Had quite a few things I had to do today, but it was a goody. I got up fairly early and after my usual bowl of cereal and soya milk, loaded up my bike trailer with a very large number of plastic stacking fruit boxes. I also put some on my pannier rack and some on my handlebars... it looked great, and wasn't heavy so was no bother to steer or stay upright.
But I needed to get to Millets as early as possible, to check out a tent which Gill had spotted, which would solve our summer holiday problem for next summer. This summer's short camping excursion proved that our existing tent is too small for me and both boys, let alone the whole family! But as the boys enjoyed camping, we have tent-ative plans for next summer and Gill's been looking out for a four-person tent, and in Millets she found a half price Berghaus Cuillin 4.
So I headed down there first and found it hadn't sold, so I reserved it and said I'd be back later with some money. Then I cycled out to Scarcroft Road to where Dave Broughton, of Edible York and Abundance fame lives, and delivered the crates. I hope I put them into the right back yard, as no-one was in!
I then went to Priory Street but the meeting I'd been invited to was at midday and I'd got there at 11, so i parked my bike and walked into town, went to the cash machine and then to Millets, and came out with the really heavy tent bag on wheels... and went back to CVS and then the Green Streets meeting started slowly coming together.
This project started about a year ago, with the Stockholm Environment Institute and the City of York Council working to develop a way to spread the message of carbon reduction and greener living in certain streets and neighbourhoods. They chose a few areas and found some local champions to carry the project forward. One group of people contacted them and asked to be involved. I was aware what was going on but wasn't involved. In January 2010 the project started with a baseline carbon calculation, and then a series of easy interventions and approaches followed, until August when the second calculation of the carbon footprint was made. One team only managed a 1.7% decrease, whereas the best had a 17% reduction. The average was 11%. One of the confounding factors was the very cold weather which meant increased home heating in the early part of the experiment.
So this afternoon, it was a review of the project, awards and some discussion about the way forward. Quite a few of my friends were there, and I'd been invited as I'd expressed an interest in some of the proposed follow-up work. I also brought home all of the paper plates and some of the thrown away food for composting.
However, I popped into the Brigantes to meet Andy and Dave, our two Green Councillors, to look at the election leaflet which is being put together for the By Election on 14th October in my Ward. We made quite a few edits. I then cycled home, the trailer completely filled with the new ginormous tent, but still picked up one sack of compostables at Country Fresh and half a bag at Freshways.
Had a very busy evening and was unable to complete my blog before I got too sleepy, due to lots of my friends chatting with me on the computer.
Showing posts with label Abundance York. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Abundance York. Show all posts
A kind of busy but nothingy day.... although lovely to be doing things in the garden and I did quite a bit of compost heap management including taking a very heavy solid pallet down the garden which will serve as a base for a Komp 700 hexagonal compost bin I've got, which I've recently emptied and removed the previous base, as it had been breached by a rodent and I don't welcome that.
I did some filling of a medium sized Compostumbler which is working very well... not the 14 days waste to compost as the company deceitfully boasts, but it is quick, and allows the wet stuff to rot down quickly and get hot before it is taken out after a month and allowed to sit and finish off for a year or two. The value of these tumblers is that the initial decomposition is very rapid indeed, reducing the bulk and preventing the problem of stuff getting compacted and anaerobic... in quickly built 'sit and wait' heaps, I occasionally find mummified oranges etc in layers where they have been compressed and the acidity has reduced the bacterial activity. Composting things in a tumbler first avoids this problem, as the pre-tumbled material rots very well once it has been placed in a maturation bay or dalek.
In the evening I cycled down to Bikerescue as I want to talk to Bernie about something, but she wasn't there so I left a message. Then I went on to the Millennium Bridge to meet up with Dave Broughton and others from Abundance, an 'al fresco' meeting. I was a bit early and spent a few minutes picking up litter left by picnickers or end of term revellers. Candy and Anna B turned up, and then Andy D'Agorne, and about half a dozen other people dropped by and chatted which was great! Enjoyed this social a lot.
Cycled home through Walmgate Stray and the University.
I did some filling of a medium sized Compostumbler which is working very well... not the 14 days waste to compost as the company deceitfully boasts, but it is quick, and allows the wet stuff to rot down quickly and get hot before it is taken out after a month and allowed to sit and finish off for a year or two. The value of these tumblers is that the initial decomposition is very rapid indeed, reducing the bulk and preventing the problem of stuff getting compacted and anaerobic... in quickly built 'sit and wait' heaps, I occasionally find mummified oranges etc in layers where they have been compressed and the acidity has reduced the bacterial activity. Composting things in a tumbler first avoids this problem, as the pre-tumbled material rots very well once it has been placed in a maturation bay or dalek.
