Meet Beattie this dude in the sky!

With Winter quickly now upon us the night sky becomes magical. The planets start to do their merry dance intertwined with aeroplanes, satellites, comets, meteors, stars and even our closest galactic neighbour Andromeda 2.2 to 3 million light years away. All this with just the naked eye. 

I am fortunate enough to live in a less densely populated part of Scotland but make no mistake even in the most densely populated of city's a lot can be gained from casting your eyes up to the sky. The international space station for example can be seen from several thousand locations in the world as it traverses the sky at 17,100mph. Jump on this link if you are intrigued http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/.


My primary tool for star gazing used to be a 'planisphere'. This is a little paper star chart with two adjustable discs that rotate across a common pivot, with this little baby you can display the nights sky for any time or date. May I add that I really sucked using the planisphere but just as I began to struggle with not having someone who could confirm if I was right or wrong along came technology to help me. My favourite app is 'Star Walk' for Apple IOS. This app uses the devices GPS, gyroscope and accelerometer to determine your location and as you point it to the night sky you get bombarded with more information than you can take in. From constellations to planets, large satellites and much more!
Thesec days I use them in conjunction with each other on the increasing rare opportunities I get to indulge in star gazing.
Here is the app if anyone is curious.
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/star-walk-5-stars-astronomy/id295430577?mt=8


Named after the big wonderful ball of burning gas turning hydrogen into helium at a rate of 600 million tons every second our solar system is home to the most goldilocks of planets. Of course I am referring to planet earth or mother Gaia if you are a hippy. I find it impossible to look at the night sky on a clear night without getting a little lost in wonder. There is so much unknown yet what mankind has learnt about the universe around us is staggering and beyond  anything that I could have imagined!

I have watched one particular star from afar. Its a good thing to be far away from this nasty piece of work his name is 'Betelgeuse'. We will call him Beattie for short.
Beattie is estimated to be about 640 light years away he is the 9th brightest star in the night sky With its distinct reddish colour and is the second brightest in the constellation Orion. Now what fascinates me about this red dude is his temper. This red 'supergiant' ninja boy is ready to start something. That something is thought to be catastrophic self destruction of himself and anything unlucky enough to be caught in his crossfire!  
Beattie is a youngster, less than 10 million years old he got chucked out of his galactic neighbourhood of his birth place the 'Orion B1 Association'. Now this dude is a Kamikaze pilot on a tear. Beattie has been clocked at mind boggling speeds of 30 km/s, creating a bow shock over 4 light years wide! Now here is his main party trick he could burst into his 'supernova phase'  becoming as bright as a full moon - and last for as long as a year. He could explode as a supernova anytime within the next 100,000 years or may have already done so bearing in mind he is so far away his light takes 640 years to get to Earth.
On average there is one Beattie going supernova per galaxy per century and there is something on the order of 100 billion galaxies in the observable Universe!

To give you an idea of the power of a planet going supernova, if earth was less the 30 light years away from Betelgeuse we would all be saying our goodbyes when it exhausts its fuel and puts on it's show!

You can meet beattie any clear night with your naked eye. He is spreading his photons of  light ready to give their energy up to the rods and cones of your retina if you would just look at him.

I enjoy pondering mankind's place in the universe and when searching for answers I love Neil degrasse Tyson's perspective. "We are star stuff"

This winter I urge you to look up to the sky and ask questions!

If you got this far please do yourself a favour and click on the link below!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QADMMmU6ab8

Namaste
Peter

Rugby: It’s not just a game

Before I begin this next piece I want to sincerely thank everyone for the kind words for the blog's I have written so far and for taking the time to read them. The response really has meant the world to me. And another thing please share this with any and all rugby boys and girls, I am deliberately leaving this one pictureless to encourage you guys to post up any photo's, any hidden gems of our time together.

This a couple of week removed from the historic Victory of the British and Irish Lions against Australia.

As the team and vindicated head coach Warren Gatland correctly bask in the knowledge that they made the right decisions over the length of the tour. I could not help but ponder what Rugby meant to me and those directly affected by my participation in this wonderful sport. Reading my Facebook feed has been interesting over the past few weeks. It has been full of people so full of vitriol and passion about all aspects of the Lions tour of course the main point of debate was the exclusion of Brian O’Driscoll from the final Lions Game. The part I found most interesting was that no one had any idea what physical condition the players were in, no one had watched them train to objectively say who was in better form or who worked better as a unit yet there was no shortage of people who mistook their opinions as fact. What I write here are my opinions and experiences. I do not mean to offend anyone by what I write or who I omit to thank there simply are not enough hours in the day for me to write everything I experienced but with that being said here's a glimpse of my life with rugby.

I began playing rugby quite late on aged 14 at my school in Belfast, Wellington College. My first real exposure was a tournament for schools that did not have a recent history in Rugby. Led by Dorian Roberts ‘DO RO’ our P.E teacher. DO RO was an inspiration to me and encouraged me to take up both rugby and athletics. When he taught anything ranging from badminton, hockey, nutrition and rugby he did so with so much passion and enthusiasm that it was clear he cared about what he did and because of his example I nearly followed him into the same profession. If anyone knows how is that man?

