I’ve been up for a few hours, in spite of going to bed late. When I’m insomniac at both ends there must be something happening. Today I’m hoping to do my first 10 K run without any walk breaks. That’s a total of 6 miles and will take me over an hour. Not bad for someone who less than 3 years ago could run for about 20 seconds! Besides feeling tired I’ve got aches all over, but hopefully it’s just nerves! I have done 5 miles before of course, but it was tough, and it is going to be a struggle to run that extra mile. I’m praying it doesn’t get too hot, or I might end up with heat stroke.
The event is the Barts and the London Charity 10 K, in Victoria Park. Should anyone want to join me entry on the day is available, with the race itself starting at 11.30 am, costing £10/12 depending on affiliation. There are also shorter fun runs, starting earlier. Registration is open from 9 am, at Molesworth Gate towards the South East end of the park.
Meanwhile some local private gardens are being opened to the public to raise money for charity. In the Albion Square and London Fields area 5 gardens are open. Price is £5 or free for kids.
There are also a couple of gardens open near De Beauvoir Square for £3.50.
Details can be found at http://www.ngs.org.uk/ by using the Garden Finder (sorry, direct link doesn’t work). Times for all these gardens are between 2 and 5.30 pm. I think I may be relaxing in a bath!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Vibrating Tomatoes and Pussy Pictures
It’s been an unusual week. For a start I’ve run my first ever 5 miles without stopping to walk! Might not be much to a lot of people, but it’s a long way from being able to just about manage 20 seconds to keeping going for 1 hour 6 minutes. And yes, many people would consider that slow… I have been known to do it a little faster with walk breaks! This is in the run up to my 10k: I’m hoping to do the Barts and the London 10K in Victoria Park on 15th June. I’ve actually missed entering via post, but should be able to enter on the day. Fingers crossed! And you can still sponsor me…
Meanwhile, the second bed in ‘my’ garden is still not ready, which means that some plants are still at home. And the tomatoes like it on my windowsill thank you very much, so they are now tied up, re-potted, and staying there. They are even flowering. Which I realised could be a problem… Most plants are pollinated by the wind, or insects, neither of which are available on my closed windowsill. So I looked into doing it myself. It turns out that tomatoes are not your average plant when it comes to pollinating! Apparently us humans have, without even trying, been selecting for self pollination, having taken tomatoes away from their favourite South American bumble bee. A light breeze or a gentle shake of the plants may be all that’s needed. But the more seeds per fruit, the better the shape and size. So if I want nice juicy round tomatoes I have to do something about it.
Tomatoes are buzz pollinators. When their favourite bee comes around, they hold them vertically, and buzz to encourage the release of pollen. So, if you want to pollinate tomatoes, you have to get buzzing. Apparently they used to have people going round greenhouses with vibrators… And my plants are in my window where all my neighbours can see… Actually I’m making use of a massager that my sister gave me. I don’t think it looks rude… Though I guess anyone looking up will wonder what the heck I’m doing rubbing my plants with what looks like some ‘alien machine’ prop off a SF show.
Meanwhile I’m starting a new job soon, as a cat sitter (and maybe occasional dog walker). This involves getting a picture for the website of me, with cat. So I spent about half an hour practically lying on Lizzie, setting camera on delay, holding it out in front of us, pressing the button, waiting for the flash… then, it being low on charge, it would do a tortoise into shell act and I’d have to turn it off and on, check the pic, set it up again… I must have managed about 20 goes, including lots out of focus, only showing one of us, or a nice close up of Lizzie’s chin… Finally I had something, and the batteries weren’t going to stand it anymore. Lizzie seemed to find the whole thing vaguely interesting, enough that she couldn’t be bothered removing herself anyway!
Of course the boss now wants one without cat for the dog walking website. I’m using batteries all over this week. Got to go find some spares…
.
