Does it count?

I have a fair amount of pictures to process, and thoughts to organise before I commit to writing a blog about our recent trip to Florence. But I did have a thought while I was away.

Being a bloke, I have, on occasion, put together lists of things. Countries visited, baseball parks visited (to see a game), football grounds visited, concerts attended, and so on.

There clearly need to be some ground rules when completing these lists. Otherwise it would be chaos. You can visit a sports stadium when a game isn't on, for example, but does that count?

Listing all the baseball stadiums I've been to could include this one at Aberdeen, Maryland as I have been there, but in the off season.

Of course, those sort of rules are entirely at my command, and in this case it doesn't count.

However, I do need some advice about the rules for countries visited. If you happen to be in a plane that lands at an airport in a country you haven't been to, can that count? If so, after this weekend, I can add Germany as we stopped over in Munich for an hour (I had a currywurst for my dinner). I can also add Uganda. Not from this weekend, I might add, but in 1968 flying from UK to Kenya we had two stops, Rome and Entebbe and although I've been to Italy since (this last weekend for example) I don't recall having gone to Uganda while we were over there.

Do you think I should be able to add Germany and Uganda to my list?

Monday, Monday

I have still been plagued with pain. My groin has still been sore and my shoulder, in certain positions, has been agony, so I've been trying to do as little as possible.

We have a weekend away in Florence planned for this weekend, and I've been in such pain that we've had an adult conversation about cancelling it. Spoiler alert: we're not.

So the only thing I have to report on is my bi-weekly visit with the Photo Soc ladies. We all met in the food hall at Altrincham Market. I recall having described the market in a previous blog, but this was the first time I've actually sat down and used the foodhall. I can report that the coffee is splendid and that the maple and pecan muffins are pretty good too. I hope you understand that I only had a muffin so that I could provide a full report back about the drink AND food on offer. <ahem>

It's great fun spending time with my new mates. There is a different level of conversation. Luckily there are a couple of football fans, else I'd have nothing to contribute. They have come together as a group and have a project in mind which I'll tell you more about as it draws to a conclusion.

---

Oops, looks like I left this in Drafts and forgot to post it....

--

So Wednesday was better from a pain perspective and we haven't cancelled our trip. Furious preparations are underway.

If you cast your mind back a few weeks I told you about my visit to BBC Radio Drama to hear "Trial By Laughter" written by Nick Newman and Ian Hislop being recorded. Here is evidence that it wasn't just the ravings of a deluded mind, but I did really go.

L-R: Hislop, Caitlin, Moi.

You can hear it here --> Trial By Laughter . See if you can hear me in some of the crowd scenes.

--

Yesterday Gel and I went for a coffee and a wander in Altrincham and saw some local ethnic art displayed on the walls of a bridge on the way into the town centre.

I find there is a cheeky insouciance about this piece. A post modern comment on the electronic world that engulfs us all. It's a picture of a cock and balls.

Ow

There hasn't been a blog for a couple of days because I haven't really done much. Over the weekend I was suffering with groin and shoulder pain. These seem like mechanical issues rather than anything more sinister.

I've not been for a ride for a while (horrid cold) and I'm stiffening up through that, and I think I also hurt myself a but stealing some logs. I really should have used my leg muscles like all the manual handling instructions tell you.

Hopefully, I'll be back on the bike on Thursday. It feels funny not being out on it for (relatively) so long.

Off to see my Photo Soc ladies now, so hopefully something to report tomorrow.

--

Random blog picture from the archives.

Street Art. Amsterdam

Work in progress

Caitlin and Andy have now been the proud owners of a house for just over two weeks and the progress in the refurb is incredible. Still a lot to do but the roof being sorted this week will be a huge step forward.

In the last couple of weeks Caitlin and Andy have stripped all the walls, have had a new bathroom installed, had a door created and another blocked up, and nearly the whole house rewired. Makes you tired just thinking about it.

Here are a couple of pics.

Ghostly view into the roof void. Note, that's the second time I've used the word "void" in consecutive blogs.

Back parlour.

Back parlour with blocked up arch into the living room.

After we got back from the house - and we spent ages discussing how beautiful it will be - I made something almost as beautiful. Nigel Slater's Frosted Marmalade Cake.

Nommity nom nom, McNom.

Touching the Void

After a slow day - admin bolix - we had a lovely piece of steak for tea and then went up to the Guild for "Film Club".

Our current 'theme' is "Snow". Last time out we had Fargo, and this time we had a film that I had seen three times before, "Touching The Void". This is a drama-doc of the true story of two English guys climbing a new route up Siula Grande, a peak in Peru. It's a terrific film, and even though it's clear how it ends from the start (the two climbers involved narrate the story) it holds your attention. It will make you grimace, and you will be in awe at the strength and determination shown. Recommended.

Ha, ha, ha, bonk

I laughed my head off.

Thursday morning saw my regular bi-weekly coffee with NC and M, except M had gone to Aberdeen and forgotten about us.

That's fine. NC and I can talk bollocks at each other so it was a nice visit.

In the evening I met up with Fej, clownf1st and some geordie bloke for a curry and a trip to Manford's Comedy Club. Jason Manford has established a monthly comedy event at The Garrick in Alty. For £15 we got Jason's kid brother Colin compering Barry Dodds, Penella Mellor and Steve Shanyaski. Reet good evening. Recommended.

Cold

No, not the temperature. I have a cold. All through Caroline's chemo, she remarked that she was being pumped full of poison, and that infection could be very dangerous, but she never had a cold. Not a sniff. And apart from being a bit tired (and going bald during the second cycle) pretty healthy. And that seems to have been the case with me.

Not that this isn't very scientific, as there wasn't a control "me" against which I could test. I can't tell whether the chemo was in some way killing off the 'cold' germs as well as everything else, or whether it's just a coincidence. Maybe being out of contact with large numbers of infectious people... Now, however, a month after the last cycle of chemo I am sitting here with a runny nose and a sore throat. Damn.

Big news in the house this week, however, is the phased release of les chats into the wild.

Boo didn't need to be asked twice, but Poussey did and was v-e-r-y cautious about entering the big wide world. They've had brief forays into the outside, and we've tempted them back with food, but now comes training about using the cat flap.

We have taken out some insurance for them, now that they are having their first visit to the world beyond the glass. I guess there's more chance they might do something stupid and get hurt in this first month. I am not wildly impressed with the insurance company so far. Of three names supplied to them; Boo, Poussey and Geraldine, they have managed to get two of them wrong.

So Jeraldine has insured Poussey and Moo. He's not wild about being called Moo. Especially when it's Poussey that looks more like a cow.