Back to rugby we competed in a single day tournament at Cook rugby club where we eventually finished second. I had no idea about the rules of the game, I remember giving away 2 penalties for holding on to the ball after I had been tackled, I didn't know the points system, offside was a mystery, passing backwards?? this was a strange sport! However you got to run as fast as you wanted all you had to do was avoid people bringing you down! My friends that sounded like a blast!
Looking back it was a scary free for all. I barely knew how to tackle, the sum of my rugby knowledge was what my friend Andrew McMurray had told me..... he had mentioned something called a side step which to this day I think of as a thing of beauty, the art misdirection from a distance. He also talked about a team called the 'All blacks' who were amazing?! I heard the 'All blacks' were from New Zealand and was shocked to find white players on the team....... I had a lot to learn about rugby.

Rugby exploded further into my consciousness largely due to the 1995 Rugby world cup. So many themes and stories played out it what was an incredible tournament. The player of the tournament for most observers and certainly myself was Jonah Lomu. For me at that age this man was everything a rugby player should be, big, strong, fast with good awareness and good ball skills. His four tries against England which included his running over of Mike Catt will forever be etched in my brain.

The other big theme was the history of rugby and apartheid in South Africa. It is weird for me to think that only a year earlier in 1994 I would not have been able to share a seat on a bus with most people reading this blog. When South Africa prevailed against the mighty 'All blacks' with the 'unstoppable' Lomu on the Left wing, I watched the joy on Nelson Mandela's face in that green jumper with the flying springbok over his heart. I remember thinking of Chester Williams the only black player in the South African team for the 1995 world cup and all the black people of South Africa and hoping this victory would be a catalyst for healing the many wounds that were still fresh.

If you are interested in the history of apartheid, slavery and other forms of racial segregation unfortunately so much material exists. One of the finest books on this topic is the autobiography of Nelson Mandela called 'Long walk to freedom' published by Little Brown and Co. The book describes Nelson's early years, his education, his 27 years in prison and the effect of the sanctions imposed by a changing world including a ban of the South African rugby team which contributed to changing South Africa forever. If you want more of a rugby focus the aforementioned Chester Williams and Francois Pienaar both have biographies that  will talk you through rugby life and much more.

I was so hungry for information about rugby in those first few years. Remember this was pre internet days and at home we just had the 4 and eventually 5 channels. When I scraped together enough cash from my paper round I would buy the occasional magazine and read it from page to page over and over again. When I recorded a match on VHS again I would watch it incessantly until it was usually warped from pausing and rewinding such was my immersive approach to this new and exciting sport to me.

At under 16 level myself and about 6 guys from the same school joined Cook rugby club. If memory serves me right we were competitive but didn't set the world on fire. I continued to play for the school rugby team and made the 1st 15 my following year. Wellington College's rugby team was made up of some very talented rugby players that included Neil Best who went on to play for Ulster and Ireland at flanker, Nail McCordick who represented Ulster and Ireland at under 18 level, Jamie Glover who was represented Ulster at rugby and was an international over 400m in athletics. Many more excellent club players were in our numbers but as a team we were average at best. We put it some spirited performances but really were a mishmash of guys with too many of us still grappling with the most basic fundamentals of the sport in my opinion.

Soccer was my first love, My mum has stories of my acrobatics in her womb and the joy I derived by exhausting the adults with football at every opportunity. This was right from the moment I could walk10 months or so into my life. Following my exposure to rugby my interest in Soccer gradually dwindled until it fizzled out completely. I do have some thoughts on football but perhaps that's another tale.

A bunch of my friends decided to move to Ballynahinch rugby at u16 level and I went along for the ride an incredible ride it was too, championships and trophy's, helter skelter journeys in dodgy vehicles, playing & drinking trips to watch Ireland at what used to be the 5 nation's. Memory's like a try against Malone rfc where Jamie Glover ran the breadth of the pitch to create an overlap, his support was vital and I got the glory but I learnt how to be a better player from his example. Before i get too soft i also remember in the same game being close lined WWF wrestling style.

I had a major ankle injury aged 17 that derailed my dreams, I had been cross training in athletics specialising in sprinting and the triple jump. I had just competed in a Celtic games where I had run a new PB in the 100m 10.84secs. Breaking the magical 11 second barrier was massive for me like every young athlete you have dreams and aspirations. My dreams where how I was gonna have to negotiate with whichever rugby team signed me to allow me to still sprint this was surely the way I would make my living!

I had a few wilderness years recovering from my ankle injury, i spent a lot of time on crutches which where a really good upper body workout and also did weight training semi-seriously for the first time so a few years later when i made my first tentative steps back I was a very different player and human being. For one thing I could never take my health for granted anymore.

University rugby with Queen Margaret university was alcohol fuelled and a mixed bag....... we got thumped every time we played 15's however we had one of the biggest highs winning a 7's tournament in Salou.

Rugby league came later, I joined  Edinburgh eagles, got into the Scottish Amateurs & Students system and finally was with Gateshead thunder. I experienced amazing things playing rugby league. Never have 2 sports that are so similar be so different. I feel I can say that because I have watched and played a lot of both games. I can also say I see beauty in both games and those who champion one over the other are really missing the point, they are both to be enjoyed .
Notable experiences where the all conquering Edinburgh Eagles championships, the Germany and Italy tour with Scottish Students which as a by ended in victory and finally the honour to be payed to play with Gateshead Thunder. I can't omit that the time I spent at Thunder was not our finest, we has so many agonising close defeats we also had routs against us! Victory's were celebrated wildly because they were rare. The incredible spirit of the supporters despite our performances and the community they built is amazing.

