Heart attack

Friday, March 15, 2024

Whatever Next?

 Thursday. 6.15 a.m. I was in Sainsbury's yesterday and, having been round the store with my trolley and had finished my shopping. I was at the point where I wanted to pay, but couldn't find a till open. It's obvious that Sainsbury's are determined to get their customers to use self-service tills, because many of the traditional, manned, tills have been removed and there are two areas with self-service tills, one for customers with baskets, another for those who have shopped with a trolley, which included me, and another for the hand held scanners. I pushed my trolley into the area with the self-service tills, which are meant for those customers who used a trolley and therefore had a larger amount of items to scan. But there were very few working tills, so I had to leave the area and go to a till which was manned. (sorry, but most of them have women working on them, so is the term 'manned' acceptable these days? Is it politically correct to say 'manned'? Should it be 'personed'? Just me being a bit sarcastic.)

I thought the idea was that you used the self-service tills, and they had one or two manned tills for those who don't want to use them. So it seemed strange that so many of the self-service tills were either closed or were out of order. It is obvious that they have laid off many of their staff, those who operated the manned tills, so they could cut their prices. They keep advertising that their prices are checked against those at Aldi, but in the process, their customer service has deteriorated, which is a pity.

6.05 p.m. Alfie was due to go to The Groom Room at Pets At Home at 5 o'clock. I was going to leave at around 4.40, but then I got a call from the groomer to say that they were able to take him immediately, so I drove over to Bletchley and took him straight in to Pets At Home. I was told that Alfie would be finished at around 5.45, so I went into Costa to have a latte and I got more points on my Costa card, which now means that next time I go in any Costa I get a free drink. You collect 'Beans' and when you have 10 of these 'beans' then you get your free drink.

Having had my latte in Costa, and went into T.K. Maax, which is further along the parade of stores. I think, if you read my blog posts regularly, you will have discovered that I love T.K. Maax. I had a good browse and bought a couple of items, one was a door-stop in the shape of a man, which rather appealed to me as it looks so humorous. The other item was an LED torch which can be charged and has a cable to plug into a USB port, meaning it doesn't need batteries. I was looking for a new torch. so it was fortunate I found it.

From T.K. Maax, I walked to Home Bargains and had yet another browse. They have a good selection of well priced items, including dog food and I may go back next time I need dog food. It was whilst I was browsing that I got a phone call from the Groom Room, to inform me that Alfie was ready for collection, which pleased me as it meant we could get home and I could then have my evening meal.So, Alfie collected, payment made and Alfie put in the cage in the rear of the car and then driven home to Dexter House.

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

This, That and The Other . . .

 Saturday. 8.50 a.m. A bright and relatively sunny morning. You could almost say that spring is here!

10.10 a.m. I had a few bits and pieces to buy in Sainsbury's. I always think, that if I go early enough, I will escape the crowds, but it was quite busy. A lot of men with bunches of flowers, which would suggest, because it's Mother's Day tomorrow (actually, Mothering Sunday, but never mind.) they would have to buy their mothers at least a bunch of supermarket flowers. There is an entire aisle of Mother's Day presents, all done out in pink. Why? Do mothers generally like pink? Carol didn't like roses, so woe betide me if I got her any. I have daffodils, because they were perhaps her favourite, and Thursday would have been her 60th birthday. 

The travelator was working on the upside, but the down one looks almost finished and should be open again shortly, so no having to go down in the lift as I have to do at the moment.

I have mentioned on several occasions in these blog posts how Sainsbury's has changed the locations of various items I have intended to buy. Some things have been in the same place in the store since I first shopped there several years ago, and it's so annoying when you go to the original location to find that item no longer there. This happened more recently when I intended to buy pate. I have at last found its new home and bought some today!

Tuesday. 9.30 a.m. I have a FitBit. I replaced the strap it came with originally and bought a leather one on Amazon. The original strap was made of plastic or at least, a cheap material which didn't wear well.  It had a proper buckle, so it stayed put on my wrist, but it was cheap and, frankly, not up to much wear and tear. In fact, it came apart so I decided on replacing it with a metal one. I looked on the Amazon website and found one which I thought would be perfect. On arrival, I put it on the FitBit, even though it is quite a fiddle because it has tiny pins which are used, which go through the strap and then into small holes on the body of the FitBit. Unfortunately, this strap had a magnetic clip, which isn't up to the job of keeping the FitBit on my wrist. Whoever thought that a magnet would be strong enough to keep a Fitbit, or other similar device, on your wrist? Because the thing wasn't much use, I decided to go on Amazon and have another look for a replacement. I found what I thought would be a good replacement, metal, with, hopefully, a decent buckle, black, and looked good, but when it arrived, a day or so after I'd ordered it, it turned out to be another strap with a magnetic fastening! It was difficult to see, looking at the images on the Amazon website, what the fastening was. As a result, I was going to return the thing for a refund.

