Surrounded by a sea of golden-yellow rape and basked in rays of sunlight soaring across an azure blue sky. The setting on this particular May weekend (12-13th) was simply picturesque as we made our way across the fields of our hometown.

As a matter of fact, you’d find it hard to believe that just three days prior to this, the skies were completely masked in grey cloud, with winds piercing through us at tremendous speeds.

Then again, maybe you wouldn’t, given the cloudy week just gone.

As some of you may already be aware, as a result of the weather, my charity skydive had to be called off and rescheduled for another date. It goes without saying, that I was very disappointed, but on the bright side, I still have it to look forward to and it has given me the chance to raise even more money for the BUAV.

The new date has been set for the 24th May and thus far, I have raised just short of £320, which is truly fantastic and I would like to personally thank everyone who has helped me make that! I have reached my self-set target of £300, but this is not to say that any additional funds wouldn’t be gratefully received. Unfortunately my fundraising has been limited to door-to-door and social endeavours and so the majority of you are unlikely to have me hammering on your door before Thursday. So, if you are able to spare a few pounds towards this great cause, please give the BUAV a call on 020 7700 4888 and let them know that you would like to donate some money in aid of the Charity skydive. They’d be thrilled to hear from you and all of this will contribute to the amazing work they carry out in order to abolish animal testing for good!

I have my fingers crossed for weather like this.

On a separate topic, for those of you that signed up to the Vegan Pledge this month, I hope yesterdays initial meeting went well and gave you some ideas and inspiration for the coming month. Even if you missed the meeting on this occasion, why not try going vegan anyway. If you need any assistance, the Vegan Society is there to help. It will have such a positive impact on your health and well-being, as well as saving the lives of hundreds of animals by cutting the demand for meat, fish and their by-products. Why not try some recipes and find out how amazing vegan food can be – forget the stereotypical assumptions!

I don’t particularly like nut roast either…

Most of the time, you’ll see me chowing down on a succulent slice of cake, digging into a big bowl of macaroni “cheese” or whipping up a hearty stir-fry. All vegan, of course! However, like anything, don’t give up if the first dish isn’t to your taste or hasn’t come out as you expected. It’s not because “it’s vegan”, it’s just about learning a different way of cooking and experimenting with new products.

After a little persuasion from myself, someone very close to me chose to take up the vegan pledge this month. Speaking with them last night, they said to me…

“The food was amazing! I think it was some of the best food I’ve ever tasted and it was vegan. I even asked them for all the recipes because I have to be able to make it again”