Time to catch up...

Lordy, I've been totally woeful.  Part of it is a lack of an itchy photo finger - but mainly its just MASSIVE SLACKNESS.  But the slackness has not extended to the physical realm, where I've been hard at work trying to shed pounds (somewhat successfully) and get fit (more successfully) for an October and November brace of bike tours.  My big plans for Taiwan in October evaporated under the twin suns of work and boys holidays not lining up on the one hand and indifference on behalf of the other parties.  I think I have to accept that this is my thing only.  Bloody hell.  Getting a bit long in the tooth for only pounding the pedals and pavements, I got back into the swimming, though have taken to Clearwater Bay's first beach which is guarded by 302 stairs - meaning that it is without day trippers.  Instead I have a regular haul of only the hardest and toughest grannies and grandpa's, a group of about 10, who I see many times a week and engage in a lovely "we don't share a language, but know each other so lets chat and gesticulate".  It's very cool.

The view from the balcony of the beach house - it's so lovely

Evan's skim board has taken a bit of a pounding - we mixed up the epoxy and did a big fix.

We've had a couple of days of dodgy air - sunrise through some quality South China smog - the shark nets and beach biscuits down below (this is 200 stairs up).

Dylan and Courtney have left to go and study in the UK.  They've been here for such a lovely chunk of time that it feels like they've left all over again - and I suppose that is the drift of life, universe like, expanding, apart, with everything moving away from everything else like dots on a balloon being blown up.  Before they left Dylan asked me to take a couple of CV type linkedin pics for him - which was a rare treat.  I set the lights up, and asked Aiden to stand in front of them so I could measure the light; he's delightfully theatric and insincere - made me giggle:

And here's Dilly-boy, looking dapper for London-life.