Jumping OAP's - lots of runs and walks

Thursday morning...or actually, late Thursday morning and when I eventually dragged myself out of my bed I decided to go out for a walk. I went the other direction today though – heading away from town and towards Billing Aquadrome. A holiday park, with lots of lakes and a bit of wildlife. I found a way into the park, crossing a little bridge next to a quaint old lock gate in the canal. Then I wandered around for an hour, checking out the geese, swans and the lakes around the park, finally finding a back gate that leads out onto an open field. In the field there was a scruffy old horse that came over to say hello before he ran off, splashing through the puddle in the paddock. I then found a gap in the fence, climbed out of the field and made my way back home, completing the circuit and covering just over 8 miles in the process.

Billing Aquadrome

A flooded paddock, with a.....

crazy scruffy horse in it!

On Thursday night – It was Channel 5 – Man United playing in the 2^nd tier of European competition for the first time in years. Not a brilliant game, but at least United won and I will be at the 2^nd leg of the game next week at Old Trafford. I stayed up till nearly 4am watching the Winnipeg Jets Ice Hockey team playing live on the internet. I quite enjoyed the game as the Jets won. I might have to watch the next game on Friday night!!

Friday and my last day on my own before Gareth and Tracey get back from Australia and Hong Kong. So I did a bit of tidying up, hoovering and cleaning the kitchen, before running the 5 miles or so down to the car hire place and picking up a car to take down to Heathrow early tomorrow morning to pick them up. I arrived exactly on time to get the car – a nice little red Hyundai 1300, before driving back home and spending the evening watching telly. A reasonably early night was put aside at 1am as I woke up and watched another Winnipeg Jets game on the internet again. The game was against the Boston Bruins, the current Stanley Cup champions and after a tough 1^st period the game swung both ways as the Jets took the lead twice only to be pegged back both times....Then the Jets scored 2 quick goals and won the game 4-2. I'm really enjoying watching Ice Hockey at the moment and found myself punching the air and shouting all by myself, when the Jets scored!! It seems that I have found myself an Ice Hockey Team!! Go Jets!!

The game finished at just before 3.30am, which was perfect as Gareth and Tracey were due to land at 4.40am at Heathrow. I jumped into the hire car and arrived almost at the same time as their plane landed. After parking up I went down to the Arrivals area and was presented with about 200 'drivers' all standing, waiting, holding their boards, cards and pieces of paper with names written on. It was really weird as there seemed to be some unwritten rule about standing in front of each other and so they were stood in a perfectly straight line, all holding their placards in the same way, waiting....just waiting. G and T arrived and we got the lift back up to the car -after trying floor 1 and 2 we eventually found it on the 3^rd floor – I even walked straight past it before realising it was my car.. Doh. Then when we were leaving Terminal 5 I took a wrong turn and ended up driving past the other terminals and then back to the M25 a long was around.

Terminal 5 - 4am

The cool little hire car

Drivers with their placards...

and more of them!!

International..

...arrivals

people arriving

The roads were quiet though and Gareth told me all about the trip until we arrived back in Northampton by 7.30, where after a cup of tea, I went back to bed and G and T went shopping.

I did get a couple of hours more sleep before getting up about 1pm and saying hi to Gareth best mate Rick and his missus Kim, who had nipped in for a brew on the or way back to Manchester.

The rest of Saturday was taken up with a drive into town to drop off the hire car and then a slow but long walk back the 4 miles and a half miles back to the house.

Sunday and we decided to take a day trip along to Skegness, to see mum and dad, as Gareth and Tracey had been away for Mums birthday. The drive there was easy and we arrived in time for a cup of tea and a chat, plus a look at Gareth and Tracey s photos from their trip of a lifetime, before we went out into town for a spot of lunch at one of the little back street restaurants. Lunch was nice enough and afterwards we went for a wander along the seafront. It was very busy, due to being the last day at the end of Half term. But it was also pretty cold with a strong wind giving a good wind chill. Mum and dad had asked earlier why they weren’t in the recent 'Jump' video and I obviously told them that they had to do a jump!! So there we were, with mum stood on a tiny wall jumping of into a pile of soft sand and then losing her balance, falling back against the wall. We helped pick her up before dad had a jump off the same wall and then Gareth, Tracey and Myself all had a jump shot off one of the railings.

Rain on the roof

Warm day by the beach...not

Back at mum and dads house and out of the cold we had another cup of tea before going back to Northampton. I went to bed early and was up again at 1.30am to watch the 3^rd Jets Hockey game in 5 nights. It was the best game I have watched yet and the Jets won 5-1!! It was 4am by the time it finished though and so I went to my bed, staying in till after lunchtime.

Mum jumping

Dad jumping!!