Friday 9th September 11

A good day, although very busy... cycling over to Bishopthorpe Road with my eldest son first thing (8.30am) and then calling in on Country Fresh to pick up compostables.  Richard gave me a bag of green beans which I made into a soup with an onion and a butternut squash, also a 'second' as it had a hole in it, making it unsaleable, but not inedible. For tea, Gill modified the soup by putting half of it into a pan with a tin of tomatoes, cooking it and whizzing it and putting it through a sieve.  The boys liked it, and when I eventually got in, I did too!

So during the day I did a few more pears and a bit of paperwork, until 2pm when I shot out, put in two cheques to my building society, one cheque into the bank, then on to Millers Yard to pick up oranges, and on to Pauline who'd responded to my request for a working toaster, as ours had gone phut.  She also gave me some plates and a lovely saucepan.  The house she manages has new tenants and they want it completely unfurnished.  Her compost bin needs some attention so I'll do that for her soon.

At 3.25 I cycled to Bishy Road to collect our son and we cycled home together, which was nice.  Then soon after 5 I set off for town again to meet up with David and Graham from the Minsters' Rail Campaign, which I've joined and want to help. They want to open a railway between York and Beverley, linking Stamford Bridge, Pocklington and Market Weighton.  This would also probably make it easier to get from Hull to York.  We had a good meeting and I agreed to make a facebook 'page' for the organisation.

Then, just as that meeting was drawing to a close, my new friend J arrived, and we had a good hour and a half chatting about all sorts of things.  Very nice to meet someone new whom I get on with really well. I got in at 9pm.

At 11.30pm I unhitched my trailer and bombed down to town to see the start of the Friday Night Ride To The Coast, which I was considering gong on but realised that my weekend was too busy to do everything.  I cycled with them until we got to our house, where I stopped and watched all 37 of them disappear up towards Hull.

Did more pears and watched News 24.

Tuesday 26th July 11

A busy day, got a fair amount done.  I got up fairly early and managed to get my head around the difficult email.... a compromise, I sent a simple message with hardly any detail, saying that if it was OK, I wouldn't need to send a more detailed one.

I then had a phone conversation with a Council person, re a grant I applied for to put on an energy saving event.  With my York in Transition hat on, I've been given £500 to spend on a one-day event to promote energy efficiency and domestic renewables.  I agreed to go to the Council Offices to sign the paperwork at midday.  I got wrapped up in the washing machine stuff with Gill, and then realised, at 11.43, hat I had to be at the office at 12... so i quickly got washed and dressed and on my bike and powered down to St Leonard's, getting there at 12.02. Not bad!  However, In waited another 10 minutes for the Council official to appear... so I needn't have rushed.

So I signed for this and I'll have the cheque in about a month. I need to find a venue and a date and stallholders and do publicity.....

I then went to my building society and withdrew a wad of notes to pay a good proportion of our Council Tax... and went straight back to the Council offices to pay that in.  From here I popped into Millers Yard to say hello to Dylan... and met a new resident of York, a hair-braider called Tamsin.  We talked about street entertainment and red tape.

Then home via Freshways... 2 sacks of compostables here. Came home to find Gill sorting out the conservatory, as she's convinced there's something in there, and it might have been responsible for causing the washing machine to stop working.  I helped her for a while, pulling the washing machine out and taking rubbish to the dustbin and compostables down the garden.

I then spent a bit of time organising my September visit to Basingstoke.  I'm going to travel down to near London on the Thursday and stay with a friend until Saturday, when I'll then travel to Basingstoke and do a Fiddlesticks and John the Composter gig, and come back to York after that.  When talking to the client, I'd found ticket prices which added up to about £70 for the three journeys.  However, today, I had a good poke around the East Coast website, and got the three tickets for £58... including one which was advertised at £10 but when I actually bought it, turned out to be just £9. So I was well pleased with that!

Gill couldn't see any nibbling on the electrical flex, and wondered if the damage had been done in the void between the back of the house and a freestanding wall, a gap which I'd boarded up and filled with insulation, and had been invaded by a rat or rats several years ago.  But she had a brainwave.... maybe the problem was the socket box... so she got the extension flex and plugged the washing machine into that, and Voila! It worked!  So as the wash was doing, and we were chatting about our not now needing a new washing machine, I removed the wooden shuttering and insulation.

Gill rang Justin, our electrical and plumbing angel, and by chance he was doing some tiling just down the road.  He said he'd be with us in an hour to see the problem.  He came, looked around, and said he'd bring a bricklayer to fill the void with bricks, and would see about fixing the electrics... tomorrow!  What service!  He's not cheap, but he is reliable and really nice!

I then spent ages on the phone trying to get to the Tax Credits renewal people.  I eventually got to them and told them our net earned income... which last year was the lowest ever for Professor Fiddlesticks.  The problem is partly that I still have the expensive directory advertising which now isn't bringing in as much work. 

So after this mainly sedentary day, I spent a bit of time in the garden and dealt with some compost and some weeding.

