I am still alive

It's been a long and demanding course, but I am still alive.

Here's a brief update to let you know what you're missing out on:

1. Erika has seen Pityoka sucking "her" thumb on screen. (Not sure if it is truly sucking at the "your baby is the size of a Big Mac" stage, but you know the two bits were in a similar place). We are still having occasional worries (including one today), but, touch wood, all seems to be OK.

2. Romania got flooded again. It basically pissed down through July and eventually various places flooded severely. Something like 25 people died along with thousands of animals. A friend and colleague from Iasi had to travel to Bucharest in the thick of it and it took him twice as long as normal as the worst hit areas were a swathe of counties seperating Moldavia from the rest of the country. He ended up going via Galati, which, if you look at a map, you will see is quiote a long way out of the way. The road from here through the Csango valley (that we couldn't pass in August last year -see post passim- is still, as far as I know, closed)

3. The Romanian government resigned and then decided not to. No, I don't really understand it either. I'll do some research when this is over.

4. London got attacked twice, once by terrorists and the second
time (thankfully) by crap-terrorists. In response the police shot some innocent Brazilian bloke in the head five times for the crime of wearing a big coat.

5. I finally bought myself a bike. I have now seen a number of villages that I previously hadn't, and am thoroughly enjoying cycling round the area. Though having not cycled for a year, I have been reminded of the fact that I have two bones in my butt and am writing this while sitting on the softest cushion I could find.

6. The course is going very well, and I'm dead chuffed by the 6 participants and my own ability to hold it together when training for 6-8 hours a day, 5 days a week.

Normal service may be resumed next week