30.06.2022 Blogspot is broken!

 ~~

The blog layout is still broken. I can't repair it. Every time I do it completely ignores my new settings despite being 'saved.' Then it makes completely random new changes I never chose nor saved!  I even tried "Return to default" without improvement. The page being shown isn't even what I see in preview changes! Has Google BlogSpot been hacked? Google no longer owns BlogSpot? 

Update: This layout mess is browser related. I get the followers thumbnails on Chrome but not on Firefox. The narrowed background clouds are the same on both browsers. I am now attempting to edit the theme and layout using Chrome. No improvement! One step forwards: Three back.

 

Thursday 30th 57F, bright and clear. Though the sky looks white towards the NE sun. Probably thin, high cloud. 

Up at 5am. My shoulders are aching slightly,. No other ill effects from yesterday's ride. It would be amusing to go for another ride. As if I was on a cycling holiday. Though most people would probably take breaks at intervals. My only break was in the cycle shop looking at helmets. I have been wearing a battered and sweat stained baseball cap recently. I'd wear my Tricycle Association cap but the peak's plastic lining shattered into shards at first wearing!

 It has just occurred to me that I haven't raised the handlebars. Which is an option to reduce the weight on my hands. I have no idea if the stem can even be loosened now. It hasn't been touched since I first fitted it.

 The involuntary mess, which happened to my blog, has lost my followers. I have no idea how to get them back. The text size is a mess too! Can a blog service be hacked?

 7.00 66F. Breakfast over. Time for a walk.

8.00 The usual half hour walk to the lanes. Warm and sunny.

10.00 75F. I am struggling to contact businesses, government departments, services and organisations with totally inadequate staff numbers to answer the telephone. A 20 minute wait [as the latest standard] is not [remotely] customer service. Particularly when it is an international call. 

 I have regular circulars from my insurance companies trying to sell me more insurance. Guess what? When I ring them, on another matter, I have to wait 20 minutes, or more, for somebody to answer the telephone. Including their emergency line to report that I am stuck at the bottom of a lake, at the bottom of a precipice, after going off the road!

 Then there are the "iClever" phone systems: Which repeat at 10 second intervals, while they keep you hanging on the line for 20 minutes, that customer service is their "highest priority." The really clever [i Psychopathic liars] phone systems. Which tell you [at 20 second intervals] that you are Number 1 in the queue and expected waiting time is one minute. While still keeping you waiting for the "customer services industry standard" of 20 minutes. 

 My DeWalt chainsaw has been returned for repair for nearly three weeks now. So I rang the repairer. Things have been held up due to a lack of spares. I should hopefully have it back soon.

 I just managed to lift the forward, handlebar extension off the steerer. Then lifted the bars by about 18mm by moving the spacers around. I can still gain another 12mm in height by placing the last spacer under the extension. The brake and gear cables are stretched by lifting the handlebar extension. I have no desire to unwind the handlebar tape to give some extra freedom.

 11.00 77F. I am going shopping on the trike as a test ride. 

 13.30 Returned from a shopping trip on the trike. Headwind on the way home. 14miles.

 15.00 77F Afternoon nap over.

 18.00 76F.  Spent the afternoon working on my tricycle mechanics. Checking the back axle bearings for lubrication, etc. It felt hot out there in the sunshine.

Dinner was cod in batter, baked beans, tinned, chopped tomatoes and a bread roll.

 

 

~~

29.06.2022 46 miles.

 ~~

Google Blogspot has screwed up my blog!  Colours, background width, text and post widths and colours are hopeless! I shall attempt to mend it all later.

 Wednesday 29th 60F, sunny. Promise of sunny periods. Up at 5.45am after a reasonable night. No gnats! The birds are feeding on the fruit of the huge cherry trees.

 The recycling yard is open if I need it. No particular plans for today.

 I am having slightly more photographic success in the garden now. By using the 100-400mm lens for capturing flower close-ups from a distance. It allows me to reach flowers out in the bed where I cannot physically go without causing damage. 

 Not only that, but the longer focal lengths are isolating the flowers from their busy backgrounds. Though not always as successfully as I would like. Using a wide aperture helps. Provided the entire flower remains safely within sharp focus. Bright lighting helps here.

 A three-quarters of an hour walk to the village and back. Traffic variable. Hot sunshine again. So I wore just a t-shirt and thin cotton trousers but no jacket.

 I am going for a ride to Ringe. 30km both ways is a total of 40 miles. 

 It turned into 46 miles total in just under four hours. Averaging just over 11mph. A headwind going. Cross wind on the middle leg back. The cycle shop in the big shed was gone. I visited the other cycle shop up the road. They had an excellent range of helmets and a friendly owner. Though I didn't see a helmet I liked.

 The cycle path was blocked before Korinth on the way back. So I had to detour. No suggestion as to the best alternative route from that point onwards. I didn't even know which village it was where the way was blocked. How would strangers to the area cope? With a map or phone app, I suppose.

 The disused railway, cycle path and surrounding countryside were gorgeous from Ringe heading SW. I met very few people coming the other way. Pulling off in plenty of time to let them pass each time. Nobody caught up with me from behind. I was cruising at between 13 and 16mph on the perfect, asphalt surface. The original gritty "horse riding"  sand is now lost in grass and wild plants. There were several piles of horse droppings on the asphalt. So people are still riding along the path. It is clearly marked for horse, cycling and pedestrians. No scooters, cars or motorcycles allowed. There was a lot of graffiti on the signposts and placards showing wildlife, bird and historical features. But can they spray and chew gum at the same time?

 I was more sensible today than on my many of my previous rides. I bought a pack of Corny, mini, crunchy, dark chocolate bars. Eating one bar each hour and drinking one little carton of apple juice. I used to try eating the full sized bars but they were far too much for me. The mini bars are excellent. Just right as a riding snack. Very tasty and without repeating on me. The apple is tasty too and very refreshing through a straw. Unlike warm water in a bottle. 