In the evening I cycled down to Bikerescue as I want to talk to Bernie about something, but she wasn't there so I left a message. Then I went on to the Millennium Bridge to meet up with Dave Broughton and others from Abundance, an 'al fresco' meeting. I was a bit early and spent a few minutes picking up litter left by picnickers or end of term revellers. Candy and Anna B turned up, and then Andy D'Agorne, and about half a dozen other people dropped by and chatted which was great! Enjoyed this social a lot.
Cycled home through Walmgate Stray and the University.
A good day, as spent some time with Gill in the morning and some gardening in the afternoon, before I went to school and brought our youngest home. I'm pleased that I now have an area nearly clear for the bee hives, and have spoken to both neighbours about it.
I had an early tea and at 6.15 headed quickly over to the Millennium Bridge to meet up with Guy and other Abundance/Transition types, to go on a cycle foraging expedition to Askham Bog.
Guy is very knowledgeable about edible plants and we kept on stopping to see something.
We found: lime tree leaves, garlic mustard, cleavers/sticky willy/goosegrass, Indian or Hymalayan balsam (sometimes known as 'policeman's helmet' because of the shape of the flowers), elder, birch (for the sap), oak (young acorns can be a coffee substitute), rose (hips in the autumn), nettles, burdock, horseradish, marsh thistle, hazel, bog myrtle, honeysuckle, fat hen, Japanese knotweed and sloes. Also the following inedible plants: royal fern, orchid, guelder rose, alder.
For me, it was a real treat to be taken to Askham Bog, as I'd never been there and it is a lovely place. I shall certainly revisit.
On the way back I showed a new friend, Clare (I think!) part of the Solar System sculpture trail and got back at about 9pm, with some sticks in the trailer.
I had an early tea and at 6.15 headed quickly over to the Millennium Bridge to meet up with Guy and other Abundance/Transition types, to go on a cycle foraging expedition to Askham Bog.
Guy is very knowledgeable about edible plants and we kept on stopping to see something.
We found: lime tree leaves, garlic mustard, cleavers/sticky willy/goosegrass, Indian or Hymalayan balsam (sometimes known as 'policeman's helmet' because of the shape of the flowers), elder, birch (for the sap), oak (young acorns can be a coffee substitute), rose (hips in the autumn), nettles, burdock, horseradish, marsh thistle, hazel, bog myrtle, honeysuckle, fat hen, Japanese knotweed and sloes. Also the following inedible plants: royal fern, orchid, guelder rose, alder.
For me, it was a real treat to be taken to Askham Bog, as I'd never been there and it is a lovely place. I shall certainly revisit.
On the way back I showed a new friend, Clare (I think!) part of the Solar System sculpture trail and got back at about 9pm, with some sticks in the trailer.
Gill woke me just before 10 by telling me it was midday.... and then said 'April Fool'. She came to bed and then I got up and had breakfast. I went up just before midday and said, right I'm going to go and get our youngest now (fooling her that it was 3pm!) and we had another good laugh.
I spent most of the morning enjoying April Fool jokes posted on facebook... there were loads. I easily spotted the Garden Organic peas with faces one, the student living in the library one, the excellent 'Google translate for animals'(love the videos with this one!), making string out of Runner Beans, and my favourite, the AA Jet Pack one, which also has very well done videos. However, the April Fool by the Council for British Archeology had me thinking for a few minutes and therefore was the best, as it did have me fooled for a short time. I enjoyed them all. One of my friends posted something about Reiki, and I thought that was one too....
I enjoyed Anita Sancha's animation for The Big Green Idea, and the new campaign from Yorkshire Water, Edna and Mary 'Ow Much? . I also had a phone conversation with someone from this campaign, about all the ways I reduce my water use, and I said I would do something on this blog to explain what I do. I'll do that soon, in the 'Pages' section, top right.
Anyway, I came off the computer and got on with helping Gill move something heavy and then I did some stuff outside, and then at 3 I did actually go down to school to pick up our youngest.
I was extremely happy to see that Lord Deramore's School have finally bitten the bullet and got some compost bins installed!!!! Only 6 years or so after I suggested it might be a good idea, and tried to encourage them to do it!!!! The volunteer parent who was putting something into one of them didn't really welcome my offer of a suggestion that it would be better if the bin wasn't balanced on top of the soil surface, and my offering to put it down slightly into the soil, by digging a little channel for the 'foot' to sit in. This makes it slightly more rat resistant and also more stable. I guess that I'll just have to leave them to find out, by trial and error. Or I might indulge in some 'guerrilla composting' and bed the bins down for them. I did go back to my old ways and rescued some fruit bits and bobs from the bins, and put a load into the new compost bin... I just cannot help myself. The two bins there will be joined by one more, but this won't be enough for the 8kg/day the school produces. Also, they are positioned in a North-facing area, and will never get any direct sunlight, so decomposition will be slower than when mine were installed in full sun. But, again, they'll learn, I'm sure. They might even ask me what my advice is... I wonder? I doubt it somehow, I'm pretty sure they are completely pissed off with me.
