Sunday 7th December 2025

I said to the guys on Saturday that I would get up early Sunday morning and go to the gym.

At half six Sunday morning, it didn't seem such a good idea.

But after coffee, we both got in the car and drove to Whitfield, where we were the sixth and seventh people in the gym. The rest had gone to the poo, or were playing squash.

My legs ached from the 13,000 plus steps I did the day before, so with a pod cast on, I rode round the coast of some of New Zealand North Island, ending up at some geothermal parks with steaming pools hidden behind the long grass.

My aching thighs said to call it a day after half an hour, which I did, so we could go downstairs and walk to the car, and more people arrived to do their session.

Back home we put the wireless on, as outside the low dark clouds began to produce the steady rain that would fall all day.

We had breakfast, and listened to the radio until the Jazz noodling on Cerys's show, meaning for our sanity we had to turn it off.

Silence returned.

Lunch was warmed up jambalaya, with added shrimp once the pot was getting hot, and then dished up in about half an hour from start.

Then there was football, as the rain continued outside. Brighton v West Ham was up first, and was dreadful fayre. Misplaced passes, no shots on goal, and dull as anything. How either team scored is amazing, but right that neither team won.

That was followed by Fulham v Palace. A better game, and won by Palace, 2-1. Better than the first, but still very average.

There was another early night due to early mornings and several poor night's sleep.