Day 6 - 5 pm

Or 17:00.  Time for PM on BBC Radio!

I'm a Radio 4 listener.  I wake to the Today programme and am entertained by the 6:30 comedy slot as I cook dinner.  On Saturday mornings I tune in to the repeat of Any Questions followed by Any Answers and on Sunday morning I decide on how much of the Sunday morning service I listen to by the quality of the hymns.  In between times there's PM, Woman's Hour, Excess Baggage, From our Own Correspondent, A Point of View, the Food Programme ... not to mention the Shipping Forecast!  My life would genuinely be the poorer without it.

One of my earliest childhood memories is of the strains of Lillibullero preceding the BBC World Service News every breakfast time, and so I was delighted when I discovered that my elder daughter recognised the testy John Humphry's voice from an early age.

Her younger sister is always pinching my radio from its shelf in the kitchen to entertain her as she sews or draws in the dining room.  But she prefers Radio 1 and never changes the station back when she finishes with it!   

Day 5 - A Smile

My younger daughter has a rather lovely smile.  She says it's the same as her Dad's and she's probably right.  She looks like him, while my elder daughter takes after me.  A well balanced family. 

I would have taken a better photo had I been able to do so in daylight but school and work precluded this so I've had to make do.

Day 4 - Bedside

I don't have a bedside table,  Normally this pile would have been on the floor, but I've been engaged in a bit of spring cleaning lately and it has been moved to sit atop a stack of Ikea storage boxes.

The collection includes my battered Bible (an RSV which I've had since I was a teenager), Kazuo Ishiguro's Remains of the Day (I am an admirer of both his writing and the film of the same name), Through Wood by Alison Swinfen which I once used for a woodland meditation, a graphic biography of Darwin(?), a copy of the Liberal Democrats' manifesto reduced to 10p which I bought for a laugh, Jim Crace's Arcadia which I've struggled with (having enjoyed Quarantine), a notebook, last year's lectionary, a book on happiness which came free with the Observer, my glasses and a badge which I found during my cleaning.

I wonder what these random(?) items say about me.

Day 3 - My Neighbourhood

This is North Street Green, a pocket handkerchief-sized green space, a few minutes from where I live.

It is the site of the annual Best of Bedminster (BoB) Show, an urban fair celebrating the local community.

It is also one of the sites of the annual Upfest, an internationally famous urban art festival.  The wall on the left hand side of the photo is the outdoor canvas for this vibrant art form. 

The tree is in full blossom and there is  a blanket of crocuses (crocii?) in its shade.

Spring has sprung!

Day 2 - Fruit

Three tomatoes from last week's Riverford box.

I cancelled this week's delivery on account of the backlog from last week.  How this has happened in a week when I've given up meat for Lent and should be eating considerably more vegetables, I don't know.

Actually I do.  It's the usual suspects - cabbage, celeriac and beetroot.  They're always last to leave the box and sadly, on some occasions, only to be transferred to the compost bin!  I'm going to have to arm myself with a sheaf of recipes to solve this problem.  Any tried and tested ideas will be gratefully received. 

Life without The Big Four

On 2 March 2011, following the second application for permission to build a Sainsburys megastore at Ashton Gate was approved by Bristol City Council, I vowed never to darken the door of any of the Big Four (Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda and Morrisons) again.  Although there had been no conflict of interest in my campaigning, the arguments revolving round the scale of the development, I finally decided that I no longer wished to support businesses who I believe exercise a detrimental effect not only on our high streets but on our way of life.  One year on and I am pleased to report that, with one exception (when helping my daughter to stock her cleaning cupboard in Glasgow) I have succeeded in my resolve.

Does this mean that I no longer frequent any supermarket?  No, I'm afraid not, but I have switched my loyalty to those whose ethos is more acceptable to me and where I try to restrict my purchases to items I can't easily find/afford elsewhere.  Every couple of months I place an internet order with Waitrose and in between times I pop in and out of our local Co-op and Aldi.   

So where do I buy most of my food?  Well, I'm fortunate enough to live within walking distance of two thriving high streets.  My meat comes from a butcher, my vegetables from an organic box scheme, my milk is delivered by a milkman, my bread comes from one of three bakers, my coffee is bought and ground in the deli where I also refill my cleaning product bottles.  A weekly market keeps me in fish, local cheeses and speciality sausages.

There have been compromises and a way to go before I'm happy with where all my food comes from, but I'm satisfied that I'm heading in the right direction.

To read Henry Porter's damning indictment of supermarkets in last week's Observer click here.

March Photo a Day Challenge: Day 1 - Up

I've been following Little Green Shed's progress in Fatmumslim's February Photo a Day Challenge and have decided to give it a go myself in March.

This is the ceiling of our local swimming pool.  It's an old Victorian baths and, although in need of repair, retains its original charm, which I prefer to a sleek shiny leisure centre.  And I'm not the only one.  It has featured in recent episodes of Sherlock Holmes and The Inside Men.

There are current plans to renovate the pool, including exposing the original windows to allow the pool to be bathed in daylight.