Never too old for Halloween!!

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 and the finished product(s)!..

 

No running today just a bike ride for Freya, Lucy, Ginny and me through the wet leaves along the track and down to the shore where we threw sticks into a very high tide and walked along the stones a bit hampered only slightly by random sticks placed at or even on our feet. Very peaceful.

Carron Bothy

A rainy day and a host of birthday chores to compete and so just time for a quick run with Liz.That was the plan but three hours later and with a mission to find Carron Bothy completed and I am back cold, behind in my jobs,aching back, very wet but happy!! We set off from Auchindrain Museum, crossed the road and headed through a very wet field  and from there up the Leicann forest track...and "up" is the correct word to use. It heads up and over towards Loch Awe following roughly the old drovers route and for almost 5 miles was indeed up! We reached a / the peak and started down the other side with no sign of off shoots that looked likely. The rain was more than dripping down and we nearly turned round being 50 minutes into the run when we spotted the dogs standing near a likely turn off...a little closer and there was the distinctive but small white arrow sign. The track then was more adventurous with a choice of running surfaces from  fast flowing stream which had diverted itself onto the path for the quickest route downhill and quick sand into which my trainer disappeared at one point although my foot did not.The trees opened out and the dogs pretended to chase a fox which crossed our path. From that point on we could see the bothy chimney and we were spurred on. The building was such a pleasant surprise, literally in the middle of nowhere with emergency supplies and friendly advice and help notices. It is obviously well used with the last over nighters on October 2nd according to the visitors book.There are bothys like this all over the place free for the use of (usually relatively inaccessible!) and an understanding that one replaces what one uses and keeps it clean etc...a really great find and one that starts the cogs turning...who needs Portugal?! The run back was less inspiring as the rain really came down and the constant up of the outward journey seemed to have sprouted some ups for the way back too. The field at the end was especially challenging as the tussocks and wet grass threatened ankles made tired by the previous 12 plus miles.Just the birthday celebrations to complete now...now where is that icing bag...?

It is that time again!!

Christmas cake a bit crammed in today between going to the high school to look at Freya's years work on gender inequality and about 20 videoed adverts by the same all sadly with no sound and making tea. We did manage the traditional mixing though but alas no one thought to take my photo...

PS Sorry Rosie, no idea why your pictures is so much smaller!

Mega shopping and then running (for a change)

Well, when I say shopping Garret did most of the really boring stuff whilst iI mooched around buying some flat shoes (Oban Ball for dancing??), some muesli ingredients and bits and bobs for Toby's birthday...then I was tired so had a coffee....We met at Tescos (who says romance is dead?) and I joined Garret in another coffee to be polite. Then a trawl round the best supermarket in Oban as the school kids hit the cafe with demands for mega amounts of chips. Trying to persuade Garret not to spend 20 minutes deciding between vegetarian suet (30% less fat but do you sacrifice flavour?-discuss!) and the more traditional beef kind meant that we did the necessary in about twice the time not three times the time it would take me usually...however I did get a new skirt and jacket so not moaning too much, well, not too loudly anyway. Found a new place for a very late lunch made slightly amusing by my having to sneak off to the bank for funds as after paying for the parking metre with 5ps found in the car (each one gets you about 3 minutes as far as I could tell) we were 50p short on the bill. The soup was fabulous and the sandwiches....Chunky! Meandered back to the car in order to fully utilise the 31 minutes we had paid for and home. Fastest omelettes ever made and off to running club through the darkly lowering skies which liberally dumped the wet stuff onto us on and off during a run round Lochgilphead. A warm up run with sprints thrown in as a treat and then 3x400m (aprox) circuits increasing in speed each time. If you look closely at the map you can see how I cut the corners......then a nice steady run back and a damp drive home but THANK GOODNESS the heater in the car is working again...so happy, so happy so happy!!

