The things we do!

First up, tapas news. It was delicious and a really fun evening. In good news, I didn't drink beer and only 1 glass of wine and a few G&Ts. I didn't go mad on the food front but I can't say I was abstemious either. We managed to get home for midnight as we were golfing at 7.35 the following morning and my hangover was not too bad.

The scales were not kind however. They bobbed up to 15.13.8! Gulp.

Saturday was busy busy busy. Golf mega early. None of us played well but it was a fun comp and good company. It was a beautiful sunny morning too although a little chilly.

Straight after golf we dashed into town for the footie. We were playing bottom of the table Ipswich and managed a reasonably competent 2-1 victory. Woo hoo!! We have seen a lot of dross this season so far and missed our first win last Wednesday evening as were golfing (natch) so it was great to see 3 points in the bag.

We were meant to be going out on Saturday night as well but were just too sleepy so stayed in and had steak and chips (mine were semi- virtuous sweet potato oven chips obviously).

The scales did not fall for it despite all the walking and added another 0.4 to the tally. Sigh...

Today has been hectic too but for a totally different reasons.

We had booked a round of golf with my teammate Lindsay at a course near Tadcaster in North Yorkshire. It is the venue for our team's big semi-final in a fortnight's time. We really needed a practise round and today was the only day we could do.

Imagine then how happy we were to see the weather forecast of non-stop steady rain from 10 til 5pm. We were teeing off at 12.30! The forecast was accurate.

It chucked it down. I'm quite sure that if we had not arranged to take Lindsay we would have cancelled. Both Rich and I and Lindsay all separately contemplated texting but in the end, we're all gritty northerners and we stuck to our guns.

And more fool us. It was full on wet and miserable for the first 4 or 5 holes and then the wind picked up to join the party. I was honestly questioning my sanity as we slogged along in the pouring rain with slippy clubs and cold, soaking hands. Then I felt the first trickle of water slide down the back of my so-called waterproof trousers and into my knickers. Yay!

Actually it wasn't too bad, the course was flat and my waterproof gear mostly worked and the rain gradually lightened from the 14th or so. We made it through and it was very helpful to have seen and played the course and know what to expect on the big day. The back nine in particular was criss-crossed by a couple of giant ditches so now we know when to lay up etc.

In case you're wondering about my strange head gear, my waterproof hat is slightly too large and was being blown off by the breeze so I had to anchor it in place with my sun visor! I will need to buy a decent hat before the semi-final!!

One good thing about having dropped 2 stone is that I now fit into this decent waterproof jacket. My bigger jacket was cheap and nasty and not in the least waterproof but was the only one I could find which fitted. There is very poor choice of ladies' golf gear in larger sizes. Another 10lbs or so and I should fit into a nice set of (purple) Ping waterproofs I have sitting in the wardrobe....

After changing into dry clothes and having a quick coffee to warm up in a totally deserted clubhouse we drove back home.  We had to dry everything out for golf tomorrow so the house is now festooned with drying golf paraphernalia. Rich took the girls out for another wet walk and I cooked a hearty supper of meatballs and spaghetti.

Tomorrow is yet more golf and dog walking but this time it is a genteel afternoon of mixed golf. I think the weather is going to be better.....pleeeeaase!!

I hope your bank holiday weekends have been fun even if not dry.

Challenges

We are going out for a meal this evening. At a local pub which now serves posh tapas. We've not been before but it comes highly recommended.

A meal out should not be too scary an expedition but the company makes it daunting. We're going with Billy and Abby and previous meals out with them have turned from smart nights out into marathons of food and drink.  Great fun but ruinous to a fledgling re-re-re-start.

In all seriousness, I cannot afford to let tonight derail me when this latest push has me still stumbling around like bambi.  I have had a very sensible breakfast and lunch to save calories for later and took the dogs out for a lunchtime run aa well. Now I just need to work on my moderation muscle and practise saying "no"!

