Welcome to "3 Feet High"...
...Welcome to the new incarnation of 3 Feet High the homepage of Roger Franklin. It has taken a lot of time and effort to get a new website up and running. Hopefully this time I will attempt to keep it up to date.
The hope this time is as the strap line says "Style Over Substance", it isn't meant to be the cutting edge of HTML technology but it should give a limited insight into my family and my little life.
Beetle For Sale
Please have a look under Beetle Mania for more details
Dronfield 10k 2008
After a drunken conversation in Ireland with a close friend I foolishly decided to volunteer for the Dublin marathon in October 2008. Returning back to the UK I was greeted by a e-mail by the same said friend to for early registration to the said same event.
As a man in his very early 40's it seemed like a good idea to do the appropriate mid-life crisis thing and run a marathon. After further deliberation I decided that the sensible thing to do was to work my way up to 26 miles rather than diving straight in.
An avid member of the gym I thought that it would be quite simple to set up a simple training plan that would involve 10k runs at lunchtime. After doing a couple of those over a several weeks I once again decided to start with 10k's and work my slow way up to 26 miles. In previous years my brother-in-law had run the local Dronfield 10K. A event with about 800 runners of differing skill levels. Usually taking place in April I had 2 months to get ready for my first professional race in 20 years!
The training went well, paced so that by race day I would be totally prepared for the distance. I hadn't pushed myself to much mainly because I didn't want to get injured. The last training day was Friday and Race day was Sunday at 10am. The night before was a bit of a nervous nights sleep but optimistic about the following day. On the day of the race it was a early start and a trip for the family to the start of the Dronfield 10K.
Tenerife 2007
This is the first family holiday abroad for all four of us. After going
to co-op travel and picking up several brochures we finally decided to
go to Tenerife. The choice of destination was key as it had to cater
for both adults and children. Touted as a family holiday destination we
were about to put it to the test. As individuals with different
expectations we all expected something different from this holiday.
The following 10 days involved days out at the beach, building
sand castles for those interested in that catching a tan for those who
require it. Trips to the local market on two occasions picking up
caricature of the kids, various gifts to bring home.
The highlight of the holiday was the trip to Loro Parque in
Puerto de la Cruz. It was billed as the must see place on the Island.
The most visited zoo in Spain having the biggest and most diverse
collection of parrots that has ever existed in the world, large
botanical gardens, largest population outside of Antarctica of Penguins
and the newest attraction “OrcaOcean”.
The highlight of the Park was the “OrcaOcean”, A killer whale show and
a dolphin show. All in Spanish with the loudest latin beats it was all
a bit of an extravaganza. It did go on for a bit and without a spare
camcorder battery some of the memories where lost.... ! A quality day
out for the whole family well worth a visit. The kids enjoyed every
aspect of it and we had to take home 2 tired and contented children.
Model Behaviour
The funniest things
happen to the
people
around you. While out on a trip to a local play park, the wife
and my son where happily playing when a complete stranger
came up to her. The discussion of children and a like
took place and then the mention of my son's good looks
came up. It had not been the first time, but the boy
is a rather good looking chap and that maybe he should
take up modelling.After speaking to a close friend is was decided that he go to an agency based in Leeds, DK Models. They seem to host a decent website and had child models currently listed. After a haircut and selection of his best photos for his portfolio, the wife to a trip to Leeds to introduce him and get him registered. His career had begun!
Within 3 weeks of registering, my son got his first gig. The chance to try out for a catalogue shoot for Mama's and Papa's. He was scheduled for one days shooting at their headquarters, which would involve a long trip there and back.
On the day all was set and the trip down was a fairly uneventful journey. Once there, he met the crew some important people running the shoot and plenty of other child models. In a hot studio setting, he paraded up and down with various props to get the best shots. Swim shorts and other casual outfits. Overall he seemed to enjoy it apart from the part where another child model probably with an ill prepared mother took some of my son snacks for his own! A long day complete and a journey home left my son exhausted.
It was a few weeks later that we found out that he had a photo published in the Mama's and Papa's Summer catalogue. A cheeky shot in the swim wear section. A trip to Mama's and Papa's to get a dozen catalogues was arranged so that friends and family could enjoyed his 15 minutes of fame forever.