The rugby community and culture is awesome. You automatically make friends when you are involved in a rugby team, you develop a sense of humour very quickly when you play rugby, the banter and ribbing is very well known and documented however the networking side isn’t. By the time you get to senior rugby you are faced with a group of people with a diverse knowledge and experience base who you can call upon for advice or help. It really is an amazing aspect of rugby, to this day my world view is much richer for my exposure to the people I have met through rugby.

The drinking culture within rugby is terrifying. We know that in the UK alone 3 people will kill themselves every week with alcohol poisoning. If you include the long term effects of alcohol the situation is even more frightening. 8,790 people died in the UK in 2010 from alcohol related causes, this is by no means a benevolent drug.

I am no saint here by the way, I bevvied like everyone else back in the day. The social side of rugby can be amazing, putting the world at rights over a few cold pints of Guinness chased down by a whisky or five is awesome. So are cheeky vimto’s and Smirnoff Ice bottles downed with a straw for added air displacement in a few second’s. To me that also constitutes a fascinating way to spend your time!

The post match challenges and drinking games, the super Sunday sessions, the bonding, the hilarious alcohol fuelled antics, the tours, the tournaments, the characters, the culture, the history, the friendship, the love......Rugby enabled me to travel all around europe with various teams, others have used rugby to travel the world.

I had the honour of tutelage from excellent rugby coaches. This is by no means an exhaustive list but names like Latimer Adair, Ian Paxton, Sean Lineen, Paul Fletcher. All had different ways of teaching and perhaps it is linked to the different stages as you transition from junior to senior rugby but my favourite time learning about rugby was under Latimer Adair. This man was a PE teacher at Ballynahinch High and he taught the basics so well. How to tackle emphasising head position, demonstrating switch moves and why they work, playing with depth, how to throw a spin pass..... the list goes on. Although you are exposed to the whole game the skills you have to learn are positionally selected. Latimer did this but integrated the whole team together in a unique way full of fun and enthusiasm. I definitely value good technical coaching over good old fashion physical 'beastings', common in rugby clubs, of course there is a time and place for tough physicality I like to think that players should take responsibility for their own physical condition and the precious time together used to sharpen up skills and strategies.

Every position in rugby tends to attract certain characters. I liken props to wizened old london cabbies who famously learn 'the knowledge' which is an encyclopedic knowledge of London's streets... Don't believe me go a local rugby club and ask to take part in scrummaging training naturally with you in the front row!
Want to meet a hard worker meet a good flanker. My friend Darryl Seawright had this incredible ability to hit what seemed like every ruck and maul, in rugby league 'demon' would make 90% of the team tackles himself but it was never just fitness it was also excellent technique that allowed them to remain safe and the ability to read the game meant they were inevitably in the right place at the right time.

Excellent friends and training partner's like Euan Clipston helped me throughout my rugby career. Interesting story about Euan and I is that we bought a house together and on the title deeds there was some toing and froing between Solicitors about this fictitious gay couple with surnames with Oshag and Clitson. Oshag was correct Clitson wasn't. Funny what a little typo will do!  
Jamie 'the ginger lover' Glover, Darryl Seawright, Ramin Mathieson All of whom are better than me at rugby in one form or another and Pretty Kenny, oh Ken!, aka High beef or Ken Lowham..... now if ever there was a man who should have been in a boyband it is Ken this man should never have played rugby he was always too pretty someone throw a photo up for the world to see!

Sometimes a team mate has a skill they understand so well that everyone falls for it, the David Cantley side step for example, distribution of a rugby ball is a real skill, picking out the right player in the right space with that perfectly timed perfectly weighted pass Shane Sloan as a junior must have been one of the best in the world amazing kicker too. Steve Bissett in rugby league also had that gift, Steve was incidentally also a cross code rugby player but i never saw him play union.

The final team I played rugby for was Boroughmuir RFC. I played with some world class players many of whom went on to and some continue to have pro contracts, International careers and even a Lion in our midst. In my time at the club Boroughmuir was extremely successful. In one year the team won an unprecedented 1st 2nd and 3rd 15 championship's. I suffered many injuries later on in my career, I remember playing with niggles all the time. Along injury induced breaks from rugby I rekindled mountain biking as a way of keeping fit without weight bearing. Spending long periods on a bike can be exhilarating exhausting or introspective giving you time to think about your physical future.

I had many reasons to keep playing rugby but ultimately I decided to give it up. I thought I would play in the odd 7's tournament or touch rugby but quickly knew that would not enough for me. The injuries played a big part in my decision to illustrate i have listed a few bellow.

Injuries: Which included scaphoid fractures in both my wrists, a dislocated shoulder, fracture dislocation of my ankle, rib fractures, torn ligaments in both ankles, torn quadriceps and hamstring muscles. Of course you have the usual cuts bruises, raking (when caught on the wrong side of a breakdown the opposition players take great delight in informing you of your error by using their studs to remove you from the 'play of the ball'). The final indignity of being raked is that despite bleeding stud marks across your back or legs you usually also end up giving away a penalty!

