Friday 28th March 08

Up reasonably early to sort out some fruit which has been hanging around and Gill's asked me to remove. Washed, halved, cored, peeled and sliced a tray-full of pears and melon for drying before breakfast... then had breakfast and went back to bed for 45 minutes to finish off a NewScientist. I'm still a month behind!

Then got up and did more tidying.... why are we so messy? Having children doesn't help, especially if they're either fighting or trailing round after you saying 'I'm bored'. Very frustrating... and when asked to do some simple bit of help, they say 'Don't want to do that' and I then feel like saying 'P*ss off then' but I don't, as swearing at your children isn't a good idea, so I smile sweetly and tell them to go and find something to do in their rooms and not get under our feet.

Rang my parents to see if any of the German part of the family are coming over this morning, but they are undecided and are coming over to York but not this morning, we may get a visit this afternoon. I've asked that they ring first as I may still have my Channel 4 visitor, who's coming at about 12.30. She's from 'Diverse' and they might be making a programme about people who take being 'green' very seriously, as it's all too common to hear people say 'I recycle therefore I'm green' or 'I use public transport instead of my car once a week, therefore I'm green' but obviously they aren't as being green entails many changes, root and branch. But this is an exploratory meeting to see if I'm the right person for the programme.

Lorraine came at 12.40, she'd got a train from London and then the No. 10 bus up here. She chatted and had a herb tea as I had lunch and Gill got the boys ready to go out, and when they eventually went, we did the filming, starting with the woodstoves and then the logpiles and materials recycling, then the composting and food growing, compost toilet... lots to show her and only a short time in which to do it. Hopefully she'll have got some useful stuff and her colleagues at C4 will decide I'm one of the people to be used in the programme. However it doesn't matter really if nothing comes of it, I'm sure someone else could do just as well as me.

She went soon after 4 and I went to the fruit shop... not just any fruit shop but the new! improved!! repainted!!! "Country Fresh" on Heslington Road and picked up a sack of stuff and some mushrooms so the boyos could have something tasty for tea... and of course, I love to have a bit of a cycle every day!

When I got back, the family hadn't come home so I went down the garden and did a little bit of compost management... but had a sneaking suspicion that Uncle Bill and family might be coming.... so I went to the front to be there incase they came. Funnily enough, just half an hour later, I glanced up to see a car going past with waving people in it and a couple of minutes later, my 3 cousins Micky, Christopher and Margarita, and Uncle Bill all trouped in. Micky has been studying in Sheffield so I've seen him recently, and I bumped into Margarita at the Big Green Gathering a couple of years ago, but I haven't seen Christopher for 34 years, apparently. And it's always good to see Bill as we are quite alike. My father tells me that as he goes senile, he'll start to call me William as I'm just like his older brother...

They came in and sat and chatted, then Gill and the boys appeared. Soon I took them for a short tour of the garden and at about 6.30 they went back to Sheffield. I don't see Bill very often as he lives in Germany, I don't know where Margarita lives and Christopher is a lorry driver in London, so might not see him much. However, good to see them all together.

A bready tea and a quiet evening, quick skype call with my friend in the US, with webcams working this time... the first time they have both worked perfectly for a long time. Hers often 'freezes' and she thinks this may be to some of the other things that I've got open on my computer... but nothing was different so I think it could be at her end. Weird. But good to chat and really good to keep it to an hour as I wanted to spend some time with Gill this evening.

Delighted again to see the chaos at Terminal 5 continued today... long may this continue! I want to see FEWER flights!