A beautiful mind

Back in the saddle today at last! I had the morning off work at least, and took full advantage of the great weather, heading south and over the North Downs hills before turning west and heading past Dorking, back over the North Downs, and back into London. Today was the best weather I've had all year and it was a such a nice change riding in semi-warm conditions.



Also with the help of my wife, (it was fiddly) I'd finally fitted a new pair of Specialized SPD shoes and what a difference it makes being able to pull up on the pedal stroke. Especially up hills. I'd ridden with them before years ago but forgotten how much extra power you can get, and they should also help reduce the chances of tendon problems as well.

So it was 109km today and the my first triple figures ride for 3 weeks. I'll aim for a longer midweek ride before work one morning if it stays this warm. The target for this months is 1000km and that's going to be frankly bloody hard. Lost 2 weeks with work.

Last night my wife and I watched an excellent film: A Beautiful Mind If you haven't seen it, stop reading this now as I'm about to spoil it!

The movie is about a brilliant mathematician who struggles to cope in social situations and who slowly spirals downhill with hallucinations from schizophrenia. The great thing about this film is that it touches on a taboo subject that Hollywood films don't normally dare go near - at least not from the first persons perspective. Whilst in true Hollywood style its far from being factually accurate, and the main characters experiences are probably far less frightening than what many may experience - its enough to get your attention and enough to think about how tough it could be both for the person with an illness and those close to them, trying to understand whats going on.




John Forbes Nash whom the film is based on, was also very fortunate to have opportunities in life that many people with a mental illness don't get, and so this also was something of a feel good film.

But watch it, its beautifully done - Russell Crowe totally surprised me with his portrayal of schizophrenia, and the point of the film is a good one. I was very moved.