Rambling

I like a good walk. The rambler's website is full of good ideas of where to walk, often including pub advice and the dog and I will often set off on a Sunday morning for a long tramp in the woods.

The question of what to wear is often difficult. In the Summer it's hot, so you wear shorts and a tiny top, cursing the nettles and brambles that scratch at your legs. In the winter there is the collection of waterproof outer garments and jumpers that keep you warm and dry but also make you a bit sweaty and uncomfortable when the weather changes.  Footwear is always my biggest challenge. So, I was very interested to watch the programme about the naked rambler.

I was hoping for tips on how to avoid nettle stings but what we saw was that long tramp you hope you'll never meet in the woods, just in case you can't decide where to look. It was gripping viewing (not because I like looking at wrinkled naked men) but because it told us a lot about our society and it's priorities. This man has been arrested countless times and has spent 6 years in prison, much of it in solitary confinement. This is in a world where abusers and rapists walk free, where past allegations can't be taken into account for the current case. I got quite 'Daily Mail' at the waste of tax payers money on perusing this washed up old hippy who thinks of himself as a modern day Jesus, with better shoes and no miracles. Yes, he does wear shoes;  walking boots with good socks which makes me think that nettle stings are easier to cope with than blisters. I'm sure if they just left him alone he'd get bored and cold and put some clothes on but maybe not and really, who cares? It turns out that occasionally people did care and thought that it was the same as Jimmy Saville and paedophillia, although I suspect these are the same people that buy the Sun to stare at the naked sexual parts of women. 

He isn't a particularly likeable man. He's selfish and inconsiderate; walking past a school at 3.15 without making adjustments seemed crass but he didn't seem dangerous. There were no threats, no violence just his body, swinging free in the fresh air. He was so wrapped up in himself and his 'journey' that other people really don't feature for him. He is stubborn, hasn't  seen his children in years and has embarrassed his mother beyond belief. His ex-wife (she was ex before he started walking) said, "I don't think anyone thought it would get to this. They couldn't believe that given the choice between 'put some clothes on'and 'go into solitary confinement' he'd choose prison." He says it's about freedom. 

He might have a point. I don't know or care but I do want to stop putting him in prison. Say what you like about him, though, you have to admire his balls.