I can't believe how quickly 2021 has gone. One minute I'm freezing cold, barely able to operate my phone camera with shivering fingers - the next, I am fanning myself to try and stay cool on a scorching summer's day.
Actually, that bit may be a bit of an exaggeration. Yes, I did have to fan myself on the only scorching summer's day we have had this year - some time in June.
But my point is, time has flown by and it has been grossly remiss of me to not keep my blog up-to-date over the last eight months.
What have I been doing? Nothing more than the usual plate-spinning. The plates might have been a bit bigger and in more varied shapes. But it was the usual thing of balancing life, work, leisure and all that. I must say that folks have said that the coronavirus pandemic has changed things, but for me the change has been just that I got even busier.
My main professional activities are in areas that have been pretty buoyant throughout - bike riding and healthcare. In the case of cycling, there has been a big push to get people out onto bikes as a way to avoid overcrowding on the public transport. A number of boroughs have introduced (with varying degrees of success) "low traffic neighbourhoods" in order to encourage more cycling and walking. Plus many people have taken up cycling as a mixture of starting a new fitness drive, and just taking up a new hobby during those extraordinary times. So with that, there have been lots of bikes to review, as well as interviews to do and races to cover. The Tour de France is one of the few major sports events that managed to continue even through the pandemic.
As for healthcare, well it goes without saying that that has been busy. The copywriting and medical writing I do for healthcare companies hasn't stopped. These companies won't close down during a pandemic, even if staff have to work from home.
As we were living in very different times, I thought to do a few different things. I ramped up my language skills by doing various conversation exchanges with people around the world. It was great to brush up on my French, Italian and Spanish while at the same time learning about how the pandemic was going in places in Buenos Aires, Montreal, or Naples.
I took up the flute and restarted playing the clarinet. My clarinet playing has flourished (hopefully my neighbour will agree!) and I am due to do my Grade 5 exam later this year. My flute playing, on the other hand, is in the larval stages. Another activity also in its larval stages for me is roller skating. I have always liked the idea of skating around as a mode of transport, or even doing skate dancing like the cool chicks in Brighton. I am not quite there yet, as my numerous falls can show. I just say, thank god for wrist guards, hard-wearing trousers, and the kids in the park who are totally unaware of my age as I totter around the park with mid-life crisis on full show.
But I am glad to say, I have finally been able to get in front of my blogging screen and put finger to keyboard. So you will hear more from me.
Welcome back!