The loss of shops on the high street has made BBC Radio news today, and seems to have raised an editorial head in a variety of papers. Check out http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article4135511.ece for a very detailed article in The Sun. My question is - why have they not mentioned the really important independent shops that provide the personality of the local high street.
The importance of the skills held by the local butcher, delicatessen, bakery, fishmonger - everyone who knows about locally produced food - seems to have passed over the heads of the journalists. So join in our campaign and become a part of mealsinfields. Sign up on any where to page.
Friday 17 February 2012
Wednesday 15 February 2012
Save the High Street
Have you heard that the Government is budgeting a whole £1m for high street regeneration? How does that work? Surely this is a mere drop in the ocean.
Here's a better idea from mealsinfields. With a few days research we have been able to identify 500 high street businesses in each county - none of whom are part of a large chain. Now, if just one in five of those joined our directory pages, at less than £2 per week, we could afford the type of national TV marketing that the big, out of town, stores enjoy.
So first step is to join in - download a form from the where to shop pages and talk to our sales team. Second step, come and see us at the Food and Drink Expo in Birmingham on 25 to 27 March and lets get some momentum behind the cause, before it is too late.
Here's a better idea from mealsinfields. With a few days research we have been able to identify 500 high street businesses in each county - none of whom are part of a large chain. Now, if just one in five of those joined our directory pages, at less than £2 per week, we could afford the type of national TV marketing that the big, out of town, stores enjoy.
So first step is to join in - download a form from the where to shop pages and talk to our sales team. Second step, come and see us at the Food and Drink Expo in Birmingham on 25 to 27 March and lets get some momentum behind the cause, before it is too late.
Friday 10 February 2012
Freezing Friday
We are going nowhere with the caravan today. Its a shame because it is Friday and that is the weekend so we should be out and about. A weekend at home won't hurt us, but if we were so stupid as to take the caravan out on the roads, we could seriously hurt someone else.
Caravans are perfectly warm and safe inside in this weather, but they are not designed to be pulled along icy and snow-covered roads. So, unless you have no option, stay off the roads for a few days until this cold spell ends and we can all safely tow again.
Thursday 9 February 2012
Pup Tents
Today's thoughts start from an incident many years ago when my own son's pup tent was run over. Thankfully he was not in the tent. It was pitched correctly alongside the caravan in place of the awning, so the car driver was not obeying the rally rules and weaving between the lines. We never did find the culprit.
My concern is preventing similar incidents, or, potentially, a fatal accident. After the incident, the Leicestershire Centre Chairman at the time recommended that all pup tents be surrounded by a windbreak. That works because a car would hit the windbreak first. The members still follow the recommendation.
Recently, when attending various shows and events, and visiting other clubs, I have seen pup tents pitched in the 'road' behind their parents' caravan. Not a good idea at all, especially at large events.
Should we start a simple campaign for children's safety? Keep them close to the side of the caravan. Hem them in with a windbreak. Use hi-vis guy ropes and why not suggest they decorate the windbreak or outline the tent with a few solar lights at ground level.
Full marks to the camping and caravanning club who teach their children all about tents and camping, and allow them to join a special area - when they have passed the formal training sessions.
Kids are very special - let's all look after them properly.
My concern is preventing similar incidents, or, potentially, a fatal accident. After the incident, the Leicestershire Centre Chairman at the time recommended that all pup tents be surrounded by a windbreak. That works because a car would hit the windbreak first. The members still follow the recommendation.
Recently, when attending various shows and events, and visiting other clubs, I have seen pup tents pitched in the 'road' behind their parents' caravan. Not a good idea at all, especially at large events.
Should we start a simple campaign for children's safety? Keep them close to the side of the caravan. Hem them in with a windbreak. Use hi-vis guy ropes and why not suggest they decorate the windbreak or outline the tent with a few solar lights at ground level.
Full marks to the camping and caravanning club who teach their children all about tents and camping, and allow them to join a special area - when they have passed the formal training sessions.
Kids are very special - let's all look after them properly.