Meanwhile, the second bed in ‘my’ garden is still not ready, which means that some plants are still at home. And the tomatoes like it on my windowsill thank you very much, so they are now tied up, re-potted, and staying there. They are even flowering. Which I realised could be a problem… Most plants are pollinated by the wind, or insects, neither of which are available on my closed windowsill. So I looked into doing it myself. It turns out that tomatoes are not your average plant when it comes to pollinating! Apparently us humans have, without even trying, been selecting for self pollination, having taken tomatoes away from their favourite South American bumble bee. A light breeze or a gentle shake of the plants may be all that’s needed. But the more seeds per fruit, the better the shape and size. So if I want nice juicy round tomatoes I have to do something about it.
Tomatoes are buzz pollinators. When their favourite bee comes around, they hold them vertically, and buzz to encourage the release of pollen. So, if you want to pollinate tomatoes, you have to get buzzing. Apparently they used to have people going round greenhouses with vibrators… And my plants are in my window where all my neighbours can see… Actually I’m making use of a massager that my sister gave me. I don’t think it looks rude… Though I guess anyone looking up will wonder what the heck I’m doing rubbing my plants with what looks like some ‘alien machine’ prop off a SF show.
Meanwhile I’m starting a new job soon, as a cat sitter (and maybe occasional dog walker). This involves getting a picture for the website of me, with cat. So I spent about half an hour practically lying on Lizzie, setting camera on delay, holding it out in front of us, pressing the button, waiting for the flash… then, it being low on charge, it would do a tortoise into shell act and I’d have to turn it off and on, check the pic, set it up again… I must have managed about 20 goes, including lots out of focus, only showing one of us, or a nice close up of Lizzie’s chin… Finally I had something, and the batteries weren’t going to stand it anymore. Lizzie seemed to find the whole thing vaguely interesting, enough that she couldn’t be bothered removing herself anyway!
Of course the boss now wants one without cat for the dog walking website. I’m using batteries all over this week. Got to go find some spares…
.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Banksy is Back
So here am I, thinking how Banksy hasn’t been around for ages, and isn’t that a shame, and it turned out I just hadn’t managed to hear about his new pieces in London… Duh!
First a false alarm thanks to Hackney Gazette. A few months back they posted a story about how some people thought a piece of stencil art, showing a policeman with a pig's snout, round the back of Kingsland Shopping Centre, was a new Banksy. Yeah right. It’s an OK piece of political art, but lacks the wit of Banksy. It’s also just plonked in the middle of a wall, where his stuff tends to ‘live’ within its environment, with figures appearing to stand on ground, windows positioned in the middle of walls, etc.
First a false alarm thanks to Hackney Gazette. A few months back they posted a story about how some people thought a piece of stencil art, showing a policeman with a pig's snout, round the back of Kingsland Shopping Centre, was a new Banksy. Yeah right. It’s an OK piece of political art, but lacks the wit of Banksy. It’s also just plonked in the middle of a wall, where his stuff tends to ‘live’ within its environment, with figures appearing to stand on ground, windows positioned in the middle of walls, etc.
Meanwhile I was speculating about a fabulous piece down near Old Street. Loving it and wondering who it was by, since it didn’t seem to quite fit anyone I could think of. I never even thought of Banksy! But apparently it’s his… to be fair, it’s not typical. It’s as thought provoking as ever, but, being a memorial piece to another artist, it has a very different mood to much of Banksy’s work. Review and more information here.
And then I hear there’s a new piece on Essex Road too! This time it’s classic Banksy, and a great piece of work poking fun at Tesco. (Again, I've done a review on Qype, including map...)
