and here's the set up

Was in a pretty low ebb an decided comfort eating was the only answer.

So I had two or three squares of chocolate and a biscuity thing, tomorrow I may indulge in some jelly-babies.So lent has finished a week early for me this year-first time in donkeys this has happened.

Nothing seems to be going right at the moment and I just want to lock myself away somewhere, where nobody could find me.

So what’s been going on? The ear wax problem is finally sorted.When she was about to give a blast of the stuff the nurse said to me that it might hurt-to which I replied-“bring it on,I deserve the pain” then she said I might feel dizzy as well-it took me 5 seconds to realize the whole hearing/balance thing-and when I stepped outside I did feel a bit giddy. Any way I have learned my lesson and I feel like someone who is trying to give up the cigarettes or whatever-I am so tempted to shove a piece of rolled up kitchen roll or the arm of my glasses into my ear-just for the sake of a habitual poke-but I’m doing well here-and am fighting the urge well.

The new cycling glasses I ordered (which were quite expensive) have had to be returned twice by the optician as he did not like the work done-got a phone call today telling me that they are off to Paris now to get sorted-its been over a month now since I ordered them. By the time I get them I’ll probably need a new prescription and they’ll be useless.

Came across another blog by chance 366 random acts of kindness.Started off ok –bit like the danny Wallace mini book. But it suddenly got really twee and cringeworthy-in fact some of the acts were so excruciating it was funny. Somebody told me that psychologists have said that people just do these random acts of thingy just to make themselves feel good and the telling about them adds to the whole self gratification thing.

The American trip idea that  I was playing about with is most definitely off now-well for this year any way. I was talking to a sister about it and she said that going by the way I was talking about it, I would be better doing the Irish holidays. And when I told her about the reading and thinking about the burren, getting an email from someone saying that he was doing the burren this year, and THEN the book I reading about the burren mentioning the van from the company I do the cycling holiday with –was a pretty good omen to do the burren trip. Somebody else(who does not read this) said that she was glad I was not going to America as well.

The rambling club was over by Glenariff last week. We had near perfect weather.We saw some great views. The walk took us over some private land, and somebody warned us that the owner did not like people walking over his land.Thankfully it was a Sunday and the owner was more than likely in his home reading his King James listening to William McCrea.  On his land there was a plethora of stone circles and ancient burial sites. Plus a stunning waterfall-pity due to very dry weather we did not see it in it’s full glory. In a way I could understand why the owner did not like people tramping over his land –as there would be multitudes of people there all year round.Some not as careful as others-probably destroying and defacing the stoneage monuments. We were careful-and thoroughly enjoyed what we saw.

Those dreadful talent shows are on tv again-I don’t like them and the ones on a Saturday evening are enough to get me going out to mass.

Had my annual work review today-boss told me I was too customer orientated and that I need to stop giving out my direct line as too many people will be phoning me back-and I’ll get no work done-he also told me I might do something I’m not suppose to and get into trouble. Apart from that he said I put in an excellent year. So now I have decided to order a little Darth Vader Bobble Head and every morning at work I will tap its head and say “dark side gerdy feel the dark side.”

Like I said nothing seems to be going right-within time I’ll get one or two things sorted –but at minute I just want to go away somewhere and be on my own for a while,think some things over and work out a way of getting on my feet.

That’s it for now-oh this weekend is the final mtb ride and then the gerdymobile will be officially back on the road. Mind you saiorse might be brought out for a trip over to rathlin, in the summer with a bit of luck-they do a really really good pint of Guinness over there.

previously in my life

So what has been going on in my humdrum life? Not a terrible lot to be honest. Twice in the past three or four weeks I have dreamt that my car disappeared from a car park.Don’t know what would be in my subconscious to trigger this off.I always seem to be wandering around a half full car park  wondering it I am actually in the right car park then when I am reaching heights of exasperation I wake up.

I was having problems making out what people at work to saying to me-and after about a week of this and about 2 days of using olive oil I decided to see a doctor. She got out her little telescope thing looks in my ears and told me the right one was bunged up the wax and the left one was not as bad, and got me to book in with the treatment room to get them syringed.  I was expecting the nurse to give me a telling off when I told her that although I did not use the cotton buds to clean my ears, but I did use a screwed up piece of kitchen roll-but decided not to mention using the end of a knitting needle (I lied about one there).Any way she gave me a blast of the syringe thing and said the right one was pretty hard –so I need to come back for a second blast next week.So hopely things will be back to normal then.

Sometime ago there was a somewhat frequent off in my local book shop-well a glorified news agent to be honest. Three for the price of two-and as always it was a struggle picking a third one-so for the third one I –well now that I’m here the first two were “I Partridge”-Alan Partridge, which if you know the television character is very funny; “Charles Dickens a life” by Claire Tomalin.Which I stuggled with and gave up-but will try again-soon. Now for the third one I chose a book I thought I’ll just throw it in the bag of stuff for thee charity shop,it was “Billy Connolly’s Route 66”.Now I am not a big fan of the big yin any more,but I decided to give a book a go last week and it is surprisingly not bad at all.Think I prefer him doing this sort of thing than comedy,and occasionally he says a few things that made me scratch my chin and mumble “good point” and actually underlined it (can’t do that on a kindle).

But then I do prefer travel literature any way.

