Well a very early start as I had to be at Rowntree Park by about 8am... but arrived so early that only one gate was open but soon others started to trickle in and I helped put together a marquee.
I was in charge of the stalls area and my role was to direct the various stallholders to their pitches and show them where to park their cars. The BBC bus came and eventually got parked up in the right place. Lots of other activity. I was working with a steward called Qing (pronounced 'Ting') and we walked round the stalls as she was doing photographs and wanted to know about each stall. I wasn't aware of the time, just that there was loads happening... and then there was a call on the walkie talkie for me to go to the BBC bus, so I went up there and they wanted to interview me about green lifestyles and the festival and my bike...
They had a clock and I noticed it had just turned 11... the festival had officially started! The interview didn't take long and I was able to get back to the stalls area. Various family and friends arrived, including Gill and the boys and Ali and Ruthie.
The park started to fill up and at one moment the sun came out... but it was still overcast and potentially wet. The Environmental Health Food Hygiene person came and then radioed through to say she was happy with everything. Before long it was approaching 1pm when I was due to present a balloon modelling workshop so I went to the kids area and blew up a whole unicycle's worth of balloons (I put them into the spokes to hold them) and the marquee filled up... loads of children, and as I was doing the workshop, more and more came.... So I did an hour's worth of balloons, an almost endless queue of expectant children all wanting a balloon of their choice. I was glad when there were no more and I could get back to my Festival organiser duties and by this time it had started raining. But the Festival went on and there was lots to do... a very busy few hours.
At about 3.40 I went to the main stage as my favourite band were due to be on, but everything was running late and The Falling Spikes weren't due to be on for at least half an hour. I knew that the music would overrun so I went to find Baz to discuss this with him and he suggested that the music could continue til 5.30, which I wasn't too happy with as this would probably breach our consent. But I didn't argue for a 5pm finish as the audience were still enjoying the music and were resolutely ignoring the rain.
I started doing some litter duties, sorting out different waste streams into different bags, and taking the paper plates/food for composting and the aluminium cans for recycling. The Falling Spikes just did two, possibly three numbers and finished at 5.30 and the park soon became a lot emptier... but I stayed there til 7, doing assorted tidying duties, litter-picking the main lawn and helping John and Len the park-keepers sort out the last of the mess.
I came home very slowly as my trailer was overloaded but got home shortly before 8 and Gill had some home-grown potato chips ready for me, to which I added a couple of yummy things from Azra's curry stall.
Boys overtired and grouchy but they did eventually get to bed and I watched a brilliant programme on Sculpture on C4+1...
Later collected emails and wrote up this blog.
Sunday, 31 August 2008
Saturday, 30 August 2008
Saturday 30th August 08
Awoken by a phone call from a friend who's lonely at the weekend since his family has broken up, so I told him about York Green Festival tomorrow and he'll come down sometime in the afternoon. Then there was another phone call from a Fiddlesticks enquirer... and another phone call after that! It's so busy that it's almost like we have a Freefone number!
However the boys went out to play so Gill and I had a bit of time together after which I cycled round to the bread shop and then cut one of the hedges at the bottom of the garden. Over lunch we watched an old Time Team on More 4, and I did emails.
During the afternoon I did a huge pile of pruning.. holly, laurel, privet hedge, and shredding... almost a cubic metre of the stuff...
At about 5pm, cycled down to Rowntree Park to help put up marquees, with Baz and David, Bob and Richard, and advice from Liz who was tipsy (Baz's friend). The solar cinema was being put up with assistance from Sarah and I left at nearly 7pm.
Back home for a small tea and a cold shower as was extremely hot and sweaty... not suitable material for a party, which is where I was off to next. Will was having a 'wellness party' following too much time unwell, and it was an excellent party, with quite a few folks I knew and some I didn't. Drinks, food, music, then some games, and then I did a little balloon show which was fun for all concerned.
Home at about midnight.
However the boys went out to play so Gill and I had a bit of time together after which I cycled round to the bread shop and then cut one of the hedges at the bottom of the garden. Over lunch we watched an old Time Team on More 4, and I did emails.
During the afternoon I did a huge pile of pruning.. holly, laurel, privet hedge, and shredding... almost a cubic metre of the stuff...
At about 5pm, cycled down to Rowntree Park to help put up marquees, with Baz and David, Bob and Richard, and advice from Liz who was tipsy (Baz's friend). The solar cinema was being put up with assistance from Sarah and I left at nearly 7pm.
Back home for a small tea and a cold shower as was extremely hot and sweaty... not suitable material for a party, which is where I was off to next. Will was having a 'wellness party' following too much time unwell, and it was an excellent party, with quite a few folks I knew and some I didn't. Drinks, food, music, then some games, and then I did a little balloon show which was fun for all concerned.
Home at about midnight.
