Introduction

I am a fairly new vegan, although I have been a veggie for a few years now. I am keen to simplify my life with a compassionate and earth friendly lifestyle. I have a lot to learn and this will be my diary as I travel along my journey.

I live with my husband and dog on a houseboat in rural Essex, which is almost off grid, although we would like to make it more so. We have renovated it from scratch and it is by no means finished. I have an allotment close by, where I grow as much of our food as I can. I want to try out more and more self-sufficient ideas, so am always grateful for any help you can offer.

I have a fairly stressful job as a teacher/education manager in a sort of prison and would dearly love to go part time to have more time to do the things that I really enjoy. To do this, we have to pay off what we have spent on renovating the barge, so the more frugal we are, the quicker our debts get paid off (and the boat gets finished) and the sooner we can move towards partial retirement.I will list the moves towards simple living that we have already made at a later date and will add more as I go. I will set myself a series of challenges/aims to work towards. These will be gentle, as I am doing this as a complete lifestyle change, not as a punishment!

I love to cook and I have literally hundreds of cookery books. I read them like other people read novels, although I don’t use them as much as I should. So, my first challenge will be to try out a different recipe at least twice a week and blog about the results. My second challenge will be to read a lot more about permaculture and try to apply some of the principles to our lives. Okay enough now, I will check in again soon.

The view from our aft deck.