Stretching yourself

What a sleepless night that was! Last night, I saw the last light of Sunday turn into the dawn of Monday, quite literally tossing and turning until the sky outside was quite light when, perversely, I fell asleep for a while. I suspect I ate too much meat too late in the day and should have been out for a ten-mile hike instead of trying to sleep ...

So when I set off to my Pilates class, I felt pretty shattered and unsure of my ability to do the whole hour, but I'm happy to record that it did its usual magic and left me feeling miles better, with all the kinks and strains from yesterday's gardening stretched out of my back. The idea of using your own body weight in so many beneficial ways becomes more attractive every time I do it.

We had lunch in the garden, where I stayed reading long after Himself had gone to get on with something, so it was 4pm by the time we got out, promising ourselves a short walk just because ... Anyway, we walked a bit of the way along Loch Striven among the madness of birdsong and the sheer opulence of the growth beside the road. I don't recall ever seeing the hawthorn in such amazing blossom, and the ubiquitous rhododendrons - the purple ones - are all in flower just now, briefly justifying their occupation of our countryside. 

Blipping the Creag na Cailleach in her summer guise - the blooming bushes and trees around the grove look almost like offerings to the Old Woman, and the whole place lacks the sinister aspect of winter afternoons. 

Are any of you watching the new drama Time on BBC? Stressful stuff!