Mind games

Sometimes you just know something's not right.

Last night late, well, an hour later than in UK I watched the rugby. The trouble is that nowadays we have a very, very close association with that Principality and yet, I'm sorry, but I was so pleased with the result. I'd have been pleased whoever was playing as long as them what lost last night lost again.

It still didn't feel right, though. Not enough to feel any sorrow or guilt, it was the right result and had the referee enough courage to go with his first decision it would have been even better. He was French though, so what else would you expect?

It wasn't until crossing the road barefoot in shirt sleeves and shorts to paddle the length of the beach and back that the "wrongness" of it all became clear. I associate the internationals with cold, wet and wind. Every time I've watched them the most important preparations to make have been to fill the coal bucket and stack some wood so that all is ready. Watching last night with a balcony door ajar listening to the gentle wash of water on sand just wasn't right.

Paddling along a beach for an hour or two before another match taking place a few miles east of us in the rain seems very strange indeed. Inevitable result, I guess but another match is about to start and I'm not really bothered about the result as there's drop of white to finish and a bottle of red to open. Opened.

Paddling along the beach late this morning the big Guardia Civil boat came along and began exercising with her rib, a bit of pacing but ever so slowly, then a bit of towing, again not in any haste, but one of the thoughts I had whilst watching was that with weather as nice as this why would you bother employing haste?

I seem to remember doing exercises like that but it was always dark, cold, wet, windy and even when it was daylight it wasn't like this.

The other thought I had was this.

Would I ever cheer for the principality? Could I do it?

I concluded that if the World Cup Final was being played by them against Argentina then I might.

Unless the RFU decided to present the cup to the winners and invited Andy Willman and the Top Gear team to do the presentation. Then I'd root for the Argentines. You'd have to, wouldn't you?

Perhaps they would make commemorative scarves with H982FKL accidentally emblazoned on them.

I bet the scarf makers would earn a fortune.
Probably wouldn't go down too well on the other side of the bridge, though.