Good day my good friend.

As of next week, I plan to go back to a regular posting schedule. Which will be great to get back into after the last month. So I am very much looking forward to talking to you all again – even if the conversation can feel one-way at times. In the meantime, I thought I would share with you what has been going on in life in the meantime. So if you don’t like this kind of post, I don’t mind if you skip this one (though please sign up to Mobility Camp, obviously😊).

😭 You Say Goodbye…

I’ll start with the hard stuff. Barely 24 hours after I let you all know about our news with Jasper, our little boy passed away peacefully surrounded by everyone who loved him. While we got the news that his treatment was no longer working the preceding Friday, he went downhill very quickly, and after speaking to the vet we took the decision to let him cross the rainbow bridge. Even writing this now is making me cry. That little dog helped me get through a lot of very hard times, I can tell you that.

Below I have shared one of my favourite pictures of him. I wanted to give a huge shout to Sarah and others in the Oncology team at Davies Veterinary Practice in Bedfordshire. To give you an idea of what they pulled off, the type of cancer Jasper had has a usual time from diagnosis to the end of about 2 months. Jasper lasted for 8 months thanks to them, and we got to spoil him rotten. Not only that, but he loved going to see them. A thank you truly is not enough.

👋 …And I Say Hello

Whilst the loss of Jasper was heart breaking, we now have a new member of our family. So everyone, meet Ollie!

What can I say about him? He’s like most other 16 week old pups. Full of energy, lots of curiosity, loves to stick things in his mouth, chewing Belle’s ears, and like any Westie he is very stubborn! I can safely say that over the next few months I will be the world’s most tired person.

📷 Out and About

Despite what has happened, I have taken the opportunity to get out and be in the company of others. A notable trip out was with good friends at the Centre for Net Zero (including subscriber Joe), where I joined them on a boat trip out to the Rampion Wind Farm in the English Channel.

Words cannot express how completely awesome it was, and its enough to make you a true believer. The sheer scale of the turbines is insane. Each turbine is 80 metres in height, with fully 30 metres of it below the waves, and they barely make a sound. I was also told about the most expensive mistake I have ever heard of. A twist in a cable connecting the sub station (which looks like an old oil platform) to land meant that the whole cable had to be replaced. The cable is 11 miles long, and the cost of it is £150 an inch 😲.

If you want to do this yourself (and I highly recommend you do), you have to charter a boat. We chartered the Brighton Diver, and the whole thing lasted 90 minutes.

📚 Bedtime Reading

In the evenings I have dived into the brilliant book Last Trains by Charles Loft. Rather than the usual book of the Beeching Era which bemoans how awful it all was, it delves into the context behind it all, including how civil servants and ministers wrangled with the finances and politics of it all. Its as close to a balanced book about the whole thing that you can get, and I highly recommend it.

👨‍🌾 Green Fingers

Some time ago I planted some lettuce, courgettes, and carrots in my garden. Thankfully, the lettuce is good to go, and the carrots are coming along very nicely. The courgettes did brilliantly at first, but sadly didn’t make it.

Also, we now have a frequent visitor in our garden in the evening, much to Belle’s delight.

😍 Mobility Camp is back

In September I am helping organise a whole event on positive vibes in transport. Mobility Camp is returning on 20th September at the wonderful Guildhall in York.

It will be amazing to see you all there. You can get your tickets here, but if you want to do a little more then we are looking for sponsors too, details of which you can find here.