Took the boys to school, it's sports day today, and as the field is so wet, it's all happening inside.
When I got home I started to work on my column for Community Care, my fifth, this one on Ethical Holidaying. Then Giles from the Co-op rang and invited himself round to deliver the Co-op banners and some fair-trade chocolate, recycled tyres pencilcases and Co-op labelled water bottles.
He arrived within the hour, we chatted about the York Green Festival and I gave him the tour of the garden, he couldn't stay long.
Got back to doing my column, needed to do some research on carbon offsetting and various other things, like 'The Man In Seat 61' (http://www.seat61.com/) who can get you info about train travel through Europe and beyond. A short break for lunch and carried on, then went to get the kids, but our youngest went to play with a friend, so came back with just our 9 year old.
However before that, did my composting of fruit and bits from the playground bins, and visited the big bins area, which had over 20 bin bags of paper just put into the ordinary bins. I went to the office to complain, and noticed that the new Japanese Garden, being installed by a chap I know is a bit of a cowboy, whom I refer to as 'IRA Bob', as he is open about supporting the IRA, had got a pile of old tarry sleepers there, ready to go in as a border. Tar-dipped sleepers are not now reccommended for use in gardens or schools, as the tar finds it's way onto clothes and skin, and it is known to be (or contain) carcinogenic components, and they smell horrible. So I told the office about them too. I hope they aren't put in, I hope if sleepers are needed, that untreated ones are used.
So as soon as I got home I bombed into town, to get a repeat prescription and marmite, and go to Out Of This World for my compostables pickup.
Home with veggie sausages and burgers, cooked them on the woodstove whilst I cycled back to Heslington to pick up our 7 year old, who'd had a good time playing.
Tea was vegan throwouts, tomato stuff I cooked yesterday and some very old/tired maize, not sweetcorn as wasn't sweet, was starchy but filling, and ok with the tom stuff on top of it. Gill put hers in the compost it was so disgusting. Best to grow own, or buy fresh, not reclain from compost collections!
After tea I spent a while loading up a 'sit and wait' compost heap, and doing some shredding of hedge clippings. Then came in and did a word count on the Community Care article, and it was 39 over. So did some good precis work and editing, got it to 344, six under my limit. Sent it in, a day early! Then did emails, watched telly and chatted on Googletalk with K over in America. Bathwater will wait til tomorrow morning. I have a gig tomorrow, have to be shaved and non-smelly. Bed after 1am, as usual.
Showing posts with label United Cooperatives. Show all posts
Showing posts with label United Cooperatives. Show all posts
Today Gill had a physiotherapy session at the hospital, as her leg is still hurting after being bitten by a dog a long time ago. I spent all of the morning working at the computer, mostly York Green Festival stuff, an invoice to the Co-op for their sponsorship money, a booking letter to Bo Clown and various other bits and bobs. Then at midday I did some garden work... nothing in particular, just to get some fresh air and exercise.
Gill came back for lunch and then soon it was time for me to pick up the boys, but I took down the fork, some climbing french beans desperate to get planted, and some sticks for them to climb up. I used three sacks of compost made at school to prepare the soil and when I mixed this in, I removed uncomposted stuff for putting into the base of the now empty dalek for this term's fruit for schools waste, and uncompostable rubbish for the bin. Then planted the sticks and the beans and cucumber, then collected the boys and took them home.
I spent a bit more time in the back garden before going on a Freecycle cycle trip, to pick up some tomato plants... and was given a tray of sweetcorn plantlets as well. This is fantastic as my sweetcorn has not grown well, the majority has rotted off. Then through town to another Freecycler who has asked me to put ny York Rotters hat on and help sort out her compost bin. I removed it and dug a groove in the soil and resettled it, told her she was doing fine and not to worry about the flies, as they are spider food and blue tit food...
Then onto another Freecycler who has offered some pepper plants, which I was happy to pick up and I offered them some climbing beans if they're passing here in the next week or so.
Home at 8pm, Gill had made some salad and I finished off eating what the boys didn't eat.
I then planted the sweetcorn, over 30 plants, brilliant! In at 10 and watched telly with Gill for an hour before doing emails, blog and chat.
Gill came back for lunch and then soon it was time for me to pick up the boys, but I took down the fork, some climbing french beans desperate to get planted, and some sticks for them to climb up. I used three sacks of compost made at school to prepare the soil and when I mixed this in, I removed uncomposted stuff for putting into the base of the now empty dalek for this term's fruit for schools waste, and uncompostable rubbish for the bin. Then planted the sticks and the beans and cucumber, then collected the boys and took them home.