Apparently there’s also quite a lot of his work down at the Cans Festival, a tunnel full of art down in Central London. I’m going to have to get down there soon…
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Things to do in Wiltshire
I’m beginning to think maybe I should rename this blog ‘Notes from East London and Wiltshire’. Or maybe I should just come up with a better name all round. Anyway, I’ve finally finished writing up reviews from my trip out that way to do the Neolithic Marathon (for which you can still sponsor me by the way…). To make things easier I’ve got two main categories for which I’ve created lists. So here they are: Longleat and Lacock.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Qype Party and Tales of Adventure on the Bus
Yep, I actually finally made it to a Qype party. It’s a while since I’ve been out in the bar and drinks sense. I’m more of a walking round museums or watching something kind of person. And venues with wall to wall loud music have long lost their appeal. I used to go clubbing, many years ago it seems now. I got tired of the silence under the noise. Not being able to talk properly to people because it was such an effort to shout over the music, and maybe half the time there wasn’t much to say anyway once you got past ‘having a good time?’ ‘Yeah, it’s great!’
So I was a little worried I might find myself in a horror of pumping music and trendy youngsters still at the ‘Yeah it’s great!’ stage. In fact there was loud music. And there were pauses at the start when I found myself staring round the room wondering if any of those faces was PLEASE anyone I knew online, and digging into a pile of munchies and a free drink to distract myself (which, by the way is no comment on the person I was talking to at the time. He was great. I was nervous. Sorry I never got to say goodbye). But that didn’t last long. Pretty soon I was chatting away with lots of friendly people, some of them turning out to be people I knew off Qype, some newbies feeling even more nervous than me. And a great mix of people of all ages and all walks of life. I even had to discipline myself not to talk to the same person all night but to move on and circulate, and was glad I did as I found more people I’d already ‘met’ online, that it was great to meet in person. And of course others just as interesting, some not even on Qype but dragged along by others, and promising to join!
I’d told myself I’d not stay to the end, but of course I was one of the last out. Shortly before I left I somehow ended up telling someone how I’d come to London, and been homeless for 3 years living in squats. She thought I must be ‘well hard’! I did try and tell her they were, on the whole, very nice squats (I knew squatters who sanded and varnished all their window sills…) and I’d never been on the streets. She should have heard what I was to hear later… Anyway, finally I was leaving and wondering how I’d do a review of the venue since my eyes had been on people not it all night. A quick trip round including a diversion into the basement toilets took care of that, and you’ll find the review here.
Outside I walked off towards Tottenham Court Road, where I’d be able to catch a bus directly home. I diverted into Chinatown, to see if a sudden craving for a red bean paste bun could by any chance be fulfilled. I had my doubts and it turned I was right. Plenty of restaurants open, but no buns, or any other Chinese food you could just grab and eat as you walked. Gap in the market there maybe? Anyway, I was lucky and the bus came fast. I climbed aboard and upstairs, smiling at the group exclaiming with pleasure as they got the front seats.
That group continued to talk loudly, and even though I was halfway up the bus I soon found myself tuning into their conversations. One of them was talking about a mate who’d hitch hiked to Everest Base Camp. There was some debate as to whether it was possible, but apparently there’s a road all the way now. More tales followed… one woman had been in a remote cave with only a piece of corrugated iron for a door and either a bear or a mad man (she couldn’t say for sure which), attacking and growling at it. Two guys had spent a week alone up a remote Himalayan trail with nothing but some potatoes and a 3 foot long white carrot to eat (the girl enlightened them that it’s called mooli). Apparently now Nepal doesn’t let anyone go around without a guide. Though as one of the guys pointed out, you’re just as much in trouble if you get lost in the Pyrenees. As they once did… they found themselves walking up past people with ice picks and then scaling sideways along a wall with their backpacks on.
The conversation moved on, as one guy told about his experiences in Africa (and I looked round and saw that everyone else on top of that bus was listening too). He’d paid $50 to some dodgy guy to take him down the Zambezi in a canoe ‘they’ll do anything to get money down there’. Of course it’s the hippos that are really dangerous, crocodiles aren’t scary… Loud exclamations from his companions… well, crocodiles are scary, if you fall out of the canoe they’ll take your arm off, but they won’t attack a boat, hippos will.