Drizzley, damp day

...but then it is October so what did I expect? The guests booked in last night and tonight turned out to re returnees, well she was and had bought her husband this time on route to the islands. The aforementioned inclement weather is a shame for them but they put a brave face on it and in return  I gave them a freebie ticket for Kilmartin House museum. They have been married 58 years and so deserved a wee treat! Post breakfast we (self and Garret not the guests) dashed off for a quick dental visit and a chat to the others in the surgery...topics for discussions "inappropriate presents to give your wife" (concrete mixer was mentioned) "6 missing ducks"...were they stolen by fox or man?? and the "unfairness of Garret's neglected but strong teeth and my cherished but decaying gnashers".
It gave me great pleasure to collect a small and almost perfectly formed pumpkin from the poly-tunnel this morning to use for soup...I know that they do not even sell them that tiny in the shops and if they did they would be about 30p but the pleasure is non-the-less strong! As is the quite undeserved pride in growing something useful successfully that we did not plant and  watched puzzled for several weeks as the mysterious fronds twined themselves around the tomatoes and indeed anything that stood still long enough and then finally produced the bulbous fruit which identified them.

The three "R"s Revelling, running and revision.....

Glorious day today with a very crisp start to greet us after a late night  tumbling selves and children into bed at about 2.30am after a great stomping ceilidh to celebrate a friends wedding. The drive to and from was long but very beautiful with a huge silvery moon looking down on all us busy humans. The feet are a tad sore today from barefoot dancing but as always following a Scottish shindig the head is clear as you just can't do alcohol and the spinny dancing thing...not without CONSEQUENCES. In fact I was well exercised yesterday as I tried to get back in the running mode by attempting a longer run, I got very "empty" round about 3.3 miles but as this was the furthest point from home there was not a lot I could do about it. This seems a common occurrence at present with the gas tank frequently being empty or the legs just too damn tired...grrrrr.Today sees some maths revision with a little biology as a side platter (Toby and me) and wee run in preparation for the Tin Farm 5 in a couple of weeks (Rosie) and general dossing about (Freya). I have managed to register some more books on the bookcrossing site between sin and cos head hurting stuff. Quite an interesting and addictive site to brows around take a look! if you are interested.

Home again home again jiggerty jog

Back to the cool autumn air of Argyll after a lovely 12 days in Portugal. The pictures tell it all really and we have a fabulous family holiday with my brother and his daughter Ellie arriving for three days to surprise us...which it did indeed! The running carried on albeit shorter and earlier (too hot by 9am in general) along the cliff tops out from Burgau and then back to have a fresh orange with mum at the beach view cafe. Bliss!

all photos in glorious facebook technicolour
Rosie's Birthday

Marathon Man

Garret completed his marathon in 3.57...and is a happy Bunny to have ticked that one off!

Marathon Day -1

It is Garret's big day tomorrow and the final preparations are over and done with..No, not last minute sprints or muscle stretching but the trimming of the beard and packing of multiple energy bars and drinks to sustain him through 26 plus miles (oh and a night in the car too...). Naomi arrived here snuffling full of cold and under the weather and so they set off Inverness bound at mid-day comforting each other with their various excuses for any possible under-performance...watch this space! The new additions are doing well in their little cocoon in our sitting room...They are supervised by Ginny who is obsessed by the cheeping coming from the silver lined box in the corner....

Country run out and about....

Triathlon Training over and now it is back to what I love best, out and about with Liz and the dogs. Poor Ginny and Lucy do not approve of bike training at all and got ultra excited today at the sight of running trainers, running belt and best of all leads. We splashed our way up into the hills above Minard and across sheep strewn moors to a small Loch in the middle of nowhere. Across the loch and a fast flowing deep set steam and up a clear fell or two we could just glimpse a forestry track that went...well...somewhere obviously. Thirty minutes and one more rain storm later we were on said track and only about 1/2 a mile away from a "which fork shall we take" decision. Luckily Liz's homing instinct and the need for lunch sooner rather than later came good and we were soon heading down into Minard after a wet, muddy,cold and thoroughly enjoyable 7.45 miles.