Roland Ladley's Blog, page 4

Madness and Mayhem

Well that’s been a bit of a time. Two weeks of madness and mayhem. For most of the time we’ve had Bex, Steven and Henry with us. And it has been a delight. I’ve rehearsed how I feel about him so many times … and you might have thought that feeling would change over time. But it hasn’t. He’s hilarious. And lovely. And he doesn’t show off. Or moan too much. He sleeps until 7.30 and he goes to bed to order (although he always falls asleep with an adult). He loves the outdoors and, once inside, he doesn’t play with adult stuff, such as ornaments. He eats well – savoury before sweet. But, to repeat, he’s hilarious. Just the best fun. And, having dropped the three of them off at Heathrow just now, I miss him already. 

miss him already

Doubtless things will change over time. And the connection I feel for him will change too. But I’m ready for that. What a summer.

Whilst that’s been going on I have, rather boringly, been working. It’s not quite been all day, every day, but those of you who know me, know that I am a recovering workaholic. Currently I’m still helping my pal, but have found myself stepping deeper and deeper into the business. It’s fascinating and, and with any role which deals with people, I love that bit of the interaction. I have made a promise that I will step back from what I’m doing at the end of the month as we plan to head off to Spain for a couple of months. Between now and then (three weeks) I sense that I’m going to be working pretty much full time. Oh well.

oh, and we went to Derby to get the Focus a new cambelt. I should tell you about that one day. This is a 5-mile walk C and I did along the canal

Then I intend to write book nine in the Sam Green series. I normally write September to December, edit in the Spring, and then publish in the summer. I’d like to think I can manage the same this time. And … and it’s a big and, I’m meeting with a marketing person at the beginning of the week after next. I’ll amplify later but, in short, what I hope to be able to do is spend some money and, if nothing else, get the same return – a zero sum gain. Those of you who have been following me forever know that I would plump for 10 books a day; 300 books a month; 4000 books a year. This is perfectly achievable if I can just find the right marketing formula. So what I hope to do is to pay someone to pull that off. There would be no return, but there may be some organic growth that comes from that. We’ll see.

I’m planning on a three month trial, to tie in with this year’s first draft. I’m very excited by it all. And, as always, I’ll keep you informed.

We’re with Mary at the moment, back home tomorrow. Work on Monday. Three weeks and then we’re off.

That’s the plan. Stay safe. 

Where has the summer gone?

Henry has been and gone again, and what a delight it was. We had him last weekend whilst Bex and Steven popped up to Liverpool to complete the city’s half marathon. He is fab … a deliriously happy child with none of the terrible twos. It is fair to say that when mum appears he immediately disregards me (in particular), which I find hilarious. But you still can’t not love him. Bex and Steven then came back here, as did one of her friends, and we had a week of trollying people about here and there, which I didn’t mind. They left on Wednesday which has meant C has had chance to get the house back in order … before they turn up again mid-next week for their final foray before they get on the silver bird back to Saudi. It will have been a whirlwind summer, but I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.

love this lad

As well as looking after all of us – and that’s not a small thing when we have a houseful because, no matter how many times the kids say ‘can I help’, the question is always half-hearted and laced with a threat of which nursing home they’re going to choose for us if we ask too much from them (on their summer holiday) – C has spent her time running (some long runs), sorting our small but perfectly formed garden, and tending the veg patch. We have beans and courgettes and some shared potatoes (with the landlords), and C is v proud of that.

how does your garden grow?

I’ve been doing some ad hoc work for my mate, and still selling stuff. It’s been fascinating, and not without effort. There is no question the work does impact upon what I was expecting this summer to look like (I had a full day in the office on Thursday, for example), but it’s professionally fascinating whilst also keeping me out of mischief. I also spent some time on it yesterday. And it’s interesting to see C’s reaction. I have worked before during our nomadic time (leadership consultancy in schools), but this is different and less predictable, and possibly more involved and unending. For her I sense it’s good to get me out of the house, but more difficult to plan around, especially the short notice stuff.

ooo, look, a train!

