The aches and pains trigger shivers and random nightmares and wanderings to past lives and keep me semi awake all night. In my uncurling and creaking state I laboriously get up like an old bear gnarling at an early wake from hibernation.
An age passes with any task seemingly a frustration and an unravelling of life. I guess I’m putting off the inevitable that I wish to not happen and that is the urban jungle awaits me on this journey and I know my soul lays at ease with anything other.
The usual painful and geriatric acrobatic stretching takes place with this becoming more comical to see. I have to laugh at how I’m deteriorating from the youthful sprite a of a greek god my mind tells me I was just 20 days ago to a Golum-like figure as is now. My mind has a lot to answer for!!! Do I start to listen to people – apparently my friends say I’m “Mental” With a flicker of the eye and twitch of my neck my pondering on this says ” Testibus ad vos!”
Again my set route is quickly telling me if I don’t get off it I’m going to get killed and or cause an accident. This safer option increases the gradients I have to climb and fall. I curse the gods for me not being a person anything other than the average Joe I am. To have a chance of doing this challenge with full back up in all respects as the celebrities do. ( I know I couldn’t have done this without the truly amazing support I’ve had from my girlfriend and of course many others and wish they could all be with me other than in spirit ) Full backup… I mean not for any kudos to me as I couldn’t give a toss about that, but to get more notice, awareness and donations for what could – NOOO!! WOULD help so so many patients. C’est la vie and I look down and plod on.
I drift off and time trickles past and dissolves slowly by with the countryside. Comforting soul warming noises like the whistles of birds, the flowing of streams and the buzz of insects are replaced by the screeching of nearby trains and angry cars. The kaleidoscopic shades of natures greenery that I have become accustomed to is increasingly replaced by man’s own colour schemes all viscerally tugging away at natures own skirt and is trying I feel, to disrobe her.
I make my way through the maze of concrete fields and have no other purpose but to finish and focus on navigating through this labyrinthine jungle as fast as possible.
Within site of finishing I’m rudely awoken from my meanderings by a gang of four of Bradford’s finest young entrepreneurs intent on relieving me of my mobile and wallet. They look all rather youthful and energetic and this annoys me. Youthful or not they weigh in enough for me to have to pay attention to them. My full focus bores down onto two of them who are the keenest to address me all without a greeting and kind or fair offer. My smiles and twinkle seem to unsettle the other two which is obviously to my relief. I realise I’m probably not in the most salubrious of areas and with local knowledge I would of probably taken military-esque precautions. I’m exhausted I’m not to happy about this tiresome turn of events. I pocket said mobile, weigh up my foe, relax, smile and kindly refuse their kind offers to lighten my load. These insults spur on the two chaps to test my resolve and unfortunately for them my steel rarely bends. The two others swiftly declined my invitation to join in and felt to hastily leave their comrades. Loyalty these days!! This is why I miss the ‘Comradeship’ you will only ever find, as in the Army. I’m not a mean guy and I left them to ponder on their actions.
Are the gods telling me something? Tiredness and irritability lead me to think they don’t want me to do this! Glass bottles, flying rocks and now urban visiting devils.
I quickly decide to not bother with the lengthy process of informing the police. I can see there is no surveillance cameras to back me up. I am sure this is also recognised and why choosen by the mischievous skallies.
I make haste to my ‘Box’ ..turn on my box and feel like I’m going out of my box. What box of delights does tomorrow hold.