Skip to main content

STEPPING OUT FOR SNOOKER BY THE SEA (#SingingAsTheDarknessLifts 74)

STEPPING OUT FOR SNOOKER BY THE SEA 



PodBean Link for those who like to listen... 

 

This morning the rain brings a gentle dampness, and the air holds the scent of sap and twigs. 

 

Alt text says this week’s photo is two women taking a selfie. I say it is me and my sister taking a selfie having learned that it is best if we both sit down. When we stand side by side for photos she looks far taller than me and the photos seem a little out of balance. She says I have shrunk. She couldn’t see me at the railway station when she arrived for her visit, and I found myself standing on tip toes and waving a big double handed wave, so perhaps I might just have to measure myself to find out if I have indeed shrunk a little!

 

We first met up to watch the snooker a year ago, and before this I had never watched it live. We saw Gary Wilson’s 147 break, and laughed at my sister’s impression of me telling her I was suffering from shin splints from walking round The Orme. This year I know even more about snooker and enjoyed watching Stephen Maguire play against Ali Carter. I also know it is wise to pack my walking shoes when it comes to going for a walk with my sister.

 

I love the way our walking contrasts with the sitting in silence to watch the snooker semi-final. A perfect balance. This year Katie set me a new challenge of walking round The Orme before breakfast and up Moel Famau afterwards. There was a moment when we sat down to eat when she was doubting my will for the second part of our excursion, but I refuelled and was good to go. It was important to me to complete the two walks on the same day as part of my ‘Snowdon training’! I have been walking regularly and feeling an improvement in my ability, so it was definitely time to test my stamina. I had not completed a walk of this length (or indeed anywhere near this length) in one day for many, many moons, and having remembered how much my legs ached after my last mountain climb I needed to find out how I was doing. No shin splints and mission accomplished with a proud sense of achievement! That’s good progress for me compared to a year ago and bodes well for our nighttime Snowdon event. To celebrate I have invested in a new rucksack and dubbined my walking boots. I now need to keep up the momentum and ensure I focus on ascending some hills as well as walking regularly.

 

The snooker clashed with the Winter Wool Festival in Blackpool so Kath was there while my sister and I shared a Valentine’s Dinner of our very own. I made red pepper hearts to put on top of our heart-shaped pasta and it felt good to cook a special meal to celebrate the weekend. I was introduced to new songs along the way and am now determined to be better at keeping up with listening to new music. I love the playlists I have created over time, but have rarely added to these and notice that I am missing out. If you hear me singing about going to the ‘Pink Pony Club’ you can thank my sister and if you already like the song and haven’t heard the wonderful version by Edwin (Grandad Sings) here’s the link.

 

Here's to walking, and new playlists.

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

HOW IT STARTED, HOW IT’S GOING (#SingingAsTheDarknessLifts 92)

HOW IT STARTED, HOW IT’S GOING     Listening Link  This morning the cool air is very welcome. It carries the vague scent of cut flower stems.   Alt text suggested this week’s photos could be a collage of a person lying on the grass or a collage of a person smiling. I say it is my author photo from 2020 alongside one of my author photos from 2025.   I still like the photo of me lying in the rosemary from five years ago, but can never unsee the single hair under the word poet which escaped my notice at the time. And I really like the recent photo. It’s actually me!   Not only can I face the camera and smile now, I am also willing to pose for more than one photo at a time. That’s a lot of progress. And I am proud and intrigued to look back and see where I have come from. Of course if you ask Kath how difficult I find it to stand still and gaze into the middle distance or how many photos we rejected along the way there is a story...
Post a Comment
Read more

LIFTED (#SingingAsTheDarknessLifts 108)

LIFTED Listening Link  This morning, the cool air brings the smell of hash browns as the traffic builds its familiar rush.   Alt text offers no suggestion for this week’s photo. I say it is my sister, me and my mum in the lift after coffee and before a little shopping spree. I love this moment in time from our lovely, shared day, and the fact I remembered to take a photo.   This week I learned that I am a competent pumpkin carver. Good company, a simple design idea, a whiteboard marker pen and a last-minute pumpkin purchase resulted in a Trick or Treat worthy exhibit which made me smile.   It has been like adopting a mini half-term this week... catching up with a good friend, time with family, carving that pumpkin, having a toffee apple, going to a big firework display, landing on the settee of lovely people and having a photograph taken... and perhaps there will always be echoes of school holidays even though I no longer have these as ...
Post a Comment
Read more

MY YEAR IN REVIEW (#SingingAsTheDarknessLifts 114)

 MY YEAR IN REVIEW   Listening Link This morning it is raining and the almost unchilled air carries strong hints of green.   Alt text says this week’s photo is a collage of a group of people. It is indeed a collage and it is made from the photos that accompanied each blog post this year. I do like to take a look back before I look forward and I thought this would be one way of doing it for 2025.   When I was little I loved an annual. To me it was a book of delightful snippets collected together to be enjoyed in a period of time that involved a break from routine. I can picture myself reading in my pyjamas, the seemingly bottomless sweet tin, and the advent calendar that left its glitter on our fingers with all its doors open telling me that it was indeed Christmas Day. This week’s photo is like the cover of my 2025 annual.   This blog has been my way of building a good relationship with Mondays, and the fact there have been 114 episodes since Sept...
2 comments
Read more