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.

Friday 14th March 08

A much better day... a really peaceful and happy morning. I took the boys into school.

At 10am I had a skype chat with Richard at Wiggly Wigglers (hey, that's the first time I've used that!!! I'm coming on with my abilities, hey?) so that the conversation will be made into a podcast... about York Rotters and Master Composter Schemes and Compost Doctors...

Had a busy but good day.

I collected the boys

Did some compost management, log stacking and tidying, and during the evening did lots of research about carbon offsetting. I feel pretty well prepared to speak at tomorrow's meeting. Just hope the predicted rain doesn't put too many people off coming....

Monday 29th October 07

Up fairly early as was due to help one of Gill's friends Beth with some gardening. She needed to take out some shrubs but doesn't feel strong enough to do that kind of work, and I offered the use of my 'wrecking bar', a metal bar which is brilliant at helping take out stumps.


Gill took the kiddies to school and I got to the garden with the shrubbery removal job soon after 9am. I worked til nearly lunchtime, and came home with a trailer-load of shrubbery and sticks.


During the afternoon I shredded all the stuff I brought home and then at 3 went to get the boys plus one of their friends from school. He came for tea and then at 5.15 I cycled with all three of them down to St Nicks for the Pumpkin event. This was organised by York Rotters as they distributed pumpkin seeds at the beginning of the season, as pumpkins can grow well in garden compost-enriched soil, or even on old compost heaps. The event was a pumpkin competition, for the biggest, the most interesting, and the best carved, adult and child categories.

So I had bought two pumpkins for the boys, as mine didn't grow well this year. The friend's mum and younger brother arrived, also with two bought pumpkins. My friend Jo arrived, with quite a few bought pumpkins. More than enough to go around.

The event was well attended, including my friend Jim and his girlfriend and her kids, and Jim's mum whom I'm fond of. After signing in, and saying I had responsibility for my sons with knives, they got going with the carving. I chatted to a florist who works nearby about composting, and the competition's judge, a lady named Sue who's a fundraiser for Marie Cure Cancer Care, who may also take up composting...

When 7pm came the judging took place. Jean had managed to grow a specimen about 12 cm across, and won the biggest pumpkin section, and got a Can O Worms, donated by Wiggly Wigglers, lucky her, I paid nearly £100 for mine! John from St Nicks had submitted a tichy pumpkin about 2cm diameter, it won the most interesting pumpkin. Not sure what he got for that. The florist won the adult carved pumpkin, with a wonderful image of a witch on her pumpkin-lantern. Finally, the kiddies section, and amazingly, my eldest son won! He was so happy! He won a wormery, one with a thin cross section so the tunnels could be seen easily.

We came home happy, with the two pumpkins and the prize, and they went to bed very tired.

Thursday 11th October 07

A good day, no particular stress or things to do. Gill took the one of the boys to school, the other wasn't very well and stayed at home. I did a range of home-based things, washing up and sorting out fruit, and some garden-based things, including rebuilding a logpile outside the front door. I went to the bread shop and the Co-op and then to St Nicks to give them a 'Compost Mate' which Wiggly Wigglers has sent me to replace one they sent last week, which has some of the paint covering missing. This tool is a big screw-threaded thing which is screwed into the compost heap and can lift out and aerate... and I don't need two.

After lunch, went to the Friends Meeting House to help move a filing cabinet for AVP, and to my building society to pay in a cheque, and back via Martin's Country Fresh to pick up a sack of cabbage leaves and onoin skins.

Enjoyed some more outside stuff, hedge cutting, shredding, compost-heap layering.

Wrote to the Press during the evening about the plan to introduce recycling litter bins in the city of York.