Burn baby burn

Had a fire drill at work yesterday. Always interesting to see how people will react and usually people act like its a drill. They don't know it's a drill but they will go back for mobile phones, sit at the computers cos they have to finish something, dawdle etc. I'm a fire warden so I get to move people along. I knew it was a drill (well not the exact day but I knew one was coming) . I've suggested we burn something to give it authenticity next time but the idea wasnt taken up. Can't think why. You always get one or two or think they are more important and don't have to abide by what they are being told. For example as the congregation point is the car park, plus we need to keep the entrance free for fire engines, people are told they can't move their cars. But you always get someone who gets in their car and tried to move off and can't understand why the fire wardens won't let them out. My colleague got yelled at by someone once. 

Otherwise yesterday was just another day at work.

In the evening I made stir fry. Lots of veggies, cooked in sesame oil. Yummy. I rarely cook cook so it was nice to make something for a change. Tonight it will be pasta as I'm racing tomorrow. 10k, off road. Should be a laugh. Aiming to beat my personal best there of 1hr 13. Is doable. So tonight is resting and working out how to get there. Best get some money out so I can actually get the bus. 

Weds I went to a mates house. Ran 3.9 miles and boy did it hurt. Didn't warm up enough, plus the heat wasn't helping. Still she cooked a yummy dinner and then we made cupcakes. I say we, it was mostly me with her jokingly dissing my attempts to mix packet mix cupcakes. She made the icing. They were yummy but you did have to eat them with a spoon which I'm not sure you are supposed to do. 

There is more to life than running

Didn't go running today. Should have done but the hot nights have made sleep non existent and so I'm shattered. Decided to paint instead

This is the start of my painting. Not sure what the final piece will look like but it's a start. Might do another swirly one later this week. I like swirls, they are fairly easy and you can decorate them, I'm quite chuffed wi the last one I did. My favourite piece is still my flames picture which has pride of place on my wall over my altar.

Only problem with painting today is I didn't open my door and have inhaled acrylic paint fumes. Not many but enought to give me a headache. 

Running tomorrow but not Thursday and Friday as resting before my 10k on Saturday. Weather forecast is rainy which is typical. It's Blaise castle estate so gonna get a tad muddy me thinks. Oh well it will keep things interesting.im aiming to beat my personal best of 1hr 13 on this course. So as long as the mud isn't too nasty that is doable. Then after that I two my marathon training. Gotta stay on top of it to make sure I get round!

Annoyingly I saw something interesting on the way to work and I can't remember what it was. I'm going to have to write things down otherwise this blog will be a boring montage of the scraps of my life I can actually remember and I doubt people will find it interesting.

Canada hasn't moved forward mainly because i haven't done more than what I said last time. I have received a book on tours and it has given me an idea of costs and what I want to see. Now it's working out getting out there. 

I want a dragon

I just watched the new How to Train your Dragon Movie. So want a dragon now. I'd call it Firefly and I'd fly everywhere. It would be awesome. Not sure where I would keep it but it could roam the grounds at work and terrorise the deer. Wouldn't take it all the time cos the scooter might get jealous.

Seriously it is a good film so if you haven't see it yet then go see it (make sure you see the first one because it makes more sense if you have). Went to see it with Dave (for those that dont know that is my ex husband) and we ate a lot of popcorn, followed by dinner after. My belly has a food baby in it now. But it was a good evening. 

Been checking out a brochure for trips to Canada. Still in the planning stages at the moment but in getting an idea if what I want to do. Might give skiing another go, if I can get over being scared of falling over then I reckon I could be alright at it. I'll leave the black runs to the likes of my fearless friends but I reckon i might be able to make to a red run - if I put my mind to it.

Vancouver is another place I'd like to check out and the rail holidays look fun, although not sure I like the idea if just sitting at the train staring out of a window. I'd want to experience it, feel it, taste it, enjoy it. There is so much to do out there and so little time to do it. I just don't know where to start.

