Her efforts…

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10°C, lightness

“Her efforts are to be congratulated“. My favourite report correction of the day, I’d prefer to congratulate the girl. That’s how I changed it.

Headlights: after 9 years, one of the car’s headlights failed. I could see the lack of a point of light shining on the boot of the car in front this morning. Not a bad lifespan for a halogen bulb. The one that died was on the easy side to fix, but I bought a replacement pair which promise to be 120% brighter. The right-hand one was so awkward to fit- there is no real hand-space behind the light cluster. You’d really need a child’s hand to reach the wires and avoid touching the glass. The new bulbs shine out the same to my eye. Maybe order these?

My nose is so blocked today that I can’t draw the slightest breath. This is a head-cold that has moved around, throat, chest and nose. An unsettled, wandering nomad of a cold. May it wander off somewhere else, or somebody else instead.

There is a link there that reflects the world’s deep interconnectedness between things. I just can’tsee what it is apart from occurring on the one same day, today.

Cold in a day

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8°C, strong Westerly

Set off on the drive to Lancashire late morning. Arrive to the certain knowledge that I have a cold. Early morning sticky throats can turn out to be anything, including nothing. This time, it’s not nothing. It’s a funny, curious phenomenon if you look at it in a dispassionate way. I woke with a fizzy energy and even considered a cycle ride before starting the drive.

I still think there is something in this. the surge of energy before a cold comes on happens more often than coincidence I suspect. I accept that there are other factors, and it’s possible to convince yourself of links that don’t exist.

Double double, toil & trouble

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8°C, rain has finished

Witches’ mummy; maw and gulf
Of the ravin’d salt-sea shark;
Root of hemlock digg’d i the dark;
Liver of blaspheming Jew;
Gall of goat, and slips of yew
Sliver’d in the moon’s eclipse;
Nose of Turk, and Tartar’s lips;
Finger of birth-strangled babe
Ditch-deliver’d by a drab,—
Make the gruel thick and slab:
Add thereto a tiger’s chaudron,
For the ingredients of our caldron.

-Shakespear

Inverse Pyrrhic victory

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6°C, dry for now

Is there a word for the opposite of a Pyyhic victory? A defeat that you can live with somehow.

Today was against me, but I came out better than expected. It’s a bearable result.

Finding words remains difficult. We need a method that is as easy as looking up the meaning of a word. A kind of dictionary that is full of meanings that then give you words that apply. I can’t see how that will work.

4 below

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-1°C & dropping.

The night will warm a little towards dawn. It’s dry out there so a ride in tomorrow could be done. Bitterly cold yes, but there is no water to freeze in this high pressure atmosphere. Rain is coming down the Northern Approaches in a few days. The ‘S’ word was mentioned in forecasts by the weekend. I will prepare the bike now.

Infamy, infamy, everyone’s got it in for me.

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-1 to 3°C. Clear, CA:43 miles

Three hour ride today. I really needed this one for its de-stress effects. The start was hard though, legs felt empty and riding hills was a disproportionate effort. I don’t really know what caused that so I rode along puzzling over plausible causes. Was that the stress causing the weakening too? I will never know, but it’s possible. It’s also possible that last night’s supper was guilty- too much cheese and not enough of the usual carbos.

Here we are, a new week. This one comes with a dark cloud hanging over it however. Maybe that will clear on Thursday.
Maybe not.

High Moor, Parbold

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9°C, drizzle. CK:40 miles

I normally hate riding in the rain so this ride was remarkable. The mild air, relief from strong winds and a strong desire for a good ride drew me out. The route included High Moor from Parbold up that steep climb which I have been up before. I have not made it to the top on the single-speed though, but for some reason today I ground on. There is a slight relaxation of the incline about half way up so I stared at that. Once I passed it, the effort didn’t reduce, but it did cease to increase, which was good enough. The last part just before the crest involved pulling on the pedals in addition to weaving. Weaving does decrease the incline slightly.
It seems a double victory to get to the top without any foot-down stops- I am heavier (14st 9), the wet, and my ankle problem which decided it was a good day.

I now have feet that feel considerably better than before. A very good day out in the rain.

There is a fly in the house- what are they doing here in early January?

Urn

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5°C, clear with westerly wind. CA35 miles.

Sales are on, here I have picked up some glitzy ceramics for the kitchen. The glaze on these stoneware pots is flawless, more like polished glass than gold. Opinions vary- some are polite, others thought “kitsch”.

I have an idea for that storage jar. What about not using it for food? What about putting in some ash from the fire’s ash bucket? Perhaps leave an old, burnt pair of glasses, or false teeth semi-covered inside. It’s an image isn’t it? I wonder how any new lodgers would react.
You have to admit, it’s a better idea than keeping couscous in there.

New year

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10°C, getting windy, dry

No new year’s resolutions, new year is not a good time to make them. I have hopes though. I hope to sort my career out, I hope to have fewer sleepless nights but in the meantime, I have hurdles.

My garden is confused. There is broom in flowers along with a solitary rose and the budleah is happily pushing out new leaves.