Happy Christmas 2023
Yep, it’s almost that time of year once again. We look back and collectively wonder where on earth another year has gone, and we look forward to some time with family and friends. There probably should be some grand plan with this blog, because here I am nearly another year on with it and I am still pouring forth the contents of my mainly fishing-addled brain and lots of kind people take the time to read it and engage. It’s Christmas Day on Monday and I would like to say a big thank you as ever for reading this blog, and an extra special thanks to those of you who buy something via my affiliate links. You have probably guessed that this blog has never been and will never be anywhere close to a meaningful part of my income - it can’t be, not with the time I spend doing it - but anything is better than nothing. Thank you.
You will not be remotely surprised that I feel like I have even more reason to celebrate simply being around this Christmas and getting to spend time with my family. I am completely focused on getting on with life and trying to be around for a good while longer, but I can’t ignore what happened, and I happen to believe that it’s no bad thing to talk about it. I have already had my Christmas present by surviving my heart attack and getting to spend more time with my awesome family, but I got a bit of a bonus present the other day when the heart rehab people signed me off. Below is what I put up on my Facebook page, with serious apologies firstly for a selfie, and secondly that I am so crap at shooting selfies!
I had a bit of an early Xmas present on Thursday when the rather lovely and very kind Liskeard heart rehab people signed me off from the programme - with the final report saying that, via testing, I am way stronger and fitter than I was before my heart attack. I was lucky to get the chance to recover so I took it with both hands and I do not intend to waste it. With my profound thanks to the heart rehab people. I am actually going to some gym based heart rehab in the New Year because I want to learn more about strengthening my legs and knees for running. So to celebrate my early and very welcome Xmas present, I went out and ran my equal fastest 5k on Friday morning (last week), then I ran my second ever 10k this morning (Sunday last week) and took a couple of minutes off my previous time. I still can't believe this sort of stuff is possible, nothing like a proper heart attack to give you a bit of added incentive to keep getting stronger and fitter. As always, sorry for the dreadful selfie thing, but running a 10k when you are like me is not easy!
New lure rod with the Van Staal VR75 spinning reel. I am not proud of myself!
Happy Christmas to you and your families. I sincerely hope that you get some time off work and that you might even get out fishing and find a few fish. Hold your loved ones close because nothing is more important than family. I would quite literally give anything to spend just one more day with my dad who I miss so much. Grief is a strange process. I am most likely going to head out fishing this afternoon and have another thrash with a perfectly obscene new lure rod which I sort of bought for myself when I clearly don’t need a new rod but I can’t not have this thing. Review to come in due course, it’s not cheap, and I keep telling myself that if I hadn’t had a heart attack I would never have bought it. How about that for a dose of justification?! It doesn’t get any easier. Happy Christmas, you all have a good weekend and I will catch you soon………….