Thursday 24th April
Written by Nick Moore
As per my last visit, Ms D was a little reluctant for me to go out of my way to the Boots on Oxford Street to get her some hair colouring, but I assured her it was no bother and the walk in the sunshine would give me some free Vitamin D and extra steps...
With that item successfully captured, it was up to Waitrose to complete the rest of her list, which this week included a small bag of flour so that Ms D could do "some proper cooking", as she said her freezer was full of chicken pieces that needed using up, and some fish or fish cakes for Friday. As always Ms D was extremely grateful when I returned with treasure in hand
Tuesday 15th April
Written by Anastasia Hancock (she/her)
Another Tuesday night collecting food for for rough sleepers, another massive haul of sandwiches, rolls, bread and baked goods!
First stop was the bakery who gave us masses of pastries and fresh bread, a quick pit stop to hand it over and then it was pret for huge sacks of food! We chatted about all the important things- mud larking, the hidden language of emojis and how to fashion the perfect handle on a bin bag! A great evening with a bug impact
Thursday 10th April
Written by Michelle
Mr P has been in hospital for some weeks now and is hoping to get home soon. Alan and I cycled over on a sunny spring evening to meet his wife Mrs A and move his old double bed.
Mrs A was happy to see us when we arrived. She’s been back and forth to the hospital and was quite worried about the mess under the bed when we came to move it. We assured her it would be fine and headed down to the basement to survey the job. As Mrs A gave us the instructions from the top of the stairs we worked out a plan of action for moving the mattress followed by the two sections of the divan and the headboard.
In no time at all the bed and mattress were deposited outside, ready for collection by the council and we’d given the floor in the bedroom a quick tidy up. Mrs A was very grateful for the help and we had a quick chat before wishing them well with Mr P’s physio and discharge. It was a lovely evening for a cycle and a real pleasure to help a lovely beneficiary.
Thursday 10th April
Written by Nick Moore
Ms D was a little sheepish when I arrived this morning - she presented me with her usual list and money and then asked if we did more than food shopping, to which I explained that yes, we'd be happy to go to whichever shop or shops she wanted items from (within reason...).
She swiftly re-appeared with some small empty cosmetic containers, and asked if I could go via Boots to refill her supplies. Being somewhat unfamiliar with the products in question, I said I'd need to take the empties with me to make sure I got an exact match of what she wanted.
A little while later I reappeared at Ms D's door with both her shopping and her newly purchased cosmetic supplies - Ms D was absolutely delighted that she'd now be able to look her absolute best for her visiting grand children this coming Easter Week!
Tuesday 8th April
Written by Anastasia Hancock (she/her)
Talk about reasons to be cheerful! We not only had a warm spring evening and a loop around beautiful St James to enjoy pre task, but we also got to welcome Sebastian and Jesse to their first ever GoodGYm session. So great to have you join us!
And things just kept getting better. With news of a new Greenwich parkrun from Khai, a brief pause to inspect the stunning flowers at Buck Pal, and no sneak attacks from the pelicans, we arrived at St Andrews - a busy youth centre in central London which gives kids opportunities to learn all sorts of skills.
That was when the next bit of GG good fortune hit. Adrian, who manages the centre, offered us a free yoga session courtesy of the visiting teacher. We wasted no time slipping off our shoes, and slipping into a higher state of consciousness (or unconsciousness for some...)
A brief session later, fully stretched and on a higher plane, we drifted out of the class and back outside to complete our task for the evening. Our job was to give a good clean to the transport buses which the kids use to get to various activities. Gloves on, dusters out, we got cracking.
Not long after, buses newly sparkling, we thought we might be done for the evening. And that's where our last bit of good fortune struck - the chance for double the good deeds! Turns out the centre had loads of fresh food donated, but as it was half term and the kids weren't there, it wasn't going to be used. So, a quick call to the amazing charity Under One Sky who were handing out food to rough sleepers, followed by a shared live location, and we were hot on the trail of the team handing out food. It wasn't long before we found them and handed over the goods.
The last little lucky moment of the night was just at the end of the task when we we were standing on the busy streets of Westminster and we heard somebody say 'excuse me, are you GoodGym?'. Why, yes we are! Hello to Gill from GG Luton who had come up to London for the evening.
So there you have it, a night of good fortune, good fun and doing good. Next week we'll have more of the same please! We'll be meeting up once again with Under One Sky to pick up surplus food to be handed out - see you there!
Thursday 3rd April
Written by Nick Moore
When I arrived at Ms D's she was at her dining table awaiting a call so we quickly ran through her list for this week, but in the background I could hear a repetitive beeping sound. I asked Ms D if she could hear it too, to which she admitted yes, but only after I'd mentioned it.
Keen to find the cause I went into the kitchen and put my ear to each of her various electrical items, eventually narrowing the culprit to the fridge - the doors seemed to be closed okay, so I did a quick turn off/turn on which seemed to reset it. I agreed I'd check it again upon my return with the shopping, which thankfully proved a straightforward task (apart from a lack of pork sausages at the deli counter...)
After I'd put everything on the worktops, I listened hard but the beeping had stopped, and when I opened the door, the light came on and it felt chilled inside, so hopefully whatever fridge gremlin was playing up today had been banished...
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