Getting pop up ads saying that I am due 250 free business cards-all I pay is the p/p which is pretty cheap. I noticed how freely Americans seem to hand out business card-a guy I met on holiday last year gave me his business card so we could keep in touch. And when I was leaving a hotel in DC some 8 years ago  another person leaving at same time said we could share his taxi-we got off first and were about to pay the driver he said it was ok and he would sort it out (obviously he was on a business trip and could claim I ton his expenses I thought). I said thank you very much and he reached me his business card. So I was wondering what could I put on a card? Occupation? Sound Guy? Crazy Cyclist/Hiker?

Been kind of off Face Book during lent-although I did sneak a look in once or twice. And to be honest I am not missing it.Other than following a few magazines,cycling and photography things I could do without it.

My USA trip-still undecided-planned to talk to someone about the pros and cons last week but meeting fell through-maybe next week.

Learnt a couple of new tricks on photoshop elements –well one trick. Other one involved getting out with tripod and using a filter for camera that I bought a couple of years ago but never used and here is my handy work

  and

Didn’t quite have the effect I wanted.But I’m getting there.

And that’s about it-Oh managed to get out on the gerdymobile for first time this year today and was gooood –soon be time to put the mtb away until October/November.Think I must be one of few people looking forward to losing that hour in a couple of weeks time -as this means i can get out on the gerdymobile after work.

here's what's happening-kind of

For the two people that are interested, I am doing lunch with a buddy next week and, (hopefully) amongst other problems I am going to discuss the pros and cons about my on/off American trip.I actually have made a list. I have other problems that I have been carrying around for a number of years and I feel I really HAVE to get them out of my system. To be honest it might take a couple of pints, or even talking to a professional, but I really do need to talk to someone.

My spoiling myself plan (new year's resolutions) is actually taking shape. Some are trivial little things but-it still counts as treats. So far (and I DO have a list made) I have got the following

1 A denim jacket

2 Two pairs of DMs (well I kind of needed new shoes any way, so does it really count?) but these are great footwear.

3 A graphic novel-got a Batman one-not as good as I was led to believe, but has got me back into the graphic novel mode again.

4 A tripod for my camera

 5 A funky new lens for the camera- a sigma 28mm f1.4

6 New hiking boots and gaiters

7 New cycling glasses

I am thinking about getting a personal radio. And I may do a photography course. I did have one booked but cancelled it as travel times to get to it proved most awkward.So may try another in May.

I'm  sure I could get some other stuff if I make it to America-but the chat next week will decide that. I have sized up the fors and againsts for that. And I’ll let yous 2 know next week.

I’m kind of off Face Book for lent and I may go with tradition (well it is with us Irish) and log in on Saint Patrick’s day to see what’s going on and to see if I'm missing it or not-so far I’m not. I know I can log this on there without having to log in myself.

Marnie-I’ll send you an email next week.

Incidentally Friday is traditionally treat day with me and amongst them is a packet of free state tayto cheese n onion-but I’m off the crips for lent-arrrgh
Incidentally Marnie thank you for your comment on the last blog-glad you liked the humour.

lent

Lent. Ah got to be the 2^nd most important  conversation  period after Xmas (ok Christmas). After the question “What’s Santa bringing you?” the runner up is “What are you giving up for Lent?” Now it’s not “What are you doing for Lent?” It’s “What are you giving up?”

Lent is a very Catholic thing, although I do know one or two Protestants who do the the Lent thing too mind you. Although I rarely go to mass I do do the Lent thing.

I have noticed that it has it’s unofficial rules,obviously invented by the Irish-we’re good at get out clauses.

1 You can be too young/old to give something up

2  As some people give up “the drink” for Lent and St Patrick’s Day falls during the “holy period” You are allowed to break you Lenten fast on this day.This also applies to sweets,cookies, whatever etc I personally think this clause is for wimps-and never adhere to it.

3 If your birthday falls during the period this is also an excuse.I mean how can a child have a birthday party without the goodies and how can you go to a friend’s birthday party and not indulge in the feast of goodies.

4 Bending the rules-some children would give up sweets but not crisps (potato chips, or as we in Derry say crips) And some parents would allow the offspring to eat sweets on a Sunday-as “Sundays were not lent” (I remember my sisters hording the weekly sweet collection and at the stroke of midnight on Saturday evening it was a dive into a multitude of enamel rotting delicacies)

5 –Rather than give up sweets. We would give up swearing,dodging homework-or just something we should not be doing in the first place.

Like I said I do do the lent thing-and I’m good at it. One year I gave up sweets and chocolate and I actually  managed to stay off for three years. What started me again? A very attractive new girl at work who I was flirting outrageously with offered me a square of chocolate and I fell off the wagon. Another time I gave my self a real challenge and added meat to my “off” list-including chicken. Now this was a real struggle for the first week. I was even having nightmares about it.One I remember vividly involved a very sexy woman from a car advert offered me herself or a plate of steak and chips-yep I took the steak

And the whole forty days and forty nights thing. What’s with that? Somebody told me this was a rough translation from a Hebrew word that basically meant “a long time”

So when the great flood was forty days and forty nights this could have been 100s of years.And when Jesus fasted for forty days and forty nights it might just have been five or six hours. I mean they had no watches then-had they?

Some people say the Lenten going off stuff is the easy way out and we should be doing something good instead. A woman at work says I should be going to Mass every morning at 7:00 am or at night during Lent-like I said they are trying to bring religion into everything now! Even though I am anything but devout the Lenten habit is just that –a habit. And helps get rid of some excess weight too  For me I think the Lent thing for me is more of  a personal purge that a spiritual thing.And maybe it’s easier to not do something than take on a new challenge.