Tuesday 26 July 2011

Monday 25th July 11

A quite early start as had work from 10 til 12 at Dringhouses Library.

I cycled over in costume (not the hat, though) and got to the venue at 9.40 and helped move things around in the room to make a reasonable show and workshop space.  The reason I'd been booked to do this gig is because the summer reading challenge is Circus Stars, and there are a number of performance-related events on in York libraries during the summer.

I've another 4 library sessions, and then in October, I'm performing at the Central Library ('Explore') for the prizegiving event.

Today's show and workshop went really well, and I was pleased to have Chrissy and her children in the audience.  The freeplay workshop which followed was also successful, and I especially enjoyed teaching a couple of youngsters how to juggle, and a Dad how to do diabolo.

I got away fairly swiftly, but was spotted by Grace, whom I haven't seen for quite a while, and I stopped to talk to her for a while.  And then, a bit closer in to York, spotted Pauline, and I stopped to find out how her visit to Buckingham Palace had gone.  On the way back home, I decided to do a blog 'page' about people who inspire me, as Pauline does.

I got in after 12.30 and got changed, put circus kit away and had lunch, and at 1.15 set off for town to go and meet David, who wanted to attend a talk at the Central Library, or 'Explore' as it's been re-branded.  The talk was by Bridget Morris of the Rowntree Society, and it was about the Rowntree family and their legacy.  David used to work for Rowntrees, and so was very interested. We both enjoyed the talk, and David offered to help with their 'Rowntree Memory' project.

Just before 4pm I took David back to his house and soon got away, coming back home via the lemon drink stall (lots of squashed half lemons for me!) and Country Fresh, where Shirley had a half sack of gubbins for me, including some pears which I later dried.

I did some work in the garden including taking my compost toilet receptacle down to the dalek bin I use specifically for that, and putting about 80kg of fruit and veg on the current heap.

I had some rice for tea, left over from a couple of days ago, with freshly made tomato and veg sauce on top.  Later in the evening I was phoned by my contact in Basingstoke and offered a fee to go and do Professor Fiddlesticks and John the Composter which will make it worthwhile going all that way.  I'm expecting to include a social visit too, which will make it more than worthwhile.

Gill and I spent a large part of the evening researching washing machines as ours has stopped working.  However, Gill thinks she saw a mouse 'or other rodent' in the conservatory, where the washing machine is, and was wondering if the rodent has just gnawed through a vital cable or something, causing it to stop working.  I would quite like to get a more modern one, though, as I've had that washing machine for 20 years and it isn't energy efficient. 

Bed ridiculously late, after making a lovely-tasting fruit leather out of bananas, the last of the loganberries, first of the blackberries and four waste limes.

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