Djanogly Untamed

It's almost like skiing weather today, nice crispy snow and bright sunshine, except this is Nottingham not the Alps. The forecast is a bit disappointing as well; don’t think we’ll get much more.

As I walk to the bus I’m passed by a lad doing his paper round on our estate by chauffeur driven car. His mother I assume. Pampered child or what.

Despite already have done my regulation two gym sessions this month, I might to do a third due to all this ice and snow. L proposes yet another different leisure centre, this time Djanogly.

Djanogly? Hmmm, radical. She’s trying to unsettle my delicate equilibrium and Doggo’s. At least it’ll give him some different people to boot stare at. I also can’t recall if the equipment faces to or from the walls there? These things matter but I’ll give it a go.

In the end doing Djanogly isn’t as easy to do as you would think. The entry gate is locked and only the exit gate, clearly labelled with a big red ‘no entry’ sign, is open. So we go in that way, as must have everyone else because despite being so unwelcoming, it's packed.

I do 10k on the bike, which seems harder than at the other places, either their settings are different or my legs are. Then I do a 2k row, followed by a 2k run. Where again I think their settings are different, as 14kph feels nothing like 14kph. It must be my legs again.

At least no one takes issue with my Four Villages Half Marathon t-shirt, accusing me of not running it, as it was snowed off. The girl in the Rushcliffe 10k t-shirt better not say anything. At least I didn't run further than she did run.

(Tuesday 22^nd January)

A Punishing Schedule

L reckons she’s just done her last ever paper round covering for Daughter. That’s a shame. I've always enjoyed the personalised service even if she never did don the
short shirt and white ankle socks like they did when I was a lad.

L’s sister has Olympic tickets. Bravo. She’s the only person out of around twenty that I know who got any. At least I can brag that I know someone who got a ticket even if I can’t go myself. She’s become a minor celebrity.

According to the TV some people got three lots or more. That shouldn’t be allowed. Of course I could have got up at 6am to try and got a foot in the door for the one remaining reasonably priced athletics session but everybody will be doing the same thing and the website will grind to a halt. So I didn’t. By the time I did check at 8.30 everything bar football, weightlifting, volleyball and wrestling had gone. All sold by 6.45 apparently.

Daughter floats out of her last exam, the one she was least looking forward to. It seems to have gone well. I hope she quoted Chomski, Skinner, Piaget et all. I would have done.

My dodgy calf is improving all the same but still I opt out of tonight’s race. A good call, as it rains again, just like last year. It’s the start of a busy week for L. Four runs and a Glee concert in the next eight days. Now that’s a punishing schedule for anyone, particularly the Glee concert.

The race, the Heanor 5 miler, is at Shipley Cricket Club and looks to be quite challenging e.g. hilly. I might have liked those hills but never mind, I spectate instead. There’s quite a crowd watching, a noisy crowd too or was that just Doggo and MD. Doggo is always noisy at races because he feels he should be joining in but MD has never been that bothered until recently. Now he’s becoming a right pain, perhaps ever since I did that one race with him. It’s not warm to spectate either, I’m glad they’ve got coffee laid on.



The goody bag is good, which comes my way. A drinks bottle, I always need new drinks bottles, and a selection pack of High 5. Useful to me.

We get home at around nine and head into town, via the chip shop, which is perhaps a mistake. It wasn’t brilliant. We head into town on the off chance that Daughter decides to join us for a midnight drink, when she becomes 18, because I guess one of our local pubs where she’s been going since she was five wouldn’t be quite what she had in mind. In the end though she doesn’t, so we have a pleasant drink on our own.

(Friday 24th June)

The Illness Baton

The illness baton has been passed on to Daughter. So L’s not popular. I am, so far, fine. Germ free and fighting fit, well apart from when it comes to running obviously but that’s another story. I might, though, have to start wearing a surgical mask at home. I'd better not get it. I have squash, a gig, a match and a dog show to get to this weekend. Could be worse I suppose, at least I haven’t entered the Clumber Duathlon on Saturday, I did consider it.

With Daughter laid low, I do the dogs and L does the paper round. I take the dogs out early, walk them round our circuit at a swift pace before returning home and feeding them. Then I throw open the door to our outside storeroom. Oooh what’s this? A bike. It’s been so long.

L’s now saying she’s 100% but I don’t believe her. It’s just a ruse because she’s at Hairspray tonight, sat on a bench at the back, in the cheap seats, which apparently are great for people with very short legs. It’s good to see her going for the cheap seats. She’s on the wagon, credit card wise, and getting the hang of this austerity thing.

Meanwhile I have dog training. Not only am I now on the committee of the dog club I’m also team manager for our Crufts qualifying campaign. That’s for 2012. Crufts 2011 starts next Thursday and for the first time in four years I’m not going. I’ve had two years supporting followed by two years competing. Somehow there didn’t seem any point in going back to just supporting this year.

As for 2012, hopefully Doggo’s got one more year in him or perhaps MD can step up to the plate. All we need a team mates, which it is now my job to find. My persuasive/grovelling email to the potential recruits does not get much of response from the top handlers with the best dogs, the ones who could possibly get us to Crufts in their sleep. Although I think we tried that technique and it didn't work.

However, my appeal that I would be inclusive of anyone who fancies a go, no matter how good or bad they think they are, does get an impressive response from several new members. Which is terrific and very encouraging. One thing we’ve lacked for years is a ‘youth policy’ which is why we can barely raise a team now, as there’s no one coming through to replace those who drop out. So at the moment I have a promising and very keen ‘development squad’ and they even want to have team training session. It would serve the rest right if they went all the way.

(Wednesday 2nd March)