It's been over a month...

It's been over a month, almost two in fact since I last posted and I don't know where the time has gone. When I started up this blog I had every intention of posting onto it regularly, I mean, at least weekly but, just lately, time just seems to be slipping past me and, to be honest, I don't really have a great deal to show for it! 

Let's see, since I last posted, what's been going on with me? My wife and I took a trip up to Leeds to visit her Uni friends for a couple of days, that was nice and on the way back we stopped off in the Midlands and stayed a night with my mum and while we were there visited my sister and oldest friend, Angie and her partner. 

It's always nice catching up with old friends, isn't it? I've known Ange since we were about two-ish I guess, since pre-school certainly. I don't remember our first meeting, we've just always known each other, well, it feels like there was never a time when we didn't know one another. 

We haven't always seen eye to eye, in fact during high school I have distinct memories of us having 'falling outs' but never for long and as far as I remember most of those 'falling outs' were mainly due to external influences. But, despite those silly teenage blips, and, Ange pulling a science stool from underneath me as I was about to sit down on it (I still struggle to see the funny side of this, even though you assured me that I would 'one day'), we've always managed to remain good friends and now Ange is my oldest friend (not in age she'll be pleased to hear me say). Since moving down to Essex we don't see one another quite so often as we used to. As adults, and when I lived in Staffordshire, we used to see each other at least once a week and, during certain time periods, daily but that's not really possible any more so we just catch up when either one of us visits the other. So it was nice to have a good old chin-wag when we saw them last month, if not a little brief. 

Anyway, I digress. 

What else have I been up to? Honestly, not a great deal. I've been trying to get a bit fitter. I struggle with a back problem that sometimes means I find it difficult to get around (in part, but not entirely, due to the science stool incident!) and so I've been trying to build up my fitness levels on the treadmill at home over the last month. As a kid I used to be a keen runner. Never very fast but quite good at cross-country. Sadly, my fitness levels have declined quite considerably, especially during the last few years. You know what it's like, get into a relationship, get all comfortable, eat out far too much and before you know it you've put on sooooooo much weight! So, I started running on the treadmill. It's hideous and I hate every second of it! When I first started I could only run for about 30 seconds before I had to stop and get my breath back for about 2 minutes and then have another little run for another 30 seconds, ridiculously unfit! Anyway, I persevered and I'm now running, after a month of running at least every couple of days, for 10 minutes continuously! Doesn't sound like a lot but believe me during the last few weeks I never once thought I'd get to this point so I'm very proud of myself and am almost confident enough to leave the house and run around the block.....one day, soon, maybe! 

I have to give some thanks for getting to this point to a friend of mine, Lisa Holmes. I met Lisa at Essex Boot Camp (EBC) last year. My wife and I bought a voucher for 10 sessions each and, well, I only managed to go to 3 of the 10 before I had shin splints in both legs and could barely walk and on top of this was diagnosed with a nasty case of EBC Tourettes, mostly brought on from attending a session with Lisa! Needless to say, I called her pretty much every name under the sun and never went back again! All entirely unprovoked and not her fault, I should add, just doing her job, but, it was hideous. Being unable to walk with shin-splints was exactly what I didn't want to achieve! However, I did take away one thing from that session and that was one of the things that she said to me whilst trying her hardest to motivate my sorry ass; 

'Your mind is going to tell you to give up 100 times sooner than your body needs to so just keep going'. 

Lisa, I hear you saying this to me, in my mind, over and over again while I'm on that treadmill and, to say I'm sick of the sound of your voice is an understatement! Teehee. Only Kidding. Without that one little bit of encouragement I don't think I'd have got this far and still be plodding on and, I know that it's not far considering some of the distances I see other people running, but it's my far and it's a step in the right direction. So, thank you Lisa, you tyrant, you. Even without seeing you, you still made a difference.

So, that's what I've been doing. It's all a bit of a mish mash really. Not the usual focussed blog I've been trying post on here, but, well, I didn't really know where I was going to end up when I started this one! Must try harder!

