I'VE BEEN FLAT OUT

Not working though. My apologies to Robert for my being lazy and selfish.

I've been in Auckland for a few days watching some films - two Film Festival ones plus Dunkirk.
We saw the Gaylene Preston documentary My Year With Helen about Helen Clark's role at the United Nations and her run for Secretary General last year. This is a 'must watch' as it gives a great insight into the 'Glass Ceiling' at the UN.

We saw this film on Sunday and as I was leaving the apartment building I fell flat on my face on the footpath outside.

We have newspapers delivered daily in a big stack that is tied up with plastic ties. Someone who had brought them in that morning had left one of the ties on the mat outside the door. This is a circular piece of plastic tie that looks like and acted like a lasso.

As I stepped into the loop my front foot connected with the tie at the same time that my back heel was trapped by it. The effect was like being in a trap or indeed a lasso and my feet were whipped out from behind me. My forward momentum kept the top part of my body going.....going flat down on to the ground. I hit my left knee and elbow hard and put out my right hand to protect my head and face. Result? Two broken fingers. Bummer!

I was carrying one of Lynn's crutches as she had gone to work by taxi on Sunday morning and left it behind. I was hurrying to meet her at the picture theatre with it. Some young people nearby (we live by Auckland University and AUT) were concerned especially seeing the crutch fly out of my hand and came to help. As it turned out I needed the crutch to walk down to Queen Street as my knee was painful. Neither knee or elbow were damaged beyond grazing so it's only the fingers injured.

It makes you think how easy it is to have an accident and how they come out of the blue. In Dunkirk which we saw on Saturday a young guy was seriously injured when he was suddenly knocked down a few steps on a boat and hit his head on a metal pump. If there had been something solid in front of me as I fell I would have gone headfirst into it without having a chance to avoid it.

ARTFUL CODGERS

I read an interesting article recently about the growth of the crime rate in Japan.
The interesting thing was that the growth is the greatest among elderly people over 65 - retirees in fact.

Senior citizens are committing crimes at increasing rates way outstripping other age groups.
This is significant as Japan is a country not known for a lot of criminal activity with social stigmas and mores repressing most.

An expert suggested that boredom may be the cause with retirees feeling neglected and isolated and wanting to do something so they turn to petty crime like shoplifting and pickpocketing..

Another school of thought is that Japan has inadequate security and welfare provisions so that older people are seeking being locked up to receive free food and housing.

Maybe our government needs to look at this and prevent it happening in New Zealand.

THE PLAN

I started my new regime today (only three weeks late).
This is to try and do at least the simple walk each day regardless of what other activity I've done or am going to do that day (work, gardening, tennis or golf).

The short walk is about two and a half kilometres around our bay along a bush walk and the road up the back. This is obviously a doddle with only a bit of climbing but affords great views out over the harbour.

From the rest seat on the Reotahi track

A medium walk is the one I did this morning and means adding on to the walk around our bay, a longer walk around the back of Mount Aubrey, around Little Munro Bay and back over the hill back to McLeod Bay. I'm not sure how long this is but must be at least 5 kilometres.

I intend to intersperse these walks with some 'up and overs' of Mounts Manaia and Aubrey at different times. Maniaia is the highest and might be a weekly or fortnightly endeavour. Aubrey isn't as high but is still a good walk especially up on the Southern side. I'll try and do this once or twice a week. Both afford outstanding views.

View from top of Mount Manaia

View from top of Mount Aubrey

I've got several options for longer walks of 10 kilometres or more as there are lots of great walking tracks in the area and of course the long Ocean Beach walk.

Well that's the plan anyway, or at least the first part of it..

I need to do this so that I don't put on too much extra weight - after all I'm not a double bass player.

BASS PLAYERS

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I read yesterday of the recent research into eating habits and the best times to have meals. Apparently frequent small snacking is no longer advised as some nutritionists have previously recommended. The latest thought is that breakfast should be the main meal of the day and, failing that, a midday meal being the main meal. Evening meals should be avoided and, if required an early evening snack is the way to go.

In the past (working) this wouldn't have been practical but I'm in a position now to be able to cook a midday meal instead of an evening one so I might give it a go. Evenings, early evenings could involve a sandwich, small salad or cereal. This will be a challenge for wine matching but will most likely mean I'll drink less wine which won't be a bad thing.

That's the second part of the plan.