The run was pretty good. 4.3km but I mucked up my fitbit by not un-pausing when I stopped to take a pic and not stopping once I got home so I don't know how my speed is doing. We were dodging the sharp showers to find a window to get out in but didn't get too wet until the last 50-100 yards when it chucked it down and we got soaked! I'm out of practise towelling the dogs down and keeping the hall clean(ish) after this amazing summer we have had.

The scenery veered from bright sunshine to chilly black clouds. Lovely.

Not a bad day today. Lots of exercise in the form of dog walking and golf and food okay. It was our Invitation Day at the golf club so there were cakes at the halfway hut and a meal afterwards. I did have a small cake but only fruit for dessert.

I WILL be going for a run tomorrow though to keep the pressure on.

These pics were taken on my Monday lunchtime run. I had a yen to check out how low the water level is in the Ladybower Reservoir so decided to combine the expedition with a run. I also suspected that I would not feel like running in the evening  so thought lunchtime would be safest (I was right BTW). 

The reservoir was very empty. Having run up the big sloggy hill to the dam wall we took a break and let the girls have a swim. We had to walk miles to find the water!!

It's going to be a LONG time before water spills down this overflow!

So far, so good.

Week 19 weigh in

I promised a weigh in post so here it is, a short burst of accountability. I weighed in at 15.12.6. Not bad. I have been that weight a few times over last few weeks but have then bobbed up to 16/16.1 which is what happened this week too so I was very relieved to see 15s appear this morning!

It is a good start, a platform to build on. THIS time I'm going to keep on going and see 2 consecutive weeks of diet and exercise.

I was at work in Rotherham today but stayed reasonably on track apart from an impulse buy of bloody Maltesers when buying diesel on the way home! Why?? It's as though I'm ambushed by a dreadful habit and don't have the willpower to avoid it. Gah.

It could have been worse though, I almost picked up a large pack of Minstrels instead of a small bag of Maltesers. The only thing which stopped me was thinking how hard it would be avoid having Minstrels next time!! Having had that epiphany, you'd think I'd go one step further and not buy the damn Maltesers at all!

After that the day improved. My pal Kerry came over for an evening dog walk. It was lovely - sunny, pretty, good chat, happy dogs, what's not to like?

Early sloes, small but masses of them.

I haven't noticed this bleached dead tree before. I suppose it might not have been bleached before this baking summer.

So, it's on. Wish me strength for the week to come!

Woo Hoooo!!

It is a strange thing really wanting to win a golf competition. Obviously I want to win everything I enter but recognise that this is unlikely and would probably make me terribly unpopular at the club. So usually I just try my best and have a laugh.

But this year I REALLY wanted to win the ladies' individual knockout competition, the Challenge Bowl. I have been playing good matchplay all year and felt that this was my year to do it.

It is one of the bigger competitions of the year and the best I've done in the past is a solitary semi-final appearance a few years ago.

Well, I beat Morag a couple of weeks ago and then had to wait to find out who my opponent in the final would be. Either Carley, our best player who would have to give me 10 shots or Hilary who plays off 12 so would only be giving me one shot. Both would be tough acts to beat.

It turned out to be Hilary and we quickly set up our game for yesterday afternoon. I thought we had to wait for Finals Day on October but apparently, as we women get to our final pair earlier than the men who have more players and therefore more rounds, we tend to play in the good weather rather than waiting for the hooopla of Finals Day in cold, rainy October.

It is a bit of a shame not to have the fanfare but on balance much better to play on a warm, sunny, quiet afternoon.

Anyway, not to keep you in suspense, I won. Quite comfortably in the end although it never felt easy as she is such a consistent, relentless player. I was never behind and played well enough not to give her any real chances to beat me. Any time I started to wobble I managed to pull out a really good shot or good hole to stop the rot.

It is very satisfying; achieving something I set out to achieve and worked hard for. Hopefully my diet will have a similarly satisfying conclusion.

Today, however, the sporting excellence ran out. We were up early for a drive down to Brentford for the football. A trouble free drive down found us in our chosen pub for 12. We've been to The Globe a couple of times before and it is one of fhe better pubs we've found in London.