Other factors that came into play for me where my career as a Radiographer working funny shifts.
Another was the semi pro culture with a complete lack of transparency in what was supposed to be an amateur level at my last club. People who are helped financially good for them but lets be open about it. I played with Gateshead thunder rugby league and the honestly and openness regarding pay was refreshingly apparent. Yes people were paid different amounts but everyone who played was paid. No one who steps onto a rugby pitch has less physically to lose than anyone else. Yes people’s ability differ greatly but if you pay one person on the team in my opinion it is incumbent upon you to pay the whole team. At the very least you have to be transparent about the pay structure within the club, give people incentives, give them the opportunity to also get paid. It should never be a closed book every player should be valued.

I was unable to play rugby just for fun....... I associated rugby with a pursuit of excellence and could not abide to know I risked serious injury just for fun. When I was training hard and actively looking at all aspects of the game to get better at I found rugby very fulfilling. When I stopped actively trying to get better at rugby, I found playing the game lost its spark. I felt like I had bashed my body about pretty hard for quite a long time and also began to think about my future and what sort of physical condition I wanted to be in. Time for me to cash in my chips. The sign off.... Incidentally for those still fighting the good fight good on you hope your body is holding up...... its not? still love playing the game? Try yoga to help.

Quitting rugby was losing much more than a game, I lost some of my identity, lost some of the friendships, the community and the competition. The cliche regarding sport is that Iron sharpens Iron I now know that to be true in my life. If there is one lesson I learnt from rugby it is to surround yourself with people that inspire you and always make sure you contribute to the group cause.

It's been an amazing few weeks for British sport. Andy Murray with his nail biting triumph, Chris Froome winning the 100th edition of the Tour de France supported by a decimated team and Mickleson's triumph at the OPEN. We can identify in some however small a way because most people have taken a swing at a golf ball at some point or ridden a bicycle. As a spectacle its fantastic but beyond that the power for that sport to inspire people to have healthier lives is pretty amazing. I could babble on but I won't.

Ultimately I have no regrets. I have too many people to thank for the many experiences I have had within rugby. If I could go back to the 14 year old Peter I would advise him to drink less, stretch more and be a good example to others. I give myself the same advice today.

Much love as always
Pete

Loss

Five years my older brother Solomon died suddenly while working in the United States of America. He lived a life worth living.

Death will have touched most of the people reading this is some way In your lifetime. It strikes me as odd that it is a topic that is not raised more in general conversation. Loosing Sol changed my outlook on life forever.

Let me tell you a little bit about my brother Solomon.

Sol and I in Bradford England back in 1985

Some of you will have excellent recall of the first few years of your life. I don't! I have fleeting memories from approximately age 4 but even then I'm not sure if it's stories that I have been told by the adults who were present at the time or genuine memories. So despite having approximately 100 billion neurons which in turn make over 100 trillion synaptic connections memories still somehow manage to fade to such a point that it is impossible for me to honestly say I remember things particularly if I have also been told the story by someone else............ but I digress. I knew my brother as someone who always did what he was passionate about. What impressed me most however was the sacrifices he was willing to make, his lack of procrastination and the way he immersed himself into every endeavour.

I'm finding this blog rather difficult to write, I guess it was never going to be any other way. My thought process is rather scattered I have so many stories but also to my shock so much about Solomon's life that I knew little or nothing about until he passed away. Another difficulty is not to adulate Sol unduly which is difficult when in 31 short years he touched so many people myself included but I will try.

My formative years were spent in Belfast Norn Iron. My eldest sibling is my sister Ruth smart, organised loving and responsible beyond her years. I told my sister that if my daughter grows up to be as balanced and beautiful a human being as my she is I will be a very happy father. Ruth was like a second mum in many ways, there are 6 years between Ruth and I, growing up she did so much for me a memorable example was Ruth taking me to the train station to get to Larne harbour to meet up with the under 15 Northern Ireland squad to compete in a national event. Athletics meant everything to me at that time and I can't remember why but my parents couldn't take me to the ferry terminal so Ruth stepped up and if I remember correctly paid for my bus and train tickets. To this day I appreciate her sacrifice that enabled me to have that experience and get that shiny medal.

Solomon came next. 4 year gap between Solomon and I. Where academically I was your average B and C student Sol was your straight A's guy. Where I was a hyper, gregarious probably an annoying kid Sol took a more measured approach on life. Where we were similar Sol and I both actively sought experiences. Sol travelled extensively both recreationally and with his IT job, he also had many hobbies which I shall elaborate on later.  

Sol's health was not always the best. He suffered from a condition called Sickle cell anaemia. Now some of you may have learnt about this condition but I'll tell you what I know about how it manifested itself. Sickle cell anaemia really only affects people who's recent ancestry is from an area where the risk of contracting malaria is high. Incidentally malaria kills about 1.2 million people every year with Africa being the most affected continent.

A little about the condition. Sickle cell is a hereditary blood disorder characterised by red blood cells instead of being round and cylindrical take on a rigid abnormal sickle like shape. This greatly reduces the red blood cells flexibility resulting in a risk for many complications. People who have this single mutation in the haemoglobin gene are said to have a sickle cell trait. Sickle cell trait offers a certain level of immunity to malaria for patients with this trait. They don't display as severe symptoms to malaria as those who do not have the trait which when you look at the statistics is clearly a big advantage. The trouble happens when two people with sickle cell trait mate like my mum and Dad. Their children in this case Ruth, Sol, Femi and I all had a 1 in 4 chance of inheriting a pair of this mutated haemoglobin gene and like a perfect science experiment that proves the hypothesis Sol got Sickle cell anaemia.

