An interesting conversation with Miss N today (who isn't a native English speaker, albeit her English is pretty good), as she recalled a colleague telling her that when British people ask "how are you" (which is how I greeted her at the door this morning) they aren't really expecting a ten minute explanation of exactly how you are...I admitted that the nuances of the English language can sometimes be confusing even to native speakers...and that the answer "I'm fine" can be equally baffling in terms of the breadth of circumstances it can cover.

Fortunately the shopping, apart from confusion over dates vs olives on the list, was not in any way subject to any nuance, although I do fear I left Miss N even more confused on the greeting front.

A reasonably short list today for Mrs S, who is clearly keeping up to date online on what is on offer at the world's politest supermarket, as she asked that I get her two boxes of the "porridge oats with the scotsman in the kilt doing this..." (at which point she accurately, and impressively, mimed putting the shot from her kitchen chair, thankfully without falling off said chair, which would've been awkward...).

One GoodGymer headed to TRAID to help clothes the gap between donations and the shop floor.

Armed with hangers and a can-do attitude, they got hung up on sorting and displaying pre-loved fashion, helping garments stay on the rails and out of landfill. Every item neatly hung was another piece given a second chance to suit a new owner.

It was a re-tail triumph, proving that even a solo model volunteer can make a big difference. No loose threads, no wardrobe malfunctions, just one GoodGymer helping TRAID keep sustainable fashion in vogue!

Needless to say, they absolutely hung out for the planet and left TRAID looking seam-lessly stocked!

After last week's failure to find shallots for Mr R, I was determined not to return empty handed this week. Tesco's shelves weren't stocking them, but his local greengrocer had both the round and elongated versions, so I was faced with a choice on which to get - I went with round, but next time I'll know it's the longer variety (easier to chop...) which gets his vote.

New faces at the Strand - Rice to Meet You: Biryani on the Strand. 4 Goodgymers(2 in red and 2 in black) made their way to a busy Strand new Charings Cross. Van unloaded, tables setup, drinks and crisps out ready to be handed out and the most important dish to be handed out: vegetable biryani(freshly cooked). Serving Up Kindness, One Biryani at a Time and in no time the big pot was empty and all the food was handed out. But then Jas brought something extra to go with the rice, crisps and water - brought fresh fruit and biscuits. Then it was time to clean and fold the tables and reload the van. Great work team - Biryani Relief: Powered by GoodGym and Gurseva

Top of Miss N's list this week was "brown bread"...when I asked her to explain, she directed me to (another) Turkish shop/restaurant on Church Street that bakes its own flat circular bread...and if I got to Al Madina I'd gone too far...I assured her I'd hunt down her treasure, starting with the bread, and really hoped I wouldn't miss the shop.

Little did I know that the bread really was baked on the premises, starting (obviously) with copious amounts of small hand shaped dough balls baked inside a very hot oven by one very skilful baker. A few minutes later, I had the bread, and soon after everything else on Miss N's list neatly fell into place too.