Another Day Older . . .

 Friday. 1.50 p.m. I took my car to Anglo Motors to have its MoT. I had booked it via phone last week. I knew the old one would run out yesterday because I went online to check. I drove over to Mount Farm, the home of Anglo, at 11.45. I handed over the keys and then sat in the waiting area. After around 45 minutes, I learnt that it had passed! I'm so pleased, it's another thing to not have to stress about.

Sunday. 8.05 a.m. I woke a good deal later than normal. 

Yesterday evening, I lost Alfie. No, don't laugh. How on earth can you lose a small Yorkshire terrier in a flat this size? I think he was under my bed.

3.30 p.m. We have had extremely loud music emanating from the National Bowl, here in sunny Milton Keynes, both yesterday and today. Our ears were bombarded by the heavy beat of reggae music. Not my sort of music, but the whole area around the Bowl had been cordoned off with traffic cones and those plastic fences you see when there is some sort of incident. On my way to church, I found that Chaffron Way was closed off at the Grafton Street roundabout, which meant I had to make a rather circuitous route around Milton Keynes before I could get to Shenley Brook End.

Wednesday. 10.45 a.m. Where have I been? Why haven't I been writing stuff on here? Simples! Not much is happening around here. Well, this is Dexter House, centre of the universe, full of excitement- not. We need a resident artist here, say, David Hockney or Andrew Lloyd-Webber, doing art, writing music and getting things going. It would certainly liven things up. We should have an Olympic-size swimming pool in the communal garden, along with a gym and cinema complex. I have to say, as you will have noticed, if you read my posts regularly, that I can get carried away with my musings.

I went to Sainsbury's earlier. It was like a version of the Marie Celeste, virtually empty. I didn't get a trolley with a wonky wheel, which drives me nuts. It refuses to push without squeaking or just not moving at all. I think they should spend some time getting them maintained. So the wheels run freely and don't squeak.

Thursday. 8.45 a.m. It's another mild and relatively pleasant morning. I just hope it stays that way.

Yesterday evening, I was part of a Zoom meeting, which was for market research. I won't go into too much detail, just suffice to say, it was very interesting. I've done quite a few of these, some really boring, but this was fascinating, and what made it more interesting was hearing other people's opinions. I will get £60 for doing it, so that's great, and I want to get more of these, particularly when they're on Zoom, as it means you don't have to go anywhere, just sit and chat in the comfort of your own home. It ended relatively late, which means I slept well and didn't wake up until around 7 a.m. Until we had the coronavirus pandemic, I had never even heard of Zoom. I quickly got the hang of using it, and it has paid off to have the ability to use it. My various bits of technology, such as my MacBook Pro, iPad and iPhone, can be used to earn more cash. I have two apps on my iPhone, which I use to scan the barcodes of what I buy, using the phone's camera. I build up points which can be built up and then redeemed for various vouchers, such as Amazon, Argos, Sainsbury's, Tesco, etc. Well worth the effort. Another site I'm signed up to is called Consumer Pulse, which I've been with for years. When you buy clothes and other items, you record each on the site and, again, receive points which can be redeemed for vouchers. 

Funny Sunny

 Monday. 7.40 a.m. It's sunny but a good deal cooler this morning. My digital thermometer currently reads 22ºc.

I woke up a good deal later than usual. I can't think why, but I do feel refreshed.

Wednesday. 11.10 a.m. I've been to Sainsbury's. I have mentioned this before, but they've been moving stuff around yet again. You get used to where things are, then somebody thinks it's a great idea to move everything around. So, the result is, you get frustrated and spend most of your time going up and down the aisles hunting like crazy.

5.05 p.m. Oldbrook Boulevard is currently being resurfaced. I was aware of a 'Road Closed' sign up at the junction with Chaffron Way the other day, on my way to church on Sunday morning, but I wasn't sure what it was referring to. Then, this morning, on my way to Sainsbury's, there was a sign saying 'road closed' but it was somewhat ambiguous, as it was for the right-hand turn into Oldbrook Boulevard. The left-hand direction had already been resurfaced. The surface is far better now and a vast improvement on the rather poor surface, full of potholes and uneven.

Saturday. 10.30 a.m. I went to Lidl this morning because I didn't have anything for this evening's meal. It's only a short journey along Oldbrook Boulevard, and I can get in and out quickly. I am getting used to their self-service tills and used the Lidl app on my phone, although I almost left it behind, on the machine, except a vigilant member of staff waved it at me before I went out the door. 

There is light rain this morning. It is needed because everything is so dry. The digital thermometer currently reads 25ºc.

Sunday. 7.45 a.m. The digital thermometer currently reads 23ºc, meaning it's much cooler and sleeping is better.

Tuesday. 10.30 a.m. I had a bit of a meltdown yesterday, both metaphorically and physically, at lunchtime. I always have a snack around 11-11.30, usually toast, with cheese, peanut butter, jam or something else, with yoghurt, an apple and crisps. I made the toast in the toaster and chopped up the cheese on my chopping board, on the top of the oven, which has a ceramic hob, so, when switched off, makes an extra surface to work on, which is somewhat limited in my tiny kitchen. I went into the lounge to watch television and ate my snack. For whatever reason, I went back into the kitchen, having finished watching television. I was aware of smoke and a smell which I didn't recognise, and then saw that the chopping board and knife were melting on the ring, which was on. They both have elements of plastic in them; the chopping board is completely made of plastic, and the handle of the knife is plastic. Somehow or other, the ring had come on, probably by my accidentally touching the control knob on the front of the oven. There was a considerable amount of molten plastic on the surface of the ceramic hob. I thought immediately to switch off the oven. It was at this point that the fire alarm went off. The kitchen was by now full of smoke, which would have been what set off the fire alarm. Around five minutes or so a fire engine arrived outside in the street, and several minutes later, three firemen came into my flat. I showed them what had happened, and they opened all the windows. They could see that there was no fire and told me I could evacuate the flat, and so I took Alfie with me. 

I sat in the entrance area of Dexter House. There was no SHO on duty, so there was nobody to support me at this time. One of the other residents offered me a cup of tea, so we went to her flat, which is along the other corridor to my flat. It allowed me to reflect on what had happened. I could not remain in the flat while it was full of possibly toxic fumes. I had Alfie with me, and he must have wondered what on earth was going on. After drinking my tea, I thanked the lady and decided to return to my flat. The fumes had dispersed, and I looked at the damage to the knife, which was melted and totally unusable, as well as the cutting board, which had a large hole melted right through, and was also unusable.

Thursday. 8.20 a.m. Yesterday, late, our SHO at Dexter House phoned me, because she had seen an email regarding the situation in my kitchen. She said, perhaps the best solution to preventing a similar incident from happening with the oven would be to turn it off at the wall socket, which makes sense, and, as a result, I have switched it off at the wall socket.

Another Day, Another Dawn

 Saturday. 10.55 a.m. It's hotter than ever. The digital thermometer currently reads 29ºc.

We have had workmen in Dexter House for the past week. So, as a result, there's a great deal of noise, the usual banging and scraping and the high-pitched noise of machinery. They are taking out windows along the corridor. Apparently, they are replacing the windows with glass that is fireproof, or so I understand. Bringing the place in line with current building regulations, no doubt brought in after the Grenfell Tower fire, which killed many of the occupants.

Sunday. 7.15 a.m. It's a good deal cooler this morning. The digital thermometer currently reads 26ºc.

I woke up later than usual. I'm sleeping much better. I'm on sertraline, so I think that is why.

Monday. 5.45 a.m. Still cooler this morning. My thermometer reads 24ºc.

I've done some research online regarding sertraline. One of the side effects would appear to be related to heat regulation,  which then leads to skin irritation, so that explains things.

Friday. 6.20 a.m. For the past couple of nights, Alfie has slept on the floor. The night before last he was on the floor in the hallway, which is between the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. He has started to make funny little noises, sort of, as if he's moaning and muttering to himself. (I know that sounds unlikely, but it seems like it to me.) This sound kept me awake, so I at last decided that I'd pick him up and put him in his nice, sort, comfortable bed, which I did. Last night, he lay in the bedroom doorway, making it difficult to get in without treading on him. I woke this morning and couldn't find him anywhere, until I found him under the coffee table in the lounge! Why there, I have no idea, but fortunately, he came out without my having to extract him; otherwise, he would have been stuck.

Tuesday was Alfie's 18th birthday. I can't believe he's still going strong, although a bit wobbly on his feet, but not astounding considering his age. We got Alfie as a result of going to Crufts, which would have been the year Carol and I got married. We saw a Yorkie doing agility, which was brilliant, and it was shown on television. Carol said, 'Shall we get one?' and I said 'Yes!' and we found a breeder around March, in Cambridgeshire, and we drove to have a look at a litter of puppies, and that's how we came to get Alfie. As a young puppy, he really was tiny and easily fitted into a hat that Carol was wearing.

8.25 a.m. It's bright and sunny, and the digital thermometer currently reads 28ºc.

Saturday. 7.30 a.m. An overcast morning. When I ventured out with Alfie earlier, there was a thin sort of rain. There is the possibility of torrential rain and thunderstorms later in the day, and the possibility of flash floods.

The digital thermometer currently reads 26ºc.

