It was a glorious and surprisingly warm morning in Hanwell when team GoodGym and team HANGOT met on Saturday. They made the most of it with a long walk along the sunny side of the canal to one of the furthest orchards from HANGOT's base, Blackberry Corner.

HANGOT's plan for the day was to prepare the orchard for winter and also be good neighbours to the nearby canal users. There were a few jobs to complete:

1. Cutting vegetation along the fence line to give more light to canal users
2. Clearing weeds from around the trees
3. Stopping animals from eating their bark
4. Checking for any damage or disease

Clive from HANGOT explained that there were small muntjac deer in the area who loved to eat the bark of apple trees. There were also rumours of giant rabbits around too who did the same. That wasn't the only rumour at today's session as there were stories of an animal paw being found in the cuttings pile 🐾😮!

The first 2 jobs would allow the team to tick off 3 and 4 as well. Kash and Steph grabbed shears and worked along the orchard's east fence, cutting away weeds and tree suckers. They also found dead branches that the boaters had cut from high up in the trees, so they were scooped up and added to the new cuttings pile.

Giles and Sevan trimmed circles around the fruit trees as HANGOT often do to give the trees' roots more water and less competition for nutrients from the soil. They also spot checked the tree guards gaps to be patched. Giles went on to rake up cuttings from HANGOT's scythers which all headed onto the new cuttings pile too. As the session came to an end, Sevan dipped into the old cuttings to use as mulch around the tree trunks.

This was the last task of 2026 with HANGOT as work winds down for the year. After a tough summer for all of HANGOT's orchards, Blackberry Corner was left in a good state to welcome winter and hungry animals 🦌🐇. We'll be back in January for HANGOT's next Orchard Love Day, preparing for the coming spring and new growth 🌱.

Melissa and Alan arrived muscles-ready to move a bed and a wardrobe to allow building repairs to take place in one of Ms C's rooms. On arrival though, it was clear that this would not be so straightforward: the wardrobes were full of clothes and the bed piled high with miscellaneous items. And there was no free space in Ms C's flat to move things to.

Undeterred, the GoodGym duo took a key first step by helping clear out the wardrobes. While Ms C was keen to keep most of her extensive clothing collection, a few bags were designated for recycling or charity shops.

Ms C was delighted to have made a start on the clearance work.

Giles cycled in the cold to Southall Parkrun and Steph Ducat ran o his side. When both arrived at the starting section, they were hit by a downpour of leaves 🍃. The track was full of leaves and it looked beautiful with a background of white grass, rising sun and some Egyptian geese. Both Goodgymers were marshals today. Giles at point 1 at the end of the straight line while Steph Ducat was at point 2 with his twin brother and 2 sides to cover. We were also happy to see Bethan from GG Hounslow doing the parkrun with a friend. It was a cold start but a warm finish as the sun was shining lon the smiley faces.

The last couple of days have been very cold with some freezing temperatures. Today arrived at Mr T flat to find him watching rugby and under a massive blanket as the temperatures went down today. He feels the cold temperatures a bit more and hurts his right hip. He was snug under the blanket and was jot going anywhere in the cold.

Unfortunately the kitchen in the Crypt at St John’s church is still out of action - chefs Gayle and Nigel used the upstairs church kitchen to cook chicken in a satay sauce (with a tofu alternative), wheeled it downstairs on a trolley and used space blankets to keep it warm for the clients! The usual activities took place: tea and coffee, bingo, chess, hot showers, clothes distribution and food parcels. The hot meal was much appreciated on such a cold day. I spent my time today mainly washing up and helping to clean up after lunch. My reward was a bowl of delicious crumble and custard!

Having shopped for Mr G many times, I pride myself on being able to gather his items without needing to refer to the (very helpful) set of labels he provides.

Today, I was just about to press "Finish and pay" at the checkout when I remembered he'd asked me to add a Chicken Korma to the list. A brisk (but careful) jog across the store and I was able to grab one and get back to the checkout before the store attendant was alerted to intervene.

Mr G's other two chicken products were not in stock, necessitating close substitutions, but Mr G was grateful as ever for the GoodGym support in getting his food supplies for the week.