Need to get my Amsterdam marathon out of the way. An adventure itself as never done an European marathon before  and I'm glad Emily is doing it with me. The next step will be to do a international marathon and I have got my eye in Toronto marathon in May 2015. am in London ballot again so need to see how that turns out first. Not doing an autumn marathon again. Training in summer sucks so going to stick to spring marathons and train through the winter. Summer has far too much fun and fitting in runs when a) I'd rather be enjoying the sunshine and b) it's too hot to run till later, is hard work. 

Currently falling alseep. Did not sleep well. Was watching movies at 3am cos my insect bites kept me awake so gonna slope off and sleep now

Blogging on the bus

Meant to blog yesterday but didn't get in till gone 10pm after a 11 mile run so blogging went on hold. It was a nice run even if I did feel exhausted afterwards. Interesting sights included a man playing saxophone on the downs, boy racers making a hash of being boy racers and plenty of other runners. Must be the time of day cos there were loads.

Catching the bus in today which is good cos I got no sleep. At least I can sleep on the bus. Reasons for bus catching - I'm going to cinema and getting a lift. Watching people get on the airport flyer. Very jealous. I would rather be jumping on an adventure. 

Perfect picnic and strangers ice cream

I love picnics. They are never boring and you can mix and match foods. Today I mixed raspberries with peanut m and m's. Rather delicious. And you push the m and m into the raspberry. I know, very far out. 

Today has been interesting. I saw a woman running down the road with a frying pan, a guy with what looked like a table strapped to his back and I got to eat a complete strangers ice cream (that was my good deed for the day).

So bimbled down glocester rd to pick up supplies for the picnic (cider was included - very important supply) and then caught the bus down to city centre (don't worry the post isn't going to be a step by step of what I did today). This is when I saw the woman with the frying pan. Very shiny frying pan too, no idea why she was legging it down the road, she wasn't chasing anyone. Eventually we got to Ashton court (after couple of wrong turns) and had a rather enjoyable picnic. Entertainment was child face planting in the grass and her mother laughing hysterically, and a small toddler making a bid for freedom. Lunch was walked off as we ambled round, checking out the deer and playing hunt the shade as it was a tad warm today. Ice cream stop concluded the work and we headed back into centre. This was when my good deed happened. There was a woman offering her ice cream to people. She had bought it for her friend and they didn't want it so she was offering it to people. She already had one and was about to get into a car so couldn't eat two. So to help I eat I ate the ice crea. Mr whippy with raspberry sauce and a flake in a little tub. Very yummy although in hindsight maybe we should have got a picture of the car so if I was poisoned we could hunt her down. Not sure why someone would be handing out poisoned ice cream (rather rude to do that if you ask me) but you can't be sure! Currently I'm still fine.

The guy with what looked like a table strapped to his back was cycling up glocester rd. the bus never overtook him so I never got the chance to have a good look. Out bus driver was interesting to say the least. I mean most buses stop, open the doors and allow the passengers to get off. Not our bus driver - bus stops, doors open, I go to get off, bus moves forward!!!!!!! Wtf! I don't want the bus moving whilst a) doors are open and b) I'm about to get off. I would have been a tad unimpressed if I'd fallen cos of that. 

Currently chilling out, relaxing in the shade thinking about my running route tomorrow (12 miles) 

The heat is on

I'm no Bridget jones. She as least wrote every day whereas I haven't blogged for almost two weeks. Technology does not make it easier to blog/diarise events. I used to try and keep a journey but although it started neat and full of hope as the days went on my handwriting got messier and the subject matter was just full of angst. So I kept giving up. Plenty of half started journals littered in my life. The beauty of the blog is you don't waste paper because you can just pick it up where you left off. 

