I had real difficulty getting to sleep last night... must have lain awake til 4am but eventually I dropped off. Next thing I knew was Gilly awakening me at 10.30. Breakfast and a bit of housework, including preparing a home-grown Chinese Yam for tonight's meal. It needed as many of the hair-like roots removing as possible, which I did by scraping it with a knife in a stream of water, and then I sliced it into rounds about a centimetre thick, for shallow frying on the woodstove.
I didn't get dressed til after lunch, and then went out to deal with last year's brambles and loganberries; the fruited canes need cutting back and then feeding through the shredder to make a woody layer in the latest compost heap.
As it was getting dark I cycled down to Country Fresh and bought mushrooms and bananas, and picked up 4 sacks full of compostable stuff. On the way back I had another root around in the skip, and found a red plastic tray, a glass chopping board, an unopened in-date box of Kellogs bran flakes, a cycle helmet in its box and an orange reflective jacket with Royal Mail on the back. Also a load of wine bottles which I brought back for my kerbside recycling box. There were loads of bundles of leaflets and flyers too, presumably meant for delivering, but I had no space for them. The curtain twitching neighbour did a lot of twitching. I waved at her.
As I cycled away, the twitcher's husband overtook me in his car and was aggressive towards me, accusing me of making an obscene gesture to his wife. I'm glad he didn't bop me one... he certainly had enough testosterone flying around. Some people obviously think skip-raiding is wrong.
Anyway, I was so pissed off with this show of stupidity that a bit later, when Gill asked me to go and buy soya milk, I got that and revisited the skip, and got all the leaflets and flyers and completely filled my trailer with them... all for recycling not landfill. I might have only taken 30 or 40kgs worth out of a one tonne skip, but in my book, every bit counts. I don't know if the nosey neighbours saw me or not, and I don't really care.
Tea was good; Gill did a rice stir fry thing, topped with Chinese Yam 'chips' and it was very satisfying.
Enjoyed a quiet evening with Gill once the boys had settled, and we watched a bit of 'Celebrity Big Brother' which we're half-watching, and enjoyed it when Davina went into the house.
I did quite a bit of research on the computer tonight, about a new business opportunity I'm working on. Exciting!
Showing posts with label composting bramble stems. Show all posts
Showing posts with label composting bramble stems. Show all posts
A really good day in any ways, starting with a not too early start, breakfast and back to bed for an hour or less. Because of an outbreak of 'What do I do now'-ness, we rang round various friends but no-one was in or available, so there was a bit of frustration and disruptive behaviour, but we got through it like any parent has to.
I had a very productive day, including visiting the Co-op and stocking up on cereals, visiting Country Fresh and buying spuds and a cauliflower, and bringing back about 5 boxes of compostables, coming back via Freshways and collecting another 2 sacks of compostable stuff plus about 20 loaves which I'll dry next to the stove until crisp and fuel-like, re-built a large pallet bin and lined it with chicken wire salvaged from the skip in Tang Hall last week, cut down yet more brambles, shredded them and put layers of this with layers of the fruit/veg 'resources' in the new pallet bin, and did some weeding in the raspberry area, prior to top dressing with compost. I also did a bit more riddling of the contents of a dalek bin, which so far has resulted in 4 sacks of compost/loam mix, which will form the basis of this year's tomato/cucumber crop. At one stage during the day I persuaded one of the children to actually help in the garden; he pruned a load of ivy which was taking over the fernery. Good work!
This evening I did a load of washing up and more fruit for drying, another load of apples and pears. At about 11pm, Gill told me she'd got a DVD out when she had taken back an old one to Blockbusters... she'd got 'WALL.E' out, as she and the kids had seen it at City Screen in town and she thought I must see it, as I'd like the theme of recycling... Well I have kinda half watched it and yes, I do like it, to some extent. I'm not particularly into animation of the kiddie kind but I'm glad that I at least know what it's about!
Spent some time exploring the new improved vyouz network, which include vskips, the virtual skip site where things can be offered and requested, to stop them going to landfill, and bornrecycling, which enables people to 'give away, swap, sell or request all manner of baby items from cots and cribs to bottles and bibs'... what an excellent idea! I posted a couple of offers on vskips: compost, and paper sacks. The vyouz network is worth exploring as it has more than just these websites.
