Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[Longy]

I am pretty cynical person and when I bought running shoes they told me the 500 miles story, I was like yeah right.

As soon as I hit 500 miles in my last pair ( strava track this for me), I started to get real pains and aches in my legs. So after much nagging from the other half, I give in and get a new pair. Like magic no more aches and pains. The cushioning just goes in them after a while and the difference between bog standard trainers and running trainers is massive when running any distance. Huge business as you say especially with the boom in recreational running, parkrun had over 80000 people last week across the uk.

Mark, do you do any of the other parkruns around the world when on your travels?

Yup did 3 in South Africa when I was out there, they are pretty big there as well.

In fact myself and the girlfriend are committed parkrun tourists, which means we seek out new venues to go to each week. This is a bit of a niche in the parkrun world and there are quite a few like us (including ex blonde poster Gatso) who tour the uk simply to do a parkrun in different place each weekend.

I will be doing my 41st different parkrun venue tomorrow (out of 54 total parkruns) and I am by no means anywhere near the top in this category. In fact there is leaderboard for most events http://www.parkrun.org.uk/results/mostevents/

[vegaslover]

I am pretty cynical person and when I bought running shoes they told me the 500 miles story, I was like yeah right.

As soon as I hit 500 miles in my last pair ( strava track this for me), I started to get real pains and aches in my legs. So after much nagging from the other half, I give in and get a new pair. Like magic no more aches and pains. The cushioning just goes in them after a while and the difference between bog standard trainers and running trainers is massive when running any distance. Huge business as you say especially with the boom in recreational running, parkrun had over 80000 people last week across the uk.

Mark, do you do any of the other parkruns around the world when on your travels?

Yup did 3 in South Africa when I was out there, they are pretty big there as well.

In fact myself and the girlfriend are committed parkrun tourists, which means we seek out new venues to go to each week. This is a bit of a niche in the parkrun world and there are quite a few like us (including ex blonde poster Gatso) who tour the uk simply to do a parkrun in different place each weekend.

I will be doing my 41st different parkrun venue tomorrow (out of 54 total parkruns) and I am by no means anywhere near the top in this category. In fact there is leaderboard for most events http://www.parkrun.org.uk/results/mostevents/

Awesome, even though I signed up to parkrun years ago, didn't realise how big worldwide it had become until I saw an article a few days ago.

[bobby1]

I just watched a drama call The Rack Pack and thought you would like it Tony

I saw Steve Davis talking about this show last week and how he got quite emotional as he watched it when it came to him how his success contributed to Alex Higgins' problems. It's s comedy drama about the rise and fall and rise and monumental fall of Higgins and what I loved about it is they recreated those iconic moments from is 1982 World Championship win really closely. That break in the semi final against Jimmy when he was barely on a ball for the first half of it and needed to pot them all to stay in the comp and then the emotion and calling his baby from the crowd in tears so he could hold her when celebrating his win in the final.

It doesn't hide away from his dark side either with the addictions and violence and touched upon how Higgins thought of snooker as a game and Hearn viewed it as a business. The resentment he felt when Hearn made money for a lot of players when the 'Peoples Champion' was skint and having his house repossessed because he couldn't control the drink and drugs to become a marketable sportsman.

It's proper tortured genius stuff  where it's easy to feel sorry for what both Higgins and Davis went through at that stage of their careers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p03bv0t5/the-rack-pack

[bobby1]

Never a bad time to watch that break.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAO48WSZnRU

[doubleup]

here's something of it's time

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p01rwh55/nairn-across-britain-3-from-leeds-into-scotland

[tikay]

Never a bad time to watch that break.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAO48WSZnRU

Afternoon Phil.

Before I reply to the 2 snooker Posts, here's something I'm interested in.

Do you keep in touch with your contacts at WH, & follow WH generally these days?

After years of doing very well, they seem to have run into a bit of heavy weather.

A whole host of Top Suits have departed in the last few weeks, not sure if they were pushed or jumped but this trio have gone;

Financial Director Neil Cooper

Sportsbook Director - Mark Warner 

Online MD Andrew Lee.

I gather the new App was a bit of a train wreck (their previous one was excellent, I thought), High St revenues disappointed, & even Online under-performed relative to the rest of the Market.

Now, to pile on the misery, they are the Official Betting Partner of............the Australian Open Tennis. That's just bad timing, like running KK into AA imo.

What's the score there generally, if you are able to discuss?   

Oh, & for rubs, I read at the weekend, that one answer to their (perceived?) problems was to make an offer to buy SB&G. Complete nonsense, of course, "paper talk", but it did amuse me somewhat. 

