237: excuse me, did you see where summer went?

Well, where did it go? This week has been very rainy – indeed, torrential at times – and there’s been a definite chill in the air in the mornings and evenings. I was even forced to wear socks while working at home on Friday which seems a step too far after last week’s warm sunshine. I’ve swapped the cats so Ted and Bailey are the upstairs ones this week, as they’re pretty much guaranteed to lie on me at night and keep my feet warm. The downside of this is opening my eyes of a morning to find the pair of them glaring at me, especially if I’ve had the temerity to sleep in past 5.30am and their breakfast is late. Teddy, in particular, likes to tap-dance on my ribs to encourage me to wake up.

In the usual manner of things, of course, I can’t find the jacket that’s been hanging around all summer, and it’s still not quite cool enough for a coat. It’s also dark when I get to the bus stop in the mornings. It does mean we can look forward to crispy autumn and winter swims soon, and Thing 2 and I had fun popping conkers on the way home this afternoon. She brought me a pocketful of conkers from a walk the other day, knowing how much I love their shiny, silky shells.

I love autumn, it may be my favourite time of year, with the forest showing off its best colours – even London’s street trees get their chance to shed crunchy plane leaves all over the place, at least until the street sweepers turn up. There’s tiny pumpkins in the garden and squirrels are parkouring around the place collecting acorns and burying them so they’ll pop up as little oak saplings all over the garden next year. We* have transplanted enough of these into pots to make a small portable forest.

*Not me, obviously. My beloved, but I admire them when he’s done it and point out new ones when I spot them.

Other things making me happy this week:

Christmas crafting – making gingerbread men and yet more tiny mice
Afternoon at Jill’s for her annual Macmillan tea party. I left before the gin was cracked open…
Colleagues who recommend good books, and library ordering systems
Another cross stitch finish and a StayPuft Marshmallow Man
My job – working in an organisation genuinely committed to EDI and understanding barriers to access both internally and externally. Kindness and respect go a very long way.

Today I am off for a morning swim, and then Thing 2 and I are off to the cinema to see Beetlejuice Beetlejuice – I was in charge of tickets and she’s on snacks, and then we’re going to go and see TT1 and the family. And then she’s in charge of dinner, hurray!

This week is new washing machine week, as Repairman 2 wrote it off. Currently when it goes into spin it sounds like its filled with cats and rocks, neither of which should be included in laundry.

Same time next week, then?

What I’ve been reading:

Murder at the Monastery – Rev. Richard Coles

The Island God – Sarah Painter

We Are All Made Of Glue – Marina Lewycka

Tricky Twenty-Two – Janet Evanovich (Audible – and a lot of live Eddie Izzard)

Real Tigers – Mick Herron

236: Saturdays are Library days

It’s Saturday evening and I am typing this in an advanced state of ‘is it nap time yet?’ after a day at the British Library’s ‘Marvellous Me!’ Family Day. This was the last of our pop-up appearances for the summer and I was joined by illustrator Beth Suzanna and Marina from our Artistic and Creative team. We were making paper portraits using collage in Beth’s signature style which is full of bold colour and opportunities for families to add as much detail as they liked. We had a great day, meeting more than 100 people and seeing some amazing creations – one of the families from our summer play project came to see us, too.

The BL runs three family days a year, and this one is in partnership with the British Museum and the Frank Barnes School for the Deaf – an opportunity for D/deaf and hearing families to learn together. There were interpreters on hand, performances by a signing choir, BSL storytelling and sensory spaces and the whole day felt inclusive and welcoming. I had a wonderful conversation with the mobile evaluator team and will definitely be stealing their ideas – and inviting them to be part of our access panel. We spoke about the need for 360 degree reflection at the end of projects, and the importance of understanding why things go wrong sometimes.