11.55 a.m. There has been an amber warning because of the rain. What began earlier as thin drizzle has now become a good deal heavier. There is now a warning about the possibility of flash floods

Sunday. 7.35 a.m. A definite change in the weather this morning. It's raining quite heavily. As a result, there is a large puddle along the side of Strudwick Drive, and it has to be, because the roads in Milton Keynes weren't constructed with cambers, meaning water can't flow off as it should. Also, drains have got blocked with debris, meaning that there's more of a buildup of water. If the Romans could build their roads with cambers, why can't modern road builders do the same?

Life At Home- Part 2

 My mother had a drawer in the kitchen for all manner of odds and ends. Offcuts of string, paper bags, brown paper, and elastic bands. You name it, if it could be rescued and saved, it went in this drawer.  Many items you bought often came wrapped in brown paper and tightly tied with string. We had to go to Braggins, the main department store in Bedford, to buy our school uniforms. 'Ovr Boys' was over the front of the shop, on the corner of Harpur Street and Silver Street. Why the name had a V in it I could never discover. Braggins had a fascinating system of tubes and, I presume, compressed air, which was used to send cash and receipts for things bought to the cash office, hidden in the bowels of the store. This was long before computers, bar codes and all the modern conveniences we now take for granted, but as a young boy, this system intrigued me. The shop assistant put whatever it was in a capsule sort of thing, which then fitted in the lower end of the tube. The thing was closed up, a button was pressed, and there was a whoosh noise, and the capsule was gone. I have no idea how they managed to send it to the right place in the store, but it really interested me, and it made shopping for boring school uniforms far more fun.

I digress. Returning to my mother's oddments drawer, I never knew her to actually use any of those oddments. Perhaps she did, but I never saw her go to the drawer for any of those bits and pieces. I think this may have been a sort of throwback to the Second World War, which she lived through, when there was a 'make do and mend' culture. Everything was saved, even the least important things, such as ends of string, brown paper and so on. When I think, I was born barely five years after the end of the war, so I suppose it's not surprising.

People did reuse things and had their clothes repaired.  I remember a lady used to come to the house every week to do mending, darning socks, jumpers, turning up trousers and so on. Her name was Miss Fuller, and she lived in a cottage right next to the garden of Malting Farm. She then started taking my younger brother, Andrew, out in his pram when he was a baby. He was born in 1961. Then, her work doing the ending got less and less, and she spent more and more time looking after baby Andrew. She was always 'Miss Fuller' and I never discovered her first name. It was the same with the two ladies who used to come into the house, to clean and do domestic jobs, Mrs Jakes and Mrs Fremantle. Mrs Freemantle lived in a cottage at the rear of Malting Farm house and was married to Bob, who was a ploughman on the farm. Mrs Jakes lived with her husband in a cottage which was possibly the last cottage, going out of the village, going towards Bedford. 

Malting Farmhouse was large. As I have already mentioned, it was old. Being owned by the Whitbread Estate, they were responsible for the maintenance of the place, and at one point, when we lived there, the roof had to be partially replaced. There was a traditional-pitched roof, but also a flat section, which ran across the front of the house and out into a semicircular area near the garden. This was made of lead, and it was replaced, no doubt at vast expense. 

There were two attic rooms at the top of the house (where attics are usually located), which we used as playrooms. My older brothers had a train set, which I believe came from a cousin, but I can't be sure of that fact. It meant we could play up there and away from everyone else in the house, but as a child, I found it somewhat scary, because there were a couple of doors which appeared to lead to nowhere in particular. A lot of ancient stuff was stored in a small room, such as paintings, ancient sports equipment and elderly suitcases, which probably hadn't been used in decades. The narrow and steep staircase to access the attic rooms could be tricky to ascend.  There were good views of the village from the windows and, if you were so inclined, you could go out onto the flat roof and walk around, but it was rather dangerous, because the parapet was very low and it would be quite easy to fall over the edge.

The house was large, and it was a great place to have games, such as hide and seek. There were no end of strange, secret places to hide, and you could spend hours hunting for someone who had hidden.

We used the dining room as the central room to watch television and generally relax in. In the early 1960s, my father bought a black-and-white television. In those days, television was in black and white and on 405 lines. Later, around 1964-5, BBC2 opened and was broadcast on 625 lines, meaning, if you wanted to watch it, you needed a set capable of viewing in the new 625 format. My dad eventually bought such a set, I think the brand was KB, nothing like a modern set, large, with most of the works underneath the screen, and to watch BBC2, you had to push over a switch, but I don't think we watched it much. In around 1970, the BBC and ITV introduced colour, but my father wouldn't commit to it until a good deal later. The first colour programmes were experimental in some way, and in 1967 the BBC broadcast Wimbledon in colour. I remember seeing it for the first time when I was taken on a school visit to the Robinson Rentals offices in Bedford (later to become Granada Rental) and saw colour television then, but I have to say, I wasn't over impressed by the quality.

Life At Home- Part 1

 I was thinking about when I was younger and living at home with my parents. I must have mentioned before on this blog that I lived on a farm in Cardington. Malting Farm, to be exact. We were tenants of the Whitbread Estate. Malting Farmhouse was a large Georgian house, built in 1764. It is red brick, with windows that have diamond panes. Some of the windows had been bricked up back in the 18th century, or thereabouts, probably because of the window tax, which was introduced during that period. I think the more windows you had, the more tax you had to pay, so people blocked up windows to avoid paying more tax. There was no double glazing or central heating. In the winter, when you got up in the morning, you would invariably find thick ice on the inside of the windows. The upstairs rooms were connected to one another, so you had to go through one room to get to another. My bedroom, which I shared with my younger brother, had three doors, so it wasn't exactly private. A corridor was added, both upstairs and downstairs, at a much later date. To get dressed in the morning to go to school, we had to run along the corridor to the bathroom and turn on the electric wall heater. This was the only source of heating in the winter in that room. Downstairs in the kitchen, there was an Aga, which was fired with a coal-like substance, which came in sort of nut-shaped lozenges. This Aga had to be kept alight, as it not only heated the water (although there was an immersion tank in the bathroom) but was used for cooking. There was a coal/wood-burning stove in the dining room, which was actually used as the main room where we used to watch television and as a family centre. There were other fireplaces in the other rooms, but they were rarely used. 

Thinking about it, we had all we needed in some respects. Being a farm, we had milking cows, providing milk, potatoes, grown to be sold at Covent Garden Market, Brussels sprouts, similarly grown for sale, and in garden of Malting Farm, a whole range of fruit and vegetables, apples, plums, pears, gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries as well as lettuce, onions and in season, celery and rhubarb. My mum did shop for other household items, at a grocer's in Bedford called West's and later, at a store off Cardington Road, called D and A (that may be wrong.) This was well before supermarkets, such as Tesco or Sainsbury's, but she also went into Bedford centre and went to International Stores in the High Street as well as Saxby's, which did pork pies and sausages.

 Dad was friends with a man who was a butcher, Dick Woods. He had greyhounds, similar to Dad. They used to take their greyhounds coursing, and one of  Dad's won a race at White City. Dick Woods owned and ran a butcher's shop in Harrowden Road, and we bought our meat from him. Often it would be delivered by van, and often he would drop in for coffee or around 4 o'clock when we had tea and at times bring sausages which he made himself. It rather makes me think of Jones the butcher in Dad's Army, who was renowned for giving extra bits of meat or sausages to his regular customers, which was actually probably illegal and against the wartime rationing regulations.

Teatime was, as I have said, around 4 o'clock and my mother produced her best cakes, especially her speciality, shortbread. I think it was passed down to her from my father's side of the family. I believe it is a Scottish tradition, which would be right, because my father's family came from Scotland. It was at this time that there were visitors who just happened to call in at the right time, to be invited for a cup of tea, a piece of cake and a chat. Many of those who came to tea would be reps for the various companies that did business with the farm. 

Earlier in the day, around 11 o'clock, would be coffee time. My mother had a coffee percolator, which sat on the fridge. I don't think you can buy these gadgets today. It was probably made by Russell Hobbs. You put ground coffee into a metal sieve-like container within the percolator and filled the thing with water, and as it boiled, the water came up through a pipe and percolated through the coffee grounds, and the hot coffee was contained in a separate compartment. The outer body was made of ceramic, and it had a clear glass lid through which you could see the coffee percolating. I probably took about 15 minutes to brew a cup of coffee.

Happy Days Are Here Again

Monday. 4.05 p.m. It's been a good deal cooler today, although Carol Kirkwood, the weather lady on BBC Breakfast this morning, said that we can expect another heatwave by next week. The digital thermometer currently reads 24ºc, so considerably lower than this time last week.

Tuesday. 7.40 a.m. It's a sunny morning, although it appears to be a good deal cooler of late. The digital thermometer currently reads 22ºc.

12.00 p.m.I use Nivea for Men shaving gel. I have used it for a good many years now. Compared to similar products, it is far better, and you get a good foam from a very small amount. The other day, I went to Sainsbury's to buy a new pack, as the current one was about to run out. On attempting to use the new pack, I could not get it to work. The button on the top of the pack was faulty, and, as a result, no get would come out. I was then forced to shave using Avon shaving gel, which I wasn't entirely pleased with, as it was cheap and not up to the job. I have since been back to Sainsbury's and purchased a new pack, which has worked properly. I have to say, in all the years I have been using this product, I have never had a problem of any sort. I had only managed to pick up a faulty one when I went to the store.

