I really enjoyed today, despite it being very tiring.
I got up before 9 and after breakfast I went down the garden to find another 5 sacks of compost for the Edible York collector today. Barry had been tasked to transport 30 sacks to Peaseholme Green and 15 sacks to the Barbican bed; but I'd only got 10 sacks ready for this second delivery.
I found some very mature compost in a builders 'dumpy' bag and dug some of it out and filled 5 sacks with at least 20kg per sack. These came up the garden in the wheelbarrow, and I brought a carrier bag of riddled mature as well, to show the Edible York volunteers what it's like!
This took about 45 minutes by which time it was rapidly getting towards my next deadline... I had to be in Thorpe Willoughby near Selby for 1.30pm, which meant that I should ideally leave home at about 11.30am, to allow 2 hours cycling to get the 16 or so miles to the Sports Club on Field Lane at the South West corner of the village. I allow 10 miles per hour and then some time for stops and for cooling off after I arrive!
I had a short stop in Stillingfleet but got to Thorpe Willoughby at 12.50, just an hour and 20 minutes after I set off. I had lunch sitting on a bench on the green, and arrived at the venue before the partygoers. I spoke to one of the staff and she opened up a back door to the room and I got my bike into the room. My employer arrived, with her football playing 7 year old daughter. She'd invited 17 of her friends. I got changed and my equipment ready. I welcomed the guests by being silly, introducing them to the birthday girl and suggesting they might like to be friends.
When all the partygoers were at the venue, I got the grownups to sit on chairs at the back and all the children to sit on the floor in front of them. I did a fantastic show, really enjoyed it, and as I wasn't doing the balloons, i spent a bit longer with the circus show, including letting a self-confessed diabolo player have a go with my smaller diabolo. One of the more vocal kids said, towards the end of the show, that it was 'the best party he'd ever been to' which was nice, with his shrill voice quite loud, so everybody could hear!
I finished at about 3.15 and packed up, took the bike out of the back and round to the front, so I could go back into the building and get changed.
Then i cycled home, by the same Cawood, Stillingfleet and Naburn route. I saw a dead deer (roadkill) and a badger, and a pheasant, plus live hares chasing round a field.
I got in after 5pm, and immediately rang David, whom I'd said I'd go and work for at about 6pm. I wanted to have a bit of a rest before going to see him, and wanted to get to him at 6.30. But he'd arranged to meet Geoff at 6, so I had a quick potato salad and cheese sandwich and quickly cycled down to town, getting to his house at 6pm on the dot. We went round to City Screen and had a coffee, and Geoff arrived.
We got talking with a nice woman called Alison who's an acupuncturist, and her daughter Erica, a chef from the South of France, and Erica's boyfriend Alan. David enjoyed chatting with them. Geoff didn't stay long; for me the highlight of his being there was showing me a tee-shirt which had written on it "Christians Who Fly are Christians Who Kill". He asked if I'd wear it at the UK Aware event, but I declined. I don't set out to upset people.... and although I agree that flying (in aeroplanes!) is contributing to climate change and therefore killing people, it's not a teeshirt I would wear as it could be misconstrued. My agnosticism sets out to respect other peoples' religious leanings.
I took David home and put the wheelchair away, and made him soup and veg. I also cooked him some fish, as requested. After I'd washed up, David suggested I sit and had a glass of wine, so I said, OK, stop the clock and I'll have a drink and a chat. I did 2 and a half hours for him this evening, then 40 minutes chat.
I was very pleased to get home... a long day, but a goody!
I got up before 9 and after breakfast I went down the garden to find another 5 sacks of compost for the Edible York collector today. Barry had been tasked to transport 30 sacks to Peaseholme Green and 15 sacks to the Barbican bed; but I'd only got 10 sacks ready for this second delivery.
I found some very mature compost in a builders 'dumpy' bag and dug some of it out and filled 5 sacks with at least 20kg per sack. These came up the garden in the wheelbarrow, and I brought a carrier bag of riddled mature as well, to show the Edible York volunteers what it's like!
This took about 45 minutes by which time it was rapidly getting towards my next deadline... I had to be in Thorpe Willoughby near Selby for 1.30pm, which meant that I should ideally leave home at about 11.30am, to allow 2 hours cycling to get the 16 or so miles to the Sports Club on Field Lane at the South West corner of the village. I allow 10 miles per hour and then some time for stops and for cooling off after I arrive!
I had a short stop in Stillingfleet but got to Thorpe Willoughby at 12.50, just an hour and 20 minutes after I set off. I had lunch sitting on a bench on the green, and arrived at the venue before the partygoers. I spoke to one of the staff and she opened up a back door to the room and I got my bike into the room. My employer arrived, with her football playing 7 year old daughter. She'd invited 17 of her friends. I got changed and my equipment ready. I welcomed the guests by being silly, introducing them to the birthday girl and suggesting they might like to be friends.
When all the partygoers were at the venue, I got the grownups to sit on chairs at the back and all the children to sit on the floor in front of them. I did a fantastic show, really enjoyed it, and as I wasn't doing the balloons, i spent a bit longer with the circus show, including letting a self-confessed diabolo player have a go with my smaller diabolo. One of the more vocal kids said, towards the end of the show, that it was 'the best party he'd ever been to' which was nice, with his shrill voice quite loud, so everybody could hear!
I finished at about 3.15 and packed up, took the bike out of the back and round to the front, so I could go back into the building and get changed.
Then i cycled home, by the same Cawood, Stillingfleet and Naburn route. I saw a dead deer (roadkill) and a badger, and a pheasant, plus live hares chasing round a field.
I got in after 5pm, and immediately rang David, whom I'd said I'd go and work for at about 6pm. I wanted to have a bit of a rest before going to see him, and wanted to get to him at 6.30. But he'd arranged to meet Geoff at 6, so I had a quick potato salad and cheese sandwich and quickly cycled down to town, getting to his house at 6pm on the dot. We went round to City Screen and had a coffee, and Geoff arrived.
We got talking with a nice woman called Alison who's an acupuncturist, and her daughter Erica, a chef from the South of France, and Erica's boyfriend Alan. David enjoyed chatting with them. Geoff didn't stay long; for me the highlight of his being there was showing me a tee-shirt which had written on it "Christians Who Fly are Christians Who Kill". He asked if I'd wear it at the UK Aware event, but I declined. I don't set out to upset people.... and although I agree that flying (in aeroplanes!) is contributing to climate change and therefore killing people, it's not a teeshirt I would wear as it could be misconstrued. My agnosticism sets out to respect other peoples' religious leanings.
I took David home and put the wheelchair away, and made him soup and veg. I also cooked him some fish, as requested. After I'd washed up, David suggested I sit and had a glass of wine, so I said, OK, stop the clock and I'll have a drink and a chat. I did 2 and a half hours for him this evening, then 40 minutes chat.
I was very pleased to get home... a long day, but a goody!
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