the old-style ringpull - definitely early 90s or earlier

An old Liqufruta cough syrup bottle

Two broken mobile phones

Bits of old pipe - construction waste

A can of Webster's Yorksire Bitter in its late '80s livery

Who remembers Top Deck?

'Avoid Litter' - ironic, no?

Some sort of homemade wheeled contraption

A can of Skol 1080, similar to Tennent's Super and Carlsberg Special Brew, from.. wait for it...

...that's right, 1987!

And a can of Barbican from 1988.

If you click the pic you'll see the large version where you can read the Best Before date '13DEC88S'.
So in total we picked easily 30 bags of assorted tat, most of which we recycled. We had a good morning's litter picking and a nice bit of cake, too. Spring will probably see us out there again doing it once more. Watch this space, folks. And check Thursday's Tenterden Edition of the Kentish Express for our picture!

Friday, September 14, 2012

2 Days Till CleanUp

Hey guys, just a little reminder!


https://www.facebook.com/events/460010227363195/



Clean up Tenterden Day

Sunday 16th September, 11:00 am

Venue: Meet: Sports Pavillion, Recreation Ground, Tenterden
Details: Come join us down at the sports pavilion on the Recreation Ground, and we'll put you to work for an hour or two! A mass litter pick across the whole of Tenterden (or at least, as much of it as we can get done!) We'll take the collected rubbish, recycle what we can. Do something for your town, show some pride in your community and come have fun with us.  If you would like to help or would like more information please contact Jeff Hickmott 07506 899337. 


Thursday, September 13, 2012

Recycling News

Household Waste Recycling Centre
Temporary Closure from 1 October 2012

Via tenterdentown.co.uk


Household Waste Recycling Centre
Cobbs Wood Industrial Estate 
Brunswick Road 
Ashford 
TN23 1EL

The Ashford Household Waste Recycling Centre will be temporarily closed from 1 October 2012 for approximately 6 months to allow for site expansion and development. 

The nearest alternative sites during this time are: 

New Romney: Mountfield Road, New Romney TN28 8LH 
http://www.kent.gov.uk/environment_and_ ... _road.aspx
Folkestone: Fernfield Lane, Hawkinge, Folkestone CT18 7AW 
http://www.kent.gov.uk/environment_and_ ... kinge.aspx 
Canterbury: Vauxhall Road, Canterbury CT1 1HD 
http://www.kent.gov.uk/environment_and_ ... _road.aspx

A temporary facility is being arranged for use during this time - more information to follow.

Saturday, September 1, 2012

Forthcoming Events for Autumn


Hi everyone!

Just letting you know of some forthcoming happenings!

First of all, I hope you will all be aware that Clean Up Tenterden Day (version 3.0) will be onSunday 16th September 2012  at 11 a.m. on Tenterden Recreation Ground's pavilion at the football field. Dress for the weather! We'll have all the kit with us - pickers, gloves, hi-vis tabards, sacks - but if you have any of your own you'd like to use please feel free. We'll have teas and coffees (and probably some cake) for the volunteers, and we are looking forward to a good turnout! See you there!

We will be outside St. Mildred's Church for Harvest Festival on October 6th and 7th. We'll be doing a food miles/eat local display and activity, as the theme of this year's Harvest festival is "Local Bounty". As you know, we are strong believers in eating locally grown food, eating with the seasons, and supporting our local growers and food providers, so this is right up our street. More details to follow.

In November we are planning a Potluck Supper for Sunday the 25th (my birthday, as it happens). We'll be providing more details as we secure a venue, but for the uninitiated, a Potluck Supper means you come along, bringing a dish (either a starter, salad, main dish or dessert) to share, and the more people show up, the merrier! Remember the date, and don't worry if you aren't a gourmet chef - keep it simple by all means. Hope to make this a fantastic community event! It'll be BYOB, but there will be teas, coffees and mulled apple juice available.

December will bring two events. We are hoping (although it's not been confirmed yet) to have a stand at Late Night Shopping on December 7th 2012.  More details as and when we know more. The other event is a repeat of last year's very successful Treasures of Tenterden Boxing Day Walking Quiz, which is of course on the 26th December. Watch this space for more details.

Another event we are planning for the New Year (possibly in March) is a T3 Quiz Night. Interested? Then keep in contact, and if you have any ideas for events or venues, let us know!