Whither the British republic?

Apparently Wales ignored the Jubilee; at least that is the claim made by one nationalist blogger. I'm not an instinctive royalist but my view in this part of Wales was of the vast majority of  people enjoying these Jubilee days without worrying too much about the deeper political significance of republicanism or monarchism. With the Olympic torch also passing nearby it has been a decent time for UK ltd. I can't vouch for the rest of Wales but south-west Flintshire has taken part in both events. Viewing the torch procession shows modern Britons to be tolerant and multi-racial. Likewise the Jubilee has provided the opportunity for ALL the people to meet and party with their neighbours. Who can tell what the future holds for the UK with a Scottish referendum on independence looming.  Yet for this weekend, with the  Olympics on the horizon and the Jubilee celebrations, the nations look at ease with themselves. Did the Sex Pistols make it back to Number 1? 

                                       

                                        

                                               The lighting of the beacon near Rhes y Cae.

                                   

                                             The Jubilee Balloon release from Caerwys.

Anglesey Audax

This was number six in my challenge to ride 100km at audax pace in every calendar month of the year, and, the easiest. On a warm day with slight winds the cycling was relatively easy; only poor map-reading prevented a very fast finish. The ride was not without humour (or annoyance, depending on personal view at the time) when I over- relied upon my GPS to guide us through the myriad of lanes to Rhosneigr! It took us across the warren and along a road that had ceased to exist years ago. Still we made it. More poor map-reading and a frozen GPS added many more km to the total than were strictly necessary. Nevertheless, we arrived back not long after 3pm. It was an excellent route (had we followed it) and 108 riders took part. Now for July.

The control at Amlwch and I was there (I don't know what the other guys are doing).

The extended lunch-break in Rhosneigr.

Babies, Bath-Water, and the Pursuit of Excellence.

This week for one reason or another I took some tests to determine what kind of decision-maker I am. I may explain what exactly these tests were about, but at present I just can't decide whether to go public. You see that is the problem: the tests showed me to be a cautious decision-maker. Apparently I like to theorize and consult endlessly before arriving at a conclusion. So if I were to head some organisation it may well become bogged down waiting for guidance from the great leader (me). Should I be worried? Not a bit. I rather like being cautious. Change is a dangerous concept especially when one is dealing with other people's lives. So I'm rather proud of my reticence. I entitled my presentation to those who had charged me to answer the 'decision-making' tests as 'Babies, Bath-Water, and the Pursuit of Excellence'. That about sums it up.

Evacuated.

This afternoon Lorna Jenner - author of from Liverpool to Loggerheads - gave a fascinating lecture to the Caerwys Historical Society. She drew upon her extensive researches on the impact being evacuated had upon the children of Liverpool. Infact Lorna made us realise that it was not just the process of being evacuated that was difficult, but the returning back 'home' after the war was equally challenging.

I have written about evacuation to the Caerwys area. My view is that conditions for the evacuated children were not always as positive as the propaganda of the day had us believe. In fact accounts from the evacuees' are much more likely to be from those that had a positive experience. Those children who were exploited or who suffered life-changing homesickness are much less a likely to be recorded for historians to consider. 

In my introduction to the lecture I described evacuation as the greatest social experiment ever undertaken in this country. All we heard this afternoon confirmed this opinion.

My Criccieth Audax

I am just back from another amazing day of cycling. This time it was a 100km+ ride around the Lleyn Peninsular. We rode with a group of ten riders as we doubled the audax with a charitable collection for a local eisteddfod. Fuelled with bacon sandwiches we flew to Aberdaron for morning coffee. The only complication was the 20% hill out of Hells Mouth.

Roger and Robert complete the climb.

Then it was on the very tip of the peninsular and a team photograph with Bardsey Island in the background.

The motley crew.

Before the return journey via Nefyn and Clynnog Fawr we climbed to the highest point over-looking Bardsey Sound.

So all in all a great day. We covered around 117km in around 7 hours. I will try to retain my fitness for the June 100km challenge on Anglesey in a couple of week.

Some Mothers Do Av Em!

To my mind  Michael Crawford who played Frank Spencer in Some Mothers Do Av Em was a comic genius. I recall watching the show and coming close to dying with laughter as he roller skated under that lorry. Anyway, I had my own Frank moment this week. I was researching some health insurance policies (I will blog about this again), basically I was asking for a policy that might include treatment for  pre-existing condition. Not surprisingly no company is likely to offer such a product as it goes against the whole idea of insurance, and I felt silly asking. Afterwards I recalled Frank Spencer in that classic episode where he drove his car to the edge of the cliff; he hung on for dear life while the car tipped forward and back. With Frank then hanging onto the exhaust pipe Betty screamed for guidance: 'what shall I do, Frank'?. 'Call the AA', said her hapless husband . 'But we are not members,' said Betty. 'Tell them we will join,' replied Frank. I felt a little like that.

Tell them we'll join.

Cycling photos on the Brenig roads.

I rather like these photographs; thank you Alan: