Tuesday 6th July 2026

Tuesday.

Did I mention it was hot?

Well, it is hot.

And humid, and the breeze we normally enjoy here on the downs near the sea, fell to almost nothing.

It was going to be a long hot day.

And due to the humid night and my stupid brain, I was awake at half three, and got up at four to sit outside in the cool early morning light to enjoy the view from the top patio.

At half four I fed the cats as well as testing Scully, then put the kettle on so that when Jools got up she could have a tea.

So by ten past six, I was dressed, had drunk my coffee and was ready for the gym, only there was no point in leaving until ten to six.

As usual, the pool was crazy busy, but we gym rats headed up the stairs, and I put on the latest A Word in Your Ear pod, and began to peddle.

It was hot and sweaty, but I did 38 minutes, which is close enough I decided, so bin the session, then go to cool down outside. But the sun was already very warm and strong.

Back home at seven so that Jools could have the car for most of the day, leaving me home to get my act together.

Jools made me a brew, which I drank outside on the patio again, then once she had left I had a shave and shower, then dressed so I could wear another new t shirt: a B52s tour shirt from the gig we went to last month.

Did I mention it was hot?

Against my better judgement, I went for a walk. Taking my camera, I walked to the end of the road and went up the down to the first track before turning along the track between the fields, past the war memorial.

There were Gatekeepers galore, but all bar one wouldn't settle, and the one that did had its wings closed, but I got the shot anyway.

The track was so overgrown that I could hardly get along, and slipped into the ruts which were hidden from view.

I made it to the crossroads of the path leading down from Windy ridge. I should have turned left to go up the hill, but turned right towards Collingwood and home.

It was just too darned hot.

Along the end of the road I snapped the new electric fence and the one of the three new five bar gates, the walk to home where I treated myself to a glass of squash, and sit down in the cool shade of the living room.

There was a long day in Le Tour, with Le Grande Depart at ten past eleven, so I was on the sofa in plenty of time to enjoy stage 5.

It was 42 degrees in southern France, and keeping cool standing still would have been hard enough, but the peloton did it whilst cycling at nearly 50km/h for several hours. Though needed lots of cold water from their support vehicles and blocks of ice to put down their shirts.

Jools cooked dinner: breaded chicken with salad, of which just the chicken needed cooking. This was because straight after the Tour, there was football: Argentina v Egypt.

And Egypt game Argentina a heck of a game, and had a goal wrongly chalked off for a foul 17 seconds before scoring, while Argentina wone it at the death when a similar foul was not punished and the goal stood.

Must have Messi in the quarter finals, obvs.