Category Archives: Lego

broken heart, happy beach, I Love You, kilos, Lego, Molly and Eddie, nothing is lost in spirit, Plastic, queen, rescue dog, sun hat

Broken hearts

May 18, 2016 mizz bassett Leave a comment

It’s been a while since I have published anything on the Happybeach site.
The winter and spring was as pleasant as one could dream for. With plenty of beautiful sunshine, fruit on the trees, eggs from the chickens, long, peaceful walks – and even swimming, weather permitting. Happybeach lived up to her name.

Of course there were still collections to make (few items mentioned below), and I cleaned the beach when required with my fun-loving companions; Eddie and Molly.

eddie and molly watching point — Eddie is downstairs, Molly upstairs

During our walk yesterday beloved Eddie found something to munch on, usually this is totally off limits but I didn’t manage to catch her in time. Unfortunately it contained rat poison and took her life. We were far from help and there was nothing to do. Eddie was the gentlest, most life affirming little rescue dog, who was dumped in a litter bin when only a week old. A local shelter saved her life, and she joined us at Happybeach last March.

I am very grateful for the time I had with her and am dedicating a page on this site to the memory of Eddie. She was the Queen of Happybeach. She knew every inch by smell, conversed with the gulls, swam in the waves and let every visitor know that she was around. RIP little soul.

checking out the beach — Queen of Happybeach

The collection included:
* Countless bits of plastic
* A pair of lady’s knickers
* Pipe
* 10 shoes
* Ghost net
* 25 raw plugs
* Bottle tops
* Lego
* 9 Smartie lids
* 1/2 cassette tape
* 1 teddy
* clothes
* 1 flipper
* 2 toy soldiers
* Straws
* Frappé cups
* 5 fishing lures
* 1 white plastic table
* 2 10 liter canisters
* Sunhat
* 1 red pepper
* Shampoo bottles

Kilos lifted off Happybeach this winter and spring: 20,5

Thinking of Paris..

December 2, 2015 mizz bassett Leave a comment

When enjoying the solitude of my beach walks thoughts tend to drift towards Paris. At first they were naturally filled with deep sadness for the lives lost, and affected, by the horrid attacks in November, and currently they are preoccupied with the COP21 conference.

Though voices on the street are impaired by security restrictions, and a nuanced media coverage seems lacking, I hope against hope that energy guzzling/ profiting nations will take heed and realise that climate change is here, it is transforming our collective habitat for good, and we must take action now.

1037 plastic bottle tops found on Happy Beach over the summer

The wonderful activist site Avaaz.com started a virtual climate march in response to the restrictions made in Paris. It’s simple and still going on. Please join if you can. Peace.

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/paris_virtual_march/?pv=119&rc=fb

Otherwise my walks witness the tempestuous sea churning up plenty of rubbish on the shores.

Collection of the day includes:
17 plastic bottles
10 aluminium cans
Several broken cans
4 plastic cups
Fishing line
2 plastic plates
1 spoon (red)
1 fork plastic
1 small knife
Assorted plastic
Styrofoam
1 chair leg
2 fruit juice cartons
1 fishing reel
3 toothpaste tube tops
Bits of rope
Bits of tube
13 turtle eggs
1 dead squid
Disposable razor heads (6 pack, 2 left)
1 smartie lid
2 plastic containers
2 clothes pegs ( plastic)
2 disposable lighters
3 toy wheels

3.6kg of plastic lifted from Happy Beach in total

dinner is served

blue, Bottle Tops, buckshot, inhaler, Lego, lighter, pipe, Plastic, sea, Shoe, sky, Squeegee, straw, Styrofoam, toothbrush

50 shades of blue…

March 13, 2015 mizz bassett Leave a comment

After a couple of months of living as a beachcomber I’ve started to experience a strange phenomenon. The most ambivalent feelings towards the colour blue! My day usually begins by opening the drapes and being greeted by an affluent pallet depending on the weather. It ranges from warm, welcoming turquoise, to cloudy denim blues, or lazy azure with a horizon fading into mysterious darkest blue. Always accompanied by her sister: the ever changing sky and the blues, greys, oranges, golds and violets advertise the day to come. All this is pure balm for the soul.

