Bills Posts

Usually in the morning after I get back from my walk one of the things I usually do is a post on Facebook. Usually three or four paragraphs something about the walk, the antics of Misty the cat, visitors to the bird table, and anything else that takes my fancy.

I’ve been having a bit of a problem with the Facebook post recently. I’ve not been doing them. It’s surprising and heartening the number of people that I know that comment when I don’t post. I confess I do feel guilty for not doing the daily news.

Yesterday morning I did a post and it went ok. But, this morning I started to write, but it didn’t seem right and I just dried up and ended up scrapping the post. I don’t normally post over the weekend so I shall use the opportunity to take a considered break, with the intention of resuming properly next tuesday. Let’s see how it goes.

I should stress that the header picture is nothing at all to do with Dorset. That august county is the subject of a book by author Jon Woolcott which I am currently reading.

I have to say that I like the style of writing, it’s straightforward, humorous, sometimes self deprecating and entertaining. It’s an easy read. But now, I am going to pause the reading of the book. That’s because the latest issue of Dorset Life has arrived. I recognised the picture on the front cover immediately. It’s Swanage pier. I have such memories of that place. I have spent hours on their. It’s where I decided that I really didn’t like fishing.

I had bought a crab line, it was summer, I reckon I was probably about 10 years old, Mum was working in Swanage, it must have been a summer holiday because it was nice weather. I dangled the line over the side of the pier. When I hauled the line up I’d caught a small (4 or 5 inch long) fish. I had no idea how to get the hook out and another young lad who was there helped, by unhooking the fish, then killing it and throwing back in the water. What a waste. The shock I felt then was palpable. I should really tell you about when I saw the film Ring of Bright water. Perhaps not. Too painful. Sorry, this started off very positive didn’t it? Didn’t mean for that to happen. Sorry. Not happy with this post, but I’ll leave it there.

When I got back from my morning walk, I sat with the iPad and Facebook open. I really wanted to write something, but for some reason I couldn’t bring my self to do it. It wasn’t writers block, well, yes I suppose it was, because I just could not think of what to write.

The simple solution is just write the walk, why couldn’t I do that? So I’ll make a point of trying to do it tomorrow. Perhaps I was getting a bit prentices and wanted to deliver a message of some sort? Don’t know, can’t remember.

Elayne is at her WI meeting. Tonight she is surrendering her presidency of the group. She’s been President for five or six years now, so giving it up is quite a poignant moment. I think she has enjoyed her time. In some respects she both happy and sad at the prospect.

Here we are then, the milestone that I have been waiting for number 1000, now that doesn’t mean 1000 nights unfortunately, but I’m still happy that I have got this far.

I think there were two main reasons why I started this blog; I wanted to write, and because of Covid, I had the time. The trouble has always been that my writings have been unfocused in that I don’t have a solid consistent topic to write about. Is that a bad thing? Most of the bloggers I have found appear to be entirely business related. I have never wanted to do that.

So, having reached 1,000 ami going to stop? Of course not. I shall carry on writing about my walks around Gosport, and other places (hopefully soon including Dorset) my train set, which I haven’t started, my photography, interest in astronomy and history, the book of the day. Along with anything else that grabs my attention.

After the mess/mix up over the weekend, it’s nice to be back on track. Once I am past tomorrows milestone I think I will be able to get on with my normal meanderings.

There’s reading of course, I’m getting my fiction mostly at lunchtimes when I listen to my audio books. I’ve re-visited a lot of my favourite science fiction. I don’t really feel the need to review them. I’m more interested the non-fiction books that I am reading. These, at the moment are mostly about Dorset.

Perhaps it’s because I don’t feel the same connection to Hampshire. With a move to Dorset in the offing, my focus for locality is clearly shifting. I also haven’t given up on the idea of Vlogging, but I need to find my niche.

I did get very keen on the idea of microscopy, although amateur instruments I have a couple of quite good instruments. The trouble is that I didn’t have the space to use them in a way that I would like. Now, there’s an interesting thought. Perhaps I need to do some proper thinking about the space that I would really like to have. I’ll do a bit of that thinking.

I have an excuse for messing things up. My step-son invited me along on his stag do, even though I’m a grumpy old so-send-so. He had a good time, enjoyed himself with good friends, and didn’t end up in a mail sack on the midnight train to Edinburgh. But, what it has done is messed up my striving towards my 1000th post.

Having reached No. 996 on Thursday, that meant no. 1000 would be due on Monday 22nd May. I really did want to keep the sequence going. The plan was to do a quick post on Friday (no. 997) a scheduled post on Saturday (rubbish post, but it did happen no. 998, and I was going to do no 999 tonight. I messed it up by missing Fridays post, I ran out of time.

So, with Fridays post missing, and tonight’s post the wrong way round, I can’t in all honesty claim 1000 tomorrow. So that will be Tuesday. Then of course we have another target approaching; post number 1095. Now if I had been really good, and had properly done a post every day, then 1095 would have been three years. It’s obviously not three years, but not far off. Still a number to be proud of.

Pretty much back to normal tomorrow..resuming with no. 999.

This is a scheduled post to make sure I keep the count going.

It had been a normal walk until I arrived at the cockle pond. Normally there is quite a large crowd of jelly fish in the south east corner so I was disappointed to see only a few in the corner.

Unusually there was a person ahead of me and they were stood looking into the pond, they then moved on. When I reached the point where they had been standing, I could see why they had paused.

I had never seen anything like it. Last week, I saw one jelly fish that had pink moons (the four horse shaped things on their top) today, the pink colour in the water is down to the swarming mass of the jelly fish.

It was an amazing sight, I have been following the swarm of jelly fish for three years now, and I have never seen anything like this. Absolutely fascinating.

It certainly is not the life style that attracts me, I have absolutely no desire to experience life in that era, four thousand years ago. It must have been harsh and brutal but at the same time a society was forming.

That society gave rise to farming, an people living in homes rather than caves. It gave rise to the megalithic sites we see around us today. Of which are Stonehenge, Avebury, Maiden Castle are just a few example.

Time Team is one programme which I thoroughly enjoy, and regularly gives us real insight to what life would have been like. But above all else, it is the why and how that bring those times alive for us.

This is the fourth time that I’ve written about committees since starting this blog series. I’ve just reviewed them. They become increasingly pessimistic as time goes on. It’s my fault because of my compulsion to become involved. I need to learn to resist that.

One thing I am pretty sure of is that when we get to Dorset, I will be joining U3A. I haven’t looked at the local branch, but even if they aren’t running groups I am interested in, I will seek to start one (or more). I wonder what is involved in that.

One thing I won’t do is become involved at the charity level. I have been there and done that. I don’t need that level of accountability or stress.