 I was a bit tired and slightly saddle sore towards the end. I need to ride more and more often to extend my range. Though now I have a much better idea of my present level of fitness.

 17.00 75F. I didn't record the temperature earlier. I had a nap after a very late lunch. Then afternoon tea with a toasted roll. My arms were already slightly brown but now look redder. Though not burnt. They feel cool.

 The tiny extra backward movement of the saddle was difficult to judge. Whether it helped to reduce the strain on my hands. That said, I didn't notice my hands aching as much as on the last ride of only 34 miles. 

 With my shallow dropped, "racing" bars I have options for at least three hand position on the bars. Though I never use the drops themselves. I usually tend to rest on the bars just short of the lever hoods. Preferring the forward reaching section of bars just beyond the bends. For its greater area, padding and slightly more upright body position. With occasional bouts on the centres while climbing and sitting. Or on the hoods themselves when I might need braking in towns or traffic. Or dancing on the pedals in a climb.

 If I were to reverse the bars, front to back, I'd have an old fashioned sit-up-and-beg style. Which would present a very serious challenge to mounting "brifters." Racing gear and brake levers under rubber hoods. They will only fit on a bent & dropped "racing" handlebar. Gear changing would be impossible on any other form of bars.

 

 

~~ 

28.06.2022 Sweaty, sweaty night.

Tuesday 28th 55F,  73F upstairs. Calm, with mixed cloud and the promise of a dry, brighter day.

 Up at 4.45 after a very restless, sweaty night. I was being woken at intervals by burning gnat bites. Repeatedly on my arms and feet. As I tried to hide under the empty, single bed, duvet cover. 

 At 3am I had had enough. My second trip to the bathroom to wash and treat more bites. I was about to get up. When, by sheer luck, I found a huge double bedsheet. It was in the tub containing the remaining bedding after my frantic clear-out. 

 I quickly discarded the duvet cover. Then hid myself inside the single sheet like a floppy cocoon. To lie there, still sweating. Enveloped in my own, warm breath. Listening for the whine of insects through the thin cotton. In my one, partially useful ear. Hoping for sleep. Thankfully it came. Albeit all too short to compensate me for my lost hours. 

 7.00 Breakfast over. I plan a walk to the far woods.

8.00 Returned exactly an hour later. I did not enter the woods. Just followed the lane to return back to the main road. I saw a family of Moorhens on a large, garden pond. A deer on the track to the far woods. Rather too warm for my chosen clothing. I really ought to organise a shoulder bag for the warmer weather.

 9.00 67F and full sunshine. I had to do the washing up first. After neglecting it yesterday. Morning coffee over. Deciding what to do next.

10-11.00. I drove to a suitable spot to park the car. Then walked for a quarter of an hour along the disused railway. I had a chat with a couple of elderly ladies walking their dog. Then returned the way I had come. The almost skeletal sleepers were only slightly random in spacing but doubled at intervals. Which made walking in the spaces a case of constantly breaking step. The sleepers were so worn they were quite reasonable to walk on. So I didn't mind where my feet fell.

 There was only one short section with coarse gravel. The rest was mostly smooth, well worn mud. Being close to a village it was an inevitable dog toilet. Though not too noticeably. 

 Some of my wife's roses. These actually seem to glow as it becomes darker.

One section of the old track was in deep shadow from passing through the woods. It was pleasantly cool out of the sun but damp. With lots of puddles in the drainage ditches. Which meant gnats. Lots of them! I was promptly bitten on the arm and wrist.

 A mountain bike, with full suspension, would sail along there. Though I saw only one, very short section of knobbly tyre tracks. My trike, running on narrow tyres, would not find the route very comfortable at all.

16.00  72F. I have been spending time photographing my wife's flowers and imaging the sun. The latter means that I take a close-up video of the sun. Captured in monochromatic red [H-alpha] light through my home made telescope. Then process the video into a much sharper still image using clever software.

Dinner consists of salad. Poached eggs, carrots, cucumber, lettuce, tuna and crumbly, mature Cheddar cheese. With several good dollops of salad cream. Poached eggs are still borderline successful. The whites have a mind of their own! These were overdone but still edible. I blame the saucepan boiling over when I put the lid on!

  I took my camera and lenses when I went for my walk along the disused railway. Then discovered I had forgotten to refit the memory card. It was still sitting in the slot in the PC when I arrived home! 🙄

 

 ~~

 

27.06.2022 Very, very wet!

 ~~

 Monday 27th 62F outside. 78F indoors. Overcast, with all day rain forecast. Possible thundery cloudbursts. So far the bad weather is heading north off to our west. Slowly spreading across to our area. I have the windows on the catch but am afraid of letting more gnats in if I open them properly. With no wind there will be no air movement to scavenge the hot air out of the house.

 No walk or pictures today. So you'll have to make do with this one from a few days ago. Rather spoilt by sunshine? Suit yourselves.

 Up at 6am after waking at 4.00. Feeling slightly more positive today. Or [perhaps] more neutral in comparison with yesterday's 3 month anniversary of my wife's death. I must overcome this apathy. Everything has come to a complete standstill. As I wander round and around helplessly. When I ought to be making more progress in tidying for intended visitors. The heat isn't helping at all.

 I have ordered a charger for a smaller "scissors" chainsaw. My wife hid "our" charger to stop me using the saw on "her" hedges. She had planted most of them. I couldn't get the car in or out without folding the mirrors. Or they would soon get folded for me. The B&D Alligator is an excellent tool for cutting branches up to a couple of inches. Much safer than a bare chain design. As is the battery operated model. A mains cable is a dangerous pest in a large garden!

 My poor old car [1996 Toyota] is due for its next periodic inspection. The door locks no longer work. So who knows what it would cost to replace the driver's side. Which would include a change of electronic key for the ignition. I am having to leave it parked unlocked. 

 Fortunately it is so filthy, old and ugly that few would bother to steal it. If I left the car in the countryside they'd think it had been abandoned! It was growing moss during the pandemic. This has dried out on exposure to sunlight. To form a hard crust. 

