Friday 7th January 11

A fairly quiet day, no particular highlights other than visiting Richard at Country Fresh at about midday, and picking up a load of stuff from him, and then going on to Alligator, as Gill had asked me to get some jelly, and they do a good vegetarian jelly.  I had space for 3 bags of their biodegradable resources, and will collect more on Monday I expect.

I enjoyed some sorting out down the garden... there's still a bit of a backlog, so today's stuff stayed in the wheelbarrow but I loaded up more into the Compostumbler, and filled a couple of sacks of mature compost which a rodent had excavated from the base of one of the last heaps to be sitting on the ground.  Most are now up on top of pallets, to reduce the ability of rodents to nest in the heap.  They can still get in from the top, but a quick poke with the CompostMate means any tunnels collapse and they seek refuge elsewhere.  So this heap will be bagged up and then the pallets raised up off the ground so it's slightly less rodent-friendly.

I had an early tea, at about 6pm, just a bowl of soup plus an avocado sandwich, and at 6.30 walked down to Heslington with our eldest, so he could have his computer graphics lesson with Simon.  I chatted with Melody and shelled pumpkin seeds and read Resource Magazine.  Melody told me she too had heard of a horror story about Andy S. taking advantage of a kind and generous person, and I asked her to pass on the message to this (so far) anonymous person that if she wanted to contact me, I was putting together a dossier to try to get him stopped.  If any of the readers of this blog recognise the character I refer to, and has a story of him borrowing money and not paying it back, or using someone's credit card without permission, please do contact me. 

On the way back home I learned about my son's adventures on Blender, and we talked about animations and some of the things we've enjoyed. 

A quiet evening... blanched a load of grapes and put them to dry, watched a nice programme about Tom Petty, a musician I don't know a lot about.  Liked his music though...

Saturday 30th October 10

Not a brilliant start to the day.  Something is whirring round my mind, a situation I want to resolve and make better and I'm feeling quite annoyed and angry about it.  But I got on with the day, did some wooding; a neighbour came round and asked if I'd like their shed which they'd taken down... I went to look but most was painted, and I don't burn painted wood.  But there were a load of floorboards and structural timber from inside, so I came away with a trailerfull. I chainsawed this up and quite a bit more. 

Mid afternoon I set off for Pauline's house, as she too is preparing for winter with her Clearview Stove. She's getting a bit old to chop logs and relies on a few willing volunteers to help.  In return for doing a bit of sawing, I get what can only be described as 'good counsel' and the benefit of her wisdom, although I'm sure she would deny that she has much of that.  I would argue strongly that she is someone who I trust with all sorts of difficulties and issues, and she always has something worthwhile to say.  I really value her opinions and observations.  Today was no different, as I shared my dilemma, and she picked out the crux of the problem, looking at it from the point of view of a mother and woman of mature years... just the perspective I needed.  She helped me see that anger and frustration were not going to get me anywhere positive with this, and to be gentle, measured and apologetic would probably have the better result in the long run. 

Our coffee and stollen and conversation finished at about 5pm and I cycled down to the Millennium Bridge, through the allotments (I had a quick peek at the YUMI plot) and along to Simon and Melody's house, as they had invited us to a party.  I arrived about 3 minutes before Gill and the boys rolled up in a taxi; Gill had made a cake with a spider's web design on and a pumpkin pie made with bought flaky pastry.  She'd spent most of the afternoon trying to find a costume for our youngest to wear, no time for making pastry therefore.

I was pleased to see Natalie, their daughter, who has come back from her first term of Fine Art at Oxford.  She'd made a very good pumpkin soup which was delicious.  Gill's pie was nice too.  There were fewer visitors than usual, Lee and Christine came and I had a nice chat with Christine who works for English Nature and knows our friend Sarah Woolven.  The children seemed to be happy and occupied, and near 8pm started to get excited about Merlin on TV.  I came home via a woodpile. I do not get excited by Merlin on TV, and was glad of a TV-free evening when I got in.