Wednesday. 12.00 p.m. I have been watching a documentary on Netflix, called 'London: Hunting the 7/7 Bombers.' Quite horrifying, and it goes into an enormous amount of detail of how the young men responsible were discovered, although they died at the scene of each incident. The forensics then had to sift through the evidence to find out what material was used in the making of each bomb. This led to a neighbourhood in Yorkshire, and eventually, the names of the three men were discovered.

At the same time as I've been watching that documentary series (and I have yet to watch two more episodes.) I am watching a drama series on Apple TV, called 'Slow Horses.' This is based on a series of s thriller spy novels written by Mick Herron. It is in no way, shape or form like the fantasy world of espionage, which is the basis for James Bond. This is set in a very ordinary world where the characters are misfits and belong to a dysfunctional group of MI5 agents. I have to admit, when I watched the first episode, I had to spend some time discovering what it was actually about, and it's certainly not your average spy series. It is set in present-day London, and we see it from the viewpoint of the dark, sleazy areas of the city, the more or less underground life, if you like. Having just watched an episode of the 7/7 bombings, there are similarities in the camera work, the colour palette used and the editing, the placing of characters in the frame and the use of graphics. 

Thursday. 8.25 p.m. It's been a really hot day. Even at this hour of the evening, my digital thermometer reads 32ºc. 

I have bought a sun hat from Amazon. As is quite usual on Amazon, the choice is overwhelming. I needed one which was a good fit and not to tight on my head, because, from experience, a hat which is too tight causes a headache. I thought it a good idea to get a hat because of the current heatwave, and after my first heart attack in 2006, I was advised by a heart nurse to always wear a hat in hot weather. I ordered the hat and hoped it would be suitable. It was ordered around 7 a.m. on Tuesday, and it arrived around 5 p.m. I was impressed that it was delivered so quickly.

Saturday. 5.50 a.m. I have spent most of the night attempting to sleep. The heat has been intense, and it must be that which has caused the itchy back. I had a shower at around 10 o'clock, but it didn't really have much effect. I have now discovered that I have small raised spots on my back, which would be the cause of the itching.

8.05 a.m. If you follow my blogs regularly, you will know about my little dog, Alfie. He is a Yorkshire terrier and he is now 17 years old. You will know that I take him out regularly throughout the day, starting at around 6.30-7.00 a.m. But this morning I couldn't find him. As it's a small one-bedroom flat, there aren't many places he can hide. I looked in all the usual places, even under my bed, but still I couldn't find him. Eventually, I found him, under my desk, but in such a position it was impossible to get to him. I just left him to sleep. I think he found it cooler to sleep there. I have since managed to scoop him up and take him outside.

Still Going Strong

 Saturday. 10.25 a.m. Another hot and sweaty morning. I found it difficult to sleep last night. I took a Piriton tablet to hopefully relieve the itching, but it didn't seem to make much difference. Around 5.30 a,m. I had a shower, which seemed to have a good effect, but as I write this, I am back to the itching again. No sort of relief. 

I've been cleaning the flat. The floors look a good deal cleaner. Emptied all the bins, not a job I enjoy, but it had to be done.

9.45 p.m. It is as hot as ever. The digital thermometer currently reads 31ºc. I have had another shower, in an attempt to alleviate the itching. I think it did have some effect, but as I write this, the itching has come back with a vengeance.

Sunday. 3.35 p.m. I wasn't scheduled to do refreshments this morning at church. In fact, I am no longer on the rota. I was rung yesterday to see if I could cover, as, whoever was on the rota wasn't available. I said yes and turned up at the OTC at around 9.45. I had to fuel the car, so drove to the Esso station in Child's Way, before driving on to Shenley.

Monday. 10.15 a.m. It's warm again, and it's apparently going to get warmer. Wimbledon begins, although I'm not interested. Carol was and used to complain that she missed so much of it because of being at work. There is the merry hum of a lawnmower outside. Someone cutting the grass in the garden at Dexter House. When Carol and I lived in the house in Eaglestone, the landlord and his wife would visit once a year for an inspection. All he would ask was, 'Have you cut the grass?' Well, surely, if he looked out of the window, he could see whether it was cut or not, but never bothered to ask if any maintenance jobs needed doing, such as the plumbing, electrical things, leaks, drains. It never seemed to occur. When his son took over the management of the house, he could be quite rude, particularly after Carol died. Quite aggressive and only interested in the rent being paid. Again, nothing about maintaining the house or concern for my welfare. Considering we looked after the house and kept it in good order, absolutely no thanks. He was just plain rude.

The garden at that house was really uneven. I think it had been left that way after it was built. That made cutting the grass far more difficult. I used to do it, but it was extremely hard work, and, considering I had two heart attacks, it really took it out of me.

12.25 p.m. My digital thermometer currently reads 28ºc. No sign of it cooling down.

Tuesday. 6.35 a.m. It doesn't seem to be quite as hot today, but this is early, so let's wait and see. The digital thermometer currently reads 29ºc.

3.45 p.m. I have done a considerable amount of rewriting. I haven't got to the end of this sequence, but when it's complete it might need trimming somewhat, then it has to be word-processed.

Wednesday. 9.35 a.m. It's a good deal cooler today. It's a bit overcast. My digital thermometer currently reads 27ºc.

I've just been to Lidl. It's great to get in and out so quickly.

Hunkey Dory!

 Monday. 9.35 a.m. It's a good deal cooler this morning. The digital thermometer currently reads 24ºc. 

The drains are to be cleared. Oh, happy day! That is, along the corridor in which my flat is. We can't flush the toilet, have a shower or wash up in the kitchen and let out the water. I have already done the washing up, so there's no problem with that, don't currently need a shower, but I don't know about flushing the toilet. Such is the fun at Dexter House.

Tuesday. 8.00 a.m. It's a good deal cooler again this morning. My digital thermometer currently reads 22ºc, so a 2º drop on yesterday's temperature.

3.55 p.m. I've just taken Alfie out, to the usual spot on the grass alongside Strudwick Drive. There were quite a few people walking along the path, a lot of them from Milton Keynes Academy, which is just the other side of Chaffron Way. Then I saw a group of around three youths, on electric scooters, the sort I mention regularly on here, riding along the road. To me, this is extremely dangerous, because they could easily get hit by a car, or fall over in the road. If this was to happen, the chances are they would be killed. As they rode on, going past The Cricketers public house, one of the male youths was weaving in and out of the centre of the road and at that point, a few cars were driving behind the group. As I have said, it only needed a slight misjudgement and a wobble, and that youth could have fallen off his scooter and into the path of one of those cars.

Wednesday.2.25. p.m. I booked a haircut this morning, online, and have been to the appointment, which was a 1.40 p.m. I drove to Unity Place, where the barbers is. I parked the car and then walked to the ticket machine. I thought it would have a slot for my £1 coin, but there wasn't one, so I attempted to use the card reader facility. You have to key in your car's registration number, but I still have no idea whether it worked. No ticket issued and nothing came up on the screen. Just so annoying. I walked into Unity Place, and saw a statue of a cow. What on earth is the significance of a COW?? I have absolutely no idea.

Friday. 8.35 a.m. Washing in washing machine, washing-up more or less done. Floors mopped (actually partially) Alfie asleep in his bed, the sun is out and it's still warm. My digital thermometer currently reads 27ºc. 

4.35 p.m. Unfortunately, when I went to do my washing this morning, I found the drier I normally use was out of action. So, I had to use the second one, which I rarely use. By the time my washing was done and I need to use the dryer, I put everything in it and hit the first button. There is no help anywhere to show which button does what and for how long, so when I came back an hour later, the load wasn't entirely dry. I put the drier back on for ten minutes, but even then it didn't dry completely. This meant I took the load back to my flat and put most of it on the drying rack in the bathroom.

I have been continuing with editing and revising my writing. It's going well. I am rounding out some of the characters and adding some new ones. Also, doing a bit of research to get some details right, and this should help give the piece some realism.

Deteriorating Television

 Monday. 8.40 a.m. Yet another sunny and warm morning. I don't mind it being sunny, but when it's too hot, I am not so keen.

Why has television in this country become so dire? At one time, you could spend most of the evening enjoying a really wide range of programs. You could start at around 4.30 with some sort of children's programme, ranging from Jackanory, Blue Peter, Vision On, and Magpie, ITV's answer to Blue Peter, and then move on at around 5.45-5.50 to The Magic Roundabout. That was a sort of bridge between the children's programmes and the adult world of the Six O'clock News. Then, Nationwide, a sort of mixture of stories from around the British regions, the serious and not-so-serious. Then, around 7.30, a sitcom, aimed at the whole family. These ranged from anything with June Whitfield and Terry Scott in, or Richard Briers, in 'The Good Life.' Then, 'Dad's Army', which is still as popular as ever, some 50 years since its first broadcast. 

