As I sat in the car on this chilly autumn* night with the hail hammering down I wondered whether ANYONE would show up to the session this evening, but I should not have feared as we had a complete register and a group of hardcore GoodGymers despite the challenging weather.

(*SUMMER - APPARENTLY)

Four of us met tonight to do a plog on the Tyne but it seemed frankly quite a silly thing to attempt given at one point there was so much rain we wouldn’t be able to tell where the path stopped and the river began. Maybe that’s a slight exaggeration but I hastily cobbled together a Plan B as thankfully Stepney Bank Stables brilliant task owner was still around to give us some warm and dry indoor stuff to do. Plog on the Tyne became a quick litter pick, shelf tidy and tack cleaning session and thankfully I don’t think anyone minded.

I added a sensory spin to the litter pick which made the time fly- filling three bags with stuff you can see, hear, touch, smell and taste. Don’t worry, it was hypothetical and more of a thinking challenge than a doing one and no GoodGymers were harmed in the making of his task. Heading back to the stables and on to two more jobs despite the fact the rain had briefly paused, we did some tidying up in the main entrance before finishing off with some tack clearing. If you’ve never done this last one, you won’t know how therapeutic it can be and it certainly seemed to spur on some deep conversation tonight too.

The next few weeks looks stacked with good stuff and we’d love to see you at a session again soon. Have you seen the Ouseburn Trust session on offer next Monday? It’s perfect for beginners so see if you can bring a friend along too.

Six years of GoodGym Newcastle!

In some ways this birthday milestone feels like it should be much higher, I don’t know about you but I struggle to remember a time before GoodGym was in my life. In other ways six years has gone by in the blink of an eye. Prior to tonight’s group session we had done 5092 good deeds, which given the monumental pause we had in the middle of this is pretty remarkable. Pats on all of the backs for this - 397 backs to be precise, as that’s how many people have done a good deed with us now. No wonder I struggle to remember names at times!

It was fitting that we were back to base for the session tonight for the first time in a few months to help our friends and hooved heroes at Stepney Bank Stables. It may have been the promise of drinks at The Ship Inn afterwards, but we also had a great attendance tonight when we were joined by nine people including one for the first time. We did a quick catch up on the weekend’s session that was a very last minute mulch request from our friends at EarthWatch, and brought Tom back from honeymoon with a bang! We loved welcoming Rob to his first ever session with us tonight and while it wasn’t a standard group run we hope it was a suitable initiation to the group.

Stepney Bank stables is a charity and community out project that works with young people to improve wellbeing through working with horses, and we are really proud to be able to help them regularly including for tonight’s session. A banquet of jobs is always on order and tonight was no different as we were sweeping and clearing in the arena, vacuuming the entrance, sweeping the outdoor ramp, chopping back nettles and collecting sticky weeds as a special foodie treat for the horses- this one came complete with feeding! To finish off, Rob got the best ever job for a GoodGym debutant - riding the quad to sweep the arena floor! Lucky or what?!

It was a shorter task this evening as we were eager to head over to The Ship Inn for celebratory birthday drinks and a superb homemade cake from Anna. Big thanks also to GoodGym HQ for sending us a crate of Athletic Brewing Company beers for the session- Tom had cracked his open before we’d even left the stables! It was so great to see Tanya and Debbie at the pub too who had come across in time after work.

Pints were drank, cake was slapped into open palms (no, really), a great end to a good start to the week.

As yet we don’t have a task for next Monday (sob!) so please send one my way if you know of a charity that could use our help. To ensure a GoodGym fix, there is a junior parkrun opportunity at Mowbray Juniors this Sunday so do help out if you can.

Thanks once again to everyone who’s been part of GoodGym Newcastle especially those run leaders and task force who help me to keep the cogs turning. You’re all brilliant.

A hastily rearranged task meant another litter pick for us this evening, and despite doing a lot of litter picking throughout January it was a good - and enthusiastic turn out this evening! What a lovely evening it was too- check out Charlotte's beautiful bridge photo.

It was a calm and clear night for our all-walking group run so we quickly caught up on a busy weekend- not realising til much later that we have also passed 5000 good deeds in the last week- how amazing is that?! Heading off downhill and towards the Quayside there wasn't a great deal to collect until our arrival to The Cycle Hub. The long car park fence is a trap for rubbish when it's been windy and in no time three bags were filled with bottles, cans, takeaway cartons and much more. It was a good chance to catch up on what everyone is up to- from moving house to holidays to the best way to take a selfie!

This was a hastily wrapped-up session as it was also a social night and straight on to The Ship Inn. A perfect way to start the week.

It was a nice sunny Saturday morning as Beth, Aimee and I met up at the Staithes cafe in Gateshead. Our mission, should we choose to accept it, was to spread the word about a window art exhibition(which I thought was a super cool idea!). Navigating the estate wasn't an easy task though and we frequently stopped to consult the map, to check which streets we've covered.

I also got distracted by this gorgeous cat who sprinted at full speed towards me then promptly laid down for belly rubs!

We finally managed to successfully deliver the massive box of leaflets and had a nice catch up over tea and cake at the really nice, but very busy, Staithes Cafe.