What can I not do without?? That’s easy as I think about it with some guilt frequently. I also sometimes try to imagine life without it and feel a pang of anticipatory loss and grief….

In one of our Transition Norwich Low Carbon Cookbook meetings last year we all came up with a list of 6 ingredients from outside the UK that we wouldn't want to live without. It was a really interesting exercise, but it is one that I actually find quite hard to do. Ultimately I could live without anything from outside the UK if I had to, I just wouldn't necessarily want to!

My mother was thrilled when she received her free bus pass. Now she could travel anywhere in the world for nothing. Her world was just a small part of Staffordshire! Most of the time, she was at home living a very low energy lifestyle, not trying to save the world, but to survive on a widow’s pension. She mended holes in socks and sheets but had never heard of holes in the ozone layer.

From the outset Transition and chocolate became inextricably linked in my mind.  Arriving by the backdoor, as it were, straight from the outside world into the holy of holies – Steering Group meetings, I found they featured chocolate.  Very nice, expensive organic, possibly even Fairtrade chocolate, the smell intoxicating. 

by Lucy Neal (Transition Town Tooting)

Sunday May 13th 5.45am

I began thinking about Personal Resilience this morning at about 4:30, twenty minutes before my alarm is set to go off. It’s like that when you’re way too stretched, way too many things going on, way too many commitments. I’ve volunteered for everything and now there are expectations, obligations, commitments.

I was going to write about celebration but reckon I'll write about ingredient number 11: Building Partnerships instead. It's down as a starting out ingredient but since we're into our fourth year of transition, take it as proof that there really isn't a 'right' way to do this!

Looking at the second stage  " Deepening"  To have something to write about  I thought I would take all of the ingredients from the second stage  and apply them as they are presented on this site to our Transition iniative in Omagh .

I was going to write about Communicating with the Media today, a nifty tool in this second section of The Transition Companion. I planned a practical exploration to the business of writing press releases and cultivating a positive relationship with local newspapers and radio.

"It's a sign." I said to Josiah on the phone last week.
"It's a practical manifestation!" he replied. And we both roared with laughter.