At around 9 o'clock there might be a documentary or a drama. The BBC was always good at drama, whether it be an adaptation of a classic novel or something with a social comment, such as the strand 'Play for Today' or 'The Wednesday Play', with writers such as Dennis Potter or Alan Bennet providing scripts or directors such as Ken Russell or Mike Leigh putting in the necessary spade work. Some of these plays could be quite controversial, such as Up The Junction or Kathy Come Home. Several series of dramas by Dennis Potter were produced, such as 'The Singing Detective' or' Pennies From Heaven.' Then BBC 2 opened in the early 1960s. This bought what they liked to term 'alternative' programming', in contrast to the more mainstream stuff shown on BBC1. So, we got such things as 'Late Night Line Up' which had Joan Bakewell as one of it's presenters and featuring late night discussion. Joan Bakewell was described as 'A thinking man's crumpet' apparently said by Frank Muir, who, with his writing partner, Denis Norden, appeared in a BBC 2 panel game which rand for years, called 'Call My Bluff.' BBC 2 produced the 26-part adaptation of the John Galsworthy series of novels, 'The Forstye Saga' which, although probably the last big dramas to be made in black and white, can be said to be the grandfather of such serials as 'Upstairs, Downstairs' and much later 'Downton Abbey, both on ITV during the 1960s and 1970s. BBC 2 also had comedy by Peter Cook and Dudley Moore, fresh from the success of their comedy review 'Beyond The Fringe', called 'Not Only, But Also.' It was also from'Beyond The Fringe' that the remaining pair, Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller, went on to either write or direct. Miller did a rather self indulgent adaptations of 'Alice In Wonderland', which was never intended for a children's audience. Downstairs', 'Downton Abbey' and a range of crime serials, from 'Morse' through to 'Broadchurch' and 'Grantchester. A really big serial came in around 1981, 'Brideshead Revisited.' Based on the Evelyn Waugh novel. It had a great cast, which included Jeremy Irons, Anthony Andrews, Laurence Olivier, Diana Quick and John Gielgud, with Castle Howard in Yorkshire standing in for Brideshead. It was very lavish and not the type of series that would be made now, because of the cost of production and wouldn't be a fit for how ITV has now become.

In around 1982, Channel 4 came along. It was intended to be an alternative to the mainstream channels and to not pander to ratings. A great deal of imaginative and original material, not seen elsewhere. Channel 4 was what's known as a 'publisher' channel. It doesn't make it's own programmes, but commissions programming from independent producers.

In the early 1989s,  along came Sky television, beamed into homes via satellite. Eventually it developed into a multichannel platform, with sport being the main selling point. Then, the analogue television system was closed down and digital television came in. As a result, the number of channels increased considerably. The BBC had BBC1 and 2, then BBC 3 was introduced, aimed at a youth audience and BBC 4, for more cultured programming. ITV had its main channel, imaginatively called ITV 1 and then 2, 3, 4  etc, all of which were very much the same as each other, although I think there must have been some sort of difference. Then there was UKTV, a sort of hybrid channel, partly owned by the BBC's commercial arm and Thames Television. It has since been fully owned by the BBC. It shows a good deal of original programming, but mostly its reruns of BBC shows and quite a few from independent production companies. UKTV (now, imaginatively called simply 'U'.) has a portfolio of channels, Gold, Dave, Eden etc.

Then, in the early 2000s, along came streaming, with BBCi Player, Netflix, Disney+ and a host of other services, enabling the viewer to watch television programmes whenever they wanted, without having to wait for the next episode in most cases, as all episodes of some shows were uploaded, so, if you wanted to, you could 'binge' watch an entire season one after the other.

As things are at the time of writing, it looks as if traditional 'linear' television has had its day. 

Saturday evenings in the 1960s were really great, from what I recall. There was Grandstand during the afternoon, which then got replaced by a children's show of some sort. Basil Brush or Jim'll Fix it. Then Doctor Who. Later in the evening there would be some sort of entertainment show, starring Cilla Black, Val Doonican or Lulu. A huge hit would be 'The Two Ronnies' starring Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. These were termed 'light entertainment' and made up quite a large portion of the schedule on not only BBC1, but ITV and Channel 4.

On a Sunday, at teatime, there was always a classic novel adaptation. Charles Dickens was a favourite. 'Great Expectations' being a novel which was adapted several times. The BBC did 'Play of The Month' on Sunday evenings, and you could expect very well mounted and acted productions of plays by Shaw, J.M. Barrie, Wilde, Chekov and Ibsen.

ITV had 'Game For A Laugh', '3,2,1', 'Blind Date, 'Upstairs, Downstair', and a whole range of successful programmes.

Generally, the television we had, with only three channels and, possibly four, when Channel Four came along, was relatively good. That was it. You couldn't record until the first cassette recorders came along, There were two systems, Betamax and VHS. These came in around 1975. So, with such a machine you could 'time shift' a programme, so you could watch it later or even keep it. We now have, since broadband Internet has become so prevalent, streaming of programmes is now possible. 'Catch-up' in the sense, that if you missed an episode of your favourite show, you could use streaming to watch it. 

So, what do we have today? More channels than ever before. Digital has meant we can have more or less countless channels. Freeview, which seems to be the main service in Britain for television, keeps on adding new channels to its platform.  If you sign up to any of the streaming services, such as Disney+ or Netflix, you can watch programming which is exclusive to those services.

I know I have waffled a bit here. Sorry about that. What I am endeavouring to say is, our television in this country used to be far better than it is now. We seemed to have a much wider choice, even with only 3 or 4 channels. Someone said, I think it might have been Margaret Thatcher, that with privatisation of utilities (and possibly with television) choice would be better. It doesn't look like it now. Television has lost any sense of imagination. Each day is identical to the next. Programmes are 'stripped' across the schedules, with the same programmes on each day at the same time. There are endless programmes on the same subject, such as gardening, antiques, homes for sale. Game shows proliferate, with some days one after another and at the same time across channels (Pointless is on BBC1, with The Chase on ITV at the same time. We get endless 'who dunnits', police procedurals, some of which are what I would term 'soft', some with a comic edge, such as 'Father Brown.' Beautifully written, acted and directed, but a bit predictable. Perhaps that's what a lot of people want.

The fact is, with only four channels, there was more money to spend on programmes. The BBC had the licence fee and the commercial channels had advertising revenue. With the possibility that the licence could be abandoned all together (it has never been fully discussed, how it could be funded after the current charter runs out. Possibly a subscription service? Paid for out of taxation? Seems unlikely.) Now, in the present financial state of the country, fewer and fewer people are paying the licence fee and preferring to only rely on the streaming services. Also, the 18-30 age group rarely watch any BBC channels, and if they do watch BBC material, it is through catch-up, such as iPlayer.

The rate of technical progress in the media industry, driven by the internet, as well as other factors, have changed the broadcasting landscape dramatically over the last couple of decades. The BBC hasn't kept up with these changes entirely successfully. Yes, they have websites, iPlayer and use digital recording equipment, but the idea of what is called broadcast television, that is, a schedule of television programmes which are broadcast via transmitter and shown one after the other. Or, if you like, traditional television. As I was growing up, this what I was used to. Once a programme was broadcast, that was it. You might get a repeat broadcast at a later date, but this was very rare, Even today, such programmes as 'Dad's Army' and 'Fawlty Towers' gets repeated on the main television channels. But now, with streaming, you can watch programmes whenever and however you like. There are free services, such as BBC iPlayer,  funded by the television licence. and others which are free and have advertising and sponsorship, such as the unimaginatively named 'U', formerly known as UKTV, as well as Channel 5 and Channel 4, although 4 has a paid subscription service without advertising.

The BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and 5 can hardly compete with the streaming platforms, as regards budgets. A show such as 'The Crown' had a massive budget, somewhere in the region of £100 million. For that they could afford lavish sets, locations all around the country and the world, a first-class cast of actors. The traditional channels would never be able to afford that sort of budget for a series, even though it ran for six seasons.

ITV and the other terrestrial channels are loosing advertising revenue, partly due to advertising budgets being cut, but also because advertisers prefer to spend elsewhere, such as social media.

So, in conclusion, how is the landscape going to change? Is the BBC going to have to loose the television license? How will it be funded in the future? Are we going to loose the big budget dramas which were so brilliant in the past? It used to be a highlight of the autumn schedules to have a classic adaptation at one time, but perhaps they've run out of Jane Austen novels to adapt.  

As regards the television licence, which is currently £174.50, which actually pays for radio as well, not just the main stations, such as Radio1,2,3 and 4, but many digital stations as well as local radio stations. But as regards television, we do seem to get less from far more, so I'm not sure about being value for money. 

A New Day, A New Dawn!

 Tuesday. 6.20 a.m. What a cliché! I couldn't resist today's post title. I think I will see if I can find as many as possible to use as post titles.

Thursday. 8.20 a.m. Yet another hot day. My digital thermometer currently reads 28ºC. The  BBC Breakfast weather forecast came from a lavender field somewhere in the Cotswolds. Today may very well become the hottest day so far this year.

The results of the bowel cancer screening test came back yesterday. Nothing to report, thankfully, and next time I have to do a test I will have to ask my doctor if I can have one, for some weird reason. Probably because, by then, I will have been over the age of 75. Why does that make a difference?

Friday. 9.25 a.m. Yet another hot day. My digital thermometer currently reads 27ºc. 

Since this current heatwave began, I have had some really unpleasant skin irritation. I think it's just because of the heat and my skin sweating so much. It has got to the point that I needed some sort of relief from it. Having a shower tends to help, but it still comes back. I was trying to think of something to help relieve this irritation and Piraton came to mind. I have some in my cupboard, but I think these tablets are well past their 'best before' date. So, thinking further, I decided I needed to find a pharmacy to purchase some new Piraton. The pharmacy in Sainsbury's would have been ideal, but that has since closed down, unfortunately. I also had to bear in mind my heart medication, as it was important there were no reactions to these with this new mediation. I decided to drive over to Bradwell Common and go to Boots, which is next door to the Milton Keynes Medical Centre. So, I drove there and went into Boots branch. A queue at the counter and the issue the person had seemed to go on endlessly. Also, I had to contend with someone behind me playing horrible music on their mobile. NöelCoward was right when he said, 'strange how potent cheap music is!' Too right. From his play 'Private Lives.' Ironic, because it was said, with the song 'Someday I'll Find You' playing in the background, and which he composed.