I had a small tea and at 7.30, set out for the Green Party fundraiser at City Screen.  This was very enjoyable, as loads of my friends were there. One person was there whom I've been playing Scrabble on facebook with for ages, but never met.  So I was very happy to meet Carol, who was sitting with her two friends and my friends Jane and David.  When the music started, Jane and David had a dance and some others joined in.  I particularly enjoyed the band 'BlueSaloon' which played funky blues numbers, and had a female guest singer for a couple of numbers, which was good.  My fiend Keith Jackman was the drummer for both bands.  I was very pleased to see him working... well, mainly hear him as where I was sitting I couldn't see him very well.

So, some nice music, good chats, a couple of pints of sweet cider, and I enjoyed the evening quite a bit.

Got home between 11.30 and midnight, lit the stove to get washing up water and continue drying off the fruit leather.  A late night, 3am bedtime.

Sunday 16th January 11

A generally relaxing day, with a late and slow start, watching Country Tracks on the box and chatting with Gill.  But then my planned evening was thrown into disarray.  I was going to meet my new facebook friend Faye at City Screen and get a ticket to see Peeping Tom, a film made 50 years ago, and a bit of a landmark in the history of cinema.  But she sent me a message saying she had decided to stay in as her husband was due home after a short break... and I asked her if I could buy her ticket off her. 

So, I said I'd cycle over and collect that later, and I did an hour's work outside which was lovely.  Then in for a late lunch and Gardener's Question Time, and after this I got on my bike and went over to South Bank.  I was pleased to see Faye in person as we've chatted on facebook, and both her and her husband Trent seem like nice and interesting people.  Faye was playing with her cute little 3 year old son, who eventually overcame his shyness and we played a bit.  Then her 2 year old woke, but he didn't overcome his shyness before I had to go.  Faye gave me the ticket, wouldn't accept any money so I promised a bag of dried fruit and some balloon animals as and when we meet again.

From Faye's I cycled on to Miller's Yard and picked up 4 sacks of oranges and one sack of plastic bottles to  recycle.  And a quick cycle home, picking up some long lanky pruned branches on the way home.

Gill had added to my stew and so I had a plate of that and soon after 7, got ready to head down to City Screen to see Peeping Tom.  I hadn't done any research other than what was on the invite page on facebook, ie it was an early study of voyeurism and warped sexuality, not something I'm overly interested in, but interested enough to consider seeing the film.

I enjoyed the film and will write a brief review later.

Saturday 1st November 08

Quite a quiet day... not much happened during the morning, but early in the afternoon I cycled into town to pay a bill and buy a copy of 'The Ecologist' which has been published and there's an article about CRAGs and a profile of me... but the bank was shut and the magazine hadn't been delivered yet, so a bit of a waste of time. So went to visit Dylan at Millers Yard and had a chat and brought back 3 sacks of compostable orange halves... so not a complete waste of time!

The boys had a visitor all day so all was peaceful and happy.

I spent some time harvesting beans which have been frosted and the pods needed picking and the beans taking out to dry. Also picked a load of nasturtium seeds and buds for washing and salting, and eventual pickling. ALSO sorted out the last load of pumpkin seeds and put them on newspaper for drying in front of the stove. So loads of produce all over the house.

Tuesday 14th October 08

I took our youngest to school (no cycle helmet hassles this morning!) and then cycled on to Fulford to deliver a confirmation letter to my agent, and on to town to pay a bill, get a cheque for rejoining Garden Organic, get some money for the TV licence, get a key cut for our eldest's school locker, and pick up compostable orange-halves and coffee grounds from Dylan at Millers Yard. Then onto St Nicks who were happy with a layer of oranges on their compost system, picked up the last of the sticks left over from the shredding weeks ago, and home....

A quiet afternoon, doing some kitchen stuff as Gill is taking it easy as she's still feeling rough after her tooth extraction.

I picked up our youngest, and much later on I did a blog post on Community Care for Blog Action Day, on a couple of local schemes which may help alleviate poverty.

Tuesday 9th September 08

A reasonable morning... cycled into town via Hazel Court Recycling Centre with a load of drinks cartons, which are not collected on the doorstep, but can be put in a 'bring bank', the nearest of which is the one at the Council's skip site. I also took a few bits of scrap iron and our old phone which had stopped working, for the WEEE skip (Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment) for recycling. I was not shouted at by the staff who seem to have realised that cyclists can use this facility as safely as motorists who then get out of their vehicles and wander around putting stuff in different skips.

From there on to see Dylan at the Healthy Living Centre, Millers Yard, where we had a conversation about where the York Green Festival was going, and what might be said at the forthcoming meeting. To the Council to give in some paperwork, and to the Building Society to put in a cheque. On to Boots but they didn't have what I wanted (little brushes to get between my teeth) and to Cycle Heaven to buy Gill a D lock as hers has gone wrong...

