Thursday 10th May 2018

Hi,

I've just got in from a bit of a shopping spree. I bought....curtains, curtain pole, and timber to mount it on (for the guest-four-poster-bed room) I got four big planters, soil and plants to go in the front drive/carpark no.1....cat biscuits and a cat scratcher with catnip in it.  Hence the cats are going bonkers right now!!

I am now eating a large sized pot noodle - because that's how I roll! Last time I had a pot noodle I went into Screwfix afterwards without realising I had pot noodle all over my chin!  I've embarrassed myself in worse ways....like the time I had a whole piece of spaghetti covered in tomato sauce on my chin - the two ppl I was with didn't have the heart to tell me - so sat there all evening and they must have watched it dry and set solid to my chin.  When I went to the loo and discovered it there I was horrified!!  (this wasn't long after an operation on my jaw which left me with no feeling in my chin).

Guess I'm going to have to sort out the garden stuff rather than the curtains this afternoon - and I wont have time for both.  At about 5pm, I have an appointment with my panic about the running club tonight!

Oh...last night Hello Fresh meal was awesome! Hope tonights is as nice. 

This was last nights burger (pic from recipe)

This is tonights:

Hope I have the energy to cook it...after the dreaded run of an unknown distance at an unknown speed with unknown people!

Wednesday 9th May 2018

Morning!

Started the day getting a mouse off Murcky and setting it free. Then - getting a mouse off Bitsy, and feeling awful because it was alive but injured.  Took it away from danger and left it to recover...it was breathing heavy and looked like it had a hurt leg.  I came back to it and it had died.  It is just so sad!! These poor little mice are minding their own business and get plucked out of their world by a cat - brought into the house - and then tortured by cats who see it only as a play thing!

Anyway....last night, online, I joined Taunton running club! So, tomorrow night I am going out running with them.  No pressure!! Just have to not be shit!  They split into groups and so this is the group that runs at my speed - but there is mention of not stopping at that pace.  I might struggle.....

I also entered another 10km race...Helen sent me the link - it is in Totnes which I believe is near Helens - this one is 5th August.  So I have one in about 3-4 weeks, 10th June, then one in August - and then there is one in Taunton on 30th September.  Hope I get t-shirts! lol. 

So - I went out for a run.  I went down Netherclay - which is at the bottom of my road - there are public footpaths and its pretty cool.  However, I would follow a path and come out at a field or somewhere I didn't know.  So - ran 5.5km but there was a lot of stopping trying to figure out where I was! Looks simple on the map....

Okay - maybe it doesn't look that simple...but when you are there you don't know which way is which!  I ended up running around the field that looks brown in the pic at the bottom left.  Not where I thought I was! But I think I can figure it out!  It is also a lot smaller than it seems - so I had to keep going around and about trying to get to 5km.  The ground is a bit rough too....and I think I may have swallowed a fly or two....

Good news - my blister didn't hurt or get any worse - bad news - my hips is still bothering me!

So - got showered and ready and went off for an eye test.  Basically he seemed to think I was fine to continue with off the shelf reading glasses and contact lenses...but said eventually I wont cope with these - and that's when I need to go back.  Cool - no expensive prescription specs (for now).

Trying my first Hello Fresh recipe tonight - burgers again!  Its not rocket science - just the ingredients and a recipe.  But its convenient and means I don't have to try and think of what to do and go out shopping!

Tuesday 8th May 2018

Good morning!

Well that was a fun bank holiday weekend!!

Ended up having such a good day yesterday!  Me and Andy just chatted and drank!  Didn't get wasted or anything - but had enough to be quite happy! Stayed in the garden for ages - didn't even get around to putting the BBQ on - too busy having a laugh!

Eventually we came back in at about 8pm  and ended up getting take out!  We need to sort that out!  Should have a delivery today - its Hello Fresh - so we get all the ingredients and recipes for 3 meals.  Got it at half price which was £17ish.  So at full price a bit too expensive I think! Unless it is totally awesome...but I'm not expecting much.  But - we would spend that on one take-out and if it stops us getting take-outs and it gives us variety...we'll see!

Took me quite a while today to clear us the weekends mess - loads of stuff in the garden - around the bar - in the living room after the take-out.  But its all done now!  I have a choice today - could go to the tip and get rid of the asbestos and the rest of the crap in the car.  Or - I could strip wall paper - or - I could have an easy day!

I NEED TO START STICKING TO MY DIET I am fed up of going up and down and up and down....today my weight loss since january - which is quite a long time ago now - is 8lb.  It has been 11lb - then back down again.  With all the running I am doing, I could be quite successful if I could behave myself as far as food and alcohol is concerned!

Oh - I have entered a 10km race...10th June 2018.  I got nervous pangs just typing that!  It's silly because I know I can run 10km.  But I need to get some more training in for it.  At the moment I'm struggling with a bad blister on my foot and need to let it heal a bit.  I didn't run over the last few days - but still did loads of steps in the garden - so not exactly resting it!  I've gone from being 30km ahead on my YVSTY challenge to 20km ahead.  I've seen a training program on my running application - I can choose to improve my distance or improve my speed and I am undecided which one to go for.  I think I am leaning towards the - improve my speed....

