7 August 2025 (Thursday) - Solving Puzzles

I woke in the small hours and put a load of washing in. When I got up properly I hung it out. Not-so-nice-next-door was messing about in her back garden at half past six. And as always she made sure her back door was firmly locked behind her when she came out. Who does she think is going to get in through the back door when she is only ten yards away, and it’s not practical to get into her garden anyway?

I made toast and had a look at the Internet. There was a note on that puzzle geocache that I’ve been looking at for over a week. With not a single person having solved it, a clue has been added. It’s a shame that the clue didn’t help me at all… But I saw a series of nearly forty Harry Potter themed puzzle geocaches had gone live just north of Folkestone. At first glance they appeared to be solve-able. I decided to waste my time on those ones instead.

Today’s on-line argument was on one of the sci-fi Facebook pages which had wished George Takei a happy birthday… no end of people were pointing out that his birthday is in April.

 

I took the dogs out earlier than usual today. As we drove the pundits on the radio were interviewing ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown. I always find the chap incredibly dull, so I turned the radio off and sang along to Ivor Biggun songs instead.

We got to the woods to find the car park nearly empty. That came as a relief; Having had several set-tos with several normal people on Tuesday I was hoping to avoid them today. And, just to be sure, we took a different route to usual today and followed the smaller and lesser-walked tracks. My plan worked. We walked for four and three quarter miles and as we went round we only saw two other groups and both of them were as we came back to the car park.

As we walked I tried my “Map My Walk” app. The app works, but it doesn’t seem to be sending the information to the “Map My Walk” website. Ho hum…

 

We came home. As we came round the tank roundabout I had to emergency stop to avoid a purple VW Polo whose driver wasn’t content with dangerously cutting in on the inside, so went on to wind down the window and give me the "V" sign.

Once home I made myself a cuppa and had a little pootle in the garden as some shirts washed, and after a pot noodle for lunch I had a little (two hours) ironing session before sitting in a dining chair and having a twenty-minute workout.

I then made myself another cuppa and made a start on the Harry Potter puzzles I’d seen earlier. As I puzzled I told the Alexa to play music by Kate Bush. It started off with “Them Heavy People” then went into a rather eclectic medley featuring Pet Shop Boys, the Communards, E.L.O. and Sparks with only occasional contributions from Kate Bush.

And with half of the Harry Potter puzzles solved I realised how I might solve that puzzle geocache that I’ve been looking at for over a week. I tried my theory, got the thumbs-up from the checker, and I could see I was the first one to get the right answer.

 

Leaving “er indoors ^TM” and “Daddies’ Little Angel ^TM” in charge at home I drove out to… I won’t say where I drove to, but I got to where I that cache was, and I soon had it in hand. And I was First to Find too. After ten days’ brain straining I was rather pleased to find it and felt rather smug too. It was a long way to go, but getting FTF on this one will give me serious bragging rights amongst the other members of the Ancient and Honorable Guild of Hunters of Tupperware… once they notice I’ve found it.

6 August 2025 (Wednesday) - Early Shift

I slept through till four o’clock last night and lay awake for an hour before giving up and getting up. I made my usual toast which I scoffed whilst watching “Orange is the New Black” then had a little look at the Internet. It was still there. My cousin seems to be having fun in her camper van in Cornwall, and I was presented with quite a few adverts for home schooling. Earlier this week I’ve had adverts for shirts and for Machu Picchu; today it was home schooling. I must admit I’m not a fan of the idea. A friend once home schooled her children. One got to be sixteen years old and couldn’t read; the other spent the mornings watching random You-Tube videos and the afternoons playing tennis. When I was a scout leader we would periodically have home schooled children come along. They were all the same – utterly unable to interact with children of their own age, utterly terrified of children of their own age and would physically cling to adults for the whole time that they were there, and would never come back for a second time. I don’t doubt that there are some children for whom home schooling works, but I’ve never seen it.

 

I set off for work and drove up the motorway. On the one hand I wasn't continually stopping for the seemingly endless roadworks which plague the drive to Pembury. On the other hand I was continually having to brake sharply to avoid the idiot drivers cutting me up on the "Operation Brock" stupidity. As I have mentioned before, people really should avoid driving like idiots all the time they have their company name and phone number emblazoned across their cars, vans and lorries.

 

As I drove the pundits on the radio were talking about the remembrance services in Japan that were happening today in honour of the eightieth anniversary of the first atom bomb that went off at Hiroshima. As a lad I was a member of the campaign for nuclear disarmament. I don't know if our little CND chapter in Hastings ever achieved much...

And there was talk of how the nation's finances have gone down the pan. Apparently the Chancellor of the Exchequer is facing a forty-one billion quid shortfall.

