Physical Jerks (who grind you down)!

Following on from a necessary early emergence into the world of the day people, tiredness is creeping up on me but, I strive to regain a sense of alertness. Still, it was worth it to get the doctor’s appointment out of the way.

My beloved chauffeuse, on return home, had a quick turn around before heading off to see Beth. Meanwhile, Cathy is here sorting out a few more belongings to take to her nearby home.

No matter what programme’s on Radio 2 today, it’s inevitable that reference is made to the final test match of the current Ashes series. At least it makes a refreshing change from football talk. It seems such a long time since England had a team that didn’t become a source of embarrassment.

During my childhood there was always a real enthusiasm for cricket, especially in the few years I spent in Yorkshire and, I even found myself getting enthused although, in later years, my games/PE teachers did their best to ensure I would never have any interest in sport.

In my early teens, whilst living in Sunderland, I attended football matches more from a sense of tribal loyalty than any interest in the game. Our school game (at Bede Grammar School) was Rugby, which I never understood despite being thrust in to play hooker, or something like that, in our games period. Rugby wasn’t on the agenda at Thirsk Grammar, where my first year at secondary school was spent and, our bully-boy teachers never took the trouble to explain the rules or purpose of the game when I moved school.

Similarly, these same Loughborough trained thugs, held me under water at the swimming pool … “all our pupils swim”… even though there was no swimming pool near the previous school. That was the beginning of a phobia about walking near water be it stream, river or lake, which lasted until I was in my early thirties.

PE was always a bug bear, puny child that I was, and I used to get “punished” for not being able to do press-ups etc. It wasn’t my choice to be non-athletic, nor to have fascist PE instructors.

Incidentally, school days can be the most hellish of one’s life. Admittedly, a village school which I attended for a couple of years had PE/games lessons that I enjoyed; country dancing was our method of exercise there, much more suited to my temperament and disposition.

In a similar manner to the ignorant PE thugs, on the academic side at the same school my examination phobia went totally un-noticed and, as a result I left this high achieving school with two 'O' levels. By the time I reached the grand old age of 28, I went to University as a mature student and, there they recognized my difficulty at coping with crowded examination halls and, arranged for me to do my exams either alone or with a couple of other phobics. As a result I left there with a very good Upper Second honours degree.

One wonders just how many lives are blighted by the schooling system.