I got lots of advice from the YVSTY group on facebook when I said I had entered my first 10km.  Here are some comments:

• Find a hill about 100yds long and once a week run up it and walk back down 6-8 times. Do a halfish mile warm up and at least halfish mile cool down
• Proper sneakers & socks are IMPORTANT!! Be sure to stop by your local run shop to ask about the best socks: often blisters are nixed when the right socks AND right sneaks are worn 
• You will be fine. Maybe run a 5k as fast as you can to build up speed a bit, but you got the endurance. The adrenaline of a race gets you going too. Have fun!
• U have 1 month... try 7, 8 miles for endurance training and 4,5 miles for speed... hill workouts if possible...
• If you're already doing it once a week, you're going to do great!
• Are you close enough to the course to run it at least once?
• Try to get longer runs in. I found the more miles I put in a week, the faster/easier my shorter runs/races get. I’m changing my thinking on how I want to get ready for my half in November

So - some good advice I think - from others runners. 

Gorgeous day...

Hi

Well....decided to start my day in the garden cutting the grass on the other side of the garden....3 hours later....was not happy! Shouldn't be so much work but grass had got long....had to empty it after one length....again....mansion problems! Now have Malibu and coke but it's nearly 3pm!  Feel like I've wasted the day! Plus was supposed to be relaxing and according to my fitbit I've walked nearly 10km and burnt 800 calories!

We did manage to save this from Bitsy big cat....

Blue skies!

Sunday 6th May 2018

Woke up and Helen and Pauls at about 8am - Andy was up early too - so we decided to get back home to spend time in the garden as the weather was awesome!!!

We nipped to Asda to get some BBQ stuff - and headed home! Was greeted at the front door by lots of feathers - and a leg and bit of internal organ - so cats had fun!

We got sorted - emptied dishwasher etc (cleaned up what remained of dead bird) and then headed into the garden! - cut half the lawn (do the other half tomorrow!) and got the BBQ on - had the best burger ever - and then we were full! lol.  We played Smite which is a game with wooden blocks numbered 1-10 - you have to throw another wooden block at them and its the first to get to 50 points.  I was rubbish lol.

We chilled and enjoyed the day - ending by playing cards.  At about 7pm we came in and chilled in front of the TV and was falling asleep by midnight!  A great day in the sun however.  Supposed to be the same tomorrow! :-)

This is the game Smite

sat 5th May 2018

Woke up early - and I'm all ready for the park run.  Well...I'm ready but worried - I seem to have a painful hip, blister on my foot, some kind of pull in my calf muscle and the same in my thigh.  The sensible thing would be to miss  it today, but I'm hoping I'll be okay once I start running!

I covered in cats right now - I need to get them off, get my trainers on - and get going!  Always nervous....hate that!  see you later!

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Well - the run was tough - had about 4 rests - but must have run faster because my official time was 32:14 - so beat my time again! Very pleased about that because I beat my time from the 5km Bushy park race I did a few years ago - and that killed me! Think my time then was 32:22, so i must be the best I've ever been and there is still lots of room for improvement.

Its bank holiday weekend and the weather is supposed to be really nice.  It certainly is today!

We went into taunton and Andy got an eye test - and I would have gone shopping but I forgot my bank cards (they were in the washing machine - in the pocket of my running top!)

About 3pm we headed off to Helen and Pauls for this festival.  However, we learnt that they couldn't go until later on because Zack was out and he was needed to babysit Eloise.  So we sat chatting and burning in the garden.  Me, Andy and paul were having a drink but helen wasn't because she had to drive to pick up Zack.  Eventually she went and got zack and paul made helen a cocktail consisting of double vodka, topped up with prosecco.  She knocked this back and then he made her another which she put in bottle to take with her.   We then got a taxi into Paignton and got a pint of cider each and headed into a large tent where cover bands were on - covering Thin Lizzy and then ACDC.  It wasn't long before we realised Helen was WASTED!!! She could barely stand! She insisted we got right at the front to see the band - but then me and Paul were making sure she didn't fall over.  We saw about 4-5 songs and then left the tent because helen was so wrecked.  We had to leave!  Don't think anybody was massively disappointed - and I was too concerned about getting her home! On the way to the kebab shop/taxi rank - we had to go over the railway tracks and the alarm started going off and the barriers were coming down - and Helen and Paul (Paul was quite drunk too) decided to run across! Me and Andy couldn't believe they did that! People get killed doing that!  They then laughed at us from the other side because we had to walk up and over the bridge! Drunken fools! LOL

In the taxi on the way back we were chatting to the woman driver from Leeds whilst trying to ignore Helen who obviously wanted to be sick!  We got home okay and Helen went straight to bed - and I followed not long after because I didn't want the next day to be a right-off!

It is a good job Helen does not read this blog because she'd kill me for posting these pics.....