And the walking continues… god knows how many miles I've notched up this past year, certainly at least 5 x a 'normal' year. Especially given that I had the metal in my back taken out at the start of March 2020 – incredibly fortuitous timing – and its made a big difference to what I can now do.
And so we carrying on… meeting people outside. But thank god for you all! Without the chance to meet friends, this would be even harder and even more crap than it already is.
So this weekend's big treat was seeing the Mikey & Margo clan – little Emmy toddling gamely through the mud, puddles and general grot of Richmond Park, with Patrick being dragged off his feet by an over enthusiastic Scrumpy.. It wasn't quite gin and tonics round the table as we huddled in a lightning-struck tree for shelter and the 'no really we're having a lovely time' photo! Despite the challenges, always good to meet face to face and share a hot chocolate – leaning on the outdoor cafe fencing in a chilly wind – afterwards.
I even managed to gatecrash one of H's walks with Jules – look at our rosy cheeks – on the golf course bit of the common. The dog beast is doing well now we are letting her have much more time off the lead, to try and burn off her lockdown / arthritis tummy. And you've still got to love the crunch of snow underfoot – beats the mega squelch of oozing mud any day. Jules has been a total star during all this, hauling H out for bike rides and long day walks at least twice a week – top man.
Snapped a quick shot of this slightly bizarre offering as we finished off – I did briefly wonder if I pulled the sword out of the 'stone', would the pandemic finally be over if I wished hard enough? But decided to leave it in place – I'm not sure even a bit of magic could really sort out our global predicament, sadly.. Still, kind of cute to see…
And on we go, another groundhog week, inching from day to day, from a night on the sofa to another night on the sofa, and another home cooked meal to… yes, you've guessed it, dinner chez nous yet again. Still trying to be grateful for any small mercies, but bugger me, I've never known a Jan/Feb drag as much as these months really, really are.
Onwards and upwards though, as my chemo chum Tom likes to say… Here's to the thrills of the upcoming Valentine's weekend and the excuse to eat even more chocolate, before the walks begin agaiiiiin x