Ireland day 0820. Wednesday 27 December 2023- Gap Week Work *

Ireland day 0820. Wednesday 27 December 2023- Gap Week Work

Today’s summary	Val was at work at Wonderlights in the evening and I worked most of the afternoon from home. While Val was out in the evening I went on a walk, did some shopping and made something to eat
Today’s weather	Heavy rain overnight and most of the day as Storm Gerrit passed by. Drier later and a glimpse of sun though more rain mid evening. Strong to gale force south westerly wind. Appx 10c

Today’s overview location (The grey mark shows the location of my route)		Close-up location (The orange line shows where I walked) (Click button below to download GPX of today’s walk as recorded, or see interactive map at bottom with elevations corrected): Christmas Calorie Burnoff Walk

Commentary

(Summary blog only. Last full blog was Day 0368).

We both enjoyed our brief Christmas weekend away, and came back refreshed (and not too overhung!). But I think it’s fair to say that neither of us was particularly keen on the prospect of going back to work today – after all it’s the “gap” week between Christmas and New Year when most people are supposed to be on holiday. Anyway, the good news was that I only needed to do half a day’s travail, and Val didn’t have to get to Wonderlights until mid afternoon, so could have most of the day off.

So whilst Val was winding up to her outdoor evening session – and vigorously hoping that the rain would stop (it did mostly, though it rained a bit during the evening itself), I turned on the laptop and set to work on the PowerPoints. Eventually, after we’d had lunch (you guessed it – turkey salad), Val couldn’t put work off any longer so picked up the Brompton folding bike (which she rides up to the castle) and set off into the evening. I meanwhile pressed on and eventually called it a day at about 6 o’clock.

In between all this, we shared the post-Christmas laundry duties but soon ran out of detergent. So once I’d finished work I decided to combine some shopping with my favourite Robswall walk, so I could get some fresh air at the same time as replenishing our household stores.

It was a spectacular night with an almost-full waning gibbous moon brightly illuminating the stormy skies and the clouds as they scudded by. The wind howling through the trees and fences added an extra dimension of wintriness – although it wasn’t actually that cold. I successfully concluded my walk at Tesco where I miraculously managed to get almost everything I wanted – minus the laundry requisites. Fortunately, SuperValu did the honours and filled the gap. I should add, by the way, that I was quite surprised by how stiff my calves felt to be whilst I was walking, after the Croagh Patrick ascent a couple of days ago. Just shows that a period of idleness enforced by work and hospitalisation plays havoc with your fitness.

So now it’s time to make something to eat. Given that we have both probably over indulged over that last few days it’s going to be simple tomato soup (ready made I have to admit) with a couple of rolls that I rescued from the freezer following the calamity last week. I’ll give them a good baking in a hot oven before eating, just to make sure no bugs are lurking inside. But a quick examination didn’t reveal any suspicious green furry areas so I assume they are OK. And on that note I’ll conclude, and go and fire up the microwave.

Today’s photos (click to enlarge)


I have bought some half moon glasses and they are brilliant – especially for driving. I just hope they don’t make me look like an ancient Dickensian character. For the ophthalmologists amongst you the are +1.0 dioptres and cost €6 on Amazon	I had a small feline companion for the start of my walk this evening

Looking down St Margaret’s Road from the top	Storm clouds over the Irish Sea, as seen from above the Robswall estate



Lambay and the Malahide coast in the moonlight (and the streetlight – which is why the grass in the foreground looks so lurid)