And the winners of the competition to build humanity's first starship have been announced. When you consider just how trashed our planet is, and just how many atom bombs are still poised to blow up what's left, you'd think that having some sort of lifeboat in which to escape might be more of a priority, wouldn't you?

 

I stopped off at Sainsburys to get lunch, and whilst I was at it I got a couple of bottles of beer for the weekend. And as always there was no one operating the tills, but because I was buying beer someone had to come over to tell the automated machine that I was old enough to buy a bottle of beer. You'd think the face recognition software would be able to tell that, wouldn't you? And you’d think that if Sainsburys could have a couple of totally bored staff loitering round the self-service tills they could have the same people usefully occupied by each running a till.

 

I went into work and did my bit. Being on an early was a result. I came home, and by the time I’d done my twenty minute chair workout “er indoors ^TM” had finished working and we took the dogs down to Orlestone for a little walk. As we walked I tried out my “Map My Walk” app which had failed yesterday; it worked perfectly today.

And with walk walked we had a rather good dinner of chicken donuts and garlic bread which we scoffed whilst watching more episodes of “Below Deck” in which the bosun got the sack.

Hello sailor…

 

Meanwhile the most recent fruit of my loin has left me a load of her washing to sort out…

5 August 2025 (Tuesday) - Rather Dull

I had a rather good night’s sleep for once, but woke feeling decidedly miserable. But I got up regardless, and did my usual thing of making toast and peering into the Internet. A few weeks ago my cousin mentioned that she was hiring a camper van and going on a little expedition with it. Last night she and her van arrived in Cornwall, and this morning she announced that she had taken her first ever dump in a campsite. That was nice for her. For all that it would be utterly impractical, I’m thinking more and more about getting a camper van. If nothing else kite festivals would be a possibility again.

Yesterday where I had loads of adverts for shirts in my Facebook feed, today I had adverts for walking holidays around Machu Picchu. I’d be up for that… or would I? It’s a long way away, and the last time we went on an international holiday I missed the dogs.

And I saw that one of the leaders of the Willesborough scout group had died. “Paddington” (as she was known) was quite a character.

 

We got the dogs onto their leads. Bailey was dead keen to go out; Morgan not so. As we drove up to the woods the pundits on the radio were interviewing some of the head honchos of the Green Party. They are having elections for their leadership, and for all that the various candidates disagree, they were disagreeing whilst still being civil. That’s a trick that more politicians could learn; especially when you bear in mind that what with the recent polling successes of the Greens and Reform it is quite likely that coalition government of extremes may well be on the cards in a few years’ time.

 

We got to the woods and didn’t have the best of walks. As is always the way in August the woods were swarming with people who rarely (if ever) take their dogs out. As I walked I was using the dog water bottle as a dumbbell and was waving it up and down and side to side. Some woman shrieked at me not to hit Morgan with it. And then another woman shrieked at me that all dogs must be on leads at all times as dogs off of leads invariably attack each other. “Don’t you know nothing?” she ranted.

Fortunately none of these idiots ever venture more than a few hundred yards from the car park. Once we were away from them we had a good walk. As we walked we met a woman with a Dalmatian that we see from time to time. She was ranting about all the “holiday dog walkers” as she called them.

It was a shame that my “Map My Walk” packed up half-way round.

 

We came home where I hung out one load of washing and put another load in to scrub, then made us both a cuppa and wrote up some CPD before wasting a couple of hours struggling with the geo-puzzle that has had me going for over a week.

I munzed and Wordled, and after a spot of lunch I did the dogs’ monthly flea treatments, which went easier than it has done in the past. And then I got the sander out and had a go at the ceiling of the little lobby by the bathroom/toilet area. It’s needed sanding for some time. I made quite a mess doing it.

I had a go at my twenty-minute chair workout worked up quite a sweat, then quietly walked to the back door and then announced that “I’m Going To Feed The Fish”. That always gets the dogs going.

 

“er indoors ^TM” sorted a rather good bit of dinner which we scoffed whilst watching a couple of episodes of “Below Deck”. Have you ever seen it? It really is all about how the other half live. People with more money than sense charter a yacht. Hiring the thing for three days costs two hundred thousand dollars.

I’d love to have more money than sense… but (to be honest) I probably have.

 

Today has been dull. I really need to sort out some sort of project to keep me active…

4 August 2025 (Monday) - Preparing an Ad-Lab

I slept like a log last night, which was something of a result. I got up and had a go on the scales. I’ve put weight on over the weekend… back to the dieting properly. I put a load of washing in to scrub; I’ve rather skived on that lately.