He went on to talk about a place he’d been where (‘they’ll do anything to make money’) they took people walking with lions out into the bush. Not adult lions, but nearly full grown, and they want to play. They gathered them together before hand and warned them. They wouldn’t attack you, but they might try and play with you, and they might tear an arm off, just playing, not being nasty. You had to assert your authority. They gave each of them a big stick, and if any of the lions tried to play with them they had to hit the ground with it, and the lion if they had to. He said he had a picture of himself with this lion with this huge head, and his stick pointing at it…
After that things went quiet as the girl got on the phone with people they were trying to meet up with. I guess that story just beat them all. Or maybe they’d realised they had an audience!
And if you are doubting it was all true… the guy actually gave the venue of his lion walk, Antelope Park in Zimbabwe. I looked it up and it exists; http://www.antelopepark.co.zw/ Maybe one day… I am supposed to be ‘well hard’ after all.
.
So I was a little worried I might find myself in a horror of pumping music and trendy youngsters still at the ‘Yeah it’s great!’ stage. In fact there was loud music. And there were pauses at the start when I found myself staring round the room wondering if any of those faces was PLEASE anyone I knew online, and digging into a pile of munchies and a free drink to distract myself (which, by the way is no comment on the person I was talking to at the time. He was great. I was nervous. Sorry I never got to say goodbye). But that didn’t last long. Pretty soon I was chatting away with lots of friendly people, some of them turning out to be people I knew off Qype, some newbies feeling even more nervous than me. And a great mix of people of all ages and all walks of life. I even had to discipline myself not to talk to the same person all night but to move on and circulate, and was glad I did as I found more people I’d already ‘met’ online, that it was great to meet in person. And of course others just as interesting, some not even on Qype but dragged along by others, and promising to join!
I’d told myself I’d not stay to the end, but of course I was one of the last out. Shortly before I left I somehow ended up telling someone how I’d come to London, and been homeless for 3 years living in squats. She thought I must be ‘well hard’! I did try and tell her they were, on the whole, very nice squats (I knew squatters who sanded and varnished all their window sills…) and I’d never been on the streets. She should have heard what I was to hear later… Anyway, finally I was leaving and wondering how I’d do a review of the venue since my eyes had been on people not it all night. A quick trip round including a diversion into the basement toilets took care of that, and you’ll find the review here.
Outside I walked off towards Tottenham Court Road, where I’d be able to catch a bus directly home. I diverted into Chinatown, to see if a sudden craving for a red bean paste bun could by any chance be fulfilled. I had my doubts and it turned I was right. Plenty of restaurants open, but no buns, or any other Chinese food you could just grab and eat as you walked. Gap in the market there maybe? Anyway, I was lucky and the bus came fast. I climbed aboard and upstairs, smiling at the group exclaiming with pleasure as they got the front seats.
That group continued to talk loudly, and even though I was halfway up the bus I soon found myself tuning into their conversations. One of them was talking about a mate who’d hitch hiked to Everest Base Camp. There was some debate as to whether it was possible, but apparently there’s a road all the way now. More tales followed… one woman had been in a remote cave with only a piece of corrugated iron for a door and either a bear or a mad man (she couldn’t say for sure which), attacking and growling at it. Two guys had spent a week alone up a remote Himalayan trail with nothing but some potatoes and a 3 foot long white carrot to eat (the girl enlightened them that it’s called mooli). Apparently now Nepal doesn’t let anyone go around without a guide. Though as one of the guys pointed out, you’re just as much in trouble if you get lost in the Pyrenees. As they once did… they found themselves walking up past people with ice picks and then scaling sideways along a wall with their backpacks on.
The conversation moved on, as one guy told about his experiences in Africa (and I looked round and saw that everyone else on top of that bus was listening too). He’d paid $50 to some dodgy guy to take him down the Zambezi in a canoe ‘they’ll do anything to get money down there’. Of course it’s the hippos that are really dangerous, crocodiles aren’t scary… Loud exclamations from his companions… well, crocodiles are scary, if you fall out of the canoe they’ll take your arm off, but they won’t attack a boat, hippos will.
