A little kindness goes a long way.

My English readers (I have been assured I do have some!) will know we've been knee deep in snow the last couple of days, yes, knee deep. For my foreign readers, this enough to bring our fair isle to pretty much a stand still, with schools closing, public transport failing and the nation's population working from home in between building snowmen.

Anyway, as much as this weather and subsequent wind down of normal activity has been disruptive, I have had to carry on with my training. So Sunday lunchtime, I found myself hiking up Surrey's beautiful Box Hill. There was frost, mud, lots of horse poo, hills galore and we found ourselves walking along the hill top as the wind blew the snow, yes more snow, into our faces. We were cold, a bit fed up and tired.

As with the assessment weekend I had a moment of thinking 'this is ridiculous'. Not even the beautiful view could lift my mood from wondering why I was putting myself through this, for the next 5 months!

After finishing our hike, I got the usual sense of accomplishment, and the adrenaline and I rewarded myself with some gorgeous roast chicken that evening (while I'm staying in and saving money good food id my treat of choice :)), so all in all, it wasn't a bad thing. It made me realise I need to touhgen up a bit more and just get on with things.

I am also reminded that this is worth it from the outpouring of interest and care from my friends and family in my preparations. My fundraising is going well, and I'm pleasantly surprised by the kind words and offers of help from people. Perhaps the most surprising thing was when I went for more injections yesterday (Hep B, Hep A and Typhoid) and my nurse, the very same I saw before, remembered me and was interested in finding out more about my trip. She not only recommended vaccinations and health tips which aren't on the Raleigh check list, but, she also gave me my Hep B injection for FREE. FREE! This saved me £36 and was a very lovely gesture as she was impressed that i was doing charity work. She said she would try and help me, as much as she is able to, to get as many injections as possible for free - how good is that!?

I was touched by her support, as well of those of my loved ones, and that's what helps me climb those cold, windy, muddy, snowy hills on Sunday mornings!

Should I be worried?

Below is an excerpt from the form my doctor must sign for me to be able to go on the expedition:

"THE ABOVE NAMED PERSON WILL BE PARTICIPATING IN A RALEIGH EXPEDITION DURING WHICH HE/SHE WILL BE SUBJECT TO BASIC LIVING CONDITIONS, HARSH PHYSICAL AND MENTAL STRESS AS WELL AS EXTREMES OF CLIMATE. THESE DEMANDS WILL INVOLVE BACK PACKING, BEING ABLE TO CARRY WEIGHTS OF UP TO 20KG AND BEING FIT ENOUGH TO TREK IN CONDITIONS WHICH WILL INVOLVE POSSIBLE EXTREME TEMPERATURES, CLIMATES, ALTITUDE CHANGES AND ROUGH TERRAIN. PROJECTS WILL VARY FROM ON THE MOVE TO STATIC PROJECT SITES. THESE WILL PROVIDE VERY BASIC FACILITIES, SUCH AS LONG DROP TOILETS AND PRIMITIVE WASHING FACILITIES, AND THEY WILL BE LIVING UNDER CANVAS OR THE STARS.

THE DIET PROVIDED WILL BE DEHYDRATED FOOD AND FRESH VEGETABLES OR FRUIT WHEN AVAILABLE, THIS BEING COOKED ON OPEN WOOD FIRES. RALEIGH AIMS TO PROVIDE A MEDIC (DOCTOR/NURSE) ON EACH PROJECT SITE TO GIVE IMMEDIATE FIRST AID AND ENSURE HIGH HYGIENE STANDARDS ARE TAUGHT AND MAINTAINED. THE PROJECT SITE CAN BE CONSIDERABLE DISTANCE FROM ANY HOSPITAL BACK UP.

WITH THE ABOVE INFORMATION, IF THERE ARE ANY MATTER OF WHICH YOU FEEL THE MEDIC SHOULD BE AWARE, PLEASE SUPPLY ON A SEPARATE SHEET. IF YOU REQUIRE FURTHER DETAILS PLEASE CONTACT THE MEDICAL CO-COORDINATOR ON ********"

So, basically - I guess that sums up a bit more about what I'll be doing in Borneo!

Not such a pretty penny

So, as the handy list on the right hand side of here says, I am going to need quite a lot of vaccinations before I go away in July. I'm absolutely fine with needles, so I haven't been worried about that, it's just organising them all!

 

As someone who is not a particularly seasoned traveller, I don't really know anything about Malaria tablets, hepatitis jabs and such so I wanted to make sure I considered all factors in my arrangements. Timings, costs, availability, clashes, etc. etc. - to become the human pin cushion is surprisingly not straight forward!

 

This morning I had my annual flu jab, and upon arrival the nurse told me I was due for a booster of my tetanus, diphtheria, and polio. I thought this was great as they were all on my preparation tick list, and turned out to be free, which was a pleasant surprise. After having the jabs and feeling the usual, dull arm ache set in, the nurse talked me through everything I needed to prepare. Undeniably helpful, and very enthusiastic, she helped me prepare a timeline and figure out costs, and I nearly threw up when we figured out my injections will cost me £500!  I suppose one's health is priceless but still, it's enough to put you in mild shock when you're scraping every penny together for your airfare amongst other things.

 

So I'm now bringing in a new fundraising notion 'Sponsor a jab'. If you want something more tangible for you donation, don't give your money straight to Raleigh - sponsor one of my injections. That way, you don't just get the satisfaction of supporting a charitable cause, you're also keeping me happy and healthy :) I'm quite serious about this so, if you DO want to give in a more novel way, let me know.

 

After getting my breath back and figuring out what organs I could donate to fund this, the nurse asked me when I was going and for how long, and then simply said 'planning on losing weight before you go?'. Talk about adding insult to injury! :)