Friday, 29 August 2008
Friday 29th August 08
A slow start to the day but at 9.30 the Everest door surveyor came to look at our front door which has been playing up and not closing very well, or being difficult to open from outside. He thinks it is now sorted! He was interested in our logburners and we chatted for a bit about fireplace efficiency, chimney linings etc etc.
One of the boys' friends came round to play, so they went upstairs and were very quiet for a bit... I did some emailing re York Green Festival and then got dressed.
A happy day... picked plums from our old plum tree with assistance from our youngest son (whilst Gill and t'other were in town getting yet more uniform) and then stacked sticks, again with some help from our youngest... who by his good behaviour earned a little bit of pocket money.
I popped down to Country Fresh and was shocked that because of the Green Festival, they'll be shut on Sunday! Richard is the drummer in The Falling Spikes and will be enjoying the festy... and as the other staff member won't work weekends, the shop will be shut. I picked up three boxes of gunk for composting and some broccoli for eating.
During the evening we all watched 'Wainwright's Walks on telly, as it was Helvellyn and Striding Edge, my favourite Lake District walk. I did this with my bone surgeon Roger Austin when I was a teenager... he mended my smashed elbow and became a friend (also he worked with my Dad who was an anaesthetist)
When the boys were in bed we had a game of Scrabble and Gill won by 6 points! I cut up and peeled some of the plums, mainly ones which had some rotten bits (which I cut off!) and placed them on the fruit-drying rack on top of the stove. These then turn into one of the best dried fruits, a kind of prune, minus stone, and wonderfully chewy and sweet. One of my favourites!
One of the boys' friends came round to play, so they went upstairs and were very quiet for a bit... I did some emailing re York Green Festival and then got dressed.
A happy day... picked plums from our old plum tree with assistance from our youngest son (whilst Gill and t'other were in town getting yet more uniform) and then stacked sticks, again with some help from our youngest... who by his good behaviour earned a little bit of pocket money.
I popped down to Country Fresh and was shocked that because of the Green Festival, they'll be shut on Sunday! Richard is the drummer in The Falling Spikes and will be enjoying the festy... and as the other staff member won't work weekends, the shop will be shut. I picked up three boxes of gunk for composting and some broccoli for eating.
During the evening we all watched 'Wainwright's Walks on telly, as it was Helvellyn and Striding Edge, my favourite Lake District walk. I did this with my bone surgeon Roger Austin when I was a teenager... he mended my smashed elbow and became a friend (also he worked with my Dad who was an anaesthetist)
When the boys were in bed we had a game of Scrabble and Gill won by 6 points! I cut up and peeled some of the plums, mainly ones which had some rotten bits (which I cut off!) and placed them on the fruit-drying rack on top of the stove. These then turn into one of the best dried fruits, a kind of prune, minus stone, and wonderfully chewy and sweet. One of my favourites!
Thursday, 28 August 2008
Thursday 28th August 08
A very early start as we'd organised a day out... and as the weather looked better in the North East than the North West, we didn't do the Settle to Carlisle railway but took the 8.27 to Alnmouth so we could go to Alnwick to go to the amazing garden there. Arrived in Alnmouth (well, the station which is a mile outside the coastal village) and got a bus to Alnwick, and the castle and garden is very close to the town...
We spent the morning around the cascade, a wonderful flight of waterfalls with half-hourly fountains and water jets, and occasional other water jets which went really high and were fun to dodge... or get wetted by! The boys loved playing on the tractor toys at the base of the cascade, and walking up the rills which have cobbles on the base to make it easy to do so in the shallow but fast-flowing water, and enjoyed playing with the water in the ornamental garden at the top of the cascade too.
Then we went for a sit-down on the lawns and had our sandwiches we'd brough with us... and our eldest and I went on the guided tour of the poison garden which had a good variety of narcotic and toxic plants from nettles to rhubarb, giant hogweed to cannabis, opium to henbane, coca to foxglove... absolutely fascinating!
After this we went to check out the treehouse via an ice-cream and Gill was brave and walked the wobbly bridges. I took some delight in making them as wobby as possible.... made me giggle, naughty me! The boys laughed as well though, it was fun seeing Mum holding on as if for dear life!
The bamboo labyrinth wasn't a proper labyrinth, more of a maze. But the best thing we left til last, the interactive water sculptures which the boys absolutely adored... and got completely soaked. After the best part of an hour here, we went to the lawns and wrang their teeshirts out, and after a while headed into Alnwick to try to find a charity shop with dry shorts etc. Gill got two pairs of pants in Woolworths and shorts in a charity shop.... perfect!
Wandered round the town and eventually wound up at the bus station where we got the 4.47 bas to Alnmouth Station where we only had a 5 minute wait before the York train came... and back into York at 6.45.
