Tuesday 22 July 2014

Low Tide 01:23 (0.80m)
High Tide 08:03 (2.30m)
Low Tide 13:51 (1.00m)
High Tide 20:16 (2.30m)
Sea temperature: 19.2 yesterday

Sea conditions: good, a bit murky
Weather: grey 
Joined by: The Usual Suspects and The New Yorker
Topics of conversation:
Jess had been to stay at the weekend and there had been a drama and this was the first time I'd seen The Poet since, so we discussed it. To cut a long story short she had fallen in our disused swimming pool, which is full of water and yet disused because we have the sea and because the water is stagnant and not chlorinated. I heard the sound of her hitting the water and by the time I got there she had gone under, she's 15 and frail and couldn't even tread water. I saw her starting to sink so somehow got that strength you get when the adrenaline kicks in and got her out. She was very, very digressed and so I just held on to her till Mertz arrived with towels. I didn't think she was going to make it, but she is a fighter and after much love and towelling and roast chicken hand fed in tiny morsels she suddenly rallied, stood up, ears erect and began throwing herself on the carpet to finish the drying off process. It was as if she had been reborn, by the time we took her home in the evening I was having to run to keep up with her as I dare not let her off the lead and she was bounding along the lane.

The curative power of water is something we all experience daily, here's a 90 year old who pretty much sums it up in this beautiful 7 minute film. Watch it.
Waves - A Portrait of Maria รก Heygum

Sunday 20 July 2014

Forgot to publish this one

High Tide 03:37 (2.40m)
Low Tide 09:17 (0.80m)
High Tide 15:36 (2.60m)
Low Tide 22:09 (0.50m)
Sea temperature: not taken today but 18 degrees three days ago

Sea conditions: strong waves bashing the shoreline, then a calm deep bit, then big waves with a scary undertoad
Weather: very warm, sunny at 6 but it had started to become very dense in the air as we arrived at the beach and he sky had totally thickened, obscuring the sun by 8
Joined by: The Usual Suspects (apart from TBC)
Topics of conversation: It was the first time many of us have swum together for a while, DK was way in France, The Artist has been on a course, then The Pirate was in Wales and I was in Gloucestershire. I don't swim with the team as regularly these days (hence a less frequent blogging - there's not as much conversation when I'm on my own) and seldom on a Friday as I am usually on the early shift. This week is upside down though, so I'm WFH on The Architect's website today. It was lovely to see everyone, including The Artist, who didn't fancy braving the first layer of waves. She still got wet though.
The Pirate shared an anecdote with me this morning, which the others had heard, and is apposite to this blog:
He and his wife have been on their holidays, it seem the main objective seems to have been to try out their new glamour tent before WOMAD, and one of their stop overs was Holwell in Wales. The town takes its name from a holy well (St. Winefred's well) and has some status on the pilgrimage map as a result. The Pirate was missing his morning swims and so, being a man of few inhibitions, struggled into his Speedos in the little tents provided for those brave enough and made his way to the edge of the well with The Pirate's Wife attempting to disown him. 

The well was surrounded by tourists and pilgrims and earlier they had identified a group as being three generations of one family who were speaking a language they didn't understand - he assumed they were northern European and as he approached they all went silent. The Pirate needs the support of a stick to walk and getting in and out of water can be precarious, be he managed and found it to be the perfect way to cool off, relax and in his own way, to pay his respects. Refreshed he clambered out of the water to a still hushed audience, until the oldest of the family showed that they were actually Irish travellers who had been speaking gaelic, but she switched to English and said, crestfallen "oh, it didn't work then...".

Tuesday 8 July 2014

Low Tide 01:03 (0.80m)
High Tide 07:51 (2.20m)
Low Tide 13:27 (1.00m)
High Tide 19:51 (2.20m)
Sea temperature: not taken, I must remember to take it tomorrow
Sea conditions: Calm and deep
Weather: sunny, but terrible forecast
Joined by: I swam early but the others were getting in as I was getting out so I saw The LE, TBC and Sara and the Poet, which was nice. DK and Legs are in France, finishing off his memoirs and The Pirate and his wife are in Wales. 
I haven't blogged for over a week, and here is no point trying to catch up, but sadly Legs's father died last week. She has written a wonderful obituary, which can be found here: Obituary for Odd Knut Ronning It really is a very lovely tribute to a man I wished I'd known.

The sea has been very warm and mostly calm, although it whipped up a frenzy on Saturday, with rain like needles and crashing waves. I didn't even try to get in a went home before I had to watch DK try not to drown.
Both Jagger and Willow had birthdays last week and The Ellies held a small and exclusive party, for their one year old English Setter with attitude, on the playing field - it's the only place in the village that is fenced off and so mabel was allowed to run free, but she was rather put out that he didn't give her his undivided attention apparently. Willow and Luna had to send their apologies so we made up for it with champagne on the beach on Willow's birthday. When we arrived at the hut there was a card full of gravy bones and a brilliant card from Jagger.


We had our first jellyfish of the year last week, just a single tea plate sized moon jelly, and it didn't sting, but it's a sign that the water is heating up. It's also a sign that we should expect our American neighbours to turn up - they are always here for 'the summer' and usually arrive at the same time as the jellyfish, which is a shame as they love to swim. 
Paddleboarding update - I've now been to sea on Jochem's board, he kindly took me down and stayed on the shore whilst I went up and down and tried various turns, jumping off, getting on and generally messing about. It was much harder work as the sea had become a bit choppy, but it was quite exhilarating. He's hoping to make a start on my board soon, so I'm looking for inspiration for the design.