Caroline Harding

Mud

Gore tex trainers withstood the giant puddle and all the mud!

Company

Had some company on my muddy walk today.

Paws

Morning frost

Sunshine

Beautiful day

Can you spot me?

Police Academy

Feeling tired today so wearing my official Maryland State police academy t shirt to give me that extra push!

Girl's best friend

And these diamonds in the sky were the crown jewels. 😊

Even...

...got cuddles with my fav.

Never has...

...a walk been so needed in the history of needed-walks! And got to see this all lit up too.

Christmas lights

It's pretty to see the lights on my walks now. The tree lights aren't on in Downend just yet though.

Drama

Last time I took part in one of these CGI/MOD sponsored challenges I tried to help save a man's life on the Bristol to Bath cycle path whilst out on a ride. Sadly, he didn't make it and the whole experience was quite traumatic. One of the other people who stopped to help was an ex pupil of the school I used to teach at, although not taught by me. Whilst we couldn't save the man, we were able to help his friend and make sure he wasn't left alone having seen his friend in such a distressing state. This evening, whilst out trying to get my steps up over 10,000, I was on the home straight, engrossed in my tunes and daydreaming as usual. Out of a side turning, I nearly collided with a man who was walking very quickly, with no coat on, which seemed odd given how cold it was.  He was also carrying a Sainsbury's basket as though he thought, 'I'm not paying for a carrier bag,' and just walked out of the shop. It was then I noticed the Sainsbury's employee in the middle of the road, following the man I'd nearly just bumped into. He was talking into the phone and it became clear that the coatless man had been shoplifting and had walked out with a basket full of beer bottles. I stopped for a minute, not sure whether to continue walking because I was now aware there were several people following this man, who was now in front of me. At that moment, the shoplifter grabbed one of the bottles from his basket and held it like a weapon and turned back towards me and marched over to the Sainsbury's employee. I stopped, not sure what to do as I didn't want to leave the man being threatened but I also didn't want to get in the way of the aggressive man. He got really close to the poor Sainsbury's guy, just trying to do his job, and then walked away but back towards me. He turned round and threatened him a couple of times and fortunately, he didn't even seem to see me. I did consider trying to get a photo or video of him but I thought it probably wasn't worth drawing attention to myself, with a man who was effectively carrying multiple weapons. He walked off and I stopped because he was walking in the direction I needed to go to get home and I really didn't want to bump into him again.  It was then I properly noticed the other guys who had also been following him. I hadn't really paid much attention before because I was in front of them. They came over to me, and as they were all dressed in black, with their hoods up, I momentarily wondered if they were with the shoplifter and they now knew that I was a witness.  Once they started talking to me, I knew that this wasn't the case, as they said they had been following him since they saw him in Sainsbury's and he'd been threatening the staff. I just started to speak to say that I'd nearly walked into him when one of the hoodies interrupted me: 'Miss Harding?' he said, 'is that you?'  Two of the three young lads were boys I'd taught in year 6 about 5 or 6 years ago! I can't believe they even recognised me with my bobble hat on!  So, there we were, stood on the corner of the street after witnessing a crime, catching up on old times! One of the boys even now works at the MOD. Just after that, another chap turned up who had called the police and wanted me to tell them what I saw. After speaking to the police, this man told me he was a criminology student with a specialty in counter terrorism so he thought he could have followed the man covertly but he didn't want to put himself in any unnecessary danger and so had turned back towards the pub he was about to go into!!!  So, yet another dramatic story to add to my ever-growing collection. And  I still managed to clock up the 10,000 steps!

Drama

Hail Mary

Slightly mistimed my sunny lunchtime walk to get caught in a hailstorm. However, at least I know my make up, as well as my trainers, is waterproof! 😁 Walk to combat stress, you say?!

Day steps only

Decided not to take a solo night walk tonight after a man tried to get in my car not far from my house. Didn't seem worth risking it this evening so have just logged the steps I've taken throughout the day.

Chilly evening walk

Was hard to motivate myself to leave the house in the cold and dark but it was really fresh and wasn't wet as I'd feared. The tunes on my phone kept me company and my bouncy new trainers are giving me an extra boost. Really enjoyed the walking this evening!

New kicks

Testing out the new waterproofness of my new trainers! So far, so good. The rest of me is soaked!

Beginning

I'm taking part in the 'Step to Combat Stress' challenge!

I'm excited to announce that I will be participating in "Step to Combat Stress," to raise awareness and funds for life-changing mental health treatment for veterans. Throughout the month of November, I will be walking as many steps as possible to support this important cause.

Combat Stress is the UK's leading charity for veterans' mental health. For over a century, they've helped former servicemen and women deal with issues like trauma, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Today, they provide support to veterans from every service and every conflict.

I’m taking vital steps towards ensuring veterans can get the support they need.

Thank you so much for your support.