I enjoyed a facebook chat with my friend Loony who is staying with my sister in Sheffield.  Loony and I have a similar sense of humour and outlook on life, but of course, I'm not as loony as she is!  I'm glad my sis is having a good time with Loony, and will be doing Halloweeny things tomorrow with our niece and nephews.

The partygoing family members came in well after 9pm, closer to 10; they'd walked back.

Did fruit and washing up, and was awake when my laptop clock went from 1.59 to 1.00. 

Sunday 25th July 10

A nice relaxing day in many ways... didn't do much in the morning but after lunch I cycled down to see Simon and Melody who have a glut of redcurrants, and invited us to make them a Yorky offer for a couple of punnets. From here I cycled through the University to Heslington Road, popped in to Richard who had a sack and a half of gubbins for me, and then down to town as I wanted to see the YUMI festival, and I picked up a half sack of halved lemon peels from the lemon juice stall.

I was impressed with YUMI Celebrates event. A good proportion of Parliament Street had stalls with food, crafts and activities from local people who originate from all over the world. York is much more of a multicultural place than it was when I arrived in the 1980s. I had an Asian friend who visited with her European boyfriend, and I have memories of them walking through Newgate Market holding hands and all the market traders staring, and me being embarrassed by this. I grew up in Leicester where inter-racial relationships were common, and the attitude of people in York was very different. I'm glad York is more cosmopolitan now.

I chatted with a volunteer steward called Penny and she expressed a desire to volunteer with YUMI, and a couple of minutes later I spotted Sasiki so I introduced them to each other.

I also went into town to see the city centre cycle races, and I was there as the under 14s race got underway. It was good to see them really going for it! I popped into see Sarah and Matthew in their 'Gluggles' shop, and then cycled home via Freshways who were happy to let me have two sacks of goodies.

I came in for a coffee and then got busy in the garden, coming in at 7pm for something to eat. I was pleased that my suggestion that the boys help in the garden was taken up... I asked if they could smash up an old pallet which they did with gusto. Excellent!

I found more interesting stuff in the pond-to-be area.... another clay pipe and something which might be ivory. It's going to be fascinating to see what else we unearth here.

Sunday 3rd January 10

A late start... it is still the holidays!

And a peaceful day... the boys had been invited to a birthday party at 2pm, so I got the sledge out of the garage after lunch and Gill walked down to Heslington with them, and she stayed there til the party finished at 6.30. Simon and Melody took their son and the three invited partygoers sledging on the hill on Low Moor near the allotments whilst Gill chatted to Natalie.

I prepared a meal for myself and Gill (couscous, onion and leek, stove-fried chunks of sweet potato, broccoli, and cranberry sauce for Gill, pesto for me) and took a Fiddlesticks booking, did some emailing and Scrabble on facebook, phoned a couple of friends and did a small amount of work outside. It was very cold outside, and lovely and warm inside, so I soon came back in!

The family came back at 7, children exhausted, Gill hungry, and all was well in the Cossham household.

Saturday 27th December 08

A good day today... boys happy on Wii, me busy in the kitchen as well as Gill making a trifle for this afternoon's visit. I went for some bread... as no 'Yesterbake' got the full-price stuff for the first time in ages. Also found a new line in the Co-op, a nice apple juice drink in a glass bottle (easy recycling!) made with English apples, so got some of that, again for Alison's party.

I washed and blanched a job-lot of grapes and put them to dry before cycling off to Chapelfields, the other side of York, for Alison's party. Gill and the boys went on two buses... I'd been there half an hour when Gill rang (she has got a mobile phone, 21st Century Girl!) and said she had got off where Alison said, so I went to collect them, just 5 minutes walk from Alison's.

