No.255 Of that Drowning Feeling

That's it. I'm going to a coach. A swimming coach that is. I'm fed up with being overtaken so convincingly by others who seem to be stroking far fewer times than me each length and certainly blowing a lot less too.

One guy (a tri-athlete) advised me this morning to look in front so your head is 40% out of the water. Another said I should breathe both sides every other stroke while a third suggested I should be drawing an "s" shape with each arm as it pulls under the water. I tried all at once. I almost drowned. Back to the drawing board me thinks.

I've loads to do today and it's a question of which first and how quickly. I shall practice the new art of slowing down to speed up and see where I am by the end of the week. Drowning again quite possibly.

No.254 Of Changing Times

I swam 30 lengths today. That's ten for each Veggie full English I've had over the long weekend away.

I met someone in the changing rooms who did 50 in just about the same time and not fuelled by heart attack breakfasts either I'm sure. He's in training for a tri-athlon the numbers for which he told me are a bit low. I got changed quickly.

It's a beautiful day here. The sun is beaming rays of light with such confidence you'd think it had been doing it for months.

Onwards into the week....

No.253 Of Springing Between London Hotels

There was something a bit special about London this weekend. There were lots of people out in the parks with spring in their step and they bounced about as if rejoicing in the fact that they had survived another dark, long, cold winter and were out to celebrate.

My part in the celebration was to jog round Hyde Park on Friday morning. I'm not sure what it is about that park but I find it very disorientating and seem unable to get into it and round it without getting lost. A thirty minute job promptly became a forty minute one followed by a bad tempered speed walk back to the hotel for ten minutes.

Some of the hotels in London don't seem to have woken up to this thing called the Internet yet and just how easy it is for guests to shop and swap around. My first night was spent in a good hotel in Euston at a great rate. When they refused to offer the same for the following night I checked the Net and promptly checked out and went across the road to an equally good hotel and paid half what the first was wanting. The second hotel also threw in free broadband unless the first charging 10 pound a pop. No doubt they're Net friendly and use it intelligently and know potential customers do too.

No.252 Of Being Afraid

Be afraid! If this works it means I have learnt how to blog from my iPhone. This means I can blog on the move. I can blog when out with the dog. I can blog in the fog (assuming I have arms' length visability) I can blog on the bog! Why not? People read on the loo don't they? (strange folks those?). It means I can report out in the field and log bad customer service as it happens. I could even show it them if it's really bad........

No.251 Of Beating the Scrums & The Early Birds

I went for dinner last night at Mal Maison before heading to Ross's art gallery. Outside were upwards of 100 school girls all with their mobile phone cameras at the ready waiting it would seem for a VIP or even a group of them. I felt old, for the last time I had done such a thing was almost thirty years ago waiting for Iron Maiden to show up at a hotel in Warsaw. As I fought my way through the scrum at the front door the doorman apologised for the inconvenience and explained that JLS was expected. I felt a bit younger. I'd actually heard of them.

There was another scrum this morning. This time it was the turn of the early birds. The pool was packed by 7.15a.m. and as the doors opened to the changing room there was a mad rush to strip off and get first choice of a place in the pool. Many are now not only turning up with their gear already on but with their swimming goggles on their head ready for action. This is worrying for I am very competitive at least for the small things in life that don't matter - or at least shouldn't. But how to respond short of driving to the pool in my dressing gown and slippers?

No.250 Of The Loop and Lonnie

I've just been to a breakfast seminar all about charisma in leadership delivered by Harry Harpur of The Loop. He's a great speaker and I always enjoy the craic with Harry. It takes courage to do a seminar on charisma. Delegates show up expecting a gag a minute and loads of inspiration. Strange thing is he managed both.

Most mentioned Obama when asked to name someone who has loads of charisma. For me it's the late Lonnie Donegan who once appeared on stage in Belfast with Van Morrison - a man with bucket loads of musical ability....

No.249 Of Peru n Pea Soup

I tried the first of the Veggie dishes last night. Asparagus, single cream, pasta, olive oil, rocket leaves and parmasan cheese. Emm. 5 out of 10 methinks. It had recommended local asparagus because they don't travel well. Mine were from Peru. May be it was this.. what blew it....

Still on a veggie theme it was like pea soup when I got up this morning and looked out the window and still is as I type this some two hours later. Remarkably there are people driving around with no lights on at all expecting you to see them coming the other way with just a few metres' notice. Most of the culprits seem to be driving silver/grey cars which offer absolutely no hope of being seen in the mist. Golly they annoy me. Oh to be a traffic cop if only for a day. I'd get to be on tele and bark at people for 12 hours and get paid for it...

Meantime, off to prep for some meetings and who knows pea soup for lunch?