I say this every time, but…. yes, I am absolutely shattered, but I’ve met 100 people of all ages, from babies up to grandparents, and every single one of them reminded me why we do what we do (and why we bloody love it),

In other work news, we had a fundraising event at our new site – the last one before we start the build, which is PRETTY FLIPPING EXCITING – and despite promising myself I would not be completely overexcited at meeting illustrators I failed. It was all fine until Nick Butterworth, creator of Percy the Park Keeper and Tiger and Jasper’s Beanstalk turned up and Tom Gauld, whose cartoons for Guardian Books speak to me very loudly.

There were delicious macarons, and Quentin Blake sent us a special message via monster.

On the less happy side, we also said goodbye that evening to our lovely Head of Comms and Content who is off on a seaside adventure – but I did get to hand over her leaving gift. I will miss her very much!

Other things making me happy this week

Crochet mice. I like making these!
Coffee with my LEN (Lovely Ex-Neighbour) Emma after WAY too long. Our midkids (aka Bonnie and Clyde) have been besties basically since birth, and we used to open the gate between our gardens and drink wine while they rampaged.
A Sunday morning swim
Finding a lot of Eddie Izzard included in my Audible subscription and laughing out loud on the tube
The cat being signed off as healthy by the vet. We knew she was better when she savaged a small visiting child but it’s nice to have the official word

Right! My family require feeding… have a good week!

Kirsty x

What I’ve been reading:

The Distant Echo -Val McDermid

That Mitchell and Webb Sound (and various Suzy Eddie Izzard shows) (Audible)

Dead Lions – Mick Herron

Murder at the Monastery – Rev. Richard Coles

235: red hot chillies and tiny hats

This week has seen the return of the crafty mojo after my worst craft stall ever at Copped Hall on bank holiday weekend – I sold two pairs of earrings all day, which tends to make you wonder why you’re bothering. Even the two tiny dachshund puppies I made friends with didn’t quite make up for it…it’s surprising how much impact one off day can have!

I pulled myself together enough to put in my application for a stall at Epping Christmas Market and went back to crocheting chilli peppers on the tube in the hope that the next stall will be more successful. An Italian lady who bought a pair of chilli pepper earrings told me that in Italy chilli peppers are hung up to ward off stop people gossiping about you and to bring good luck, and who doesn’t need that? Perhaps I should start hanging them over the stall.

This year’s decorations will probably not include pigs in blankets unless people ask me really nicely, but there may well be cats as Thing 2 has decided that’s what’s missing from my stall after scrutinising everyone else at the event. There will also be mince pies and mice, and probably penguins. Let’s see where they get me….

I’ve also been making a couple of cross stitch gifts but can’t share them till they’ve been handed over, so you’ll just have to wait.

Tiny twins in Sprite hats. Aren’t they adorable? Just don’t ask me which is which

And tiny baby hats in multiples of two using yarn from the stash, for Arlo and Bohdi, who I finally got to cuddle last Sunday after taking Thing 2 to the cinema to see Despicable Me 4 (we loved it). They are so, so small and so laidback, which I’m quite sure won’t last once they find their voices. We were entranced by the way they mirror each other’s movements. Thing 3 was terrified when we first handed him a baby but got quite relaxed after a while, while proud Grandad was his usual baby expert self. We know he’s proud as he accosted all the neighbours when TT1 popped round last Saturday with the words ‘Grandchildren! Look!’ which is positively effusive for him.

During the evening crafting sessions I’ve been binging the excellent Slow Horses, starring Gary Oldman and the ridiculously elegant Kristin Scott Thomas. I’ve so loved the books and was assured that the series was just as good, and – for once – it is. Hopefully Apple TV’s adaptation of Carl Hiaasen’s Bad Monkey will be just as good – the soundtrack of Tom Petty covers is a good start, as is the casting of Vince Vaughn. We’ve also been watching Brassic, a Sky programme which is very ‘it’s him! from that!’ and extremely funny with it. The hims and thats in this case are Joseph Gilgun from Preacher, and Ryan Sampson from Plebs, both of which we enjoyed.

