Sir Litternot

The newest weapon in Ashford Borough Council's fight against litter is a fictional knight named Sir Litternot. ABC have been promoting the knight and his noble quest against the litterbugs by having him visit the local towns and villages, handing out bags, stickers, stationery and fridge magnets emblazoned with his slogan "Use litter bins and everyone wins!"

We thought that since keeping the town clean was part of our remit we would meet up with the knight and his cohorts and whip out the camera. So, here's me with Sir Litternot and a sleeping Rosie, snapped by Justin.

Apparently cleaning up litter costs the nation around £885m annually, so if this campaign goes any way towards stopping people from dropping litter, so much the better. Good luck to Sir Litternot and his trusty band.

The Demise Of Hike & Bike

Well folks, it had to happen. For a long time now the attendance at Hike & Bike Wednesdays  has been limited to just me, Carolyn, Justin and John (and sometimes Rosie, my 18-month-old daughter). For that reason it has been decided to call a halt to the proceedings and instead have a once-per-month 'Green Drinks' style meeting. The venue and the day have yet to be decided upon, but rest assured it will be promoted heavily and you will definitely know about it.

When we started Hike & Bike Wednesdays back in 2011 (or as they were known back then,  Bike To Work Wednesdays) the idea was to catch people who were coming back from work either by bicycle or on foot, have a drink and a chat with them about Transition and so on. Initially we had a good turnout, but for one reason or another (work, family, we understand what it's like), people have dropped out until it's just us three or four. Sometimes even we haven't been able to make it.

So anyway, watch this space, chaps and chappesses. We will be sure to let you all know what's happening.

Clean Up Day is This Sunday!

Hi folks!

Just a reminder that Clean Up Tenterden Day is this coming Sunday! Please join us for an hour or two of litter picking, starting at 11am.

This time we are starting from Highbury Hall (which gives us a handy place to shelter in the event of inclement weather!) but otherwise the idea is just the same. We will be at the hall from 10am, however, so if anyone feels like starting a bit early, we'll be there with the kettle on!

By the way, if you right-click and save the above poster, you can then print it out and put it in a convenient window... just sayin'.

Cache in Trash Out Geocaching Events

Cache in Trash Out Geocaching Events

Charity Bike Ride

This April, a group of students from Homewood School in Tenterden are organising a charity bike ride in aid of the Caldecott Foundation (a school in Ashford for disadvantaged children) and the Canterbury Oast Trust (who run the Rare Breeds Centre providing those with disabilities with employment and skills). This is the second year that they have organised the bike ride and are hoping to grow numbers.
Jack Tate, the organiser, asked me to tell the rest of T3 about the event. I said to Jack that I'd go one better and stick the info up on our web page so that all our followers could hear about it.
The event takes place from Homewood on the 6th April 2014, starting at 10am. They have a family friendly 6 mile route or a 22 mile more advanced route (both were used last year and went down well). It was a really enjoyable day with a raffle and food van in aid of two really good causes. The cost is £5 per head entry so if you think that it is something that you or someone you know might be interested in , drop Jack a line at jack-tate1@live.co.uk or interact.homewood@live.co.uk., or message Jack through his Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/jackariastate.

Last year's ride.

Bill Nye Vs Gregory and Blackburn

Climate change is a fact. The debate is over, in the words of President Obama. So why do so many politicians and others still disbelieve it?



You wanna know what I think? They secretly DO believe it. They are just scared of how much it's going to cost to switch to alternative energies in order to alleviate the effects of it. They seem to think that spending money on test drilling for fracking is a better idea than investing in wind, solar etc., you know, clean, sustainable, renewable energy. They want to pretend it's not happening.



We humans seem to want to maintain our lovely lazy wasteful lifestyles and changing to different energy sources and investing in your local economy and getting out there and relearning old skills like sewing, knitting, hedge laying etc. seem like a lot of work for a long-term gain, whereas fracking seems like, yeah, it's expensive, but it's more or less instant, we can keep our petrochemical driven vehicles going for a while longer before we have to return to horse and cart, phew!



Humans are lazy. And climate change denial is part of us wanting to keep on being lazy and rely on men in suits and white coats to tell us what to do, rather than getting off our backsides and actually DOING something.

Events Update

Well, the New Year is well and truly here and what a wet and nasty one it's been. But does that put us out of action? No! We have been busy plotting our return, and we have two events lined up with more to follow. 

T3 PLANT AND SEED SWAP, SATURDAY MARCH 22ND, Highbury Hall, 11AM

Gardeners, on the first day of Spring, come on down to Highbury Hall in Tenterden, bring your excess seeds, seedlings and even mature plants and swap them with others that you DO want. Yes, swap - no charge for anything! If you want it, take it. If you don't require it, bring it and drop it off!

Almost every keen gardener ends up with more seeds and plants than they actually need... instead of letting them go to waste, swap them for others that you can use. Get swapping and get growing!

We'll be open to the public from 11 am and the Highbury hall Cafe will be open with cakes, teas and coffees. Entry is free and we're there till 4pm.

CLEAN UP TENTERDEN DAY, SUNDAY APRIL 13TH, HIGHBURY HALL, 11AM

Join us for a mass litter pick of Tenterden's byways, cul-de-sacs, crescents, closes, etc. This time we are starting at Highbury Hall, which will be somewhere nice and dry to shelter in the event of bad weather! Let's clean this town!

We're starting at 11am, but the Highbury Hall Cafe will be open to the public from 10am onwards, so if you need a little time and a cuppa to get yourself together, this will be ideal.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Mr. Bloom

I was just watching CBeebies (not that unusual, I do have a toddler), and watching the great Mr. Bloom in his new show Here And There. This particular episode impressed me because he travelled to a school with its own garden. Not only that but they kept chickens and had built bug hotels. Great to see young children being presented with these good ideas.

Here's the BBC iPlayer link:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/b03vl9v8/

Plant And Seed Swap March 22!