I often think if you had not been at The Merrion, at the "World Club (?) Championships", life would have panned out very differently. I'd have been retired 10 years, little bungalow on the beach at Frinton-on-Sea, pipe & slippers, everything. Instead, I've spent all morning debating freerolls, freebies & prizes with disgruntled poker players......

[tikay]

I just watched a drama call The Rack Pack and thought you would like it Tony

I saw Steve Davis talking about this show last week and how he got quite emotional as he watched it when it came to him how his success contributed to Alex Higgins' problems. It's s comedy drama about the rise and fall and rise and monumental fall of Higgins and what I loved about it is they recreated those iconic moments from is 1982 World Championship win really closely. That break in the semi final against Jimmy when he was barely on a ball for the first half of it and needed to pot them all to stay in the comp and then the emotion and calling his baby from the crowd in tears so he could hold her when celebrating his win in the final.

It doesn't hide away from his dark side either with the addictions and violence and touched upon how Higgins thought of snooker as a game and Hearn viewed it as a business. The resentment he felt when Hearn made money for a lot of players when the 'Peoples Champion' was skint and having his house repossessed because he couldn't control the drink and drugs to become a marketable sportsman.

It's proper tortured genius stuff  where it's easy to feel sorry for what both Higgins and Davis went through at that stage of their careers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p03bv0t5/the-rack-pack

Not watched it yet, Phil, but I definitely will, everyone from that golden era who has seen it raves about it.

What days they were for snooker, too, with Barry Hearn getting involved, & the likes of Higgins, White & Davis going head to head so often. Once the Hendry era began, I lost a little interest. 

Prior to Hearn's involvement, I had been quite close, via a business colleague, to Mike Watterson. Mike was a strange one, with plenty of good & bad in him, but knowing him as I did gave me "all areas" access to all the big events, & I was a fixture in the Players Room. Great memories.

Guess you'll be at The Crucible again this year?  At what age will Connor start to go along there with you? How is the Big Little Man?

[tikay]

Meanwhile, in shock news, I've started walking every day. Walking. Not something I've done for years.

I'm not in tip top condition right now, my weight has gone to pot, as in pot belly, & I've not been feeling too great, or sleeping well. My Rennie consumption was out of control, too, a pack a day.

So I eventually found the mental strength to try to sort it, way way overdue, & I started eating properly this week, goodbye Sticky Buns.

Monday's walk was around 1.5 miles, Tuesday's was 3 miles, & yesterday's the same 3 miles. You may well say "so what, 3 miles is nowt", & you'd be right, but I've not walked three miles - in total - in the last 12 months.

Gill was chuffed to bits, she worries so, & asked if I'd enjoyed it. I told her it was shite. Actually, I enjoy it a bit, though not so much the actual walking, as the fact that I actually achieved it, & went & did it, to try & arrest the slide in my physical condition.

Yup, I'm a success - three whole days, & never missed one eh? 4 might be a bit of a stretch, mind, we'll see. 

Meanwhile, even in this dreadful weather, Gill is plodding the streets of Stoke every night, usually about 6 miles a time. Unbelievable, Jeff.   
 

[RED-DOG]

Meanwhile, in shock news, I've started walking every day. Walking. Not something I've done for years.

I'm not in tip top condition right now, my weight has gone to pot, as in pot belly, & I've not been feeling too great, or sleeping well. My Rennie consumption was out of control, too, a pack a day.

So I eventually found the mental strength to try to sort it, way way overdue, & I started eating properly this week, goodbye Sticky Buns.

Monday's walk was around 1.5 miles, Tuesday's was 3 miles, & yesterday's the same 3 miles. You may well say "so what, 3 miles is nowt", & you'd be right, but I've not walked three miles - in total - in the last 12 months.

Gill was chuffed to bits, she worries so, & asked if I'd enjoyed it. I told her it was shite. Actually, I enjoy it a bit, though not so much the actual walking, as the fact that I actually achieved it, & went & did it, to try & arrest the slide in my physical condition.

Yup, I'm a success - three whole days, & never missed one eh? 4 might be a bit of a stretch, mind, we'll see. 

Meanwhile, even in this dreadful weather, Gill is plodding the streets of Stoke every night, usually about 6 miles a time. Unbelievable, Jeff.   
 

You don't have to do every day, and you don't have to progress too quickly. You've already done the hardest part.

Would you like a picture of my body to use as motivation?

[Tal]

If you walk alone, try downloading an audio book and listening to it while you perambulate. You may find you walk further than you realise.

