Tuesday 6th September 11

Two appointments today.... working for David from 1.30 til 3.30, and an Environment Forum meeting at 4pm.

I stayed in during the morning whilst Gill took our eldest for his first day at The Stables, and quite early, the Suma order arrived. I checked it in and everything apart from Maria's stuff was there.

I took David to Asda, which has replaced Netto.  He bought a select few items and we went back home.

I finished there at 3.30 and went to the library, sorry, 'Explore' and participated in the Environment Forum meeting which was interesting. I shot off at 6pm as I thought I might have a Planning Panel meeting... but when I got to Tang Hall Library, there was no-one else there, so I concluded that I'd made a mistake.

So, home and collapse, quite glad I hadn't got more work to do (apart from drying pears!)

Tuesday 21st June 11 Summer Solstice

Well up earlier than I wanted but I needed to do assorted paperwork/admin stuff.  I cycled to Nunnery Lane to deliver the Election Expenses forms to Andy Chase and on the way back got a cheque out to pay for some advertising, and then headed for home to try to catch the Suma delivery.

This happened and it took quite a while to check it off and sort it out, as there were 5 other contributors to the order.  There's invariably a mistake, or something missing, or something which needs sorting.

Linda came to pick up her couple of items, and I got one item ready to take into school.... I also tied our youngest's bike onto my trailer to take to school, so he could easily get back home.  It rained heavily on the way down there, so I got soaked.  Luckily, on the way back it remained dry.

Then I got ready to go to Sheffield.

I had decided to meet my friend Lisa there, as she's moved from London to Newark, and we wanted to go to a talk in the Showroom Cinema Cafe called Psychology in the Pub.

Tuesday 15th March 11

A good day, busy busy busy....

I wondered if I was going to go to Edwina's but I got a message first thing saying she'd be at home tomorrow, not today, so that meant I had a free day... more or less! 

Gill took our youngest into school by bike, and I waited in for the Suma order to be delivered.  I lit the stove so our eldest could have a bath and hair cut.  I washed up and stacked some wood, visited Jamie and collected another 4 sacks of smoke-free 'Homefire' coal which he wanted me to have.  I initially refused, when he asked about the logpile, saying that I didn't burn coal, so he said he'd take it down to the boat moorings and see if he could sell it there.  But when I saw him yesterday, he asked me if I had a fundamental objection to using coal, and I ummed and erred... he said that he really didn't want to drive it down to the moorings to see if he could flog it, and he'd much rather I had it, 10 sacks for £10.  Well at that price, and with that story, I couldn't refuse.  I do have one sack already, which was rescued from a skip several years ago, and I just haven't got round to using it.  Anyway, this long-lasting coal will supplement the wood, and I'll use it when it's very cold, and to keep the stove going overnight (which I can do with wood anyway!).

I helped do the lugging around of the Suma delivery.  Later, Marian came to pick up her single item, and look at my usable wood collection in the garage; she picked 2 pieces which she'll be able to use.

After lunch I went down to the Steiner School with pliers, wire, screws, Maurice's rawplugs and masonry drills, and some paperwork for the school, and using his battery-driven drill, I made 2 holes in the wall behind where the new compost bin is, to attach it to the wall, so that if/when a Steinery child climbs on the pallets, they don't come away from the wall and fall on the kid.  I hope!  I sorted a bit of roughage into the base prior to dealing with the assorted dalek bins which need wire netting putting underneath... so yes, their contents will be put in layers in the new bin, with the very woody material overflowing from the school's New Zealand bins.

At 3.30 I cycled home with our youngest. We passed a ripe skip and I asked the builder about the piles of wood in it; he was happy for me to have that, so I went back and filled up my trailer twice with lots of planks and dismantled pallets.

I had an early tea, rice-based, and got ready for work.  I had a booking for St Chad's Scouts group from 7.15 til 9pm.  I did a quick show and then there was 50 minutes for free-play workshops.  This all went well.  I'll be doing another session either in a week or 3 weeks, depending on what Tracey Smith comes back to me with about a possible gig next week.

So a good day.... apart from the disturbing news of mass homelessness, thousands killed and now the radiation leaks in Japan.  Very sad, shocking.

Tuesday 14th December 10

The day started a bit rapidly because Gill had a GP appointment at 9.40 and woke me up at 9.20 as I'd offered to walk round with her, as it was slippery and I really didn't want her to fall over. So my usual routine of having breakfast first thing was replaced by a slow walk round to Tang Hall Lane, using the only ice-free part of Lilac Avenue, the car tyre tracks.  So Gill was happy to have me with her, and I pocketed her presrciption for painkillers and went to get those later.

We got home and I sat down to enjoy breakfast... and the Suma lorry came, so I put muesli on hold and helped unload our order... peanut butter, muesli base, soya milk, bouillon, rice, goats cheese, some other bits and bobs, plus things for Sue and Melody.

So then it was time to do some log stacking, as we're going through loads at the moment and I really need to get a load stacked by the front door to prepare for the forthcoming cold snap.  I also tidied up the Wisteria leaves which had been knocked off by the snow, and some other mess.  I started splitting the softwood rounds I picked up over the weekend. 

Sue showed up sometime between 2 and 3 to pick up her rye bread and tinned lentil soup, and I took the 2 boxes of rye bread over to her van.  I'd noticed a woman rooting through a skip of household goods in a neighbour's driveway, and as I walked back to the house, I spoke to her and we chatted.  She'd seen the skip last night and put a note through the door asking if she could rummage through.  She'd got a phone call with a yes, so had come down to find clothes and other bits.  She had a huge suitcase plus at least 2 rucksacks, a large plastic carrier bag and a child's scooter. 

About 10 minutes later, as I was splitting rounds with my axe, she struggled past and I wished her well.  Five minutes later, I was setting out on my bike to go and get Gill's prescription, and she was outside our neighbour's, still trying to manage her heavy load.  So I offered to help her move her stuff, it wasn't far, just up Osbaldwick Lane, and we had a good natter whilst going there.  Turns out she was at the Pumpkin evening and Apple Day and I'd taught her daughter to juggle...

I got the prescription and came back and didn't do any more outside as it was now dark. 

Gill had made leek and potato soup, and I had mine with two slices of bread.

Then at 6.15 I set out on the bike again to go to Tang Hall Library for the Hull Road Ward Planning Panel, and we had a very interesting and quite long meeting, lasting over an hour.  So it was nearly 8pm when I got back.  I watched a programme about equations with our eldest at 9pm, and had a fairly quiet evening.