 7.10 The rain has started. Then a cloudburst at 7.20 with distant thunder. The radar forecast show a significant amount of rain falling all morning. A whole chain of "yellow" moving northwards right over us. No walk then. It is breezier now. So might pull the upstairs temperatures down a little. I have every openable window "on the catch" for ventilation. Some of them were never opened until now. Time for breakfast.

 8.00. Thunder. 60F outside, with steady, heavy rain. The upstairs, indoor temperature has dropped to 77F. Well, at least all those potted plants on the lawn are being well watered. Most of them never showed any signs of life. I had nowhere sensible to plant those that did. I could have used the bare soil from removing the Horse chestnut but it is undulating. 

  I was going to bring in some free compost from the recycling yard. Just to smooth it out a bit. Before the grass takes a firm hold to form a lawn. Bumpy ground makes a poor lawn. The high bits get scalped by the mower and the dandelions like the hollows. Where they can't be reached. 

 10.00  A pause in the rain sent me shopping in the car. 
 
 12.30 63F. 75F indoors. The rain stayed off. So I took the chance to rake the former chestnut's shadow of its countless fallen twigs and leaf mould. Making up a full trailer load. Which I duly delivered to the recycling yard. I was going to bring back some free compost but it started raining. So I left it for now. The garden falls away from the house to the west. Which surprisingly foreshortens the view. Raking away, out on the bare patch of earth, it seems absolutely huge. 

 13.15 The postman brought the battery charger I ordered. Amazing service!

 15.00 I have enjoyed an afternoon nap. The rain continues. 

 I plan to walk a disused railway when the weather is more stable. No cycle path but the landscape is worth the walk along the sleepers. I see the many dismantled crossings in villages and along the roads and lanes. The railway closed in 1966 but now has trolley cycling hire along its length. See image alongside.

 The trolleys cost £35 an hour to hire and take up to four riders. Very free running they claim. Downside is having to stop to open the swinging gates. Returning the trolley to the point of hire might be a bit of a pain if you are tired. They trolleys weight 120kg. So lifting one, to turn around,  takes four fit adults. I still haven't worked out what happens if you meet a trolley coming the other way....

 There is a cycle path on an old railway track much further away. Korinth-Ringe-Korinth. I really ought to ride that one again. It is a little narrow for trikes but I could usually manage to overtake any "normal" cyclists. They spoilt that path by insisting on having a much wider sand path for horses to walk along. I see from later images online that the sand has become grass now. So only the asphalt/tarmac cycling surface remains.

 There used to be a huge cycle shop in Ringe. Full of tasty machines. They seem to have changed hands. The Ringe website calls to an outlet in Odense. A big shed on an industrial estate by the look of it. Their website seems to be partially broken. No men's bikes, racers or mountain bikes? Seriously? Perhaps Covid caused them commercial problems?

 I feel that my enthusiasm for tricycling the gorgeous Danish countryside is returning. I had all but given up cycling during the pandemic. After that, my wife was worried I'd have an accident and leave her all alone in this house. Ironic really, but there it is. 

 Tidying has consumed enough hours and I am thoroughly sick of it. Cycling gets me away from the house and all the fleeting memories from everything I touch. Both good and bad, it cannot be undone. So I shall distance myself from it all when it suits me. When I need a break. Not today! When the weather permits. I don't have a serious waterproof cycling jacket. Only supermarket special offers.

 If I see another black or navy waterproof cycling jacket advert I will scream! What utter fuckwits think that a dark colour is suitable for riding in the wet? You know, when it is overcast or actually dark? When the crash test dimmies are tired and can't see through their windscreens and use their mobile phones at the same time. 

 Fact: Cyclists are second class citizens. They hide in the dark in dark clothing because they are naive simpletons. Who all believe that dressing like a foul mouthed, Sky Sports plonker will save them from the wrath of the crash test dimmies.

 Gotta get me a black or navy cycling jacket, right? Do a check online for "best waterproof cycling jacket. Cyclingmorons'R'us.  Cycling website after website show black or navy jackets.  

Coming to an ICU near you. Why is it even legal to sell dark cycling clothing? Is that why bike shops are usually sited on dark corners in back streets? So the dodgy clientele can't be seen let alone recognised?

 18.20 I have had the windows slightly open all day. As the outside temperatures hovered around 60F. It is still 76F upstairs. Comfortable enough for a t-shirt. 70F downstairs.

~~

26.06.2022 34 miles.

 ~~

 Sunday 26th 64F, rather cloudy and expected to remain so. Possible thunderstorms. The radar shows a chain of showers heading north west but passing east of us. 

 My wife's dresser in the kitchen. She took the picture herself a year ago. It shows her good taste in ornaments and crockery. I am still using the cereal bowls, coffee cups and toaster.

 Up at 4.20 as I was being attacked by gnats. I could hear them whining near my ears. My ankles were itching. Three months since my wife died. It still seems unreal. 

 6.00 Breakfast over. Going for an early walk. The sun is breaking through. All my camera batteries are flat!

7.00 70F. Back from a walk to the lanes. Hovering just below tearful today. The walk didn't cheer me up. I'd better go for a ride. I haven't done the washing up again. So no morning coffee until I have.

 I feel I need a fresh route to ride that I haven't ridden for a long time. Not too far. I have no idea of my safe distance yet. A circular route would keep me within a safe radius of home if the weather turns nasty. Google Maps is broken. It wont return to normal after Street View.

11.30 81F! 34 hilly miles in under three hours for an average of 12mph. I stopped briefly to buy some small cartons of apple juice because I was parched. Nothing to eat until I came home. Then an apple and a banana.

The flower garden taken at 6.15am with the TZ7 as I started my morning walk.

 I was passed by a blond out training on her racing bike. Despite all the extra weight I was carrying with the trike, luggage and my very low mileage, I tried to stay with her. I couldn't and paid for it in a strained quadriceps. Which I then had to nurse for the next twenty miles. Silly old plonker!

 I may have caught the sun on my arms. It was almost continuously sunny. 

