Shoe Boxes

I was reading the paper the other night and was delighted to see an article about the 'Pack a Christmas shoe box" as part of the Mustard seed Jersey appeal. 

I'm sure many of you are aware of the scheme as it's been going since 1998 - essentially it involves packing a shoe box with gifts and other useful items.  The box then gets loaded into a truck and someone has the unenviable job of driving it from Jersey to Romania where they're distributed to those most in need.  (see Mustard Seed Appeal)

The reason I'm mentioning all this is because I remember helping mother to make a couple of shoeboxes.  I don't think I was that old, so it could have been right around the time the appeal started, but it's stuck in my mind because it gave young me some perspective as to how fortunate we were as kids over here. 

"I'll make a shoebox. What a lovely idea to honour her memory" I thought. 

The only problem? I've missed the cut off date so i'll have to wait until next year. At least I have months to think about what to put in it, rather than the standard Christmas routine of trying to get presents last minute...

Talking of presents, it's technically Jacks 30th birthday today as its 12:15am, as I write this.  He's at work tomorrow night, so i've given him his present early. 

Most of us boys spent the day in the shed today assembling a wood chipper that i've bought.  It goes on the back of the tractor and will mean I no longer have to light fires to burn brushwood after I cut it - instead I can turn it into woodchip.  It's got a chute that means I can fire the woodchip back into nature, or load it into our trailer and do something else with it.

The only other notable thing from today is that we had to take the truck to go 'rescue' a Mr NS who'd got his car stuck in a field...