Read it and weep. I did.

Pete has been suffering from A Lurgy, so we weren’t sure whether our planned day out to Lincoln’s Day of (Morris) Dance would come to pass, but he felt OK providing he didn’t have to drive, so off we went.

I love Lincoln – I love all mediaeval cities like Norwich, Chichester, Salisbury, York etc. We’ve only visited once, but it’s going to be somewhere we go regularly, I’m sure. Quite possibly in a fortnight, as there’s a bird of prey display at the Castle, and we found someone who can mend our barometer too!

We gawked in the expensive shops – I fell completely in love with a handbag in a lovely shop where they didn’t seem to mind a bit that I couldn’t afford it, but just brought out different colours for me to try :) We had tea from bone china cups in a little tea room, toiled up and down the hills, decided once again to leave the Castle for another day (see above), and spent quite a bit of time at the Lion and Snake, watching the dancers, particularly the Raving Maes, who I’m thinking about applying to join (although the costumes are probably a bit young for me!)

We had a distinctly indifferent lunch at the pub, and I may well complain to the chain: 35 minutes to produce a couple of sausage baguettes, with a couple of teaspoons of cold caramelised onions from a jar, no cutlery until after the food arrives, *and* a deep sigh when I asked for salt, does not please me particularly. Nor did the advertised “mayo” – no idea what it was, but mayo it most certainly wasn’t. Nice day out, mind, and we bought a couple of splendid stuffed mushrooms, which are destined for tonight’s supper (nice Mr Butcher was quite happy to keep them for us while we wandered round).

On Sunday, I got up fairly and went for a bike ride – 12.82 miles around the north of the city, to Anlaby Common and thence on to Kirk Ella and West Ella, and home. There are *hills* around there – it’s just on the edge of the Yorkshire Wolds, and it was hard work, but I did it all, so was dead chuffed (and puffed). Came home and ate bacon and egg and sossidge for breakfast, then constructed a huge vat of goulash, and some molten chocolate puddings, for supper with friends. Very sorry to say that they had to cancel due to ill health, so I hope they’ll be well enough to come and eat with us soon – there was enough goulash to freeze! As it happens, I started coming down with the Lurgy last night, and Pete and I were in bed by 9 p.m., so it may have worked out for the best …

I took a thin cardi and never took it off, there was a heavy mist which didn’t burn off till about 7 a.m., and it won’t be long before I need lights at 6.30. There’s a real sharpness to the air now, and the days are becoming noticeably shorter.

Not that I mind – autumn is my favourite time of year, and if we’re lucky we get lovely sunny days and crisp nights. Must find time to go brambling on Sunday!

It’s a lot further to Team Waste Summer Camp now than it used to be (it’s held up a hill, outside Carmarthen in West Wales), so we set off at 9.15 on Thursday morning, and arrived at about 5 p.m, having stopped for lunch near Llangollen, and for fuel and a chocolate frenzy at Newtown. Oh, and sweeteners, 270 odd of the 300 of which Geoff kindly hurled across the kitchen floor on Thursday night :)

It was, as always, a supremely enjoyable few days, but … odd, somehow. No Rick’n'Jacqi, no Rox’n'Dave, no Benjamins, no Sleeps. And it felt as though we were all getting old, which we are, of course.  I didn’t even do much cooking – just a big chorizo and chickpea collation for Saturday lunch. We brought home a bottle and a half of the two bottles of whisk(e)y we took, whereas normally we’d be out for emergency supplies of Bushmills on Saturday morning, and also the litre of dark rum – no Dark and Stormies this year, for some reason.

It was also bloody cold at night – my sleeping bag has been judged and found wanting, and I shall be donating it to some unfortunate charity and buying a new one before we go camping again!

After promising ourselves we would do it for the past thirteen years, we actually went out and about a bit – on Saturday morning we took ourselves down to Llansteffan, hiked up and around the castle, then a couple of miles along the very gloopy beach, encountering a second hand book sale (oops) en route, and on Sunday we took a good hike along Pendine Sands, which is just gorgeous. The latter was prompted by a rip in the outer skin of the tent, and thus an emergency run to a tenting shop for repairer stuff.

We managed to get away about 9.30 on Monday morning – much earlier than I’d have liked , time wise, as loads of people hadn’t surfaced to be said goodbye to, but … We planned to stop again at Llangollen and look at the aquaduct (what did the Romans, etc), but so were seemingly hundreds of other people, so we’ve promised ourselves an overnighter there later in the year – it looks a charming place. Got home just after five, to find that Samantha and John had accustomed the Tribe to a style which they are going to want sustained – seriously, guys, a HUGE THANK YOU, for cat sitting above and beyond any feasible expectation.

Today we’re spodding – photos on Flickr, a trip to Sainsburys as we had run out of everything, much laundering, cat fussing, etc.

And of course, massive thanks to Caere Campbell for yet another cracking party – should we do it again, do you think? :)

After that, we set out for Castle Howard, an extremely stately home. I only had the iPhone with me (I’m currently between cameras, having sold my SLR and a big lens), so it was an interesting experience to use it as my only camera – it works really quite well once you learn how it functions. Set here on Flickr.

