Life, the Universe and Everything

failed to post this yesterday! did 44 lengths in the pool last night. shouldn't go in the evening really, as I never get to swim for as long as I'd like due to people being irritating and me getting fed up and getting out!

new swimming costume is cool though.

Yay finally broke through six hundred! Another 40 lengths today, so still on target and all is well with the swim. Although I really do need a new swimming costume - my red one feels all weird. I was constantly paranoid that when I was pushing off it was exposing me!

Another 40 lengths today. Have decided that a Tuesday-Thursday-Sunday schedule is unrealistic, as I always seem to have a handy excuse not to go at the weekend.

So we're giving Monday-Wednesday-Friday a go instead. Monday morning is (as noted earlier in the week) a tricky one, I mean who wants to voluntarily get up an hour earlier than normal on a Monday. But Friday evenings are good for getting in a longer swim - as evidenced by last Friday being my best session so far.


www.justgiving.com/tink-swim

56 lengths today! Go me! So total is 444, so we're on about 35%. 7 and a half miles. Doing pretty good!

and I was swimming in the fast lane for most of it. admittedly this is because the middle lane was SLOW as you like. Paralympic turn guy was there, and some crazy possibly foreign girl doing lots of really slow technique practising lengths with floats, and then doing lenghts in a really slow butterfly stroke.

fortunately there were no really fast people there, so the fast lane was merely slightly-faster-than-the-medium-lane-usually-is.

another 44 lengths today. seems like 44 is settling in to be my 'normal' amount. I need to start pushing myself more, aim for 48 as a minimum.

I also need to sort out my mp3 player so I can swim with music again.

Big effort today, need to get back into the habit. Must stop random life happenings getting in the way!

52 lengths this morning. And since I'm off work on Thursday, I'll have longer in the pool than usual when I go in the morning. I've just worked out, i'll have enough time to do 80 lengths!

>

Another 44 lengths today. Went at lunchtime, rather than in the morning. So no lanes. But less people.

A man called Alex was asking me about my swim - my bright blue swimming hat emblazoned with the words "Aspire Channel Swim" finally sparked some interest!

So this morning I got up early to go swimming. I was working on the basis that the pool opened at 8am, so I'd set my alarm for quarter to 8. I got up, left the house, got to the pool just after 8am. Pool does not open till 8.30.

Bugger, says I. Can't go home, because then I wouldn't want to go back. So I'll just wander the streets for a bit. Ended up going for a walk through the enormous cemetery over the road. I like it in there because its so peaceful. Even though its right next to the road, you can't hear the traffic (this happens in all cemeteries, I think its awesome). there were information leaflets by the entrance, which I'd not seen before. Includes information about the history of the cemetery, and a map to help you find graves. So I wandered about, looking for stuff it mentioned, like specific memorials and the remains of the original chapels.

The cemetery is Grade II listed. Two of its memorials are also Grade II listed. and the whole cemetery is a wildlife heritage site. Semi-improved grassland, with many rare/protected plant species.

When I got to the line that says "There is a family of Muntjac deer living in the cemetery" I started to think, okay, I've never seen deer here, that can't be right.

So I'm wandering around, trying to find stuff. what should appear out from behind a shrub, but a female deer! I couldn't believe my eyes! She didn't see me, was just pottering around grazing. So I carefully followed her, until I was in a position to take a picture.
( pic behind cut )She's very small, but very cute! You can see in the pic, she was very aware of me, she kept moving away and I was having to do my best not to scare her.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reeves's_Muntjac

So yeah, a decent night's sleep, followed by an early morning nature experience, followed by a refreshing swim, means I'm feeling a lot happier today. Breakfast time now though!

another 44 lengths in the pool this morning. am feeling pretty good, especially now I've just eaten my breakfast!

Pool was hideously busy when I first started swimming, but by ten to 8 it had quietened down considerably, and when I was doing my last few laps there was only one other person in my lane. It's a shame I have to be out of the pool by 8.20, otherwise I'd stay later as the pool totally empties out for the last half an hour of the session!

Am hoping Saturday morning's session will be quieter - I mean who'd want to get up at 7am on a Saturday to go swimming!

So yesterday was Ed and Rachael's wedding. It was awesome! Very them, if you know what I mean. I may have drunk rather too much mead - I'm feeling incredibly delicate today!

I think we eventually headed off to bed at about 4am. There was singing around the fire and it was cool. Other highlights include the first dance :-)

Didn't realise how drunk I was till we went to bed and I lay down. Didn't really get much sleep, so felt pretty rough when I first got up. Burger king on the way home stopped me feeling too rubbish in the car and a prolonged snooze in bed with J and the cat helped me feel vaguely human again. Fidg was very cute, actually, as soon as he realised I'd got in bed wearing my dressing gown he came racing over, dived under the covers and started kneading the gown like a cat possessed! Then he curled up as tight up against me as he could, and purred his head off. I'm guessing he's forgiven me for the kennels and the vet now!

Rugby now, with added pizza. Hopefully my hangover will go away soon!

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