28/04/2024 - 'It's all about Dave' by David

We love our new running buggy!

We've had it for a couple of weeks now, have already completed three parkruns and have been out and about around our area on smaller training runs. I'm starting to trust Alice not to push me out into traffic (or litter bins), and we even used it to go to the chippy this week! It's hard for Alice as the chair and I weigh 80kg and it must be like pushing a big baby around, but she's up for the task and it means we can still get out and do what we love. 

It was largely thanks to a donation from Challenging MND that made this possible. Inspired by British triathlete, Alex Gibson, who was diagnosed in 2018, Challenging MND is a charity set up with the mission to provide financial support and assistance to those living with motor neurone disease, to complete any lasting memorable challenges or experiences.

Whilst the MNDA raises money for much needed research and practical care, Challenging MND sets out to create experiences for sufferers, giving them, their friends, and families lifelong memories that can never be taken away.

They also offer respite for family carers, by paying for professional carers to sit with their loved ones, to allow them to recharge their batteries when things get tough, and resilience is waning.

We have certainly benefitted from the large grant from them and Alice and I are planning to use the buggy at events, races, and of course, parkrun. 

We are running the Bristol 10k in May, and have this week signed up to run the Solent Airport 5k, on the runway - Alice is hoping for a sub-30 on this fast, flat course. 

My good friend Paul held a quiz at the Island Sailing Club in Cowes to raise money for the MNDA and it was fabulous!

He organised it, set the questions, hosted, and got lots of local businesses to donate some amazing prizes including two IOW Festival tickets, two Camp Bestival tickets, a £100 restaurant voucher, and other vouchers for massages, fudge, an animal sanctuary, sunglasses, and a big bag of books from Paul's shop. All the rounds were loosely connected to my likes in life - Derby County, Belgium, Tintin, 2cv, and Scottish guitar pop. Our team 'Its all about Dave' actually won, but it honestly wasn't a fix!

Nearly 100 people took part and a great evening of quizzing was had by all. Paul really did a brilliant job and the event raised over £1,500 which is amazing! 

Poor old Alice had to get the late boat back to the north island after the quiz as she had to work the next day, but I was able to take this opportunity to spend a couple of days with my mum, and we relaxed, ate, drank and laughed as usual. 

I went to watch my old football team Osborne Coburg play in a cup final the next night, and I met up with lots of old players that I haven’t seen for a while.

I played 20 seasons with the club, amassing more than 500 games, and was lucky enough to play in four cup finals, winning twice, and as club captain, I have lifted a cup, which is a great feeling. When you play on council pitches every Saturday, in front of six people and a dog, it's always nice to play in a proper ground with stands, terracing, floodlights, and a good crowd. 

They won and it was nice to see the captain lifting the trophy aloft, as I did so many years ago.

Friday night was boy's night out and we really painted the town...pink (or maybe a fairly insipid, faint red at a push). It was a meet up with old school friends and Dee, Carl, Kev Boss, Bunny, Dazzer, Andy, Alex, Glynner, Clem, Ed, Jez, and we all met up in Southampton for a couple of beers and a curry.

We haven't all been in the same room since about 1982, and we ended up doing what all old friends should do -  recounting and regaling old times. Our relationships with each other as teenagers, has shaped who we are today, and I love them all dearly for what they have done, and continue to do for me.

Saturday is parkrun day and we went to Whiteley this week and we (Alice mostly) got a buggy personal best time of 32:14 followed by coffee and birthday cake for one of our runners Richard, who is 60!

On Saturday night, Alice and I were guests of the Rock Choir that Alice's mum sings in. They were holding a charity concert for three neurological conditions - Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinsons and Motor Neurone Disease, and I was one of many speakers, and was asked to tell the audience my MND story. It was very nice to get some lovely comments afterwards, saying thank you, and that I am an inspiration! 

It was a great evening of singing, informative speeches, heartbreaking stories, and a raffle and auction, and over £3500 was raised for these charities. 

To finish the week, we prepared a buffet lunch for my brother Rich, his wife Vanessa, and their children, Isaac and Erin. They also brought my mum over, which was lovely. 

As a couple married for over 60 years, my parents used to love to travel around Britain and the world. Since my dad's passing, and with her mobility issues after bilateral knee and hip surgery, my mum's world is now her flat for the majority of the week, so to see her leave the island and come and visit was heart warming for me, and very precious to her.

Mum tried out my rollator to see if it would be easier than the stick she currently uses. It's a little weird that a 58 year old man, who ran marathons until quite recently, is discussing the merits of walking sticks and rollators with his 84 year old mum, but life is weird I guess? She loved the rollator and within an hour, we had ordered her one.

My sister and my daughter Rachel, are planning to bring mum over again soon, so that will be lovely. 

Symptom wise, I have noticed that my feet have been swollen and reddened in the last week. A quick Internet search indicates this is a result of a build up of fluid and that I should put my feet up on a stool when sitting, as if I needed an excuse to do just that! I'm also starting to get numb fingers, so I need to keep my hands moving and warm, which is not easy when your arm muscles are saying "no", and the spring still feels like winter! 

I also get an annoying ache in my legs when I'm lying in bed sometimes, but I'd be fibbing if I said it was actually painful, so I still consider myself lucky in some respects when you hear about the pain some people have to endure. 

This may be the last summer I can enjoy with mobility so please can someone order some sunshine for England soon!