Home for lunch... and had that before a pre-arranged visit from a journalist, Sam, who used to work for the Press and knew me from those days, who's now working independently and is doing a piece for The Ecologist. So we had an hour and a half chatting, talking about carbon footprints and motivations and some quite detailed stuff. I do enjoy this, explaining about carbon calculators and 'easy to measure carbon and much more difficult to measure carbon' and the fact that it's not actually measuring, just approximating, guessing, but also the value of doing the exercise. At 3, I went to pick up our only child who now needs picking up from primary school... the older one arrived home soon after we did.

I then went down to town again to meet Ali who's in York for a meeting. We went to El Piano and had a lovely meal together, lots of chat about a huge range of subjects and we sorted the World out! A lovely evening.

Thursday 24th July 08

A really good day... The boys were on good form as they had their visitor and behaviour is always better when they have visitors!

I took the paperwork from the Planning Panel down to town via Millers Yard, came back via Country Fresh, had lunch went to the allotment and did a lot of clearing up, pulling out nettles, digging potatoes etc.

Came back to make tea for Gill... fried onions on the stove and added some large waste tomatoes and thrown-away basil, and home-made sweet-pepper paprika to make a stewy thing. Also chopped down some flowering perpetual spinach spires, and cut off some leaves and small buds, chopped them up and stewed them on the stove. Then added some pasta to the tomato stew and served it up with the spinach and a little bit of cheese on top... Gill said it was the best meal she'd had for ages.

Later on, I wrote my paid blog on cycling... on panniers and trailers. Then had a quick bath and a chat on Skype with K who has had a good holiday, and was in a happy mood thankfully!

Wednesday 11th June 08

Busy day... I took the kids to school and we spent a lot of time phoning Everest to try to get them to come and fix our front door, which will not lock OR be opened from the outside.

Gill stayed in and I cycled into town via Sainsburys and Millers Yard to give in the Planning Panel responses, coming back via Country Fresh to do a pick-up... was only able to pick up half of what there was to be recycled.

Lunch was a little bit of respite from rushing around and doing things. Everest chaps came after lunch, as did my MESOMOCO CIC friend Richard for a chat and tour of the garden.

Gill picked up the boys and I took them to Martial Arts. I then went to Country Fresh again and took part two of the compostables to the lottie, and on the way there met a pleasant young woman called Claire who showed me her allotment. I did the composting jobs and planted a squash and weeded onions and earthed up potatoes. And came home to make a fried egg sandwich with potato salad for tea.

Tuesday 29th April 08

Woken by shouting, what a pity. However, I plodded down and quietly and sleepily went to sit down between the warring parties which did the trick... I didn't have to say anything or do anything connected to the previous behaviour, just a 'good morning darlings' and the aggression subsided and Gill was able to take them into school. I got ready to go and meet Pippa down the road to give her a tour of York.

When I got to the BnB Pips showed me some pictures of her trip to Morocco, on a so-called 'eco tourism' visit. It did look pleasant, but of course she flew there and back, and I've come to regard this kind of thing as a bit indulgent, whether it is 'eco-tourism' or otherwise. However, I don't judge my friends on their behaviour, as I like them for more than their lifestyle choices. I was glad to walk with her to the station with her suitcase in my trailer where she put the suitcase in storage for the day.

We walked into town and I parked my bike in St Helen's Square and locked it up. We then walked down to the Spurriergate Centre where she'd bought a card yesterday but then found it had a religious text in, and they were good enough to allow her to exchange it for a secular one.

Then a wander up to Barley Hall through the little alleyways, and had a look around that which was good in the daylight as I mainly see it at night when I've been working there as 'Jester Jigglesticks'. When we were walking down Stonegate, met Jenny my AVP friend, with one of her friends who was also receiving a personalised tour of York. Jenny suggested that we ought to go to Marks and Spencer on Parliament St, and go to the top floor 'Menswear Department' as there was a fantastic view over the roofs to the Minster. So true, one of the best views in York I think!

From there to The Shambles, Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate, the charity shop where my friends Debbie and Rosalind work, Barnitts (Pippa likes shopping so I thought she ought to see Barnitts!) and then up Petergate to Bootham Bar and onto Gillygate to go and see Dylan at Millers Yard Positive Living Centre (more than a Healthy Living Centre!) and then a quick pop into the Minster and Shared Earth, and then sat down to eat a pastie for lunch. Finally, a visit to the Guildhall where there was a door open I hadn't seen before, and it led to a tunnel under the Guildhall to the River Ouse... a bit of a treat for me too as I hadn't been down there before.

Then we said our goodbyes and I cycled home as I had a date with the pre-schoolers who were about to have a session with worms!

I collected several different types of worms from the garden, plus some other beasties including slugs, centipedes, millipedes and beetle larvae. I took these into the school and had a fascinated and captive audience for 45 minutes, including putting together a Wiggly Wigglers wormery which lets the children see how worms mix up layers of soil. Very satisfying to enthuse 4 and 5 year olds in the most important subject there is, viz respecting the Planet and all life on it.

I brought the boys home and we had a very quiet evening. Later in the evening I was on the computer and a friend from my teen years contacted me and told me how important I'd been in her rather troubled life, it was lovely to catch up and to hear how my friendship had been so important.. very moving.