Cold
Not a reference to the weather but to the cold I came down with after a 4.5-hour hike in the Mournes on 27 Oct. It's been more than four weeks now and I would not say that I'm 100%. The hike on the 27th was lovely, however.
I haven't let the cold hold me back too much. I visited Mary, who is in a care home in Derry after a fall. I took the dogs in, which cheered everyone up. I had lunch with former schoolmate Nigel and dinner with Patricia and Eddis. I saw a play called Denouement that I thought was awful. I got two vaccinations for the trip and did a lot of trip-related shopping.
In week three of the cold I started hiking again (2 hours here, 3 hours there). I also saw comedian Dara O'Briain and Bugonia with Emma Stone. I visited Mary a second time on 15 November, after she had returned home, and I did some Christmas shopping at a craft fair at the Guildhall.
On 17 November I saw journalists Fintan O'Toole and Sam McBride discuss the pros and cons of Irish unification. Lots and lots of food for thought. I appreciated that they weren't trying to convince the audience one way or another – just lay out the challenges and opportunities.
On 20 November I was back in the Mournes, hoping to do a four-hour hike. But it was really cold and my lungs were just not happy at the top, which was fogged in. So I hiked for only two hours.
It was absolutely beautiful. I thought of how I'd never have seen this if it weren't for Kilimanjaro.
If it looks cold, that's because it was cold (and windy) as evidenced by the Mourne Wall, below.
I mean, probably not doing my cold any favours. I've surpassed my fundraising goal for the orphanage in Malawi. Eddis took me out for a lovely dinner on 21 Nov. to thank me. The next day I had coffee with Marek (just back from Malaysia), a brief visit with Ann, a quick lap of a Christmas market then, at night was an awards dinner at Shandon. A month or so ago I was presented with two trophies at one of the ladies' awards nights. I was presented with them a second time at the annual awards night that the men and women both attend. Me with my buddies:
Given that I have assembled most of what I need for the trip, I've been trying to pack everything into the three bags KLM allows me. But I've had a hard time settling on what I will wear each day. The temperatures change dramatically from the bottom to the top of Kili – basically from 4,500 feet where we start to 19,340 at the peak. I feel like making bad decisions on what to wear will have bad consequences. So I have been avoiding this job.
I literally walk into this room, look around, and walk out again. That's been going on for a week. All kinds of questions arise, like how many chloride tablets do I need and how many electrolyte tablets? First I have to estimate how many litres I'll drink on the trip then have enough tablets, given it's one per 500 ml for electrolytes and one per 1 litre for chloride. How many spare batteries should I take? How many handwarmers? What do you wear on a safari? On 23 Nov. I pulled myself together and accomplished this.
The next step is to unpack everything and repack in dry bags. Each day I will carry what I need for that day (extra clothes, meds, snacks, water). A porter will carry a duffel bag with everything else I need for the trip. I need each outfit in a bag that I can access each day. So that is the next packing job. Then I need to repack to meet KLM requirements. This trip has pointed up how really bad I am with logistics. Given my MO is to wing it, this trip is just making me nervous because I have to go against the grain and plan to the letter.
The night of the 23rd Marek and I went to see Cappella Caeciliana (a wee sample here). Their music is spellbinding. I close my eyes and let it wash through me. The Priests also sang and the wonderful pianist Ruth McGinley, a Derry girl, played solo as well as accompanying the Priests. Her My Lagan Love was my favourite. Haunting.
Recently, my purchases have included a new phone and new hiking boots. I think the improved quality of photos is immediately apparent. This was the view today on the way down from Slieve Meelbeg – Slieve Bernagh in the distance on the right.
None of my photos in the past have been this bright or this crisp. Love it. Here are my new boots, after being christened in the bogs of the Mournes. I'm also sporting my new gaiters.
My goal today was again to do two circular laps, up Meelbeg then down Happy Valley. Again, I met a stiff, cold wind at the top. So after lap one, I went three-quarters the way up Meelbeg and came back down the same route – skipping the peak and the steep descent into the valley, where the wind was strongest.
This post has covered a busy month. Given that the first thing I did upon retiring was commit to a major hike, retirement so far has been fairly stressful. I'm dogged by the 100s of details tied to the trip and by my worries that I haven't trained enough. I plan to go to the US in January to see mom, so I don't know if I'll get to experience the luxury of retirement until February. I'm making a long list of things I want to do when my time is not committed to training, shopping, packing. I look forward to more time with my friends, mentioned throughout this post because they are such an important part of my life. They have been generous in supporting the fundraiser and they are sending me off with lots of encouragement and wind beneath my wings.
I'll close with this abandoned cottage at the base of Meelbeg.
24 Nov