Back in a past life, I attended a gym in Croydon. As a weedy individual, it was a little scary. Hulking male bodies abounded, all wearing ripped t-shirts. What was that all about? The muscles on [...]

We planned a four day visit to Llanberis, a stomping ground of mine in the sixties. The second day looked the best so we planned a run, but what to do? We fancied Snowdon but the climb of over [...]

I love hillforts! On my recent trip to North Wales, this fort was on my agenda. It is no easy trip. You drive to Llithfaen on the Llyn Penisula, turn west in the village and climb to a free car [...]

My neighbour walked by with his little daughter. She wanted to be lifted to look over the wall at my flowers. He told me she is suddenly infatuated with flowers. I picked a flower stem off a [...]

I have been retired now for 17 years. If I am honest, I never expected to live a long time. However, still being alive means I must know something of value, or am I just lucky? My leukaemia still [...]

Well, off we toddled to another parkrun. It’s not a race of course, so no pressure. Why then do I feel anxious? That is because I am really assessing my state as I pass another age [...]

Ann and I run everywhere, well almost. We do paths because they are there. Over time we do paths to link up routes we have already done. In time, we create a spiders web of known paths over [...]

I am relaxing these days reading a book to Ann, in bed. Firstly, she bought me the book for my 77th birthday. Secondly, she still refuses to believe that I am 77, that it is some sort of dream. [...]

Is cremation environmental hints at the answer, no, it is not? All forms of incineration create gasses that pollute the air. They also release carbon into the atmosphere. What a scenario, to use [...]

I was reading a piece by a journalist and she mentioned breast feeding (chest feeding) and I realised that the world had finally gone mad. I don’t like being polarised and coming across as [...]

I always saw myself as free of addictions, in control as it were. However, I realise that I am no better than anybody else. Human addictions are a motivation, of course, as it’s a reason to [...]

It was my turn to swop places. No longer the garden visitor but rather the gardener. With our garden not being finished we were not ready to enter. However, it is to support the local community [...]

It appears a simple question, what is fitness? In a world where everybody lauds technology and spending big sums of money, let’s consider the cheaper approach. Ann and I have just completed [...]

As the season advances I wanted to report on vegetable growing this year. Those of you who know these things realise that every season is different, that there is no consistency. The spinach beet [...]

There is not a lot that intimidates the mature me. However, as I grow old my mind constantly challenges my body. I accept that I must be less physically capable each and every day with 77 years [...]

Spontaneous purchases are not part of my character. I don’t buy clothes unless Ann reminds me my shorts are full of holes or my shirts ripe. However, when in nurseries, I find a lot of joy [...]

Brown Knoll in the Peak District used to make tough men tremble. I walked it a few times in the 1960’s and it was the peat bog from hell. If you were walking around Edale then it was the [...]

Flowers for bees can be quite challenging. There are those who prefer wildflowers and many who fall back on cliched buddlia and lavender. They are good but often only for short periods. The ideal [...]

I am feeling very well these days, and sleeping deeply. This struck me when I read about a woman going to a health retreat in Spain. She wrote about the numerous medications she took to try and [...]

I am studying the Romans, page after page, about 1500 so far and that is all in print. It is fascinating and I must avoid cliches. Yes, they had slaves and were cruel beyond belief but that was [...]

Is it me or has the world gone nuts? Staying relaxed in this world is ever more difficult. Perhaps it is only when I am washing-up that I am really in charge, fully cognisant with the job in [...]

It’s not often that a village has its own wildflower, but Bradwell stands apart. The blue sowthistle pops up all over the village, mostly on verge edges. It can grow a metre high and looks [...]

I love women. Have I ever said that before? There are reasons for this. Firstly, my mother stuck it out and cared for us after my father ran off with the boss’s secretary. That man [...]

Chelsea has finished for another year and we gardeners can get back to normal gardening. By that I mean cheap, dirty and low carbon. In truth, the Chelsea Flower Show is a flashy product for the [...]