Saturday. 6.25 p.m. It's hot. Apparently it's the hottest day of the year. I can well believe it. My digital thermometer currently reads 30ºc.

Sunday. 2.55 p.m. Milton Keynes has been hosting the Bludfest at the National Bowl in Milton Keynes. No, don't ask, because I have no idea what it's about, but yesterday I could hear 'music', that is, if you can call it that, for most of the day and right up until around 11.30 p.m. At first I thought then music was coming from far closer, but then I realized that it must have been from The Bowl. (As I write, I have a feeling its continuing. Usually the drumming which I can hear, and it can depend on if there's a wind. It's around three miles from here in Dexter House, so you can imagine that, at that sort of distance, what the volume of the music must be.

Driving along Chaffron Way on Thursday morning at around 9.30, I noticed a crowd of people walking along the Redway which runs alongside the road. I have a feeling they must be going to something connected with this festival, probably going for some sort of training, to be stewards, parking attendants and so on, but, of course, I might have been wrong.

On the way to church this morning, again driving along Chaffron Way, the road was blocked off, just after the roundabout where Chaffron Way crosses Grafton Street, which meant I had to take a detour back towards the city centre and then along Childs Way and back into Chaffron Way before I could drive into the OTC car park.

Bright and Sunny

 Wednesday. 10.15 a.m. A bright and sunny morning. The digital thermometer reads 26ºc.

I've driven to Sainsbury's. Driving away from Dexter House around Truman Place and then into Oldbrook Boulevard. Before I got there, I noticed a crowd of people on the pavement where the path alongside Strudwick Drive crosses Oldbrook Boulevard. As I got further, I couldn't help noticing one older man sitting on the ground, with a bloody nose. I don't know exactly what happened, but I can imagine this man must have fallen over and most likely he fell on his face, hence the bloody nose. I presume the crowd of people were helping him. It looked to me as if he probably needed first aid and possibly a visit to the A and E department at the hospital to get himself checked over just to make sure there were no serious injuries and some sort of dressing on his nose, to prevent infection.

I went on to Sainsbury's, did my shopping and around 40 minutes I drove past the other way and the man was still sitting on the ground and the crowd of people was still with him. I'm not sure how this incident occurred or how it played out, whether someone called an ambulance if he went to the hospital, or if someone dressed the injury.

Friday. 8.35a.m. I think the best way to describe the weather at the moment is sultry, hot, and sticky, which makes it difficult to sleep at night. I have an electric fan on in the lounge and another in the bedroom, as well as a hand-held chargeable fan, but even then it doesn't seem to cool things down. The digital thermometer currently reads 27ºc.

Saturday. 9.45 a.m. There is talk of rain on BBC Breakfast this morning. When it's likely to strike is a bit vague, but we do need a downpour. Everything looks parched and dry. The grass is shriveling up. The trees along Strudwick Drive are shedding their leaves, most likely because they need rain.

Sunday. 5.50 p.m. Today is Father's Day. In church, every father got a small gift, of 2 Ferrero Rocher chocolates and a card. The sermon was on 'The Fruit of the Holy Spirit' and people who were gifted by the various gifts were nominated and given small gifts. Also, anyone who is a volunteer got a small gift, which was a pen. I got one.

I spoke to a lady who was a visitor at church, who knew Carol. She is a teacher. I think she might have worked with her at Stantonbury or Milton Keynes Academy. She said she visited Carol when she was in Willen Hospice.

It's hotter than ever today and the weather forecasters suggest that it will get hotter as the week progresses.

Plan B

 Friday. 6.50 a.m. A rather dull, drizzly day. It can only improve. Digital thermometer reads 23ºC.

Saturday. 6.30 a.m. I'm sorry to say, the weather hasn't got any better. A rather dull and overcast morning and more drizzle. Thin and pathetic rain.

9.35 a.m. It would appear that the infamous scooter stores are in use! I have been following this saga for the past couple of years, and what a never ending saga it has been. I have seen Dexter residents on their electric scooters riding along the beautifully tarmacked paths, so I assume they can get out onto the path through the side gate into Strudwick Drive. How long has this been going on? I will have to look back at earlier posts on here to discover. I would say, probably four years, give or take a year.

I have sorted my recycling. What excitement! The problem you get, when you buy anything online, from Amazon (other online retailers are available.) is dealing with the packaging your purchases come in. Not just the box, envelope or whatever it comes in, but often the material which keeps the product from moving around in the package, usually bubble wrap or chips of some sort or other. So, quite a bit to break up and take to the bin store. We now have a new system for sorting recycling. Unrecallable stuff goes in one bin, the rest goes in the other. No sorting out cardboard, plastic, metal and glass. It's far easier than the old system.

4.50 p.m. A very black sky, which must surely mean we're in for a rainstorm. I do hope it more forceful than the pathetic thin drizzle we've had for the past day or two.  

8.55 p.m. We got rain. It has continued for most of the evening. It was relatively heavy. I don't dislike rain, in fact, I quite enjoy thunderstorms, but this isn't going to turn into one.

Sunday. 7.15 a.m. A bright and far sunnier morning. The digital thermometer currently reads 23ºc.

We had to endure the fire alarms going off mid-morning. Really ear-splitting and enough to erase your memory. Some people shouldn't be allowed to play with matches.

There is a print-out of photographs at the entrance, of people who mustn't be allowed to enter Dexter House. It makes me think of those 'wanted' criminals who are wanted by the police. These people must not be let in. So, how are we supposed to recognize them? I don't think I would want to challenge any of this motley crew. Above all else, what have they done to be put on this list? I imagine some of them might be aggressive if they don't get what they want. It doesn't bear thinking about, quite frankly.

Summer Starts, Not Entirely Auspiciously

 Wednesday. 8.45 a.m. Another bright and mild morning. Thank goodness the wind has dropped.

Every two years, I have to do a bowel cancer test. It's because I'm over a 'certain age' which means I would be prone to bowel cancer. I have done the test, but I won't go into detail. It is posted off, and I should get the results in around 2 weeks. The actual test is now far easier than the original test, fortunately. I do not see why the N.H.S. has to send me a letter around two weeks before the test kit arrives, informing me that I am due for this test and the kit will soon be sent. This seems a real waste of money. Why not just send the kit? I can imagine that if every man who has to do this test has a similar letter sent, it must cost a considerable amount. First class is £1.70 and second class is 75p, so you get an idea how much it's likely to cost if several million of these letters get sent out.

4.50 p.m. I have been to sit with my friend Mike who has Parkinson's so his wife, Margaret, can go to a meeting. I have been doing this for several months now. I think she needs respite as it must be quite challenging being his carer. I drive past the entrance to Camphill, and on the way home the traffic ground to a halt and I could see an ambulance ahead and someone controlling the traffic. There was glass and debris everywhere on the road and I could see a car at the side of the road, looking as if it has been in an accident and in a pretty poor state, totally smashed in. I don't think the accident can have happened much before I got to that area. I have a feeling the driver might have driven out of the road leading into Camphill. I couldn't see a second vehicle which might have caused the accident, possibly hitting the other vehicle, but I have the feeling that the driver wasn't being careful enough when they turned into the flow of traffic. If that was the case, it would have been easier to turn left and go to the next roundabout and come back in the direction they must have wanted to go.

Thursday. 7.20 a.m. The weather has done another about-turn. It's 'sort of' raining. Not torrential, but thin and rather miserable, as if it can't make its mind up.

2.20 p.m. I have mentioned my problems getting my new Sony camera to connect to the hand grip via Bluetooth. With this you can operate the camera, the zoom function as well as the still photo and video functions. It makes operating far easier because it can be held as well as transforming into a mini tripod. I now have to set up the Joby microphones, which I  recently bought on Amazon.

As I say, my options to finding a solution to the problem were running out. I had gone on YouTube to watch videos about setting the camera up with the hand grip, but to no avail. There are few cameras in Milton Keynes. There used to be two branches of Jessops, but both have closed down. I then recalled a company called Wex, which I thought had a branch in Milton Keynes. I found it, in the Exchange building in Midsummer Boulevard. I seem to remember working for a care agency which had there offices in this shopping centre, so I knew how to find it. The problem was not just finding the place, but parking my car. I could have parked in the Seklow Gate car park, which is next to The Point, but it would have meant a long walk to the store. I decided to see if I could park along Midsummer Boulevard, so I drove there and eventually found a space. Fine. Then I attempted to use the RingGo app on my mobile. But for some unfathomable reason it would not work. Plan B sprang into action! Pay with my debit card at the parking machine, just along the street a couple of yards. You have to type in your car's registration number and press a couple of keys and use your contactless card and, hey presto! But no! That decided to fail. After two attempts I was not in a particularly good mood. I drove away, thinking that I'd go home and forget the whole sorry situation, but at the last moment I thought I'd park in the car park underneath Sainsbury's and walk to Wex, which is what I did. So, I drove to Sainsbury's car park and found a space and then walked to Wex store. Meanwhile, it was drizzling which didn't help my mood, which had been shattered by the problems with the RingGo app and the ticket machine. It was easy enough to find the store within the Exchange building. It's not a place I know well and it would not have been the most obvious place to find a camera shop. It didn't seem exactly busy, so goodness knows what the foot fall was like.