[tikay]

Meanwhile, in shock news, I've started walking every day. Walking. Not something I've done for years.

I'm not in tip top condition right now, my weight has gone to pot, as in pot belly, & I've not been feeling too great, or sleeping well. My Rennie consumption was out of control, too, a pack a day.

So I eventually found the mental strength to try to sort it, way way overdue, & I started eating properly this week, goodbye Sticky Buns.

Monday's walk was around 1.5 miles, Tuesday's was 3 miles, & yesterday's the same 3 miles. You may well say "so what, 3 miles is nowt", & you'd be right, but I've not walked three miles - in total - in the last 12 months.

Gill was chuffed to bits, she worries so, & asked if I'd enjoyed it. I told her it was shite. Actually, I enjoy it a bit, though not so much the actual walking, as the fact that I actually achieved it, & went & did it, to try & arrest the slide in my physical condition.

Yup, I'm a success - three whole days, & never missed one eh? 4 might be a bit of a stretch, mind, we'll see. 

Meanwhile, even in this dreadful weather, Gill is plodding the streets of Stoke every night, usually about 6 miles a time. Unbelievable, Jeff.   
 

You don't have to do every day, and you don't have to progress too quickly. You've already done the hardest part.

Would you like a picture of my body to use as motivation?

I'm all or nothing Tom, whatever I do I do to excess, or not at all.

I adore thickly buttered toast, & I have a "teaser" loaf of bread indoors, (deliberately) sitting there, teasing me. And if I yield, & have just ONE slice, that'll be it, I'll be off the wagon.

I'll pass on the photo, ta. I don't need to know what I look like already.

Anyway, the mental countdown to today's walk is in progress, I'm steeling myself right now. It takes so long, too, over half an hour.

One odd collateral benefit is it breaks my enslavement to the internet, which I spend way too long on.

It freshens my mind to Team Moan, Next Door, too, they've been in fine form this week, chunter chunter chunter. All trivial stuff, but you have to remain polite & respectful at all times, so it's quite demanding when they prattle on about some minor inconvenience, often of their own making, & always the same little "false entitlement" group badgering away. And then, last night, the whole of SB&G had a 2 hour hiatus - not trivial at all - so I fronted that. As it happened, all things considered, they were very understanding about it. Telling them "yes, we have a problem, & this is what is being done to fix it" really did help. Quite pleased with how it panned out in the end.

It's nice to face problems & deal with them successfully. I do it OK with work, not so much in my private life where I seem to defer everything. "I'll do it tomorrow".......

[tikay]

If you walk alone, try downloading an audio book and listening to it while you perambulate. You may find you walk further than you realise.

Audio Book? I don't have Audio Book receiving equipment.

Luckily, my walk is in beautiful surroundings, all along the side of the Thames in one of it's most beautiful parts, with houseboats galore, geese, swans, mallards, water hen, coots, cormorants & all sorts. Saw a cormorant catch a fish yesterday. Not seen any herons though.

I play a little mental game, too, how many species of animals, birds & ducks I spot. 37 yesterday.

See a lot of elderly people walking their dogs, too. Elderly people are so cute, I always think. 

Going back to books, this is my current read. It's quite hard work, but truly astonishing how critical mass works the same in nature, chemicals, human interaction, even traffic jams, all of which have something called "transitional state".

As in, say, gases liquify at certain temperatures, water turns to steam or ice & vice versa, &, in these things, hot always migrates to cold, never the opposite. Just basics really, but most interesting.   

[tikay]

PS - "perambulate".

Love that word.

Not sure dogs would get it though.

Come on Rover, perambulaties 

[hhyftrftdr]

Meanwhile, in shock news, I've started walking every day. Walking. Not something I've done for years.

I'm not in tip top condition right now, my weight has gone to pot, as in pot belly, & I've not been feeling too great, or sleeping well. My Rennie consumption was out of control, too, a pack a day.

So I eventually found the mental strength to try to sort it, way way overdue, & I started eating properly this week, goodbye Sticky Buns.

Monday's walk was around 1.5 miles, Tuesday's was 3 miles, & yesterday's the same 3 miles. You may well say "so what, 3 miles is nowt", & you'd be right, but I've not walked three miles - in total - in the last 12 months.

Gill was chuffed to bits, she worries so, & asked if I'd enjoyed it. I told her it was shite. Actually, I enjoy it a bit, though not so much the actual walking, as the fact that I actually achieved it, & went & did it, to try & arrest the slide in my physical condition.

