The bike in question.

There was no Thursday post last week, so my apologies if you came here looking for the second lost footpath post.

It doesn’t seem very blog related, but I’ve been without a working motorcycle and the past couple of weeks has been taken up in trying to remedy that.

I rely on a motorcycle for being able to explore the countryside for the North Bucks Wanderer, especially those narrow dead-end lanes which have nowhere for a car to turn round, or those spots where there’s a great photo to be had but nowhere to park a car.

There’s nearly always a corner or a narrow verge I can park the bike on, and it’s a simple matter to turn round when I’ve spotted something to show you. So creating varied and interesting posts is much easier.

Also, it “drives” me crazy not being able to ride. Okay, I’ve made it into a joke, but when I get this bike back on the road I’ll be a much happier man; the bike is part of my support system.

The second lost footpath post will be published on Thursday.

Nope, there wasn't a post last Thursday; the week got away from me. Sorry folks! Anyhow, while I'm here, you may know the North Bucks Wanderer is on Facebook and Instagram, but now we have a Twitter account. Still learning the ropes, but it looks good and will spread the name of the blog around a bit more.

Usually there's a Monday photo; in theory an image with a longish caption though sometimes they get out of control, and a more involved post on Thursdays.

There's a lot of work involved in research, sometimes days of it for the Thursday posts. That means it'll stay at two posts a week; I can't devote any more time to the blog at the moment.

I also plan to modify the banner; it's been almost the same design ever since I started the NBW and it's time for a change.

Folks, I know I haven't posted for a while, but I'm not well. I'm making progress, but I think it may be at least another week until I'm blogging again.

No, it isn't the Covid. Yes, that is me in the photo. I'm the one with the beard.

The Monday Photo

I’ve been away on a break, to Warwickshire. There I visited my brother and his family, arriving around teatime on Thursday and driving back yesterday afternoon, getting home not long before it got dark.

The cat, who seems to have spent most of that time on the bed, has been very glad to see me back home. So here he is in today’s photo, on that bed.

During my visit we went to some of the local attractions, which meant I did far more walking than I’m used to; I don't usually walk too far.

Most of you don’t know that I had an accident about 17 years ago. My left foot was badly damaged and now I have to wear orthotic shoes; it restricts how far I can walk. This means that I’m wary about walking too far; if I over do it, I’m not just tired, it hurts; for hours. Sometimes it can still hurt the next day.

But on Saturday we all walked about five miles, some of it on steep slopes, and I was fine. A bit tired because I’m unused to such a distance, but I didn’t hurt. I needed a cup of tea, (don’t I always!) but that’s about all.

I think that a lot of this increased range is because I’ve been on a diet. I’ve lost about 2st 4lbs so far, with about another 2 stone to go.

Losing weight has made all physical activity easier, but until now I hadn’t realised by how much.

But how is this relevant to the North Bucks Wanderer? You see, I’ve been avoiding places of interest that are a long way from roads, thinking they are out of my range. You may have noticed. Now I know my range has increased, I can look at these places again.

That’s the thing about going away; when you get home, you look at everything with a fresh eye. Now I wonder, with that eye, what I’ll find next for the NBW.

This is a photo from May this year. I hope you can see it. I'm posting it to see if TypePad has solved it's photo uploading problems.

(Edited, a few minutes later) It worked! I have a post all ready to go except for its photos, and that will be coming soon. In the meantime, why not read the post about re-enactors this photo came from?

(Edited again, 9:15 am, Saturday morning) I spoke too soon, but I've had a message from Typepad to say they are making progress. Please be patient, folks.

Folks,

it's been a week and TypePad is still having problems. I still can't upload images, and as this is a blog which relies heavily on photos I'm stuck, not able to post. After this post goes up I am going to try reposting something from the archives. In the meantime, please bear with us.

Roger, the North Bucks Wanderer