Day 138. I had absolutely no intent to write you a post today as I finalised my paperwork and paid my legal bill for the purchase of the flat before setting about stripping wallpaper which James had made such a good go of last night as I cooked. We are lucky in that it pulls off of the wall really easily, so delivers quite a perverse satisfaction in ripping it off the wall. James was managing to remove some quite enormous pieces running into the kitchen to show me how clever he had been. It was great to see a 12 year old high school pupil still in touch with the mischievous wee boy who made us laugh so.
But talking of laughing as I litter picked around the ponds this morning I giggled as I bumped into a pair of old friends. A few months ago I changed my ring tone on my mobile from the old fashioned ring to one of ducks quacking. Nearly Everybody seemed to have the old fashioned ring and with only one ear working I can’t tell where a noise, any noise, was coming from. So each time a mobile rang I was frantically searching through my pockets looking for my phone thinking it was mine ringing. I could hear it so it had to be close by but rarely was it my phone. This made the children laugh outrageously as they knew where the ring was coming from and couldn’t quite understand the route of my confusion. So the only option was to change my ring tone and as the quacking ducks were so ridiculous I thought that they had to be a safe bet. Sure enough I am yet to hear of another phone with quacking ducks. So this morning as I walked through the ponds I was surprised to hear the quacking of ducks. Who could it be phoning me at 0700hrs in the morning as I searched frantically through the pockets of my jacket looking for my phone. I searched and searched in case it was an emergency and eventually came across my phone in my trouser pocket. I took it out and tried to answer it wondering why it wasn’t vibrating and it was only on realising that there was no button on the screen to press to answer it that I suddenly realised, that it wasn’t my phone ringing. It was ducks quacking!! I looked up and sure enough, stood in front of me wagging their tails with a look of expectation on their faces was Daphne and Roderick. Two Mallard ducks that appear to have mated for life and used to come to the house every day to be fed. Heather, James and I used to sit on the step and feed them by hand as they grew tamer and with their new names given to them by Heather became bolder. Perhaps they recognised me and were quacking with excited anticipation of some more food. Or maybe they were just quacking and it was just lucky coincidence that we had bumped into each other but as I stood there phone in hand looking at the pair of them I smiled. Then I laughed and strode home, with a full shopping bag of litter in hand, hungry and ready for breakfast.
After breakfast was morning prayer and some more organ practice. I had noticed that I appeared to be struggling more with tunes that I had previously learned so needed to spend time reinforcing lessons learned, rather than trying to rush onto another new tune. I am no expert on brain reconstructive training, but my previous experience in training tells me that to succeed in learning any new skill, one has to master the basics and learn to walk before running. I was trying to prepare my healthy left side of the brain to take over the cognitive and motor functions from the diseased right side of the brain by using cognitive and motor function intensive skills such as learning to play the pipe organ, learning to play Golf, learning to play cricket et al . But to be successful I have to catch the brain when the right side is struggling, when I am feeling cognitively slow, off balance and weak and then force the brain to find a way to coordinate with the body to achieve the task I was trying to set it. I was loosing the ability to play tunes I had already learnt, was feeling a little sluggish so said my prayers and got on the organ. Pulled all the stops out and tried very hard to improve my playing. It was slow, repetitive and not in the least bit attractive to listen to but slowly but surely, bar by bar I started to get the brain to function and managed to play a couple of half decent tunes. So that was another part that was building a great start to the day.
Back home I jumped on the computer to start to do some planning for some challenge activity over the next few days and then my phone vibrated and then again and then again. I looked at the email traffic. These were facebook messages coming in. I was slightly concerned as to how my previous post had gone down and then how my apology would go down. I was hoping that it would be accepted. I was never expecting this!:
Archie you are so strong. My lack of response after reading your last post is not due to disapproval of what you said. Far from it. You gave us such a lot to mull over. You are challenging us in so many good ways. I needed the weekend to think it all through. Bet others did too. Will be in touch soon x
Don’t apologize, life’s been somewhat shitty recently, of course you need to vent and to stamp your feet. Letting it out is far better than stoically holding it in. You are beating the beast ultimately for yourself, I have zero criticism of that, and a..
