A Winters word

I was just catching up with everyone’s postings when the shortest of scribings by Len at 'the stream of time' got me to musing a little, his post was simply “I Am So Sick Of Winter”, and it got me to thinking whether or not I like this season.


Without Winter the other seasons would just seem as nothing really special, I mean to say, which other season can stop us in our tracks and make us take the time to do something other than ‘be out there’? This season sometimes just is great for nothing more than sitting by the fire, a dram in hand, watching the flames dance their magic dances whilst warming my chilled body through, after too long in that infernal, unheated garage, dreaming of the heady days of summer to come.

Winter? I love it for what it isn’t, it isn’t hours of daylight that if I don’t make the most of every moment doing whatever outside then the frustrated feeling of not achieving enough hangs my head, it isn’t 12 hours in that sweat shop where I earn a crust glowering through far to small windows at the world outside baking on a warm Summers’ day, thinking ‘why aren’t I ‘out there’, life doesn’t seem as fair then. It isn’t as fast paced nor as hectic as the other season, it is the time to slow down a tad and recharge yourself. Without it there’d be no balance, no enjoyment of the other seasons for what they are, because without the dark, short cold days of winter how would you know that the days of summer are long, light and warm?


Hopefully from my blog you know that I try and fill all the daylight hours that I can (and plenty of the night ones as well!) with as much outdoor stuff that I can, like fishing, walking, rabbiting etc. as well as the ever increasing project list that I burden myself with. But when, like now, the weather is just to damn cold to be ‘out there’ other than out of necessity, this season is a wonderful time to look back on the former year’s highs (and lows) but also a time to plan and prepare for the forthcoming year to ensure that it’s another fulfilled time. Yep I do love the winter for it tells me spring is on her way.
All the best,
John

Belated Wishes

Well hello one and all and a very belated Happy New Year to each and every one of you me hearties. Please excuse my tardiness in not keeping up with my postings but what with the festive spirit (yes I filtered and consumed most of the sloe gin!), working every hour I could over the ‘holiday’ (this bit through gritted teeth and with clenched fists, hard to type like this you know!), to claw back some money from my tight fisted employers who believe that operations and recovery time do not require paying for, especially just before Christmas, and getting some suburban walks in to raise my now extremely poor fitness level I’ve been a tad busy to say the least.

Looking back over my first tentative months of blogging I’ve really enjoyed myself and it has been a pleasure to meet (in a tippty tappty keyboard sort of way) so many like minded people. I don’t usually like singling out specific people as all of you add warmth, knowledge and a sense of belonging but I’d just like to thank Albert Rasch, Hubert Hubert, Wandering Owl, Mel, Wolfy, Le Loup, SBW, Gabe, Kari, Emily, T.Micheal, Dan, and Amber for their support, encouragement and great blogs which I hope one day to be equal to for the wealth of life, amusement and knowledge that they bring.

As for what good old saint Nick brought me two items stood out head and shoulders above the rest (and no it wasn’t the socks), firstly is the my new “stealth” coat by Jack Pyke and bought for me by my beloved Clare (oh she knows me so well) and secondly was the .177 Diana mod 52 air rifle bought with me crimbo money, needs an overhaul but me thinks it’s going to be a very good 'stationary' rifle.

Enough of that, tis time to be looking forward to the year ahead in what (I really do hope) will be full and rude health. As seems to be the custom I’ve compiled a short list of what will be attainable (we’ll see!) goals for the forthcoming year:-