As I scoffed toast I rolled my eyes at the argument on one of the geocaching pages I follow on Facebook. Someone thought they were being clever by hiding a film pot under a rock in a thorn bush which is well known for being where the local tramps go to have a dump.

 

I sent out birthday wishes to the two friends having a birthday today, got the dogs onto their leads and took them out.

As we drove the pundits on the radio were talking about the latest government initiative to stop people smuggling which is clearly doomed to failure. Stopping the small boats coming across the channel would be easy. Simply set up a little (or not so little) armada of boats to stop the illegal boats and escort them back to the French coast where their little boats get scuppered.. Nothing else is going to stop them, is it?

We got to the woods and had a rather good little walk round. The walk passed off without any episodes, which is always a good thing.

 

We came home for a cuppa, and once I’d hung out the washing I cleaned out the big pond’s filter. Back in the day when I had the old-style box filters it took over an hour to clean them out; a smelly messy job which involved lots of heavy lifting. Now with the pressure filter I can set up for the cleaning, do the cleaning and tidy up afterwards in just under ten minutes (I timed it).

 

I munzed, and sent out the invites to the Munzee clan for this month’s Clan War, and got Wordle (rigid) on the fifth attempt.

“Daddies’ Little Angel ^TM” finished her appointment, so I drove her and Pogo home, and came home via Chilham. When we were there yesterday I saw several little points of interest which would lend themselves to being part of a geocaching Ad-Lab, and bearing in mind I get another Ad-Lab credit next week I thought I might call in again and have a closer look. I found five things in Chilham Village Square which would make good Ad-Lab stages, and narrowly beat the rain home.

 

I spent a little while writing up my next Ad-Lab; looking on-line for the history of Chilham and embellishing it (just a teeny bit). I had an hour’s doze, did “Feed the Fish”, and had another go at the twenty minute chair workout which was (and is) surprisingly hard work.

And then I had a look at that puzzle geocache which has been bothering me all week, and once I’d sat still for a while I checked my blood pressure. It’s rather better than it has been.

 

After a good bit of dinner “er indoors ^TM” went bowling. I settled in front of the telly and watched episodes of “Orange is the New Black”.

I’m worn out and I’ve hardly done anything. And I ache. I’ve been aching quite a bit recently…

3 August 2025 (Sunday) - A Lazy Day

Overnight I’d had a stroke of genius about how I might solve that puzzle geocache that has been troubling me all week. I fiddled about a bit doing some sums, typed my answer into the checker… and it told me that was the one hundred and fifth wrong answer that it had seen.

I had a little look into Facebook. A friend had been to a wedding, another friend had been to some big event in Chester, some were on their way home from holidays. People had been posting pictures of what they had been doing; as a very nosey person I like that. And I had seemingly endless adverts for massively overprices shirts. What’s prompted that?

 

I Munzed; the monthly Munzee Clan War started this morning. This month we need Widdle points… I have no idea how to get them, or even what a Widdle point is. But I expect we’ll find out. And with a few moments spare I went into the garden and hacked back the overgrowth pouring over the fence from not-so-nice-next-door. I’d not done that for a while, and when setting up for yesterday’s garden party I saw their bushes were almost half way across our garden. Back in the day when the husband was still there he seemed to think there was nothing wrong with that, and he felt I should be grateful for it as that would deter burglars(!)

 

We took the dogs down to the Romney Marsh for a little walk. There’s one particular geocache on its own a mile from the road which is supposedly a tad tricky to find. We parked up, walked the mile, spent an hour and a half searching… and walked back to the car. Either it’s not there or we can’t find it. I suspect it is there… Mainly because someone found it after we came home.

As we came back to the car we walked along the military canal where a particularly delightful family was having a swim. One of the younger ones had climbed up to the road bridge and was preparing to jump into the canal from the bridge… I didn’t want to get involved; perhaps I was being judgemental but they didn’t look like they would take advice.

Bearing in mind the canal is at best six feet deep I wonder if his leg bones survived?

 

We came home and had a bit of lunch. I wrote up some CPD and fell asleep for over an hour. I *really* hate that. When I want to be awake I’m snoring. And at four o’clock tomorrow morning I shall be wide awake.

 

“er indoors ^TM” boiled up a rather good bit of dinner, and with that scoffed we went out to Chilham village square where a Dutch chap who was holidaying in the nearby hotel had organised a geo-meet. Half a dozen of us sat in the evening sunshine and chatted about out little hobby…

2 August 2025 (Saturday) - A Birthday

I had a better night’s sleep, but when I popped to the loo at three o’clock I noticed something. “er indoors ^TM” had plenty of space; I was very tightly hemmed in by the dogs. And having realised that, was I being paranoid in that having had to fight for space when I came back to bed, were the dogs encroaching closer and closer every time I moved?