We spent the morning around the cascade, a wonderful flight of waterfalls with half-hourly fountains and water jets, and occasional other water jets which went really high and were fun to dodge... or get wetted by! The boys loved playing on the tractor toys at the base of the cascade, and walking up the rills which have cobbles on the base to make it easy to do so in the shallow but fast-flowing water, and enjoyed playing with the water in the ornamental garden at the top of the cascade too.
Then we went for a sit-down on the lawns and had our sandwiches we'd brough with us... and our eldest and I went on the guided tour of the poison garden which had a good variety of narcotic and toxic plants from nettles to rhubarb, giant hogweed to cannabis, opium to henbane, coca to foxglove... absolutely fascinating!
After this we went to check out the treehouse via an ice-cream and Gill was brave and walked the wobbly bridges. I took some delight in making them as wobby as possible.... made me giggle, naughty me! The boys laughed as well though, it was fun seeing Mum holding on as if for dear life!
The bamboo labyrinth wasn't a proper labyrinth, more of a maze. But the best thing we left til last, the interactive water sculptures which the boys absolutely adored... and got completely soaked. After the best part of an hour here, we went to the lawns and wrang their teeshirts out, and after a while headed into Alnwick to try to find a charity shop with dry shorts etc. Gill got two pairs of pants in Woolworths and shorts in a charity shop.... perfect!
Wandered round the town and eventually wound up at the bus station where we got the 4.47 bas to Alnmouth Station where we only had a 5 minute wait before the York train came... and back into York at 6.45.
Wednesday 27th August 08
A hectic day which ended very late as I had a deadline for my column in Community Care.
However, during the day I responded to a call from a chap in Heworth area who called me and said he'd taken down a couple of trees in his garden and did I want the wood? Well of course I did! Has the World not had too much fossil carbon emitted? Is the Mona Lisa not the most famous smiling person ever? Is the Pope unconcerned about overpopulation? (am I veering off-topic here?)
So I cycled round to his place and there was a large pile of relatively thin 'logs', branches and twigs... but I am happy to have them as they've been carefully cut and stored, some even chopped to length and bagged (albeit in plastic sacks which have started to oxo/photo-degrade revealing rather damp/mouldy sticks!) so I collected two loads. There's at least another 5 loads to go! On the first trip I had a lengthy chat with him and his visitor Jo who'd interviewed me yonks ago on Hospital Radio about York Credit Union, and then a lengthy chat with his plumber Glenn who employed me once for a gig at the Hopgrove Playing Fields... but the second journey I spoke to no-one and did the return trip in 35 minutes...
In the evening I went to St Nicks to be 'an audience' to four novice presenters who have undergone training to get them ready to talk about Transition. I enjoyed pretending to be an OAP chap with a firm belief that there is an Ice Age on the way... after all, this was a popular idea in pre-global warming times not so long ago, and sometimes oldies still refer to it...
So several good presentations, gave feedback.
Back to the house at about 10pm where I put together my column, on water...
However, during the day I responded to a call from a chap in Heworth area who called me and said he'd taken down a couple of trees in his garden and did I want the wood? Well of course I did! Has the World not had too much fossil carbon emitted? Is the Mona Lisa not the most famous smiling person ever? Is the Pope unconcerned about overpopulation? (am I veering off-topic here?)
So I cycled round to his place and there was a large pile of relatively thin 'logs', branches and twigs... but I am happy to have them as they've been carefully cut and stored, some even chopped to length and bagged (albeit in plastic sacks which have started to oxo/photo-degrade revealing rather damp/mouldy sticks!) so I collected two loads. There's at least another 5 loads to go! On the first trip I had a lengthy chat with him and his visitor Jo who'd interviewed me yonks ago on Hospital Radio about York Credit Union, and then a lengthy chat with his plumber Glenn who employed me once for a gig at the Hopgrove Playing Fields... but the second journey I spoke to no-one and did the return trip in 35 minutes...
In the evening I went to St Nicks to be 'an audience' to four novice presenters who have undergone training to get them ready to talk about Transition. I enjoyed pretending to be an OAP chap with a firm belief that there is an Ice Age on the way... after all, this was a popular idea in pre-global warming times not so long ago, and sometimes oldies still refer to it...
So several good presentations, gave feedback.
Back to the house at about 10pm where I put together my column, on water...
Tuesday, 26 August 2008
Tuesday 26th August 08
Awoken just after 9 by one of my sons yelling at the top of his voice 'I can't find my underpants'... such are the joys of parenting.
However I'm glad that I woke up then as I had a gig at 10 at York College, the other side of town, so I hurriedly wolfed my muesli and brushed my hair for Gill to re-plait it, loaded up my trusty steed and by 9.35 was on my merry way, in costume so no delays at the other end.
