Saturday, 11 June 2011

Friday 10th June 11

A day dominated by going to Leeds to donate platelets for the second time.

I had an appointment at 11.15 so I got down to the station for soon after 10 and there was a bus at 10.23, which got me to Seacroft Blood Donor Centre for 11.15.  I was on the platelet removal machine by 11.45 and in 61 minutes I donated 3 units of platelets.  Two minutes slower than last time but still much better than the average donation of two units in 70 minutes.  My count from last time was down on the count done when I gave blood and had it tested for platelets, where it was 165,000 per cubic millimetre, down to 135,000... but this is still much higher than the average of 200,000 to 250,000.  I wonder what it will be this time.  I'll only know when I return in July.

I came out of the building at 1pm carrying a bag of crisps and some biscuits, and wandered over to the bus stop.  I collected a load of aluminium cans, and then watched the bus go past.... I was 1 minute late, all for about 20p worth of cans.  Never mind, I had the crisps and biscuit and chatted to a nice chap, and waited just half an hour for the next bus.  I enjoyed reading my NewScientist.

When I got to York I collected my bike and popped in to the building society to put in my cheque from Middleton Park, and visited the bank to see if a cheque had cleared.   I visited Richard to collect compostables and he gave me 4 boxes full and a large pile of strawberries.  When I got home I spent some time on the computer and then in the garden sorting out the compost donation, chopping several tens of kilos of potatoes. 

I came in for a late tea, at about 7, and Gill had done a nice simple rice dish.

Amongst other things I washed about 5kg of strawberries and sorted out some nice ones, and bits of nice ones, and liquidised them with banana, to make a puree which I then wiped through the sieve to get rid of as many seeds as possible.  This filled two trays which I carefully put to dry, balanced on the stove.  Banana and Strawberry fruit leather here we come!

Up til after 3 doing this, washing up and finishing off my writing.

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