Remembrance

Last weekend included remembrance Sunday. I watched the various programs over the weekend and was touched by the ones remembering everyone affected by war. It's been said we shouldn't keep having this day and looking back. Nothing I saw glorified war, if anything it should have reminded everyone how pointless war is. We have to remember what happened and work harder to avoid it in the future.

The other programs attempted to show what it was like to have been there. I don't think people realise what it was like. Obviously I don't but I had a connection to both wars. My grandad was in the First World War, my dad was in the Second. He never spoke about it, although I don't remember asking him. It seems as the number of people who lived through it has declined the effort to remember has increased, as it should.

I don't think it's taught in the same as it was, so many today know almost nothing of the two wars. It's too easy not comprehend the incredible suffering they caused. Or any war for that matter.

The picture above is of a church in Godstone. The poppies looked knitted, I'm guessing the locals have created this special centenary display as have others at churches and schools around the country.
There is a war memorial in the grounds with the date of the war on as is usual. Except the dates aren't what you expect. 1914 -1919. When we saw these dates years ago it prompted an internet search. The usual dates of the war and the ones being remembered this year are for the ceasefire, or armistice. The Treaty of Versailles was signed in June 1919, officially ending the war.

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Nikon 1

I didn't go out last Sunday, heavy rain and knowing it would be a solo cycle meant I just couldn't motivate myself.

Matt had been saying that since buying his new bike punctures had no longer been a problem for him. He said it a lot and so it was inevitable that they would eventually strike; last weekend they did. It didn't affect last weekend, the rain saw to that. But this morning's joint ride was lost. Matt had repaired the hole during the week, but either there was another one or the patch hadn't held. I woke to an abort due to puncture text.

It was a grey morning but I wanted to get out. Apart from anything else I wanted to test my "new" camera. When I first started photographing my cycling I used a big DSLR, a Nikon D70. It went everywhere with me. The short local rides and the longer ones to Paris and the South Downs Way. But on one off-road ride I fell off and landed on the bag containing the camera. It was never the same and frequently wouldn't work. I had by then upgraded to a better DSLR, so I wasn't going to take that cycling. I read a few reviews and bought a second hand Nikon Coolpix 8800. I was lead to believe it was a good camera. It was newer than the D70, but classed as a bridge camera. Something between a point and shoot and a DSLR. I must have been spoilt by the D70 because the 8800 just didn't compare. It was incredibly slow, had poor highish ISO performance and frustrated me everytime I used it.

I had a bit of spare cash and started to look around for a "new" camera. A few years ago Nikon released the Nikon 1 series. I guess you could say it was somewhere between a bridge camera and a DSLR. The specs were good and the reviews said picture quality was very good. Maybe a little fiddly to use due to a lack of buttons. Even minor changes require diving into the menu system, rather than a button press or dial movement.

Oh, and it was very expensive, you could have bought a full size DSLR for the same money. And you needed to buy 1 series lenses. It just didn't make sense and Nikon slashed the prices and then discontinued them fairly quickly.

The quick price drop and discontinuation means they are now selling on ebay at a very good price.


My first impressions are good. Yes, having to go into the menu system to make basic changes is a pain. But I think I now have it setup as I need it for most pictures. Everything else about it is great. It's fast to use, and the picture quality is excellent. I am really going to enjoy using it. And I'm sure I will take more pictures as a result.

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joggers

The weather forecast for the weekend wasn't good, and as it drew nearer it looked more and more likely to be a washout.

Then the dreaded abort text from Matt. We don't normally leave our houses if it's raining, being on my own made it a certainty. As I went to sleep the rain was lashing down and the wind was blowing.

I woke up to still air and blue skies. So it was an easy decision to go for a ride. Last weekend Matt and I had thought about Godstone, that's where I headed. Being on my own I knew there would be no stop for tea and cereal bars so I took a longer route than normal, including an extra hil; The Enterdent. The recent wind and rain had dislodged plenty of leaves, it looked nice but made for very slippery conditions. 

High speed descents were out, especially if it included a bend. I stayed out towards the middle of my lane for this reason and also the big puddles could be concealing potholes. It meant other traffic had to think more about their overtaking, but that's never a bad thing.

On the way home I came across some joggers, they ran in a group spread across the road. As I approached they parted and I cycled between them. I guess they have a similar problem to me, drivers giving them little room unless they take control of the road.

As a way to keep fit I prefer cycling; jogging just seems harder work. I think it is classed as a high impact activity. I did run a 10k race many years ago, it was okay, but I wouldn't do it again. When I signed up for it I knew my general fitness would get me through but I'd still need to practise. I didn't do much, I just didn't like it. The run went okay, completed in just over fifty minutes. 

Cycling means I can travel further, and have a rest on the downhill bits. It's definitely for me.

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