But we had a lovely day on Friday meeting up with our Army pals, Alasdair and Annie, at Dyrham Park NT. It’s madness that they are reasonably close and we see so little of them. They are into the motorhome business and it seems very likely we will spend time together in the autumn as all of us are heading to Spain for about 8 weeks. That will be fab.

a lovely day …

Talking of which Doris has sprung a leak on her front windscreen. A small amount of water pools along the sealing rubber at the bottom of the windscreen. I tried three times to establish and then seal the hole … but to no avail. The water is not doing any damage, but it’s annoying that I have not been able to sort it. What I have done is create a very small channel between the windscreen and the dash at the lowest point in the rubber seal … the water escapes onto the bonnet. That seems to be working?

I couldn’t fix it

We’re off to Derby first thing tomorrow. I think I mentioned the issue with our Ford Focus before, so I won’t dwell on it. In short the car needs its wet cambelt changing and a garage in Derby are experts (and 2/3s the price of a dealer). And it’s C’s birthday! So we’re having a romantic two nights in a Premier Inn in England’s prettiest city. Lol. We’re coming back via mum’s house and then onto Mary’s, home here on Friday. A change is as good as a rest!

Stay safe. 

Don’t mind a bit of rain

Do you know what? I’m not sure I have much of an idea what we got up to last week (since Henry was delivered to his other grandparents last weekend). I have started some new work with my pal which will finish at the end of this week and, I hope, not be as intense as the previous three week package. It is professionally really interesting and, I sense, I am helping. Who knows? We have, like you I guess, been beset with some weather … but not as inconvenient as say, living in southern Europe (heat dome), southern USA (heat dome), Canada (wildfires), much of China (heat dome), Korea (floods), and I could go on. I think the planet may be telling us something.

How luck are we (between thunderstorms)

But you don’t want me to go on about that? You’d much rather talk about the fact that if I avoided a court order I’d definitely be given some jail time. Not so much His Borisness, who has still failed to handover his original mobile phone to the Covid enquiry quoting that ‘he can’t remember the password’. Popularist politics, hey? Johnson and Trump. Two sides of the same coin. Both worse than reprobates; both criminals in their own rights, with Trump easily taking the biscuit. Whatever, the three upcoming by-elections will see really poor Tory results, which will spark another Conservative leadership contest … whilst we get bombarded with ‘Stop the Boats’, ‘War on Woke’ and ‘we haven’t fully embraced Brexit – it’s all the remoaners’ fault’. When I look at Henry and think deeply (which doesn’t happen v often as I’m mostly smiling to myself) and I combine the wasted decade with the difficulties we will face in the future, I could weep. A few deeply flawed people who were devoured by personal gain, catapulted into power by a media which enjoyed and encouraged the spectacle. What a chapter.

Anyhow.

at home in the countryside

We love it here. I popped out last night before bed and there was just enough light to marvel at the expansive views. It wasn’t raining, which was a novelty, and I sat down on our bench and soaked it all in. The kids arrive tomorrow and it’s fabulous that we have the room to soak them up. Henry will cycle around the tennis court, continue to dig up the menage, terrorise the cat and pull at the dog’s tail. He will sit on the tractor and help C water the plants. Bex and Steven will run (as will we), we will go out for coffee and generally all will be well with our world. And I completely get how lucky we are. 

The sale of mum’s house, which had kicked off, has fallen through. You’ll remember that she died (bless her) in April, so the fact that we have got probate and put the house on the market in quick time is good … but it would be fab if we could sell her. But these are tough times for anyone trying to sell property – thank goodness for Liz Truss’s short spell as PM. Without her interest rates would probably be a couple of % points lower and we all wouldn’t find ourselves where we are. Another triumph.

Greggs … hmmm

Book stuff! Hurrah! Sales have been rubbish, but I have gone out of my way to do absolutely no marketing. Sorry. 

However, thanks to our Jen we are close to finishing the four remaining covers of the series. And, once I have them, I have made the decision that I will try and find a young person who loves to read and gets social media … and I will then pay them some money to see if we can get this thing rolling. [If you know of anybody please let me know]. At the same time I have book 9 in the series ready to go. I’m going to start writing in September the moment we get into Doris and head off for Spain. And, having reread some of my non-fiction work I did for my pal (with Parkinson’s) who drove his camper to Cape Town, I’ve started a conversation with him to finish the book next year. He does have a non-fiction book coming out – a biography. But my work is different. We’ll see. 

getting there … thanks Jen

So from a ‘work’ perspective I have the next 12 months sorted in my head. 

