For however long it’s been available and despite all of my past experience – Anchor has passed me by. It’s a podcast/recording tool that can be accessed via Spotify, which, if you’re not bothered by adverts is FREE.
And it’s linked to WordPress in some way or another.
I’ve just used it to distribute two (fairly) recent blog posts and will do so again with this one. The difference will be that I use my own voice to record this. That doesn’t mean that the other voices are bad, they have all of the correct rise and fall and pauses – it’s just that they are American and I’m not!
It’s been a good whilesince I first experienced plantar fasciitis, (PF) but this week it has bitten me hard. Luckily, I know all of the techniques for easing it and I have just picked up a spiky ball from Pennine Physio.
This will replace the tennis ball I have been using hitherto.
I’ve also bought a new pair of boots this week. Finally!
I’d bought a pair of Merrell boots last July and only wore them around the house and the village before flying out to Spain (without them) on August 31st. However, once they got some real use, during the locked-down U.K. winter, they failed big-time. First of all, they leaked and then they split along a seam (despite regular and careful application of dubbin). I complained to Merrell, but they ignored me. Mr. Amazon understood however, and the boots were returned to them with a full refund.
I’d started to wear Merrell’s footwear following my first bout of PF because their trainers were comfortable and supportive. They also had a good reputation. The first few pairs I bought were perfect for walking here in England and up in the coastal mountains of Spain. Over the years however, they have become much less reliable – I guess that’s due to poor and inconsistent quality control in the sweatshops they use for manufacture. I’d bought the boots I mentioned earlier, because a previous pair had lasted three or four years and had been great.
Poor show Merrell.
So, once the boots went back to Amazon, I was without any walking footwear and, due to the continuing lockdown, getting to a specialist walking shop was impossible. So, I bought a pair of cheap boots locally, to tide me by. That was a bad mistake which resulted in painful toes and the loss of one toenail.
I heard of Mountain Feet in Marsden via Facebook (someone in the Marsden group had asked for his details – so having not previously been aware, I did some research and like what I saw).
Mountainfeet’s major speciality is in expert footwear fitting. [They are] highly committed to educating customers on the benefits of knowing more about their feet and good fitting practice. To this end [..] Mountainfeet offers a much more comprehensive service than most other footwear shops.
The online booking system works a treat but despite offering up to ten 1-hour appointments per day, I had to wait almost two months to get mine. My fitting and unrushed discussion of needs, including my ultimate purchase, took up most of that hour.
Hopefully, when my PF feels a little better, I can get around to trying them on for a real walk. I’m fed up of ‘resting’ my foot now – at least in Spain I could use the scooter I bought following my previous bout of PF. https://dsugdenholidays.wordpress.com/2016/03/23/semanta-santa-2016/
Saturday Walks 