Finale...

A week of lasts...last night of js training last night with an end of session fitness course and then some flowers and wine for me. They are such a lovely group to work with and run with that I feel very lucky indeed. Another last came today with Freya leaving Primary school..I kept the tears at bay until saying goodbye to her class teacher. Twelve years is a long association and I shall miss being primary School Mummy! Freya came away with the Sports cup to keep for another year and the much coveted Neil Munroe Quaiche given to a P7 for the writing of a Para Handy connected story so we are proud parents indeed! So proud we went off to The George for lunch. A lovely way to spend a Wednesday and it ain't over yet!!

Athleticy Stuff!!!

Just another day in the life of with breakfasts kicking off a busy day. The guests as usual got on really well and chatted away until time to rise and leave. The children were pleased with the rolls the guests had ordered (if guests have them they get the spares...). One line of washing hung out pre breakfast and one post with the rooms cleaned and re-set,the poly-tunnel watered and then off to Lochgilphead for the Mid Argyll sports Day......fantastic to see all these kids running/jumping/ throwing their hearts out...maybe the inserting of that latter verb into that sentence did not quite work but they tried jolly hard at the throwing too! My guys did really well against stiff competition but honourable mention goes to Rosie first in the mile run with some very good tactical running and a wee bit of pacing from big brother (running in the same mile/different category) who came back to see her in along the last stretch....sprint finish!! Fish and chips supper followed by home, a movie and a glass of wine....well, I had the glass of wine and the girls had the movie.

Chatting and running

Two of my favourite things to do rolled into one on a jogscotland night out. We ran from Furnace to Inveraray in two waves more or less getting there together....ish. the run is really nice almost totally along the shores of the Loch, we then had a lovely if a little tardy meal with lots of chat and banter...




Weekly runs 10.62

Mid summers day

First a three mile run to check the sore leg from a fall last week...unlike me to fall I know professional runner that I am but hey ho it happens. Anyway leg okay and too hot to go far plus a stand off situation between the dogs and tow kittens...dogs lost meant that it as a quick run and back to get last minute fancy dress ready for a hog-roast at Dalchenna. saud pig was the piglet who foolishly escaped one too many times a month or so ago and was ceremoniously cooked for and by good friends in a custom built heath Robinson drum and was delicious! The evening drifted down to the shore with various teenagers swimming and then drying off by a huge bonfire...perfect!

Hot day running...

A lovely run around and about the outskirts of Inveraray and the Dalmally road looking for new routes to take the jsers on. We found several new tracks but are not too sure how they link up...a job for another cooler day! Actually much of today's run was governed by where the shade provided by the trees was.Liz was trialling her new running Camel which worked really well and I got a few sips too...made all the difference.


Walk 7.5 run 17.82 swim 1k

A day in the life of....

A perfect random day full of the different facets of my life...wife, Mum,B and B lady, friend and imperfect gardener who... gets the occasional perfect treat. Breakfast was very genteel and polite with the two afore mentioned ladies who finally departed in a flurry of frantic car repacking and goodbyes which left me to clean and reset the room at my leisure. Garret had car duties in Inveraray during which time he had a call out (in Inveraray as luck would have it so was not left kicking his heels too long) so I fed and watered birds, piggies, goats, ducks and geese (can't do the rabbits due to allergies...these are the two members of the rabbit family who rubbish any known facts about the ....um....promiscuity??? right word? or speedy ability to procreate as they have been living together as man and wife for many months now with no effect apart from Mr Rabbit looking a bit brow beaten all the time...back to the story, for anyone who is still following they did finally get fed by the non allergic Garret). Watering the poly-tunnel also fell to me today and so I got to harvest the first two strawberries which we duly scoffed before the children could get them...all is fair in love and gardening. A quick shower and off to Inveraray to collect a lovely flower bouquet which only dropped water on me for a short time before I handed them to Birthday girl Janice prior to a chatty long lunch in The George. Home to cobble together pasta for tea and then a whirlwind beauty therapy session for Freya prior to the P7 High school disco. We discovered that there is a very good reason why restaurant/hairdresser combinations just don't work....so, another trip around the High School for me whilst she boogied on down...finally home and a whisky (for me not her....)

Lazy, quiet days

Quite literally the calm before the storm of the sunmmer holidays as the weather and the schools usually break together.... And so we potter on into a quiet second week of June with just a few guests but the very highest quality of visitor of course! exit a very quiet Dutch couple this morning and enter two very Morningside ladies straight from the pen of Alexander McCall Smith on their way to Islay with their wee 12 year old dog....what a class act. They mounted those stairs, one on two sticks and one dragged by the dog with a will and capacity that puts many a younger person to shame. Their soft accents are dogging this entry and I wish I could convey its sound. Run time again tonight with the Lochgilphead js group...round and about Kilmartin and a lovely, lovely run with just Ginny towing me (and then Liz when she got tired) this time.


Walk 7.5 run 9 swim 1k

lovely run and a swim!!

