11th January 2016 Marius Youbi: Far too clever for Denmark!

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Monday 11th 35F, 2C, overcast with lighter winds. Still pitch black at 7.45am. I went for a gentle walk but the pain in my left buttock was too unpleasant to go far. This is all very odd after years of pain in my right buttock. I've been doing YouTube sciatica stretching exercise but it has made the pain worse! I see my westerly neighbour has had another illegal delivery of mixed demolition waste for burning on his wood stove. Now we just have to wait impatiently for the wind to change... while we continue to enjoy the toxic brown smoke from our easterly neighbour's illegal demolition firewood.

I was just reading on the Danish news website that Denmark has deported a brilliant engineering student from Cameroon for working too hard and too long. [I kid you not!] They couldn't come up with any other excuse to get rid of him to hide their blushes. Jante's Law is alive and well in Denmark. The Danish version of Sharia Law but far more rigid. It hides deeply ingrained racism after years of economic immigration through open borders. Thick mist and agonizing pain put a stop to any hopes of a ride.

Tuesday 12th 35F, 2C. Lighter winds, overcast with wintry shower forecast. I woke without the pain but can still feel it waiting to pounce. Just walking around indoors is becoming painful again. It rained over lunch so I was quite late leaving into more rain. The snow is still hanging on in the shade. Back painful but I managed 7 miles.

Wednesday 13th 32F, 0C, overcast, breezy, a little overnight snow lying. Back okay when I got up but hurting constantly now. No walk. A bird of prey landed in one of our trees. While trying to confirm something about my Higgins I started reading my blog from 2010 and 2011. It seems amazing how I would go out in thick snow and bitter cold without my present collection of mostly secondhand, cycling clothing for protection. Seeing myself in thick fleece jackets attests to how poorly I was dressed for sub zero conditions. Even the fleece jackets were bought, with cycling in mind, from charity shops. They were about as windproof as a net curtain at -15C, 5F!

Talking of pain, my back is still in agony despite repeated YT exercises. The only time the pain subsides is when I lie on my right side in bed. Whereupon I promptly fall asleep! Just getting my MTB boots on to go out felt a like a blowlamp being played on my back. It took me nearly ten minutes with the Velcro fastening locking repeatedly onto my loop pile "farmer's" socks. Once I got going I had to remain leaning over the handlebars because it was too painful to sit up on the tops. Then  my nose started streaming with blood and spattered huge drops all over the top tube. Climbing was very unpleasant and I was grateful to be able to spin  freely on the 36t sprocket. All the windmills had stopped in the calm conditions but felt like a constant headwind in the cold air. Just reaching the downtube for the U-lock was agony. Only 13 miles.

Thursday 14th 35F, 2C, heavy overcast, misty, light winds but mostly dry. Eye-watering pain again as I dressed. I cannot reach forwards nor lift my feet to bring them nearer. The floor is receding again unless I curl up into a ball. It hurts whether I stand, sit, pedal, lie down or walk. For years the pain was on the right side but now it has suddenly switched to the left. Exactly the same symptoms as before but my joints were given the all clear after numerous scans, prodding and x-rays.

Since inactivity doesn't seem to help I shall just have to continue trying to walk and ride. I walked for an hour and a half today with the pain coming and going. Strange mist passed across the landscape like low cloud. Giving the very low hills a dramatic quality with the brighter grey back-lighting. It could almost have passed for the Welsh mountains at times. A very brief glimpse of the sun and some blue skies was short lived. Another nosebleed and too much pain to go for a ride today.

Friday 15th 32F, 0C, light winds, very heavy overcast. I thought my back was a bit better this morning then couldn't put my socks on. Back to square one. I walked more briskly than I could manage yesterday but over a shorter route. The phantom pain seems to have shifted to the joint area. A change is as good as a rest and I have to go shopping anyway. I have taken a couple of Eprin to let it reach the bloodstream before I leave.  The earlier sunshine and blue skies were short-lived as a grey plate slid over from the east. A cold wind had my coat done up to the neck but I was able to walk with bare hands at intervals. The temperature is slowly dropping. Late afternoon ride for only 7 miles.

Saturday 16th 30F, -1C, almost dead calm, very heavy overcast. Hip area feels sore but not the nasty pain I have been having. I have been taking mild pain killers which seem to help mask the pain if I sit fairly still. I shall try to continue walking and riding over shorter distances until things improve. The frozen fields provided a reverse loop on the tractor tracks. It involved a steep climb on rough ground and then  a long slow descent. The ground is covered in fine, frozen drizzle. With their pond frozen solid the ducks were working a small drainage stream. Despite the pain I was still determined to go for a ride today. Or not. Having had to lie down to subdue the pain my wife vetoed any ride to avoid making matters worse.

Sunday 17th 23F, -5C, clear, almost still, thin layer of overnight snow. The pain continues. Another real rest day doing nothing.

Click on any image for an enlargement.

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