The video version of this diary can be found here on Sunday at 7:30am
The podcast version of this diary can be found here:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1868030/9502777
We've finally had a return to good weather and so it's been a busy week catching up with life and gardening. It's felt busy, but exhilarating so be outside so much. I've also changed to my winter routine now: walking up without an alarm sometime between 5:50 and 6:30am and then making my leisurely way to the health club, where I'm swimming and then enjoying a relaxing sauna, steam and jacuzzi. I then work by the side of the pool for an hour. This might sound like my normal routine, but keen observers will have noticed that I'm not spending my usual couple of hours at Caffe Nero. I'd rather start the day a little earlier and hike, cycle andcafe hope later on in the day.
<aside> 💡 As an aside I've worked hard on my sleep over the years. I've learned that I sleep much better if I have a hot bath and the cool down reading for a while before jumping into a cold bed. To cool my bed I use an Ooler, which uses a water cooled mattress topper to get the temperature down to about 15c in winter (~11c in summer). In the morning I have very bright LED growlights above the wardrobe and these come on at 6am and have the same effect as a bright sunny, summer's morning. Finally the Ooler is set to warm the bed at 5:30 and this emphasises the illusion that the summer sun is warming the bedroom. We don't have the heating on in the morning. The warmth of the bed is the bright light in the room wakes me slowly.
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On Monday we had the last of the heavy rain so after my swim I worked in the poolside lounge and finished my guide to growing lettuces. In the afternoon Debbie and I went to see Dune, which was excellent, the book and part 2 of the film - no doubt - are also interesting for gardeners and those of us who are concerned about climate change.
As I watched Dune I also couldn't help be reminded of this years spring and summer drought, which is the worst I can remember. After the very wet autumn though it's thankfully a distant memory now.
On the way home from the cinema, we got to enjoy some really lovely wild beach views!
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On Tuesday I left early to drive up to Arnside, a little estuary side village, with stunning views and walks. I went on my favourite walk in the local area and made a video of the walk. Unlike my usual walking videos, which include me talking about some topic that interests me, this one is a guided walk.
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One of the best things about this walk is the variety, it includes estauary bank, beautiful views, craggy coastline, fields, forest and fells. At roughly the half way point there's a superb swimming pool with all of the usual luxuries, so I stopped off for an hour.
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Wednesday and Thursday were spent in the garden and on the allotment.