He went on to talk about a place he’d been where (‘they’ll do anything to make money’) they took people walking with lions out into the bush. Not adult lions, but nearly full grown, and they want to play. They gathered them together before hand and warned them. They wouldn’t attack you, but they might try and play with you, and they might tear an arm off, just playing, not being nasty. You had to assert your authority. They gave each of them a big stick, and if any of the lions tried to play with them they had to hit the ground with it, and the lion if they had to. He said he had a picture of himself with this lion with this huge head, and his stick pointing at it…
After that things went quiet as the girl got on the phone with people they were trying to meet up with. I guess that story just beat them all. Or maybe they’d realised they had an audience!
And if you are doubting it was all true… the guy actually gave the venue of his lion walk, Antelope Park in Zimbabwe. I looked it up and it exists; http://www.antelopepark.co.zw/ Maybe one day… I am supposed to be ‘well hard’ after all.
.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Still in Training...
I’m feeling pretty pleased with myself after my recent marathon. After my first marathon I could hardly walk for a week, and had nasty aches and pains for 6 weeks. Unsurprisingly I didn’t train during that time, and by the time I was running again it was at a lower level. Second year I recovered faster and was able to do a very stiff, short run within a week of my marathon. But I let myself rest up, and once more my fitness slipped back and I had ground to make up by the time I started seriously training again.
This year I’ve made a big effort to dig my heels in and get out there in spite of feeling tired and having niggling pains. And it’s working. A month on I’m feeling pretty fit and actually making progress in some areas. It’s not easy. I do frequently go out stiff and achy to start a run, as I do have arthritis. But with me I now have learnt that often the run will actually help the stiffness. Other times it will make it a little worse. It’s hard to know, and in the past I’ve been perhaps too cautious, but on the whole I know running helps manage the chronic pain I have. Anyway I’m working to increase my speed over short runs. Last Monday I did 6 miles in the rain as well. Aching like mad to start (rainy weather…), but it was great fun to go out and not bother about getting wet, and dodge puddles and mud patches.
Another factor is that I HAVE to train as I already have another target. Or rather 2 targets in one! If you’ve read my fundraising website you’ll know I have 4 targets to complete by my birthday towards the end of July. I’ve done 2, and I’m hoping to tick off another 2 at a 10k in a few weeks. I’m hoping to both get a personal best by 4 seconds per mile, and run the whole way! For many I know running the whole 6.2 miles wouldn’t be a major target. But considering less than 3 years ago I could run at most 20 seconds at a time its major progress for me! I’ll be running for over an hour. I’ve also tended to do a run/walk strategy for the simple reason that as yet I go faster like that. As such if I do get a PB as well it will be amazing. I do admit to a back up plan… I’m pretty certain I’m going to make the running all the way bit, but I will be able to fit in a chance at a 5K PB if I don’t get the 10K PB…
I am certainly working bloomin hard to make both happen at once though.
Still collecting sponsorship…
This year I’ve made a big effort to dig my heels in and get out there in spite of feeling tired and having niggling pains. And it’s working. A month on I’m feeling pretty fit and actually making progress in some areas. It’s not easy. I do frequently go out stiff and achy to start a run, as I do have arthritis. But with me I now have learnt that often the run will actually help the stiffness. Other times it will make it a little worse. It’s hard to know, and in the past I’ve been perhaps too cautious, but on the whole I know running helps manage the chronic pain I have. Anyway I’m working to increase my speed over short runs. Last Monday I did 6 miles in the rain as well. Aching like mad to start (rainy weather…), but it was great fun to go out and not bother about getting wet, and dodge puddles and mud patches.
