Just for Rob

All England Badminton Championship 2018

Well, didn't we have a great day at the 2018 Yonex All England Badminton? 

It started very well indeed, with a lovely cooked brekkie at the Merchant. We had the same problem as in previous years: someone on Cannock rail station got our spare ticket to Birmingham; a nice Malaysian gentleman got our spare ticket to the Championship... however, the quality of the badz we saw was second to none. Indeed, 'twas the best I've seen, havine attended the Championship 5 or 6 times...

We settled ourselves side-on to Court 4 - you can appreciate the game best from a perpendicular perspective (says Terry, our know-all-bastard!) - & got to see a bunch of great matches from this vantage point: Fukushima/Hirota (win) v Kim/Kong; Wang v Lin Dan (win);Chen/Jia (in) v Fruergard/Thygesen; Kawakami v Marin (win); Gideon/Sukamuljo v Ong/Teo)

Carolina Marin

Lin Dan

Gideon & Sukamuljo

It is a bit of a bum-number, at 6 to 7 hours watching badminton with little legroom, but the All England is a fantastic competition, & a chance to see top-class athletes striving for their best. 

Badminton & Birthday

Just to prove we do play badminton... & we play every week!

However, there are plenty of curries as well... for this one, our excuse was a birthday. Normally we don't bother about a reason & just scoff down!

Badly Dressed Christmas Lunch

Out for a lovely Christmas carvery... filling us faces once again... Mind you, we had to endure Jim's jokes, & that was before the devastating satire that leapt from the cut-price crackers. Terry got a 3-inch ruler after his big pull - we laughed & made horrid, crude jokes.

Jace had left the protein-only diet well behind; complaining about putting on a few pounds back on as he powered down his grub 2-handed. RobS seemed to enjoy the beer better, as he chatted away wi'Neil on their plans to return in the evening for chips n'gravy! Chris had a little one, as he often does! He did however, ensure 'Chelle didn't have to stint on her portion - which was v 'christian' of the fellow....

There was a bit of a problem with balls; big, doughy, minty balls! After Eight? Gill wouldn't wait & piled into'em about 2.15pm. They didn't go down too well; pretty much no one else could face'em - Linda, unsurprisingly, went for the crush. Shaun sat a little further away from the table, & there were a lot of left balls - they simply weren't right!

For some reason, Rob kept winking & giving all-&-sundry the 'big thumbs up'... Rhys got a bit flustered, claiming football was a more enjoyable spectator sport than rugby union - how we all laughed! I'm not sure if even Gavin could agree with that!  

A wonderful way to while away an afternoon... good grub; good mates; good heavens, we still have our Christmas curry to look forward to! More gruntling for all - Hoorah! 

World Mental Health Day walk

"Six full English & one toast & jam", what a way to start our WMHD walk... as we worked our way through a wonderful two-of-everything fry-up, the grey had lifted, the sun was a-trying, & the stroll through Cannock park & over the golf course was lovely.

Mild confusion reigned for a wee while as we waited for Jason, who rang after a while to lsay he couldn't make it - I was surprised he missed the grub! - so Rob & Linda had carried on by themselves. As we caught'em on the edge of Shoal Hill, they told us they were off to enjoy the park whist the rest of us battled the red-in-tooth-&-claw nature of the common.

Real men sit on walls & couldn't give a damn if their bottom gets cold...

Some chaps have delicate bottoms...

It became a beautiful day for an autumn walk; bright & warm; not too wet underfoot. And the heights of Shoal Hill offers some great views off to the west & north: you could swear just reaching out would enable you to touch the Wrekin' the Shropshire hills & Welsh mountains nestled on the horizon...

And, the Common itself is a great place to spent a few hours wandering! In truth, we had a lovely morning doing some of those things which promote mental well-being - spending time with friends, eating well, getting close to the natural world, & exercising a tad. What's not to like?

It is important to remember WMHD 2017 isn't just about having fun. This year's message was to encourage everyone to consider mental health & well-being in the workplace. There are plenty of resources readily available, but a good starting point would be the Mental Health Foundation's WMHD page click here.

We'll be out again soon enough &, I give you fair warning, that could be a time we look for sponsors! 

Another Big Night Out - stuffin' us faces...

 

Nature can improve one's mental health & wellbeing

I know... it ain't a new idea.  But it is worth reiterating relatively simple, low cost options we might adapt to our own circumstances & have a positive impact on our sense of wellbeing.

Nice article by ecotherapist Hayley Gillard in HuffPost UK here.