Cycle complete!
At an internet Café with 15 mins left so better make this brief! Reason I'm at an internet café is because the screen of my lovely Sony Xperia broke in a fall about 5 days ago, and that (coupled with the crazy remoteness of Westland New Zealand) has meant that this is the 1st time I've had any internet use in 7 days! That should have been expected, but anyway :)
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I think it's only fair to publicly recognise the hospitality and generosity of this great couple Ross and Margaret. They've taken me in for the past 4 days while I'm in windy Wellington recovering from this knee injury, and in exchange I've kept the dishwasher empty! Looks like I shall be with them for another 2 days as I continue with physio and then I'll be on the bike again all going well.
Bad news first is that unfortunately the last few days has taken its toll on my left knee which is inflamed and is going to require a minimum of 3 or 4 days rest off the bike. I blame several large hills between taupo and napier on highway 5. If any of ye have been there you'll know what I mean! Would appreciate your prayers for that.
Good news is I'm a few days ahead of schedule, I've checked into a hostel in lovely Wellington, and have time to catch up on reading and relaxing a bit! so not all bad! :) Yesterday I decided to do something I didn't feel comfortable doing and don't think most people would do so either. I knew the weather was going to be rubbish during the night so instead of finding a wild camping spot for the night to set up my tent (and getting drenched), I said I would ask and see if someone would let me sleep in their shed. The way I thought about it was All they can do is say no. It won't hurt to ask and if they do then that's perfectly fine. I mean who would expect a total stranger on a bicycle to come up and ask if they could sleep in their shed. I'm sure it's the last thing I would ever expect in Ireland!
Anyway I saw a sign for a side road off the main road called "Kingston Road", "Sure when I'm half Kingston I wonder is there any relations up here?" I said to myself. With that mindset I strolled up this road and chanced the first house I came upon. It turned out to be a farmhouse, another good sign. Knocked on the door and a woman answered it, so I explained what I was doing and asked if I could use one of the sheds. She said "Oh no, don't do that. come in altogether we've got a spare room you can use. My husband will be in from milking the cows soon." So that's how I met Patrice and Brian a truly lovely welcoming couple who fed me loads of mashed spuds and lamb, discussing their Irish heritage. Not a Kingston one but an Irish one nonetheless. Brian was a big fan of rugby so we spent the rest of the evening watching a match on the telly and talking about Irelands world cup prospects. Afterwards I hit the hay or moreso a comfy double bed. "So much better than the tent!" I told them. As humans we constantly fear rejection. Whether it's asking for a job, asking someone for a favour, or even asking a girl out! We constantly dwell on the "what if they say no" kind of thinking. And for the most part we usually have nothing to lose from asking. So like the Nike motto says "just do it!" I tell you, it will make you a stronger person for doing it. And if you do get rejected you'll learn something new that you never would have learnt of if you had never asked. Even if it's as ridiculous as my scenario the truth is, when you put a smile on, most people will genuinely want to help you out. So if you've learnt nothing else from this story remember one thing... 99% of people always want to help out, you just got to be brave and ask. Absolutely bucketed all day on the road leaving Napier today. After 5 hours I took refuge in this random shelter in the middle of nowhere important. It stopped the rain alright but didn't stop the swirling wind from getting inside... brrrr! Searched my whole bag for one dry shirt, and a semidry spare jumper. Then ate some lunch which consisted of 2 tins of tuna, 8 slices of bread, some banana chips an apple and some penny sweets. I try to keep my diet... varied let's say!
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The AuthorName: Daniel Ross Top Tips:
1. Constantly challenge yourself. 2. If you never try you'll never know what's possible. Archives
October 2016
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