Every so often I get a notification from WordPress that my stats are booming. I used to blog on a daily basis for a few years as I was suffering with my chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia, and struggled to do much at all.
Blogging daily was my window to the world, I made some great friends, and really enjoyed posting photos of my previous holidays, pets, animals and birds that visited our garden, my shoe collection and from the local area
We live near the Thames, and every so often it floods, so over the years I have taken a lot of interesting photos of the Thames in flood, and posted them to my blog.
One January I took lots just before going on holiday to Australia, and while we were away the river rose even higher!
We found out because visits to my blog went from 10-15 a day to over 2000, and when I checked what people were looking at, it was the photos of the floods
So this year, yet again the Thames is very high in Weybridge, so I thought I better upload some more recent photos for people to find when directed to my blog. Looking back I realised that the photos were taken on the same day, January 9th, 10 years apart!
Steps down to the ferry Some flotsamThe water level is the same both sides of the weirThe green pontoon is attached to the bankGardens disappearing in Shepperton Looking over towards Shepperton D’Oly Carte island is disappearing Tow path and steps down to the river completely submerged Looking up the Thames cut and the river WeyThe weir at Shepperton at nightRiver bank completely submerged. River about 4’ higher than normal
I’m very grateful that since 2015 my fibromyalgia is in remission and I have been able to go back to university, qualify as a therapeutic radiographer, and I now work in public involvement in research, a job that I adore, but I do miss my blogging days, and all the great friends that I made then, and got to meet some of them in person!
I always think I will get back to blogging again, but I figure my pages will always be here for me to add to, and me being quiet on here means I’m well and out living life to the full, and collecting a wealth of photos that I may someday get to share with you all.
Last September I started a PgDip in Therapeutic Radiography (treating people with cancer and some other conditions with radiation). It’s a 2 year course, 12 weeks in university and the rest of the year we learn on the job in a hospital. I’ve just finished my exams so now I have a few weeks off before I start 2nd year! (as long as I pass my exams!!)
Anyway, while I was studying, I had nightly cravings for Ice Cream. Specifically Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food! It has little chocolate fishes in it!!
Phish Food with Yogurt & Biscuit topping Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food
To make it even more calorific, we added ½ a tub of yogurt to it, and some crumbled digestive biscuits!
Needless to say I may possibly have put on some weight, but I consoled myself that I would have plenty of time to exercise after my exams! My exams finished on Thursday last week, so on Friday I decided to make a start!
Its a long time since I’ve done any running (Long ago, as my Nana used to say, I ran for a club, but that really was long long ago!)
A Long Long time ago!
I really was quite fit back then!
A friend of mine started running about 8 years ago, and now regularly completes triathlons! I would love to do one, but I can only swim the breast stroke so I don’t think I could manage the swimming bit! This year he has also done several marathons including the London & Brighton marathons, in preparation for a monster race! He has just completed the Comrades Marathon in South Africa for a 2nd year. Only 55.1miles!!! It is the world’s most brutal ultra marathon, and even though it’s winter in South Africa in June, the temperature is usually in the 20’s! To make it even worse, if it takes you more than 12 hours to finish it you don’t even get a medal!!
I don’t think I will go that far… but I do still want to run a Marathon! It’s been over 3 years since I made that decision, and even though I’ve started training a few times, I’ve never got much past 3 miles. This time I hope I will manage to get a bit further!
Anyway, the day after my exam, (Friday before last) I started. I downloaded an app to give me some guidance, because left to my own devices I would run 15 miles on the first day & then not be able to move for a month & then give up! It was hard! I came back looking like a beetroot, but I did it! Then I did another run on Sunday, and have managed to do 7 runs since then including one in a complete downpour, and Woody has come for all except 2 of them!
We got a little bit wet!
I’m not however expecting to lose any weight any time soon! I am counting the calories that I am eating just to see how bad things really are, and despite cutting out processed sugars like cake, chocolate & ice cream, I still seem to manage to sometimes eat double my recommended calorific intake for the day!
It seems like this is going to take time 😦 That’s the problem with getting old. Getting fit takes SO much longer than it used to!!
Anyway, watch this space! I really do want to run the Clarendon Marathon, a cross country marathon from Salisbury to Winchester along the ancient Clarendon Way with a few extra turns here and there to make up a full 26.2 miles. More than 90% is off road, with the trail following country tracks and paths – many of which have not changed since being traveled by the ancient Kings and Queens of England.
Today I managed 3.4 miles, which is quite an improvement from my first run which was 1.8 miles! Now… time to tackle the garden!
Woody is usually white & very fluffy, especially after his bath, however today when Wilson went flying into the river after a stick, Woodrow followed!
Rather smaller not so fluffy dog
Then he wanted me to pick him up! Luckily it was not very cold today so he was pretty dry by the time we got home. He will need another bath now though.
Spring has been springing, and I have been out in the garden recently for a few days without a coat, but not today! Temperatures down in the single figures again, a biting wind & drizzle on top. We felt very guilty taking Woodrow for a walk today in the cold, so we bought him a little coat on the way home 🙂
I Haven’t had a chance to post on here for ages, I’ve been doing a photography class & we have lots of homework, my youngest daughter is going to University in October & we’ve been visiting lots of different ones… I decided to go back to university myself and will be starting a new course in October, we were on holidays in Egypt and to top it all, we just got a new puppy!
While we were away Wilson stayed with a dog minder who has two other small dogs & peter thought that Wilson was missing their company when we came home, so we went looking for a little dog to keep Wilson company. As soon as we set eyes on Woodrow we couldn’t resist!
He is now 12 weeks old, not in the slightest bit house trained, loves to chew everything, electrical cables, shoes, bags, feet…but still very cute & cuddly.
This is how we should dress this ‘season’
I particularly love ;
Show off all your many dimensions at once. When planning outfits for your holiday soirées, think: “I’m an heiress and an Italian professor at this upscale tropical funeral.”
In January last year we went to Australia & New Zealand to visit friends and family in Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and Queenstown. As the weather gets colder her it is easy to miss the heat of Perth, the warmth of Sydney and Melbourne, and the alpine-summer like temperatures of New Zealand.
Even easier today as we are expecting the arrival of Peters first grandchild any-time shortly, but he will be born in New Zealand. Sometimes it’s really hard to be on the other side of the planet! I’m only going to be a step-grandma (phew!!), but even still its really exciting!!
One of the buildings that my dad wanted to see when he was here in London last week was the ‘Walkie Talkie’ building, because of its unusual shape
This building has a major design flaw however, and it’s not that the fact that it is top heavy. During the summer this building burnt a car! Continue reading →
Once again I feel like the daily Post has been following me around as I take photos! I took these pictures while I was walking around London with my Dad last week. The water running down the middle of the street drew our eyes to the far distance Continue reading →
Day One 