Ruth, Sol, Michelle and Femi

Sol had many sickle cell crisis attacks.Although there are things such as infection that are known to increase prevalence there was often no warning or predisposing factor when Sol would suffer an attack. The sickled red blood cells would cause obstructions in capillaries leading to organs causing pain, necrosis and ultimately organ damage. These episodes would last varying amounts of time from a day or two to a couple of weeks of intolerable pain. How he managed to smile to people while hooked up to blood transfusion bags and opiates will always be a wonder to me. I remember how utterly helpless I felt to take away the pain, only the strongest opiates would help mask the pain of the crises episodes Solomon had and that was after the medical team in Belfast had sought advice from colleagues in Birmingham from memory where due to the larger ethnic minority population this was a much better known condition.

Make no mistake however Sol did NOT let his condition affect the life he chose to live. 

His loves included and this is not an exhaustive list:

Salsa....... I knew Sol did a bit of Salsa but had no idea the level of proficiency he reached. After Sol's passing I got to meet many of his friends and dancing partners. I was shocked at how well known, well liked and respected Sol was in the Salsa dancing community not just in Ireland but everywhere in the world he danced. I speak for myself and my whole family when I say we were blown away by the response from the Salsa community. The many letters of condolence as well as stories that gave me a glimpse into this part of Sol that I knew little about have all been massively appreciated. A reoccurring story was how much Sol would help people who were new to Salsa or struggling to get a particular step another was that Sol regularly danced 'on 2'........... I still don't really know what that means but sounds just like the complexity Sol would seek out. 

Dj costa del sol was my brothers DJ persona again I knew nothing about this.

I remember Sol would sometimes sing along to some songs in Spanish what i didn't know was that he went ahead and learnt Spanish gaining at least one formal qualification. I knew nothing about this either.

Sol achieved a Gold standard accreditation from the institute of advanced motorists. I didn't even know he was that interested in driving. I always thought I was the petrol head in the family.

Now I will talk about things I knew a little more about. From a young age Sol was interested in computer technology. Remember that this was very much in it's infancy as far as access and development but Sol with his dedication, patience, single mindedness and hard study got a first class honour's degree from Queens University Belfast in computer science. More than any job he did or accolade he received I remember his passion for technology, It was so infective!

Sol was there for me so many times an example of him going way out of his way was when he turned up to my graduation from university in 2003 when no one else in the family could. Sol flying over to Edinburgh at his own expense typifies the man. 

As an Uncle to my sisters children, his niece Michelle and nephew Tyrese Sol once again set the standard for being involved in their lives. I hope I am painting a picture of a man who gave and gave freely to everyone he met. It will therefore be no surprise to hear that I asked Sol to be the best man at my wedding, his untimely passing happened not long before the wedding. You were very much missed Sol. 

Femi is the youngest in the family. The 'best man' at my wife and I's wedding this young man stepped up to the plate at short notice following Sol's passing and made me very proud.

Sol and Femi Dec 2005 in Ney Jersey

The Femster developed Sol's love for IT. I regularly call upon him for help for example following catastrophic failure of my laptop, what took me 3 days, too many cups of coffee and excessive use of 'google' to figure out but not solve he was able to diagnose and solve in a couple of hours!

Femi has an ongoing achilles tendon rupture with lots of complications so feel free to send your love and healing tentacles his way.

Following Sol passing I remember the difficult conversations I had with people who were unsure what to say. Interestingly I learn't such a valuable lesson. The lesson is that very little is the right thing to say in that situation but similarly very little is the wrong thing to say either. Go ahead and say anything the recipient will understand that its difficult for everyone involved and from my experience massively appreciated. Every card, phone call, hug all helped the grieving process.

To me Sol lived a remarkable life the impact of which resonates with me more today than ever before. Eventually I realised that anything is possible. When you see the efforts pay off particularly when the example is set by one of your own siblings who shares genetic make up as close as is possible with the exception of mono zygotic twins, you run out of excuses. When you see the dignity and courage with with Sol managed sickle cell disease you cannot help but be humbled and when I hear of the relationships he had with just about everyone he met it inspires me to be a better person.

If you can read this where you are bro first of all sorry I know you will find this very embarrassing, you never courted praise but you have given me an important gift. The gift is to appreciate people more, to seize each day and to find a way to do the things that I love and for that I will be forever grateful.

With Love as always

Peter

Getting moving

2 years ago a friend of mine made a decision that changed the way I think about my world. His alacrity set into action a series of events that inspired me to achieve one of the wildest dreams I ever thought possible. On the second of October 2011 I ran a Marathon. That's not all, In doing so I rekindled friendships that mean everything to me, I lost a ton of weight, gained a bunch of confidence and changed how I look at limits.


A little history on the famous 26.2 miles or 42.195 kilometres for our American, African and Antipodean friends!
The Marathon was one of the original Olympic events in 1896. The name marathon comes from the legend of Phedippides. The legend states that he was sent from the battlefields of Marathon to Athens to announce that the Persians had been defeated in the Battle of Marathon (in which he had just fought). It is said that he ran the entire distance without stopping and burst into the assembly, exclaiming "νενικηκαμεν’ (nenikekamen)", ("We wοn"), before collapsing and dying!

There is debate on the historical accuracy of the legend with regards to the distance run varying between 22 and 25 miles for example.
When the modern Olympics began in 1896, the initiators and organizers were looking for a great popularizing event, recalling the ancient glory of Greece. They chose the Marathon!