 I noticed that my hands were feeling tired during the ride. I usually rest my hands on the brake/gear shift levers. The usual cure for this is moving the saddle backwards. Not forwards! The idea is to move one's centre of gravity backwards. So that one's rear end balances the forward lean of the body and head on dropped "racing" handlebars. Think of the rider as a see-saw. The weight on the hands must be balanced by the parts of the body behind the centre of gravity of the rider. The C of G is usually somewhere around the navel.
 
 I never liked straight bars. Not even with forward extensions on the ends. I have the shortest handlebar stem I can find. To avoid leaning forwards too much. So I am fairly upright. Unfortunately, my saddle is as far back as it will go without a special rear extending, saddle pin. EDIT: I just found a few extra millimetres of rearward, saddle travel. No idea if it is enough to reduce the load on my hands.

 Everywhere I go I see rural houses we [or rather I] looked at as a potential new home. I must have looked at dozens over the years. Each photographed from every possible angle including the views. Or I even videoed the more promising ones. To show my wife when I got home. 

 A series of low lying yews. Which my wife planted behind the pond. They had been denied sunlight for years. They have suddenly expanded now that the chestnut has gone. 

 I cleared the pond of two decades of twigs and leaf fall. Now the water has cleared I can see proper pond plants growing strongly. Even an iris has appeared. The water level has dropped. So the liner may be punctured. 

 I would do all the homework on these houses online. Looking for close pig farms, railways, main roads, motorways or other serious negatives on the maps. Aerial photography websites are free in Denmark. Including historical views almost as far back as WW2.  None of these potential homes ever came up to her requirements. 

 Only rarely would we venture out in the car for her to see one for herself. She claimed she hated our home but would never commit to a move. Our budget was always at the bottom of the pile. So choice was inevitably limited. Often requiring some serious DIY. Which was also true of our [now my] existing home.

13.50  84F inside and out! Hot, sunny and breezy. I had a recovery nap before lunch to catch up on my sleep.  A tepid shower works wonders when it is hot. Not a cold shower. Or the body tries to heat itself up. 

17.00  I have been trying to rest. I hate these high temperatures!

22.30 64F outside. 81F indoors. Dinner speaks for itself. If cod in batter could talk.

