boombastic

It was hard work getting R moving this morning but we were heading down to Porty for a dip and I was really looking forward to it. We arrived at the pool at the same time as Jim, Rosemary's friend and I got stick about being such a bloke and running out of bog roll a few weeks back. Hmmm... Rosemary seems to take great glee in publicising my shortcomings!

We were only using the pool to get changed in as a sea swim was planned. I was a bit nervous as it's the latest time of year I've ever done open-water swimming. We had wetsuits but a few others were getting in just wearing their swimmers! It didn't initially seem too bad until the cold got into my ankles and they seemed to seize. A few others were commenting on how cold it was and for hardened people that swim 12 months a year in all weathers, that definitely suggested it was freezing.

I started swimming a wee bit but a feeling of 'ice-cream head' was sort of enveloping my spine and it was quite unpleasant. My laughter and joviality stopped and I went a bit quiet, with a fellow swimmer asking R if I was Ok. I pottered about a wee bit but didn't manage to get my face in (next time!!). Rosemary showed off and did a elegant handstand, touching the seabed. It's quite a novelty for people to see a bunch of lunatics swimming in the sea in November with plenty "you must be mad'" coming from the dog walkers. As I got onto dry land, one particular women stared at me intently and said "Andrew.......is that you". It was Lesley, someone that I had worked with many years ago in the Inland Revenue and it was way over 10 years since I had last seen her. My chat wasn't the best! Funny old world though!

After a nice shower, all the swimmers headed to a local bar for a coffee and 2nd breakfast. They're a slightly crazy bunch who seem to have above average intelligence and are absolutely delightful too. I'm a bit worried that I seem to fit in too well! Much better than hanging out with people who are considered to be 'normal'. I'm reaching the conclusion that those who sit in the middle of a normal population curve are the ones who don't 'get the world' quite as much. The joy of swimming in freezing water must be far greater than an evening in front of Eastenders, after all!

After lunch, we headed up to the bike shop to see the resident expert on tyres to use with a set of tubeless wheels. Gah....we got there when he was on (late) lunch so we headed to the new Meadowlark Cafe which friend Karen has opened. As a yoga yogi, Karen's focus is on healthy eating, so we both had fruit n veg juice which was yummy n full of goodness....oh n a wee bit cake too. Then back to the bike shop for expert tyre advise which reassured Rosemary.

I was in dire need of coffee, in the form of espresso and beans for the office too. Artisan it was. They have a new Spanish barista with a rather fine beard. My espresso arrived and boom! What an amazing coffee. I'm often disappointed at Artisan as they sometimes lack consistency and their Janszoon blend caters to the typical palate rather than for coffee geeks like me. Fortunately, The barista used the Bonanza single estate bean as he thinks it is the best at the moment. It had an amazingly luxurious mouth feel but remained light, vibrant and sweet as candy. I was still tasting sweet oranges with their acidic tang by the time we got home. Better than my 1st cup of Square Mile Red Brick, and that shot changed my life.