Walking today

Posted on June 10, 2021 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Aching feet, Bee, Cat, Exercise, Fun, Hill, kilometers, Miles, Time, Tired, WalkingLeave a comment

Three walks around and about today totalling 11.97km (almost 7.5 miles)

Two were around the university then a late walk once things had cooled down this evening. I walked up our steep hill and saw the sunset, I didn’t get a good photo of it, then on and around the top of our hill before descending again. I know I’ve gone far enough because my feet and ankles are aching.

I came home to an errant bumble bee. We tried to put it outside but it must have flown back through an open window because I caught one of my cats looking like it was about to pounce on it. In the end I used the mug and envelope technique and it was transported safely out of the back door and flew off onto the night.

Pinchetel

Posted on March 14, 2021 Posted in UncategorizedTagged #100daywalkingchallenge, day 42, Exercise, Hill, Honeywall, Hubby, Penkhull, pinchetel, Stoke-on trent, Time, Tired, Walking, Weather, wet and windyLeave a comment

Three miles walked today round the village in a city of Penkhull. Part of Stoke on Trent. To reach the village centre we decided to walk up a hill called Honeywall, past the Beehive public house and this sign erected in 2011 by the Penkhull Residents Association. Instead of continuing straight up the hill we walked down an interesting side road and then right an up to the Church of St Thomas which stands on the village green. As we walked past a flower bed we spotted these bottles decorated as bottle ovens with a top hatted figure standing next to them. Then we walked down and around Thistley Hough and finally by circuitous routes home to make sure the walk was long enough. I’ve only walked about 22 miles this week, a bit down on last week, but the weather has been wet and windy, and my hubby doesn’t want to walk to far, but I feel fitter (and tired). Day 42!

Will I do it?

Posted on February 14, 2021February 14, 2021 Posted in UncategorizedTagged #100daywalkingchallenge, Days, Exercise, Hill, Life, Penkhull, Steps, Thinking, Time, Walking3 Comments

Another day, 14 so far, will I be able to do #100daywalkingchallenge? What happens when I get there, or trip up and twist an ankle. I hope I can be determined enough. My mind seems to be getting into a walking gear, I’m not as scared of walking as I was. I used to think walking a few hundred yards was hard. The best thing I did was to decide to walk up our steep hill on most walks, get the hard effort done at the start… It really helped me, getting through the pain… I might not be doing 10000 steps, but I’m doing my best!

Wet walk

Posted on February 2, 2021 Posted in UncategorizedTagged 100 day walking challenge, day 2, Exercise, Hill, soaking wet, Tired, Walking, WetLeave a comment

Second day of walking, very wet! 2nd February 2021. I’m trying to do over 5000 steps a day. It’s pointless to try 10000 when I’m not that fit. One step at a time…. We have a big hill outside our door, that is a challenge. Most days I’m trying to walk up it, some days I’m walking down as well which makes my toes hurt!

Tree

Posted on November 22, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cold, Hill, Possible painting, Shade, Snow, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunshine, Traffuc, Tree, Trent Valley, View, Walking6 Comments

This is where we walked today, up the hill, across the valley of the Trent. Part of the city laid out across the view. We are a long but thin city. Countryside all around us. A lot of green spaces despite the terraces. Not huge and grey like Manchester and Birmingham. Yes we get traffic jams and pollution, our infrastructure is poor, with many bottlenecks for cars and lorries, particularly when the nearby motorway gets blocked and all its traffic hits the cities dual carriage ways. Then again we can be completely blocked up by snowfalls. Ah well, that’s life…. The tree looks out over all of that and just ignores it and carries on growing…

Autumn photos

Posted on October 18, 2020October 18, 2020 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Autumn, Colours, Flowers, Front of house, Hill, Neighbourhood, Penkhull, Season, Trees, WalkingLeave a comment

Walking around my neighbourhood. The first walk I’ve been out on in four weeks. I took many photos and decided to turn them into a montage of colours and shapes. Trees are hard to capture in art and the many shapes can be seen here. I may use one or two of these photos to base paintings on.

I managed to walk about three miles, including our steep hill, I’m absolutely shattered but I still went upstairs and drew for an hour. More of that in my next post….

Looking out

Posted on October 1, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Boy cat, Cars, Cat, Factory, Fun, Girl cat, Hill, Play, Realm, Upstairs, View, WindowLeave a comment

She often looks out watching the cars and vans racing up the hill. Looking at birds flying up to the factory roof, playing with the mobile on the window. Jumping down and clawing my legs under the desk when I go to type things up. This is her territory. She’s upstairs and her brother is downstairs. Both in their individual realms. They sometimes meet to play and chase. She’s a happy cat, she is mistress of all she surveys.

Window, band of sketchers prompt.

Posted on September 20, 2020 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, Band of sketchers, Black and white film, Curtains, Felt pens, Hill, Industrial art, Ink pen, Life, Permanent markers, Roses, Sketching, View, WindowLeave a comment

View through the window, from our living room. Our TV is at the bottom of the page. We have a pottery (Portmeirion) opposite where we live. They do have some ground that they garden, but they used to have roses scrambling all up the building. Sadly some of these have recently been cut back so the view is a bit less colourful now. Higher up the hill they are still there, still in flower. This is in a small sketchbook and is drawn with felt pens, some permanent markers a few coloured pencils and a thin black ink pen. The image on the TV is grey because we were watching a black and white film.

Tonight’s walk

Posted on September 10, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Exercise, Hill, Poem, Poetry, Random, Steep, Thoughts, Tired, WalkLeave a comment

Up the hill,

Legs stretched

Lungs, stretched

Looking back,

Catching my breath.

More to do,

Further to walk,

Down, then up.

Further each time.

Stopping less than before

Keeping going,

Surprised I can do it!

Exercised.

Rained again tonight.

Posted on August 13, 2020August 13, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Bar, Blogging, Clouds, Damp, Hill, Mask, No lightening, No thunder, Rain, Social distancing, Sunset, Walk, WetLeave a comment

My friends and I set out late this evening for our weekly walk. We’ve been walking up my steep hill every week for a few weeks, but tonight it was not to be. We’d got about 20 yards when splat! Big drops of rain. Lots of big drops. At least there was no thunder, no lightening. Just rain!

So… We could see bright pink clouds over the brow of the hill so we decided to drive in seperate cars over the hill to the local viewpoint. I was hoping to se a lovely sunset, but no, by the time we stopped the rain was falling fiercely there as well.

Plan C, we went into a local bar for a cool drink. By this time one of my friends had found a plastic bag to put over her head.

As we entered we had our temperature checked. I was still wearing a mask and because the bar was quiet felt reasonably happy removing it.

But it’s baby steps. I’m nervous of mingling with people I don’t know. It’s not something I will do without some trepidation.

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Hill