A glamorous side to recycling

Writing about rubbish may give the impression that I'm always knee deep in trash, washing out containers here, composting there and sorting out maggots.

Well yes, life is often spent washing out another tin of cat food or dropping off stuff at the recycling centre, which is why I feel it is really important to take a morning off, glam up and spend some time on little indulgences. So now and again I get out of the house and meet up with my writing partner in crime, the young Ruby of the Living in Bury St Edmunds blog.

Once a week, we make ourselves comfortable in the lounge at the very glamorous Angel Hotel and over a coffee we talk rubbish and explore other ideas that take our fancy. She gets on with her writing projects and I get on with mine. Sometimes we even get entertained by the appearance of The Angel's very own recycling bin being wheeled out to the back door.

But yesterday was even more special. Just before I was due to meet Ruby at The Angel, I received a call from BBC Three Counties Radio, inviting me to appear on the JVS show to discuss the idea of financial incentives for recycling.

How glamorous is that? A live radio interview from the lounge at The Angel hotel.

A chance to comment on the Shadow Chancellor's plans to pay people to recycle...A chance to say that it was good news but shouldn't be seen as a "one size fits all solution"... A chance to remind that it shouldn't just be us consumers that need sorting, but the top of the food chain needs addressing too.....like do we really need all those overpackaged multipacks?

Anyway, I quickly discovered that my mobile connection in The Angel wasn't good enough for radio and spent the next twenty minutes hunting down a quiet corner with a great mobile reception...but with very little success. So the only other option was to head out in the rain to track down somewhere quiet in the centre of Bury St Edmunds. Somewhere peaceful on market day is a pretty big challenge.

After a not-so-glamorous run in the rain I finally arrived at the most wonderful Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery, where as a member I regularly enjoy their quiet space. That would be a great location for the interview I thought, set against the backdrop of the Suffolk Showcase exhibition. And my phone was showing 5 bars...excellent! Another glam location for my glamorous day.




The Art Gallery Director was kind enough to help me in my urgent quest for a quiet spot. However, the gallery was far too lively with the lovely music playing in the background. That wouldn't do for radio.

So I was kindly offered the meeting room and I was very grateful to her for helping me.

I got the call from the radio station.

And I said my piece...

....from the little meeting room, which was very fitting indeed, not just because it was private and quiet...

...but because the room itself had been recycled.

Yes... it used to be the gentlemen's lavatory and even though everything else has been removed, the old hand basin is still intact.

So if you get a chance to listen into yesterday's Jonathan Vernon Smith show on BBC Three Counties Radio (about 22 minutes in), you'll now be able to picture the scene.

And eh...if the Tories do actually pay me for my recycling efforts, that would at least cover my coffee expenses at The Angel for a few years to come. You never know, I may even be able to afford a regular lunch.

Now how glam would that be?

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