A Pleasant Morning For A Puncture

This week sees the return of Monday night dog training which the Lad thoroughly enjoys and he also does rather well. The quiet open field on a Monday suits him better than the busy indoor arena we usually train in where it’s far too easy to get overexcited. Which is something he specialises in.

I cycle on Tuesday and get a puncture but it was actually quite nice... I can’t remember the last time I’ve repaired a puncture when it hasn’t been either dark, raining, cold or a combination of all three. It was a very pleasant morning to have a puncture and I even had it close to a layby, on Coventry Lane, with a bin to dispose of my old tube. Perfect really.

L says that only I could put a positive spin on a puncture.

 

I go to a presentation in Derby about renovating the Assembly Rooms because finally, after it being closed for five years, they are going to reopen. While I was there I got interviewed by the Derby Telegraph and got my photo in the local paper along with a quote of what I said which was basically ‘stop ****ing around and get it open’.

Wednesday is the second leg of the Play Off Semi Final with Leeds. I’m not too bothered about winning, all I ask is that I get my money’s worth if I’m paying Sky to watch it. That I certainly get.

Derby win 4-2 on the night, 4-3 on aggregate, becoming the first side ever to overturn a first-leg home defeat to make it to the Play-Off Final. While Leeds became the first side in a decade to lead the league at Christmas without going up. As I said, got my money’s worth.

After the game Frank Lampard’s bar bill goes viral after he ‘got a round in’ after the game. With 65 Grey Goose on the bill, among other things, they weren’t buying any old rubbish.

I have a Derby County themed night the following evening too as I take my Dad to an event called ‘90 Minutes With The Champions’ at Quad. The Champions here are the team that won the Division 2 title in 1969 and they manage to round up five of the team from that era, some of whom have better memories than others. Well it was 50 years ago.

Daughter comes over to dog sit. She runs to our house and then goes out on a dog job with the Lad. As L left for her tennis, MD was waiting, quivering in anticipation (or trepidation) because it was his turn next.

Daughter then stays over as the girls are doing the Sunrise City 5k in morning. These runs are now at 5:25am, five minutes earlier than before which is something to do with the tram timetable I believe.

I meet up with L after work, she has been visiting her Dad, and she suggests a post-work pint in the Exeter. It’s very shallow of me to be swayed by such an offer but there you go.  

(Friday 17^th May)

A Cold Run Home

It’s cold, -2, so I don’t fancy the bike instead I decide to bus and run... Must do something after my dreadful performance on Sunday.

I offer L the chance of jogging up to meet me in Bramcote and running home with me. She declines. I’m now even too slow for her.

It’s predicted to be a cold run home. The local paper forecasts pretty much 24 hours of constant snow, saying we’ll be buried under 8cm of the stuff by tomorrow. Will look forward to that. The BBC forecast disagrees totally, so it must be true. It’s due at 4pm.

4:30... still no snow... Not even any snowy looking clouds. 

5:00... still nothing. I jog to Chaddesden, then get the bus to Stapleford and run home from there. It goes relatively well, albeit very slowly. I don’t wheeze too much but then it is practically pan flat. The knee seems to hold up, at least it doesn’t get any worse.

(Tuesday 20^th January)

First Christmas Tree

One of the Nottingham’s pubs has been the first to put a Christmas Tree up on its roof. I won’t say which pub because I’m sure they’ve only done it for the publicity. Sadly, the local paper has fallen for it and printed a picture of it. Now of course, someone will try and trump then with an even earlier one next year.

I get the bus into work with the aim of running after work. Which I do but throughout my ankle doesn’t feel right, like the bones are grinding together. This isn’t unusual and has been an on-off condition since I spent years trashing my ankle on astroturf whilst playing football.

I can usually run it off but tonight it just gets worse. I was about to hop on a bus after a few miles but just missed it. With half an hour to the next one I pushed on and probably shouldn’t have done. By the time I get home its swelling up nicely.

Before things had got too critical I had stopped off in Derby’s new bike shop Cyclo Monster which is mainly a cyclocross place but does have road bikes as well. L seems open to the suggestion of a proper road bike with ‘curly’ handlebars, well it was her second choice after a trike, so I thought I’d see if they’d got any girlie specific ones. They have, the Scott Contessa, but it’s a bit pricey. I tell them we’ll think on it.

(Wednesday 18^th September)