Full on and photo's of new Bertha

It has been a struggle to blog recently. After the excitement of new Bertha doing her Houdini disappearing act, I lost all energy and it was a struggle to post last week's training. You may have or not noticed that they appeared on Monday not Sunday as usual.

It wasn't the blogging it was the culmination of consistent training, a lot of work and a lot of rain for the last few weeks. I have never been a winter person it really does get me down, one of the many reasons for leaving the UK. But it also caused a lot of washing/laundry both children can wet the bed but not all the time and not always together but without a dryer it was struggle to get it dry and it was getting me down. And this week was particularly busy because Teresa had parent interviews Tuesday and Wednesday and I had to pick Emily up from school, take her to ballet, wait for Teresa. I decided training wise to have most of the week off because I have been really happy with training but I'd just started not enjoying it - so time for recovery.

We have started considering to look at a move nearer Napier because we spend more time there and although it is only 20km away it all adds up especially as we don't want to buy another car. We think we would like a bit more land were we can do more of what we are doing now and possibly have a bed and breakfast place. However we also don't want to get another mortgage when this one is finished next year. We have to decide which is most important Teresa working less possibly just 3 days a week (I may need to do a bit more website work or teaching- especially after both children are at school). or more land. Not sure we can have both.

Anyway I've the first pictures of the infamous Bertha. She doesn't bolt for the door anymore but didn't like me holding her yesterday. Top chicken (Daisy) was doing a lot of bullying of Bertha yesterday and not allowing her outside in the run - need to keep an eye on the situation.

Weekly training Mon19-Sun 25May

Weekly Training
Swim	3 sessions with fist gloves. Experimenting with my propulsive kick.(see comment above)	3600metres
Bike	2X1 hour indoor trainer rides. M2 style intervals. 3rd session 18.5min strength on trainer	36.97miles
Run	3x2mile runs at 5am	6miles

Weekly core Training
Swim cords	2 sessions Building specific strength - 50 on each arm
Back	2 sessions
Abs	2 sessions 7 different exercises based on crunches and leg lifts
Weights	1 sessions with dumbbells
Push ups	2 sessions - some moving side to side, hindu pushups
Stretching	5 sessions

Chicken story - Chapter 3 The Return

The continuing adventures of new-Bertha.
When we last left Bertha she was last seen hopping over the neighbours fence at 5.30pm Saturday afternoon never to be seen again. On Sunday we went to the farmers market, out for coffee, bought some hanging baskets for growing strawberries in and then home for lunch. I got on the turbo trainer for my hour, determined to get off if my legs didn't respond but they did but not as well as Thursday. When this happens I lower my target heart rate 5beats, I could reach my original target but at what cost, this is a mistake I have made in the past and the result is overtraining. I now realise it is tiredness so I ease back and it seems to be working.

Teresa and I were feeling sorry for ourselves and the chicken, the persistant rain didn't help. New Zealand east coast has great weather but sometimes we get a lot of rain it isn't known as the 'Land of the long white cloud' for nothing. After my bike I get wrapped up with the children, me to rake up leaves (it has therapeutic benefits) and the children to feed the chickens.

Today Monday I was asked by the deputy principal at Napier Central to take her class for the morning possibly the whole day. This was complicated by the fact Teresa car pools when ever she can with another teacher and she was relying on us because she had no car today. Cameron had to go to childcare and then we all had to go to school. On the return Emily had gone to a friends house after school, pick up Cameron and return the other teacher home ( her house is about 4miles out of way.

Late, tired and grumpy after a confrontation with a rude parent I got home to get dinner sorted, feed chickens and Teresa went for Cameron. As I went to feed the chickens one of our neighbours Paul was practically hopping up and down with excitement. He had seen the chicken at the back of his house, over a fence on a shed roof. He had got a couple of ladders and climbed over with a sack. He said that he had just picked up, he reckoned it must have been just very tired and dehydrated from its adventures. So he stuffed in the sack and waited 3 hours for us to come home. He wouldn't let me have it he wanted to wait for the children so he could see their faces.