You are so strong Archie and such an inspiration. You go through so much to help others and the challenge. Don’t feel frustrated – what you are doing is amazing and from acorns grow mighty oaks. Lots of love xxxx
Dear Archie, Like others my silence was because I was trying to decide what could be done – perhaps write to Prince Harry (failure, I woudn’t know where to write…. !)…..
then I read this morning’ s posts and the answer came to me: yes, your challenge is about raising awareness and money for wonderful causes, but it is also about the inspiration you provide for others. No amount of money will solve the world’s ills, but personal courage and kindness just might go somewhere towards it.
Ahh Archie , you have every entitlement to have a moan , I’m so sorry I haven’t said anything it’s been a busy week end husbands birthday and our wedding anniversary so non stop !
I think I can say for most, if not all , of your followers , that we are. in awe of what you are doing , under what , at times , must be unimaginably hard circumstances , you are an inspiration and show all of us the way forward , in short we love what you do and care about what happens to you ! Bless you xx
moan away, you make me feel so proud of you, I am humbled to be so lucky that I have you as my brother xxx
Wow – thank you all so very much. Your support and encouragement has further strengthened my resolve to keep me going and as I got out there I found so very much more encouragement.
On the way to the bus for the gym I had a little time so I popped into the new Willow’s Deli in Doune to say hello again. Before I had left, the wonderfully warm and generous couple from Leeds have offered to make their 1940’s themed tea on the 10th May a fundraising tea with any profits from the tea coming to the challenge. Awesome, a brilliant idea and a fantastic offer. For which I thank you both so very much.
Then I was on the bus and walking up to the gym in bright sunshine but with a bightingly cold wind I was pleased to be in the gym and doing an upper body session. There was a good number of senior high school students on a study period in the gym but plenty of room, so on I cracked. 1 mile up hill on the bike to start the warm up then 800metres rowed into the wind before setting up a little situp mat, weights bench, and 5kg dumbbells. Then I was straight into the circuit. 3 overarm pull ups first before 18 good quality press ups and 18 sit ups with the arms locked across the chest to force the stomach muscles to do the work and so the circuit continued with 18 repetitions of each exercise with the 5kg dumbbells:
As I completed the final 3 exercises my gentle grunts and exhalation to try and force the last bit of energy into the arms became more and more pronounced. I was tired but as I exercised I tried to do some Maths. To force the brain to function when it was tired. I started with the old favourite of the 7 times table backwards from 100 but quickly moved across to the problem of how I expressed the amount of effort expended today in numbers for the challenge in numbers.
So if I did 12 exercises with 2 x 5 kg dumbbells with each exercise being sustained for 18 repetitions on each arm and with each exercise involving the moving of the said weight .5 metre surely therefore I can express my achievement in the gym as follows:
12 (exercises) x 18 (repetitions) = 216 movements of 0.5 metre therefore
216 movements divided by 0.5 metre = 108 metres.
With 2 x 5kg dumbbells therefore 10kgs in weight shifted for each repetition.
Therefore today I have lifted and pushed 10kgs over 108 metres
OR
If I have moved 10 kgs a distance of 0.5 metres 216 times I will have moved:
10kgs x 216 (repetitions) = 2,160kgs moved over 0.5 metre.
While doing 3 x 18 = 54 press ups and equivalents
And 8 x 18 = 144 abdominal exercises.
I was quite impressed with my mental arithmetic while under physical duress and put it all down to my breakfast random number mental arithmetic tests I used to run with the children at breakfast every morning during Primary School. However I am sure that there will be a far more impressive way to illustrate the physical achievement so invite you to try!