Other things making me happy this week:

Fountain pens. I have the urge to write letters to people just to write with one. I feel I should be that person, and live with the misguided hope that perhaps a beautiful pen with real ink would miraculously render my atrocious handwriting legible.
Six month health checks for Teddy and Bailey, who do not need to be wrangled into the cat basket at serious risk to my wellbeing, and who are both very doing very well. Lulu, on the other hand, requires a pincer movement, two people and ideally steel gauntlets, full armour and a welding mask. Even then you should have the first aid kit handy.
Washing machine insurance. Mine apparently requires a new drum, a new PCB (whatever one of those is), a new seal and a new front.
Early morning coffee with Amanda.
Impending autumn, with chillier mornings and not melting on the tube.
Visiting the new Islington Museum ‘People of Islington’ exhibition, celebrating local artists and makers. They have a section of elm pipe from the New River which I’m quite jealous of. I wonder if they’d miss it?
The rather elegant cat below, who I met on my way home from Islington Museum. He was waiting impatiently for someone to come home and let him in.

And that’s it from me for the week – next weekend you can find me at the British Library’s ‘Marvellous Me‘ Family Day with illustrator Beth Suzanna making paper portraits. This is the last of our pop-ups for the summer and we’ll be alongside a whole lot of other excellent organisations so do come on down.

Same time next week then!

Kirsty x

What I’ve been reading:

The Skeleton Road/Out of Bounds/Broken Ground – Val McDermid

The Masquerades of Spring – Ben Aaronovitch

Murder at the Monastery – Rev. Richard Coles

That Mitchell and Webb Sound (Audible)

234: I thought we said Saturday

Some weeks it feels like the weekend is a long time coming. Other weeks you text your friend and say ‘still on for tomorrow?’, they come back with the title of this post and you realise it’s only Thursday and there’s still a day to go.

Not that it’s been a bad week – just long and quite productive, from chatting to the lovely Islington crowds at Angel Canal Festival on Sunday to writing a journal post about our play adventures over the summer, via a thought-provoking evaluation kick-off session, lots of spreadsheets and report writing, and the odd meeting or two.

Things Two and Three went back to school this week, and Thing 1 came back from a long weekend in Brighton and enrolled in year two of her T-level course. I am so over school now, and no longer feel the need to ensure they have new pencil cases and so on. Not because I’m a terrible parent but because they either lose them or don’t use them, preferring instead to use their blazer pockets, a random paper bag or something equally irritating at laundry time.

I, on the other hand, know the value (and joy! so much joy) of a new pencil case. I have many, including my sixth form pencil tin which has ‘Beware of the Spiders!’ on it. Today my pencil cases are scattered across project bags filled with notions and crochet hooks, or even occasionally with pencils. Every ‘Back to School’ display in WHSmiths or The Works or Hobbycraft is a temptation.

There is something magical and filled with potential about stationery: new notebooks, sharpened pencils, a rainbow of coloured pens. My favourite notebooks these days are the freebies from events and conferences with their smooth covers and elastic pen holders. For well-organised to-do lists you can’t beat a classic A4 refill pad separated into sections. And dotted and squared pages make me feel cool and creative. The V&A shop does a nice A5 hardback notebook with different sections, which feels solid and professional and classy. All my notebooks bristle with sticky markers within days, which give the illusion of organisation…

Of course, there’s also the fear of a blank page and of making a mistake on that beautiful clean page and therefore RUINING the whole book, but there we are. Perhaps this will be the notebook where you write your best essay or poem or story, or that is the pencil with which you will draw your best ever picture, or create the most magical doodle. You make a silent promise to the notebook or the new fountain pen (I love a fountain pen. I need a new one, I think) to always use your best handwriting and definitely never to tear scraps off the last page for shopping lists or bookmarks. The promise lasts at least until I make my first mistake, but it’s good while it lasts.

Things making me happy this week

Finishing the kantha-inspired bag
MANY baby cuddles on Saturday, starting with Twin 2 and moving on to The Oat (TM) over iced coffees at Gail’s…looking forward to snuggling Twin 1 tomorrow
Starting a new cross stitch small project
The Airborne Toxic Event’s new album
Fab lollies and avocados, but not at the same time
Finally starting to watch Slow Horses, which is so far living up to to the books and is filmed just round the corner from my office
Lulu Moggy coming through her bladder stone operation. She’s now feeling much better and is back to savaging small children

Today I am taking Thing 2 to the cinema for a mum and daughter day out – she offered to watch the new Beetlejuice film but I know she secretly wanted to see Despicable Me 4,m so that’s what we’re doing. There will be popcorn.