So that is what I am doing

Blimey it's hot. I'm not complaining cos I love the sun. But trying to train in the heat is really difficult and careful planning is required. I tend to run in the late evening but then I come home, eat, shower and then bed so life is just run, eat, sleep with the occasional work thrown in. So I'll be happier when it's a little cooler. I don't think I'll do an autumn marathon again. Stick to the spring ones cos it's easier to train when it's cooler. Might do a triathlon next year. I have a year to train. My mate is taking swimming lessons and is going to let me know how he gets on. My cycling is stuck at the moment as back tyre has a chronic puncture problem due to the inner tube being the wrong size so I need to sort that out before I can go on any long rides. Plus the brakes are sticking p, so some tinkering is required. Hoping to draft in some help from people who know about bicycles because I know nothing. Well I know a little bit but I'm all for getting the advice so next time I can at least try and do it myself.

The other news is I'm looking to go to canada. Not forever because I love this country and I have friends here who I would miss. I'm not great at making new friends. I'd have to hope my sister in law and brother could help me make friends. Not that I can't make friends. I've made new friends recently but as with most things I tend to find they made the first move. I'm not great at moving things forward and rely on other people to make things happen. Majority of the amazing things I do is because someone else is done the sorting out. I try and help. 

Well going to go for a walk and a picnic in the sunshine. Enjoy people

To Tri or not to Tri. That is the question

So I'm sat here after stuffing my trainers with newspaper in the hope that it will help them dry. Today I ran through streams, climbed over logs, scrambled up muddy banks and I walked along a log bridge (a bridge that was a log). Before I would have probably whimpered and said I didn't want to walk across a precarious bridge. Now I just threatened my mate with haunting if I fell off and died. It was quite liberating. Not much running occurred as we were checking out marshalling points for a race but I haven't been trail running much before and I think it's something I want to indulge in. Plenty of woods near Bristol but also it's not difficult to jump on a bus, train or scooter and head out somewhere if you know where to go.

My other new indulgence is cycling. I've decided that I might sign up for a long distance cycling event next year. I haven't done much cycling so I'll need to start small and build up to it but if I have something to aim for then it'll make sure I do it. That's why I sign up for so many races because it forces me out of the door. But I need to do more than just run, I need to cross train which is something that cycling is good for. It may be legs but it's different muscles. If I can get back into swimming, then who knows maybe I'll do a triathlon. I've been umming and aching over it because it's the swimming that is the problem. I'm not a strong swimmer. I'm a tad useless at it and would need lessons again. I'm not sure I'm one of these people that can swim. But I won't know until I try so at some point I'll sort myself out some lessons and take it from there. 

So this is my new sportier side. I'm running, hill walking and maybe cycling and swimming. I'm trying to keep myself busy and fit. Trying to fit it all in is certainly proving interesting.

Climbing mountains in more ways than one

So this weekend Scarfell Pike was scaled. The forecast was originally looking pretty miserable but thankfully, apart from one or two showers, it was pretty dry when we decided to tackle the highest mountain in England. 

Friday

Part of Friday has been mentioned in the earlier post about hot chocolate and castles. Once the castle tour was over it was a case of nipping to sainsburys to buy the weekends groceries and indulge in their cafe whilst waiting for the last member of our posse to join us. Once the trio was complete (and James had drank a double espresso) we set on our merry way to our campsite in Wasdale. I say merry, we did take the slightly unnerving route of the Hardknott pass which I doubt we would have managed to complete had we not been in a 4x4. The car did a sterling job and we managed to arrive in one piece, to put our tent up in the rain. The evening dinner had originally been planned to be veg chilli but seeing as we were all knackered we opted for cous cous as that only involved boiling a kettle on a stove.

Saturday

We meant to get up and be on the mountain about 9, we weren't far off that but then timing was never my strong point. We packed our bags and after a lovely egg sandwich from the campsite cafe we headed onwards and upward. Scarfell is a tad steep straight away although I did comment it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be (all those hill running sessions paid off), it did get steeper and it was hard work. One big obstacle was a stream which had been a raging river with waterfalls which we needed to cross. We eventually managed to get across although I did get bored of trying to keep my socks dry and just sloshed through. This resulted in wet feet and I'm still paying the price - no blisters but they are sore and itchy. I do love my walking poles and were very thankful for them many times. There is a lot of scree on the mountain so my feet did slip sometimes and one time caused my knee to twist and my muscle pulled half way up the mountain. Decided not to tell anyone till we were near the top when a gasp of pain gave the game away. I soldiered on though and we made it to the top. The views were spectacular. And well worth the effort. We munched our lunch and then started back down. My knee was really hurting at this point but I refused to be beaten. Some other walkers gave me painkillers and I substituted swear words for the word kittens, so spent a lot of time just saying kittens. I think next time I might take something to strap my knee up. Although I do think it was a once off. 

