Platform 14

There was a banging. I woke up. Is it a ghost? No it's the bathroom window. Thankfully. It was 7.15 and past breakfast time if I was doing the 9am Parkrun. Bed was cosy so I went through the will I, won't I get up process so typical for most people at this time of year. I got up and had a small bowl of porridge.

Somehow I found myself in a rush. As normal I had misplaced something. My bike lock this time. It didn't take long to find but the set back meant that the ride to Marple would be harder than desirable. The wind was strong but the roads were dry. Well apart from the 'ice' bit that I hate in deep winter.

Arriving at the start, I looked at my watch.....fook. 4 minutes to lock my bike, get kitted up and on the start line. My legs felt good straight away and I was closer to the front than normal when we hit the 1st corner. Strangely, after the 1.5km no one passed me apart from the 2nd finishing girl who flew in the final km. I was chasing the guy in front down but he sped up as I reached his shoulder. I laughed inside and thought....well if that's the way it's gonna be......

I was feeling strong and past him at the final km marker. There's a few tough ups n downs which don't suit me but I was determined that I was gonna beat him. That's unusual for me as I prefer racing the clock. But the gauntlet was down and I sensed that he wanted to beat me. I hit the final slippery down hill bit and kicked, 'suspecting' my elbows were out a little. By a nose they call it! I beat him and finished in 20th place. A bit to go until I'm happy and although not a PB, the course was muddy n waterlogged so it was as good as being one.

The run was followed by a trip to Libbies for a world class vanilla slice and some nice bread. The cycle home was easy knowing such treats were waiting to be scranned! Yum! I had a bath then a dose, did a wee bit work and then headed into Manchester to see a movie. Picadilly was a nightmare, especially on the worst platform in the world, 14.

There was a bit of time to spare so I went to see the galleries up the stair in the Cornerhouse. The most interesting bit was a girl sitting drawing sat in a corner. The art was rather conceptual and visually very ordinary. Bondage and sex stuff has been done a million times before and it all seemed rather contrived.

The Selfish Giant. What a brilliant film, much better than the typical Hollywood pishy offerings. It was based not far away in Huddersfield. The story, acting and cinematography were amazing, even though the lead lads were 13 or 14 years old. Definitely worth going to see. 5*.