Countdown to Christmas: Day 2

It's the second day of our Yuletide celebrations. Today was more of an outdoor kinda day (for me - Rob was at work all day).

Walk in the Woods

I had a lovely walk in Blackley Forest today, listening to Christmas music and looking out for all the signs that the Holly King's reign has truly begun. There's a beautiful glade of silver birch trees in the forest, and I've fallen into the tradition of visiting it each December, standing in the middle of it and listening to 'Carol of the Bells'.

Stollen

Tonight, I had a bit of a difficult thing to do, as it was the monthly Friends of Crumpsall Park committee meeting, and sadly the meeting when I resigned as treasurer. I've been treasurer for eight years, and I still love the park a lot, but it's time for me to hand over to someone else now. I took some stollen for the committee so that it wasn't all doom and gloom!

Advent Tea

Today's tea in my Bird and Blend advent calendar was Earl Grey Creme!

Advent Model

Today's model in our other advent calendar was a little Christmas wreath!

Countdown to Christmas: Day 1

It begins! Time to get festive again! Last Christmas seems so long ago - I hope I can remember how to celebrate.

Litter-Pick in the Park

The first day of December was the monthly Friends of Crumpsall Park litter-pick. For the past 8 years, I've been organizing these litter-picks each month, but I've recently decided to step down and hand the baton on to someone else. Since it was my last litter-pick (as organizer) and the first day of our Christmas celebrations, I brought mulled apple juice and mince pies to share with the other volunteers.

Festive Afternoon Tea

We went to Stockport Plaza for Festive Afternoon Tea this afternoon, and it was SO festive. We had a lovely afternoon tea (including mince pies), a glass of champagne and some Christmas songs. We were warned that we'd be unlikely to see Santa, as the detector showed him as still being in the North Pole. I swear, when I spotted that the hand had moved around, I was more excited that I've been for a long time. Oh, and the scones were Cornwall-style, not Devon, by the way.

Advent Tea

Rob got me a Bird and Blend tea advent calendar again this year. Yay! Today's advent tea was Gingerbread Chai.

Advent Model

Rob also got us a quirky Lego not Lego advent calendar with a little model to make behind each door. I think at the end, you can combine the models to make four big ones but for now we're making a little one each day.

31 Days of Halloween: Day 19

It's Day 19 of our Halloween celebrations, and I had a couple of community events today (followed by a couple of horror films).

Pumpkin Earrings

Wearing my new pumpkin earrings today!

Late Autumn Walk in the Park

I led a Late Autumn Walk in the Park today for Friends of Crumpsall Park, talking about seasonal traditions, nature and folklore.

Samhain Walk in the Woods

And then straight after that, I headed to Blackley to lead a Samhain Walk in the Woods for Friends of Bailey's Wood, also talking about seasonal traditions, nature and folklore.

Black Forest Cake

Little afternoon snack after all the walking and talking.

Spaghetti Squash

Rob cooked our spaghetti squash for tea tonight. It was so good.

H is for Halloween

Carrying on with our A-Z of horror tonight, and the choice for H was a pretty obvious one!

I is for I Know What You Did Last Summer

And then a classic 90s slasher to complete our double bill.

31 Days of Halloween: Day 12

It's the twelfth day of our Halloween celebrations, and I think my cold might be starting to lift! Time to crack on with celebrating the season!

Park Write – Spooky Season

This afternoon, I ran a spooky-themed creative writing workshop in the park for Friends of Crumpsall Park.

F is for Friday the 13th

We were back on our Halloween A-Z this evening, starting with Friday the 13th.

G is for Ghost Story

And then we watched Ghost Story (after a bit of back-and-forth about which 'G' film to watch).

31 Days of Halloween: Day 6

Day 6 of our Halloween celebrations, and we were out and about for a lot of the day.

Litter-Pick in the Park

This morning kicked off with the monthly Friends of Crumpsall Park litter-pick. Mostly, this was an excuse to take pictures of mushrooms, golden leaves and cobwebs.

Roam for Cats

In the afternoon, Rob and I went for a 5-mile walk as part of our Cats Protection Roam for Cats challenge (we're a bit behind our target of 100 miles).

D is for Death Line

Continuing our Horror A-Z with Death Line...

E is for Eden Lake

... and then Eden Lake.

Events in October 2024

Park Write - Spooky Season
Saturday 12th October
2.00–5.00pm
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be running a creative writing workshop in the park with a seasonal writing theme
Booking Link

Virtual Writing Retreat
Sunday 13th October
10.30–5.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf
I'm hosting an online writing retreat for creative writers with writing exercises and structured writing sessions
Members Event

Late Autumn Walk in the Park
Saturday 19th October
11.00–12noon
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the park to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Samhain Walk in the Woods
Saturday 19th October
2.30–3.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the woods to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Halloween Story Walk in the Woods
Wednesday 23rd October
11.00–12.00pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a fun, creative walk in the woods with a Halloween theme
Booking Link

A Nightmare on Nelson Street 2: Emmeline's Revenge
Thursday 26th October
6.30–8.30pm
Pankhurst Museum
I'll be leading a weird history walk along Nelson Street, before returning to the Pankhurst Centre for Halloween brews and tales suffragettes and werewolves
Booking Link

Hannah's Bookshelf Halloween Special
Saturday 26th October
2.00–4.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf / North Manchester FM
I'll be hosting the annual Halloween edition of my regular radio show on North Manchester FM, including 3 Minute Scares flash fiction
Submission Link

Saturday the 26th - Horror in the Woods!
Saturday 26th October
5.00–6.00pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a walk in the woods with unsettling tales of the forest
Booking Link

Ghost Stories Walk and Talk
Wednesday 30th October
11.00–12.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the woods with some spooky stories
Booking Link

Halloween Film Afternoon
Wednesday 30th October
1.00–4.00pm
Castlerea House
I'll be hosting a Halloween film afternoon (with a bit of seasonal poetry) for residents at Castlerea care home
Private Event

Interested in booking me for an event? Click here to find out more.

Autumn Equinox: Day 6

It's the penultimate day of us celebrating the beginning of autumn, and oh boy! we've got a lot going on today.

Crumpsall Park Autumn Equinox Walk

This morning, I led a gentle, social walk for Friends of Crumpsall Park to enjoy the changing seasons in the park (especially the trees!).

Hannah’s Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special

This afternoon was my Hannah's Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special on North Manchester FM, where I shared some folklore of the season, but also played a selection of original, seasonal flash fiction from some fantastic writers who contibuted to the show. Also... I brought in apple pies for the volunteers at the community centre where the radio station is based.

Cherry Pie

I've had a LOT of apple pie so far this autumn, so I thought I'd mix it up and have cherry.

Bailey’s Wood Autumn Equinox Walk

After the radio show, I led a seasonal walk for Friends of Bailey's Wood, sharing folklore and stories of the season and enjoying the woods getting its autumn clothes on.

Autumn Equinox Dinner

Tonight was our Autumn Equinox Dinner, and Rob made us the traditional meal of meatloaf and root vegetable rice, followed by blackberry crumble (made with blackberries I picked when I went mad for brambling at the end of the summer).

Autumn Equinox Gifts

After dinner, we shared our traditional Autumn Equinox cards and gifts. Two more whiskies to add to the tasting set we'll be enjoying in December.

Dark Night of the Scarecrow

For the past couple of years, we've struggled to find a film that could be our regular seasonal film (we've got one for all the other seasons). But... the quest is over! Our (newly) traditional Autumn Equinox film is Dark Night of the Scarecrow!