So, a busy day! My hands hurt with blackberry prickles and fruit juices...
I had a very productive day, including visiting the Co-op and stocking up on cereals, visiting Country Fresh and buying spuds and a cauliflower, and bringing back about 5 boxes of compostables, coming back via Freshways and collecting another 2 sacks of compostable stuff plus about 20 loaves which I'll dry next to the stove until crisp and fuel-like, re-built a large pallet bin and lined it with chicken wire salvaged from the skip in Tang Hall last week, cut down yet more brambles, shredded them and put layers of this with layers of the fruit/veg 'resources' in the new pallet bin, and did some weeding in the raspberry area, prior to top dressing with compost. I also did a bit more riddling of the contents of a dalek bin, which so far has resulted in 4 sacks of compost/loam mix, which will form the basis of this year's tomato/cucumber crop. At one stage during the day I persuaded one of the children to actually help in the garden; he pruned a load of ivy which was taking over the fernery. Good work!
This evening I did a load of washing up and more fruit for drying, another load of apples and pears. At about 11pm, Gill told me she'd got a DVD out when she had taken back an old one to Blockbusters... she'd got 'WALL.E' out, as she and the kids had seen it at City Screen in town and she thought I must see it, as I'd like the theme of recycling... Well I have kinda half watched it and yes, I do like it, to some extent. I'm not particularly into animation of the kiddie kind but I'm glad that I at least know what it's about!
Spent some time exploring the new improved vyouz network, which include vskips, the virtual skip site where things can be offered and requested, to stop them going to landfill, and bornrecycling, which enables people to 'give away, swap, sell or request all manner of baby items from cots and cribs to bottles and bibs'... what an excellent idea! I posted a couple of offers on vskips: compost, and paper sacks. The vyouz network is worth exploring as it has more than just these websites.
So, a busy day! My hands hurt with blackberry prickles and fruit juices...
Woke late and didn't feel that comfortable with such a lot of cleaning activity going on so I went outside to take cardboard down to the current compost heap, then cycled to Hazel Court to take drinks cartons, batteries, and some scrap iron for recycling. On the way out I was gently accosted by one of the operatives who explained that bicycles were not allowed up to the area where cars go, and that I should leave my stuff down at the pedestrians area. However, this area does not cater for drinks cartons or scrap metal, so I told him that I intended to continue using the normal area. There does not seem to be any sensible reason why cyclists should be singled out as not allowed... as when drivers get out of their cars to take stuff to different receptacles, they too become pedestrians. I will send in my application for a permit to use my trailer and see what happens. In the meantime, every now and then, I'll take in my tetrapaks for recycling, and use the correct 'bring bank'. Grrrr.. I hate stupid regulations!
Anyway, came back feeling refreshed and invigorated, having done my recycling and had a good-natured discussion where I stated my case clearly and politely.
Or kitchen was immaculate! Thank you Linda!!
Had lunch, said goodbye to Linda and got the stove going whilst listening to Gardeners Question Time on the radio and doing emails. Then I went and did some more tidying in the garden... mainly cutting back last year's blackberries and putting the chopped bits on the compost.
Listened to a little bit of York's best radio station, Equinox 107, which broadcasts on Sunday afternoons. Also popped down to Country Fresh to pick up a bag of resources, and cycled it down to put most of it on the new compost heap.
Tea was mainly reheated stuff from the previous day, but also broccoli and butternut squash. Lovely as usual. Gill is feeling much better and is up and about, keeping active and is eating well.
A fairly quiet evening, warm and cosy, watched an amusing documentary on the work of Health and Safety Inspectors, called 'The Fun Police'. Tried to do some writing. (other than this!)
Anyway, came back feeling refreshed and invigorated, having done my recycling and had a good-natured discussion where I stated my case clearly and politely.
Or kitchen was immaculate! Thank you Linda!!
