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New Car

Pic of the week 30/8/20

Picked up our “new” (old) car on Friday, a 56 plate Vauxhall Corsa (D) 1.4 Design, with 90K miles for £995.

I’m pleased with it. It looks good and drives well.

Fixed the dripping kitchen tap today, having finally figured out how to remove the collar/shroud around the head gear (bodge tape on said collar, and the mole grips …)

I also ran a 10K pb today, 46 min 32 secs. Before this week, I had a week were I didn’t run at all (referee-ing, swimming) etc. and then ran on Tues, Thurs, Fri & today. I do feel very fit at the moment, so a PB was probably a just reward. I do find having a few days off from running does then boost my pace on my return. But, I fear, my running will soon start to diminish as term begins and the football season kicks off.

Weather – its a bit chilly! Yesterday & today have been bright but cool, but earlier in the week we’ve had a lot of rain and thunder and lightening, including one bolt that i’m sure was almost directly overhead – the loudest rumble of thunder!

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Aloha!

Pic of the week 23/8/20

A rare sighting of Sam in a shirt.

He was off to a semi-formal party on Saturday, so wore his “smart” trousers and an old pink shirt of mine.

Oh, and never one to fully conform (aka do as he’s told), he decided to give his appearance an Hawaiian feel with some leis he bought on e-bay, and sun glasses.

He did have something to celebrate, earlier this week the government caved to public pressure and U-turned on A level results, giving students their Centre (ie teacher) assessed grades. So he now has BBC (maths, chem, physics) and he still intends to retake his physics in October (all the weeks are passing swiftly …)

Other news, the Mini failed its MOT and with the repair bill to be at or around £600, I decided its days were numbered, and we sold it for scrap/trade (got £175 for it) and after much family debate & discussion, we are replacing it with a 2006 red Corsa (6 months MOT) for £995. Pick it up later this week, so will probably feature in next week’s blog.

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Results Day

Pic of the week 16/8/20

Thursday was A level results day, when Sam got his grades from his non-exams.

He came away with a B (maths), C (chemistry) & D (physics) and he has been done over by “the algorithm.”  His teachers had given him a B in Chemistry and C in Physics but, in a scandal that is rocking the country, many students, Sam included, have had their grades reduced by a computer algorithm to standardise results.

He’s stoic – he would have got better had he sat the exams, he was just beginning to ramp up his work rate when lock down came and he is a victim of a year’s idleness (which he recognises and admits.) The chemistry was a particular blow as he has been on course for a B in it for some time, long before Covid reared its head.

He’s going to resit (or, more accurately, sit) Chemistry and Physics in October in an attempt to improve upon these grades – he has promised that work starts tomorrow.

In other news, it is worth noting that the first half of this week was hot, mega hot – into the thirties for a prolonged period. Although I do enjoy the heat, this was too much and the rain that came to clear the air at the end of the week was a welcome relief.

 

 

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Birthday Boy

Pic of the week 9/8/20

Hard to believe, but Sam is now 18!

It was his birthday on Friday – he mainly got money (which is what he really wanted) but also 18 bottles of Corona, a microphone, a couple of T-shirts …

I think he had a good day, the sun shone, we ate, we ate again, and then he headed of to his pal’s (Tom) house, only to return two days later!

So no children in the house now, just four adults all living together in perfect harmony! Next week we get his A level results …

Saturday was set to be the hottest day of the year and, although when we first got up at 6.45 am the Tor could not be seen for low cloud, it didn’t disappoint as Becky and I headed off for another lovely day at Burton Bradstock. We arrived by 9am, with the tide still coming in, and the beach relatively empty, although this didn’t last for long.

The sea was deliciously refreshing – I do think that swimming in the sea of Burton Bradstock has been the best thing I have done since lockdown. The day was hot, hot, hot and by about 2pm we upped sticks and headed home topless in the mini. A lovely day.

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Back in Black

Pic of the week 2/8/20

So Saturday saw lock down conditions ease a little, and grassroots football to begin. Since the government announced the easing, my phone has been pinging through with requests for me to ref and, at high noon yesterday, 1st of August, I blew the whistle to begin my new season of refereeing, taking charge of a friendly between Ashcott reserves and Victoria Sports. It was good to get back in the saddle and I enjoyed the afternoon – something different after months of groundhog day. And today I did another game, New Forresters v Woolavington – the standard of football was pretty low, but again, good to be out and about once again.

With refereeing starting again, my running stats will begin to fall again, but here they are for the end of July:

So not quite the heights of April, but still a fair few k’s covered in July: 189 Kms to be exact, taking my total so far this year to 777 Km.

Friday was the hottest day of the year (so far!) and Becky, Sam and I headed to Burton Bradstock beach for the day – another lovely day out at the seaside, the sea was a little waveyer than before, and as ever, swimming in the sea was a highlight of a lovely day out.

Sophie didn’t come with us, she had an (virtual) induction day for her ONS work experience year, and she also heard her exam results for the year, scoring 82% – a First (the threshold was 70%).  Some great news to cap a great day.