"for the happy, the sad, I don't want to be, another page in your diary"

Friday 30 November 2018

Once A Week Doesn’t Cut It


I mistakenly pick Tuesday this week as my running night. The weather is foul. Wet and cold. L offers to pick me up from my run so that I don’t freeze to death waiting for the bus. She seems very keen to offer but then it does get her out of ball chucking duties.

Not that you can't really chuck balls if it's raining. Although try telling that to MD but then this is the dog who can’t even decide which ball he’s using.

I run my now usual route towards Long Eaton and L cruises towards me. In the end she waits for me outside the pub on Wilsthorpe Island. This knocks about a mile off my route which given the conditions is fine. In fact I wish it was more.

Wednesday is possibly fouler, so the Tuesday choice suddenly doesn't look so bad. I’m glad I'm not running then or cycling. I save the cycling until Friday. Dogging is Wednesday though and Monday as well.

Thursday is squash but I couldn’t get a court for our usual time of 6.45, so we play at 7.30 which my opponent complains is almost past his bedtime. MD disgraces himself later in the pub and wees up the chairs. I have to do a hasty mop up job with some serviettes.

Friday’s cycling is hard work, very hard work. Once a week doesn’t really cut it.

L’s tennis is on a Friday this week and we pick her up afterwards.

(Friday 30th November)

Sunday 25 November 2018

All For A Hoodie


Today we are in Clowne which is midway between Worksop and Chesterfield, all for a hoodie. This is the second time I have run the Clowne Half Marathon. The first time was in 2015 and they insured that I would probably never come back when they handed me the red race t-shirt with Santa and his Elves on it.

Well, would you believe it, the following year they scrapped the Christmas themed t-shirt idea and started handing out hoodies instead which were not red and didn’t Santa or his Elves on them. Various folk, you know who you are, have been flaunting these must have articles of clothing ever since.

So here I am. L, clearly not a hoodie chaser, isn’t joining me in the race.

The run itself is undulating, obviously, and is a jaunt through several local villages. It goes well and I record a 'ok' time of 1:45:48. Which I then compare with my time in 2015, which was on the back of doing 1:40:01 at Leicester but was 1:50:16. Hmmm. Today’s time is perhaps not as rubbish as I thought.

Again the injuries have stayed away but, I’m sure, the moment I enter my target race of April’s Manchester Marathon...

(Sunday 25th November)

Friday 23 November 2018

Andrex Puppy Take 2


There is nothing worse than a bored puppy. The lad has another go at being the Andrex puppy and although he’s getting better, I don’t think he’s quite got the hang of it yet. All toilet rolls now go in the bathroom cupboard.

He’ll be even more bored later in the week as the park is closed Wednesday to Friday.

Thankfully for his energy levels, dog training goes ahead on Monday and on Tuesday.

L and Daughter dump their old running club and go along to try a different one at Redhill near Daughter’s work. L is worried that they’ll all be super speedy but then isn’t the purpose of any running club to be speedy? I’m sure they’ll both fit in very well. I just hope they’ve packed their fastest trainers.

On Tuesday I manage to bike to work and on Wednesday I run again but blimey, it isn’t warm. I end up in Long Eaton again and again finish up on the Indigo. I don't amass any new injuries.

I’m back in London on Tuesday but in more accessible Islington this time, so I get to go on the train. First Class naturally. As usual lunch was courtesy of Tesco Express but they did make me a coffee for once.

The day went well and I even got to leave early. Leaving enough time for a pint of HSB and to check out the watches at Swatch stall to pick my own Christmas pressie.

L tells me she is definitely handing in her notice to the tennis group tonight but then she has a great time and doesn’t.

With the park shut on Friday we run with the dogs which is always a laugh.

(Friday 23rd November)