Book Clare’s birthday present, a falconry course (But don’t tell her!).
Walk; - At least 15 ‘day’ walks at a minimum distance of 15 miles, with at least 5 different routes used, and at least 5 ‘night’ walks at a minimum distance of 5 miles, with at least 3 different routes used
Climb; - Cadair Idris, Snowdon, Ben Nevis and a minimum of 5 other peaks over 3000 feet.
Fish for and catch; - Carp (10lb plus), Perch (2lb plus), Pike (5lb plus), Wild brown Trout (1lb plus), Bass (3lb plus), Tope (10lb plus), Mullet (3lb plus), Conger eel (5lb plus), Wrasse (2lb plus)
Photograph;- Buzzard, Red Kite, Merlin, Any British owl, Fox, Badger, Stoat, Weasel, Hare, Door Mouse, Coastal whale or dolphin, Any British reptile, Any British bat, Grey seal, Dragonfly, Golden Eagle, Otter, and Red deer.
Clear all debt (excluding mortgage) by the month of September, 2010.
Sail in a race single handed without coming last!
Enjoy wild camping in Scotland.
Kite buggy with Jim.
Embark on a survival course.
Three long breaks away with Clare;- Scotland, The Mumbles and the New Forest being preferred locations.
Navigate (properly) using only a map and compass.
Learn to sing fully the welsh national anthem

Ok so it’s a small list (ish) but it should keep me going this year at least. Of course there will be changes and additions as time, money and circumstance change throughout the year but without targets or dreams then what do you have to aim at? So that’s about it for now, I really hope that the New Year brings you all that you desire and that you all stay healthy and safe ‘out there’. Till the next time……

Knackered n happy

Ah the moment I’ve been waiting for, my first excursion into the outdoors since the operation. A gentle mile and a half around Nercwys woods this morning and I’m now absolutely knackered. Temperature read 3 degrees centigrade on the tops, the wind was biting enough to get through my totally inadequate gloves and Lucy (swamp thing) had the devil in her finding every, yes every, source of stinking, slimy ditch filled abyss of  rotting vegetation that was up there, was it worth it? Oh boy it certainly was!

Just being in the woods feeling the cold air reaching the very bottom of my lungs with every breath taken (and there were quite a lot of them), seeing Lucy’s sheer exuberance pounding up and down the trails ahead, stretching my neglected legs and feeling my systems kick in again, yep it was worth even those last few faltering steps and the ten minutes sitting in the fun cruiser before I dared to head home.

And the wildlife did not disappoint either, the buzzards were up, their mewing calls welcoming me back, there seemed to be a surplus of jays heading through the branches, always in front of me (maybe they thought this one looks fit to drop, mmm supper) and bonus time was one of our smaller raptors, a kestrel, who was gracious enough to allow this clumsy photographer take a couple of snaps.

Back home it was great to feel my face have that gentle burning sensation after being in the cold, it may take me a while to reach full fitness levels but I’m back ‘out there’ and I’ll be damned if I’ll waste any opportunities to stay there!

Oh, before I forget, a thousand thanks for all your kind comments and support over the last few weeks of my self pity, as always I’m humbled by your kindness. Oh and just in case I forget, seasons greetings and blessings upon you all and your families, keep well and may the New Year be bountiful for you all.

Now where’s that dog towel, LUCY…….

Cabin Fever?

Ah the wide expanses of the great indoors, mmm I do believe that I am actually getting cabin fever. Just last night Lucy was warming herself by the fire and as I glanced at her from my incumbent position on the sofa and for just a few seconds she looked like a wild boar roasting away on a spit! It was all I could do not fetch my carving knife and steel!

Seriously though I am becoming restless, I seem to healing slowly (to bloody slowly) but, as Clare keeps reminding me, I can’t afford to take on to much or else I could find myself taking more time to recover and that’s one thing I don’t want. After having probably one of the most active outdoor years for a long time (kept my hand firmly down when the overtime sheets came around!) it’s really bugging me for it to finish off in this lackluster manner. I’ve got a few small projects lined up for the garage to ease my way back into it, so hopefully it won’t be too long before I can get started on them (as long as Clare’s in work that is), but for the moment everything is on hold. I may possible offer up some kit reviews on a couple of pieces that I wouldn’t be without whilst ‘out there’. It’s something that I haven’t tried yet but it might work or then again it might fall flat on its face.