It used to be relatively easy to return an item to Amazon. You could print a return label, with no postage required, and then pack up the item stick the label on the parcel and take it to the nearest post office or put it in a letterbox. There is a new system, which uses a QR code which you can have on your mobile phone, but I managed to print it out on my Canon printer and then, when you find the nearest Post Office which will accept your Amazon package and then have the QR code scanned and the parcel input in a bag which gets sent to Amazon's returns department. 

I have seen an email from Amazon, and I've discovered that the cost of the strap has been returned to my account. I can't believe how quickly this has been done. I expected the refund to only happen once the item reached the Amazon warehouse and was checked in.

3.00 p.m. I took Alfie out earlier and was surprised to find it was raining, quite heavily.

Saturday, March 09, 2024

EastEnders in Trouble

 Wednesday. 1.45 p.m. Milton Keynes MP, Ben Everett has demanded an apology from the BBC over the appalling way Milton Keynes was portrayed in the soap EastEnders in an episode which was aired on BBC 1 this week. There were scenes of grim, dilapidated housing, gangs of teenagers and drug-addicted neighbours. Apparently, the scenes which were supposed to be set in Milton Keynes weren't even filmed there, but shot in Barnet, in North London. Ben Everett has said that he would be contacting the BBC and demanded that producers come up with a storyline which portrays the positive side of the city.

I'm not exactly EastEnders biggest fan. I find it so miserable and certainly not an accurate portrayal of life in the east end of London. Gloomy, depressing and just plain nasty. But there really is no excuse to portray Milton Keynes in such a negative way. It can't be too difficult to do a bit of research. Just lazy, on the part of the storyliners and scriptwriters.

Friday. 9.40 a.m. I was expecting a parcel to be delivered yesterday. I had an email and I clicked through to the Royal Mail website and by putting a code into the software I got a message which gave me a time window of yesterday to confirm an approximate time for the parcel to be delivered. Not only that, but I was out at a Bible study at the OTC yesterday morning and when I got home at around 12 o'clock there was absolutely no sign of it being delivered. It could have been left on my doorstep, and there was no card through the door to let me know that they had attempted to deliver it and where it was.

This morning I went on the Royal Mail website and discovered a message which stated that they had attempted to deliver the parcel, but it wasn't left because I wasn't at home. So, it would appear, I will have to wait until Monday for it to be delivered. No card through door to inform me of this, or even whether I could collect it from the parcel office in Brinklow.

1.35 p.m. I have been into the main shopping centre to get my hair cut. The barbers have changed their name. It used to be 'Central Barbers', but it's not called 'ROK Barbers.' I'm not sure what ROK, but I have an idea it's a brand that produces cosmetics, hair products and so on. I had booked my appointment online, which makes it easier and quicker when you book and pay, making sure you have the appointment at a time which is convenient.

I parked where I usually do, next to 'The Point' and paid using the Ring Go app, and then walked into the shopping centre. I was in good time, so I decided to go into Boot's Optician and booked an eye test, which is later in the month. From there I walked to the barbers and sat outside until it was my time to have my hair cut. Once I finished in there, I went to T.K.Maax, because I had been given a card which had money on it and I wanted to buy a saucepan. Not difficult to find what I wanted in there and paid for the saucepan and then went to Gregg's, which is a few doors along and bought myself a ham and egg roll, some Belgian buns and I got a free drink with the order, and then it was back to the car and home to Dexter House.


Wednesday, March 06, 2024

Stranger Than Fiction . . .

 Monday. 6.15 a.m. I know, it's early, but I'm awake, and I have nothing better to do. I have BBC Breakfast on my television. 

Yesterday morning, I was on duty at church because I am on the refreshment rota. It's once a month and at the beginning of the month. I arrived well on time and then found that I couldn't get into the kitchen, which is locked with one of those devices that requires a combination to open it. I did eventually get the correct combination and managed to get into the kitchen, so I could get to the coffee-making machine (not actually a coffee machine!).

The lady who was on duty with me on refreshments came in later and we managed to finish setting up, with the coffee urn (at last! I found the correct word to describe the coffee 'thing'!) It had to be turned on well before the service began, so that it was hot and ready for people when they came out after the service.

Tuesday. 9.05 a.m. I am attempting to get a doctor's appointment. Nothing wrong. It's just since I had that blackout a few weeks ago I get a bit shaky and I think the sertraline is making my eyesight go a bit blurry and I get headaches and double vision. It doesn't last long, so I wanted to have a word with a doctor.  To get an appointment, Central Milton Keynes Medical Centre has a new system. You can't telephone for an appointment, you have to go online and, having registered, go through a triage system, explaining what your problem is and wait for the receptionists to respond. They prioritize your ailment and then phone you to arrange an appointment, either face-to-face or over the telephone. The system isn't open until 8 a.m., and I attempted to get an appointment yesterday, but I had to reset my password, a fiddly job at the best of times, and then, by the time that was done, all the appointments were taken, all gone within barely 15 minutes. I managed to get this done this morning, but I will have to wait until I get a call, probably in a few days.

10.20 a.m. I got a text message from the surgery, informing me that I could expect a doctor to telephone me and at around 9.30 a doctor did phone me. She suggested I got my eyes tested because of the blurry vision I am experiencing.