~~

25.06.2022 Gardening for beginners.

 ~~~

  Saturday 25th. Overcast and calm with thick mist, 60F. Up at 4.20. Feeling sad and apathetic again.

6.00 60F. Breakfast finished. The mist is lifting. Time for an early walk.

 A beautiful, dark Elder tree/shrub with pink flowers about 10' high. Sambucus nigra 'Black Lace.' My wife liked plants with dark foliage. It was difficult to photograph from right across the garden. 

 It is jostling for space with several, equally large plants. Cotoneaster salicifolia is on its right. The vast Thujopsis dolobrata "hedge" and a hawthorn alongside are pushing them too. I ought to do some trimming to give them more room to grow. If only I could get there!

 07.00 62F. The sun broke though enough to cast my shadow at 6.30. I looked upwards to see a large patch of blue sky overhead. Speckled with small, white clouds. The mist slowly lifted as the sun sank behind more clouds over the forest on the hill. 

 The increasing number of electric cars is bringing a new peace to the main road. Several passed me together and were noticeably quieter than the usual filth cars. Teslas have a lot of tyre roar. These cars were ID4 and Ioniq I think. Their labelling is not very clear.

7.45 66F.  It was much too early for morning coffee. Fortunately [?] I hadn't done any washing up yesterday. So I had to do that before I had a clean milk pan or even a mug. So now is a much better time for the morning ritual. If it gets any earlier it will be breakfast. The sun is trying to break through again but it is still very cloudy. 

 I found some pine, ceiling boards yesterday. They would be much easier to put up in the balcony room! Not enough for even one ceiling slope though. The cost of buying more is prohibitive.

 What are my plans for today? I ought to cut the grass again. There is rain forecast for most days ahead. So it is best to cut it while it is reasonably dry and before it gets any longer!

 09.25. 71F. Sunny periods. The grass is mowed. The 100m drive is strimmed, mowed and strimmed again. In the middle and both sides. That's at least three stripes to be cut just for the middle. I am trying to get a balance, along the drive, between wild flowers and chaos. The nettles are winning on the vacant property side.

 The unkempt larch hedge is at least 7m/20' high. Would it be doing "the paperweights" a favour to cut the trees down to a manageable height? The house will soon be completely hidden by that untidy row of trees.  

 As it abuts our [nominally shared] drive I must have the right to maintain a clear passage. Free from [out of reach] overhanging branches. 

 There are rules about shared hedge heights. I believe that 2.5m is the accepted maximum for adjoining rural properties.  First, I have to get my chainsaw back. I haven't heard a thing since I left it at the shop. As still non-functional after [supposed] repair.

10.20 72F. A harrier has just flown over the garden

 I am having a rest from the heat and catching up on my mail. I shall be having family visitors later next month! It is 12 years since they were last here. The time has flown by. 12 years ago I was just retiring early [due to factory closure] and had started tricycling seriously. 9360 triking miles in 2010. It is already five years since my youngest sister visited. 

 14.00 80F sunny periods and windy from the S-SE. There is a cloudburst and thunder warning for the entire afternoon. I may still ride to the village. Though I'll take a rain jacket. Just in case. 

 15.15 80F, full sunshine but breezy. I went by the direct route into the wind. Then returned via the forest and the hills with a helpful tailwind. I could see the sky was completely clear to the south and south east. So no storms were imminent. It feels warm inside and out. Going well. Dancing on the pedals quite often.

 17.00 Back indoors for a cup of tea and a toasted roll with marmalade. I have been imaging the sun in the observatory. It feels cooler in the dome than at the computer, upstairs indoors. 83F despite having opposing windows ajar. 78F outdoors in the shade. With some air movement from the wind.

 I put on an old pair of hide gloves and pulled out all the thistles I could find. A few dandelions too. 

~~

24.06.2022 The nudist, rural wanderer?

 ~~

 Friday 24th 60F. Bright and breezy. A long, hot, sunny day is promised.  Up at 5.30.

9am 74F. I was much too warm on my walk to the lanes. Light cotton jacket over a T-shirt. Light cotton trousers. I even took off my "baseball" cap but it didn't help. Nudist vagrancy could catch on locally if it remains hot. "The only one in the village."

 I have gained a new appreciation for the beauty of the countryside. How incredibly lucky I am to be able to wander freely along the byways. To soak up the birdsong, grasses, the sunlight on the crops. The trees, hedges, gardens and wild flowers from the moment I leave the front door. 

 Most of the world's 7 billion population are infinitely worse off than I am. Having to get up to go to work. To squander your entire lifetime of your waking hours of daylight. The torture of commuting. Then doing something utterly worthless for decades. Usually with people you don't even like. 

 All, just to make another tax-free billionaire even richer. Try early, rural retirement. Away from the city, the constant traffic and the aircraft noise. I highly recommend it. 😉

11.00 78F! I went over to the observatory after morning coffee to do some solar imaging. The wind steadily increased over the next hour or more. It is gusting to 40kph/25mph. 

 I just returned to the house for a drink of water. To find that a carrier bag full of polystyrene packing pieces had blown over. Scattering the white "S" shaped blobs all over the garden! 

 The early mornings mean that I keep dozing off at the computer. Which tells you something about the quality of my monologue. If I can't even keep myself awake. During today's micro-naps I kept seeing and hearing my [late] wife. She was trying to make an earnest point about something. 

 Unfortunately I couldn't hear her clearly and remembered nothing of the detail when I returned to [what passes for] consciousness. 

Very odd. This hasn't happened before. I admit that I feel far more comfortable now that her urn/ashes are no longer resting on the tallboy. I found it strangely intimidating.

17.00 82F outside in the shade, 75F downstairs, 82F upstairs and 92F in the shade in the greenhouse. 

 I have just returned from the shops via the longer route through the forest. The insulated, cool bag was in the saddle bag for the frozen stuff. Westerly gales meant it was very hard work going. Cruising at 19mph coming home. Only 10 miles.

 18.00 It suddenly clouded over and the temperature dropped from 82F to "only" 75F. Thunderstorms are forecast for the area to our west, moving away to the NW, but not here. Temperatures are now rising again.

 There was a downpour in the evening. A sweaty night with 80F indoors at bedtime. I discarded the summer duvet and slept under a sheet. Dinner went down well but I need bigger plates!

 

~~

23.06.2022 Spinning boxes on the spot.

 ~~

 Thursday 23rd 54F, calm and cloudy but bright.  We are promised all day, full sun. Woke at 5am but managed to last until 6am before I got up. I used a relaxation therapy counting trick to blot out all other thoughts: One thousand, two thousand, etc. If that doesn't work I reverse: Ten thousand, nine thousand, etc. It doesn't have to be counting sheep. Or counting while inhaling or exhaling. The numbers work alone. Given enough patience.  

 9.00 58F. Still overcast and the wind just  beginning to pick up. I walked to the village. Then along the serpentine track to the woods and back again. It was very quiet and very still away from the traffic. The distant wind turbines were at a standstill. Lots of flowers in the hedgerows. Creamy white elder and wild roses in all shades of pink. Not so many birds about today. Gone for an hour.