Had lunch, said goodbye to Linda and got the stove going whilst listening to Gardeners Question Time on the radio and doing emails. Then I went and did some more tidying in the garden... mainly cutting back last year's blackberries and putting the chopped bits on the compost.
Listened to a little bit of York's best radio station, Equinox 107, which broadcasts on Sunday afternoons. Also popped down to Country Fresh to pick up a bag of resources, and cycled it down to put most of it on the new compost heap.
Tea was mainly reheated stuff from the previous day, but also broccoli and butternut squash. Lovely as usual. Gill is feeling much better and is up and about, keeping active and is eating well.
A fairly quiet evening, warm and cosy, watched an amusing documentary on the work of Health and Safety Inspectors, called 'The Fun Police'. Tried to do some writing. (other than this!)
I took the boys into school as Gill is collecting them this afternoon, as I plan to be at the allotment then. Gill went into town once I'd got back, and I got out my logsplitter and split some of the huge rounds which came from the Woodlands treefelling. These slices of tree trunk, up to 60cm diameter, were extremely tough, this wood does not want to split lengthways as easily as some. A couple of the rounds just wouldn't split, even with the hydraulic machine. I tried to do one and it eventually split on the last attempt, and the huge circle of wood, perhaps 30+kg, toppled off the splitter and fell on my hip, which hurt a lot just for a few minutes. However managed to split quite a lot up.
At 11ish I came in for a rest and a cuppa, and downloaded emails. Whenever I put the computer on, I get a pop-up message from Googlemail inviting me to download the new version of Googletalk. I have done this on several occasions, and the message still keeps on popping up. I emailed Google about this and got a reply today, telling me what to do. So I spent some time playing with the computer, trying to sort stuff out, and ended up doing a complete scan which revealed some website tracking programs, which I deleted. I hope the jiggering around with assorted buttons might have sorted the problem. Time will tell.
I had lunch whilst the computer was doing it's thing, and Gill came back from her trip into town, and then the SUMA lorry came with our order... and the stuff for the three other people on our Food Co-op. I unloaded and Gill did the paperwork. Jolly banter with the lorry driver.
Then I went to the lottie... I've had a letter from the allotment management saying mine is untidy and needs to be tidied up or it will be taken away from me.... so I spent several hours cutting back brambles into tiny chunks 1cm to 10 cm long, for composting. Got three dustbins full of these small lengths of blackberry plant, and half a dustbin of dug-up dandylions or other rosetted long-rooted weed. A more putrescible layer between the woody layers of bramble stalk. Continued here til dark, then came back home where the boys were in a good mood and wanted to have a rough and tumble. Good fun, no tears.
Tea was delicious... carrot soup and Gill's fantastic quiche. Played with the boys, we did a 'picture consequences' and then a 'story consequences' which was excellent.
At 11ish I came in for a rest and a cuppa, and downloaded emails. Whenever I put the computer on, I get a pop-up message from Googlemail inviting me to download the new version of Googletalk. I have done this on several occasions, and the message still keeps on popping up. I emailed Google about this and got a reply today, telling me what to do. So I spent some time playing with the computer, trying to sort stuff out, and ended up doing a complete scan which revealed some website tracking programs, which I deleted. I hope the jiggering around with assorted buttons might have sorted the problem. Time will tell.
I had lunch whilst the computer was doing it's thing, and Gill came back from her trip into town, and then the SUMA lorry came with our order... and the stuff for the three other people on our Food Co-op. I unloaded and Gill did the paperwork. Jolly banter with the lorry driver.
Then I went to the lottie... I've had a letter from the allotment management saying mine is untidy and needs to be tidied up or it will be taken away from me.... so I spent several hours cutting back brambles into tiny chunks 1cm to 10 cm long, for composting. Got three dustbins full of these small lengths of blackberry plant, and half a dustbin of dug-up dandylions or other rosetted long-rooted weed. A more putrescible layer between the woody layers of bramble stalk. Continued here til dark, then came back home where the boys were in a good mood and wanted to have a rough and tumble. Good fun, no tears.
Tea was delicious... carrot soup and Gill's fantastic quiche. Played with the boys, we did a 'picture consequences' and then a 'story consequences' which was excellent.