Once I had finished and stretched off really thoroughly I cleaned down the equipment, packed it away and went for a shower. As I walked back down to the town for the bus I bumped into James heading out to the all weather pitch for a game of football over lunchtime and rather than running a mile he very nearly hugged me, but caught himself in time as some senior pupils were sat behind where we stood and gave me a high five to the side instead. It was a touching moment that saw me walk down to the Deli Ecosse for a celebratory egg salad sandwich, Mocha and a flapjack with a smile. The guys were really busy so no time for hugging. Lin (Julie’s Mum) took, or rather correctly guessed my order and asked me to take a seat in the corner. The Mocha arrived on a tray laden with food of all types and as it did so the lovely couple next to me joined in my surprise as Debbie hurriedly reassured me that only the Mocha was for me! She hurried on to serve the remainder of the food elsewhere so I turned to Rhoda Reid from Aberdeen and Les Brown from Edinburgh to introduce them to the challenge. I reached for a flyer for each of them and asked them to pour a glass of wine and watch a video when they get home. I was so glad that I did so because they took great delight in trying to assist me on my way and then they took even greater delight in what happened next. Julie snuck up behind me and gave me a quick hug so I jumped up and gave her one back. Then Debbie came with my flapjack and asked for a hug too before Lin (Julie’s Mum) came up with my sandwich and informed me that Julie had ordered her to give me a hug! I threw my arms up with an exclamation of hooray joined in by half the customers from what I could gather and gave Lin a great big hug. That was three in a row and then as Rhoda and Les got up to leave I stood to say goodbye and before I knew it got a hug from Rhoda as well!! It was clearly catching all this hugging but I had to leave to catch the bus and as I did so suggested to Julie that perhaps we could hold a fundraising hugathon. 1 pound a hug!!!!
I missed the bus sadly so went for a little walk up the Main Street and as the snow started to drift in with the wind and the temperature dropped further I decided to seek some shelter in the ice cream shop but before I got there I bumped into a couple I had met previously today who were also in Callander on holiday and as we stood and chatted with the snow flurrying in around us I introduced them too to the challenge. I had no flyers left in my pocket but they left with it written down and a reassurance that they would look me up too. Thank you Derek and Linn for stopping to talk to me again and then giving me the time, and listening with smiles on your faces while the snow flurry stung our cheeks.
Eventually I was on the bus home but after such a flurry of activity and wonderful messages I fell asleep on the bus and woke as we were leaving Doune. The next stop was a mile away but I spoke kindly to the driver and he pulled over and let me off. What a great guy. Thank you and as I walked back to the flat I did so full of thanks for all the wonderful people I have met and all the amazing friendships I have made that have given me all the inspiration and encouragement I needed when I needed it most. As I walked I decided that there was only really one way to say thank you and that is with this little thank you I wrote originally for a friend made on the early days of the challenge and who had been such a strong anchor for me as you all have been for me this day:
‘Thank you so very much a million times over. I have a friend who would pay me a thousand camels for a friendship like that which you give to me. It is your support and encouragement along with perfectly timed messages that help to keep me on the true path of the challenge. Even when times are at their hardest and I have felt like throwing in the towel you have been there to encourage me forward. Thank you for being the best friend that I think I have ever had, for coming to me and putting your faith in me, for staying by me when I needed a friend like you more than ever I had before. Thank you; for together we are achieving so very much and have so very much more to achieve.
And then some ideas popped into my head for more fundraising ideas. Although I am not a charity I am an unincorporated Charitable Association through which every penny raised goes to the five charities so perhaps I could be the destination for your shops 5p carrier bag charge if you have a shop. One shop in Doune is already doing this. Or perhaps you could have a collection tin for me on your counter as another shop in Doune has done for me. I will happily provide a small counter top flyer for sitting by the tin. Or perhaps your Church could consider making the challenge the destination for any funds raised through their routine coffee donations et al. There are a million and one ways in which one could raise some funds for the challenge and certainly it would be wonderful if it could be done without any significant effort by any of you in so doing. I do not want the challenge to be a burden on you in any way. Equally I would happily come and talk at your church or school or club or association on any subject whose theme you see running through the challenge. I could either charge a fee for the challenge or I could ask for a retiring collection. Or if any of you are members of the rotary or military associations or other such similar, perhaps your branch could consider supporting the challenge in their fund raising efforts. There are a million and one ways in which it could be done but please try and do it through already existing structures. I really do not wish to be a root cause for unnecessary additional work and do not need to be. In those ideas above there is significant potential in the sum total of many, many small donations from such sources. Just whatever you would like to or think appropriate to do.
