May and June are busy months for me.
'A' Levels have only just finished at
Bilborough College and I had to fit in my job as exam invigilator
around my other work at Stephenson College. There was a big student
intake this year and a few experienced invigilators have left which
made it all the more difficult. We got through it though and I'm
looking forward to handing out results in August.
I had a nasty crash on my bike at the
end of May. This was due to a mechanical problem and no other
vehicles were involved. I came down hard on my shoulder and cut my
arm. The pain is receding now but I still haven't got full mobility
in my arm.
At least I had some good news about my
bike the other day. The clever guy at PH Ultra Sport in Beeston has
managed to straighten the rear forks. If it had snapped it would have
meant scrapping the bike. Just waiting to get a new gear set fitted.
In the meantime I'm having to get around Nottingham on my old
mountain bike. Compared with my titanium frame, light-as-a-feather
triathlon bike it's like pedalling a tank.
There has been plenty of other stuff
to further distract me from my writing. The Test Matches have been
fascinating so far, Nottinghamshire is doing well in The County
Championship and the rugby internationals have given cause for
optimism. The Tour de France begins in a couple of weeks and I'll be
going up to Sheffield to watch the second stage if my bike is ready
in time.
On top of all this I've had a
birthday, my baby granddaughter is beginning to show her mischievous
side and my old person's bus pass has just arrived in the post. So
feeling my age just a little bit.
In spite of all this there is some
writing news. A batch of four stories which I sent to Jill Finlay at
The Weekly News earlier this year were all accepted. I've never sold
four in one go before. Two have already been published and the other
two will appear over the next few weeks. I've been told that a story
that has been accepted by The People's Friend will appear in their
July 12th edition. I'm hoping to explain the inspiration
behind this one in my next post.