Another factor is that I HAVE to train as I already have another target. Or rather 2 targets in one! If you’ve read my fundraising website you’ll know I have 4 targets to complete by my birthday towards the end of July. I’ve done 2, and I’m hoping to tick off another 2 at a 10k in a few weeks. I’m hoping to both get a personal best by 4 seconds per mile, and run the whole way! For many I know running the whole 6.2 miles wouldn’t be a major target. But considering less than 3 years ago I could run at most 20 seconds at a time its major progress for me! I’ll be running for over an hour. I’ve also tended to do a run/walk strategy for the simple reason that as yet I go faster like that. As such if I do get a PB as well it will be amazing. I do admit to a back up plan… I’m pretty certain I’m going to make the running all the way bit, but I will be able to fit in a chance at a 5K PB if I don’t get the 10K PB…
I am certainly working bloomin hard to make both happen at once though.
Still collecting sponsorship…
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Things to do in East London
I picked up a booklet in a local council office this week called the ‘Five Boroughs Festival Guide’. Apparently 5 London Boroughs have got together to advertise a load of festivals and stuff (Create08) as a lead up to the Olympics. Not sure about it as a theme, but the booklet has details of lots of interesting stuff over the next few months!
First up is Paradise Gardens: a free outdoor festival in Victoria Park on Sat 24 and Sun 25 May. Music, street theatre, children’s activities, a steam fair and (paid) circuses. Information at www.paradisegardens.org.uk
If galleries and museums are more your thing, there’s several on now:
City of Stories: How do you make nail soup? What makes the mango wondrous? A new exhibition featuring fantastic legends and folk stories from London’s East End communities. Watch out for chairs that tell stories, magic furniture and hidden worlds. Discover, 1 Bridge Terrace, Stratford E15. Weekends and School holidays, 29 March to 31 August, 10am to 5pm, adult/child £4, www.discover.org.uk
A Century of Olympic Posters: Museum of Childhood, 17 May to 7 September, 10am to 5.45pm, Free
(There are more in the guide…)
And… Spitalfields Festival runs 2 to 20 June, over multiple venues, with tickets free to £32. Information at www.spitalfieldsfestival.org.uk
Moving away from the East End, this is also the week for the Qype Party: everyone is invited for some free booze on Thursday 28 May at the Theodore Bullfrog: http://www.qype.co.uk/place/144827-Theodore-Bullfrog-London
And finally, The Anthony Nolan Trust is holding a clinic for people who want to register for bone marrow donation on 31 May at Tiger Tiger, 28-29 Haymarket, Piccadilly, London from 1100-1600.
Erm, I don’t think I’m going to fit it all in…
.
First up is Paradise Gardens: a free outdoor festival in Victoria Park on Sat 24 and Sun 25 May. Music, street theatre, children’s activities, a steam fair and (paid) circuses. Information at www.paradisegardens.org.uk
If galleries and museums are more your thing, there’s several on now:
City of Stories: How do you make nail soup? What makes the mango wondrous? A new exhibition featuring fantastic legends and folk stories from London’s East End communities. Watch out for chairs that tell stories, magic furniture and hidden worlds. Discover, 1 Bridge Terrace, Stratford E15. Weekends and School holidays, 29 March to 31 August, 10am to 5pm, adult/child £4, www.discover.org.uk
A Century of Olympic Posters: Museum of Childhood, 17 May to 7 September, 10am to 5.45pm, Free
(There are more in the guide…)
And… Spitalfields Festival runs 2 to 20 June, over multiple venues, with tickets free to £32. Information at www.spitalfieldsfestival.org.uk
Moving away from the East End, this is also the week for the Qype Party: everyone is invited for some free booze on Thursday 28 May at the Theodore Bullfrog: http://www.qype.co.uk/place/144827-Theodore-Bullfrog-London
And finally, The Anthony Nolan Trust is holding a clinic for people who want to register for bone marrow donation on 31 May at Tiger Tiger, 28-29 Haymarket, Piccadilly, London from 1100-1600.
Erm, I don’t think I’m going to fit it all in…
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