1404.11 GOODBYE ADRIAN MOLE MY FRIEND

I was sad to learn of the passing of author Sue Townsend last night. The character she created in Adrian Mole, a working class anti-hero who's life never quite lived up to his expectations resonated with me. The character was a little bit older than me (4 years) but as a teenager I wholly related with the angst and the pains. He was also a child of the times speaking about the Thatcher years. The books dip in and out of his fictional life and I feel I have grown up with this character. The last book in the series, 'The Prostate Years' dealt with a man in his forties who hasn't achieved what he set out to do (that is something I can relate to) and looks at him dealing with serious illness (thankfully something I've not had to deal with yet). 

Sue Townsend's diary style of writing is the reason why I started blogging. There are books of diaries I kept which are long lost, it is something I've done most of my life. 

Thank you Sue, rest in peace... 

... Goodbye Adrian my old friend. 

1404.10 GETTING BACK ON

This has been an important day for me. Perhaps the most important in a long while.

For the first time in 148 days I got my leg over... 

...over the saddle of a bicycle. For the first time since the accident that saw my wrist broken in 4 places, surgery with 2 plates and 6 screws added, I have gotten back on a bike and rode.

Initially I was nervous, after all being hit by a car is quite a stressful occurrence. I took it quite steady but still I managed a 12K ride. The ride wasn't fast or anything to shout about since I was riding my work bike (that's the bike I ride at work, not what I ride to work).

I hope to ride again in the morning, I have a lot of fitness to recoup.