Y'all Take Care, Now!

Greetings from the American Midwest, where y'all say howdy to your pard in the yard.

Wednesday we arose at 1 am for more than 24 hours travelling to Nashville. By the time Jane and Lorenzo met us there, we had driven and flown many thousands of kilometres, but had also managed to walk 7 kms round the airports of Toulouse, Munich, Charlotte and Nashville.

Thursday, after waking at a Best Western, we drove to the Loveless Cafe for breakfast accompanied by the twangy sounds of Nashville. Then the drive through Tennessee and Kentucky to Indiana. Only a couple of kms walked that day.

Today we were up before the larks for a walk in the park before the exteme weather, which has been sweeping across America, arrives. In the West it has dumped considerable amounts of snow along with strong winds. Here we are expecting just the winds and lots of rain, possibly floods.

Knees Up

I have been having a quiet few days, walking-wise. The persistent knee injury which stopped me running has come back to haunt me while walking. Not for the first time. It flares up every now and then. Normally a couple of days rest will settle it down, but I can not afford to do that too many times during VBW, when I will be walking 200 kms or thereabouts every week for 10 weeks.

So I had Saturday and Sunday off, walked 11 kms Monday and 6 kms today. We leave home at 0200 tomorrow morning for a drive to Toulouse followed by flights to Munich, Charlotte then Nashville. Walking will be fairly restrained by circumstances during our 2 weeks in USA, but by the time we come back I expect to have walked 4,000 kms in 2009.

An Evening With Vic Heaney?

Sounds a bit over the top, doesn't it? As if I think I am a star - one of those people on the television - "An audience with ... Billy Connolly, Dame Edna, Neil Diamond, et cetera"

But it is happening. It's not my idea. Chris, a donor to Pancreatic Cancer research through my JustGiving page this week, has a guesthouse in a lovely location in this lovely area. He is brimming with ideas for raising my fund raising profile.

One of his ideas is the above "Evening With ...". With my approval he is going ahead with it. He is putting this up as a special offer on his guest house's website. After VBW, and as the tourist season tails off here, guests can come to stay at his place, where they will have an evening meal, with some other invited (and paying) guests from the area. I will give them a talk on my experiences during VBW - incidents and accidents, highs and lows, people encountered, anecdotes about things which I witnessed or which impacted on me along the way.

The guest house will subtract only its costs, the ingredients of the meal, the cost of cleaning the rooms. All other proceeds (including cheques written on the spot) will go to Pancreatic Cancer research. It will happen in September 2010.

This is an excellent idea. Futher plans are being developed for talks to other groups in the area and maybe beyond. Have talk, will travel, that's me. Stand by your wallets!

Plunging For A Battlebus

Despite the horrendous expense, we have taken the plunge and bought a motor caravan or camper, our "battlebus". It is a McLouis Steel 563. This will be our home and base during Vic's Big Walk. Gay will drive it on 30 kms each day while I am walking.

It will be our home, transport and office, bedroom, kitchen, dining room and maproom.

We collect it when we come back from New Zealand at the end of March. By then or soon after, it will be covered with a glorious pattern which will be produced by the design team at Columbia Sportswear, my major sponsor. This will proclaim Vic's Big Walk, the logo thereof, Pancreatic Cancer Research, blog address, fundraising address, and details of all the sponsors. It will all be in the best possible taste.

Muskrat Ramble

We went for a walk this morning which, before climbing to more than 700 metres, passed by the village lake, where a couple of days ago I photographed the critter which I then displayed on my blog (by the way, if you click the pic it will enlarge). By this morning, in fact by the afternoon of Tuesday, it had gone (somebody taken it away to identify it, or stuff it - or eat it?)

But what was it? Jackie and Bob Parry, on the Isle of Skye, sent this: "Saw the picture, and have been studying our books on the subject. It is either a Coypu or a Muskrat. Both are about 12" long. However, the Muskrat is now extinct in Britain; but could be established in France. Anyone else come forward with ideas?."

I think they are right. Further research reveals that the muskrat was reintroduced into France in the last century and is now regarded as a pest in some parts. You can read more about that here:

http://www.lost-in-france.com/wildlife-in-france/196-muskrat

The above picture is of a muskrat swimming in the Marne river. It certainly looks like our little friend in Puivert.

"Muskrat Ramble" was an old record, by the way. Jazz, I think.

Critter

Having run out of excuses, I was out for a walk this morning. I saw this dead critter down by the village lake. Presumably it had been hit by a car. But what is it? European beaver? Coypu? Having called up pictures of both via Google, it looks more like the former, but not as big as either are described. A young one? It didn't have a flat tail, but then European beavers apparently have a tail nowhere near as flat as their Colonial cousins.

I would love to know the answer.

... And More Of The Same

I have a really good excuse today. We were up before six today for a trip to the eye hospital in Tolouse. Or rather one of the eye hospitals in Toulouse because I now find there is at least another one.

After spending all morning being tested by a series of interns and moved from one waiting room and one lab to another, I eventually got in to see the professor. He took one look into my eyes with one of his gadgets, and shouted "Paul!" Paul was one of the interns who had previously gazed into my eyes. The professor said something to him very quickly so that neither Gay or I could catch it. Then Paul took me away for some more gazing and bright lights before he announced that I needed to go to the other teaching hospital in the same city.

He had made an appointment for November 3, he announced. I announced that on November 3 we would be in the United States. So, when you get home, please ring this other hospital and change the new appointment, says he. We have don so - the second hospital knows nothing of this appointment. They eye hospital reception at the first hospital is now closed for the day (Toulouse is at least 2 hours drive from here, even on a good day, which today was not).

So I am no further forward. And I am left wondering what is so wrong with my right eye (this is in addition to the cataracts on both eyes) that the professor surgeon, to whom the first surgeion sent me, can not deal with it.

Not to mention that, due to our trip to New Zealand January-March next year, and Vic's Big Walk, May-July next year, I have just two periods of 6 weeks available between now and next August for what seems to be more examinations followed by several operations.

So, the walking point is - no time for actually "going for a walk" today, amongst that lot. But strangely, we did manage to clock up 6 kms in the huge hospital complex!