Even though it was only mid afternoon, Mr T's local Lidl was surprisingly busy, and a fair bit of nifty footwork was required when going up and down the aisles to collect his items from the shelves to avoid being bashed or tripped by the ubiquitous blue trolleys...

The queue to pay was already stretching back beyond the freezers into the red wine section, and when I joined with trolley in tow, I found myself staring at bottles of Argentine Malbec for quite some while before the usual Lidl shuffle propelled me towards the checkout area.

Thankfully there were quite a few (working) cash taking tills today, and some fairly proactive marshalling by the staff, so it didn't take long to get through and back out into the sunshine and a chance for a good catch up with Mr T back in the comfort of his flat.

Hidden behind a nook - somewhere just north of Camden Town - is a secret garden called Adelaide.

A door that's inconspicuous. A sign that's easily passed. And rows of houses that disguise the scale of what's inside...

...it was our first time visiting Adelaide Community Garden this Wednesday, and as we walked (and walked (and walked)) through this special sanctuary, we were all left wondering: "does this garden have an end?"

Which it did, and which we were all thankful for. Especially as our task, as the light fell, involved scooting up and down the full length of Adelaide's pathways.

This wonderful group - Emily, Gosia, Helen (on their first GG good deed - welcome!!!), Jackie, John, Nivia, Sarah, Siobhan, and Steve - made a huge difference this week!

Our task was to distribute a total of 200 sacks of (freshly delivered) soil and fertiliser - in piles of 7 sacks - to specific named plots.

Cue wheelbarrows ferrying, sacks aloft shoulders, and trolleys busying - and all amidst shouts of plot-owners' names - "I have 2 manures for Marie!" - "can anyone see Brian's, I have 3 sacks of fertiliser!" - etc!!

As night truly landed, our happy group finished this mammoth task. It made a big difference, and it was an evening filled with fun, connection, and teamwork!!

Here's to next time!!

Ms F is always surprised that I take the stairs, carrying her shopping to the 5th floor, especially the 9 kg of bottled still water. It was no different this time.

"You don't like the lift, I know", she said.

She remembered. That's what I always say. While that's absolutely true, it's more about me just liking the stairs rather than not liking the lift. It's he water's weight, the uphill, the heart beating faster. Just a little bit of discomfort. That's what makes you stronger. That's what makes you savour life.

Taking the stairs instead of the lift. Taking a walk instead of the bus. Doing the mission in the rain (not today for me!) rather than staying in cosy home. That's what makes me feel alive. Resting on a couch afterwards feels more relaxing, the sleep becomes calm, simple food tastes better, not so warm house feels cosy. Everyday things bring delight. No joke.

GoodGym volunteered at Caledonian Junior Parkrun. The park looked gorgeous today 😍 with daffodils, magnolias and other trees all starting to bloom. It was not that sunny but one could definitely feel the spring 🌱.

We arrived at the gathering spot at 08:45 and met there the other volunteers.

Gosia was marshalling and - again - covered the position one, close to the start line. Accompanied by the bubble 🫧 machine, she was making sure youngsters had this "special" twist when starting the race as well as whenever they got to pass the same spot after.

John was handing out the finish tokens this time so stood just after the finish line. He had a tambourine 🎵 to celebrate the moment along with the race finishers. He handed over around 28 tokens this time so it was not a record but still pretty good turnaround 🙂.

After the race we met at the clocktower 🕚 to hand over our kit and stay couple more minutes to chat 💬.

Gosia traveled to Camden today to help out with Mr T's weekly shopping 🛍. Spring was so kind to show her sunny face again and made it an absolute pleasure to wander around the city today.

I arrived at the property at exactly 5 pm, on my way back from work. Fortunately the building was easily recognisable and with good instructions on how to find Mr T's flat ✅️. It's not always the case!

Mr T went out of his apartement to welcome me, he invited me inside right away. He was very kind and chatty 💬, told me a story of him drinking some strong alcoholic drinks in Polish clubs "back in the days" 😄🥛.

He had a shopping list 📝 as well as the cash 💵 already prepared. We quickly went through the items together and Mr T allowed me to take pics of some of the items from his fridge and pantry to make it easier to find the right items in the shop. He also lend me a trolley bag to help out with the carrying.

I bought most of the items in Lidl and visited Tesco just to buy a Warburtons bread 🍞. Unfortunately I couldn't get the tomatoes 🍅 that Mr specifically requested (ones in a red string bag), but he was all right about in the end.

I came back after around 40 mins. Mr T even borrowed me his fob so I didn't need to bother him to let me in. I handed over the trolley and chatted for few more minutes before leaving.

I did advise him to look out of the window from time to time as the weather is gorgeous ☀️😍.

Every month it gets a little brighter.

That was our feeling as our wonderful group - Charlie, Emilie, Kathleen, Jackie, John, Siobhan (on their first GoodGym good deed - welcome!!), and Steve - met at our regular haunt for green-fingered activities, Cecil Sharp House.

Spring is nearly here - we all said - even if - we still need our head torches.

With the garden lit and tools distributed, this special group swiftly started on a list of helpful tasks:

✅ Charlie, Emilie, Kathleen, John, and Steve tackled (magnificently) the sneaky weeds living between the cracks (and who were about to shoot high for spring!)

✅ Jackie bagged leaves and picked weeds behind the shed and by the front gate (making a huge and very visible difference!)

✅ Steve (taking a break from the sneaky weeds) and Alex pulled 2 severed rope-esque roots from (deep) in the ground!

✅ Siobhan (also taking a break from the sneaky weeds) filled watering can upon watering can and gifted the greenhouse a spot of hydration :)

Thank you, everyone for your time and energy - it was a wonderful evening!

Here's to next time!!