Pages

Thursday, November 5

Lockdown 2

 



Here we are, about to go into Lockdown.

How was it for you?

We lost a very dear friend to Covid, last Saturday to be exact. She had isolated herself right from the start but was admitted to hospital at the beginning of October. She documented her stay in hospital on a regular basis, being assisted by her devoted husband John. I am still coming to terms with it all, Julie was an amazing loved lady. 

Tuesday, March 17

What a state of affairs!

The virus issue is affecting us all. I haven't written here for some time but when the opportunity arose thanks to Twitter and  #WriteSomethingEveryDay I decided to write about our chicken adventure so this will explain the previous post.
It would seem I have returned.
Happy Days!

Monday, March 16

WRITING PROJECT

#WritingSomethingEveryDay

Needed another adjective for accidental!
We became accidental hen keepers in 1991. It was a result of an accidental encounter with a neighbours hen by our border cillie Tess. To cut a long story short (which I will expand upon at a later date) we found ourselves owners of 2 hens, Madge and Mavis (named after our mums) and a cockerel Maurice (named after my uncle who drove trolley buses and frequently set his trousers on fire when he dropped his fag end in his bid to control the Austin A35. The hen keeping had begun and continued for some years. Careers and business interveened and we had a break from the chickens but in 2009 it rekindled. We were looking after our neighbours hens whilst they were on holiday and as a fee we were told we could eat the eggs. Any hen owner will tell you there is nothing like fresh eggs and once tasted our memories were evoked and we wanted some of the action and the hens were bought.





On the bench from the left, Mabel, Margie, Bev, Olwyn. Next to the bench May, Behind the bench Eva. We bought them from a local farmer when we collected them it was raining heavily and as we drove home in the pick up I kept looking in the mirror and seeing six little pairs of eyes peering out of the crate which the farmer had allowed us to borrow. I thought the best thing to do was to put the crate inside their new temporary house and open the lid, ensuring the house was secure. The following morning the hens were out of the box so we opened the roof and left them to their own devices. We kept checking on them every hour or so and each time we  could see they had gained more confidence as they became more familiar with their new surroundings. It wasn't long before 2 of them found a gap in the fence and made their way to the goose hut where they spent most of the morning. Later this afternoon they had worked out they wanted to be back with the others so we caught them and gently put them back, making sure the gap was sorted.



First Egg October 2009 When I went to clean out the henhouse I discovered the very first egg the girls had delivered for us. I was not sure who was responsible but suspected it was May.



We did not eat it, though tempted, we marked it and left it in the nesting box to encourage the others to lay.
The hens were definately showing their personalities. First on the scene, front of the queue was always Little Eva followed by May. The two dominent ones were Mabel and Olwyn. When I would put them in for the night it was Mabel who would sleep in the tree if given half a chance. They both stretched their necks towards the tree when going in for the evening and I wonder if they are casing the joint for future escape plans! Margie and Bev were always the first into the henhouse and seem to be the most placid.
We were very happy with the way they are all getting along! Their favourite snack was to be the elderberries and the wind fallen apples. Seasonal gals.




Sunday, January 5

2019 at a glance January to July

It's quite a while since I wrote anything on my blog so whilst it is just January 5th I figured out it was not too late to have some organisation of the mayhem I have as my everyday life. Whilst I am organised when I am planning anything when it comes to basic stuff I have to have a list for everything. 2019 then this is what I did.....
January saw me re-elected as Secretary on our village hall committee and Jon re-elected as chair. I also started as Member Pioneer with the Co-op a role which sees me do 16 hours a month linking with local community activities and groups. I get paid for this and the 16 hours is a laugh really but nevertheless it is recognition for the vital role volunteers play in the everyday life of the incredible communities around us.


In February I was also re-elected as Chair for the Friends of Loftus library. I alongside other residents campaigned heavily for the saving of Loftus library and we were successful. Now our role is to ensure we get more footfall in the library by planning regular events and activities. 


During the first few months of 2019 we had considerable work donein the house, mainly the snug and large room. We had decided to use the space better by creating a dining room and back room instead of one large room. The building work was completed and the decorator started work on the snug ready for our new settee to be delivered in March.





April was a busy month with various community activities including circus skills workshop in half term organised by the Friends of Loftus Librery, the Klondike Cycle race, televised showcasing the various villages where the route circulated, including ours, Easter crafts throughout half term in the library and the village being recognised as Dementia friendly. The Scarecrow Festival preparations started and a radio interview with Zetland FM.


May saw the annual Bluebell Walk take place with the hall providing home made soup lunch for the walkers, more workshops in the library, workshops at our local organic gardening project, scarecrow workshops and youth club activitie linked to the Co-op Member Pioneer Project. One of the highlights was working with local artist Mackenzie Thorpe in a Dementia home where I led a scarecrow workshop.



June saw the arrival of our new motorbike, a Moto Guzzi V85TT. After a 10 year stint visiting the Isle of Man TT Races we had a change in 2018 and circumnavigated the country on our Moto Guzzi California. There's a tale to share - watch this space. 



July was all about Scarecrows with 12 villages groups taking part. A local business Sabic donated £1,000 which enabled us to transform the hall, using a series of canvases to the world of Harry Potter. In future we will be able to hire the hall for Harry Potter themed events so the £1.000 was indeed an investment. The East Cleveland Scarecrow Festival now has its own website - currently being updated but you can find it here.






August saw us visiting the many scarecrow festivals taking place throughout East Cleveland. I am always humbled to see the domino effect our first scarecrow festival has had across the borough. 











September was another busy month and an investment in Loftus by Middlesbrough Football Club Foundation. An office has been funded with plans for future community projects. I am really excited about this as I was invited onto the steering committee - watch this space. The launch event was fun! 



There was more work with Co-op Pioneer projects, helping out with various groups in the community.





October saw another first - a Mental Health Awareness Day on 10th. One of my aims as Member Pioneer is to connect with groups so basically I emailed/phoned a few of my contacts and brought them together for an event in Loftus Town Hall.






November - workshops contiued throughout the month in Loftus Library and a first for the village hall. We held a Comedy Night which in my opinion was one of the best events we have ever held in the hall. One of our neighbours is a professional actress and is setting up a new companr this.










December came round all too quickly the first being the busiest in the history of volunteering I can tell you. Christmas workshops continued.
Monday 2nd/Tuesday 3rd was a huge multi-agency clean up of local overgrown woodland. In my role as MP for Co-op (member pioneer not any MP lol) I supplied tea and coffee with cakes on the Monday for 15 people and soup for 45 on the Tuesday.







Christmas dinner for the village (28 full meals) and on 7th we had a Christmas Craft Fayre with our annual visit from Father Christmas. 13th - Friends of Loftus Library Christmas Coffee Afternoon.



All in all a very busy year. Bring on 2020!