Thank you
Now it’s time to cook a leek, courgette and tomato cream source with Pasta for tea but before I do the Challenge in number since the start:
Days completed: 138
Total Miles Cycled: 659
Total Miles Walked: 698
Total Miles Run: 48.5
Total Miles Paddled: 7
Total Distance Cycled, Skied, Ran and Rowed in the gym: 29.9
Total Distance Swum: 2,740 metres
Total Miles covered under own steam.1,439.1
Total Height Gained under own steam: 35,681 feet
Mountains Climbed: 5
Hills Climbed: 20
Days of Voluntary Activity: 8.5
Organ tunes learnt and performed: 5
Salmon Caught: 0!
Bats Found:0!
Curling Matches played in: 8
Curling stones placed on the button (the centre of the target): 3
Weight Training Sessions: 11
Weight shifted: 10kgs lifted over 210metres or 4200kgs moved over ½ a metre,
Aerobic Circuit Sessions: 7
Press Ups: 452
Pull Ups: 85
Sit Ups: 627
People Met and Hands Shaken: 400
Pots of tea shared: 29
Prayers joined on the top of a hill: 2
Prayers joined in the street!: 4
Prayers joined in a Train Station: 1
Prayers joined in a Café: 1
Pills popped: 788
Days until Driving Licence (lost to epilepsy) possibly Returned: 657
And most important of all – Money Raised as at Day 126 – £6,710.77
Considering I started this challenge 6 months ago very quietly with no target beyond a fiver, thanks to the brilliant advice from a friend of mine, I am absolutely thrilled and again thank you all. That is £53.26 for each and every day that I have managed to find the will and energy to do something worthwhile and my goodness it has been worth it for my peace of mind, for my healing and for the five wonderful charities you are supporting through your generosity. Long may it continue. May I also ask however that if you are not sponsoring me to please consider it for as much or as little as you can afford. My rate of revenue raising has slowed from £70.00 a day to £60.00 a day to £53.26 a day so please sponsor me and encourage your friends to as well.
Thank you all for your incredible comments and support. Please continue to spread the word.
If you see me around do please give a cheery hello and shake my hand or toot your horn and give a cheery wave to show your support and encourage me on.
Thank you for joining me on my own personal journey and encouraging me to walk, cycle, climb, paddle, sport and do good deeds each day to ‘Beat the Beast’ while helping to improve the lives and life chances of so many more people through sponsorship. The Five Charities that I have selected to support are:
- Cancer Research UK – My Father Succumbed to Lung Cancer; a couple of friends are currently fighting cancer and I am fighting a brain tumour. Let’s Help to Beat Cancer Sooner.
- The Prince’s Trust – Inspiring and preparing disadvantaged Young Lives for success.
- British Red Cross – helping those in need around the UK and the world whoever and wherever they are.
- World Wide Fund for Nature – For a Living Planet and a Future Where People and Nature Thrive.
- Help for Heroes – Support for our Wounded and their Families. To learn more about my story that brought me to this point, how I plan to ‘Beat the Beast’, what activities I plan to do within the challenge and why, please see my welcome video on this page.
How to Sponsor Me
The Beat the Beast Challenge is self funding through my own contribution while keeping costs to a minimum with voluntary support and corporate sponsorship in kind. Therefore the entirety of every penny donated will go directly to the 5 charities listed above.
Please sponsor me by completing a standing order form either through your own personal internet banking or by completing a hard copy standing order form in your branch of your bank and then handing it in to the teller.
It is entirely up to you how much you would like to and are able to sponsor me for so do please give as much or as little as you can. Every penny will be very gratefully received.
While I hope you will encourage me to keep going by sponsoring me for every day I survive and am able to find the cognitive and physical capability to complete a day’s task designed to improve my chances of ‘Beating the Beast’ or improving the lives of others, 5 days a week, four weeks a month, for as long as ever I can. Any One off Cash contributions will be most gratefully received and distributed in exactly the same manner to the five charities as the sponsorship. Any one off donations can be made by BACS or cheque.
Thank you for having enough faith in me to sponsor me.
Yours aye
Archie