Wednesday 8 February 2012
Hello, good day and welcome
This is an entirely new idea, and something that I am not entirely sure that I will be good at. I have never kept a diary - well not for more than a couple of days each year when the new ones are delivered, and my work log book is not the most detailed in the world. Still here we go.
Let me introduce www.mealsinfields.co.uk. The website is just one year old and we have a growing community interested in creating healthy meals in caravans, tents, motorhomes, boats and even student lodgings. The basic premise is that you need good healthy food even if the preparation area is limited.
Try cooking in a boat with limited headroom as it sails across a river or estuary and you will know just how difficult cooking can be - eating in this situation is another problem, but I'll gloss over that one. Tent campers will also be aware of the issues of safety and the problems of trying to cook outdoors in the pouring rain. Caravans and motorhomes have it easy - lovely kitchens with almost full sized gas ovens. Umm but, they are connected to gas bottles which run out, and from time to time as the bottle gets low so does the flame - never trust the 'regulo' number.
So this blog will look at some of the problems of being creative and healthy in cramped conditions, but most of all we will also look at the benefits of using lovely fresh food from local producers and the independent retailer.
Let's start with the old chestnut - fire buckets. Oh dear, oh dear, why do so many people still believe that a bucket of water outside their tent or caravan will be any use whatsoever in a real emergency? Ever tried actually throwing the water accurately when you are in a panic?
I was on a fire training course last year and asked the trainer (a firefighter) what he thought of the practice. We had a great time then with a simple fire on a tray that we tried to put out by throwing buckets of water at it. The results were quite amazing. Some people managed to scatter the burning material, thus making the fire worse, and others missed altogether. You cannot stand above a fire in this exercise as you would not be able to get above a burning tent or caravan. Water replaced by extinguisher - fire out in seconds.
The second problem is the materials. Water may have been fine in the old days of wooden caravans, but with modern materials used in the construction of the caravan, not to mention the presence of both gas and electricity (ok 12V from a battery - but) water could make things worse.
The final advice - you are more likely to drown an inquisitive toddler in the bucket than put out the fire. Carry a small (1Kg) extinguisher - keep it on the A-Frame if you like - and use that only on the smallest fires. Generally, move other units away and call the fire brigade. They do know how to tackle the fire.
What do you think?
Let me introduce www.mealsinfields.co.uk. The website is just one year old and we have a growing community interested in creating healthy meals in caravans, tents, motorhomes, boats and even student lodgings. The basic premise is that you need good healthy food even if the preparation area is limited.
Try cooking in a boat with limited headroom as it sails across a river or estuary and you will know just how difficult cooking can be - eating in this situation is another problem, but I'll gloss over that one. Tent campers will also be aware of the issues of safety and the problems of trying to cook outdoors in the pouring rain. Caravans and motorhomes have it easy - lovely kitchens with almost full sized gas ovens. Umm but, they are connected to gas bottles which run out, and from time to time as the bottle gets low so does the flame - never trust the 'regulo' number.
So this blog will look at some of the problems of being creative and healthy in cramped conditions, but most of all we will also look at the benefits of using lovely fresh food from local producers and the independent retailer.
Let's start with the old chestnut - fire buckets. Oh dear, oh dear, why do so many people still believe that a bucket of water outside their tent or caravan will be any use whatsoever in a real emergency? Ever tried actually throwing the water accurately when you are in a panic?
I was on a fire training course last year and asked the trainer (a firefighter) what he thought of the practice. We had a great time then with a simple fire on a tray that we tried to put out by throwing buckets of water at it. The results were quite amazing. Some people managed to scatter the burning material, thus making the fire worse, and others missed altogether. You cannot stand above a fire in this exercise as you would not be able to get above a burning tent or caravan. Water replaced by extinguisher - fire out in seconds.
The second problem is the materials. Water may have been fine in the old days of wooden caravans, but with modern materials used in the construction of the caravan, not to mention the presence of both gas and electricity (ok 12V from a battery - but) water could make things worse.
The final advice - you are more likely to drown an inquisitive toddler in the bucket than put out the fire. Carry a small (1Kg) extinguisher - keep it on the A-Frame if you like - and use that only on the smallest fires. Generally, move other units away and call the fire brigade. They do know how to tackle the fire.
What do you think?
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