The picture above is from a few months ago. It's a sign of the times. It looks like a selfie from an after work dog walk. We've not done that for ages but I think we should get back into it. Sharing this time together is important. We talk and reflect on the year that was. Also I promised my therapist we'd do it...so...time to make time for the evening dog walk!
There's been no dramas for Lee this week but no progress either. The long road to recovery is very very long. Speaking to her GP, Lee was reminded that her recovery time was at least 12-18 months. The clock on that starts when Lee left hospital. As she was still in ITU this time last year...we are still over a month away from 12 months. Also as it's winter, the effects of this respiratory illness are more pronounced. I saw this first hand when we popped round the corner to Lee's Mum and Dad's house in the week. 30 seconds of cold air and Lee was breathing heavily, it's literally the next street and she was worn out getting there.
In other family news, Lee's Dad continues to soldier on. He had an issue midweek with his trachy which ended up with Lee taking him to A&E in the early hours on Friday morning. It was just a few hours to sort things out and he's home again.
Níamh and Olly had a few good days in London. Joe and Amy continue their life as homeowners. Amy had her birthday and as she has become an important family member we made sure to celebrate with her.
This brings me to Sam. I am proud of all our children but this week I am especially proud of Sam. He had a great parents evening. He is working so hard at school. He also did a talk in assembly on his transition from worst behaved kid in the school in year 8, to the incredible young man he is today. Other students described him as inspirational. He's committed, well liked by his teachers and knows what he wants to do. None of these things could have been said for me at 16. Like I said - especially proud!
Switching to bikes
I continue to cycle to work. On my regular route there are environmental messages on a fence surrounding the old Kettering FC ground. So after a couple of weeks not driving my massive car, I'm feeling all self righteous. I'm sure a few journeys doesn't make a big difference but I guess it's about making this a permanent change and hoping it encourages others.
This week my commuter/winter bike got very noisy. A quick wiggle of the crank suggested my bottom bracket had gone. I've done a few of these recently but this took ages to get off and fit the new one. The last must have been fitted by Andy at C&D cycles at least 5000 miles ago and it had more than done it's job! The bike felt a lot better with the new BB but the noise remained. Graham Squires on Saturday correctly diagnosed the left pedal! I had a spare so I've swapped it. I've also bought the tool to service pedal axles!
The big ride of the week was the Cyclasylum group ride. In similar cold and windy conditions to last week we headed West into the wind.
The group was a decent size for any time of year, let alone the nasty weather we're having right now. We did lose Neil very early on though as he had a rare tubeless fail.
Despite being downhill from Cold Ashby to Stamford it was hard going in the wind. At Stamford we stopped for bananas 🍌 and to admire new bikes for Marcus and Andy. N+1 in full effect!!!
It was much easier riding back from Stamford. At Sibbertoft we had a little incident. Richard G and I, two of the heaviest riders reacted differently to a rider coming from another direction. I went left and he went right and we went shoulder to shoulder like sprinters at the end of a stage race. Thankfully being equally robust, we bounced off each other and just carried on!
With the wind behind we were back at Rothwell in no time and I knew I wanted to do more. A few of us stopped for coffee and food at The Fox and Peony where Neil joined us. Following some top banter we all went separate ways and I went looking for 13 miles to complete another 100km Fondo. Just like last week I rode directly into the wind for as long as necessary and then turned around to get blown home.
I had the week off from Junior Parkrun with the intention of getting more miles in. I walked the dogs in filthy weather and decided I'd had enough outdoor riding for one week. So I completed my weekly cycling goal on my rollers.
I'm still on track for 1000 miles in 7 weeks for #NHS1000miles. With another 151 miles of cycling and walking this week my year to date is 764 miles. So 2 weeks should do it...much as I like alcohol free beers like the one above...I'm looking forward to a proper beer on the 19th of February!
Happy Pedalling
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