What I do in the Shadows (guest appearance)

It’s a tough life behind the lens. Hiding in the shadow of a serial blogger and bending the knee to get the perfect shot. Most of the time I try to anticipate what’s yet to be written by Mrs PH, the articulate (and proper scary) better half. At other times the project manager in me becomes ‘otherwise focused’ with a twist of ‘mildly impulsive’.

Take, for example, day 2 of a gentle 6 day ride down the Danube. After a short ferry crossing and only 5 minutes into the ride, I’ll throw in a change of plan and interrupt PH’s calculated cadence:

N: ‘Would you like a picture of the Schlögen Loop?’

PH: ‘The best view is up that hill. The guide book says it’s an hour’s hike.’

N: ‘That book hasn’t been right so far.’

PH: ‘True, but we’ve got 64km to ride yet.’

N: ‘That American guy did it in 30 minutes yesterday, and he was at Woodstock. That was the year I was born.’

PH: ‘He’s on an e-bike, and he was also fit enough to hike the Appalachian Trail.’

N: ‘That’s a fair walk in the woods, I’ll give you that. Talking of which, I’ll just nip up there, grab the photo, and catch you up before you know it.’

Thirty minutes later and I’m shedding layers as the woodland trail goes ever higher ahead of me. Another twenty and I realise I might be lost (no news there), and I retrace my steps to find a short detour across some rocks that I missed on the way up.

It’s not a bad life though. When I’m not on special assignment I sneak off and watch the world go by. If you’ll indulge me, here’s what I see when she’s not looking.

A life in faithful service is never easy.