Sunday Post

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Yes I've remembered to do a post today -

I've just spent over an hour writing out the blog for BC to crash and lose everything when I came to post it - not a happy bunny. Now, if only I can remember some of what I wrote....

Its been a busy few days for Frau Bell what with one thing and another so we'll start on the exercise front, on two wheels. On Thursday it looked set fair as I headed east into Wiltshire aimed for the one donkey town that forms the western approach to the Wessex Downs, Calne. (look it up, you'll see what I mean) Its pretty much one road most of the way and with a light tail wind I covered the distance in short order.

I had a tea stop in mind back towards Trowbridge so as I had made good time I forged on, into the Downs and the Vale of Pewsey before turning south to take in Devizes before making my way over to Hilperton and the café. Egg and chips later I set off for the last thirty miles, the talk in the café was of afternoon rain which turned up on time @ an hour from my final destination. It had been a good ride so I wasn't too perturbed but I was well drenched by the time I finished my exertions.

And so to Saturday. The forecast appeared to be dry with a chance of light showers so having hit the other points of the compass in recent rides, I set off west to do a loop through the Forest of Dean and lower Wye valley. I made good time across to the water, but the crossing proved interesting with a stiff wind blowing in from the south. (the crossing involves two suspension bridges and two bodies of water over an exposed two mile stretch of roadway alongside the old M4 motorway) Safely across I made my way through Chepstow and back into England to start the climb northwards into the 'Forest', the dry, turning to a light drizzle as I headed north.

By Coleford the race cape was on but the damp didn't prevent me enjoying the snaking descent to the Wye and Monmouth. I was tempted to stop for chips by the Medieval bridge over the River Monnow but the now more persistent wet meant I just had a short breather before continuing my ride. I had intended to use the Wye valley road with its cafes and attractions but I somehow found myself on an alternative Chepstow road, one that climbed quite steeply to over 250m and up into some quite horrible wet. With no food stop in sight I took shelter in a bus shed to digest my emergency supplies before pressing on through the Welsh countryside.

As I moved further south the weather brightened and by Chepstow the rain had almost desisted, which was good as the wind had risen, there were speed limits on the Severn crossing which added up to some interesting moments 200 feet above the roiling waters of the Severn. Once safely across I headed for the services, in need of tea before the final hour's riding. Of course, on this side of the water it had been dry most of the day, it did at least mean I dried out a bit before arriving back in Brizzle.

What's next - oh yeah, hair and holes. You may recall that at New Year I became 'Trixie' Bell (get it?) with pink hair and some interesting new piercings, well disappointingly, whilst I still have the extra holes, the hair is back to blonde except for a few wisps. Its been an interesting experiment, I had expected some strange looks and comments but nada, it seems you have to go much more extreme to warrant a second look even in 2020 England. On my side of things, I've gained some insight into how my characters must feel when I inflict stuff on them, the embarrassment of being different soon fading to pretty much forgetting until you look in the mirror.

So the big question now is, do I dye my hair again and if so, what colour? I was thinking a more vivid shade, magenta or blue, perhaps a nice red or maybe a combination of shades? (I did toy with a sort of auction to choose, the highest bidder to choose but that idea is a bit silly, right?)The holes will stay for now, well they are almost healed so they were always going to leave their mark - lol!

Away from musing over my appearance and covering some 200 miles in the last week, I have been doing some more productive stuff. I've done some more 'proper' cooking, maybe not from scratch but at least not 'ding' food. So we've had Schnitzel, sausages and stew - simple enough fare but real food rather than sandwiches and snacks - there's even been dessert! My aim this week is to do spaghetti and maybe a chilli type dish, still not haute cuisine but a move towards 'proper' cooking.

I've also got some publishing done, the second instalment of Scott H's excellent alternate Gaby timeline, Notes of a Journey. Rough Waters picks up where All Things Denied ended and takes us on a rollercoaster ride of alternative Bond life.

Kindle
Print - still waiting for release

And so to today, Class Act is the latest thrilling (?) episode of Book 20, can Gaby get more girly? Maybe but there's certainly not much of Drew left if this chapter is anything to go by!

Well I guess that's about it for now,
Wiedersehn,
Mads

Kindle
Print