Monday 19th December 11

A reasonable day, late start and bit of housework in the morning, but after lunch cycled in the rain to the Cemetery to attend Chris Benney's funeral.  Chris was David Taylor's partner, and although I didn't know her well, she was always friendly and jolly when she met me.

She died at the beginning of December, after seemingly going downhill for a while, and drinking more than eating, so a sad end to what by all accounts was an interesting life.  She'd been with Dave for 26 years, after two failed short-term marriages.  She had not done brilliantly at school but had discovered education later in life and got a degree and a Masters, and had done some lecturing.  She was passionate about social justice and environmental issues, as one would expect of someone partnered with a Green Party Councillor.

I have very few regrets, but one must be that on a couple of occasions I had the opportunity to get to socialise with her and didn't take it, so I never got to know her that well.  However, I had met  her several times and I liked her.

I arrived at the Cemetery just before 2pm and walked up to the Chapel in the rain, with Ginny who had arrived minutes before me.  The Chapel was already nearly full, but Dave was outside and welcoming people in.  I sat with Ginny.  Chris's coffin was encased completely in wool felt, a final humorous aside, as Chris often complained about being cold, so Dave decided that a woollen jacket would be just the job.

The celebrant was Rob Livesey, and he did the ceremony very well.  It was a Humanist, non-religious service; however, there was a lovely anthem which I heartily joined in with, William Blake's poem 'Jerusalem' set to the music of Hubert Parry.  I never join in with hymns as this would be hypocritical, but this song seemed fine.

Chris was buried in the Victorian part of the Cemetery.  There was a reception in the Chapel afterwards... I had a glass of Cava and some canapes, and a few conversations.  I didn't stay long, though.

I came home via a logpile and filled my trailer.  I got in about 4pm and settled down to my usual pattern of things.

After tea, which was a wholesome stew, I went round to see Ben and Jill... to get Ben's signature on some LETS bank account paperwork.  We chatted for an hour about all sorts of things and Ben put in an order for for some pears.

Wednesday 26th May 10

A good visit to York Cemetery today. I'd arranged a visit to John Waterston the Warden at 11am regarding the website which I'm collaborating with. I needed to take some photographs, but needed permission, and I also wanted to talk to him about some of the practices used in this cemetery.

We walked around the large Cemetery, which I know well as Gill and I have a plot booked, and about 20 years ago I planted a few trees on the new section. John told me assorted tales about life as a Cemetery Warden, and his plans, and how he deals with the public, and his employers the Trustees. All very interesting and I'll be able to say more once our website is launched.... not long now!

After the chat I took a few photographs with Gill's little camera, and I hope that my colleague in Canada likes some of them, and then the Warden allows us to use the ones that we want to use. Whilst wandering round, I chatted to a woman who was tending the grave of her parents, and I asked her if I could take a couple of photos, and I got her contact details in order to get permission to use these. Complicated stuff, but probably easier than having to purchase the rights to use images.

After the Cemetery, I called in on Alligator for three small bags of compostables, and then on into town as I needed to purchase a new journal/notebook. I'd been given a £10 WHSmith token over a year ago by one of Gill's sisters, and Gill had found it recently, so that's where I went. There were plain paper notebooks in 3 areas in the shop, and I eventually found one for £7. I queued up to pay for it, and was told that they didn't give change. Oh bother... what to do? I then spent another half hour trying to find something useful for as little over £3 as I could, and found lots of lovely books for around £20, but finally plumped for a tiny book called 101 Grow to Eat Ideas, by Gardeners' World Magazine, for £5. This checkout person told me that I could have put the £3 on a a card to spend later.... but I decided that as I'd spent half an hour trying to find the £5 book, I might as well have it. So, it took me an hour to spend a £10 token and a £2 coin. You can see I'm not very good at shopping.

Home via Country Fresh, where Richard's brother, Martin, who owns the shop, told me a woman had come in and bought all the carrier-bags of compost that I'd taken in... about 6 of them I think, and had given him £15 for the lot. Gill says this is a good price as in the Co-op, you can get an entire grow-bag for £1.15... but methinks this must be peat-based, and my stuff is really rich and needs to be mixed with other less rich soils, or top-dressed on existing growing media. So I was happy with my £15 and Martin asked me to bring in more bags. I'm delighted it's being used!

Home by about 2pm, lunch and some quiet indoor time, before doing a little bit outside.

In the evening I had a meeting at The Black Swan with my two friends from the World Naked Bike Ride.... we discussed publicity and permissions and stewards and many other things. It is all coming together well.

Home by 11pm, lit the stove, hot water for Gill to soak her feet and me to do the washing up, a pretty normal evening.

Friday 21st May 10

A late start to the day, not surprising since I was up til 3am. It is a constant question as to why I am nocturnal if left to my own devices.

But once I was up, I had a busy day... a teeny bit of woodchopping, planting out beans and squash, preparing a bit more growing medium, compost heap adding, also several phone calls, a pile of emails, letters to answer.

I went down to the Cemetery at about 2.30, to get some photos, and as I'm essentially a polite and law-abiding person, I asked in the office, where one of the team was working. She explained that taking photos in such a sensitive place as a cemetery wasn't really allowed without permission, and the Warden was back on Monday. This meant I couldn't take any today as I need to discuss it with the Warden, and explain why I want the images.

So, onto Alligator, to pick up a week's worth of compostables, and then to Richard to buy groceries and then his compostables. Unfortunately I put the bag with fruit, veg and eggs in my pannier and then as I was loading the 'resources' into the trailer the bike fell over. When I got home, I found two eggs were broken. It's not often I waste food.

Then home, in time to be there for our eldest to get let in before Gill came in with our youngest, who's school is further away.

