Day 101 - Room 101 - as I woke this morning I was facing Day 101. The temperatures had dropped. My walk was shouting to me . 100 walks . 300 miles or maybe more . I really do need that Fitbit . I grabbed that cup of tea , cleaned my teeth and headed out . Up the hill . For some strange reason there was no-one about. Tuesday there should be people walking. It was not raining so where were they? . 101 days not a special number of days . Just one more than yesterday I thought about what to throw into Room 101. Covid 19 for sure . That would be the first thing I would relegate to that room . Step after step I headed down the lane with a plan ... read more

Day 99 - a turning point . Tomorrow is a big day . The start of Week 15 and the last few days of June . Sunday morning . Another breakfast . Another walk and another view out of the same old window . Sunday is always a good walking day . I set off out . The rain had been falling lightly overnight . This morning it had stopped but the wind had picked up. The leaves on the trees were blowing . Not gently as you would expect in June. The sky was cloudy with the hint of more rain to come . As I walked down the hill and around the Lido I realised that there was no-one out . Was it because it was Sunday? Was it the inclement weather ? Where ... read more

Was it 1989 I wondered ? I have a memory of an old man. He was walking along the banks of the Cromford Canal. He leaned on the umbrella he was using as a walking stick . He stopped now and then and talked about steam. About the Industrial Revolution and the way it evolved in this part of Derbyshire. He described the rivers , the damp weather and the site of his factory with its lights blazing well into the night . He talked about the philantrophy of Arkwright who built the village of Cromford. A village that climbs up a hill. The houses of three stories were built of local stone and are still standing . He built an entire community . I don't remember the name of the old man . Professor someone ... read more

Dear Covid 19 daily diary. I did not write in you yesterday . I don't know why. Perhaps it was because my walk was.............well the same old walk . Or perhaps it was because it was so hot . I sat out in the sun with a glass of Aperol Spritz without the Prosecco . Reminder to self - shopping need to buy wine . I closed my eyes as i drank it and thought of the Italian Lakes and less than fizzy Aperol in my glass . Not quite the same experience . It was a lovely day and the sun rose early . It was too hot to stay in bed . Too hot to walk but walk I did . I saw no-one for a while . Perhaps they felt like me . ... read more

Day 92 - Sunday . Overnight an a knife attack has occured in Reading . Three dead . A Lybyan national has been arrested . It sounds like a terrorist attack and mental health issues have been bandied about . The knifeman has recently been released from prison following a minor offence . Only just released it sounds as if he went amok in the park last night . Can the world get any worse ? The rain fell relentlessly overnight . It did save us from watering the vegetable plot . It took care of itself . The water butt had filled by this morning . The sun had broken through by 8 am . It was time to venture forth and see what Sunday was going to bring to me . Fathers Day . ... read more