The Party

It was absolutely poring down with rain when I woke up on Saturday morning so I knew that the BBQ would be off. It was a case of having a party with the traditional buffet. I went to Birchwood ASDA to do some shopping. I couldn’t believe how busy it was…. is Saturday shopping always like that? I don’t think I will be doing that again, although it was quite funny. The greeter, who announced bargains over the shop tanoy, was a scream. He was quite camp….kettle calling pot on my part. He couldn’t pronounce some of the words but it didn’t bother him, he just kept going. He was certainly an asset to the store and cheered me up no end. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen people laughing at the checkout.
The party was really good, there were a couple of no shows but it didn’t spoil the atmosphere, it was great. We showed the music video and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I even got a round of applause….but that was when it stopped. The beer flowed and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I can’t believe how much alcohol I’ve got left, everyone brought something although I’d told them that I had bought quite a lot of drink.
Antony filmed people giving me messages, which was very nice. I’ve uploaded a short video to let you have a look.
I went for a ride this morning, I did twenty five miles to see how my knee held up…..it was fine. I’m going to the Bike Factory tomorrow to have a service on my bike. I’m cycling down first thing in the morning and Thomas, my son is going to meet me in Chester. I was going to get my bike boxed but I’m going to ask them to just give me the empty box and pack it myself. I need to get used to my new cleats so I want to ride back to Warrington.
I’ve got a few busy days before I go to America. I’ve got student work to mark and two days of studio work with a school in Manchester. I suppose that it will keep me busy and stop thinking about the ride….not likely….I can’t think about anything else at the moment. I can’t believe that it has come around so quickly. This time next week I will be setting off from The Presidio in San Francisco……scary. Saying that I’ve been trying to get hold of the person who runs the base, without much luck. If the worst happens and I can’t set off from there I will just dip my toe in the waters of San Francisco Bay and set off towards `New York. I will obviously let you know what happens……and you will see the footage.