I spent a bit more time in the back garden before going on a Freecycle cycle trip, to pick up some tomato plants... and was given a tray of sweetcorn plantlets as well. This is fantastic as my sweetcorn has not grown well, the majority has rotted off. Then through town to another Freecycler who has asked me to put ny York Rotters hat on and help sort out her compost bin. I removed it and dug a groove in the soil and resettled it, told her she was doing fine and not to worry about the flies, as they are spider food and blue tit food...
Then onto another Freecycler who has offered some pepper plants, which I was happy to pick up and I offered them some climbing beans if they're passing here in the next week or so.
Home at 8pm, Gill had made some salad and I finished off eating what the boys didn't eat.
I then planted the sweetcorn, over 30 plants, brilliant! In at 10 and watched telly with Gill for an hour before doing emails, blog and chat.
Another busy day, lots of cycling and an excellent meeting in the evening.
Took the boys into school as Gill was knackered after so much dalek-making into the wee hours of the night, and the dalek would fit in my trailer but not on Gill's bike.
When I got back I finished off the funding letter for York Green Festival and then cycled to town with a Freecycled dolly cot that Pauline had asked me to pick up, visited 'Mail Boxes Etc' for photocopying and dropped off the letter with Melody who is attending the meeting that the funding decision will be made at.
Then picked up a large composting load from Out of This World and got home for a late lunch.
My eldest son was in his class assembly, about the 1960's, which is why he was in a dalek costume as Dr Who started in the 60's. This started just before 3pm and we both attended as parents are invited. There was music, a fashion show, singing, humour and some laughter when my lad's dalek-head tumbled off!
When we all got home I had to go and visit a Rotters enquirer in Haxby who had phoned the York Rotters helpline and said she had thought that her compost bin had failed whilst they were on holiday and it had overheated and 'all the worms had died'. This I had to see, and it was as I'd expected, just fine. It needed a bit of a stir, the worms were in the stuff at the base and it was quite a good compost heap, not the best I've ever seen, but certainly not the worst!
Home for 6pm and created a quick tea of cheap out of date rice and veggie sausages and vegan burger thingies, all cooked on the lovely woodstove. Wolfed this down and got finished just in time to cycle down to Space 109 for the Green Festival meeting. Tracy and Baz attended and we got a lot done, see blog http://ygf2007.blogspot.com/ for details.
Went to the Blue Bell on Fossgate after, enjoyed a pint and a half of perry, lovely, and had some good chats with Baz. Then cycled home and was greeted by Gill who had good news, a phone call telling that United Cooperatives have given York Green Festival £2000 sponsorship. WOW!
Took the boys into school as Gill was knackered after so much dalek-making into the wee hours of the night, and the dalek would fit in my trailer but not on Gill's bike.
When I got back I finished off the funding letter for York Green Festival and then cycled to town with a Freecycled dolly cot that Pauline had asked me to pick up, visited 'Mail Boxes Etc' for photocopying and dropped off the letter with Melody who is attending the meeting that the funding decision will be made at.
Then picked up a large composting load from Out of This World and got home for a late lunch.
My eldest son was in his class assembly, about the 1960's, which is why he was in a dalek costume as Dr Who started in the 60's. This started just before 3pm and we both attended as parents are invited. There was music, a fashion show, singing, humour and some laughter when my lad's dalek-head tumbled off!
When we all got home I had to go and visit a Rotters enquirer in Haxby who had phoned the York Rotters helpline and said she had thought that her compost bin had failed whilst they were on holiday and it had overheated and 'all the worms had died'. This I had to see, and it was as I'd expected, just fine. It needed a bit of a stir, the worms were in the stuff at the base and it was quite a good compost heap, not the best I've ever seen, but certainly not the worst!
Home for 6pm and created a quick tea of cheap out of date rice and veggie sausages and vegan burger thingies, all cooked on the lovely woodstove. Wolfed this down and got finished just in time to cycle down to Space 109 for the Green Festival meeting. Tracy and Baz attended and we got a lot done, see blog http://ygf2007.blogspot.com/ for details.
Went to the Blue Bell on Fossgate after, enjoyed a pint and a half of perry, lovely, and had some good chats with Baz. Then cycled home and was greeted by Gill who had good news, a phone call telling that United Cooperatives have given York Green Festival £2000 sponsorship. WOW!
