Blue sky, floods and the Job Centre – first published 8 February 2014

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With all the wind and rain we had in early February 2014 I got a bit behind with the February miles so I was hoping to fit a few in on my Job Centre jaunt. There was even a plan. After the Job Centre I thought I’d walk a winding route through the parks and wooded areas of the city centre and back home over Cobden Bridge with a little look at Riverside on the way. Another night of heavy rain plus morning news full of floods and weather warnings told me that might not be the best of plans. It was looking like my walking one hundred miles a month challenge might be doomed for February. Continue reading Blue sky, floods and the Job Centre – first published 8 February 2014

Waterside zebras, WestQuay zebras and free coffee!

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26 July 2016

With some difficulty we found our way out of Ocean Village and back to Canute Road.  Soon the familiar sight of South Western House was in front of us, along with our next zebra. Henman, sponsored by Barratt Homes, stood opposite the imposing building at the entrance to Queens Park. It took us quite a while to get across the road to have a proper look at him. Continue reading Waterside zebras, WestQuay zebras and free coffee!

Judgement day – first published 1 November 2013

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November 2013 began with an announcement and ended with another interview. In between there was numbness and gallows humour. It all felt a little like judgement day from where I was standing.  Continue reading Judgement day – first published 1 November 2013

Ancient stones, builders and getting distracted

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5 April 2016

The building work was almost finished. There was a shed base at the end of the garden, the wall was built and the boring repointing was all done. We were still waiting for a skip to be delivered and the potting shed hadn’t even been ordered never mind built but still, patience is a virtue, right? Anyhow, all that is another post altogether. With no builder and no skip due today I could get out for a walk. It was sorely needed. Unfortunately, as I had an appointment in town, it wasn’t going to be a very exciting one but you can’t have everything eh? Anyway, it was probably time I checked out what was happening with the repairs to the Bargate. Continue reading Ancient stones, builders and getting distracted

Turn and face the strange

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12 March 2016

A Saturday trip to town with Commando gave me a chance to have a look at the progress on the WestQuay II, or Watermark development. Let’s face it, I didn’t have the money to go shopping and I had time to kill. Besides, I’d read some old stone walls had been uncovered at the base of Catchcold Tower and I wanted a look before they covered them up again. Continue reading Turn and face the strange

a very old house – first published 4 August 2013

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The first Sunday in August 2013 and, as usual Commando was out on a run and I was cleaning the bathroom, washing clothes and pegging them on the line. When he came home we went to town, just for a mooch around. It’s something we do once in a while on a Sunday afternoon. Then Commando asked if I fancied a coffee in Tudor House. This was not something at all normal and I jumped at the chance. For all the times I’d walked past it I had never been inside. Continue reading a very old house – first published 4 August 2013

Baby rhinos and a baby prince – first published 22 July 2013

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The day little Prince George was born I discovered there were way more rhinos to find than I thought. My original research and the map told me there were thirty six. Then I downloaded an app for my iPhone and discovered there were baby rhinos too. These were not exactly in plain sight either, but hidden in shops and cafes. All of the sudden the rhino safari looked a great deal harder than I’d bargained for. There was only one thing to do, get out there hunting for them. Continue reading Baby rhinos and a baby prince – first published 22 July 2013

my first rhino safari – first published 11 July 2013

Photo from the Zany Zebras Facebook page
Photo from the Zany Zebras Facebook page

It seems fitting that the first of the resurrected posts from my old blog in 2016 should be about the rhinos that decorated my city back in 2013. When I spotted the first ones in early July I wondered what on earth they were but when I found out there were a trail of them to be discovered I was quite excited. There’s nothing quite like a treasure hunt to whet the appetite for walking. The rhino posts are topical right now because there is a whole new trail coming this year. This time it will be painted zebras gracing our streets, there’s already a Facebook page all about them and I can’t wait to start searching.
Continue reading my first rhino safari – first published 11 July 2013

not the best of days, not the worst of days – first published 6 June 2013

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Working a five day week was turning out to be harder than I thought although I had plenty to keep me occupied. To make up for less walking at the weekend I was trying to get as much walking in during the working week as I could. The walk of the day was to Canute’s Palace to explore the old walls. Continue reading not the best of days, not the worst of days – first published 6 June 2013

A bridge, a boat show and some old walls

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13 September 2013

For reasons I will reveal later I didn’t want to tax myself too much on Sunday and, even though I knew there would be precious little time for walking on Monday and maybe Tuesday, I decided on a shortish Sunday walk. The Boat Show was in town so I decided to do the old two bridge challenge and see what all the fuss was about. It was an overcast day with a good chance of rain when I set out towards the green and I detected more than a hint of yellow in the leaves along the woodland path. At the top of the slope the open space was filled with grass and wildflowers going to seed. Autumn is in the air for sure. Continue reading A bridge, a boat show and some old walls