London Town

A morning swim saw my front crawl progress a little. 6 whole lengths without stopping (or drowning). Progress!! 60 lengths in total, but mostly breaststroke.

The afternoon involved a train to London Town and then the tube to Turnpike Lane to see Mr G and Miss W. A lovely evening of home brewed beer followed by dinner at an Indian restaurant. It's nice to be in the big smoke after so long!

A fun weekend ahead me thinks. Lets see what tomorrow brings!

Gym

First gym session in a while after having the flu. It was pretty tough, and my lungs were definitely not up to full capacity. The weight circuit felt ok, except for the lateral raises - they never go well, with my left arm soon falling well behind making me look like I'm trying to do some sort of directional signal! Afterwards I only manage to run 3kms, which, given I was running 10km every time I went to the gym just a few months ago, was fairly pathetic. Not only that but it was terribly slow too!

On a plus note, I had my first ever protein shake afterwards.

I must confess however, I did hold my nose through the entire experience!!

Steak and beer

An uneventful day. Back to the grindstone with poker and sticking only to 45 player sngs. I'm gonna try and be a little more disciplined from now on. (not like it's the first time I've said that!)

The latter part of the day was fun. A pretty tasty dinner, all home made. Steak, egg, wedges, carrots and peppercorn sauce, followed by a few quiet beers.

I'm also pleased to say my voice is beginning to return, so I may be able to speak tomorrow! Perhaps that will mean an end to my blogging...

A rat or a hamster?

Last night I was granted an eventful night sleep, or lack there of! Things began when my sis sat bolt upright twice. When asked if she was awake, she sleep lied to me, and said "yes"! Then she told me she'd been having horrible dreams. Later that same night, she experienced something similar, when I was sat upright in bed staring at the curtain. I then proclaimed, "It's a rat! No wait, it's a hamster", while quite obviously dreaming about a small rodent climbing the drapes! We were also woken by sirens just after 3am, and found out from the news in the morning that there was a man found with head injuries right outside the flat at that time. Awful!

I left bonny Scotland (after a copious amount of chicken), and the journey home was beautiful, with an amazing array of colours on display. Unfortunately the car windscreen wasn't quite prepared for this picture taken right at the border, but I thought the sky made it worth posting.

It was a wonderful Autumn afternoon, and it was hard to believe the storms that have hit the South over the past 24 hours. It is sad to see such devastation and the pain caused to those who have lost loved ones.

So, I'm now back in Northern England - lets see what tomorrow brings.

Pets and Pentlands

It's always nice spending time with my sis, and this morning we went on a mini mission to visit my cat. The day started with a visit to Pets at Home. I was greeted by this friendly Degu, while Oooft fell in love with a giant rabbit. It was hard to leave without a new addition to the family!!

The bus ride to Penicuik reminds me how small Edinburgh actually is, with the City passing quickly by and not long before we have views of the Pentland Hills. It really is a wonderful place to live - a capital with the countryside on your doorstep. Arriving in the small town was a little strange, but I was made very welcome, as always. The reception was not so warm from my beautiful girl, being hissed at within minutes of entering the house.

Despite that, it was good to see her happily playing, mesmerized by the leaves blowing around the conservatory roof. I like to think she was deriving a plan of attack! Oh, to be a cat!!

The day was complete with mussels & wine, and my sister booking flights to join me travelling around Japan in March. Too excited!!

Bridesmaid Duties

Walking down Edinburgh's Princes Street in the Saturday morning rush is not my usual idea of a good time. However, duties called and Bridesmaid dress shopping awaited. Shopping in Edinburgh is always made easier by the beautiful architecture and views of the iconic castle hovering above the main street, and it wasn't long before we paused for lunch and wine - a much more agreeable activity! Along George Street, we passed The Dome, and I was astonished to see their Christmas decorations had already been erected. It's not even Halloween, they may as well leave them up all year round...

Returning to our original task, the lunchtime wine had affected us more than I'd thought, and Miss D, the beautiful bride to be, had her fun dressing me as a pink flamingo.

The seriousness of this dress choice was questionable, and I'm pleased to say the final two narrowed down options were much more stylish! Roll on the 2014 wedding of the year!

Changing outlooks

Blogging is something I've struggled to do over the past several years. I initially opened this blog with the intention of keeping a record of my poker - using it to post hands and to generate poker related chat to assist in strategy and bankroll management. I must say, I have been fairly unsuccessful in this respect!!

I now feel that while I may continue to play cards, it's not really something I'm motivated to blog about. I've made a decent amount of money over the past few years, I've had some big ups and some big downs, but most importantly, I've found a new passion in life and that is now what I aim to use this blog for.

In January 2010 I went skiing for the first time and haven't really looked back. (Except for a blip with a dislocated hip!)

It was 2013, however, that was the year of big changes. I went with my long term partner to Red Mountain Resort, BC, on a sabbatical from work to spend the season on the Nonstop Ski Instructor programme. It was the time of my life. I skied terrain I never thought I could, I met friends for life and I left as a CSIA Level 2 Qualified instructor. Good times indeed! There were downsides too though. My partner and I went our separate ways. I left my home, my beautiful cat, my job (not so sad!), Aberdeen (even less sad!) and did the dreaded...moved back in with the parents in July. Wow. There are seriously no words other than NOT RECOMMENDED!!!

A little more on Red Mountain though. The resort is absolutely breathtaking. I have never seen snow covered trees quite like it, and the Kootenay sea, which can be seen in this picture, is unbelievable. The photograph doesn't do it justice. On one day, the most astonishing sun dog appeared - I didn't even know what one was until it happened. The light glistened off snow particles which created an appearance of a sun near the piste. As magnificent as it was, the beauty of the resort was not it's only asset. The terrain is unlike anything I have skied before, and the standard of skiing required is high. Despite the intensive training, by the end of the 3 months there were several runs I had not even dared to attempt, with their steep terrain, cliff drops and tight trees. Even with a lifetime of skiing, this is not a resort that can be easily mastered or you could ever tire of.



As for the Nonstop course, it was very well conducted, the staff were friendly, professional and hard working, and the skiing progression speaks for itself. I would recommend it to anyone.

So after returning home to the UK and leaving Aberdeen, life has been a little nomadic, and things are set to continue! In September I was successful in my application for an instructor job with Niseko Village Ski School in Japan for the winter, and the adventure starts on November 25th when I fly to Sapporo. For the next few months I intend to keep an account of my days as an instructor, as well as my life before flying out. I will add one picture each day to try and encapsulate my time. Unfortunately, the first picture is a rather boring one, having spent the day in bed, sick, with my faithful friend below as my only company.



On the plus side, I have found the motivation to restart this blog, so even bad days have their highlights!

Buenas noches amigos!