Although packed with Brentford supporters away fans are welcome, as they should be.

The ground is proper old school and pokey. I don't know how they are still allowed to have terrace standing after 4 years in the Championship. I thought it had been banned by the Taylor Report post Hillsborough but they do. Very retro

The topless chap below  is our famous fan, Tango.  He's alright, not terribly bright.

We lost. Miserably. A dispiriting 2- nil defeat from which even I with my generally sunny positivity, cannot find any silver lining. (BTW that was a weak pun as Jeff Beck's Hi Ho Silver Lining is Wednesday's anthem.)

After full time some lad let off a blue flare. Maybe he felt sad.  I know I did.

We're nearly home now and I'm stiff from being squished in the back of a car with 2 others for 3 and a half hours. I'm also proud that I had a sensible breakfast, no beer, just 3 gin and slimlines and a reasonably sensible carvery lunch. Not too much damage done (apart from to my soul by Sheffield Wednesday's spineless display).

Back on the horse...

Posting last night helped. It helped me stand on the scales first thing (a much more palatable 15.12.6). It helped me make a healthy fruit and yoghurt breakfast instead of the toast I craved. And it helped me open my diary and start a new entry for today. I hope it helps me to have a salad for lunch and go for a run later too!!

So, although I'm still behind my pre-holiday weight, I'm not far off and can get going again.

Actually, it was going out for a run last night that really helped as it reminded me that this whole process is neither scary nor unpleasant and that success is much better than the odd piece of toast.

I'm NOT going to let this diet peter out as others have in the past and I'm NOT going to give up on my goal of being a slender(ish) bride. I'm definitely NOT going to gain back this 2 stone as I feel so much better at this weight.

So, now we know what I'm NOT going to do. What am I actually going to do?

Today's mini goals are a) salad for lunch; b)  run this evening; and c) write everything I eat and drink down.

Now that's out of the way, some stray lunchtime dog walk pics from last week.

Busy busy.....not with dieting and exercising....

Last week I had got back to within 1lb of my pre-holiday low, 15.10.8. I was writing everything down and 100% back on track. La la la, happy days.

That lasted about a week before the next, erm "challenge" hit. All good stuff, just a full on hectic weekend. The weight seemed to pile back on and suddenly I'm back to 16 something, I haven't written in my diary for days and sweaty exercise is but a distant memory. Gah!!

It was only a few days off plan but it has had a long hangover. I've found it tricky to put it behind me and start again.  If I'm honest, I should not have gone off plan should I? Earlier on in the diet I got excited about what I did NOT eat. Asking for fruit instead of desserts at golf dinners, no beers, few wines, hardly any bread, no sweets.

Well, that is not what is happening now. Now any social event is excuse enough to break the rules.

I know I have to reinstate the rules. I need to remember that it made me happy seeing results and it can do so again. So I will be reinstating proper weigh in posts next week rather than just glossing over it in an "optimistic" manner.

To that end I MADE myself get out for a run this evening. It was tough. Not the run, the making myself go! Jeeez, my chimp was kicking and screaming and using all her persuasive wiles to stop me going. Even once I had told Rich I was going, not gone to the pub with him, changed into my running gear, I still ended up reading my book for 40 minutes before I eventually hauled my carcass out the door!!

It was a triumph of chimp management though. I told her that we would just nip up the road to the pretty bus stop and back (less than 2km) but, once I got going, I pushed on, first to the main road (@3km) and then a little bit further so my total run was 3.5km. Not amazing by any means but definitely better than nothing! I'm going out again tomorrow too to keep up some momentum.

So what caused the hiccup?

Well, the first weekend in August we had a party on Friday night (it was a beautiful evening). Then Saturday we missed Carnival to go away to Wigan for the football.

Monday night was the street party outside our local. Another cracking night in the village and glorious weather too.

Golf Wednesday and Friday and then a monster day on Saturday.

We played in the Greenkeepers' Revenge competition first thing. It is a laugh, the greenkeepers put the pins in fiendish positions on the greens or make you play with daft clubs etc. It was also a particularly stunning morning.