 

I got up and made toast and sent out birthday wishes via the Internet to “er indoors ^TM” and the three other friends having a birthday today. I smiled at one comment I saw – a friend had posted photos of her friend’s wedding and had apologised that she’s had to leave early for a scouting event. I did that so much in the past. I’ve mentioned before that scouting is a wonderful activity for kids, but as an adult it will utterly take over your life and leave you with no time for yourself at all.

I Munzed, got Wordle on the last attempt – “daunt” (what a stupid word) and took a cuppa and some pressies up to the birthday girl. I then struggled with a geo-puzzle. If you know the answer to this one, please give me a hint. I‘ve been struggling with it all week.

 

I turned on the radio but disaster… Steve wasn’t on this morning. I don’t know who his replacement was, but it wasn’t the same. I turned it off.

Being Saturday we had Dog Club which went rather well. We had nearly twenty dogs along, and had a great time… well, the dogs did. Today was seemingly “roll in fox poo” day with a surprising number of dogs caked in fox dung sadly including Bailey. At one point my heart sank when some chap turned up with a huge dog straining on the lead. But I was wrong; the chap just wanted to socialise his dog. He kept the dog on the lead and walked him round the paddock just to get used to seeing other dogs. For some dogs socialisation is charging about and playing with other dogs, for others it is just tolerating the presence of other dogs.

 

We came home, where Bailey had a bath and a serious scrub. I went round the garden harvesting dog turds before starting getting ready for the afternoon. I got out a couple of chairs and found more dog turds so I gathered those up. I got out another couple of chairs and found even more dog turds so I gathered those up… sometimes it’s like living with the all-England Olympic crapping team. Eventually when I thought I’d got all the dung together Bailey came out and laid a fresh one.

 

People started arriving, the beer was opened, and we had a very good afternoon in the garden with family and friends.

It all got rather vague towards the end… as it does.

1 August 2025 (Friday) - Bit Dull

I had an alarm set last night... I woke in a sweat at two o'clock. I got out of bed and onto the duvet (as opposed to under it) and lay awake for three more hours before giving up and getting up.

Rather than scoffing toast I scoffed the leftovers from last night's dinner as I watched an episode of "Orange is the New Black", then had a little look at the internet as I do. Squabbles abounded; fortunately unlike yesterday's squabbles these weren't ones I had to moderate. Today's arguments were petty and trivial (as they always are), and as is so often the way those who were the most vocal in picking their verbal fights were demonstrably the ones who were the most keen to show their ignorance.

 

As I got dressed I listened to the bin men shouting up and down the road at each other. They really don't have to be that noisy, but I suppose they feel that if they are awake then so should everyone else be awake.

As I drove up the motorway through the utterly unnecessary Operation Brock stupidity the pundits on the radio were interviewing some posh woman (I have no idea who she was) about an initiative to have Latin taught in schools. The whole thrust of this initiative is that Latin is perceived as the purview of the upper classes when it could be studied and enjoyed by all. You would have thought that, with that in mind, they would have got someone who didn't sound quite so upper class on the radio, wouldn't you?

Mind you this initiative has probably got a point. When I was at school I had a choice between studying Latin or German... I say "I had a choice". I had no choice. Sadly there was absolutely no way that I would have been allowed to study German because of parental prejudices about a war that was over twenty years before I was born. But even if there had been a different option, my father was adamant that I studied Latin because (as he insisted) "clever people do Latin". I quite enjoyed it; not so much the language as learning all about the Roman culture. But my "O" level in Latin has been of absolutely no use whatsoever to me whereas an "O" level in German might well have been. I've been to Germany where I was utterly unable to communicate with anyone in their native language, but if you want to have a conversation with a dead Roman, I'm your man.

 

I popped into Sainsbury on the way to work to get a sandwich. They didn't have coronation chicken, so I roughed it with beef and horseradish, and got some tennis balls for Treacle to lose at Dog Club tomorrow.

Work was work; it usually is. The horseradish sandwich was OK I suppose. 

Not being on an early I didn’t get out early (obviously). The chap who was on the early shift took a short lunch break today to get out a tad earlier than usual. He was planning to dash to the railway station and embark on a frankly epic journey to Edinburgh where he planned to arrive in the small hours tomorrow morning. Sooner him than me…

 

“er indoors ^TM” kicked off the birthday weekend by getting kebab for dinner. We scoffed kebab whilst watching the latest episode of “Star Trek; Strange New Worlds”. It was rather (very) good.