Thanks to a quiet time B and B wise (thank yous due to Transerve for closing the road and not advertising correctly i.e YOU CAN STILL GET TO THE CORNERS!!!!!) I snuck off today for a 1k swim at Lochgilphead pool with Fiona N doing her swim for charity. No time pressures as Freya was at high School today for the first of her inductions. She enjoyed the schooly bit but bib bro and sis were in trouble for ignoring her! off for a run tonight with js in Inveraray, a nice one above the town to get us ready for next weeks 7.5 miler with a carrot at The George at the end.



weekly total 7.5 walk 4.7 run 1k swim

Not running but walking today

Our final sponsored walk from Furnace to Inveraray, an annual event to raise money for the primary school. This year was a bit drizzly but nonetheless beautiful and always nice to have a good chat along the way to the others taking part. We took the dogs who were a bit confused to see Garret running towards us from our house direction and then to be scooped up and run back the way to the car in Furnace....the start of the marathon training! He almost had a much longer run as he forgot to get the car keys from me but due to Lucy in her confusion planting muddy paws up my back I remembered in time. Home by 1300hrs for baths and warm ,dry feet at last!

Flights, Fancy weddings and Future plans..

were all items that sped us round the below course last night. Naomi and I had a good catch up (though I am missing Liz....still too poorly to run) round Loch Glashan with four dogs and several million midges who did not catch up until we stopped at the cars. Naomi recently attended a Scots/Indian wedding/ meeting of cultures which was fascinating to hear about and the flights is our news as we have finally booked a holiday to Portugal in October despite the HORRENDOUS price of flights...Howard and Myrna, Toby suggested we ask you to fly us all instead......oh and my Mum is coming too so just a few trips across for you!! Big sis will be there too so exciting times!!
No running tonight just a leisurely walk and a catch up with a friend and the dogs. Freya and Rosie sweated it up at Karate where Freya with the help of Rosie as sparring partner (or punch bag) got her brown belt. Well done Freya!!




Weekly total 16.59

Dunardry.

A contrast to the midges last night with a lovely breezy run out at Dunardry near Crinan with the Lochgilphead group. Just a leg stretch really but stiff hill to start with!

Quickie post

Braving the midges an intrepid 6 set off last night for some sprints (always such a pleasure...then hills ditto). so 3.62 so far this week. Thrilled to meet a fellow Mighty Deerstalker staying with us and so bored his workmate rigid with tales of daring do in the hills of Innerleith. Have a 12 miler planned later this week and js in Lochgilphead tonight...need to get back on my bike sometime soon!

A big hill on a hot day!

Toby, Rosie, Freya and I went exploring up Glen Shira to try to get to the reservoir and dam at the top...and as you can see we did! and it was fabulous...

Why did the chicken.....

Here is a tale of a chicken who may or may not be called Lucky. 'Tis a true story but only she knows the full story and she is not telling.....A week or two ago a couple of ducks went missing, they roam around and dilly dally on the way home and it is the way of things that occasionally the fox gets a lovely treat. Then we found a hen had gone and did not have to search far to find the feathers scattered by the fence and a bent square in the wire where a determined fox fancying a change of diet had pulled her through. Garret did what Garret does in this situation and over the next two nights had two sightings, two shots but no definite hits....no more visits though. Yesterday he saw a wee hen wandering free and wondered how he had missed her at shutting in time...then counted the rest of the girls out and hey! one extra. The missing hen after two weeks had returned, very bald, thin and traumatised (sat under the rhododendron shivering yesterday) but home and glad of it. She made it to the shut in last night but did fall into the water bath this morning and had to be rescued so maybe not that so lucky after all....

The Exams are over!!

Finally my revision duties are done and Toby's exams are over with the chemistry Int 2 today. By the time I had collected him and delivered some friends to their homes which took two hours from the middle of the day it as nearly time to get Freya from school and attend our last parents appointment at the primary school. After I had finished beating her for such a bad report we went to get ice creams. I staggered into my trainers later and headed for Furnace to meet the Wednesday js group. A nice change for me to only drive 4 miles instead of 20 plus...The Leicann run is a lovely one especially on a lovely night like tonight. However it is supposed to be 6 miles but try as I might cannot get the GPS to read more than 5.14 (not without running further that is!). Osteopath tomorrow......



Weekly total 8.62

Blisters and beyond......

All the blisters are...still there and the calves are fine as long as I do not attempt to go down any stairs at all...however needs must and jogscotland called tonight. We had a pleasant run with some parlouf sprints and crucifix exercises to start us off! Back in B and B land I am always in awe of coincidences, over the years of B and B I have found many,Howard and Myrna if you are reading this you will like this one! A man in Furnace has an interest in Hovercrafts and all things hovercrafty has arranged a week long hovercraft get-together for fellow enthusiast. We have had a single guy booked in for a while who duly arrive with his craft which has consistently broken down since the start of the week. Today Garret helped him strip things down and amazingly this hovercraft turns out to be the same one sold by a friend of ours at Argyll Adventure a few years ago...a mae west moment...of all the B and B's in the West you walked into ours....