After my memorable trip to the mean streets of Mumbai and after narrowly avoiding an unintended blog implosion, it's time to retreat to my number one comfort zone - walking.
Walking is one of the best things a healthy human being can do. When you walk you see things. When you walk your blood pulses through your veins and your lungs are exercised. You burn off calories and your mental state is improved. Nature never intended that human beings should spend hour after hour sitting on their backsides.. We have legs so we should use them. (My apologies to anyone reading this who has mobility problems)
That's my promotional message over. Now to the practice.Walking. With pictures.
When Shirley and I were in the nation's capital recently, we stayed in our daughter's flat in Wood Green. On Sunday February 24th, the weather was far too lovely to stay indoors so we went to an area of north east London called Walthamstow Wetlands. There are several reservoirs there and The River Lea passes through, making its way to The Thames.
If you were so inclined you could walk for six miles amongst the manmade lakes but we covered just two miles under a cobalt blue sky east of Tottenham. There were distant views of Stamford Hill and Canary Wharf and I saw new apartment blocks rising up in the Black Horse Lane area of Walthamstow, surrounded by yellow cranes.
Fast forward to Tuesday afternoon.I parked on the edge of the Derbyshire town of Bakewell, not far from a preparatory school called St Anselm's. Then I walked down to All Saints Church, in which I saw the marble effigy of a baby and the tomb of Sir Thomas Wendesley who was killed at The Battle of Shrewsbury in July 1403.
I crossed the River Wye via the town's old bridge and then walked two miles south of the town to Over Haddon before taking a different route back to Bakewell.
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| Noton Barn Farm near Bakewell |
As I was climbing up out of a little valley near Burton Closes, I was surprised to see a schoolgirl on her own walking towards me. She was in school uniform and was probably twelve or thirteen years old. It was one o'clock in the afternoon. If she had screamed, nobody would have heard her at that location. I wondered if her parents or indeed her school knew about her solitary rambling. In this modern world which is allegedly fraught with danger, it is almost taboo for young girls to wander along country paths on their own. I hope she makes it safely to adulthood.
Soon I was back in Bakewell. I hoped to buy a Bakewell pudding from Ye Olde Puddinge Shop but when I drove Clint into the car park in the market place the parking ticket machines announced that the minimum fee was £1.50. I only wanted to stop for five minutes so I forgot the Bakewell pudding and drove home.
Yes there's a lace I used to stop for a quick comfort stop and coffee on the way down from Lewis to Glasgow. They suddenly put up the base parking fee hugely and I've never stopped there since. I expect to pay for parking but not £1 for 10 minutes.
ReplyDeleteOops. Here I am reading blogs when I should be off for my morning walk in the north-easterly gale and rain. Ah well, thank heaven for modern breathable waterproofs. Bye.
Don't get lost Jimmy Edwards... or blown into The Minch!
DeleteThat's a blast from the past. PS Survived.
DeletePhew! That's a relief!
DeleteEven those of us with mobility problems have our doctors, physios, podiatrists and orthotists telling us they want us to be moving!
ReplyDeleteI used to love walking and these days i get irritated with people who can walk but don't want to.
I wish you'd said you had a Bakewell tart!
I tried to once but she slapped me and stormed off.
DeleteRick guarantees that I get a daily walk, whatever the weather.
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame that Rick is not a Shetland pony because then you could ride on him.
DeleteSince my dog died, my daily walks have somewhat dwindled and I know I should get out more! Is that Sweety Patel you are holding hands with in the first photo?
ReplyDeleteNo. It's Kim Bassinger. By the way, I have located another dog for you at Old Windsor. He's called Curtis:-
Deletehttps://www.battersea.org.uk/dogs/curtis?filters=true&returnID=15519559356058031363&id=466741
You are exactly right about walking. It is the best thing we can do.
ReplyDeleteI realise that in the height of summer in Florida long walks might be very uncomfortable.
DeleteAgreed with your ideas on walking. Interesting idea that were were meant for walking rather that sitting in cars or airplanes.
ReplyDeleteIn the course of human history, the era of sitting on one's ass has been a pretty recent development.
DeleteToo hot to walk here. I go to air conditioned shopping centres and walk round and round. It's no wonder we love walking through the fields in the Dales, is it?
ReplyDeletePS. Have you tried changing your text colour to white ? I find it a bit difficult to read in black on the darker green background. Just a suggestion, might only be me that has a problem with it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the feedback Helen. Soon I will have another fiddle with this blog's design.
DeleteA couple of years ago I had to have physio for hip problems and at the same time I had orthotics made because it was felt that might help with the issue. The woman making the orthotics asked me about my job and how my hip problems had begun and when I told her it was from long hours doing overtime at my desk job, she mentioned that researchers are finding out that desk jobs are now being recognized as causing as much trauma to the body as nursing jobs did in the past (i.e., a great deal). She said basically the same thing you did, the human body wasn't made to sit for eight hours (or more) every day. So - good insight, YP.
ReplyDeleteI need to be getting out more, and I hope to do so as the weather gets a bit more clement.
I am glad that that woman stated the obvious as I did. Sitting upon one's posterior for hours on end is not good for one's health.
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