August

 I've not been very posty this year. I don't know why. It doesn't matter so much, but I like having the blog as a record of events. Things generally seem normal at the time and it's only later when you look back you think "oh yes THAT!"

So what's been happening?

Well we had a mad thunder and lightening storm the other night. I made some videos but they're not very good because I was scared to lean out the window. I kid you not. The hairs on the backs of my fingers were tingling! And we're 3 floors up. And I've got a lot of fillings. Didn't want to chance it.

The next day we woke up and there was no internet - it was terrifying. But let's back up a bit.

I've still been doing some runs around town - but it's not like the early lockdown days. The centre of town is busy again. 

Now that people can travel out of town there isn't the same pressure on the space. There has been a noticeable influx of visitors though - despite there not being a festival. I know this is good for business but it's difficult not to resent it.

Covid 19 hasn't stopped the festival weather - so sunny, humid days are interspersed with downpours.

My castle is no longer a refuge.

!!!

I went a run around town last Saturday as Peter was off on a butterfly hunt. I thought I might run 17 miles or so and I had a good route planned out, but it got so hot and my feet hurt, and so I curtailed it. It was disappointing. The thing that stops my long runs these days is a growing, grumbling ache up from my feet to the bottoms of my calves. For a while I was doing  feet strengthening exercises and I thought I'd found a solution - but the the foot strengthening exercises started to make my achilles sore, so I stopped them. There's got to be something I can do. Well there might be something I can do. One thing is that I think I do too many plodding runs and I don't think my feet like it. I had a deep dive into internet land and ordered a step so I can try and do more with my feet and calves. I've resisted buying a step for years just because it seems likely that it'll end up being consigned to wherever gym balls and those nasty little knobbly massage balls go when they die. We'll see.

Sunday I went to Gullane with Peter and at first my feet were broken but they mended up as the run went on.

The Holly Blues put in an appearance and Peter's day was made.

I found this thing astonishing. 

Hello.

From the start of the week there were thunderstorms forecast and thundery looking clouds, but for us, no thunder.

The humidity grew. I went an 11 miler on Tuesday  which was so hot, airless and humid it left me limp as lettuce for hours afterwards.

Until the storm broke.

The next day was beautifully clear. So we went back to Gullane to see how the butterflies were.

Turns out they were fine.

Although my feet were protesting a lot. I'd given them a fair slapping the day before and it was H-O-T.

I'm a bit worried about the gull chicks that have been growing on the roof across the way. I haven't DEFINITELY seen them since the storm, and it must have been a rough night.

They tend to parade in the evening, so I'll be keeping an eye out.

July.

I am so far behind. I am never going to catch up with July. You'll have to do with some notes and I've put all my photos so far to music. It's 'Leaving' performed by Chet Baker and some other folk.

Phase 3 of lockdown comes at last and Mary gets out of the city. It was a profound moment.
The pubs are opening again, with social distancing. There are tram-works going up Leith Walk - for what must be the third time in 5 years - how can that be necessary? No, don't answer me. I don't care. It's just one of those things like Brexit that is beyond understanding and out of our control.
The good people of Leith have been using the fenced off areas in the middle of the street to drink distantly in. The whole of Leith became a big pub for a while. Probably some people felt like their dreams were being answered.
Now they're allowed to squeeze back in the pubs and from the point of view of it being quieter at night, I'm grateful.

I'm still running across Tennessee. It's been good. I meant to tell you more about it. The facebook page has been entertaining and friendly mostly. There are something like 19,000 people that signed up for it, from all over the world.

A lot of people have finished and are heading back to the start again. That was never my plan. When I finish, I think I'll just head to the sea.

I was neck and neck with Louise Provan for a while, but she's fallen behind. She would have to make a stupendous effort now to catch and beat me :-).

One of the notable things that happened was that one of the runners, Kim McCoy, got hit by a car in the US. She had a broken arm but also had to have one of her legs amputated above the knee because it was too badly damaged. Her sister Jessica put up a GoFundMe page to try to raise some money because she'd need money to move to a ground-floor flat and get some adaptations. There was a huge response and they had hit their $50K target within a couple of days. Jessica raised the target and they have received more money, but it poured in in the first few days. It was nice to see the power of 19,000 runners wanting to help.

That'll be a big adjustment now. Kim's plan was to get a carbon fibre leg as soon as possible

I keep getting emails from Jet2 tempting me to book another holiday. Peter is keen as mustard but I want to hold back just a little while to see how the whole maybe having to quarantine thing pans out.

I keep watching the number of Coronavirus deaths. There's a handy table at Worldometer. The number of cases doesn't tell you much because it's dependent on how many people have been tested and if they were tested in the narrow window when the tests are reliable - but the deaths give you something more. There are still differences in how Coronavirus deaths are counted in different countries so you can't compare absolutely like for like. If you look at the number of deaths per head of population instead of absolute numbers you can see the UK is still pretty high up the league tables. England seems to be treating itself as a willing guinea pig for the rest of the world.They are world leaders in having the Coronavirus and liking it.

I'm not necessarily knocking it. The countries with severe lockdowns like Spain and Italy didn't do particularly well, and there's the big question mark over what will happen with them coming out of lockdown.

I've got a half theory that a lot of people must feel a need for big human events and that all the riots and protests have emerged as a result of all the frustration from the football and festivals that never happened. It's just a theory. I don't feel the need for either. My reaction to seeing big groups of people gathering to protest was "you've got to be kidding me, and yourselves". Actually there was more swearing than that.

I am just grateful to be able to get out of the city again. I am sick of Zoom and NHS near me and Microsoft Teams. 

Maybe in August we'll find more Holly Blues. Don't think Peter hasn't been thinking about it. And we might do the virtual 7 Hills of Edinburgh Race. If we're going to do Roly McCraw's terrible 8 laps of Arthur's Seat marathon, it has to be before the 4th October. I think I've really got to. Especially as Roly is the only person who has actually done it yet. So I'm getting more hills in my legs.

Arthur's Seat has improved hugely since people could shop and go to the pub again. I was out today and saw nearly no-one.

Bye for now.