Tuesday, September 02, 2008
2nd Sept. Memories and Communication.
Everything on my list of things to do has been crossed off today.
I have described and listed things on EBay.
But above all it has been a day for communicating and for memories.
I have had it on my conscience for weeks....nay months, that I had not been in contact with Bill Dack. Bill is from Northumberland and is somebody we got to know well whilst on our many holidays in Slovenia.
We had lost touch a bit after his wife, Nancy died and he remarried.
But the last we had heard from Bill and Cathy, wife number 2, was that Bill had inoperable lung cancer.
You can see why I was a bit wary about contacting after all this time.
So it was with some relief that I had a long chat with him today.
At first there seemed to be nothing he could do, but his previous working years have stood him in good stead. He worked for the drug company Glaxo. It seems they were promoting a drugs trial on a new combination of chemo drugs. Bill is now on that trial and his last scans have shown that whilst the tumour remains it has grown no larger.
He felt good about this, but he did sound weak and breathless.
We must keep in touch.
Another who has been waiting for some contact was Tony Bolter - in Australia. I don't know this man and Bill can hardly remember him. I really don't recall how Tony found us - but he Emailed about the Cycle Club, Southern Wheelers. Bill was a member of this club.
At last Bill has put together a reply with some photos and copies of pages from Tony Killick's book about the club which mention Tony's prowess. At the time he held the club record for 25 miles in under an hour.
Bill phoned Tony Killick earlier to see if there might be more copies of this book around. But all 480 were sold.
Bill also mentioned to Tony K the name of man who would be visiting us later in the day.
Yes - of course they know each other!
John came to call to collect a book he had bought from me on EBay. When he phoned he asked if by chance Bill had had anything to do with the cycle club.
John was (is) a member of Worthing Excelsior - and yet knew Bill's name.
So when he arrived we put the kettle on and dragged out many more familiar names and memories.
John could also recall Tony Bolter - the one in Australia.
Its suddenly seemed a small world, both in space and time as it all came together in our house for a short while.
Now I will share with you a couple of pictures of Bill in his early cycling days.
This shows Bill on his new Dawes bike. It was taken outside his house in Ginhams Road.
Bill's bikes tended to be touring bikes rather than designed for racing and he reached some distant places by pedal power.
Here he is enjoying a snack above Chesil Beach.
The weather this morning was exceedingly wild wet and windy. By early afternoon the rain had stopped and there were patches of blue sky. I think we might have more of the same tomorrow.
Goodnight.
I have described and listed things on EBay.
But above all it has been a day for communicating and for memories.
I have had it on my conscience for weeks....nay months, that I had not been in contact with Bill Dack. Bill is from Northumberland and is somebody we got to know well whilst on our many holidays in Slovenia.
We had lost touch a bit after his wife, Nancy died and he remarried.
But the last we had heard from Bill and Cathy, wife number 2, was that Bill had inoperable lung cancer.
You can see why I was a bit wary about contacting after all this time.
So it was with some relief that I had a long chat with him today.
At first there seemed to be nothing he could do, but his previous working years have stood him in good stead. He worked for the drug company Glaxo. It seems they were promoting a drugs trial on a new combination of chemo drugs. Bill is now on that trial and his last scans have shown that whilst the tumour remains it has grown no larger.
He felt good about this, but he did sound weak and breathless.
We must keep in touch.
Another who has been waiting for some contact was Tony Bolter - in Australia. I don't know this man and Bill can hardly remember him. I really don't recall how Tony found us - but he Emailed about the Cycle Club, Southern Wheelers. Bill was a member of this club.
At last Bill has put together a reply with some photos and copies of pages from Tony Killick's book about the club which mention Tony's prowess. At the time he held the club record for 25 miles in under an hour.
Bill phoned Tony Killick earlier to see if there might be more copies of this book around. But all 480 were sold.
Bill also mentioned to Tony K the name of man who would be visiting us later in the day.
Yes - of course they know each other!
John came to call to collect a book he had bought from me on EBay. When he phoned he asked if by chance Bill had had anything to do with the cycle club.
John was (is) a member of Worthing Excelsior - and yet knew Bill's name.
So when he arrived we put the kettle on and dragged out many more familiar names and memories.
John could also recall Tony Bolter - the one in Australia.
Its suddenly seemed a small world, both in space and time as it all came together in our house for a short while.
Now I will share with you a couple of pictures of Bill in his early cycling days.
This shows Bill on his new Dawes bike. It was taken outside his house in Ginhams Road.
Bill's bikes tended to be touring bikes rather than designed for racing and he reached some distant places by pedal power.
Here he is enjoying a snack above Chesil Beach.
The weather this morning was exceedingly wild wet and windy. By early afternoon the rain had stopped and there were patches of blue sky. I think we might have more of the same tomorrow.
Goodnight.
