Green and country in the city 24 December

• I've often been hearing sparrows when I am out in the garden, sounding they were over the wall at the bottom of the garden, thought couldn't think where they could be as there were no bushes near enough (but I am bad at telling where sound comes from). Then on Saturday 16th there were 7 sparrows and one robin in the creeper coming over from my neighbours' on to my shed roof. I used to see them in the bushes in my neighbour's garden the other side, now cleared, so I was pleased to see them after all these months.
• The pussy willows on the banks of the Lee Navigation are showing tiny buds.
• I picked 3 rose buds from the bush in the front garden today and put into a vase on the mantelpiece amongst the Christmas cards.
• I've decanted my sloe gin.
• My back has been well enough to do a little bit of sawing up of off-cuts rescued from skips.
• I am making a decoration - a felt deer - I got free with a craft magazine. I hope to have it on the tree with the home-made decorations which stands on the chest of drawers on the landing before I put it away. I don't have Christmas things up for long. The door wreath and the robin cushions on the bed come out a week or two before the event but the Christmas trees are put up very close to Christmas - yesterday (Saturday 23rd) this year. I take them down on New Year's day as that's easiest on a day off.
• I have been responsible for the lost property box from our big event in August. I put out a 500 piece jig-saw for staff to complete so I could check it was all there before taking it to a charity shop. One colleague said I could count the pieces, but I ignored him! Lots of staff had a go. One of the cleaners did half an hour at the end of a couple of shifts. She is going to get one for her family at Christmas. It turns out it is missing 2 pieces. Despite this, a colleague who didn't have time to do much but enjoyed what she did, is taking it home to do at home. jig-saws are wonderful things, they can be done alone or with others and then taken apart and done again.  

Green and country in the city 10 December

• It snowed today and settled! Looks very wet though. Because of problem back didn't go kayaking. When snow thick enough we use the kayaks as sledges to come down the path on the slope of Springfield Park just behind the club. I think the snow was probably a little wet though. I'll find out from Beate when I got to Girls' Club tomorrow. Beate is like a kid when it comes to snow. Already melting now so unless we get a further fall won't be able to have the girls sledging which will be a shame. We don't get many chances to do it in London as we are so much warmer than the surrounding countryside.
• Wednesday found several long thin bits of Wood in a skip. One 8 foot long. Got them through the house into the conservatory but couldn't get the 8 foot one out of the conservatory into the garden so had to saw it in half first in the conservatory.
• I've bought several pots of honey from work for presents. They are from the hives on Friends House (where I work) roof. The bees mainly forage from Regents Park.
• Another load of stuff to charity shop - some from my sorting ready for my friend's visit next weekend and some lost property from an event at beginning of August.

Green and country in the city 3 December

It's been 3 weeks since my last post and I don't feel I have been doing very much green or country but thought I will record the few bits:

• I am doing a mini spring clean as I have a friend coming to stay the weekend before Christmas. I am a clutter bug who hates housework, she is allergic to dust and cat fluff! I am making an effort and tidying and dusting bits that haven't been sorted for years! Have got rid of a couple of dozen books to the charity shop (lots still 2 rows deep on the shelves but none on the floor at the moment!). Also some other bits chucked or gone to the charity shop. I would like this to continue next year.
• I put out the blackcurrants in the garden after decanting the blackcurrant gin. I did try cooking some with sugar and water but they weren't tasty enough. As I was closing the conservatory door a fox trotted down the garden path, across by the pond, to where I had put the black currants and ate them! How did it associate the smell with food?
• On Thursday 16 November it was so mild I didn't bother with any heating - but Friday morning the second heavy frost of the year! (No heating on this evening either.)
• Saturday 25 November there was no rush of cold air when I opened the bathroom window after my bath. There was a thin layer of ice on the wildlife water dish though.
• On Thursday 30 November when I opened the curtains there was no ice on next door's grass but pond looked odd so I went to check and there was some very thin ice on the pond and some thicker ice on the wildlife water bowl. I broke the ice. Later in the morning after bringing in some logs I checked the water bowl and the bits of ice had all frozen together.
• Recently in the mornings when I am in the garden I can hear sparrows. Don't know where they can be, with the ash tree one side and all the bushes the other gone. It sounds like it is coming from over the back but no likely bush that I can see. Nice to hear them though.
• Yesterday I had my first Christmas card (from my eldest brother, his wife and my nephew).
• Last week on my day off I was on the way to the post office and spotted a skip in the road parallel to mine. It had a lot of clean off-cuts so took an armful home, then went back with the trolley and got nearly 2 trolley loads. Most need sawing at least in half but my back is playing up so haven't sawed any.
• As well as the osteopath, I am taking ginger tablets (anti-inflammatory), using turmeric as much as possible, and tried some marigold tincture in water today. Like to use kitchen medicine.
• On 24 November there were some paper whites in bud in a flower bed by a University College London building behind work.
• Supposed to be a large moon tonight, but it's been overcast all day.

