I'm still here but to be honest, there's just not a lot going on
Work is bloody busy and the weather is starting to turn to winter (wow, the wind is strong and for the first time, I would actually say that it's cold out there ).
Times are still very sad and I'm really starting to miss dad. The fact that life just carries on is one of the hardest things to get use to It was mums birthday today but I can't say that it's a happy day for her, The first birthday she will be celebrating on her own for 40yrs.
Hey ho .... life goes on. Think I'll go out for a beer or two after the gym
Wow, being back in the real world is oh so boring It's not that I haven't got loads to be getting on with but I think the lack of sunshine gets you down
Usually start to struggle as the days get shorter but this time around I'm going to make an effotr to try and avoid letting it get me down. Could have easily sat infront of the TV all last night but at 8pm I managed to get my trainers on and ran to the gym for a quick session ...... felt a lot better for it
Trying to find a weekend that I can hit the beach and have a bit of a surf but it looks as though we have something going on each weekend for the next month or so .... might have to sneak off for a quick session when I'm down visiting mum. Also trying to work out if I should enter the Blenheim Triathlon next year. I'd be ok with the traning (probably fit enough to do it already) but I'm a little short on kit ..... triathlon wetty and racing bike
Wow, what a great little island. Hired a quad one day and pretty much explored most of the little rock. Scuba-diving was another great couple of days. We dived just beyond Black Beach one day and then just off the White Island another. Perissa was our favourite beach to chill out at and the Yazz bar is a great location to get fed, drink and relax. The quad trip took us up the east side of the island & after a morning in Fira we headed toward the top of the island and had an afternoon in Oia. Oia was our favourite town on the two but we left before the sunset as crowds and crowds of tourists started to appear. The quad adventure finished with a blast to the south of the island again and some food at the Yazz Bar. This was our only evening food there as there was no way back to Kamari (apart from taxi) after about 5pm.
Definitely chilled us out, although I would rather be back there now that at work in the rain
Going to give up with this computer in a minute as everytime I touch the mouse, the brouser seems to refresh and deletes my entry ...... Grrrrr!
Anyway, Santorini is amazing. Beatiful in an extreme sort of way. As an extinct volcanoe it isn't traditionally beautiful but it is amazing. We took a sail boat around the old volcano the other evening. Just off the boat and into the warm sulphur springs - which turned us all Homer Simpson yellow and then watched the annual Volcano Fireworks (lucky to be here for that event).
Plans for later in the week ..... walk up the mountain that surrounds us, get a bus into the capital and even possibly hire a quad to expore the coast line.
Went to a BBQ at Steve's new house last night (great house) and even though I enjoyed the entire evening, it was a culture shock Apart from a couple of the guys, all but Lisa and I have kids! If they weren't running about (being followed by their relevant dad) or playing with Tilly, they were being passed from arm to arm. I personally spent about 30-mins with Amy (Steve and Kates little one) on the grass, while she sucked and slobbered all over me and my thumb.
As I said, it was a great evening (although I might have had a cider or two too many ) but it was a first for me ..... to have almost as many kids as adults.
Man alive, a 3yr old and 7yr old are fun but hard work .. .. although as Uncle, it was pretty much Go-Go for the 3-4 days they stayed over. Teaching Mark to skateboard in the rain was moist but fun (followed by a hot choc in the Broadface). Going swimming with both Mark and Joe was rewarding - especially the second time, when Joe was really getting into his swimming/splashing around. The 'special trip' to Woburn Safari Park also went down very well. A Black Bear pretty much nudged the car as it wandered pass and the monkey (actually there were two) on the roof was a real highlight
At one point I ran to the gym prior to Lisa and the boys joining me for a swim in the pool. The idea was that they walked to the sport centre after a 10-minute delay to give me some time for a workout. Apparently the boys couldn't wait and so were out of the door pretty much 60seconds after I had left and then ran/dashed after me. Even the girl at the desk commented on the short length of my gym session Again .... little guys are time consuming
I think as they get bigger, I'm going to need a bigger apartment as suddenly a two-bedroom apartment feels really small when it's shared with two noisey boys
They're back home with their mum and dad now. Hopefully Mark will keep his skateboarding practice going and his dad will take him swimming from time-to-time
Going to have the a mellow day, with out having to worry about entertaining two little lads .... Yay!
The last British survivor of the World War I trenches, Harry Patch, has died at the age of 111.
Mr Patch was conscripted into the Army aged 18 and fought in the Battle of Passchendaele at Ypres in 1917 in which more than 70,000 British soldiers died.
He was raised in Combe Down, near Bath, and had been living at a care home in Wells, Somerset
A wedding is a solemn and scared occasion, a time of deep and serious contemplation as two kindred spirits make the most profound commitment possible to each other.
Alternatively, it's a time to bust your most awesome dance moves.
Population of older people set to surpass number of children, report finds
US census bureau report highlights shift in global population that may bring social and economic changes worldwide.
The world is about to cross a demographic landmark of huge social and economic importance, with the proportion of the global population 65 and over set to outnumber children under five for the first time.
A new report by the US census bureau highlights a huge shift towards not just an ageing but an old population, with formidable consequences for rich and poor nations alike. The transformation carries with it challenges for families and policymakers, ranging from how to care for older people living alone to how to pay for unprecedented numbers of pensioners – more than 1 billion of them by 2040.
LINK Man, this is going have huuuuge implications on guys my age and younger!Not just financially but think of all those slow moving drivers that'll be clogging our beach roads at the weekend & holidays Even worst, they might take-up caravaning!
).
It was mums birthday today but I can't say that it's a happy day for her, The first birthday she will be celebrating on her own for 40yrs.
It's not that I haven't got loads to be getting on with but I think the lack of sunshine gets you down 
at and the Yazz bar is a great location to get fed, drink and relax. The quad trip took us up the east side of the island & after a morning in Fira we headed toward the top of the island and had an afternoon in Oia. Oia was our favourite town on the two but we left before the sunset as crowds and crowds of tourists started to appear. The quad adventure finished with a blast to the south of the island again and some food at the Yazz Bar. This was our only evening food there as there was no way back to Kamari (apart from taxi) after about 5pm.
and then watched the annual Volcano Fireworks (lucky to be here for that event).
Apart from a couple of the guys, all but Lisa and I have kids! If they weren't running about (being followed by their relevant dad) or playing with Tilly, they were being passed from arm to arm. I personally spent about 30-mins with Amy (Steve and Kates little one) on the grass, while she sucked and slobbered all over me and my thumb.
Again .... little guys are time consuming 
Even worst, they might take-up caravaning!
WIDGETIZE