I went inside the store and asked one of the staff if he could help with setting up the grip on the camera. It turned out that I had pressed one of the wrong buttons on the grip which was why it wouldn't connect to the camera via Bluetooth. I have to say I was more than pleased and may go back if I need to go to Wex, basically because there are so few camera shops in Milton Keynes. I am thinking more for advice, such as I did when I went there to help set up the grip with the camera.

June Is Bustin' Out All Over!

 Thursday. 5.35 p.m. Yesterday afternoon we had a tea party in the community lounge. It was provided by my friends John and Margaret who now go to Milton Keynes Christian Centre, which is along Strudwick Drive from Dexter House. We had a great selection of food, which included chicken drumsticks, sandwiches, cakes, sausage rolls, and pork pie. There was also a quiz, which I won. I seem to make a habit of this, and one of the residents said I must have cheated as I always seem to win. I don't think it would have been possible to cheat, even if I had wanted to. I got a prize of a box of After Eight mint chocolate, which I rather like.

Friday. 3.45 p.m. It's been a relatively mild sort of day today. The sun hasn't shone, but still quite pleasant.

Sunday. 7.30 a.m. It's the 1st of June. How quickly we seem to have got here. Time seems to be going quickly, and, appropriately, Doctor Who is in the news, Billie Piper is taking over from Naguti Gatwa. The ratings for the last season, or even the season before last, have been poor, probably because of the woke storylines. I reckon he only took on the role of The Doctor, as a stepping stone to a Hollywood career. He was in a production of 'The Importance of Being Earnest' at the National Theatre, which I haven't seen, and really don't want to. It will be interesting to see how Doctor Who develops once the next series is shown.

It's sunny and bright outside. My digital thermometer currently reads  25ºC.

Monday. 10.25 a.m. Warm and sunny again this morning. I've been to Lidl for a few things. 

It has taken a while to get used to the layout of the  new store. There's a good deal more new products and a lot of branded items, such as PG Tips teabags. Stlll a good deal cheaper than elsewhere and you can be in and out quickly.

As usual, there were problems with the self-service till. I now know you scan using scanner in the base of the thing. No label on one item, so the girl in attendance had to help me. 

6.45 p.m. I have managed some writing. I had the next section written some while ago, but I am redrafting it. I have spent some time developing characters and from those characters I can give them a back story and it's easier to write with this new material. I even think I could develop a sort of spin-off project from these characters.

I have still not managed to get the new Sony camera to connect to the grip with Bluetooth. This situation is becoming somewhat annoying and very frustrating. I really need to find someone who has knowledge of such things to help we deal with the problem.

Tuesday. 6.15 a.m. It's a good deal cooler this morning and there's a breeze blowing.

The Flowers That Bloom In The Spring

Friday. 8.20 a.m. The whole place has flowers blooming like mad. If you drive along Chaffron Way towards Marlborough Street, you will see primroses blooming all along the grassed verges. Really beautiful. Trees have blossom, and hedges rich in white hawthorn blossom. The hedge alongside the path towards Oldbrook Green, which I believe is beech, has grown rapidly and needs trimming.

Saturday. 6.30 a.m. I have just returned from taking Alfie out. It's turned quite overcast and I wasn't sure whether it was raining. 'Sort of' spitting, as my mother would say. 

10.15 a.m. I have been wondering why the DJI Pocket 2 camera cuts out after around 15 minutes of filming. It has done this several times, so I did some research on the internet and discovered that it might be because the memory card hadn't been formatted. This I have now done and then I did a test by taking it out and recording as I walked around Oldbrook Green. It was a success, but when I came to view the footage, almost immediately after I got back to the flat, it cut out, and I got a message telling me it had closed down because it was overheating. I think it would therefore be obvious that it will need to film for no more than 15 minutes, and then switched off, to allow it to cool down.

Sunday. 7.15 a.m. A really beautiful and sunny morning. I took Alfie out as usual and was surprised that the grass was littered with leaves. I think it may be due to the lack of rain, which we seriously need.

8.55 a.m. Oh dear! Having written the above, I now have to mention that it is now raining, although a bit half-heartedly. A bit thin and undramatic. I doubt it will make much of a difference. We need torrential rain. We are being told, via the media, that there is the possibility of a drought situation in this country. Crazy, but true. Just typical British weather! I imagine someone is going to put it down to climate change.

Monday. 8.00 a.m. Today would have been Carol and my 18th wedding anniversary. I will just get on with things as usual. Such as sorting out the recycling and putting out the rubbish, doing the washing up. I think she would be happy to know that I have things to do, such as my writing, family research, and photography. 

The morning has begun with sunshine and warmth. It is a bank holiday Monday, so it's a rarity to have decent weather.

6.15 p.m.I had two phone calls this morning. Each time I went to answer, but it rang off. I expected the first one to be one of those confounded cold calls, trying to sell me double-glazing or similar. The second time it rang, I was asleep on my bed and managed to get to the phone in time to speak to my friend, Margaret, from church. She was inviting me to a cream tea afternoon at her flat with her husband, Mike, who has Parkinson's. I said I'd be there at 3 p.m. When I arrived, a few minutes later some more of the Thursday Morning Life Group arrived and had scones, cream, and jam, which was really pleasant.

Tuesday. 1.30 p.m. It's now raining as I write. I wasn't expecting it when I took Alfie out around 45 minutes ago

Wednesday. 1.35 p.m. I had quite a few parcels arrive from Amazon mid-afternoon yesterday. The grip for the Sony digital camera, a microphone set, a holder for SD cards, and a book. I have been attempting to connect the grip to the camera via Bluetooth, but without much success. I have been watching videos on YouTube in an attempt to fathom out the procedure to get this camera connected, but without solving the problem, but I will continue to do so until it is resolved.

Cameras, Cars and Ultrascans

Sunday. 3.35 p.m. Earlier this morning I was ready for church and about to leave, but when I went down to get in my car, I found a car blocking the exit, so I was not pleased. It seemed a bit selfish of the driver to park in such a way, that I could not get out. I returned to my flat and thought, if that's the case, I'll have to accept I would be able to go to church, so I made myself a cup of coffee and thought, I would be able to watch via Facebook. By the time I'd sat down with my coffee, I could see, by looking out of the window, that the car had gone, so I was able to drive to The Oaktree Centre. Thinking about the situation, I did think it might have been a carer, doing the sort of job that I used to do, and finding it difficult to find a space to park their car when visiting the person they were a carer for. It might have been, but that crossed my mind. 

Wednesday. 12.20 p.m. I have bought a new Sony digital camera. It not only takes still photographs. but is designed for vlogging, that is, videos that can be uploaded to various media platforms, such as YouTube, X (formerly known as Twitter,) Instagram, TickTock, and Facebook. It has a touch screen that can be swiveled around so you can take selfies and it has a built-in microphone, complete with a furry cover that eliminates wind noise when recording outdoors. I have been attempting to connect it to an app on my iPhone and it has taken a long time to get it to work. I took the app of the phone and reinstalled it and it seemed to work. I have ordered a hand grip for the camera, from Amazon, which allows you to hold it safely and control the camera. This should arrive sometime next week, by which time I can have it up and running and explore the various features.

Friday. 7.00 a.m. I had an appointment at the imaging department of Milton Keynes Hospital in Lloyds Court. I had been there before, so I had a good idea of where to go. I parked near The Point and walked through the shopping centre. It is further than I remembered. I checked in to reception went upstairs and sat in area B. You can't miss these area numbers. They are huge. I think it's for those who have poor eyesight. You definitely can't miss them. I was soon shown into the room and I had to lay on a couch. I had lubricant smeared on my stomach. KY Jelly I believe. The doctor (was he a doctor? I'm not sure.) used a device that was part of the ultrascan machine and put it on my stomach. The lubricant helped as he moved the thing about. I started off laying on my back, but then I had to lay on both sides. The procedure didn't take long and I was soon out of the office. But I couldn't find my way out. It was a bit of a maze, but soon I was walking back to my car and driving back to Dexter House.

Sunny But Mild

 Monday. 10.15 a.m. Yet another bright and sunny morning. There is apparently going to be rain later in the day, with the possibility of thunderstorms. My digital thermometer currently reads 27ºc.

Tuesday. 5.35 a.m. The rain, which was forecast, didn't appear. I don't know if the more westerly parts of the country had it, but not in Milton Keynes.

Wednesday. 3.40 p.m. It's really warm and sunny.

I have been to the centre to collect my new reading glasses from Boots Opticians. 

Secklow Gate was closed off with 'Road closed' signs up, so I had to get to the car park by a rather circuitous route, but I got to the car park without any trouble.

I wanted to park in my usual place, next to The Point (or what used to be The Point. It has become a real wreck, a blight on Milton Keynes. It needs demolishing and replacing. Disgraceful.) You have to pay for your parking at a new machine, which is at the exit into the main shopping centre. I paid with my debit card, but it's not clear how you do this, although you have to first type in your vehicle's registration number. I did succeed, and the machine printed a ticket, which meant I had to walk all the way back to my car to put the ticket inside.

The area around the shopping centre is beginning to look really scruffy and uncared for. The whole place needs a good clean-up.