I cycled my little one home and did a bit more outside work, before cycling down to La Tasca for 5.30pm, to meet Ali, her daughter and PA, who have spent the day in York, and invited me to share a meal with them. It was lovely... lots of different Tapas, and I had a bottle of cider. I did a little errand after the meal; cycled round to the station and collected Ali's suitcase from left luggage, and took it to her hotel room. I was really pleased to see my friends' daughter Emily Rhodes Bernays working there... I last spoke to her when she was a little girl and was one of the biggest Professor Fiddlesticks fans. She is now a beautiful young confident woman... what a difference 10 years makes!
And back to La Tasca, and Ali came with me to the Black Swan for a meeting of York Abundance, which is an offshoot of Edible York, which itself formed following a York In Transition 'Food Open Space' event. This was only the second meeting of Abundance. The idea is to find existing fruit trees and to ensure that any spare fruit is put to good use, and goes to local people who need it most. It was a fairly unstructured meeting but very productive. An abundance of bright ideas. Ali and I both contributed positively, and I managed not to volunteer, well done John.
I went back to Ali's hotel with her and spent a bit of time talking before cycling back home, where Gill was enjoying Sliding Doors on the TV. She'd had a good evening too.
I spent most of the morning enjoying April Fool jokes posted on facebook... there were loads. I easily spotted the Garden Organic peas with faces one, the student living in the library one, the excellent 'Google translate for animals'(love the videos with this one!), making string out of Runner Beans, and my favourite, the AA Jet Pack one, which also has very well done videos. However, the April Fool by the Council for British Archeology had me thinking for a few minutes and therefore was the best, as it did have me fooled for a short time. I enjoyed them all. One of my friends posted something about Reiki, and I thought that was one too....
I enjoyed Anita Sancha's animation for The Big Green Idea, and the new campaign from Yorkshire Water, Edna and Mary 'Ow Much? . I also had a phone conversation with someone from this campaign, about all the ways I reduce my water use, and I said I would do something on this blog to explain what I do. I'll do that soon, in the 'Pages' section, top right.
Anyway, I came off the computer and got on with helping Gill move something heavy and then I did some stuff outside, and then at 3 I did actually go down to school to pick up our youngest.
I was extremely happy to see that Lord Deramore's School have finally bitten the bullet and got some compost bins installed!!!! Only 6 years or so after I suggested it might be a good idea, and tried to encourage them to do it!!!! The volunteer parent who was putting something into one of them didn't really welcome my offer of a suggestion that it would be better if the bin wasn't balanced on top of the soil surface, and my offering to put it down slightly into the soil, by digging a little channel for the 'foot' to sit in. This makes it slightly more rat resistant and also more stable. I guess that I'll just have to leave them to find out, by trial and error. Or I might indulge in some 'guerrilla composting' and bed the bins down for them. I did go back to my old ways and rescued some fruit bits and bobs from the bins, and put a load into the new compost bin... I just cannot help myself. The two bins there will be joined by one more, but this won't be enough for the 8kg/day the school produces. Also, they are positioned in a North-facing area, and will never get any direct sunlight, so decomposition will be slower than when mine were installed in full sun. But, again, they'll learn, I'm sure. They might even ask me what my advice is... I wonder? I doubt it somehow, I'm pretty sure they are completely pissed off with me.
I cycled my little one home and did a bit more outside work, before cycling down to La Tasca for 5.30pm, to meet Ali, her daughter and PA, who have spent the day in York, and invited me to share a meal with them. It was lovely... lots of different Tapas, and I had a bottle of cider. I did a little errand after the meal; cycled round to the station and collected Ali's suitcase from left luggage, and took it to her hotel room. I was really pleased to see my friends' daughter Emily Rhodes Bernays working there... I last spoke to her when she was a little girl and was one of the biggest Professor Fiddlesticks fans. She is now a beautiful young confident woman... what a difference 10 years makes!
And back to La Tasca, and Ali came with me to the Black Swan for a meeting of York Abundance, which is an offshoot of Edible York, which itself formed following a York In Transition 'Food Open Space' event. This was only the second meeting of Abundance. The idea is to find existing fruit trees and to ensure that any spare fruit is put to good use, and goes to local people who need it most. It was a fairly unstructured meeting but very productive. An abundance of bright ideas. Ali and I both contributed positively, and I managed not to volunteer, well done John.
I went back to Ali's hotel with her and spent a bit of time talking before cycling back home, where Gill was enjoying Sliding Doors on the TV. She'd had a good evening too.