I went to an appointment with my GP at 5pm, calling in on Oxfam for a big tub of Cafe Direct fair trade coffee. When I had my bike crash a few days ago, I continued moving forward as my bike stopped, and I banged my groin onto the handlebar stem. Then a day or two later I found a lump in the same place, which Gill thought might be a hernia or a burst blood vessel, so I went to wave it at my Doctor. Also, my lipoma on my forehead is getting bigger and about two people a week ask me "Have you bumped your head?", and at a meeting recently, I noticed one of the other participants looking at it quite a lot. That was a bit offputting and annoying. I think I know how it feels when men talk to a woman's cleavage (well, a bit). The lump wasn't a hernia and I've got to go back if it's not gone in a month. The lipoma could be removed but as it would be considered cosmetic surgery, it won't be done on the NHS and I'd have to go privately. Not sure what to do. I'll get a referral to a plastic surgeon who will tell me what could be done and how.

A bit later when at home again, I picked a lovely little bunch of Oyster mushrooms from a log which I had nearly given up on... it has some other fungi in it, but the Oyster mycelium has grown through the soil from one of the first logs I inoculated, which has (I think!) finished fruiting, but the same strain is now growing from this other log. It had 3 clumps on it, so I picked the biggest and I'll take some photos of the other clumps when they are a bit more mature.

Here's the clump I picked today:

And here's me looking happy with the crop:

I know what's for tea tomorrow!

Sunday 11th October 09

A lie in, lovely!

After lunch I cycled down to York Cemetery to go on a fungal foray with another fungus enthusiast, Findlay Cook. I asked both my boys if they'd like to come but the answers were negative, pity. Lots of people turned up, but because of the mostly dry weather, relatively few fungi. There were a few 'ink caps' and related 'fairies bonnets', a parasol, puffballs, a bracket and quite a few difficult to determine species. After the walk around, we went to the Chapel where Findlay had got a few more specimens he'd found elsewhere, including some Amanita muscaria, the Fly Agaric, and a conjoined pair of ceps.

I had a good chat with my friend Jane, who's a wheelchair user, about access to shops and what she thinks about places which could easily be more accessible but don't bother. We are both pretty pissed off with some people's attitude.

When we finished our chat, Findlay had cleared up and put all the specimens in a bag, so I asked him if he was intending to use the double Boletus... and he was happy for me to have them. So I cycled home with some Shaggy Ink Caps and the little 'penny buns' and I cleaned these up and put them into a frying pan when I got home.

When I'd had a coffee I went to sort out more composting and pulled out another few Privet hedge plants. This resulted in between 10 and 15 roots, and another Freecycler came round to pick them up.

Gill made a pizza with home-made tomato topping, and we had that with potato salad, and some tough avocados which I think need to ripen a bit.

The most mention-worthy thing during the evening was that I prepared a lot of plums, and put them in a drying tray on a plastic bag, so that they dry on the stove over the next day or three, and can then be peeled off the plastic and put on a rack to continue drying. They end up chewy and delicious, by far my favourite way of preserving fruit, and my favourite way of eating fruit too!

Saturday 8th November 08

Was lucky to have to have a bit of a lie-in, before lighting the stove so I could have a bath as I'm working today. But as the water was getting up to bath temperature, I went to put a couple of sack's worth of compostables into the Compostumbler. One sack was just watermelons, about 7 of them.... so cut them into chunks and added them with several cardboard boxes. Emptied some collected juices (from a ex-loft water-header tank under the Compostumbler) onto the leafmold pile, to help that rot down, although it seems not to need much help as it's very hot in the middle.

Then had a shave, bath and hairwash to get spruced up for my Knaresborough gig. Gill made sandwiches and ironed my costume, I loaded up my bike trailer and got to the station by 12.45 to get tickets and onto the 13.11 train. I was met in Knaresborough and driven the mile or so to the Community Centre where I was entertaining at a 9 year old's party: a one hour circus show and workshop, followed by a freeplay workshop where they could try out any of the skills I'd brought with me. The 18 boys and one girl all had a great time, as did the Dad, he said on the way back to the station. Very pleasing.

Home soon after 6pm. Gill said that Dexter had just rang, inviting me to a preview of an art show at the Chapel at the York Cemetery which is on all of tomorrow I think. He had been invited to provide some atmospheric lighting, and wanted me to come and see the collection. So I had some tea and went out again! Dexter's lighting was in fact a couple of tables of coloured glass, and clear glass containers (bottles and jars rescued from old landfill sites mainly!) containing coloured water, and lots of candles and night-lights making them look very pretty. This was just outside the doors of the Chapel, making it quite inviting. Inside it was well lit with a selection of display boards with various artworks attached. The organiser, Graeme Martin, was displaying some curious mutated toys and plastic objects mounted in frames, plus a huge (well, maybe 70cm high!) Trojan Horse made out of waste wood, surrounded by tiny plastic toy soldiers, with a weird message which I cannot remember. There were a few paintings in a 'naive' style which had some resonance with me as they were connected to carbon emissions and capitalism, and some work from my old friend Fiona who's been into Dragons ever since I've known her, over 20 years now... She does drawings of mythical monsters, mainly Oriental dragons, and also embroidered fire-screens with landscapes and dragons. I had a good chat with Catherine Scriven who makes paper and original art, especially digital photos, very creative. I also met a 'punter' called Pete, who I probably met many moons ago at the John Bull pub, knocked down a long time ago, replaced by a car showroom. Pete was telling me about his being involved in the starting of SUMA and how the current management had 'rewritten history' and conveniently forgotten how the company actually started, and his work making kites and other fabric items.

I had a lovely time but came back home by 9pm and helped put the children to bed.

Had a nice Skype chat with Ali.