Same time next week, gang!

Kirsty x

What I’ve been reading:

Smoke and Whispers/Why We Die – Mick Herron

We Are All Made Of Glue – Marina Lewycka

Four Seasons in Japan – Nick Bradley

The Skeleton Road – Val McDermid

233: this episode is brought to you by the letter B

How has it come to the end of August already? My sister is posting back to school photos of my small nephew as he heads off to his final year of primary school, Things 2 and 3 are informing me that they require bags and shoes and stuff, and I am hoping for an onslaught of schools bookings as we launch our first teacher newsletter featuring our shiny new sessions. If you happen to *be* a teacher, you can find them here.

It was also a short week, kicking off with the bank holiday. My Beloved has been gently nagging me about a HUGE and enthusiastic bramble which has been making inroads into my little patch of garden. I had noticed it, particularly as it was sending runners across the deck outside my shed in a very Sleeping Beauty’s castle fashion, but I was pretending it wasn’t there in hopes that the Blackberry Fairy would take it away. The bramble was also near the mysterious ‘ole that something has been excavating in the corner, so I grabbed a spade to put some of the earth back in the ‘ole to discourage whatever it is, some secateurs and gloves, and the green bin to put all the bits in.

The bramble was tough and invasive, and had sent very long runners out in a tentacular sort of way across quite a large chunk of my corner. Some of them were trying to take root themselves, striking out and forming their own independent thorny republics. It was a rather lengthier task than I expected, to say the least, and while I was doing it some bitey thing bit my leg twice, which made me quite thorny as well. I was talking to an NHS person a few weeks ago and she said that mosquitoes are very fond of O-positive blood – apparently we are universal donors for bitey bugs as well as people. This explains a lot. The bites were exceedingly itchy and swelled up to enormous proportions. This is why I do not do gardening.

The ‘ole, with a cameo from the bramble. Spot the bees.

The ‘ole was next. It appeared one day, and is too big for a rabbit or a rat, so we are wondering if a foxy is trying to take up residence. If so, he’d missed his chance and the ‘ole was surrounded by furry red-tailed bumble bees being very industrious. They are welcome to nest, but I did put quite a lot of earth back where it was supposed to be which they weren’t too happy about. Bees, eh?

Other things making me happy this week (mostly by not biting me)

Deciding what this year’s crochet Christmas decorations will be, starting with some very cute chilli peppers. Later versions did, of course, have eyes.
Catching up with my QB predecessor Kate and talking about rest (and cats and work!) over coffee at Bench
Taking Ian and Stacy from the V&A Academy around our new site and picking their vast brains about creative courses online and in real life
Gorgeous swim with Jill on Saturday morning
A mooch around the charity shops of Epping, scoring a couple of Marina Lewycka novels as I’m really enjoying the one I got from the library
The final day of our play project with families from The Parent House – joyous, chaotic, colourful, and a great way to introduce our local community to the site and find out what they want from us. The sun shone, Valentina is the undisputed Queen of the Snack, Thing 2 came along again, and we had an amazing day. The site has never been so colourful!
And last but not least, the arrival of A & B, aka Grandthings 3 & 4, thanks to TT1 Amy and her partner Callum. Can’t wait to meet them!

Today I can be found at Angel Canal Festival talking to people about the Centre, and hoping the thunderstorms hold off…

Kirsty x

What I’ve been reading

The Good, The Bad and The Little Bit Stupid – Marina Lewycka

1983 – Tom Cox

The Covent Garden Ladies – Hallie Rubenhold

What You Are Looking For Is In The Library – Michiko Aoyama

Four Seasons in Japan – Nick Bradley

The Days Are Just Packed – Bill Watterson