 10.00 62F. Still overcast with rare sunny periods. I have cleared the front half of one half of the greenhouse. I need temporary storage, out of the weather, for the wood in the dome. Which itself was temporary storage for the wood my wife kept indoors. Now I just need an efficient way of moving it all 20 yards. Not walking back and forth with a few lengths at a time. As I did when I was moving it to the dome. Perhaps I need the exercise? 🙄

 11.30 66F. Sunshine now and getting warmer. Paused for rest and to cool down. There was plenty of wood to move to the greenhouse. Lots of cardboard and empty boxes too. A good trailer full! Even when flattened. It must be over three months since I last looked in there. I can't believe what I threw in there in my hurry to clear the house.

 I should remove all the timber and junk. Then move the bulky Rockwool from the trailer into the dome. That would free up the trailer for normal use. Then I could get rid of the pile of cardboard to the recycling yard today. 

 The dome has plenty of room for the Rockwool if I stack it neatly. It won't get in the way like untidy piles of loose wood and timber. Plenty of old wood to take to the recycling yard. It will never be used now.

 13.00 69F. Full sunshine. Lunch. The trailer is piled high with flattened cardboard boxes. 

 14.45  73F. Full sunshine. Just returned from the recycling yard. A vast quantity of cardboard has gone to a better place. 

 Dinner was salad with a salmon pasty.

~~

22.06.2022 Very local drought!

 ~~

 Wednesday 22nd 54F, overcast. Up at 5.30. Reading the news and blogging until breakfast at 07.00.

 07.30 An early walk to the lake for an hour and quarter. Teased by very distant grebes, ducks and birds of prey. 

 Dozens of swallows zooming around for my entire walk. Some skimming the water.

Perfection in a roadside hedge.

 I perched on a picnic bench and snapped away at the birds out on the lake. 

 I don't seem to have much to say at the moment. I am coming to terms with my wife's ashes no longer sitting on the tallboy in the lounge.

 Is she still here? Can I continue to talk to her? I have to admit that I found her cardboard "urn" rather off-putting. Even though I had chosen a nature theme with butterflies.

 More flowers from the local building site. My wife used to complain that I took more pictures of other people's flowers than her own. I just had an eye for a picture on my morning walks.

 My wife loved everything green and butterflies in particular. Though bees were her absolute favourite. She saw growing flowers for the bees as her duty as a gardener. To combat the constant rain of toxins used in industrialised, Danish farming. Even the water supply is contaminated.

 She would always dash indoors if she heard a tractor. They were completely invisible behind the curtain of tall hedges and trees. Though they would most often be towing vast sprayers. Her plants used to get discoloured spots. Where she claimed that spray drift had landed. Her favourite plants would suddenly wilt and die after a sprayer had been identified locally. Which made her angry and depressed. Again it would be blamed on agricultural poisons.

 09.30 61F. Still cool and grey. Morning coffee over. I need a shower before I can go shopping and have a haircut.

 10.30 No water = No shower. A digger has broken the pipeline. It could be hours before it is fixed.

14.00 Returning on the trike from the hairdressers and shopping. First time I have ever tried to ride on the SPD pedals with ordinary shoes. Awkward, but wasn't long before my cadence was up in the 90s. The water is back on [two hours too late] but there is air in the pipes.

 23.30 Dinner was a bit strange. I had browned the mushrooms but then had nowhere left to fry the eggs. So I pushed the mushrooms to the side and added the eggs to the same pan. The result was a visual mess but tasty enough. I made far too many potatoes again. 

 The dark objects, at left, were a gift from a kind neighbour and still warm. Frikadellers are a familiar Danish dish. Minced meat in flattened balls. Quite spicy. Or perhaps peppery? I had to look them up to know what they were made of. It was not something my wife ever cooked. 

~~

21.06.2022 Longest Day.

 ~~

 Tuesday 21st 52F, overcast and dry but breezy. When we were promised all day sunshine. Longest Day today. Up at 5am. No acrobatic cat so far.

 I went outside at 11pm last night. It was still light enough to easily have read a newspaper. Unsurprisingly, my washing on the line was still wet. 

 8.40. 58F. Sunny periods. An early walk for 75 minutes. Down the road and up to the forest. Back down beside the hedges by the direct route. I saw two hares. My trousers were soaked from wading through waist high grass and nettles. My legs are still burning from the latter. 

 I took my longer lens [100-400mm] but found it rather restrictive. Due to the smaller field of view. My usual 50-200mm does everything I ask of it and is lighter.  

 11.00 After spending some time in the observatory I am going shopping on the trike. It is sunny but quite breezy.

 13.20. 67F. Bright sunshine. Lunch over. I have been to the shops. A headwind coming back.

 Amongst 6 different kinds of tomatoes, in two supermarkets, not one pack was ripe enough to eat! The washing up brushes are grey plastic. As are the scrubbing pads. Are these to go with the all-black, conversation island kitchens? These brushes used to be in lovely colours. 

 I also bought more chicken fillets. To make another curry. I had no idea you can freeze chicken, bread, mince and meat. To save throwing away half the oversized packs.

 A haircut is lined up for tomorrow at lunch time. To tidy up the remains of two years of [uncut] Covid hair. I had a trim back in April but it is getting untidy again. I'll try not to cry. As I did last time.

 I have just cycled to the local lake. To see if there were any Great Crested Grebes breeding there this year. There was a pair dozing out in the middle. Though no sign of any young. 

 As usual, the light from the only accessible bank is completely wrong. Being right behind the birds. So that the water glitters brightly. Making photography very difficult to impossible. The distances involved and low viewpoint merely add to the problems. Of capturing images of these interesting birds.

 Dinner was chicken curry with Ben's Original Medium Curry sauce. I cut up half the chicken fillet into small chunks with scissors. The rice was simmered for 30 minutes after first boiling.

 After browning the chicken I added the Ben's sauce to the frying pan. With a little tomato puree and black pepper. I still haven't found a proper explanation for "resting" rice. Drained or still in the hot water? Anyway. It was delicious. Beginner's mistake of the day was not rinsing the rice first. How was I to know? 

~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

23.00 My dear wife is now in her final resting place. I had a good cry. There are no words can possibly sum up our 55 years together. Except thank you for everything and I am sorry for all my faults and failures. You deserved infinitely better. Goodbye My Love.

~~

20.06.2022 Cat bungler.

 ~~

 Monday 20th, 52F, cloudy with rain.  Cloudbursts possible later. Up at 5.15 after being awake for ages.

 I had just sat down at the computer when I saw this cat at my own eye level. It was going round and around. Trying to escape from my half finished, observatory building. A good, four meters, 12' above the ground. 