Something for me to look forward to is that I’ve volunteered to be a contributor on the NWWT’s website, adding my thoughts on, and highlighting the virtues of, their many wildlife reserves around North Wales. For me the pleasure will be two fold, firstly it will take me to areas around North Wales that I may not have considered in the past to visit to observe wildlife and secondly I’ll be able to combine this with blogging, which I have found to be a great way of communicating with like minded folk from across the globe.

Other plans for next year include climbing Ben Nevis, Snowdonia and several other peaks using the gaps in my new shift rota to full advantage. My friend Jim has suggested going halves on a Canadian canoe and using it to explore some of the Scottish lochs combined with perhaps some wild camping, he’s also suggested ‘kite buggying’ (something Jim already participates in), and I quote “just for a laugh”. Mmmm don’t know about this one but hey ho in for a penny…. Along with my ever increasing garage project list, my outdoor adventures, the occasional tale on Tails from the fish, and a reconstituted rear end it should be a full and active new year to look forward to. Now if I could stop climbing the walls…..

A thank you

Just a quick posting as I’m unable to ‘sit down’ (or stay still in any position) at the moment for more than 10 minutes, let alone get ‘out there’. So you can safely assume that ‘D’ day has well and truly occurred so please excuse my ramblings today for not being in the usual vein.

I’ve always been of the opinion that there should always be a balance within life, for every birth there will be a death, for every smile a tear, for every morning of a glorious sunrise the dark shroud of an approaching thunder storm. It’s not that I’m religious in any shape or form (heaven forbid!), and I don’t pray to any deities, I just believe in balance, without sadness how would I measure joy, without pain how could pleasure exist? Don’t get me wrong I’m not some nutter who’ll stick a pin in my tongue just so I can then savor a brew, no I just like balance, yin and yang, black n white, circle of life (I can feel a song coming on!) call it what you will but balance suits me just dandy

.

Maybe this is why I feel drawn to the outdoors and all of its cycles, where you just observe from a distance or become embroiled in the hunt within Mother Nature’s game of life and of death. There is something basic deep inside of me that lets me savor the hunt and sometimes the kill but then there’s the feeling of being so connected inside, perhaps by simply just sitting alone (or with Clare, my one true love) welcoming the day’s new sun, rise over misty distant hills, or me grinning like an idiot watching a vole sitting on my boot toe, cleaning his whiskers, after taking his fill from my bait box when I have sat statuesque still for eons, not having a bite, nibble or take by the river. I won’t take anything from nature unless I use it, food for the pot, dead wood for the fire, rain for my face, and sunshine for my heart. For me being outdoors brings my life back on an even keel after I find my ship listing heavily to port with the weight of work, making ends meet, suburbia and the doom and gloom of the world that’s thrust in our faces by the press and what seems to be most peoples’ fascination with the anguish of others (why can’t stories of redemption, joy and wonder or even of fluffy puppies sell newspapers?).

So I came upon the ‘outdoors ‘blogosphere’ community’, and here I find a whole host of like minded people, whose depth of knowledge sometimes astounds me, whose ability to express themselves with the written word humbles me, and whose generosity warms my soul. I’m honored to be part of this ‘blogosphere’, I don’t always agree or even like all of what is shared here but then I find myself lost in awe and smiling inanely at other written pieces, like I say, balance. The range of topics is discussed is vast, and peoples opinions on said topics, whether agreed with or not are respected and accepted. To be accepted by like minded spirits such as your selves, whose knowledge, foresight, wonder and sometimes sadness which you all gladly share is a privilege for this grease monkey. I feel that I’m just about finding my feet and place within the outdoors ‘blogosphere’ community even though I’m one of the more recent arrivals, so I guess in a around about way I’m just trying to say thank you for accepting me and proving to me that there’s still balance to be found out there. Now maybe I’m rambling on or musing for no apparent reason (can’t do bugger all else in my present state so the only ‘rambling’ I can do is in me head!). But hey, what the hell, it’s passing some time for yours truly and would you rather I discuss the benefits of inflatable furniture for my tender derriere?

I hope that this dirge has not bored too many of you good people and that you will return for more of my usual, less heavy, musings in the future (when said derriere allows that is).