Green and country in the city 12 November

• Last weekend I spent visiting a friend who has recently moved to Wilton just outside Salisbury. Had a lift with mutual friends also visiting from Three Bridges (Crawley) as the trains from London to Salisbury last weekend were horrendous. So saw some countryside, in particular some kites which was very exciting - first time I can remember seeing them.
• Last week I had central heating on Monday evening when I came back from volunteering at the kayak club, but then not again till this evening. Thursday, yesterday and today I have had wood burning stove lit. Kept going out Thursday, went well yesterday, and is having to be watched carefully tonight.
• First frost Monday with thin ice on the wildlife water bowl. 
• First sighting of domestic Christmas decorations (Santa and sleigh in jelly bits on a window in my street).
• Made Christmas pudding liqueur today. Sugar and dried fruit in vodka with cinnamon. Recipe says leave for one month, then decant and it is ready to drink. I will have sip in a month's time, but expect to leave it for 3 months, decant (though I will try another sip) then leave for 9 months. All my other flavoured spirits have shown the need for patience to be worth the adding of the flavourings. (Recipe in Country Living Christmas but I left out the orange and used powdered cinnamon.)
• Found quite a few off-cuts in a skip coming back from meditation yesterday morning. Started sawing larger bits today. One flat bit took me even longer than usual.

Green & Country in the City 29 October

• Read in the Wren newsletter (Wren is a group for those with an interest in the history and plants and wildlife on Wanstead flats) that 3-corned leek can take over and is impossible to get rid of. So I will have to do my best to keep mine under control. Will try eating as much of it as I can. I am thinking of adding it to a nut butter - coconut oil, ground nuts, yeast extract and 3-cornered leek. Should be nice on toast!
• Planted out heather on Wednesday and today was planting tulips, including 3 sets of tulip bulbs that are supposed to naturalise. Supposed to plant tulips 20cm deep but I did them less than that and am hoping for the best.
• At work we had the first tasting of our kombucha which is made with a scoby (a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast). It was ready on Tuesday but we waited til Friday as more of the team were in. It tasted of pickle water. It is supposed to be good for the digestion. It had grown another scoby. (The scoby is the team "pet" we got after our team away afternoon when we had time making tonics and teas with Rachel de Thample.)
• Condensation on the bathroom and bedroom window yesterday. My friend Tony said he had a frost in Chingford.
• There was a skip with some offcuts on the way home from Leyton station yesterday. Took a few pieces as I passed and went back for more. 
• Decanted black currant gin. One ordinary bottle and one little bottle.
• Hope to have time to make Christmas pudding liqueur with vodka, sugar spices, and dried fruit. It is supposed to be ready in a month. I will treat it like sloe gin and not decant for at least 3 months and then leave for at least 9 months more.

green and country in the city 20 October

• So we didn't get the forecast storm. I was at a Seasonal Alignment Day in Kew on Saturday and in Kew gardens in the afternoon. It was windy but not stormy so fine for walking round. Then very windy when I got up this morning, but wind had calmed a lot so I cycled off to kayaking. Wind died down some more and sun came out so an enjoyable paddle on the water.
• I got a white heather at the shop by Kew station. On my to-get list this year for some autumn food for insects.
• Plumber came for boiler maintenance on Wednesday. Afterwards put up thermal curtain which I had carefully sewn material on to one side. I had had to get rid of portiere rod as it had come out one side above the door and had replaced it with ordinary curtain rod. But new curtain too heavy and curtain hooks come out of curtain rings when I open door. Have taken off material (very quick - it had taken me ages to sew it on!) and will try just the thermal curtain and hope it is light enough. Not very attractive, but do need door curtain as I have wide door and panels are two panels wide and there is a gap. I had put some green sticky tape down the gaps, but it is not very attractive and keeps peeling at the edges.
• I always look to see what birds there are on the sports ground when I am waiting for the bus in the mornings. This autumn there have been a lot of what I think are herring gulls (right colouring but don't seem large enough - or is it my childhood memory that makes them seem large?). But the black-headed gulls hadn't been there until Friday when I saw two. 
• This autumn there have also been many more wood pigeons on the sports ground than usual(100-200 of them!). But rarely any feral pigeons. In the winter I don't see them on the sports ground in the mornings - but I do see them on roofs and pavements on the bus journey to the tube station. But in summer and autumn expect to see them on the sports ground, but most days none and only occasionally one or two. Not seen so many elsewhere either.
• 
  

Tonics and teas all in (half a) day's work

At work our team away days are half work and half play. As there was nothing we needed to work on that couldn't be done in the hourly fortnightly meeting, it was decided we would have half a day's play.

Although I really, really could have done with Tuesday afternoon at my computer trying to catch up on the backlog, I did enjoy our afternoon at the Skip Garden near Kings Cross.

We had a very nice vegetarian curry lunch followed by a session with Rachel de Thample based on her book "Tonics & teas". As well as chat and information, a chance to sample drinks, vegan cake and truffles, we made a flavoured vinegar (I made a sage, rosemary and thyme-flavoured one, all the herbs gathered from the Skip Garden) and a tea to drink (I did a basic elderflower and lemon but colleagues were making zen tea and women's balance tea amongst others). We also each had a copy of her book to take home.

I would recommend Rachel's book and attending any workshop of hers you can get to.