Next up home, shower, change and off to the football in Sheffield. Hmmmm, a barely adequate draw against Hull.

Then home, change, fuss the dogs and off to the bus to Castleton to see our current favourite band, Atomic, play in The Devil's Arse (formerly the Peak Cavern) a massive cave. We know them from Sheffield and booked them for Rich's 50th in February. They went down a storm so, when we heard they were playing the cave there was a mass trip from Bradwell.

(Random Minty pic - no idea where this popped up from.)

Back to the cave...

On the party bus home.

It was packed!

Since last weekend it has been quieter. Food has not been too bad but maybe too many sandwich or bacon and egg meals instead of the pimped up yoghurts and salad lunches I had been happy with last week

This weekend is my big golf final on Saturday (fingers crossed for me folks, I really want to win this one!)  and football awayday to Brentford on Sunday. I am NOT going to go crazy this time round!!

Colour and community

Time has flown by this week in a flurry of work, golf, going out and trying to sort some wedding stuff out. 

Wednesday I was re-zipped and played golf in the morning. Not a bad round for first Lady Captain's, not leading but could get in the prizes if I play alright on Wednesday (it's a 2 part comp).

Rich was playing in the evening straight from work so, after a brief shower of rain, I took the girls out for a leisurely walk around Bradwell to check out the well dressings as it is Carnival Week here. 

It was a beautiful evening, all fresh and washed clean by the rain, sparkling in the sunshine and there was colour everywhere! The rowan trees have gone crazy with berries this year.   

This is the Smalldale Well commemorating Christopher Columbus's journey to the Americas.

In case you don't know, the dressings are frames of puddled clay on which pictures are created out of seeds, leaves and flower petals. All the villages round here do them during their wakes weeks (also known as carnivals, festivals and galas).

They take a lot of time and effort by many people and are a beautiful, highly skilful and ephemeral tribute to the true spirit of village life. They seem to just pop up in their colourful glory but each one has required effort, teamwork and sacrifice of time from many people. I've done a bit of petalling in the past but will get more involved in the future, definitely.

After the first well we headed up the hill and I just happened to look up as we passed the old bowling green (now 2 bungalows with famtastically flat lawns in front!). These flowers against the blue sky caught my eye. So cheery.

Halfway up the hill we turn left onto Granby Road and admired the views of Bradwell Edge and down the valley. More colour in the form of drifts of rosebay willowherb.

Then down a field in the middle of the village to the goat path. I love the views over rooftops and gardens and down to St Barnabas church where we'll be getting married next year. It is so pretty nestling under the Edge.

The lady goat posed handsomely in the sunshine while her companion behind carried on chomping away.

This little Hart's Tongue fern was an almost luminous green in the shade. I have tried to plant a few of these in a shady corner of my garden but they haven't taken.

Then we get to the main Bradwell well. It looked amazing on pictures I saw on facebook when it first went up on Saturday but had already deteriorated badly by Wednesday. The clay had cracked and petals had shrunk back. It must get more sun than the other 2.

Still the workmanship is amazing. To be able to capture such life and expression in the faces working in a medium of flower petals is just incredible.

Just look at Grumpy scowling!

Choosing subject matter for each well is always an issue. Bradda Carnival is quite late in the summer and the hot anniversaries and milestones have usually been covered by other villages. This year's top designs were womens' suffrage, 100 years since the end of WW1 and the 70th birthday of the RAF. We had a nod to Votes for Women but the main picture is Disney's Snow White, no idea!

The final well is the Townend Well which is done by my neighbours. (It was in full sun so the photos aren't great.) This one celebrates the 50th anniversary of the village's Centenary Players (aka my panto drama group!). They are called the Centenary Players as they were formed in the year St Barnabas Church turned 100!

Dick Whittington was the first panto they performed.

I love that they used real hair and fur for the audience and Dick Whittington's cat!!

So, it was a great walk and reminded me how much I love this village and the people in it.