January
2026
I have been trapped by the weather it being too wet
or too cold. At the beginning of the month frost and snow enough to have had
Observed Sunday cancelled allowing me to stay in bed warm. There are now safety
guidelines that gatherings should not take place if it is 5C and below.
Sensible really especially in rural areas unexpected pockets of ice can catch
you out particularly on Sunday mornings when traffic is light. When it wasn’t
freezing there were gray skies and rain, rain and more rain. Not good for
arthritis but I managed to do some walking pretty much every day to get rid of
the stiffness in my joints. I often feel like I am losing the use of my legs.
Ice on the canal
As the weather was not good I set about sorting out
a problem with the showers in the house. The upstairs one works with good
temperature control but the thermal valve leaks a little. However the
downstairs one gets no hot water at all. After a Corgi call out about it the
diagnosis was the upstairs shower thermal valve was damaged to the extent that
it allowed hot and cold water to mix rendering all the hot taps down stairs
cool. I then set about ordering a new thermal valve. Apparently not the right
one. Weeks later I still have not tracked down the right one. I will have to
remove the valve, take measurements and photos and to do this I will have to
turn the water supply off. No water, you can prepare for but no heating at this
time of year is a disaster.
Tap into disaster
On one cloudy but dry for a bit day I escaped on the
Buell on a forty mile loop to Amersham and returning via Beaconsfield and a
blat along the M40 back home. The roads were dry except one short section which
was muddied by HS2 work between Beaconsfield and High Wickham. It stretched
from a tee junction over two close roundabouts. Covering the Buell and me with
mud splats. It now needs washing as does my gear. The joys of winter riding.
Buell after the ride
Gita and I received a Christmas present that was a Spa break at a Warner hotel. A bit of luxury at a posh hotel that has swimming pool, sauna and massage parlour. We enjoyed it all with lots of food and entertainment. It could have been Hotel California but not quite as the entertainment for Saturday night was Talon an Eagles tribute band and they were excellent. While there we did walks along the Thames which was flowing so fast and only inches away from bursting its banks. It is a chain hotel and there are a number throughout the country it is a thought for other breaks throughout the year and with entertainment.
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