“Hey Frego, long time no see! What have you been up to?”
‘Just got back yesterday from 2 months in sunny Legoland, it was awesome!’
“well Happy New Year, and to what do I owe this pleasure?”
‘Happy New Year to you too. I was reading through your blogs last night and thought I’d best come over and sort things out.’
“Huh?”
‘Well what were you thinking with this 1000miles thing!? You don’t even LIKE walking!’
“Well I need to get fit this year, and I like being out with my camera”
‘Hardly the same thing is it? Well you’re committed now so we’d best get on with it. You’ve started off on the wrong foot if you’ll forgive the pun.’
“Not sure that’s a pun but no matter, how do you mean?”
‘Firstly you are old now and haven’t done any regular exercise for 20 years, so charging off to do a 6 mile trek in adverse weather conditions after only doing 2 days of 3 miles is hardly the way to ease yourself back into it is it?’
“I’m not bloody decrepit you know!”
‘Hmm lets see, day 2 falling over grazing your elbow, bruising your coccyx and pulled muscles in your arm, day 3 walking so far against a strong wind you couldn’t get up and walk properly after you got home, I rest my case mi’lud’.
“I’ll get better at it!”
‘Yes you will because I’m going to take charge now and do the 1000 miles with you, and we’ll do it sensibly. I have it all planned out.’
“Oh god. What’s the plan then?’
“As you seemed to manage 3 miles on the first day without killing yourself, that will be our minimum walk, UNLESS it’s really bad/miserable weather when we can just walk around the estate to keep things going and make up some miles when the weather and your fitness level improves.”
‘Well that was what I was doing yesterday to make up for today which I knew would be a shorter one’.
“Yes and look how that went! We’ve a long way to go, and plenty of time, so lets just get you gentled in for now.”
‘OK Frego, not going to argue’
“Good. Now Secondly, you gave up your big Nikon so you could easily carry around the little fuji, so what are you thinking sodding about with the iPhone?!”
‘I have photo apps I want to play with!’
“So play with them indoors, I am NOT being seen out with someone who uses a phone for photography. A phone is for making telephone calls and texting. Unless you are Mrs.O who is a marvel with one, but you are not. Your pictures on the blog are OK but really, crap quality compared to your fuji. You’ll be taking that with you in future, you know it makes sense and you’ll enjoy the walking more.”
‘You’re so bossy.’
“You need it. AT least you have managed to get good walking boots. Now get them on and lets get round the estate and see how far that is.”
‘Sigh. OK Frego’

“The tree from May is looking forlorn without it’s leaves”

‘Yes but nice reflection of it in the swamp’

“Nice red berries, and you can use some depth of field now instead of like that iPhone shot you did on the 1st day’
‘OK OK!!’

“Oh look at the sunlight catching those apples, seems strange to see them on a tree without leaves”
‘Got them’

“See, quality not quantity. That was a nice little walk, cold but refreshing, tomorrow we might go a bit further, I’ll let you know when I come back in the morning. See ya Frags”
‘OK Frego’

1.93 miles