Sometimes things just don't go to plan

Like this week for example.

We had several different treats planned ahead of Mike's birthday next week and this weekend I was supposed to be running the Beachy Head marathon - my favourite trail marathon. Please note "I was supposed to be running" 'cos now I can't.

Why not?

'Cos the lurgy has struck in redheadland. Last week Mike went into London and the next morning he complained of a sore throat which quickly developed into something more than a cold with flu-like symptoms. He was completely knocked out by it and it was obvious that it wasn't simply 'man-flu'! For a few days I thought I might escape it but by Tuesday I was feeling heady and rather grotty. Then the killer blow for me came yesterday when it progressed to my chest.

Now every asthmatic knows that you can deal with physical activity when you have a head cold but when it goes to your chest then it's a big no-no as it puts too much pressure on your heart and can lead to serious complications. I clung onto hope for the whole of Tuesday and Wednesday but when I checked my breath-flow this morning it had dropped by a whopping 200 points so it became clear that I would have a DNS (did not start) against my name at Beachy.

My normal flow is around the 400 mark!

I was doubly disappointed to miss it because one of my running chums will be completing his 600th marathon there (makes me seem like a lightweight doesn't he!!!)

Ooooooooooh!

After I'd come to terms with not doing Beachy I started to hunt around for a replacement marathon to fill the slot without bunching together with the raft of marathons I have towards the end of November. Fingers crossed I might have a place in a marathon the week after but I won't know for sure for a few days.................

There's been some knitting going on along with jam & chutney making (it's that sort of season isn't it). Mike's mittens are progressing slowly. I'm using the yarn double and had to frog my first attempt as the cuff felt too loose and I wanted a snug fit.

I love my sheep stitch marker

The cuff is designed to be folded over and half is knitted on slightly larger needles so that it folds over nicely - a clever touch I thought.

It has been a week of starting things again as I undid my Buachaille project too as I felt the fabric was not firm enough using the size of needles suggested and the baffie (a Scottish word for house slippers) was coming out too large and loose for my foot. I switched to 2.75mm needles and am much happier with them.

You can read about the baffies and see what they'll look like here on Kate's blog. I'm knitting the plainer version rather than the stranded one as I want to conserve my dark grey and didn't want to use the beautiful white ptarmigan wool for something I'll only wear on cold nights in bed.

My first attempt. Note I used 3 double-pointed needles.

It's a toe-up construction using the Turkish Cast-On method and circular needles, which I'd never tried before but was very easy and I'll definitely use again.

On my second attempt I decided to try the 'magic loop' method using a circular needle and it works quite well once you get used to it. You can tell I'm not feeling 100% 'cos I'm wearing my snuggly cardigan which I knitted about 25 years old and can never be seen in public as it's so tatty now!

I haven't run at all this week, for obvious reasons, but have pottered around the land for a walk each day just to get some fresh air. I wandered into the horses' field the other day to pick a few more blackberries, to make blackberry and apple muffins, and was struck by the glorious colours of the leaves and berries:

Golden Field Maple

Bronze and gold Euonymus leaves with vivid pink berries. I take photos of them every year as they always stop me in my tracks!

As the leaves start to fall I notice birds nests. A tangle of sticks built to protect precious eggs.

The ivy in the hedges has finished flowering, provided some late nectar for bees, and the berries are forming. The wood pigeons and blackbirds feast on them during the winter months.

The buttery leaves of our climbing hydrangea look stunning. When they fall you can see the russet-coloured stems of the plant which add an extra dimension to a winter planting.

I've spent years trying to coax this Parthenosis henryana, a cutting from a previous garden, to cling to a wall and this year it finally decided to oblige!

The yellow leaves are of a Golden Hop

The bright yellow flowers of this low-growing hypericum shone out on a gloomy day

Next week is another busy one, well if we've both recovered that is!

From my runs

I realised that I haven't posted any photos from my runs for ages which may have lead you to believe that I haven't been running, which of course I have.

In June I had a gentler month and just ran for the sheer enjoyment of it without worrying about my speed but in July I had to start a more rigid training schedule as I still have more marathons to run in the  autumn.

I've had a tough time with asthma attacks in the last few weeks which have really interfered with some of my speed sessions - it's hard to run when you can't breathe properly! On the days when things were going well I've taken plenty of photos so here are a few, not in any particular order:

Tree roots that look like the bunny from Donnie Darko!

An aptly named Magpie Moth

The remains of a feast on this tree stump - some squirrel had dined on pine cones! 

The light in this pine plantation made everything look pink rather like the old photos in sepia print

A glorious hairy caterpillar of the Ruby Tiger moth. I spotted him humping his way across the lane and waited to make sure he got across OK (I didn't pick him up because a lot of the hairy caterpillars can cause severe irritation).

I don't know what sort of fly this is but I thought he was magnificent - his wings look so delicate yet his body looks like armour!

These young female pheasants were running around squawking and flapping as I ran along the path. As I got nearer 2 male pheasants started to swoop at the path and I realised they were chasing a fox away. Don't the females look odd without their tail feathers which they moult in the summer months. 

One of my favourite routes. This year the field has been sown with wheat and it made a wonderful rustling noise as I ran through.

Look how parched the ground was though. We've had a very hot, dry spell here in the UK and the heavy clay dries out really quickly.

The other thing I noticed was a mass of cobwebs all over the field.

A few days later the crop had been harvested and the path looked quite different.

Unfortunately the beans in this field was so tall (up to my waist!) that I couldn't make out where the footpath was so I just had to guess!

These beautiful downy seeds are from a Scotch thistle - if you've seen the film Avatar, they remind me of the seeds of the Tree of Souls.

The next 2 photo have nothing to do with running though. This cactus lives in the porch and has flowered it's socks off this year for the first time.

Next time there will be some knitting and crochet to show.

Beautiful crochet mandala

I've finished the mandala and I absolutely adore it!

Finished mandala - front

It was completely absorbing from start to finish and fascinating watching the pattern develop.

Finished mandala - back

The weaving-in of ends wasn't too daunting as I'd done a lot of it as I went along.

It still needs blocking just to finish it off completely but I was so pleased with the end result I just wanted to show it now!

Close up of toning shades

Mandala, cushion and curtains

I'm going to stiffen the back, probably using iron-on interfacing and hang it behind the chair to brighten up the corner.

Details:

Pattern: By Carola Herbst at Etsy.  A very well written and detailed pattern full of step by step instructions, photos and charts.
Yarn: Rowan Summer Tweed, aran weight, in colours to match my dining room curtains and crochet cushion.
Hook: 3.5mm
Technique: Overlay Crochet.
Finished dimensions: 30cm diameter.  I wanted a much larger mandala than in the pattern, hence my choice of yarn.

I can't wait to investigate this technique further!

Asthma update

After weeks of feeling grotty and struggling through 2 marathons in the process, I went back to the doctor.  Thankfully it was my favourite doctor who listened to all the problems I've been having (sore throat, night cramps in both legs, running nose, headaches, generally feeling grotty) and changed my medications on a trial basis.

After 2 days of trying them I am starting to feel a bit better so I'm hopeful that they might be more successful.  As one of them is in a purple container, which is my favourite colour, they must be efficacious!

New meds!