Back to my Inspiration.................................. Wait for it!.....................







The man in the spotlight is Steven  aka Smid aka Smitty aka Smiffter Smith.

After much deliberation Steve was the natural first choice. Not only did he inspire me to run the 2011 Loch Ness Marathon, he also wrote a blog about it!


When the Smiffter informed me he was planning to run the 10th anniversary of the Loch Ness marathon I thought it was one of his usual grand ideas that had little chance of coming to fruition. Here's the thing about Smid..... This is a man who has done a million things. He is also a man who has planned to do 3 million things. To describe Smid as unreliable is missing the point entirely. Allow me to elaborate by example.

On a school night about a year back Steve invited Lee Peyton,   Gary and Laura Mackay, Steve and Cat Still, and finally Vicky and I to celebrate the opening of one of his friends restaurants. What a lovely thing to do you would say, provide business in those first few uncertain days of a business, meet your friends that you have not seen for a while together. Yes I definitely agreed this was worth doing. I guess we all did because at the agreed time we were at the agreed car park by the restaurant. Well actually all but one person was present and when we arrived at the car park it was then that the story really unfolded. You guessed it the missing person was Smid!

With that image firmly in your mind you can understand my doubts about this Marathon running nonsense. If my memory serves me right which it often doesn't It was late January when Steve first broached the subject. I paid lip service and offered to do a few training runs with him. However On the 8th of March 2011 Steve started his blog.
 http://steve0704.blogspot.co.uk/2011/03/day-1-motivation-diet-and-kit.html?spref=fb

Suddenly this became serious! Steve was committing to the world that he was going to run a Marathon! Steve! Really!!! I soon found out that Steve Still had decided to run the same Marathon! In short order Garry Mackay, Jamie Glover and Lee Peyton followed. I couldn't be left out surely...........Would there ever be a better opportunity?

The idea of running a marathon has always petrified me. I viewed it as a strange form of sadomasochism that should be reserved for a select few. On reflection I was right about the sadomasochism part but wrong about the select few. Somewhere deep down I have always dreamed about running a marathon. Beyond that I wanted to experience everything about running a marathon and carry that experience around with me like a computer game character with a power-up!
Looking at people who had run a Marathon I knew that on at least one occasion they had demonstrated real strength of character. What I came to learn is that the big day, actually running the Marathon is just the tip of the iceberg.

I had lots of excuses ready to stop the annoying inner dialogue that I had with myself. I kept thinking I can't possibly commit to something that could ruin my health. I have a meniscus injury to my right knee which I sustained about 7 years ago playing rugby. This injury had deteriorated to the point that I got a surgical opinion where I was advised that my knee was bad enough to warrant surgical intervention the alternative was  to work intensively on physiotherapy of my knee to support it better which if it failed I could always return for surgery. I view surgery as a last resort and therefore took the latter approach but even with a physiotherapist as a wife I lacked discipline in carrying out my rehab exercises. I was sporadic to say the least working diligently for a couple of days sometimes feeling better and at other times completely ignoring the knee for weeks. Oh as an aside don't ever ask a Physio for help if they have already prescribed your rehab and you are not doing it religiously!
Other excuses were also at hand. I weighed almost 18 stones at the time far too heavy, 'I am a sprinter we don't run long distances', I am a new dad with a full time job and long commute I don't have the time.... The list goes on! There was just no way I could do this. I had long decided running a marathon was just one of those things I admired in other people but would never achieve.

The marathon is a distance where you are guaranteed discomfort almost regardless of physical condition. For me it started with my very first run. In February 2011  I ran for approximately 2 miles with my dog and it took a couple of days for me to recover from it. Ominously my knee creaked and hurt its way around that jog! I realised that to even support Steve on his runs I had to get in better shape. I still was not committed at this point!

A conversation with my wife changed all that. I kept talking to Vicky about how amazing it was that Steve was going to run a Marathon, she could tell how much of an impact his commitment had on me and said a sentence that is carved into my mind forever and I quote "Why don't you do it too? We always say that we want Mia (our daughter and only child at the time) to grow up believing she can do anything she puts her mind to why don't you?"
I committed to running the Marathon around April time with the Marathon date set for the second of October. 7 month's really felt like entirely not enough time and again doubts crept in. Fortunately I was advised by a work colleague Joe Dampier who was also planning on running her first Marathon about a website by the shoe company Asics that creates a Marathon running plan complete with predicted times. The site sends you a daily email for encouragement and if you plot in your training run times it gives you advice! Suddenly I had a plan and hardened my resolve to stick to it without excuses!

By committing to confront this fear of mine I had immediate and encouraging results, I naturally had to look at my nutrition I had not always been 18 stone in weight and remembered running being easier! I wasn't very strict with my diet rewarding myself with rich meals and a lot of it following my training runs but I still saw gradual improvement.
Rehab of knee still not perfect but a hell of a lot better than it had been in a long time consistency really is the take home lesson from that experience. With Injuries you may never make a full recovery but you will never know how much better it could feel if you have not first been consistent in your rehabilitation exercises


There were a few notable training runs where we got together for general banter, encouragement and the exchange of ideas. Gary Steve and I went on one such run Steve does a great job of capturing the day in his blog here
http://steve0704.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/turning-point.html
The abbreviated story is that we went on a mazy 9 mile run through woods, coastal paths and cobbled streets and steep hills all this and taking in a misty view of the firth of forth. The banter was amazing until Gary and Steve have the occasional football conversation a topic which I'm afraid I know very little about.
Mrs Mackay made amazing bacon rolls which was much appreciated by hungry mouths!