 It would put a paw over the edge but it was obviously afraid that it was too risky to jump. Eventually it dropped down inside and out of sight. Presumably to return by the way it had climbed up. I have been over to check but there was no sign of it.

 I started my walk early. To the sight of a wall of black clouds approaching from the south west. A few hundred yards later and it began to pour down. I turned tail and trotted home. It took only seconds for me to be wet through. A quick change of clothes and I am warm and safely back at the computer again.

  Well, that was a waste of time and petrol. The DeWalt chainsaw saw had been returned as repaired but was still as dead as a doornail. 

 No description of replacement parts. Just 1250DKK /£145 for cleaning? Nice work if you can get it! I did some food shopping while I was there. So as not to completely waste my journey. 

 12.45 After a pleasant, sunny morning the temperature dropped and there was a cloudburst. Afternoon nap.

17.00 63F. Breezy with sunny periods. The afternoon was spent cleaning the bath, kitchen and bathroom sinks, doing the washing up and the laundry. Cotton wash at 40C takes 2 hours and 20 minutes!

Panorama view of my wife's flower bed. Three images stitched in MS Ice and resized from 12,000 to 1500 pixels. The camera does not capture all the flowers easily visible to the naked eye.

 I wish I knew what I was doing! Because I haven't a clue which bottle I should be using. There must be 20 bottles of chemicals and cleaners. I've run out of washing up brushes. I use one on the bathroom sink but they have all vanished into thin air.  

 Home improvements and tidying have come to a complete standstill. Apathy and mild depression have set in. My brain is still working in the background. On the balcony's cement board, support for easy installation problem. 

 Meanwhile I am trying to rekindle my interest in my lifelong hobbies. Which means I also get some online socialising if I post my images on the forums.

 I think I'll have cheese on toast tonight. Lots of bread and I haven't been making quite so much toast recently. The remaining half tin of chopped tomatoes will make up for the lack of fresh tomatoes.

Stop sniggering at the back! The flavour of the mature Cheddar was easily able to cut through the chopped tomatoes. I feared soggy toast but it was fine. I normally throw way the juice. This time I dolloped it straight onto the cheese instead of the fresh tomatoes. 

It worked very well indeed! Though next time I'll add pepper to the tomato as it warms in the pan. It just needs that little extra touch.

 ~~

19.06.2022 A bit of a downpour.

 ~~

 Sunday 19th 53F. Overcast and raining heavily at times. Up at 4am. 

 There is a heavy rain warning for Denmark until around lunch time. Up to 45mm could fall in places. Nearly 2". 

 The earlier radar chart suggest we are on the southern edge of a stream of bad weather crossing the North Sea from the English Channel. This is due to the boundary between the heatwave to the south [in Germany and beyond right down to Portugal] and cooler air to the north.The first heavy downpour I noticed was a roar on the roof around 4.20. 

 It is now 5am and raining steadily. No thunder yet. Checking the latest forecast show we are fully embedded in the weather stream now. As it broadens further to the south. With lots of lightning recorded in a chain to the south of us over northern Germany. 

 5.15. 52F. Mid grey clouds can now be seen against the paler grey of the background sky as it gets lighter. They are moving steadily from West to East.

 5.30. I tried to go back to bed. That lasted about five minutes.

 7.00. It's an hour since I had breakfast. Am I twirly for morning coffee? I have been watching YT videos. About elite [multi-million income] cyclists getting cold and wet on their, well over £10k machines. While wearing dark glasses under a leaden sky in pouring rain with rim brakes which don't work in the wet. [Amateur night doesn't even begin to describe this farce!] 

 It is still pouring with rain here. So no walk. Nor a ride. It could be all over, apart from showers, just after 12.00. It is 73F indoors and I feel cold in a jumper and fleece trousers.

 7.30 Morning coffee? I shan't tell if you don't. 

 I forgot to Mention the Tree creeper [small bird] foraging on the chestnut stump yesterday. Only 3m or ten feet away from where I was standing. The birdsong from the trees around the garden was incredible yesterday. Wrens, warblers, finches, tits and blackbirds all singing away. Cuckoos and thrushes too, at intervals. 

 A nuthatch has just been down to the garden. Foraging by the chestnut stump. An accompanying, brown, speckled bird may have been a juvenile. The female is similar to the male.

 09.15. The forecaster's radar shows we are now behind the rainfall. With only showers remaining. Worth the risk of a walk?

 10.20 I have just returned from a 40 minute walk to the lanes. Light rain at half way but nothing to worry about. Saw a heron and a tiny bird of prey over the same field. Large and small. Going in opposite directions. A Sparrowhawk? Birdsong was very muted in the hedgerows today.

 12.15 54F. I managed a longish nap. Still heavily overcast but it is not raining. 

 12.30 Early lunch.

 14.00 Returning from the shops. With enough cable to wire a third light and the extractor fan in the kitchen.

 16.00 Rewired the counter-top lights in the kitchen to make three. I haven't heard from the shop about a third lamp shade I ordered.

 Still short of a nearby mains supply for the fan. I can't use the lights as a source because that is switched. So I am using an extension cord from the hall.

 19.40 The lettuce was already wet and brown in the fridge drawer. So salad was out. I went with fish fingers, baked beans and half a tin of chopped, organic tomatoes.

~~

18.06.2022 Will ride for food.

 ~~

Saturday 18th 61F, solid grey overcast but sunshine is promised for later.  Up at 5.20. 

 Tomorrow's forecast is unsettled with up to 35mm of rain and thunderstorms. We are on the northern edge of the massive heatwave setting new records all over Europe. 

 A gorgeous poppy on a building site.

 The US has 1/3 of its entire population under heatwave warnings to stay indoors. Large rivers and reservoirs can now be crossed on foot. Greenland ice is on runaway meltdown. Global warming? Just your average hoax? What are "they" waiting for?

It surely can't be the tech giants' data centres providing heat. That promise was never fulfilled in climate friendly Denmark. They are relying on unproven un-invented CO2 capture. Which doesn't exist. So the Danish taxpayer has to foot the bill for the cement manufacturers to invent CO2 capture themselves.

 Meanwhile, the Danish politicooze are complaining about young, climate activists holding up placards and spoiling their speech writer's latest monologues in a most undemocratic way. 🙄

 07.30. Hints of the cloud thinning to visible texture. Breakfast over. Time for a walk. 

8.50  It steadily brightened during my walk to the lanes. Traffic light. The first full sunshine wasn't visible until morning coffee was over and even then it was brief. Sky still speckled with cloud. I am going to ride into the village for more food supplies. 

 10.25 Tailwind and 19mph. Headwind coming back at 10-12mph. I finally bought some sunflower cooking oil. Instead of using butter. No new potatoes. Still rather cloudy at times.

 13.10  72F, just finished lunch after a morning in the observatory capturing images of the sun. The air temperature is 72F in the shade. Full sun in a cloudless sky. 81F in the shade in the greenhouse. Still not too bad compared with previous conditions of well over 100F. That was with full, internal, white ceiling tarpaulins and full white curtains on the walls. It is breezy again but straight on from the south. Which probably limits the scavenging effect from a through draught driven from the east or west. 

