Sorry for the gap in blogging but the weekend didn’t quite go to plan. I was hoping to set time aside for writing but events got in the way. Some were good, others not – including the weather. Admittedly, I shouldn’t complain about the fact the weekend was a washout due to continuous showers – we desperately need it, but it did bugger up some of my plans and meant that my daily 5 mile walks went out of the window. Instead, I ended up pottering around indoors, catching up on chores and work. That said, we did manage to nip out on Saturday in order to spend a fortune at the Bolster Moor farm shop as we stocked up on various meats for batch-cooking, including Dawn’s fabulous home-made lasagne. Oh, then there’s their award-winning pork pies…

Sunday was a far less active day, but productive nonetheless, even if I was chafing about being stuck indoors and the inability to scratch my itchy feet. Still, it was chance for the two of us to spend some quality time together and recharge our batteries ready for another busy week.

Today, the weather’s taken an interesting turn. We’d had a yellow warning for thunderstorms throughout the weekend, but they didn’t amount to more than a single, desultory clap of thunder. Monday made up for that! Having been busy most of the day packed everything in so that I could get out for a decent stroll around the area and pick up some shopping. Initially, the weather seemed promising (although I’d packed an umbrella – just in case). Three miles in I was up on Savile Park when I saw the rain sweeping across open ground in wall of water. Deploying my trusty Siemens folding brolly I wasn’t too concerned at first as I hid under trees at the edge of the park and watched the rain bounce off the nearby road junction.

Then the thunder arrived and the intensity of the downpour increased to monsoon quality, overwhelming me. Thankfully, there was a bus shelter to take refuge in across the road where I could watch the deluge in relative dryness – although the torrent sweeping past me was worrying.

Fortunately, the storm passed before I needed to seek higher ground. Within minutes – as if someone had thrown a switch – blue skies and sunshine rolled in, letting me start to dry out. Well, until I got to the supermarket, which had leaked like a sieve! Parts of the fresh veg aisles were blocked off whilst staff wielded mops and buckets to contain the leaks and clear up the mess.

Shopping done, I called into our local for a swift pint and sat in the beer garden to dry out in the sunshine. Well, on the outside anyway. As always, the range of beers had changed to include this example, which takes a (not so) subtle dig at the orange felon in the American White House.

Now I’m back at home, preparing for another day. Whilst I was out Dee’s cooked industrial quantities of Lasagne, some of which we scoffed tonight. Tomorrow we’ve another busy day, preparing for Dawn’s niece arriving as she’s going to be staying with us for a couple of nights. The girls are going to see Leon Bridges play at the Piece Hall, which will be a great break for Dee who’s been having a hard time of things recently. Me? I’ll be playing host!

Right, time to go. See you all tomorrow

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