Stay safe everyone.     

We lived in a van!

Well, that was exhausting. Don’t get me wrong. It was fabulously exhausting – Henry is the easiest toddler to look after. But it’s the constant, on hand attentiveness which is wearing. He was fab, though. He has the nicest manner, eats sensibly (our food), moans irregularly and smiles 99% of the time. We took him to Westonbirt and to our favourite cafe in Dursley. He loved playing in the grounds of our place, terrorising the neighbour’s dog and one of the cats, not getting too close to the cows, and riding about on his bike and playing football on the tennis court.

We started by going to bed with him, although after a few days he then went down at 8pm (with us in the bed), after which we left him for an hour of mindless tele. He woke once as early as 6.30, but mostly post 7.00. He never once cried for his mummy, and when we did fall out, which was almost never, he quickly moved on and found his cars to play with. He loved Doris and we had a fab three days away at a decent campsite near Slimbridge where Jen and a friend of hers (plus 2 year old girl) popped along for a day out. The two youngsters had a ball, playing like long lost friends. It was magical. Back here we swam in the cold pool … and watched an awful lot of Paw Patrol. It was a long but delightful time, made so much better because Mrs Sun was mostly with us.

We took him to Penkridge yesterday and drove back like a pair of zombies. I went out to supper last night in Chepstow with some old Army buddies (it had been in the diary for a while), and today we went for a walk in the hoofing rain … and little else. I have just had an afternoon kip, and C is flat out on the sofa as I type.

Phew. But it has all been worth it. We next see Bex again on Wednesday, and the three of them the week after next. By the time they head back mid-August we’ll be counting down the days until we head off to Spain (for 8 weeks). And that brings me round to Doris …… who was perfect with the lad. I slept with Henry in the rear bed, and C slept in the cavernous overcab bed. We had one rainy day (where we cycled to Sharpness seeing boats and cranes and trains – all in one day) and later we all managed to rub along nicely in the van as the rain played a tune on the roof. 

always eating

Great. It was lovely to be away in her. And it was also good to see that C was content – the last time we went away she had her minor breakdown and I did fear that van life might be heading out the door. But, no. All was fine. Which, if you think about it, says something. I don’t want to go over old ground, but … and I do find myself being flabbergasted everytime I think about this, we lived in a van for four and a half years. You know, we didn’t just pop away for a couple of months and come back to sort out our lives from our house. We genuinely had no fixed abode. Sure we had a garage full of stuff, but we did everything from Doris 1 (a smaller version than the one we have now) and then Doris 2. We had four winters in a white box, only one of which was on the continent where it snowed in Crete. We travelled here and there. We washed our clothes in launderettes, or often by hand. We did all kinds of stuff, including flying to The Bahamas, Istanbul and Turkey. We did most of Europe (again), and four excursions to Scotland. We skied every year.

this morning’s wet walk

We lived in a van. Something smaller than (probably) your kitchen. We had bikes and skis. We had boots and shoes. We had chairs and tables. We shopped and walked. We ran and cycled. We lived a normal life … and I worked as a consultant as well as penning five novels in the process. I know this all sounds like a boast, but it’s not meant to. Because it was tough at times. Foolhardy if you think about it. But we lived in a van.

an abiding memory

And we loved it. On reflection – and noting we have lived a pretty bizarre life – it was the bizarrest bit of that bizarre life. So well done Doris. What great memories. Anyhow. We’ve just won the cricket. C and I have a full programme for next week, some of which involved me trying to sell some more stuff. You keep safe. And don’t go out in the thunder!

It all happens tomorrow

We’re at Mary’s and I don’t know whether to be excited, or slightly nervous. The last week has been pretty crazy from a work perspective. I started the three weeks intent on doing my thing: a 360 piece of work offering my thoughts on ways forward. In the end I found myself enacting the change I was recommending. Which was fascinating. And exhausting. And fulfilling. I have kept on in a coaching role with the boss of the team … and that is interesting as well. 

Westonbirt

But, excited or nervous?

