Leap year madness

I don't know what came over me. I woke up on Friday morning thinking that it was just another day in the office - or should I say at home - working on the final pages of the new ecoescape book. Andy was around in the background working on the final pages of his thesis, so it seemed pretty straight forward to me.

But then I had a mad moment at lunch and decided to ask Andy to marry me! As it's a leap year, the girls are allowed to pop the question (else the boys have to pay a fine/buy girl new dress). Luckily Andy said 'yes' which was just great. Except we have no idea how to go about this marriage thing. It feels like the right thing to do for both of us, we just don't know how to do it! I mean, how does one choose a ring, or more importantly, break the news to parents. Let's say, the latter was a learning curve and I've never seen Andy so nervous before. It took him all day to summon up the guts to ask for my parents' permission and, of course, they were absolutely delighted - phew!

So now that part's done, I'm finding it hard to tell everyone else I know so I'm hoping they may read this blog and that's job done. I keep drafting a text message but it just seems wrong - or worse still I could broadcast a 'status update' on Facebook! No way! So my plan is to see how far and wide my mother can spread the news and the rest I'll fill in with some face-to-face get-togethers starting this weekend at what should be our flat warming party. That's unless they read this first...

So to the future then. And I'll not get carried away with spending. I'll not get carried away with spending. I'll just keep repeating that to myself and hope it stops me.

Any ideas or advice on how this marriage thing works, please write!

Eco Age Store in Chiswick

Eco Age Store Chiswick
Originally uploaded by ecoescape

This weekend I ventured over to Chiswick to check out Colin Firth's new Eco Store on the High Street. Hoping to see the man himself, I was full of expectation. It was a well thought out place with lots of designer goodies and pretty things for the house like fairtrade cushions. There's also a roof-top terrace but access is only available by invitation only - may be that's where Colin meets his guests in person. Alas he wasn't to be seen on Saturday. But I enjoyed looking through his elegant and eco-friendly wares.

Heels and Wheels in Hackney

Taking a break from my busy writing schedule, I got myself down to Columbia Road in London for a cycle wear fashion show as part of London Fashion Week. The models paraded some interesting, and some downright wacky bicycle fashions. The crowd turned out on a cold Valentine's evening and enjoyed the entertainment provided by a pair of acrobatic cyclists sporting some fine tweeds and cycling along to some good tunes (Talking Heads, Kraftwerk - my favs!). The piece de la resistance came in the form of a flower covered bicycle with a big heart shape crest thing. Marvellous.

Andy in his snow shoes

Andy in his snow shoes
Originally uploaded by ecoescape

We've just returned from a week long trip to Chamonix having discovered the fun but absolutely exhausting sport of snow shoeing. Apparently it's better for the environment too as wildlife is less disturbed. I loved climbing the mountains and wandering around alpine forests and picturesque chalets window-deep in snow. Julie was our knowledgable guide. She runs a company called Tracks and Trails: www.tracks-and-trails.com.

New Year, New City

Three days into the new year, and I found myself in a new house in a new city. Leaving Nottingham after 6 years and coming to London wasn't a difficult choice to make. I've been meaning to move to London for a while, and so here I am. Nottingham had lots of good points, not least for being cheaper to live in, but I have grown a little tired of travelling up and down the good old Midland Mainline between London and Nottingham. I thought it was time to see if the pavements are really lined with gold here in London - well, at least travelling around the country will be easier. As of course all the train operators tend to spiral out from the capital city. So despite living bang in the middle of the UK in Nottingham, it wasn't always helpful for train services. Now I'm living in South London and adjusting myself to a faster pace of life.

The move was nothing short of stressful. Downsizing to a one bedroomed flat with all our stuff came as a massive challenge over Christmas. The local charity shops did very well, but I was distressed to see how much we also threw away. Some to recycle, some - shamefully - not. All this taught me a valuable lesson - not to accumulate rubbish- or things! Things, things, things. Do we really need them? My method of keeping or getting rid, became a task of deciding if I'd miss the possession after a week of not seeing it. The answer was usually no, and so it had to go. Now I'm in London and thankfully everything fitted into the flat. We'll see how life in south London compares to life up north. So far, so good.

We fought and won

Well, in my last month of living in Nottingham (yes, I'm leaving for the Big Smoke), I managed to help save the local Post Office. It appears that those people at PO Ltd took leave of their senses for a while but came back to us and declared that Melton Road Post Office would stay open! Hoorah. Christmas came early for Tripta and Vijay, the ameniable Post Mistress and Master who'll be missed very much when I leave to go and live in Brixton in January. They were grateful for my efforts in putting together the petition which amounted to over 4,000 signatures all told.

Laura at the Cross at Kingussie

Laura at the Cross at Kingussie
Originally uploaded by ecoescape

OK, so I've been on the road on my own for a while now. Moments of either boredom or mild insanity lead me to taking random self timer pictures and here's one of them (right). It's at The Cross Hotel in Kingussie in Scotland.

It was a great place - the food was special in particular. All the produce is sourced locally and it tastes just great too. I had smoked salmon in a simple lime and ginger marinade for starter and delicious halibut for main course. Much of the food is organic too.