Bad Hair Day
With pressure you mainly
family but some
friends another
change had to take place to convert a hard to keep afro into a harder
to keep afro hairstyle. My wife made some inquires on the interweb and
found a local hairdresser that seemed ideal. Sal's Cut N Weave
specialised in
afro hair in various styles. After a quick visit and consult an
appointment was booked within three days and the results can be viewed
here. "Corn Row" is a process by which afro hair is painfully and
tightly plaited to created rows in the pattern of your choice.
It's not for the faint-hearted as the tight weave can cause headaches for the first few days. After experiencing mini dread-locks when I was younger I was prepared for the prospect of not washing my hair and it smelling like a tramps armpit. It still looks cool and allegedly knocks years off you age. I would recommend having it done and getting Sal's to do it....
Chatsworth Country Fair
Being
a city boy moved to the country the prospect of Chatsworth Country Fair
always
sounds interesting. Partly, to find out exactly what goes on there but
mainly as a fun day out with the wife and kids.
Our party included Mim, my mother-in-law, my wife Christa and the two kids Harvey and Olivia. A twenty minute journey across the Derbyshire countryside and we there with 15,000 other people trying to find a place to park close to the road.
Once there we started off by having a good look around. Two things sprang to mind immediately, I found a van that served Guinness at 11:00am always the sign of a good event. Secondly, an old hobby raised it's head.
Amongst the fox-hunting, Weasels and Land Rover's was a makeshift archery range. A local archery club Derwent Bowmen had set up a fun shoot. It gave me the chance to do something I like and Olivia the chance to do something new. £6 and 12 arrows later I realised why I liked it and why I wanted to do it again.
I will a some point join a local club.......
Lunch consisted of homemade lemonade and beef sandwiches that went down very well. The funfair entertained Olivia and Harvey imenensly as they went on various rides and won various toys. A good day where the weather held and a good time was had by all.
Ireland 2006
The time
of year has come around again
for the annual
excursion to Dublin
to meet George and Lorraine for a bit of a do.
As usual out practice is to fly with Ryanair from Robin Hood Airport in Doncaster. Door-to-Door in 4 hours is always good in terms of family travel. Unfortunately for us we our trip coincided with the crackdown on terrorist and the restriction on aircraft travel. Hand luggage was a clear carrier bag with travel documents and money. Despite this delay we still arrived in Dublin delayed less than usual by Ryanair.
Swiftly through the airport to the hire car and down the N50 to Co. Meath to the the paradise that is George and Lorraines house. When we arrived we were greeted by a pile of turf as well as a drink and a hearty handshake. I should have been more aware but at the time it didn't seem that important. Catching up (the best part of seeing absent friends) took up most of the evening. The Rodrigues family arrived very much later that day traveling from a London airport, had encountered the full force of the new restrictions. Delayed be released to be here, day one was over.
The
next day was all bit unexpected. The true nature of the turf raised its
head. As part of the plan to have a barbecue the following day
there was the small matter of sorting out the lawn. Myself, Wayne and
George
set about our task while the wifelets, Lorraine and all the children
set off to the beach. Several beers and some back breaking labour later
it was complete, one circular lawn from 50 laid sods. Day two done.
Saturday, barbecue day. First thing to do was sort out the lawn again. Over night some of the sods had sunk and George went about sorting it all out. Later that day some friends of George and Lorraine turned up and a mutual friend Jack came. Jack suitable impressed the children by playing lots of energetic games, food was in abundance and the drink flowed. Overall everybody seemed to enjoy the time. Day three complete.
The next day the plan was to go do something more for the
children.
The plan was to go down to the coast and see the 
Skerries Watermill
&
Windmill. Only problem was that the only organised tour was a
bit too
adult and not to be run for a while. So we had a look around and stayed
for some lunch. At lunch it was time for the Rodrigues' to catch an
early flight back to the UK.
Later that day we decide to go to Newgrange Farm
is a 333 acre
farm
situated in the beautiful and historic Boyne Valley and surrounds the
famous National Monument of Newgrange. A working farm with a lot of
facilities for children for education and fun. Olivia participated in
the sheep race not physical mounting a sheep but nominating the green
teddy bear. Unfortunately her sheep came in second but she still got
a newgrange badge. Harvey's involvement was more in shoveling as much
sand into his pants in the shortest amount of time. Probably a new
world record! Back home when the tired children for a late lunch. Day
four over.
Today is home day. We pack up the last lot of stuff get the kids fed and watered and set off back to Dublin airport. No delays for airport restrictions and a smooth flight back meant home within 4 hours. Job done, can't wait until next year...