Got to the college on the dot of 10, my first time in the new building so no idea where to go but the Out of School Club leader came down to meet me and took some of my gear upstairs, I locked my bike and brought the rest in, and withing 5 mins was starting my show for 18 young people.
Both shows went well and at middayish we were finishing and I left a handwritten invioce for them to send me a cheque soon.
Home via the Building Society to put in two cheques from Sunday and Monday, and the Country Fresh shop to pick up two large boxes of recyclables meaning I was quite overloaded coming up Heslington Road. Late lunch, lit the stove so I can wash up, emails and out into the garden to sort the boxes into compostables, edibles and dryables. Gill took the boys to friends and went on into town to get about £200 worth of uniform for our eldest who's going to his secondary school next week.
However I'm glad that I woke up then as I had a gig at 10 at York College, the other side of town, so I hurriedly wolfed my muesli and brushed my hair for Gill to re-plait it, loaded up my trusty steed and by 9.35 was on my merry way, in costume so no delays at the other end.
Got to the college on the dot of 10, my first time in the new building so no idea where to go but the Out of School Club leader came down to meet me and took some of my gear upstairs, I locked my bike and brought the rest in, and withing 5 mins was starting my show for 18 young people.
Both shows went well and at middayish we were finishing and I left a handwritten invioce for them to send me a cheque soon.
Home via the Building Society to put in two cheques from Sunday and Monday, and the Country Fresh shop to pick up two large boxes of recyclables meaning I was quite overloaded coming up Heslington Road. Late lunch, lit the stove so I can wash up, emails and out into the garden to sort the boxes into compostables, edibles and dryables. Gill took the boys to friends and went on into town to get about £200 worth of uniform for our eldest who's going to his secondary school next week.
Monday, 25 August 2008
Monday 25th August 08
Bank Holiday Monday... which means I'm working!
So an early start, up at 7.15 to be at Woodlands MS Respite Care Centre over the road for 8.15 where there was the MS Society minibus awaiting to take me and the volunteers to the event at Allerthorpe Park. We had quite an animated chat on the way... a pair of regular volunteers from one of the MS shops, and several French or French speaking people, Simon and Pierre, and a lovely Pakistani PhD-er doing cancer protein stuff called Rubab. They were working on the stall or in the carpark.
Helped get the gazebos up and was shown my place between a clothes stall and a chip van. 10am came and I put my hat on and slowly got into character; soon there were plenty of interested people who wanted to try out devilsticks or juggling. One young teenager, Mark, spent lots of the day trying out the unicycle and by the end of the day at 4pm had mastered it... brilliant! Several other people had learned to juggle and everybody seemed to have had fun. I'd had a MS Society collecting tin hanging on a post near me and had asked for donations for balloon animals, so raising some cash for the charity.
And I had fun AND got a cheque!
Home in the minibus, got in before 5 and the house was empty but pizza dough was proving on top of one of the still-warm 5 gallon pans of water on top of the stove. I got changed (I'd travelled in costume) and did some shredding in the garden, more hedge prunings to add to the hot tumbler...
Gill and the boys came in, they'd been to Fulford Show and stopped over at Melody and Simon's house on the way back.
Lovely home-made pizza for tea with home-grown tomato and cucumber salad.
Tried my first game of Literati on Yahoo during the evening, as an alternative to Scrabulous but it's not as good.
So an early start, up at 7.15 to be at Woodlands MS Respite Care Centre over the road for 8.15 where there was the MS Society minibus awaiting to take me and the volunteers to the event at Allerthorpe Park. We had quite an animated chat on the way... a pair of regular volunteers from one of the MS shops, and several French or French speaking people, Simon and Pierre, and a lovely Pakistani PhD-er doing cancer protein stuff called Rubab. They were working on the stall or in the carpark.
Helped get the gazebos up and was shown my place between a clothes stall and a chip van. 10am came and I put my hat on and slowly got into character; soon there were plenty of interested people who wanted to try out devilsticks or juggling. One young teenager, Mark, spent lots of the day trying out the unicycle and by the end of the day at 4pm had mastered it... brilliant! Several other people had learned to juggle and everybody seemed to have had fun. I'd had a MS Society collecting tin hanging on a post near me and had asked for donations for balloon animals, so raising some cash for the charity.
And I had fun AND got a cheque!
Home in the minibus, got in before 5 and the house was empty but pizza dough was proving on top of one of the still-warm 5 gallon pans of water on top of the stove. I got changed (I'd travelled in costume) and did some shredding in the garden, more hedge prunings to add to the hot tumbler...
Gill and the boys came in, they'd been to Fulford Show and stopped over at Melody and Simon's house on the way back.
Lovely home-made pizza for tea with home-grown tomato and cucumber salad.
Tried my first game of Literati on Yahoo during the evening, as an alternative to Scrabulous but it's not as good.
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