Where I get a new camera, get naked, eat lovely food and am very unwell
My new SLR camera (a Canon EOS 70D) was finally delivered last week after a few phone calls and some worrying, and it seems to be working just fine.
I played with it on Saturday and took some pictures at home.
It wasn't the only new thing last week.
Our friend Christopher is very keen on yoga and naturism: when he can, he attends a naked yoga class for men in London.
A few weeks ago I saw an article about such a class in one of the gay magazines (which these days we read very rarely) and showed it to him when we were invited round for dinner at the week-end. He was rather bemused by it: it was a different naked yoga class to the one he attends, and the article made it sound quite smutty. I thought that there was only one way to find out the 'truth': do some field research!
So on Thursday evening I turned up at an address just off Carnaby Street, took my clothes off and started the class with another 7 pupils, the teacher and his partner.
The room was very hot and crammed. It wasn't long before we were all sweating. I am very happy to report that the magazine article was wrong, and the 75 minutes were all spent doing yoga. I was very surprised at how hard it was - I expected something similar to the pilates classes I attend weekly but this was a very high energy work-out and very challenging for me: I was the largest guy in the class and the least bendy/flexible.
It was quite a liberating experience to exercise with no clothes on and there were some interesting 'views' during the class! LOL! (Not to mention the occasional 'brushing' when the teacher corrected your pose or you were exercising with a partner but no sexual frisson, as our minds and bodies were otherwise challenged!)
On Saturday night we had a lovely dinner at Mike and Alex's home in Streatham. Earlier in the afternoon we went to the nurseries for a cuppa, a slice of cake and we bought an old chimney pot to place in the garden where the tree once was. We'll plant something in it.
The plan for Sunday was familiarising a bit more with my camera but it wasn't meant to happen.
When I got up I has tinnitus in my right ear, which was followed a few hours later by loss of hearing and an unpleasant sensation of having my ear stuffed.
Then the vertigo started and for a couple of hours it was hell. I just couldn't settle as the room was spinning and with my eyes closed was even worse. I kept throwing up.
Adrian was a saint and sat with me through the ordeal, holding up the bucket. I am just so lucky to have him! That's real love.
Now it's back to normal although this attack has left me quite anxious about the future. Oh well, one day at a time.
(I went to the doctor's earlier in the week as my ear felt 'strange' but the GP told me that there was very little wax and should have been OK. It's difficult to be taken seriously about this recurring illness as when it happens I can't see a doctor, and when I manage to see one I feel OK)
I played with it on Saturday and took some pictures at home.
It wasn't the only new thing last week.
Our friend Christopher is very keen on yoga and naturism: when he can, he attends a naked yoga class for men in London.
A few weeks ago I saw an article about such a class in one of the gay magazines (which these days we read very rarely) and showed it to him when we were invited round for dinner at the week-end. He was rather bemused by it: it was a different naked yoga class to the one he attends, and the article made it sound quite smutty. I thought that there was only one way to find out the 'truth': do some field research!
So on Thursday evening I turned up at an address just off Carnaby Street, took my clothes off and started the class with another 7 pupils, the teacher and his partner.
The room was very hot and crammed. It wasn't long before we were all sweating. I am very happy to report that the magazine article was wrong, and the 75 minutes were all spent doing yoga. I was very surprised at how hard it was - I expected something similar to the pilates classes I attend weekly but this was a very high energy work-out and very challenging for me: I was the largest guy in the class and the least bendy/flexible.
It was quite a liberating experience to exercise with no clothes on and there were some interesting 'views' during the class! LOL! (Not to mention the occasional 'brushing' when the teacher corrected your pose or you were exercising with a partner but no sexual frisson, as our minds and bodies were otherwise challenged!)
On Saturday night we had a lovely dinner at Mike and Alex's home in Streatham. Earlier in the afternoon we went to the nurseries for a cuppa, a slice of cake and we bought an old chimney pot to place in the garden where the tree once was. We'll plant something in it.
The plan for Sunday was familiarising a bit more with my camera but it wasn't meant to happen.
When I got up I has tinnitus in my right ear, which was followed a few hours later by loss of hearing and an unpleasant sensation of having my ear stuffed.
Then the vertigo started and for a couple of hours it was hell. I just couldn't settle as the room was spinning and with my eyes closed was even worse. I kept throwing up.
Adrian was a saint and sat with me through the ordeal, holding up the bucket. I am just so lucky to have him! That's real love.
Now it's back to normal although this attack has left me quite anxious about the future. Oh well, one day at a time.
(I went to the doctor's earlier in the week as my ear felt 'strange' but the GP told me that there was very little wax and should have been OK. It's difficult to be taken seriously about this recurring illness as when it happens I can't see a doctor, and when I manage to see one I feel OK)