Rose tinted glasses

I was trying to remember when it last snowed quite so much during one winter season. I mean, not snowed a lot in one day, I'm talking about when it last snowed on more than one occasion, you know like snowed then got warmer then snowed again. I don't think I can ever recall a time when that's happened. I mean, I can remember some crazy snowy winters as a child when it snowed so much we got snowed in, snow drifts up the front door, dig yourself out, type of winters! But not snowed, then got warm and then snowed again in the same season 2 or 3 times over.

I live in Essex now but I grew up in Staffordshire in a small village where everyone knows your business even before you do, but I digress! 

The weather in Essex, due to it being that little bit further south, is always a degree or so warmer than up t'north and the winters, well, less snowy. If it snows here in Essex you know that up north they're suffering.

Memories are a funny thing, they always seem so idealistic, or is that just me? In my mind's eye the summers seemed sunnier and the winters, somehow, more wintery. Perfect imperfection! 

I'm sure that they weren't sunnier or more wintery but it's funny how we store information like that, with our  'rose tinted glasses' on. 

I can remember one particular winter we got so much snow that we lost our electricity supply on our village for about 3 or 4 days. It seemed longer but I'm sure it wasn't! We had an open fire so we were okay for warmth, well, in the living room at least! But we didn't have mains gas to our village at that time so we couldn't cook or even make hot drinks! 

I recall having to walk to my sisters on the 'new estate', it was about half a mile, with a flask to get hot water as she had a gas cooker. They had everything on the 'new estate'! Posh new houses, gas! 

That year it was so snowy that I remember Philip Barnsley skiing in the avenue! 

During this winter we took our dog, Benji, for walk one day down the lanes and almost lost him it was so deep. The snow drifts were over 4 feet deep in some parts! I remember him bounding around like he'd never seen snow before. Having to make little leaps up to get over rather than through the snow, as it was so deep, and then just sinking into it each time he landed. It didn't deter him, though, leaping and barking and catching the snow in his mouth. It was great fun to play in, you don't to seem to feel the cold as a child! 

When we got home Benji's paws were all matted with snow and I had to sit and break it all off for him, I don't think he minded too much, though. 

Nowadays, I love the romance of snow. The first snowfall. The ground completely covered in a thick, soft blanket of white. Untouched, unmarked. 

Getting up and realising it's snowed and rushing to get dressed and warm. Into your wellies and gloves and hat so you can go out and play in it. Build a snowman? (Some things never change!) And then you're out there. Brrr, 'this is a bit fresh', but not too bad with my hat and gloves and scarf. 

Building a snowman. Starting off with a tiny ball of snow and rolling it around the garden to collect more to make the body. It doesn't take too long, I remember it taking longer, or maybe it's those rose tinted glasses again? 

My hands are freezing, even with my gloves on! 

Now to make the head. Another small ball, rolled around the garden then 'plonked' on top on the body. 
I can't feel my fingers! 

Now, everyone knows a snowman's not a snowman without eyes and nose and mouth, oh, and buttons. Gathering anything I can find to suit the job. Some stones for the eyes and mouth and buttons, that'll do and some dry grass as hair. As a child it was always coal and a carrot but there are no such luxuries now, and we don't have any coal, we've got gas, it's the future, you know!

My hands are aching, they're so cold!

Now to take a quick picture, record the memories forever. Nowadays that's not a problem, everyone has a phone with a camera on it, digital technology kind of took over without me realising.

Back when I was a child we didn't have any such thing. It was a cannon camera and a roll of film with 24 pictures, 35 if you splashed out! It was quite expensive, though, and to get them developed. Hence, the reason that there are no pictures of me playing in the snow as a child, I guess?

Can't feel my hands now, time to go inside. Kick off the snow. Get in and put the kettle on. I look at the clock, oh, I've only been outside 10 minutes, it seemed longer than that, colder than that. 

Snow is so much colder these days!