Rosedawn Ramblings

There have lots of moments in the last few weeks when life felt like it was back to normal, making it seem like starting again has become a real possibility. The sun has been shining, There has been time for catching up with friends in real life (no screens involved), Mr T got a haircut, coffee and cake at a cafe, watching the newly-hatched ducklings swimming along the canal, blossoms on the trees, answering parkrun emails about barcodes, buying a new front door, even booking a few days away for a holiday .  Back to normal. Almost. Probably the most normal thing of all has been the return of club runs with the Potters Trotters.  For an hour or so at a time each time we meet, we have returned to our old routines - lots of chatter as everyone arrives, tentative questions as we set off about how far we are running and how many hills are likely to be involved, conversations as we run about what races we might do, what's happening in Line of Duty, or what is for tea wh...

I've spent a good couple of weeks trying to get my head around my new normal . I know that I am incredibly fortunate to have a secure job and am able to work safely at home. I've enjoyed being able to break up the work day with music or creating a meal in the slow cooker.  I know that having outside space and my little balcony is a real privilege. I've really enjoyed eating breakfast outside, especially in the recent sunshine.  I know that I have good friends and family members at the end of a video call for support. I have actually enjoyed navigating new technologies and I've even been on a podcast ! But some days have still been better than others.  I'm not sleeping as well as I usually do (and this helpful article probably explains why) but it's given me time to clean out bathroom cabinets and kitchen cupboards. I'm probably having too many mid-morning / mid-afternoon biscuit breaks (stay away from the fridge) but we are tryin...

On March 1st, I completed a 20 mile race around Oulton Park motor racing circuit - it's possibly my worst ever race experience for a whole host of reasons which now seen inconsequential, but I did it and that was what mattered at the time. Straight after the race, I took the train up to Manchester to join up with Mr T and meet our friend Sarah. We had cocktails and Caribbean food and then went to celebrate Christmas in March at Tailenders Live. Tailenders is a loosely based cricketing podcast with a Radio 1 DJ (Greg White), a Maccabee (Felix White), England's greatest ever bowler (Jimmy Anderson) and a shoe salesman from Bristol (Matchin Tendulkar). It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever but I love it. I wore my Christmas dress. I did not look out of place. It was ridiculous and made us all laugh out loud. Jimmy Anderson shredded a mango and a mince pie. Standard fare on Tailenders! After that slightly weird start to the month, everything seemed relatively nor...