The choice is because Henry’s coming home. Yesterday Bex sent a smashing WhatsApp video yesterday of her and Henry dancing to Elton John’s Glasto set (which was fab, wasn’t it?). I immediately recognised what was happening. It was the end of their summer term, something C and I have experienced many times previously. It’s like the day before your two-week summer hols, but on steroids. Teaching has an insidious way of sapping everything from you and, by the end of the academic year your final reserves of energy are gone … but, all of sudden and as if by magic you have 6 to 8 weeks of break to look forward to. It is a huge, huge relief, which Bex and Henry, filmed by Dad, Steven, were expressing. It was magical. 

They arrive at Terminal 5 tomorrow at about 6 in the morning. And promptly hand Henry over to us. Whilst they train it to Birmingham to catch another plane to Porto to run part of the Portuguese coast for 8 days, we’re on Henry watch. Excited? Yes. Nervous? Yes, also. We’ve shown time and again over the past five years or so that we’re not getting any younger. Having a toddler (albeit our fave toddler) full on for over a week is going to stretch us in every direction. So … excited and nervous. That’s me.

Jen and James came for lunch

But we’re prepared. We have assigned the next week as ‘holiday’. Apart from day-to-day business, our job is to look after his nibs. They’ll be plenty of earlies to bed and earlies to rise. Lots of Henry activities, and little time for ourselves. It’ll be fine. I’m sure it will.

More to follow …

That does give me a few minutes to talk about the craziness of world events. Climate change continues to stalk us. We, or more accurately, Ireland, has been singled out as a hotspot of madness, with sea temperatures 5 degrees warmer than the norm. In addition, land temperature records are being broken in the Far East, in the Middle East, in Siberia and Mexico/Texas. The view from the climate scientists is that what’s happening now is accelerating at a speed which baffles them, and onto which they are struggling to predict what happens next. We, with our temperate climate, are perfectly placed to benefit from a 2 degree rise in temperature. It’s lovely weather we’re having, no? But in other places currently knocking on the door of 50 degrees, it must be absolutely unbearable – certainly in poor countries where there are no cool places to find solace.

5.10 am. In practice for Henry coming

What we, the UK, are not prepared for is rising sea levels. A couple of years ago we were looking decades in the future before we saw anything meaningful . Now, well, who knows? The scientists are flummoxed …

Then there’s Wagner and Putin. And, come on, with Johnson resigning and Trump clearly caught on a mic boasting about holding secret documents, we’re getting a decade’s worth of news in a couple of weeks. It’s off any scale. What’s next? Hopefully Ukraine will advance to its borders, Trump will be sent to prison, this woefully inadequate government will move on, and we will all wake up to the fact that, among the many consequences of global warming, the insect population – which sustains us all – is in massive decline. And then we will do something about it, rather than just enjoy the balmy weather. 

How does your garden grow?

I fear not, though. So I’m going to spend the next 10 days loving my fabulous grandson, telling him that I’m sorry for the sh*t state of the world we’re leaving for him.

Stay safe everyone.   

Man with a job (of sorts)

It’s been the longest time between blogs since I started this in 2013. More recently I have purposefully waited a week before posting (when we started travelling in 2014 I was writing every day). But this time there’s been a break of two weeks. Why? I’ve been hard at it.

man with a job

I’ve spent the last two weeks working for a friend. He runs a portfolio business and asked my support in one area. For the first week I was doing the sort of consultancy work which I had previously carried out in schools, and with the Civil Service. But the work quickly developed from that and, as well as suggesting changes, I’ve been helping implement them. The fun continues until the end of next week – when my job is done, irrespective of where we find ourselves. We have other pressing matters. First we need to go and see Mary. And then Bex, Steven and Henry are home (hurrah) for the summer and I’ve no intention of missing a moment of that. 

man on a bus (visit to Bristol for a heart check up – all’s well)

What’s it been like? Fascinating. It’s not for me to go into any of the detail but, all I can say is, apart from being exhausting it has been really, really interesting. Whilst I have previously (for 5 years) worked alongside industry, I’ve never worked in it. And, do you know what? It is the same as the MoD, the Civil Service and any school. It has the same issues, the same strengths and the same malaises. That’s because people are the same. And, as a result, many of the outcomes are the same. As such I think I have been useful. And I hope to continue to be useful until the end of next week …

… and then Henry’s coming! Stand by.

we’ve run …

Apart from that we’ve (v kindly) been able to use the pool, which has been a godsend. C’s in a much, much better place and really loving country life (and the vegetable patch). I’ve still been selling things, but in a much less industrious fashion. And all-in-all we’re in a good place. It’s interesting. We were originally only due to get back from Scotland about now. And yet it seems such a long time since we turned right and headed down the M5, rather than pootle up north. Time is interesting, n’est pa?

