![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxe4wXZuUmPekUA_tcHfWLQw9MSJGza1KP2TC5s-Yy9MJYRr-MjQvQp-u8GTokUWCrfa9ZXiDs8NmPJpdicTxng6Zfc8yuyE63fGVcBvpDLo-n46ybdprut0KJoPYb5aRfXlc3vmfB99E/s200/Araby+Berns+Shannon+011.jpg)
I've been visiting my mother in California (Palm Desert, to be exact) and am enjoying my new life doing nothing. I've found I'm really quite good at it - doing nothing, that is. I didn't think I'd be, what with being so busy in my last job, but
not being busy is hardly the challenge I'm used to. Getting off my duff is! So I've taken up hiking. In a big way. 5 times a week. Or so. At 6-8 miles a pop. I consider it training. For Spain. For the 500 miles I've got coming up in May..........