We came home via Malton, a lovely market town, and bought Yorkshire bacon and sausages and *huge* eggs for a Sunday brunch, and some bits from the bakery too. Nice day out.

Sunday was quite domestic; I did an 11 mile cycle before breakfast (!), then we went to Sainsburys and Waitrose for comestibles for Summer Camp (first time I’ve been to either* since we moved here!), did a mountain of ironing while watching A Man for All Seasons, once of my favourite films. Pete went out for a bike ride himself during the afternoon.

So not overly exciting, but there you go. Summer Camp on Thursday – hurrah!

The story was well thought out, but nowadays I find, by and large, there’s far too much CGI in movies which I presume they do just because they can. Given I’m currently reading Charlie Stross’ Merchant Princes series, there were altogether Too Many Worlds in my head, and I found it all quite difficult.

Walked home along Anlaby Road to West Park, where there was an Event taking place, but we didn’t care at all for the band on stage, and came home to soda bread toast and Marmite.

On Sunday, I finished constructing chicken soup, and also made a batch of coriander chicken and slung it in the slow cooker. We decanted some soup into a thermos flask, and packed it up together with chiz’n'onion baguettes, apples and cereal bars, and took ourselves off to Hornsea.

Started off at the shopping village, and bought me a new warm jacket (mine is far too big now, and Summer Camp is upcoming; you need a warm jacket at Summer Camp). Then we went to Hornsea Mere, had soup and sammidge, and set off to walk round the lake. You can’t – well, not without long waders. So we took ourselves down to the beach, and walked for a few miles. 55 minutes going out, into a ferocious head wind, and 40 back (I said it was ferocious). Lovely weather for a robust stroll, though I was glad I was wearing proper stout walking boots – lots of streams running down that beach.

Home to coriander chicken, dhal and rice and a slump. And that was that.

Oh – there was a letter from the Eye Clinic on Saturday, saying that I have “some background retinopathy”. Which is directly contradicts what they told me in April – same test, different department.  $deity knows, but it’s worrying …

There were rumours that the solar flares could cause Northern Lights in the sky as far south as Yorkshire last night, so Pete and I decided to drive up the coast a way and see if we could see them.

We went to Bridlington, and the sky was clearing all the way there. We parked up and went for a stroll up to North Beach, and were sidetracked by the menu at Jerome’s – they had a burger with mozarella, blue cheese and mushrooms! We stopped, ordered one for me, and a Texan burger for Pete. Disappointing – the burger itself was very nice, but the bun was a bit stale, and the cheese and mushrooms were very spartan indeed.

We wandered back, walked along the harbour wall, then down South Beach for an hour or so – lovely evening, but still a lot of cloud, and it wasn’t really beginning to get properly dark at approaching 10 p.m. So we came home.

Apparently there were no lights in the sky last night anyway, but we had a lovely evening out, so that’s alright!

And so, I set the alarm for 6 a.m. this morning, and set off at 6.30 for a bike ride and then a swim. Runkeeper crashed out on me, so I’ve had to estimate how far with Google Maps – I think about 7 miles, but I don’t really know how long. It started to rain about 1 mile out, and got heavier and heavier – I stopped at the Baths, and very nearly said “soddit” and went home, but I had to lock the bike up anyway, and go in and collect the headphones that I’d lost there last visit, so I did go for a swim. Only did 16 lengths – was tired after battling the rain, and I did some weights and resistance last night too. Still, better than nothing.

Put my wet clothes back on and pedalled home – not a long route, but not the most direct either. The parcel man had been while I was out, bringing me red shoes of stompiness from eBay – nearly all my shoes are too big, since I’ve been losing weight, and so I have to buy more; such a hardship.

As I was on my way home, I remembered that I’d set myself a target of being fit enough to cycle over to Bev Road Baths, do a gym session or have a swim, and cycle home again. I remember it as I pedalled down Ella Street, on a long way home, irritated that I hadn’t taken any lights with me, and couldn’t really go any further. And I cycled for half an hour yesterday before I arrived at the swimming pool at 7 a.m.

I may not be fit yet, but I’m sure as hell fitter than I was!

We trundled off to Withernsea, on the coast, unloaded the bikes and set off towards Easington. My word, I’ve been spoilt; Hull is flat, and the gentle hills round the coast really made me struggle, although I only dismounted once.  We did 12.5 miles, and you can see the map here. I still don’t understand why it was mostly uphill, with the wind blowing in our faces on the way out, and mostly uphill, with the wind blowing in our faces on the way back too.

On our return to Withernsea, we walked up the beach as far as we could, but the tide was coming in, so we didn’t get far. We wandered off for a cup of tea, and encountered the Withernsea Carnival;  very interesting talking to the Holderness Falconry Club, and seeing all their lovely birds – how I’d love to do falcony. Might go to some of their meetings.

Next up was – and you won’t believe this – a bagpipe band playing along to a karaoke track of Tom Jones It’s Not Unusual. It actually was quite unusual, and I’d really rather not hear anything like it ever again. We hurried on in search of tea and a scone, which cost us the princely sum of £2.70 for the pair of us.

Home again, and into a hot bath for me, to easy my creaking bones, then a chicken and mayo sandwich for supper.

Monday tomorrow …