… and walked

Doris waits, though. No sooner are Rebecca and Steven back from Saudi then they’re off to Portugal for 10 days … leaving Henry with us. As a result we have booked Doris into a local campsite where granny and grandpa will entertain grandson. That’s going to be interesting!

Anyway, there’s a lot to get done between now and then.

Henry’s coming!

Nothing about politics, or climate change – I really can’t think about the latter without coming out in hives. As for Boris, well good riddance. What a horrible, horrible man.

Stay safe! 

mmm

we still live hereThe good news is that C is feeling much...

we still live here

The good news is that C is feeling much better (thank you v much). Time is indeed a good healer. As is some peace and quiet, and a few days of complete decompression. It’s really good to have her back. As I said last time, I really can’t do this without her. 

and decompress …

We have, however, filled the days. Mrs Sun has mostly been kicking around, coming out when it pleases her, which has made life easier – although the mornings are still unnecessarily bracing. On Sunday we cycled to Newark Park, a local NT property, and took a picnic. We tested our new chains, as our route out was much more gravelly than Raleigh probably designed the bikes for. But, all was well, and it was a lovely day. 

Percy Thrower and his/her beans

Along with that, yesterday we took a (short) trip to Westonbirt where we met up with James and Jen for her birthday. It is a fab place, so much so we bought a year’s entrance. With Slimbridge – both of which are 20 minutes away – we will never be caught out by ‘what the blooming hell are we going to do today? moments. And, between times, we have run, and C has got a grip of some of the landlady’s veg patch – and is now the proud owner of her very own runner bean tent pole affair. Fab.

a minefield of cows

Me? Well, two things. First I have continued to sell stuff, which has been a pretty full time job. But I am loving it. Recycling stuff which might have either remained in a few sheds, or worse still, ended up in landfill, has been the mission. Sure we’ve all made some extra cash, which is nice. But it’s not the driver. And I’ve met some fascinating people, both face-to-face (I delivered some large diameter, stainless steel flues to a timber drying plant today), and also remotely. It’s kept me out of trouble.

And, and without wanting to give too much away, I was on the precipice of being offered a job at the weekend. It might have been something that ticked my boxes … but, even before it was offered (and only after a good slab of reflection), I put my hand up and declined. It’s funny, you know. A big part of me feels I have a lot more to give and the energy to deliver that. The rest of me says, don’t be so stupid, Roland. We don’t need the money, we have enough responsibility as it is, and I’m not confident I could cope with working for someone else again. In the end it sort of dissolved, but another time-limited opportunity came up, which I am getting stuck into. I think the result was the right balance.

Come on … how were we ever going to spend 8 weeks in Spain in September/October if I’m responsible for something other than remembering when to breathe? 

oh, and I fixed the car again

Anyhow, we’re off to Slimbridge tomorrow to join Jen and James again for James’s birthday (with his mum and dad). That’ll be fun. And then more selling, more running, more walking, more gardening … and a week closer to when we see Henry again (the end of the month). Can’t wait.

Stay safe everyone.

We didn’t quite make Scotland

If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram you might have noticed that we didn’t make Scotland. Indeed we only made it as far as Wallesey (to see C’s godmother) and then headed south, back home. C had been complaining of soreness ‘down below’ – a perennial issue – and, after a pretty hectic time with my mum and everything else, and a long trip to Wells to attend the funeral of the husband or her matron when she was a housemistress on the Friday, a combination of the stop/start of Doris, Scotland with the midges (we normally go at Easter when it’s Scottish RAF free) and the constant pain just did for her. 

we made it here

Pain is, well, a pain. It can be debilitating. C’s waiting for a gynae appointment … and whilst she normally manages as it (and other afflictions down south fade in and out), the whole thing came to a head. In short she broke a little … the manifestation of how she was was her lying on Doris’s floor trying to abate everything, as I drove away from Liverpool trying to decide whether to turn left or right when we hit the M6. In the end it was an easy choice. Doris is fab when you’re both on par. It becomes a small white box when the alternative is our lovely, comfortable new house. Things didn’t improve for a couple of days. She essentially shut down, managing basic tasks – including walking with me. But she slept a lot. We spoke to the surgery and we now wait a call with the doctor on Thursday.