I walked into Boots Opticians and I had to try my glasses on and they were good. I have them on as I write this. I left and went back to my car and drove back to Dexter House

It seems very dusty and humid. We haven't had rain in quite a while. I think other areas of the country have had showers, but not in this area.

Friday. 7.20 a.m. Where I park my car, just below the window of my flat, there is often a large lorry parked. On the back (it is a flatbed vehicle.) carrying equipment for what would appear to be road repairs. My car isn't parked on the road but on a parking bay within the boundary of Dexter House. I trust that nobody parks across the entrance, so I can't reverse out. But on one occasion this lorry was parked so close it was impossible to get out without scraping it. I think I did, on one occasion. It might have caused a minor scrape, but no more. It shouldn't be parked in a residential street such as this. I realise the lorry is needed by the young man who lives along Dexter Avenue, but I really believe it should be parked elsewhere.

Heatwave Forecast

 Sunday. 7.40 a.m. As I write this, the sun is shining. According to the weather forecast on BBC Breakfast, we are about to have a heatwave. Whether this is correct or not, we will soon find out. I just hope so.

I have been watching the first episode of the documentary series 'A House Through Time.' This series is different to the previous series, which took one house and then traced all the inhabitants for several years. This series takes two blocks of flats, one in London and the other in Berlin, and traces the inhabitants through the period shortly before World War 2. I was really shocked to discover that the block in London, Montagu Mansions, was where a great aunt of mine lived during the 1930s-40s. Quite a surprise to discover this. That bit of information was discovered when I was doing family research.

Monday. 12.15 p.m. It's a bright and sunny day. As a result, I went to Stony Stratford to have another go at doing some video as I walked along the main street. I have viewed some of the footage, and it looks good.

Wednesday. 1.30 p.m. It's bright and sunny as I write this. I have my electric fan on.

Monday. May Bank Holiday. 6.00 a.m. It's now a good deal cooler. It would appear that the heatwave is over. I hope not.

9.15 a.m.I had intended to go to Lidl to get one or two items. I drove there and then discovered that they didn't open until 11 a.m. I suppose I should have realized, this might happen because it was a Bank Holiday, but never mind, I can go back later.

On top of everything else, its the first day of the VE Day 80th Anniversary celebrations. I think there's to be an RAF fly-past at around 11. Also, many of the roads around Milton Keynes are closed off, or will be, because of the Milton Keynes marathon. I don't need to go anywhere, apart from Lidl, and the marathon doesn't come through Oldbrook.

Tuesday. 7.50 a.m. It's hardly a heatwave today. It's not sunny, but pleasantly mild.

I have an appointment at 2 o'clock to get my eyes tested. I had a letter from Boots Opticians telling me my eyes were overdue for testing. I was told the last time I had my eyes tested that they needed testing every year, so I booked an appointment online. The appointment went well. I had all the work and extra tests, one of which was photographs of the back of your eyes. The optician told me she could see something which isn't sinister, but I should keep an eye on it (sorry!) I don't need new glasses, as my sight hasn't changed much since last year, but I ordered a new pair of reading glasses, which I will collect once they are ready, on 14th May.

Easter Weekend

 Saturday, 7.45 a.m. I've been to Worcester. I left Milton Keynes at around 3 p.m on Good Friday afternoon. I had left Alfie with Irene ("The Doggy Lady.") around 12.30, which meant I could return to my flat, unload the cage from the back of the car, and generally chill out before actually leaving Milton Keynes. The journey out wasn't too bad, apart from getting stuck behind several HGVS towards Buckingham. That's what you would expect on a country road, but never mind.

I was surprised how quickly I got to the M40, and it was a straight run to Worcester. It began to rain, although not heavily, but as a result, it caused spray to be thrown up by other vehicles, particularly those huge HGVS. I don't like where you have to move over lanes and then transfer to another motorway, from the M40 to M42 and finally, M5 to Worcester, but it was done easily, and I arrived outside Chloe and Steve's house a little after 5 o'clock.

It was great to have arrived. The grandchildren have grown, especially the youngest, Rosie. George, asks all sorts of questions. Lots of noise and general talk. George took my bag up to my room. Very polite and he didn't need to be asked.

We had spaghetti Bolognese for dinner, all sitting at the dining table. 

I had a small bedroom. When I last went to Worcester, I had to sleep in a bunk bed. It was somewhat difficult getting in, up a ladder to get onto the top bunk (no lower bunk.) So, if I had to get out of bed in the night, which was quite often, to use the loo, it could be quite difficult. Fortunately, that bunk bed has gone and been replaced by a single bed. Much better and no problems. I slept very well, even though I had to get up several times at night.

The next day, Saturday.

Chloe went to be part of a park run. I don't know where, but somewhere in Worcester. That meant that I stayed in the house with Steve and the children. It was raining slightly. It didn't really matter.

Later that afternoon I went with Chloe and the children to The Hive, Worcester's library, which is part of the University of Worcester. The children selected a wide range of books, and we sat and listened to story time with other children. On the walk back to the car, George, Eddie, and Arthur insisted on walking along walls and down the slope along the steps down to the road level. It looked quite dangerous to me, but it's no good telling them not to, as it's the sort of thing small boys do, and I think I did the same at their age. It's good to challenge them. They were certainly enjoying themselves.

After lunch, we went to Hanbury Hall, a National Trust property. It was attempting to rain, but we didn't let it prevent our visit. Keeping the children incarcerated in the house would only lead to arguments and be quite stressful for all. 

A field near the main house was set up with games, with a prize of, would you believe?- Easter eggs! Hula-hoops, racing around yellow poles, throwing bags into a sort of device with holes in and several others, which I forgot. I recognized the place as we drove in. We came to Worcester, to George's christening. We thought the christening began at 2, so we went to Hanbury Hall to have lunch. I remember it was very nice. We arrived at the church, and everyone was coming out. The christening had started at 1, not 2! Never mind.

The following day, Easter Sunday, there was another Easter egg hunt, but this time, all around the house! Later on, we went to Steve's brother's home, which is a short walk away. Yet ANOTHER Easter egg hunt, all around their garden. They have chickens in their garden. The garden is long and I don't somehow think you would find a garden similar if you were looking for a house in Milton Keynes.

We went back to Chloe and Steve's house and prepared for a meal which we had later. The rest of Steve's family turned up. A table was produced from behind the sofa and put together so that the main dining table was extended. A lovely meal was eaten, which included wine. 

The next day the weather changed. It rained,  although not heavily. Chloe had arranged for us to visit yet another National Trust property near Stratford-Upon-Avon, Charlcote Park. But, because of the weather, it was decided instead to visit Croome. So, the children were packed up in the car and we drove to this rather interesting place. It was a long walk to the house, but the exercise did me good. There was a means of transport to get there, as there usually is at most of the National Trust properties, a couple of what I would call buggies, which only took around 10 people. We had a look around the house and then walked back to the car park and drove home.

On arriving back at the house we had lunch and I got organized, making sure I didn't leave anything behind at around 2 o'clock I left for Milton Keynes and rang the lady who was taking care of Alfie, just to let her know what time I would be coming to collect Alfie.

It was a reasonably good journey home and when I got to Milton Keynes, I had to first go to my flat to collect the cage and then go to pick up Alfie. He appeared to have had a good time and then went home. So, a rather pleasant weekend and actually good to get out of Milton Keynes for a break.

The Sun Has Got His Hat On!

 Monday. 7.35 a.m. Yesterday was a busy day. We had a somewhat shortened service at church, followed by a members' meeting. Halfway through the service, a baby boy was dedicated. I must explain. We don't have christenings in our church. You are baptised when you accept Jesus, and it is a voluntary action. Anyway, the parents, friends and those who were to be Godparents went to the front of the church. Baby Leo, who is around three months old, was fast asleep during the dedication. At the end, his dad held him up for all to see, and it reminded me of a similar scene in the Disney film, 'The Lion King' and appropriate since he is called Leo.

Lots of stuff to be discussed and considered during the members' meeting, including voting for new members of the leadership team. Once that was over, we set up for what is called Messy Church and that went on until 5 o'clock, which was cleared up, and I eventually left for home at around 5.30. 

As I write this, the sun is out and the digital thermometer reads 22ºC. Yesterday was cloudy and dark clouds threatened rain, but if it did rain, there wasn't much.

Tuesday. 10.05 a.m. The weather has changed. What do you expect in this country? Fickle? Possibly. The sun no longer shines. Is summer over? Probably not. My digital thermometer currently reads 22ºC.

Wednesday. 7.50 a.m. Having just read the very short piece above, regarding the weather, I now have to write that the weather has now done yet another about-turn. When I went out earlier, as I do every morning, with Alfie, it was windy and dark clouds were crossing the sky. As I write now, it is sunny and a powerful wind blows. It's almost autumnal. My digital thermometer reads 21ºC.

Good Friday. 6.40 a.m. It's fully light as I write this. I have to say, I love this time of year. I took Alfie out and I noticed how quickly the trees are coming into leaf. I think the past few days of sunshine have helped them put on a spurt. The hedge, alongside the garden of Dexter House, is completely leafed (is that even a term, or a word? Well I know what it means.) 

The electric scooters are STILL taking up space along the corridor on the way out. When will these confounded things be able to be removed and stored in the sheds outside? The story continues. And continues . . . .  and continues.

