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14st. 8lbs

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15°C Rain

That week of rain cost me half a stone in weight. Good result then, it was a bit late coming off this year. Cycling feels better for it. It was only four days of long walks in practice a minimum of six hours for most of them, not desperately strenuous, simply long. the first one turned into a quagmire, a boggy Moelwynnion ridge which became increasingly windy and wet. the Rhinogs are better for that sort of walk probably. As the days wore on, the air dried, and some of my kit did too. It ended beautifully, though rather smelly in the car. I was sad to come home, but more rain did approach.

That was the good bit, now it’s only one week ’till the new term. So much to do still!

Sunflower by the pond

Self seeded, perhaps from birdfood, who knows?

 

Another record

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11C, rain. CR:60

Only to echo last week, the GCSE results are out today, likely to be the 24th consecutive year of higher results. The changed course structure will get some of the credit this time, it’s more modular now, so girls will probably do better. This story is worn out.

BBC The Education minister wants to end modularity, so perhaps we’ll see the boys catch up from nest year. The Daily Mail report was interesting, in almost every respect, they got their fact diametrically opposite to the truth. They said boys were closing the gap (the gap has widened), that the yearly grade inflation (which they blamed on Labour) had finished (the increase is about the same as last year). They couldn’t have got it more wrong. Why do people buy this newspaper, everything they print is wrong?

Later: Sunshine after an afternoon decorating. Rode for 60 miles and felt really strong. No aches, stiffness or discomfort, the ride simply flowed nicely. The end of the summer holidays is often like this.

Playing “house”

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20C, sun then a shower.

What a domestic day-

  1. Valet the car, (it took hours)
  2. Fill the compost
  3. Replace missing roof tiles (fiddly since one tile in the middle is nailed).
  4. Wash the roof windows (have they ever been done?)
  5. Vacuum
  6. Laundry, 3 loads

I deserve a medal.

After a long weekend of camping/hiking I’m full of energy. Though I was doubtful of my own fitness, I didn’t get sore feet or feel worn out in any way. That’s after four 6 hour walks; if anything, I got more energetic towards the end. A good result, credit to burning off some nagging restlessness.

mid-break jangles

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19°C, light cloud. CR:26 miles

Mid summer holiday causes a strange feeling. It really does take three weeks to recover fully so that now I have to carefully harness the physical energy that’s liberated. Perhaps soon a trip to the Scottish highlands. With time running out, I have to worry that I’m using this time wisely. The decorating is underway, I like the colours I have chosen and the first layers are showing the effect. I want to use the multi-surface reflections which give richer colours in areas like corners and alcoves. The trick is to use several colours that are very similar. The bounced light takes on the surface colour before illuminating adjacent walls. It works a treat!

French bites

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19°C, light clouds. CR:35 miles

French bites are not like French Kisses- the bites are French but by Mosquitoes. The itch is persistent. So where have I been? Corsica, a mountainous island in the med- the most mountainous island of them all in fact. The landscape was rather like semi-desert, dry hot & dusty land, a dense soil of barren dust. Each step taken scatters lizards amongst plants that are so dry they almost rattle. that’s nothing though, the scent of the macchi was the most magical sensation from the place. It was like a mixture of fennel, artimesia,  annise, pine and the smell we get here in the England- oil-seed rape. A nice souvineer would be some plants that I can get for the garden. Oh and an olive tree– they’re not vulnerable to frosts.

decorate

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21C, Rain

Painting the attic room. First put a coat of white matt to act as an undercoat & hide the rather unpleasant colour beneath. It’s been a while since I have done any of decorating and I have become rusty. Worse, some of my tools are old & shagged out. Still, Radio 4 was there to carry me along. Notably Afternoon Reading by Dermot Bolger. Followed by the excellent Russia- the Wild East.

Crows in Leomondsley

Gotcha back

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20°C, light grey, warm & close

Result: the gutter press have been clobbered for their bad behaviour last Christmas. Observers have felt annoyed about this story over the last half-year, now they are ordered to pay large fines to the innocent landlord for their ludicrous inventions last winter. It’s still remarkable that these papers make up those stories with no apparent inhibition; we knew back then, it was probably false. They must have felt, at the time, that there was nothing to stop them.

Home: Tiled behind the cooker; paid unbelievable amounts of money to get the car serviced. Weather is threatening Wales and a hiking trip there next week.
King Cnut: look up where he came from on GoogleEarth:

I'm in this kind of mood today.

Try it yourself & let me know what result you see.

Hobnail boot

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18°C, NE 10mph. CA:20

Ever woken with a deep ache in a muscle? It’s often a mystery as this one is for me today. It feels like someone kicked me up the arse in the night. I can’t recall anyone tip-toeing in hobnail boots into my room last night. the dogs didn’t rouse, so the mystery remains.

Happy birthday Neptune. In a way. It’s gone round the sun once since the day it was first discovered, so as of today, it’s ONE.