I can’t do any of this without her

There are two issues: physical (tiredness, coldness and soreness); and mental – mostly anxiety, brain fog and need to keep away from folk. It is fair to say that she has got much better, and we’ve a couple of really good days – we did a carboot and she ran yesterday, and we had a day out to Slimbridge today. Indeed, we may be over the worst. But she can’t live with phasing pain, a foggy head and an anxious nature. And it would be helpful to know if one is feeding off the other; or vice versa … but with our Jen we know how complicated the brain is. The good news is we’re already talking about taking Henry away in Doris in the summer. Then Spain in September (no midges). Oh, and as part of the selling work I’m doing here, we’re taking a trip to Paington tomorrow to drop some kit off.

colder than it looks

A day by the seaside. Hurrah!   The brain’s a funny old thing, isn’t it?In amongst all this I’ve sold some more stuff.

Slimbridge

And, a big hurrah, I eventually fixed my bike. You’ll remember that I changed both of our chains. C’s bike worked perfectly first time. Mine was rubbish, jumping links constantly. I tried three different chains (spent £40), but to no avail. Frustrated at my incompetence, I phoned the local bike shop who, in the end fortunately, couldn’t take her in anytime soon. I then contacted a mobile ‘bicycle repair man’ (remember the Monty Python sketch?). He popped round and thought the issue was possibly the need for a new rear sprocket, but couldn’t take the bike away.

more complex than it looks

So, I manfully removed the rear sprocket (which, with hub gears, is more complex than it sounds) and ordered a new one. It took me almost two hours to fit it … and, hey presto, she was absolutely perfect – until you put power on. It was then clear the chain was sticking on the Panasonic motor’s drive socket, something you couldn’t see before because the rear sprocket was also sticking. My first thought was to buy a new sprocket (an easy replacement of just removing the chain and a single circlip), but then I thought I’d just turn the sprocket around as it would only be worn on one side?

Yay! That worked.Lesson?

Replacing a chain might conflict with your old sprockets. A new chain will, quite possibly, not like the old sprockets as they’ve worn with the old chain. You may have to do both.

still running

Anyhow, all done now.And, thankfully, Mrs Sun is with us for the week. More selling, I feel. And more helping C improve. Easy to do that here.   

We sold some stuff

We had a fun time at Mary’ sorting stuff and then watching the Coronation. We got a lot done and, between us, I think we can say that we have a plan in place. And the Coronation was fab, wasn’t it? Sure, it was preposterous in places, but I have to put my hand up and say that whoever pulled it together made it as inclusive as it might have been. And King Charles seems a decent man with values that seem to chime with modern life. Hopefully he can spread a bit of his green and pleasant ambitions to Downing Street … it sure needs it. The quite horrible immigration bill, which is currently in The Lords, does not reflect my country. And I’m pretty confident it doesn’t actually do ‘what the people of this country want’, well not anyone with a moral compass …

we managed some walking

… and when the Archbishop of Canterbury says it’s not what Jesus would do, you’ve got to reflect on what you’re trying to make happen.

Apart from that we’ve been admining. I’m still selling stuff, with some success. I’ve hardly touched the surface in terms of items to be sold, but much of it is bulk metal and plastic items which have both usable and intrinsic value, but probably not as single items. So when I come back from Scotland I’ll have to get in touch with equivalent companies and see if they want to bulk buy stuff. It has, I have to say, been fun. For example, today I posted 200 plastic balloon holders to a woman in Southampton (I’m guessing they were unused from a business launch event). We made £15, which didn’t pay for my time. But, do you know what? The woman was happy. And we didn’t put 400 bits of plastic into landfill. And that’s a result in my book.

one of many wrapping of stuff we’ve sold wanna buy a boiler?

