Paul and Tracy's Main Blog

As you may have noticed, I've been busy updating our website. I've given it a bit of a restructure as it was starting to look a bit odd, organised around a round-the-world trip that now is not going to happen.

So you can now read all about the TransAm trip I'm undertaking next year, catch up on our past trips, see some updated photos in the Galleries, and read all about what we plan to do to ensure we have "The Good Life"...

If you want to read the old blogs, you can find a link to them on the Past Trips page.

But as the last entry on the previous blog was way back on 28th September, it's about time I brought you up to date on what's been happening in the exciting life we lead...

Globebusters TransAM 2009 Trip Meeting

In my last entry I mentioned that we were about to spend the weekend in Wales with the folk that I'm due to join for the TransAm trip next year. Well, the plan was for me to ride down to Wales on my bike, whilst Tracy followed in her car. Only I came down with a rather painful infection which meant a trip to the doctor on the Friday morning and a dose of anti-biotics. As a result of the discomfort, I opted not to ride and to join Tracy in the car, but at least the anti-biotics didn't say "avoid alcohol" as they so often do. We arrived at the spectacular Manor Hotel, Crickhowell in the early evening and soon met up with some familiar faces from the advanced riding day in June. That first evening we had dinner and I introduced Tracy to my fellow travellers, and we enjoyed a few drinks and a good natter.

The Saturday was the meeting proper, when we got to hear all about what we need to do in preparation for the trip itself. This included lots of information on rider preparation - such great tips as "get out and ride" and "learn Spanish" - bike preparation, equipment (including tips on clothing required or the wide variety of conditions we're likely to experience), accident prevention (a scary section, that one, especially when mention was made of the south American truck drivers, who appear to be able to learn from the Slovakians...), freighting the bikes out and back, route and how the trip itself will pan out. Suffice to say there was a lot to take in, but we were given a useful folder full of information, which is just as well as I've probably forgotten most of it by now anyway!

Saturday evening was another opportunity to socialise with our fellow travellers, so we wasted no time in getting to know one another over a glass or two of wine and a few beers. With the next meeting not until next March, when we get to do the BMW Off Road School (the one Tracy and I did last year, so I'm very excited about doing it again!!), we thought we should try and arrange a Christmas meeting. So if you happen to be in Birmingham on Saturday 6th December, and come across a rowdy party all attempting to order Tapas in Spanish, or if you're at the bike show on the same day, then come and say "Hola!"...

The Sunday was a day set aside for any lingering questions we might have, but apart from "got a cure for a hangover?" there didn't seem to be any, so we said our goodbyes and headed for home.

One thing is for sure, though, and that is I'm now more convinced than ever that this trip is going to be fantastic. The people are great, the route looks fantastic, and I simply can't wait...

Other news...Tracy's Arm

As for other news, well, as I mentioned last time, Tracy went to see the orthopaedic consultant, Mr Muir, about her elbow and he said he could operate to try and give her a bit more movement. Since then she's been waiting for the redness to go down, which it now has, and on Friday she went for a pre-operation consultation and all is set for her to have the op this Friday, 7th.
The operation itself is a bit unusual, in that he will go in the back of her elbow and try and free up the tendons that are all tightly packed together to give them a bit more freedom to move. If all goes well, she'll be able to get more bend in her arm, and might then be able to touch her head. The current restriction in movement is such that she can't put her hand on her head, or do things like drink, eat or brush her hair with her right hand. If the op is a success, she'll be able to toast it with a glass of champagne...
One thing that we know won't improve, though, is the lack of rotation in her forearm. That's a fairly major restriction, as it's a movement we all use quite often - just notice how many times you turn your hand from facing down to facing up in a day and you'll see what I mean. It appears that the tendons and muscles that permit that movement are too badly damaged, so she will always be restricted in that regard.
But any chance of improved movement has to be worth trying for, so now all we can do is wait... oh, and hope that she gets rid of the cold she seems to have picked up somehow!

House for Sale

As you may remember, we have also put our house up for sale (for details see here). So far we've had a number of people come round to look, but things were not looking too good. Then a fortnight ago we have a chap come round who seemed to really like the house. It fits his requirements perfectly, and we spent a fair bit of time chatting. There's no doubt he's keen, but he needs to sort out some personal issues and ensure he has the finance in place before he's in a position to place an offer.
Best thing we can do now is keep our fingers crossed... you can help too, by crossing yours!

Another Grandchild

Final piece of news is that Danielle is expecting again. Despite reassurances given following the birth of Olivia, and then again after the birth of Alfie, she's decided to have a 3rd child. Whether that's to keep up with her elder sister, Katy (who has Harrison, George and Elizabeth) is anybody's guess. All I know is that both Phil (her partner) and Danielle seem genuinely chuffed, and I'm going to be a grandpa again... 6 grandkids and I'm still only 40-something...
The new one is due in May, so hopefully I'll get to see him or her before I set off on my travels...

...and finally...

I think that just about brings things up to date. Life is as hectic as ever, with work taking up a fair proportion of my time as I try to clear the decks before HBOS is taken over (when I expect there's going to be far too much work for those of us in IT as we try to fathom out how to make 2 disperate sets of systems work together). In addition to work I've enrolled for Spanish lessons - 6 weeks of introductory Spanish to start with - and am struggling to remember any of what I've learnt in the first 2 weeks. Apart from "Dos cerveza, por favor" which I already knew anyway (I never could order just one beer, in any language!).

So, that's it. You're back up to date with events. Have a look round the new site, and let me know what you think. And don't forget to keep popping back, as I'll try to ensure the blog is updated a bit more frequently than it has been of late, especially if things start to move with the house sale... because then things will get really interesting!