Friday 17th December 10

Up early as working this morning... due to be performing a Christmas party show 9.30 til 10.30, at a nursery in Poppleton.  So, working backwards, I had to be there for 9, and it takes up to an hour to cycle there, especially with a trailer full of equipment, so left the house at about 8am.

The gig went really well, though.  The audience were 3 and 4 year olds, so I had no expectations of lots of participation.  I decided to do both my shows in one hour.  I blew up a load of balloons before the show started, and held them carefully in a kind of horizontal paper holder thing which was on the stage behind me.  The circus show started well, with the juggling ball dropping trick, which works even for the very young.  I got a few of them up to try the feather balancing, and they enjoyed saying hello to Derek the diabolo and counting his jumps on the trampoline, and two children had a go with the yoyo balls, and three had a go on the four wheel unicycle.  Then I made a few demonstration balloons and then gave all 30 or so children their own balloon of their choice.  I finished on the dot of 10.30.

I got packed up, changed and cycled down to Holgate and from there on to the Millennium Bridge which is very close to the Steiner School.  We'd been invited to come and see the school, and meet Jonathan, who has the class which our youngest would go into if he wanted to go to this school.  Gill and our youngest had got there in a taxi, and had seats reserved for them, and we watched the Christmas Festival, with each class presenting a song or a poem, or a mini play.  However I had waves of depression whilst I was sitting in the audience.  All I want is my children to be happy and go to a nearby school where they aren't bullied and beaten up.  I don't want to home educate and I don't want to have to take my boy all the way to the Steiner School which is quite a long cycle away, maybe 20 minutes each way. I don't agree with the teachings of Steiner although there are some lovely people at the school, lots of my friends have children there, and I do like it that they are very child centred not subject centred.

Anyway, we had a good chat to Jonathan afterwards, with our son, and then a few minutes without him.  Depending on what happens early next term at Archbishop Holgates School, he may have a trial two weeks at the Steiner School. 

Gill then took our boyo into town on the bus to collect his glasses, and I cycled home where our eldest was supposed to be working.  I got in at 2.30 and had lunch.

I did a bit of stacking after this but it got dark early and was very cold.  I popped round to see Debbie to see if she was a grandma yet, and to give her some support regarding a difficult social situation she's dealing with.  After tea I was very tired and feeling low so I went to bed for two hours, getting up after 10 to do the washing up and write about today.  I did enjoy a programme on BBC4 called Festivals Britannia.  Memories.

Another early start tomorrow, as going to Dewsbury to do the Santa in the grotto gig again.  Grit my teeth.