Paul is away at the moment, enjoying a wet and windy 4 days cycling in the Wicklow mountains. Don't tell him, but I've missed him! Not all of him, but his company, and having someone to share evenings with. The weather hasn't helped, and I've possibly been below par healthwise... Anyway, today I decided to grasp life by the lapels and get on with it. Despite the blustery wind and high chance of showers, I went out on my bike for 20 miles. I wore my rain jacket as it seemed ch

We're two days away from sailing home after our latest "tour" as Paul likes to call them. Its been great, but as usual I'm ready to go home. We've travelled a long way, from Santander to Cadiz, along the coast as far as Valencia, then up to the Pyrenees and through France to Brittany. We're sailing home from Roscoff. I've finally got the hang of driving the van, I did multiple hill starts in Brest today, and have survived down some very little roads. It hasn't come naturally;

Thankfully I had a healthy platelet count of 114 (that is very healthy for me!) and my surgery went ahead on 18th February. I was strangely excited to be walking to the operating theatre, I'd waited for a long time, although with trepidations about the spinal block I was about to have. The anaesthetist had cheerfully declared he was giving me one as I'd be in "a lot of pain" afterwards... He wasn't wrong, but it didn't last too long. The care I received was excellent, with th

Whilst I was enjoying the leisure of Monday morning yoga today, Helen mentioned our edge several times. Thus, setting my mind off on one of its wanderings, as I probably never will learn to be fully present. I knew a woman at work who frequently stated that she was a donkey on the edge. We all assumed that we must support her in retreating from that place of peril, and certainly do nothing to push her over it. Living life on the edge - dicing with danger, being a micro millim

Well, I've survived Christmas and am now drifting quietly into the new year. It was a busy but joyful time, with the infectious excitement of an 8 year old growing as the big day got ever closer. We visited the festival of lights at Malvern. Very pretty. And we saw Father Christmas at Kerne Bridge, which was delightful. We even went to the crib service at St Mary's. Carols in church on Christmas Eve along with hosts of little people all about to burst with anticipation. Surpr

I'm writing this on my 61st birthday. It's 9:30am, I've drunk two tepid cups of tea, had some birthday hugs from Lily, and am now held hostage on the sofa by Bella, my cat. She doesn't seem in the mood for moving so I may stay in my dressing gown for a while longer yet. It's been a significant year. We lost Dad. This has freed up a lot of my time, but left a gaping void where his personality was. It has also created a big hole in the fabric of our family, as he was the reason

We've been away for just over 3 weeks now, and yesterday I finally managed a bit of yoga! Only 25 minutes as I was bring bugged by flies and our French neighbour's dog. It makes the most ear piercing squeak of a bark, and all day long we hear " Canaille, non. Silence. Tait toi" and other admonishments. I've just looked up the name Canaille; it means rabble, scum or dregs. Hmmmm. I suppose anyone would object to being called that, even a dog. But, back to the yoga. It was ok,

Summer is over already! That was quick. We certainly can't complain about it being a typical British washout this year. I did, however, complain about being roasted alive on many occasions. Just our luck that Ross was the hottest, driest place in the country. It was a novelty to see our little town getting so many mentions on the news, and the reasons could have been far worse. Having not been laid up after surgery, I've spent the summer being busy. Lots of cycling, several t

It's been way too long since my last ride on one, but I love a good rollercoaster. The anticipation, the acceleration and weightless moments, the absolute thrill. And all with minimal risk to life and limb. I have become much more risk averse in my middle age, which is illogical as I have far less life to lose these days. But then, limited commodities generally have a higher value, basic supply and demand principles, so I suppose it makes sense. Many of you have been surprise

Reflections on the past weeks

This time next week we'll be rolling in to Santander for the ferry crossing back to Plymouth. It's been an epic adventure, and surprisingly we're still getting along. Most of the time. 41 years of marriage, but we've not spent more than 3 weeks together constantly in the past, and certainly not in a 14m² space! Hilda, our motorhome, has lived up to expectations. She's caused us a few moments, like her engine light has been on since the Algarve (apparently the particulates fil

Hooray, it's February. I've always loved February as the days are getting longer, spring is tantalisingly close and as a teacher I got a week off. What's not to like? Of course, as a retired teacher I now get every week off. Lily will get half term, however, and we're taking her to London for part of it. Actually 17 miles from London as there aren't really any motorhome sites within the M25. Going into the city will involve a train, which will be exciting in itself. All good.

Listening to the radio on New Year's Eve, I was startled to hear that 25 years ago we had been celebrating the new millennium. Wow, how time flies! Our children were still at primary school, and our house extension had been completed 10 days earlier. We hosted the New Year's Eve party for our near neighbours that year, most likely a very raucous affair involving the consumption of way too much red wine... No wonder I can't remember! Some elements of that day seem so recent, o

Well, I've got to sixty. And more remarkably, so has Paul my husband, the Hardy to my Laurel. A & E has been his second home over the years, so I hope he's slowing down a bit now! I am in flux between two emotions at present; gratitude for having lived this long, and disbelief/horror at how old I am. There's not a lot I can do about it other than to grasp everything that comes my way with my arthritic hands and make the most of it. That's my resolution for my new decade. Buoy

We were at a funeral on Wednesday. Paul's cousin had been unwell since the age of 12 and at 54 had finally succumbed. On a grey day in Stockport I listened to a very talented celebrant telling of his fairly restricted but, nevertheless, rich life filled with good humour and love. I hadn't met him many times, but was left wishing that I had got to know him. Many of us, myself included, waste time bemoaning our fate. We pay far more heed to the negatives than the positives, and

This is my second week of being properly retired, as I was employed (and paid, thankfully) until August 31st. I am not regretting my decision yet! When the children went back to school last Wednesday I was massively relieved that I was free from the usual start of year stress. The first 4 weeks are tough. Instead, I did some housework and had a cup of tea with my sister. Perfect. I am unusual insofar as I like cleaning. I like the physical activity of it, the calming, therape

Hello! Sitting in my garden beneath the parasol - yes, it's actually necessary today and not because it's raining. Enjoy it while it lasts, cold fronts on the way with rumours of 3°C next week. Got to love a British summer. So, 3 weeks of work left before I leave. That's 9 working days, and one lavish end of school performance and disco to get through. It's been a tough year, but my eyes are firmly fixed on my goal, July 17th. I am very sorry really, to be looking forward to

I was at Yin recently, relaxing into a pose and trying to remain present, when I tuned in to what Helen was saying. She was telling us that it didn't matter what the pose looked like, that if we were feeling something in the target area then we were doing enough. Enough. I stored the word away to ponder over later. Enough, a rarely accepted amount in a world where we constantly strive for more. I am currently teaching a class of 11 year-olds, where feelings of uncertainty and

When Helen was a teenager she tried to persuade me to try yoga. I was uninterested. My perception was that yoga involved a lot of sitting around cross-legged chanting Om. The only exercise I was interested in made me sweat, my heart pound and my muscles ache. Fast forward 20 years and I've just returned from Ashtanga having experienced all of those things! So I was wrong, so very wrong. It was my first proper Ashtanga session in about 5 weeks. A medical issue has prevented me

March already! I've been willing away the winter, but now it really all needs to slow down a bit. Spring is not to be rushed through, but experienced with wonder. After my therapy session yesterday (aka Thursday yin yoga) I tackled the lawn. After so much rain, and such warm temperatures, it was a dense mass of lush green grass, teeming with life. It took a while! There was a lot of bending, and I was grateful that my hamstrings had been loosened up already.... Bella, the ca