Following my last post on this subject we’ve moved on further still and just a couple more steps to go before i start looking at the Green Tourism Business Scheme and also seeing what PR opportunities I can make out of it.

The baler has been a big success and the company taking the cardboard away also takes our tins, plastics, soft plastics, office paper and newspapers!  I’ve also changed over to a local company for recycling the glass bottles, it will save me a little bit of money but I’ve done this as much for the benefits to the local economy - money spent with locally based firms multiplies out much more than that spent with multinationals.  I’ve done a similar thing witht he general trade waste too - the bin lift charge isn’t any less but we can manage the waste better to engineer a lower cost and again more money spent with a local business.

The last piece of the waste management jigsaw is our food waste and I have ordered four food composting bins which we can put all our food waste in, this will make a huge dent in the volumes we send to landfill and will be good for our gardens.  There will be a steep learning curve for us all and we will need some more bins around the kitchen to manage this effectively but I can see us getting better and better at it.  While we are getting quieter going into the winter we will have time to get used to the new systems so that by the time things take off again for next season we will be well into the swing of things.

Our next area to target will be our energy use!

…but there is a good reason behind it.  Earlier this summer Tony, our longstanding maintenance manager and husband of Joyce our Ops Manager, was diagnosed with cancer and at a fairly advanced stage.  Tony was given two to three months and was facing this very strongly and we think hiding a lot of the pain he must have been in.  During his last couple of weeks he declined very rapidly and sadly passed away a week last Monday.  He had his wish to die at home with dignity and we are all thankful that he did not have to suffer for too long.

Yesterday afternoon was his funeral which many of us were able to attend and quite a few former members of the team came too.  It was really good of them to come and shows the affection both he and Joyce are held in.  The Church in Padstow is a big one and it was quite full - Tony and Joyce have lived in Padstow for over 20 years so have got to know a great many people.  Fr Chris our parish priest is another character and he led the service really well with his own brand of solemnity and humour.

As The London Inn was Tony’s second home the reception following the interment was held there rather than up at the hotel - giving family and friends the chance to talk over their memories of Tony in very appropriate surroundings.

We will all miss Tony for his humour and common sense approach to life and we will keep hold of the many good memories we have of him.  Joyce has our support while she grieves and we look forward to welcoming her back to work when she feels it is right and we are very grateful that her two daughters live locally and have been able to look after her now.

No, not for Wallace and Grommit but a new blue cheese to us.  Tom from Hanson’s Fine Foods has found a new creamy blue cheese called Blue Horizon which Adam is now putting on our cheese plates.  It is quite a different style from the Cornish Blue and when it has ripened will be quite strongly flavoured as well as soft and creamy.  I hadn’t realised there are only two blue cheeses made in Cornwall and it is great that we have them both - another first for Adam and his team!