Along the way I had setbacks by far the most serious was a strained Achilles tendon which really affected my training but it's funny how differently you look at injuries when you have a goal you are completely committed to.

In training I learned many valuable lessons on nutrition often times the hard way. Electrolytes was one of these lessons. I went on a 8ish mile run on a rare hot day with a camel back with just water. By the last mile I was almost hallucinating and the cramp oh the cramp!

Another boost was Vicky running with me. We would go on my shorter weekend runs together often with me pushing my daughter in her buggy. The company and confidence those runs gave me were invaluable, over a few months Vicky who was still breastfeeding at the time got into awesome shape and ran the Dunfermline half Marathon. An incredible achievement!

Steve Still and I went on a 18 and 1/2 mile run which for me marked the longest run I did in preparation. A few hundred metres from my house is a disused railway line that runs from Dunfermline to Aloa. This was the core of the route we took. Relatively flat with a few extra hills thrown in early to make things interesting. That run was tough going and certainly a long time to be running. So long in fact that at one point a call of nature had to be answered. Urinating outside is common defecating however requires much more planning. First things first seclusion gratefully provided for much of the route we ran. Second comes a look out, lets not frighten people now and finally but arguably most importantly tissues! Experience has taught me to keep a pack of sealed wipes in my camel back for long runs just in case!
Good company, good run, feel ready!

Final preparation involved meeting Jamie Glover at Edinburgh Airport and travelling to Inverness. In Classic  Steve Smith style Vicky drove Jamie and I to his friends restaurant for a 'big' carbo loading meal the disappointment on portion size was palpable but that was the least of my worries the Restaurant was a 60 mile round trip along country roads with a tired 1 year old the night before the Marathon!

The big day itself I look back upon as a bit of a blur. The organisers sent us off in a convoy of buses but along narrow country roads this was slow going. Now picture the scene hundreds of runners who are hydrating as best as possible stuck on buses that grind to a halt. It was not long until overwhelming bladder pressure caused a mini revolt and the doors of the buses were swung open to allow people to attend to natures call. Easy for men, not so easy for women to do this with modesty intact.
Start of the race graced with light rain for added highland authenticity, hare's upfront snails out back and we are off! Got by the first half marathon faster than I had ever run a half Marathon 2hrs 10ish then came the hills. Gradual at first then tough around mile 18, ridiculous around mile 21! The Loch Ness Marathon whilst being on of the most scenic Marathons in the UK is also one of the hilliest! Cramp, dry salty sweat on your face, foot discomfort, shoulder discomfort, cold, hot and all manner of emotion were the order of the day but its funny the two things I remember most are pride and appreciation. Appreciation to everyone who played a part in helping me achieve one of my biggest dreams. 5:21:13 was my time slow but nearly 40 mins quicker than my predicted time.

Needless to say the partying after the Marathon was pretty special I certainly made a good stab of consuming as many calories as I had expended running not to mention the cold beers for rehydration naturally!
I was so crazy with joy after I ran the marathon that I was nearly ropped into running a 'short' ultra marathon only a few weeks later ......... What was it you said Mr Mackay something like "its loads of time, go on a couple of short runs to ease the legs off and with this marathon in the bank knocking out a few more miles will be easy"..........I somehow avoided that and It was close!

All too soon it was over and we were driving back home to Fife.

Friends like you matter Steve. If you are this man's friend keep him around he's one in a million. Exercise caution and extreme prejudice to most of his ideas....... I warn you he is a quick witted, charming and persuasive young man so you might falter. If you do find yourself in one of his spiders webs I can only wish you Luck!
This isn't a ruse to get everyone running marathons or becoming Steve's friend but really to look around you at the examples being set around you every day. Choose to emulate them! Do something that is positive challenge yourself.... You might just enjoy it!
A huge take away from this experience for me was just because something is hard does not mean it won't be worth it.
Ok lets go and get older and wiser like grasshopper, be like grasshopper!

With Love and all that good stuff
Peter

The joy of being inspired!


Allow me to set the scene of what this blog is all about....... Firstly it feels a rather random act to be doing this but I hope as I write it becomes obvious why.

Like many of you I have always felt the need to have a creative outlet which enhances the experience of day to day existence. I am constantly Inspired by so many people I know Who have done this and other expressions of themselves. It is often easy to put something off (insert excuse....time,energy e.t.c) but experience has taught me to commit and act. I have therefore committed to writing which is something I have always enjoyed but writing about myself directly is new, scary and exciting.

 I say with certainty that every one of you is better than me at something which means I can learn from you. The reverse of course therefore must be true.

When I meet people who are passionate about certain things but in particular things that are positive for the body, the mind and the soul if you believe you have one, I am often left with new information that has the potential to alter in however small or big a way, the way I look at the world around me.

I am passionate about a few things but to summarise I am on a quest to become a better human being. Sounds like a rather grandiose proposition like some feudal knight from the 1300's I agree and requires me to give a definition of a what I feel a better human being is. So let me try..... Call me unimaginative but happiness that weird word with its all encompassing power is my goal. Just about all of my happiest moments have been directly due to the actions of many of the people that I hope take the time to read these blogs that I am committing to write.