Yup, I'm a success - three whole days, & never missed one eh? 4 might be a bit of a stretch, mind, we'll see. 

Meanwhile, even in this dreadful weather, Gill is plodding the streets of Stoke every night, usually about 6 miles a time. Unbelievable, Jeff.   
 

You don't have to do every day, and you don't have to progress too quickly. You've already done the hardest part.

Would you like a picture of my body to use as motivation?

I'm all or nothing Tom, whatever I do I do to excess, or not at all.

I adore thickly buttered toast, & I have a "teaser" loaf of bread indoors, (deliberately) sitting there, teasing me. And if I yield, & have just ONE slice, that'll be it, I'll be off the wagon.

I'll pass on the photo, ta. I don't need to know what I look like already.

Anyway, the mental countdown to today's walk is in progress, I'm steeling myself right now. It takes so long, too, over half an hour.

One odd collateral benefit is it breaks my enslavement to the internet, which I spend way too long on.

It freshens my mind to Team Moan, Next Door, too, they've been in fine form this week, chunter chunter chunter. All trivial stuff, but you have to remain polite & respectful at all times, so it's quite demanding when they prattle on about some minor inconvenience, often of their own making, & always the same little "false entitlement" group badgering away. And then, last night, the whole of SB&G had a 2 hour hiatus - not trivial at all - so I fronted that. As it happened, all things considered, they were very understanding about it. Telling them "yes, we have a problem, & this is what is being done to fix it" really did help. Quite pleased with how it panned out in the end.

It's nice to face problems & deal with them successfully. I do it OK with work, not so much in my private life where I seem to defer everything. "I'll do it tomorrow".......

Speak for yourself

An audiobook or some music is highly recommended for your walks, can really take your mind off the actual exercise element of it all. I've started taking music to the gym, makes those vending machine decisions that little bit easier.

[tikay]

Meanwhile, in shock news, I've started walking every day. Walking. Not something I've done for years.

I'm not in tip top condition right now, my weight has gone to pot, as in pot belly, & I've not been feeling too great, or sleeping well. My Rennie consumption was out of control, too, a pack a day.

So I eventually found the mental strength to try to sort it, way way overdue, & I started eating properly this week, goodbye Sticky Buns.

Monday's walk was around 1.5 miles, Tuesday's was 3 miles, & yesterday's the same 3 miles. You may well say "so what, 3 miles is nowt", & you'd be right, but I've not walked three miles - in total - in the last 12 months.

Gill was chuffed to bits, she worries so, & asked if I'd enjoyed it. I told her it was shite. Actually, I enjoy it a bit, though not so much the actual walking, as the fact that I actually achieved it, & went & did it, to try & arrest the slide in my physical condition.

Yup, I'm a success - three whole days, & never missed one eh? 4 might be a bit of a stretch, mind, we'll see. 

Meanwhile, even in this dreadful weather, Gill is plodding the streets of Stoke every night, usually about 6 miles a time. Unbelievable, Jeff.   
 

You don't have to do every day, and you don't have to progress too quickly. You've already done the hardest part.

Would you like a picture of my body to use as motivation?

I'm all or nothing Tom, whatever I do I do to excess, or not at all.

I adore thickly buttered toast, & I have a "teaser" loaf of bread indoors, (deliberately) sitting there, teasing me. And if I yield, & have just ONE slice, that'll be it, I'll be off the wagon.

I'll pass on the photo, ta. I don't need to know what I look like already.

Anyway, the mental countdown to today's walk is in progress, I'm steeling myself right now. It takes so long, too, over half an hour.

One odd collateral benefit is it breaks my enslavement to the internet, which I spend way too long on.

It freshens my mind to Team Moan, Next Door, too, they've been in fine form this week, chunter chunter chunter. All trivial stuff, but you have to remain polite & respectful at all times, so it's quite demanding when they prattle on about some minor inconvenience, often of their own making, & always the same little "false entitlement" group badgering away. And then, last night, the whole of SB&G had a 2 hour hiatus - not trivial at all - so I fronted that. As it happened, all things considered, they were very understanding about it. Telling them "yes, we have a problem, & this is what is being done to fix it" really did help. Quite pleased with how it panned out in the end.

It's nice to face problems & deal with them successfully. I do it OK with work, not so much in my private life where I seem to defer everything. "I'll do it tomorrow".......

Speak for yourself

An audiobook or some music is highly recommended for your walks, can really take your mind off the actual exercise element of it all. I've started taking music to the gym, makes those vending machine decisions that little bit easier.

Eh?

You go to the gym. The gym?

Do behave.

RAISE