Returning to the campsite we sat and toasted our success with cider or beer and veg chilli.

Sunday

We slept a lot. Before the afternoon nap we all indulged in, we did go to the lake so sian could have a swim. Sian and I had done a reccy earlier that day, and then we returned. I didn't swim although I regretted it after as I reckon it could have been loads of fun but I managed to come up with some excuses as why I didn't and stuck to them. 

The afternoon was spent sleeping in the tent and dozing in the sunshine. I'm reading about Chrissie Wellington and she is an inspiration. I already have loads of ideas about how much more cycling I want to do although I doubt I'll be doing an ironman. 

The evening we finished with a BBQ and packed up as much as we could.

The weekend was fantastic and I have come away buzzing with the other adventures I want either in the weekends or in the evenings after work. I'm hoping my brain calms down so I can sleep!

Hot chocolate and castles

Two of my favourite things. We have 2 hours to kill before we get picked up so we needed somewhere to stash the heavy rucksacks and time consuming. Bing! Tour of the castle. Our bags can be stored and because sian gets disabled discount (and I'm her carer this weekend) we got ten quid off. Bargain. Chilling with a hot choc till the tour starts. 

So we sat next to a guy on brum to Lancaster train who is currently writing a book. Quite nice guy, book sounds interesting. No idea of his name although he does have a young person railcard (should have sneaked a look but I am the most unsubtle person ever)

Packing mayhem

So I've been packing for my adventure prancing up Scarfel pike. A weekend of sleeping in a tent whilst the wind and rain howls (I won't be sleeping the whole time cos that would be a tad boring). Luckily we are sleeping in a big tent. So we can sit and chat and tell ghost stories.. Or maybe not cos I'll wet myself. 

I've probably forgotten to pack something. But it's only a weekend and I know sian will make sure I eat. I do have snack bars. That'll do I'm sure lol. 

I am looking forward to it which is weird. Walking was never my thing. I'm a running person.  Although missed my toning programme today. I think I'll doing plenty this weekend. 

Starting a new blog

So here it is. This is me starting a new blog, trying something new and seeing if it actually works. It's very therapeutic to throw your thoughts down on paper or the screen in this case. I have so many random thoughts flowing through my head. I sometimes wonder if I should have a dictaphone strapped to my head so I can speak my thoughts out and remember them but then 1) that would look weird and 2) the thoughts are sometimes have shouldn't be said out loud in case the person they are about is stood next to me. Plus not very practical for getting a helmet on. So I'll stick with trying to remember them and typing them here so years later I can look back and think -yep I was weird back then and smile

Today I spent time with my bessie mate Loulabelle (not her actual name, I normally call her Lou but I felt like calling her Loulabelle here). It was a lovely few hours if catching up, eating cream teas and trying to eat ice cream before it melted. And it did melt and landed in our hands. Fortunately I was unusually prepared and had tissues to mop up the mess that couldn't be licked up. I hasten to add we only licked the ice cream on our hands and not anywhere else. This sentence is getting worse so I'll leave it for now.

I returned home and for some reason Weston must have been a tourist hot spot because it was standing room only.. Unusual for the x1 from Weston to Bristol on a Wednesday afternoon. I obviously missed something. When I did get home I decided that I needed to go for a 5 mile run (like the two days before) so that's three days in a row, tomorrow is not running it's cross training and then I'm climbing a mountain on Saturday. I'm not really an active person. It just looks like it.

So this is my new blog. I'm aiming to complete it every day a bit like Bridget jones but without saying how many cigarets I smoke (I don't smoke) and calories I consumed cos I try and count and get bored.

Ta at for now