(2026 edit - this post is from the archive and was first published on 20 November 2012 at 0925. Things, views and events may have changed since then.)
The weekend was rather slow and quiet. I rode to Worthing Saturday morning, which was rather enjoyable. The route I took is just under ten miles from door to pier, and that certainly blew the cobwebs away. It was great fun; however, the return trip was a little more strenuous, and my legs and arse certainly knew about it when I eventually got off the bike at home!
I couldn’t really do much on Sunday; the leg with metal in it was a bit stiff, not surprising really, as the weather on Saturday was a bit blustery and cold and the joints don’t half ache in wintertime! In fact, with the clear, wonderful warm winter sunshine on Sunday, I wished I’d planned a ride out for that day rather than the previous one, but there you go, that’s life.
I watch the television news with a sense of dread; the situation in Gaza/Israel is incredibly worrying, the disproportionate levels of force are alarming, and I’m deeply concerned for my friend Pascal, an aid worker, who is working in Gaza. I can see a land invasion happening, which will be devastating because it can only lead to much more bloodshed and a rapid escalation of already tense international relations in the area. The ones who are really suffering are the children; in Israel they have bomb shelters, in Gaza, one of the most crowded places on earth, they have no such luxury. I know that already a UK Royal Navy vessel received ‘readiness and preparedness’ orders on Monday mid-morning, which is a concern in itself. One can only hope for a brokered ceasefire and more efforts put into finding a long-term solution.
I’ve got to pop into hospital on Wednesday for a meeting with one of the counsellors regarding my ongoing medical tests and explorations, which is a good thing; it is another step forward. I know things have to be done properly and there is a procedure to follow, but sometimes I just get the desire that I wish it would be blooming well, hurry up. Obviously, I’ll give you more details soon, and thank you for the good wishes; very kind of you, remember it is nothing to worry about; I’m not ill. Although I do need to lose a little bit of poundage, watch and bring down my cholesterol levels slightly, that’s fairly common for a guy my age, especially one with a bit of a passion for cheesecake.
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| 15 Oct 2010 (I want some now!!) |
Oh, I found a way to take my photos off of the Daily Mugshot site, which seems to have been abandoned; that's been good, as I'd thought I'd lost that visual document of my changing appearance and life since 2009. I've enjoyed looking back over some of them; others have made me inwardly cringe a little, and a few others will never see the light of day again! However, I did find this one, which I purchased whilst living in America, and I know it looks odd, yet it defies its appearance and tastes rather nice!
© 2012 Copyright to Jason Shaw.
