A long, good, Friday.

Wake at a quarter to eight, outside the weather is fair and overcast, as I let Norman into the garden before making breakfast and coffee. I have smoked salmon with Philadelphia cheese on Ryvita and Normy has the last of yesterday's corned beef. At last the problem with Southern Electricity is resolved, they still had my ID as googlemail, even though they had been contacting me using gmail. I can now, at last, view my accounts on line, although it does nothing for the extortionate prices. Wash, dress and drive to Cherry for a quarter past nine, collect the dogs and arrive on the Westwood for nine thirty. As we make our way round the common, Dolly befriends two Canadian women who are on holiday with their 90 year old father, he is revisiting his wartime haunts. He was in bomber command, and it turns out they are from Vancouver, so I tell them I have a niece, Melanie, and her family living there. They are enchanted with Beverley, despite Vancouver being rated with the highest quality of life in the world. If you like rural beauty and peace and quiet, old Beverley takes some beating. We get back to Two Riggs for eleven and I spend a pleasant hour weeding in the warm sunshine, before taking Norman back to Tickton and after making sure he has plenty of water, I make my way to the Leisure Centre for a quarter to one. The pool is very quiet and I have a lane to myself, but decide to take it easy today, as I am collecting Louis from school at 3:15 and need to conserve some energy. Consequently I swim 3 x 400m very easy on backstroke, breaststroke and then freestyle. Feeling strong and relaxed, I then swim two easy 200 individual medleys. On the initial medley, the first 25m butterfly is fine, after an initial three strokes to establish my rhythm, I switch to single stroke breathing and manage to keep low and smooth until the turn. Then things go awry a little, after four kicks underwater and two strokes without breathing, I am feeling short of air and come up too soon and spoil my rhythm and flow. The result is that I am climbing too high out of the water in order to breathe and in the process creating extra resistance by doing so, nevertheless I finish the backstroke, breastroke and freestyle legs in reasonable order, but that second leg of fly was rubbish, and it niggles! In the medley, swimming the butterfly leg smoothly and efficiently is crucial, because if you don't, as well as losing time on the fly, you waste energy that will be needed towards the end of the event. Not that I am likely to race again any time soon, but I like to get things right. After a rest I do the second 200m IM and this time I consciously relax and let go of the need for air after the turn on the second length of fly, and consequently am able to establish a smooth, low, long stroke once I surface. The rest of the swim flows effortlessly from the fly and I feel really good. I am tempted to do a couple more 200 IM's, but resist and warm down with an easy 100m backstroke and 100m freestyle instead. I drink tea and eat a few oaties in the cafe, and chat to the regulars, before calling in at Beverley Harrods, also known as Boyes superstore. It isEast Yorkshire's answer to Woolworths. They have a sale starting today and I want to see if their speedo swimming trunks are reduced. These are the ones with proper legs, the skimpy ones make me feel like an elderly Swedish porn star! Unfortunately, they are not in the sale, so I will bide my time, by Xmas the price will have come down to something more sensible. I collect Louis at a quarter past three, having parked at Tesco's in town and walked the half mile to his school. He has brought his scooter, so hands me his bags and then scoots off ahead of me at high speed. We make our way back to Sarah's the back way far from the busy road, past Bleach yard stables, then down the lane adjacent to the cemetery, which brings us out on Sarah's street. The path on the southern edge of North Bar Without, is set back behind a boulevard of trees, so it is safe for him to scoot here too. When we get in, Clement and Sarah are just on their way out, so we have a cold drink, chat to Alice for a few minutes and then make our way to the library to return Louis' two books on the weather and thunderstorms. It is sunny and hot outside, and after we have returned his books and failing to find anything else that interests him in the children's library, we head back into town. Louis decides he wants some Spiderman stickers and a notebook to stick them in, from a bookshop on Butcher Row, although I have to dissuade him from selecting an enormous A2 sketch pad for only £12. Afterwards we go to Marks and Spencer's for some strawberries, but first take a break in their cafe, Louis has chocolate cake and orange juice and I a chicken salad sandwich and tea, enough to last me until I get home. I haven't seen Louis for almost a week and he has much to tell me, he is delighted to be back at school with his friends and likes his new teacher better than Miss Hart, from reception class. I suspect this is because she kept him in line, he is a lovely little boy, but a force of nature, twice as big, strong and energetic, as your average five year old. We get back to Sarah's for half past five and I ask Alice to prepare the strawberries for tea and then have to leave because my parking in Tesco's expires at six and its a good fifteen minute walk. By the time I get arrive at the car I am feeling very tired, and so drive straight home to feed Norman. I don't really feel like taking him down the lane, but I do it anyway. It is still quite hot and Normy has had enough by the time we reach the farm, so we cut the walk short and turn back there, playing the praise and pat game on our homeward leg. Too tired to cook, I dine on ante pasta again and eat up some of my fresh tomatoes. I have been eating down the fresh food in my fridge in preparation for my holiday. Too tired to read, I just do a couple of puzzles, before an early night at half past nine.