11th March 2019 Make every day count.

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Monday 11th 32F, dark grey, overnight frost. The forecast is for sunshine all day. Or no sunshine. Eeny meany miney mo. Walked to the village and back.

The Olympic silver medallist, track cyclist, Kelly Catlin is reported to have died aged 23. Cause as yet unknown.

Make every day count. You never know which of them might be your last. I can think of several moments when I might have died at other's hands. Despite the seeming odds against survival I am still here at 71 and still making an effort in my own, unique way.

Reasons to be cheerful still outweigh all else. If you are one of those fuckwits carrying a knife to use as an offensive weapon then you probably don't deserve to live for much longer. You are part of the problem. I was threatened by a coward with a knife at the age of 17. I was fortunate that I had a "useful" cycling friend with me who safely disarmed him.

My skills at self defence against such, or any attacks, have not improved. My near-death threat was over nothing at all. Probably just another a "village mentality" moron defending "his patch." I was just another cyclist buying chips at his local "chipper" on an evening cycle ride.

His "chip on his shoulder" nearly cost me my life and he a life sentence for a senseless murder. It was just one of many threats to my existence in my youth and later. Most of them were tribal. Always against a complete innocent who just happened to be in the wrong place. It was completely routine to be invited to fight if you went to a dance [i.e. A rock band playing in a village hall without much sign of any dancing going on] in Wiltshire. Get a life, of your own. Don't take one you don't own.

Tuesday 12th 37-40F, dark grey and windy with light rain. Walked to the lanes and back. Eyes watering in the cold wind. It is reported that Kelly Catlin took her own life after months of depression. She had suffered a concussion and broken arm which had prevented her training as she used to. A tragic loss of a truly, multi-talented, highly intelligent, young person.

Wednesday 13th 38F, dark grey, gales and all day rain forecast. I nipped outside to check and it was driving rain. No walk today.

Thursday 14th 41F, grey, walked to the lanes. Rain and wind.

Friday 15th 41F, grey, anticlockwise walk up to the woods. Saw a hovering kestrel. A 7 mile errand on the trike. Going quite well with a crosswind. More rain and gales later.

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