Only the ongoing struggle with plastic arrivals on Happy Beach transforms these emotions into frustration. Plastic comes in a range of colours – making them easy to spot on the sand and shores – but there is one colour that seems to prevail over all others: blue, blue, blue. Bottle tops, wrappers, rope, fishing net, lighters, buckshot, bags, containers and so much more is produced in this colour and seems to be everywhere. Our collection today focused on blue. I’m sad to say that it didn’t take long and there was much more than I could carry.

Collection on Friday the 13th:
* 1 toothbrush
* 3 lighter
* 3 buckshot
* 1 Lego
* plastic plant container
* 2 straps
* bits of rope
* small plastic bits
* 55 bottle tops
* 2 plastic bottles
* 1 inhaler
* 2 shoes
* 1 toy shovel
* 9 clothes peg
* 1 straw
* 1 styrofoam cup (broken)
* 1 piece of pipe
* 1 rough side of a sponge
* 1 squeegee
* half a cooling element

Bottle Tops, Lego, lighter, Medicine Bottles, Syringe, washing up brush, water bottle

clean up support…

January 17, 2015 mizz bassett Leave a comment

It was a glorious sunny day that just makes the heart happy. Beach-combing was nevertheless all about plastic and more plastic. The collection counted 28 water bottles and another 132 bottle tops. Surprising yet another helping hand turned up and a dreamy, little castle. A pink washing up brush crowned the day and encourages the urge to tidy up this amazing seaside.

* 1 green castle
* 1 helping hand (claimed)
* 1 piece of LEGO
* 1 pink washing up brush
* 1 medical bottle
* 28 plastic water bottles

* 1 disposable insulin needle
* 6 used Bic lighters
* 6 assorted beach shoes
* 4 pills (possible anti-histamine)
* So much assorted plastic
* 1 yellow no. 1

Bottle Tops, comb, hairbrush, helping hand, ice cream spoon, inhaler, Lego, number, scissors, Shoe, Syringe

a helping hand…

January 16, 2015 mizz bassett Leave a comment

After a visit to the wonderful Paphiakos vet in Polis I found they were collecting bottle tops to provide a wheelchair for a person in need – 15.000 is the exact goal. Of course there is a goldmine just outside our house; so the search of the day focused on this multi-coloured treasure – I’m sure the original owners won’t mind donating these items to charity. I managed 355 in this collection but there are plenty more waiting to be found. Otherwise the usual medical appliances were found and tools for a little beauty salon: combs, a hairbrush and scissors – and a little hand to help me along!

* 355 bottle tops
* 5 medical bottles
* 1 inhaler
* 1 syringe
* 2 bits of LEGO
* 1 flip-flop
* 1 child’s sandal
* 1 sand mould (cockerel shape)
* 1 plastic purple ice cream spoon
* 4 plastic combs

* 1 hairbrush
* pair of scissors (broken)
* 2 plastic number tags – (green/218, blue/25)

biro, Bottle Tops, buckshot, Fishing Net, Lego, lighter, Medicine Bottles, pipe, Plastic, playboy bunny, Shoe, stool, Syringe, T-shirt, Table cloth

For the 22 people with only 1 shoe…

January 14, 2015 mizz bassett 1 Comment

After the heavy winds yesterday rain clouds gathered over the beach, so it was a quick visit to do the collection of the day. The item of the day must be: shoes! I counted 22 individual summer shoes in all imaginable sizes, from a baby shoe to man’s flip-flops. Get sad thinking of all these people having to hobble home from a day at the beach in one flowery sandal after having the other rudely snatched by the salty sea. Well, it’s here if you need it!

* 52 plastic bottle tops
* 22 individual beach sandals (sizes: baby – 40)

* 2 empty bic lighters (1 white, 1 green)
* 6 medicine bottles
* 5 syringes
* 2 used buckshots (1 green, 1 orange)
* 3 small bits of styrofoam
* Assorted pieces of plastic
* 1 medical cream
* 1 toothbrush
* 1 red sun screen lid (factor 25)
* 1 whole tangled up fishing net (yellow, no fish)
* 1 small, orange plastic stool
* 1 biro, no lid
* 1 piece of LEGO (white)
* 1 teething ring (almost complete)
* 1 green glass bottle (whole but has been in sea for a while)

* 1 piece of rope (30cm)
* 1 green plastic window box (broken on one side)
* 1 blue plastic playboy bunny head (CLAIMED!)
* 1 white connection pipe
* 1 flowery table cloth (150×200)
* 1 man’s T-shirt (grey w. orange neck)
* 1 tin of Tulip luncheon meat

Happy Beach Cyprus