 16.30 72F, back on the laundry. I was looking for a suitable clothes prop. When a length of timber fell on the back of my hand with a protruding nail. Two ragged punctures/tears half an inch apart. With a vein right between them. Which turned dark purple. 

 Hardly any blood. Well washed then ran cold water on the wound for several minutes. Now under light compression with a Kleenex tissue pad. No pain as yet. No loss of sensation.

 Can I spare 18 hours to queue at Odense A&E? What would I need? Pillow, air bed and sleeping bag, flask, cup, breakfast bowl, porridge, milk, spoons, camping stove, tea bags and coffee, bread, butter, rolls, marmalade. I presume they have shower facilities? Do you think they'd let me to plug in my toaster?  I decided not to bother.

 Dinner was mackerel on toast with half a tin of leftover, tomato soup.

~~

17.06.2022 You call that mince?

 ~~

 Friday 17th 52F, misty, bright start but cloud expected later. Up at 4.30. Tormented by my circular thoughts. 

 69kg. I am monitoring my weight [in my underwear, no shoes] on an antique set of scales. I know I have lost 2 stone but they use the metric system over here. I had no reference in kg to share with a doctor. If it should be needed. An online calculator shows I have lost somewhere around 16kg.

 05.30. It has clouded over. It is still a long wait for breakfast. If I have it too early I shall run out of steam too soon. It is far too tempting to have meals earlier and earlier. Just to punctuate the long, empty hours. I am becoming more apathetic and depressed and badly need a new project. However trivial. Provided it keeps me occupied. I didn't even wash up yesterday.

 The chainsaw will cost 1250DKK to repair. £143GBP equivalent. I told them to go ahead. I can't process the middle sized branches without it. Still no sign of the tree feller. To cut the 75cm/30" Ø chestnut stump off level. It sounds low priority but I don't want the present ugly remains left standing. It would require a ladder to trim the inevitable regrowth.

 I sawed off all the branches years ago. It responded by throwing huge, new branches, straight up. I hate that tree! It completely dominated the entire garden. Causing my wife countless hours of completely unnecessary, hard labour. Precious time wasted. Just collecting and bagging fallen chestnut leaves. Working away in the dark under that damned tree. Instead of out in the light doing her real gardening.

 All in the vain hope that the micro-moth larvae would not turn the leaves an ugly brown. Not again this year and the next. We had rows because I could see it had no effect and [usually] refused to help. Though not always. Besides, I cold not stand under the tree because of the drooping branches. Which I was not allowed to cut off! Clouds of moths constantly hung around the tree when it was in leaf. 

 There were piles of black bin bags everywhere for years. Only after her death could I remove them to the compost heap and out of sight. The composted leaves still left in the closed bags. Even using the sack truck I could only move two heavy bags at a time. 

 06.30. 55F. The sunshine is back. Breakfast over. Time for an early walk. 

 I left at about 6.40 and took an hour to walk around the rural block. About 3 miles and 88 photos in all. Distant mist added its own decoration to the gorgeous views. Warm sunshine throughout. 

 08.00 Time for morning coffee. Only after I have washed up! No milk saucepan nor crockery!

10.00 68F, Sunny and breezy with a white, hazy sky. Just returning from the observatory. I will probably go shopping on the trike. A ride through the forest will add distance but hills too.

 12.00 Returning from a ride to the shops. I went through the forest going both ways. For a total of thirteen, hilly miles. About double the distance of the direct, main road route. Going well but I forgot to buy eggs.

 The bright overcast favoured shadow free views of my wife's flowers.Click for an enlargement. Scroll for more. Back click to return to normal. 

 My images are always resized down to 1000 pixels. So aren't as sharp as the originals. People [with slow internet connections] complain at the time it takes to download a blog post with large or lots of images. 

 So I settled on 1000 pixels years ago and ALWAYS add rsz to the image name or number. This avoids overwriting a full size image with a much smaller one. 

 Sometimes I use 1200 pixels for 16:9 images where I want to retain more quality.

 The forecast is now showing rain for this afternoon. Shame, as I was going for another ride to buy some eggs. Had a nap instead.

 I am doing my homework for making mince and boiled potatoes. For cooking dinner tonight. Do I really need onions?  We [I] shall see. I never thought to buy any. 

 16.20 The rain has arrived. Just a brief shower. Which inspired me to have a shower. 

Dinner was not awful but more boring. I browned the whole pack of mince in two goes. Then tried to eat it all with the boiled potatoes. 

 I added Maldon salt and black pepper. A few drops of brown sauce.Which lifted it a bit but not enough. Tedious chewing is the right word. 

 So, now I need to learn how to make Bisto gravy and how to cook an onion. Mince needs gravy. It just doesn't work dry.

~~

16.06.2022 Who is *really* in charge of our world?

 ~~

 Thursday 16th 50F, bright but rather cloudy. Up at 4.30. In time to take the black wheeled dustbin along the drive. The sky was pretty. With lots of speckled cloud. Which seemed to be radiating from the west.

 I have an appointment in town this morning. Just after 9.00. I could start early and cycle there. Nearly 10 miles each way. Or I could remain cool and drive there.

 _______________________

 Yet another record heat wave has hit the US, India, Australia, Pakistan, South America, Spain, Portugal and France. Amongst others. It was the same last year and in previous years.

 The question is: Are those, who are really in charge of our world, aliens? Perhaps a predatory, reptilian species? One which prefers a much warmer climate? Their puppets are too busy fighting over Russian oil and gas to worry about burning our world to the ground.

 6.00. Breakfast over. I'll have an early walk. The heavy rain warning had me checking on a drainage ditch in the field to our north. It used to flood so often that we joked about starting a boat hire business. The ditch hasn't been cleared in years and there has been some landscaping by a new neighbour out there. 

 It doesn't look like being a problem. Though access is difficult due to waist high grass and weeds. A low hill to our NE also drains into the same field. Another neighbour's garden was flooded not long ago. So I was quite worried about the forecast warning. 

 Extreme weather events are becoming the norm. The field is a marsh close to our boundary. Even the historical name for the hamlet refers to a marsh and a pond. Presumably that was before they dug the drainage ditch. Which goes underground and meanders all over the area.

 12.00 70F. Full sunshine. It was warm in the car. I have been cleared for use of the new, online security system. The greenhouse has reached 80F. I hadn't opened the double doors fully at each end. Just enough for a draught. I have finally booked a hearing test in the hope of a getting a hearing aid.

 13.00 I need a reliable calendar system. My appointments are scribbled on scraps of paper. Which I promptly lose. Perhaps a pin board would be more sensible?

 I spent the afternoon in the observatory processing still pictures from video close-ups of the sun.

 19.30 Salad for dinner. The cumber was already rotten. 

~~