So the escaped chicken is in the Henhouse Hilton with the girls fed watered and the asleep. I'm going to buy Paul a pack of his favourite to say thankyou.

All I could think about was that I would now not have to tell my friend Shelly about the loss of the chicken..not just yet anyway.

Chicken story - Chapter 2 The one that got away

Last Sunday at the Farmers market I was telling friends Bruce and Shelly ofhannaberryfarm boyensberry farm about our new chickens and the told us they had too many and we could have had some of theirs. (we paid NZ$17 each). We thought nothing more about until the death of Bertha on Wedneday night.

I know Shelly through masters swimming at Flaxmere and the triathlon club and frquently see her at training. When I saw her Friday (when I had a fantastic swim- I started doing 50m and because I now have a propulsive kick my tumble turns were fantastic -I haven't done any in 2 years of re-learning to swim) I told her what had happened to Bertha and she said come round tomorrow and get one of theirs so we did.

We took a beautiful black chicken home, Bruce offered to clip some wing feathers to stop it flying, we declined the offer. We arrived home with the new Bertha and went to put her straight into the Henhouse Hilton with Choc Choc, Ethel and Daisy (the girls). I was just closing the door and paused for the children to stroke the new chicken and it was off out the door running as fast as it legs could carry it.

Teresa and I tried to round it up but of course it was scared and the inevitable happened it flew over into the neighbours with me in hot pursuit. I came back over the fence and went round to the neighbours properly. I had never met this neighbour before because the back of their quarter acre garden borders the side of ours and there are 2 houses on the corner. The neighbour came with me and tried to trap the bird but it was off again and we couldn't find it. We called it quits and went in for lunch and then had to go out to buy clothes for the children. I failed to mention that it was chucking it down with rain the whole time.

After we got back from shopping and a coffee I was busy making pizza and Teresa went to feed the girls and saw new Bertha happily pecking away in the same neighbours garden. We gave chase Teresa to the neighbours and me to get the bird netting from the veg garden. In 30minutes that wouldn't have appeared out of place in old slapstick comedy, involving several gardens. neighbours and a big dog the chicken ended back up in our garden more by luck than anything else.

I can hear your collective sigh of relief and mutterings of alls well that ends well but the story hasn't finished there is more...




After all calming down I decided to leave the chicken to peck around get the feel of the place and chat to the girls (chickens). She (new Bertha) seemed perfectly happy and I thought even if she doesn't go into the Henhouse Hilton she will roost in the garden ready for tomorrow. Just as I was getting complacent (it is around roosting time -dusk) she starts walking around the to the front of the house, I head round the front of the house birdnetting hand to stop her getting away. But it was just a ruse to get rid of me, by the time I had got round the back Teresa and I could only stare in disbelieve as new Bertha calmy walks back to the neighbours fence and with much clucking hopped over the fence.

All I could say was that hopefully the big dog the neighbours will be in the garden tomorrow and will scare it back into the garden. Teresa got extremely upset and when we realised she had put cheese on my part of the pizza she lost it. It took the combined cuteness of the children and myself to make her feel better.

I don't know what I am going to say to you Shelly but I hope you understand why I thrust a piece of paper at you with address of my blog on it.

The inner battle

My frugal self and my triathlete self have been having a pitched inside my head. On the triathlon side I am desperate to return to olympic distance racing. But my frugal has been saying just one more year and the mortgage will be paid off, his argument is this the we would have to travel to the longer races, pay for petrol, accommodation, the race etc and on top of that the children are very little.

So the result is that my frugal self defeated triathlete self especially when frugal phil reminded triathlete Phil of the huge challenge of improving his swimming to the point that it outshines triathlete Phil's cycling and running and therefore become a much better triathlete that will be mortgage free and therefore able to afford going away to race.