Yesterday was Maunday Thursday, the day when Jesus and his disciples ate the Last Supper. I was on duty to supply the bread and wine in the evening for a time of reflection at SCF in the evening. I had to go to Sainsbury's to buy a white sliced loaf of bread, which I then cut up into small pieces. I did it early, because I was focussed on the task and wanted to have it done so I could concentrate on other matters. I drove to the Oaktree Centre at around 6.15, but found the place locked, so I had to wait until the place was locked up and once inside, the same old problem of having to open the kitchen, which has one of those doors with a lock which you open with a code. I don't have it, but it was eventually opened and I set up the trays into which the small plastic cups are placed and then made up some fruit squash (I think it's blackcurrant.) to then put into a squeezy bottle so that I could put a small amount into each plastic cup. This is a job you cannot rush. You need a steady hand. We weren't sure how many people were going to turn up, so I made up one tray and began to fill a second one, leaving the second one on the counter in the cafe area. In the hall, the table was set up in the centre, with chairs in a circle around it. It was a very moving evening, with readings and music.

I have taken a case out of the cupboard in my bedroom, which has been in there, unused, since I moved in around 6 years ago. I have never looked inside, but I needed to empty it, because I want to use it when I go to Worcester later this afternoon. I found various bits of rubbish, which is often what you find when you've been on holiday, tickets, empty packets and so on. But I was surprised to find Carol's swimming costume. It was unexpected and caused me a certain bit of emotion. I just did not think that I would find that in the bag.

11.00 a.m. I've been to the Shell fillingl station in Grafton Street. I needed to check the car's tyres. It's not a job I enjoy. I had a £10 note, because I didn't know whether I would need to change it for coins. I had a couple of 50p with me, just it case. I got to the machine and drew up. I then discovered you could pay using your debit card, which I had with me. Unfortunately, the confounded machine wouldn't accept it. Goodness knows why. But the machine did accept my 2 50p coins. You have five minutes to go round and check your tyres, but the hose it uses is difficult to hold as it keeps wanting to rewind into the machine. Crazy! I had to unscrew each cap on each tyre, and keep a foot on the hose to prevent it being drawn back into the machine, at the same time attempting to read the pressure on the machine. Carol always used to help with this job. She would stay with the machine and stop the hose rewinding into the machine, but without her, I have to do this operation on my own.

Goody Goody!

 Monday. 7.30 a.m. A bright and sunny morning. The thermometer reads 21ºc.

A slight problem this morning. I have lost my keys. More correct to perhaps say, mislaid. I was at the point of taking Alfie out, part of my morning routine, and I needed the keys to get back into Dexter House through the door which I always go out into Strudwick Drive. But look everywhere the keys could be and nothing. The situation was not helped because, when I came back from church yesterday, some delightful person had parked their car across the entrance to my usual parking spot, so I had to park further along. I think it must have disrupted my concentration, and that incident made me put the keys in a less obvious place. Not having the keys means  I can't go anywhere in the car, because the bunch of keys has the electronic key which not only locks the car but enables me to start the car. It's a sort of plastic device that you use as a remote to open the car's doors and then, once inside, slot it into the place on the dashboard and start the car.

8.30 a.m. The keys eventually came to light, in my trousers pocket, in my wardrobe! I still say that I mislaid them because of the car which was blocking my parking space. Well, at least that's sorted, thankfully. I have a hook where they are usually kept, and on this occasion, they weren't put there, so causing something of a panic and some stress. Alfie has now been out.

Tuesday. 8.50 a.m. Yet another pleasant and sunny morning. The thermometer currently reads 22ºC.

Thursday. 8.20 a.m. I have been revising some of my writing. It has not been touched for some time because I had no idea how to develop it further, but the time has not been wasted, because I have now found a way to go with it. I spent yesterday writing quite a bit more and even, during this revision process, new ideas developed. It's surprising how you can be writing and ideas sort of spring into your head. You know the expression 'the lightbulb moment', I think that is very appropriate.

Saturday. 12.00 p.m. Yesterday, we had a social evening at the Oaktree Centre. I was expecting it to be for just the Thursday Morning Life Group, but it was for all members of all the SCF life groups. It was a pity that only two other Thursday Morning Life Group members when you consider that there are about 15 regular attendees. Cadian, who is a member of the leadership team at SCF and is in charge of Life Groups, said he wanted to have some sort of policy for Life Groups, which will come into force once all the groups have been consulted. Then we had a Bible quiz. 

The Whole Darn Thing

 Wednesday, 5:00 a.m. Well, I'm wide awake and thought I might as well do some more blogging.

I have mentioned in previous posts about the infamous electric scooter sheds (the scooters are electric, not the sheds. Well, I don't think they are. Oh, just being somewhat sarcastic.) The reason for them, so that these devices aren't in the way inside Dexter House and a hazard if there's a fire. We now have beautifully resurfaced paths, all with lighting and access to these lovely sheds (irony here.) has been completed at huge expense.  Workmen have been working on the external gates which open onto Strudwick Drive (or, at least, the path, which runs alongside the Dexter House garden, and where the scooters will get into the garden and, hence, the store sheds. But STILL, the work isn't completed! This whole situation has become farcical, to say the least. I don't think you can make any of this us, but if you did, nobody would believe it. 

I've been watching episodes of the BBC sitcom 'Yes, Minister', and the above situation could come straight out of one of the episodes. It may be over 40 years since this show was first shown, but I think it's probably more relevant now than it was then.

7.25 a.m. It's bright and sunny as I write this. The digital thermometer currently reads 21˚c. 

Yesterday morning, I went out again with my DJI Pocket video camera. I went back to Campbell Wharf, which is on the Grand Union Canal where there is a marina, pub and flats. It looks as if it's being developed, with more buildings going on, a cycle shop and a One-Stop convenience store, a coffee shop and a barber's, which appears to have only just opened recently. There were workmen outside, putting up the sign.

I took some good footage, but I still haven't got the settings absolutely right with the gimbal. Having my iPhone connected to the camera on the new rig makes it easier to view what you are filming, by using the Mimo app. When I got home I managed to view the footage through the app and discovered you can even edit what you have filmed and also watch through my Apple Watch with the app.

5.50 p.m. It's been warm and sunny all day.

Alfie was due for a haircut at The Groom Room at midday, so I drove across Milton Keynes to the Pets At Home store in Bletchley. I took him into the store and got him registered. A trim around his face and body and then I went to Greggs, further along the parade of stores, for a drink and filled roll and then returned to my car to eat it. I went to T.K.Maax to have a browse. It seems the upstairs departments have been moved around and, as usual, there were no end of items I liked, but didn't buy. I went back to the car and a minute or two later the Groom Room phoned to say Alfie was done and I could collect him.

Everything's Coming Up Roses! (Or Is It? Probably not . . . )

 Friday. 2.00 p.m. It's been sunny and pleasant so far today. When I took Alfie out at around 6.15 there was a rosy-red sky.

I wanted to go to Lidl after 9 o'clock this morning. I usually drive around the block and onto Oldbrook Boulevard along Truman Place, which runs alongside Dexter House, but, on arrival at the roundabout on Oldbrook Boulevard, I discovered that the road was closed and an army of workmen in bright orange overalls. This meant I had to return to Dexter Avenue and then onto Strudwick Drive, turn right onto Chaffron Way, go right around the grid, and enter Oldbrook from Grafton Street. No real problem in all this, but a bit annoying as I wasn't aware of the road closure until I got to it. This seems to happen regularly all around Milton Keynes, mainly when they have been resurfacing parts of the grid road network.

I took Alfie out again a few minutes ago and I could see the workmen with a large lorry with 'Tarmac' written on it and another machine which I believe lays the new surface. I have to say I quite like the smell of tar. Is that odd? I seem to remember a play I did in Liverpool in the 1970's, which I think was called 'June Evening' (I covered the book for this production.) and one of the characters talked about tar being used to clear the chest of a baby, who was held over a barrel of hot tar. Strange how such things come back as a memory.

When I had completed my shopping in Lidl, I had to use a self-service till (they had only one manned till open, even though the store was busy.) I had problems getting items to scan, but a young lady who is there for such an incident managed to scan my shopping. I don't know why this happens. It's odd, though, that you are supposed to scan from right to left, which isn't the standard way of doing things. Or is it just me? Most things are operated from left to right, which seems more logical.

Saturday. 7.50 a.m. Another bright and sunny but cold, which I discovered earlier when Alfie and I went outside.

Sunday. 7.25 a.m. I had no idea that the clocks went forward today. I think it happened at 1 a.m., so I suppose that means it's today. There was nothing about it on the news yesterday, and no sort of reminder. Also, it's Mothering Sunday. Please, not Mother's Day, which is an American institution. Whatever it is, it's yet another way for businesses to make money, similar to Valentine's Day or, dare I say it, Hallow'een. 

I have a subscription to The Daily Telegraph. It's for digital, meaning I don't have the print paper and can read via the app and also the website. My current subscription ends in April and I had an email to inform me the next year's subscription would be around £200. I was keen that this amount didn't come out of my bank account and was prepared at that point to cancel the subscription. So, yesterday morning I rang the callcentre to discuss cancellation. The friendly man the other end was understanding but then wanted to offer me a cheaper deal. He first said '£150', but I refused that. The £99.' Again, I refused. Gradually it went down until it was £39, which I accepted. It just goes to show, you don't need to go with the first offer on something like this and it makes you wonder how many people take the first offer, not knowing that you can beat them down. I presume he didn't want me to disappear and not have a subscription, but it was worth it in the end.