Today we popped to Shrivenham, where C’s mum’s ashes have been spread. We met her sister, Annie there. The weather held (hasn’t it been awful?) and we took Cassie (Jen and James are away for a couple of days) and Annie brought her dogs. We had a picnic by a disused canal and caught up with all the news. And it was lovely, especially as it reminded me that I don’t actually work anymore … not in any real sense. It was a feeling I used to get all the time, early in our travels, but now something I am very poor at reminding myself of. But I did today … and it was a real fillup. 

we did a picnic

We’ve got some more admin to do tomorrow, and we’re off to a funeral on Friday. Then it’s time for a month in Scotland in Doris. The only fly in the ointment is that I have still not got my bike fixed. I can ride it but, three chains later, the chain still slips under pressure. The local bike shop couldn’t find the time so I’ll have to get it sorted on the way. Oh well.

Whatever, we’re heading off for a month. Which can’t be a bad thing.Stay safe everyone.  

Up and down dale

Mrs Sun has, at last, thought it appropriate to come and say hello. And what a fabulous welcome it has been. We have spent the last week looking after and enjoying the company of Bex, Steven and Henry. It is so easy here. Henry, bless him, is into ‘diggers’ – his vocab is limited to yes, no, there, mama … and digger. Trains are, for some reason, ‘fras’, and he calls planes something similar. Oh, and he makes plenty of animal noises … constantly. It was a fab, if exhausting, four days. The house soaked us all up and C, bless her also, slaved in the kitchen whilst I did my best to get Henry to bounce on the landlord’s industrial-sized trampoline (they have been brilliant, btw. Their place is our place, give or take, although we do our best not to step over any lines). Anyhow, the senior Ladley girl and her family are now back in KSA, and we’ve been left to our own devices. We will see them again in eight weeks time.

Slimbridge with the lad

In between all of that we have cycled, walked and admined. I changed the chains on both bikes. C’s was a seamless switch. Mine has been a dog’s breakfast and I’m not sure what the problem is. We dropped into Dursley car boot on Saturday and afterwards I popped into a bike shop. A much more competent man than me had a look and said that he’d need a couple of days to sort it, as it wasn’t an obvious fix. He did, however, tell me how the Shimano Nexus hub gears can be tuned. There’s a window on the rear wheel hub which shows two yellow lines. You twiddle something until the yellow lines are coincident, and hey presto. It took me 15 minutes to find and clean the window and then, sure as eggs, the gears were sorted. It’s only taken me 10 years to work that out. Anyhow, I’ve still not got my chain sorted. 

love the walking

The walking has been absolutely fab. We did close to 5 miles yesterday, up and down dale. Four miles today. Within 100 metres of our place we have cows, calves, sheep, lambs, geese, two ducks, a labrador and two cats. We have nine (yes nine) goldfinches on our feeder and a couple of great tits. We have buzzards and kites. Two roosters up the road and pigs down the dale. We have every tree known to man, fields of dandelions and daisies and four deer. There are flowers in every hedgerow and the woods are currently blanketed in wild garlic and bluebells. The air is as fresh and clear as newly washed wool. It is fabulous, made more so because, rather than being on top of the Cotswolds where the countryside is lovely, but just undulating, here we’re on the edge, and the valleys are sharp enough to be classified as ravines. Sure, it’s hilly and you can’t go anywhere without going up (or down) and then back again. But we’re getting used to that. All-in-all it’s a plum place. We are very fortunate.

did Doris

However, that doesn’t take away from the fact that we are leaving soon for four weeks in Scotland. I did a Doris check yesterday and everything is as it should be. We head off to Mary’s on Wednesday, back on Saturday and then after a short period of looking after Cassie, we push off the following weekend. I think it’s fair to say we can’t wait. Hurrah!

And stuff continues to sell, which is great. C doesn’t know it, but I am going to take a box of gear with us to Scotland to continue the motion. They have post offices up there, afterall.

drunk tea

In the meantime, you all remain safe. Remember to pledge your allegiance next weekend to a man who, if it weren’t for the order of birth, might have been Prince Andrew. Come on, that’s got you thinking, hasn’t it? I’m not sure I’ll be joining in. I’m neither monarchist nor republican, but I am for the common man/woman. And the more we can do to help those less fortunate than ourselves, the better. I’m not sure how the coronation moves that bar in a cost of living crisis. But I am blinded by my own brand of socialism. I’m off my horse now.      

Keep smiling.