The gathering was really good. Alison's sister Cheryl from Sheffield, and Cheryl's daughter Grace, who was really good with the boys. Our friends Melody and Simon with their two offspring, one of who is great friends with our two, and Simon's Mum MaryLou from London. And really good to meet up with my Green Festival buddy Randall and his wife Annie. Rand is a garden designer and has done a lovely job on Alison's garden, making a little patio and some raised beds.

Alison had requested that people didn't bring anything which none of us had heard, understood or obeyed, so there were some excellent foody bits and lots of dwinkabuls and we all had a jolly time. Including garden tours and memories of what it used to look like with a photo collection. The boys played boisterously and had a good time too. We left soon after 6, and as Gill got a taxi home she got in first. I picked up a sack of compostables from Country Fresh and a large pile of unsold mistletoe... with loads of berries which I'll try to plant into my Bramley Apples... might work!

So, a happy evening followed with not very much washing up to do, hooray!

Tuesday 9th December 08

All the others unwell today, both boys off school again and Gill's caught the bug and is achy and tired. I was reasonably OK health-wise although tired because of a late night playing on the computer and then sleeping on the futon downstairs. Our youngest slept in our bed and was sick first thing... lovely!

So a quiet day... I popped out for medicines, as our little one has a blister on his tongue and we needed more kids paracetamol.

At lunchtime our SUMA order arrived and I checked all the goodies off and paid the delivery chap and then sorted the pile into Anita's, Simon/Melody's and ours.

During the afternoon I completed the latest dry logpile outside the front door and chainsawed
and split some logs which I'd brought home a couple of days ago. Melody cycled up with her son and filled all four of their panniers, and later Anita came round in the car with Bruno, who wanted to see our stoves, and collected their big pile of stuff.

A simple tea of pasta and broccoli, boys very subdued and behaving extremely well, probably no energy for anything too enthusiastic! I sorted out a store cupboard and found some very out of date flour, rescued from I don't know where, and now a home for psocids and their arachnid predators, so I disposed of them. Don't like waste. Need better rotation, even if stuff is rescued!

Had a good long chat with Ali during the evening, on the phone. I think she has free evening calls or something...

Tuesday 1st January 08

Happy New Year everybody!

Saw in the New Year with my wife, children (yes, both of them stayed up!) and our friend Alison. We spent most of the evening with Simon and Melody and their son, and we had a really lovely evening. Alison arrived later, she's also a close friend of Melody and Simon, so it was very cosy. We had some good food and a variety of drinks, games of Jenga and picture consequences, and played some tapes (Orb, Eatstatic, Deep Purple) and all in all it was a very enjoyable night. We have an excellent view over York from our loft window, so once we'd heard it was midnight we shot up to the loft to watch the fireworks.

Alison left at 1am and we did a little bit of clearing up before collapsing at 2.

Woke needing orange juice and paracetamol at 7am!

Woke again at 9, the boys had woken Gill at 7.30.. we'd hoped that their late to bed time might cause them to sleep in later... but no joy.

At midday, our first visitor of the day arrived, a bit of a suprise because I wasn't expecting Lorna to visit, but she'd been dancing the year out with her sister in Dunnington, and popped in to say hi on her way home to the Midlands. It was lovely to see her and for my family to meet her. I showed her the garden, despite the standing water and mud, and she stayed about an hour.

We had a bit o lunch and then another suprise, the always busy Jim Semlyen, with his 8 yr old daughter and his partner's two children. He was giving his partner some space, and it was really good to catch up. Our boys played really nicely with the visitors, even though they'd only met Jim's daughter before. We fed them, even though they hadn't come for food! Spent a couple of hours chatting, it was a really good New Year visit.

I did an hour of clearing up in the cold and wet before it got dark, then came in and did an enormous wash up and food prep... had earlier picked some 'Winter Mushrooms' off a productive log (also known as Velvet Shank due to their black stem, 'enokitake' in Japan and in Latin, 'Flamulina velupites') and had these with some onion and sweetcorn with a breadroll and potato salad.