This monthly blog will begin with a bit of an overview of my forever 'work in progress' views on how my brain works in understanding this rather amazing experience we all call life.

I have many many flaws! I don't propose to have any answers to the topics I intend to raise in this series of blogs but merely to give you an insight into 'how' but also importantly, why I think the way I do about them. I get things wrong all the time! I trust many will have differing views to me and I am always keen to learn more. Many will have well considered views on topics that may be diametrically opposed to mine and to me that is fine often a different perspective casts extra light on an issue.

I try to live by a certain maxim. The maxim is to look at issues through as many angles as possible (metaphorically walk in another man's moccasins).  I do this by listening to different points of view from the best sources I can find. Wherever possible I will always credit the person who has given me a new perspective on a particular topic or even a whole new way of thinking. Another thing that I now seem to get is just how valuable time is. There are so many opportunities that you need to seize so I want to try to maximise this commodity that you can never get back.

In practice valuing time means that I want as much of my time to be happy and stimulating as is possible. The time I spend with my family comprising of my loving supportive wife Vicky, a 2 and a half year old daughter Mia, a 3 week old son Otis and 3 year old boxer Nala is my priority. No matter what else is going on in my life my main job in life is to create as healthy, supportive, relaxed and happy atmosphere as I possibly can by my actions and what I choose to focus on every day.
Time spent at work and my hobbies is therefore very important, I want to maximise whatever opportunity to learn which as I will explain later I find to be closely linked to teaching and having a good time.

An example of this change in emphasis and the way I use my time is the daily commute which I am sure is the same for many people. I used to listen to the radio, to a combination of songs only some of which I liked and news only some of which I believed, contributing to my resentment at the fact that I spent so much time travelling to work. In rush hour traffic it takes around 1hr and 20mins to get to work. Of course that is just the average time and this time could vary greatly dependent on the amount of traffic and weather conditions we get in Scotland.
I wasted a lot of mental energy being upset at loosing almost 3 hours every day sitting in a relatively bad posture driving ageing cars that could be kinder to the planet and resented it. I now look at things in a different way. A rather unexpected bonus of a long commute means that if you are moderately IT literate there are a plethora of podcasts and audio books on almost every conceivable topic that you might be interested in. For me I pop my headphones into my phone or car radio and I am educated by such diverse personalities as Dan Carlin the expert story teller on his series called hardcore histories, Joe Rogan who swings from Martial arts to comedy, altered states of conciousness and philosophy, Jim Alkalili's the Life Scientific. Jim a theoretical physicist himself interviews accomplished scientist's such as James Lovelock and David Nutt about what made them passionate enough to dedicate their lives in the pursuit of knowledge. Beyond using the previously dead time more productively making it more enjoyable I also choose to appreciate that we can afford the cars we have rather than being disappointed that I cant afford a nicer one. It is little changes in focus like this that I love because they do a magical thing. You have the same physical experience but your response to that stimuli gives you a different mental experience that brings me back to where I started and happiness.

Not all changes can be overcome so easily by technology nor do all things that are positive come easy. Exercise and nutrition are excellent examples of behaviour that I know to have a hugely positive outcome but is not always easy to follow. In 2013 most of us are aware of what is healthy and what isn't. I am not here to preach to anyone but rather to encourage experimentation with your body this wonderful vehicle which carries you around every day responding to our every whim. When I am healthy and 'in shape' I have more energy to do the many things that make living a wonderful experience therefore I invest time and energy in looking at what works for me, my priorities my goals and learning from the past.

Other topics that I hope to expand on are
Martial arts and sports as development tools of human potential
Religion past present and future
The Mongol Khans and the Wrath they unleashed
Education
Politics
Science...... From photon's or radiation and bacteria to planets and Galaxy's
Life philosophy
This is not an exhaustive list and as you can tell I regularly go off on bizarre tangents. I do not claim to be an authority on any of these topics but merely try to ask the right questions from people who are.

To clarify I love everyone. If I cause any offence it is unintentional. My attempt is as much a snapshot for myself and of what I feel to be pivotal moments that establish my thoughts on the world as a 32 year old. In everything in life there is always greater understanding to be learnt. I am a different Peter Oshagbemi today than I was 10 years ago and I am working towards being a better version of myself in every way that matters to me every day through knowledge from whatever source I can find it and action. In the word's of the 9th Century philosopher Al-Kindi "It is fitting for us not to be ashamed of acknowledging truth and to assimilate it from whatever source it comes to us.There is nothing of higher value than truth itself. It never cheapens or abases he who seeks"

Ok I feel like I have taken up quite enough of your time for the moment and you now have fair warning! I intend to punctuate these blogs with experiences that I have been through with the people who have inspired me in a positive way. If you are reading this and DON'T want to be mentioned under any circumstance please message me and I will respect your privacy. I will endeavour to contact anyone I reference before hand especially if I perceive the topic to be fairly personal.

I have fears and financial worries of an uncertain future just like everyone else with mountainous highs and deep lows. This blog is one of the ways I try  to make sense of it.

Right bases covered, proud to have started this journey and curious as to where it leads me. Which leaves me to bid you farewell for now, Namaste, Oss, praise Odin and all that good stuff. Peace and love!

Peter, aka Shaggy, aka Benga aka Bengabus!