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 |  This is my blog & my hope, writing daily will help me see my progress and log supporters. |
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| I am on a mission to get healthy. I woke up, had breakfast, drank my first coffee in days and hit the pool. I added a few laps of breaststroke at the end of each set of freestyle laps. I wonder when the Australian crawl was renamed freestyle? There's an iconic Australian band from the 80s called 'Australian Crawl'. They didn't change their name despite the World Swimming Council deciding that our stroke was no longer exclusively ours and instead, was free for any country to master. I have a memory like an elephant, but I have to commit that event or what was said to me to my 'I'm interested' pigeonhole for it to be recalled. Tell me your name and a minute later it is gone...unless you are a pretty girl who I am interested in or someone remarkable or, if it is someone whose name I need to remember, I can commit them and will never forget. I have always believed that it is easier to lie with the spoken word than it is with the written word. I know this makes no sense because of physical giveaways like eye and body movements, sweating etc. And I don't mean that is something that happens overnight. But if you write to someone and they write back over an extended period, there are these telltale giveaways that I notice. Of course, it isn't something that can easily be proven...it's more of a gut-feeling thing...but I digress... Names elude me so I employ word association...this morning after my swim, a lady came to the pool and I said hello. Her name is Addell, and everyone knows Addell, the British singer-songwriter. She is also British, so her name is easy to remember. Her partner is called Poon...so I used Poon Tang as my word association for him. Poon plays touch rugby every Saturday afternoon at a beach not far from the apartments where we live. I asked if I could tag along and follow them on my bike...my first ride. She agreed and at 4.00 pm, we set off. I followed them and luckily for me, they needed fuel, and so did I. We arrived at the beach and I spent an hour meeting and talking to expats, then made my own way back. I stopped at the restaurant where yesterday I met the Aussie guy (Owen...no word association needed because he was remarkable) and ordered Pad Thai. After I finished eating, I paid my bill and decided to ride some more. I followed the same route to the beach and back, then stopped at the 7-Eleven to grab a few things. I knew the way back to my apartment but accidentally rode past. A bit further down the road I attempted a U-turn but ran out of road. The bike's seat height is still too tall for me, and being such a big bike it is hard to reverse. So, there I was, in complete darkness and in the middle of what felt like nowhere when the bike began to teeter to one side and toppled to the ground. I was stationary at the time and luckily, there was no damage, not even a scratch. But, the bike weighs in at 549lbs (I had just filled the 30-litre tank and I had a load of groceries in the panniers. There was no way I was going to be able to pick it up and after one attempt, my heart sank. Then, far off down the road, I spotted a single headlight coming my way. I was so relieved when the rider stopped and got off his bike to help me. Thinking he must be a Thai, I thought together we should be able to lift the bike back upright. Then, as he got closer I asked, "You speak English?" He replied in an American accent, "I sure do." I cannot begin to describe how I felt at that moment. Tears are in my eyes as I write this. This guy, who was no bigger than me, came over, kinda pushed me aside and lifted my bike up all by himself. I was amazed. He showed me (for future reference) the technique he had acquired from years of riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles. His name is Daniel and that is a name I will never forget...he came out of the darkness and saved my ass and for that, I was so grateful. But, God does work in mysterious ways. It turns out that Daniel, who was tonight on a scooter, has a Harley he bought being delivered next week. I asked if he had any friends he would be riding with and he said no. I immediately asked if we could go for a ride sometime, and he agreed. He just happened to be returning from doing a workout at a local gym...and I am looking for a gym. He knows the area well and offered to meet at 11.00 am tomorrow when he would show me around the area. Tonight, I met my Guardian Angel. His name is Daniel and came to my rescue and offered me friendship, in a place where I have no friends. Don't tell me this was a chance meeting...it was fate. Daniel doesn't drink or smoke, and I could tell straight away that he and I would get along. We will have much to talk about. He is 64 and I was born in 64. I got home and went for a swim and introduced myself to my neighbours on both sides. I also went and introduced myself to the security guard who sits out the front of our apartment block all night to protect us. What a day...what a dream life I am living. I am blessed and I will not forget my promise to my mother before she died to do something worthwhile with my life before I join her...and that's exactly what I intend to do. |
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