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How not to drive in the UK. A cautionary tale…

When we were in the UK for a month in 2023, Mrs. Koog did all the driving. I will admit, she hit nothing and no one. She got us safely from London to Bath to North Wales to Liverpool and all over Scotland until we turned in our car in Edinburgh. And when we turned in that car, it was pristine. No dings, dents, scratches or bumps. As I have written in the past few entries my trip was magical and healing and all those things trips should be. With one exception, driving. I was nervous when I booked the trip that I would forget to stay to the left and cause an international incident on the M4. Apparently, staying to the left would not be the problem. No, my problem was staying too far to the left. For some reason, I completely lost my depth perception on the left (passenger side). This issue wasn’t a real problem on the motorway as there was a shoulder and every time I’d cross the line I was able to correct immediately. The drive from Heathrow to Conwy, Wales was uneventful until I go...
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Photos from the trip

Here are the photo galleries from the trip. Please click on "Read More" to access clickable links. If there are issues with the links please post a comment and it will come directly to my email. I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoyed capturing them. Eryri: adobe.ly/41nT3xu Aqueduct: adobe.ly/4hGOzrQ London: adobe.ly/3DSCfXy
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Wrexham—>London—>LHR (March 8-14)

Saturday, I woke up in Wrexham in the beautiful Butler’s Flat at Cefn Park under a lovely down comforter. Remember, yesterday I hiked more than 10 miles up and down a mountain. As I went to get out of bed, my body was like “oh, hell no!”. My legs were like jello. After doing the requisite morning things (bathroom and making tea), I practiced some of the stretches my trainer taught me and took some Ibuprofen which did the trick to get my legs moving again. After stretching and a cup of Earl Grey, I FaceTimed my family to give them a virtual tour of my cozy little place. As I showed Mrs. Koog the view of the courtyard and she asked the rather innocuous question, “is that a dent in your car?”. I said no it was probably distortion since the windows of the place were leaded. Mrs. Koog’s question was movie-worthy foreshadowing… Knowing that my body would be sore, I planned today to be a relaxing day; get gas, get food, and wander around Wrexham‘s town center. I was excited to have dinne...
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IAD—>LHR—>Conwy—>Snowdonia—>Wrexham (March 5-7)

After a tough go these past few months, I am off on a short solo trip to find myself again. For some reason, I think I may be lost on a mountain in North Wales. Yes, it is a strange place for someone that hates to fly, has a fear of heights and hasn’t really loved the outdoors for the past say 50 years. I am a very, very, very fearful flyer. This trip was strangely different. Sure, it may be the meds but I had almost no anxiety about the flight. This calmness made me nervous. Poor Mrs. Koog had to listen to my nervous banter about being calm for an entire morning. Is this how normal people travel? I must have asked her this question 100 times in 100 different ways. I may have also asked in Spanish, German and Welsh. Anyway, I got to the airport and was able to use my charm, good looks and credit card to upgrade to first class for a couple hundred bucks. I don’t want to discount my charm and good looks, but it seemed the lady was mostly interested in the credit card. The Virgin At...
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Broken

Hello Koog Fans! It’s been a minute since I’ve posted.Those that actually know me, understand life has thrown a lot at me these past 18 months or so. I think it’s important to be honest about my hiatus, I have been taking care of my mental health. In the span of 18 months, Mrs. Koog had breast cancer and a double mastectomy, I was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, Mrs. Koog endured painful reconstruction, then complications with reconstruction and one final surgery on July 5, then Momma Koog got sick, then Momma Koog got sicker, then Momma Koog moved into our family room, then we had our house turned upside down for hardwood floors upstairs and finally we had a chairlift installed so Momma Koog could have an actual bedroom with an actual bathroom. Oh yeah, I also had a full body blister rash that started in October and was not going away in spite of the dermatologist giving me every frickin cream, gel and lotion known to man. And it itched. And it wasn’t chicken pox or shingles, it...
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Winter-Part 2

When Mrs. Koog got the breast cancer diagnosis, she decided her course of treatment would be double mastectomy with autologous reconstruction. Since they couldn't do the surgery in one procedure due to surgical suite availability for the duration of the ~20 hour surgery, it was done in 2 parts. Double mastectomy and implants for a while then the autologous reconstruction a few months later. While Mrs. Koog looked amazing with her new bubbies, they were aggressive. Like Real Housewives aggressive. That look is really not Mrs. K's jam. Plus, she had many nightmares of puncturing those babies while she did one of her less glamorous chores like chainsawing trees or digging ditches. Suffice it to say, she wanted them out and her own tissue in. The plastic surgeon she sees is amazing. And very handsome. And he looks like he is 14. Anyway, he could not stop admiring his handiwork at every appointment. It was almost creepy...almost. He was very honest about the surgery and the rec...
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Winter-Part 1

It was big. It was long. It was hard. (Get your minds out of the gutter).  Shortly before Christmas, Mrs. Koog got the 1/31 date for the autologous reconstruction surgery. We were warned to get everything done that needed 2 people because as of 1/31 she was out of commission. Strangely, I took this as a challenge. Here's what we (I) decided we needed to accomplish between 1/1 and 1/30: 1. Clean out garage 2. Order huge new television, 5 speaker sound system with only a notional plan on how to hang it in our family room 3. Due to #2, completely rearrange the family room due to both the new TV, speakers and the GINORMUS lift chair we got to assist the Mrs. after surgery 4. Move B-Koog from his current bedroom, where he and E-Koog share a bathroom, to a new bedroom so he has his own bathroom to prevent more violence due to gross bathroom habits (another blog completely) 5. Buy B-Koog new bed since new room will not fit current bed 6. Paint B-Koog's new room and bathroom...
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Gotta Run

It’s been more than two weeks since I’ve last written. The best news is surgery #1 was successful in evicting the cancer. We are so grateful to the surgical team at Georgetown University Lombardi Cancer Clinic/Oursman Breast Center. There are still some unknowns when it comes to treatment and the more extensive surgery #2, but no cancer is a great phrase to hear and write. I should be in a very celebratory mood, right? I’m not. It’s strange this existence I’m inhabiting right now. The things that used to incite joy just don’t anymore. As a matter of fact, I can’t seem to find joy or contentment anywhere. What is wrong with me? Luckily, I do have much more headspace for work, so that’s been a slight change for the better. Before the cancer was out, I worked but really just meandered through the day with limited brain capacity to think about anything other than Mrs. Koog and the “possible but not probable” outcome. But as for my non-work life, I’d describe it as uncomfortable. ...
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