1.15 a.m. Alfie loves to lay on the sofa. Who can blame him? It's a good deal more comfortable than laying on the floor. Even though I went to the trouble of buying him a new bed, he still seems to prefer the sofa. I can't think of many dogs who get an entire sofa to lay on. While, at the same time, I get the armchair! He keeps looking at me and I have to pick him up to put him on the sofa. 

I went to bed and left him on the sofa. I was settling down to sleep, and then I heard this rather sad little noise, a sort of 'help me!' sort of doggy sound. At first, I thought, perhaps Alfie has got stuck under the bed. I looked, but no Alfie. Then, perhaps he's got stuck in the bathroom, as the door was closed. He has a habit of wandering in, and then it's easy to forget he's there and then close the door. But he wasn't there. So, I got out of bed and went into the lounge, and he was still on the sofa! I think he's scared of hurting himself if he attempts to jump down. So, I picked him up and put him on the floor.

The title of this post has absolutely no bearing on the content. I just couldn't think of anything better.


Monday, March 04, 2024

Wild, Wet and Windy

 Friday. 8.50 a.m. St David's Day. I'm not Welsh, so it doesn't mean much to me. In England we do have St George's Day, but the English don't make much effort to celebrate the patrol saint's day. They do have a special St Georges's Day at Wrest Park, the English Heritage-managed garden and house, which is around halfway between Bedford and Luton.

It's a very wild and windy morning, with rain falling. Not a pleasant sort of day, and Alfie won't like it when I take him out.

10.20 a.m. It's bright and sunny as I write this. Just shows how quickly the weather changes in England!

Saturday. 8.25 a.m. I'm really saddened to hear of the death of Dave Myers, one half of the 'Hairy Biker's' chefs team. With his partner, Si King, they had a fresh approach to the idea of the male chef. Chefs have had a reputation, mostly begun probably by the likes of Gordon Ramsay, what I call 'all mouth and trousers,' shouting at his kitchen staff and using bad language. The 'Hairy Bikers' riding around on high-powered motorbikes, were far more gentle. Strange to think that they started out as make-up experts, working in television, but I have no idea how they managed to get into cooking.

I think their success was that you could identify with them. They weren't like many so-called 'celebrity chefs.' Nothing fancy about them. You got two blokes who rode motorbikes and were good at cooking and what they cooked wasn't fancy.

I've been into Sainsbury's this morning. The travelator is still being repaired (at least the down one is.) I'm still struggling to find things I buy regularly. Why this urge to move stuff around? I reckon it's to annoy their customers. The latest item to go missing is pâté. It has been in the same place for years and now I can't find it. I've wandered up and down the aisles, but I can't find it. Crazy.

I had an appointment at Central Milton Keynes Medical Centre at 11.20 this morning. It was to have a Shingles vaccine. I didn't know about this until I had my appointment the other day with the nurse who did my blood pressure. You can get it if you've had chickenpox and the virus remains dormant in your body, and you can get it once you get to around 65-70. As it can become quite painful if you get it, it seemed a good idea to have the vaccine. It is given in two doses, and you need the second one about six months after the first, and you're not fully protected until you get the second dose.

Sunday. 5.30 a.m. Yes, it is probably rather early to be writing this, but so what? 

I haven't had a violent reaction to yesterday's shingles vaccination, except a slight pain in my left arm, at the site where the needle went in. It made sleeping uncomfortable on that side, but it has gone done considerably.

7.10 a.m. Looking out of the window, it looks foggy.


Friday, March 01, 2024

Unseasonable Weather

 Monday. 6.10 a.m. It's a somewhat wild and windy day. It's not cold, but the wind is quite strong. Yesterday there was a light frost and on Friday morning, when I drove to Sainsbury. there was a thin layer of ice on the windows which had to be scraped off before I drove off.

Alfie is beginning to look a bit untidy. Because I wasn't sure of the weather, I hadn't arranged a grooming session for him, because he suffers from the cold, and we haven't had snow or exceptionally low temperatures recently. So, because of this, I thought it was probably a good idea to go over to Pets At Home and visit the Groom Room, which is inside the store. 

I drove over to Bletchley just after 9, the idea being that there was likely to be less traffic than going later. I was right, and it was easy to cross over Standing Way and that horrible roundabout near Pets At Home. I got Alfie an appointment in The Groom Room. It's at 5 o'clock on 14th March. 

I wanted to get Alfie a new bed. I had a browse at dog beds in Pets At Home, but I wasn't that impressed with what they had on offer, so I walked along the parade of shops to T.K.Maax. It took me a while to choose the right bed, because I had to consider Alfie's size. It was no good being too small or too big. I eventually chose a bed and took it home. When I got back to the flat, I took out the old bedding, which is in a space between the unit on which the television sits and my desk, and then put the new bed in it's place. It was amusing to see how Alfie reacted to it. He didn't immediately get into it. I think it's because he likes his routine. Changing his bed would be quite an upheaval. When he did eventually explore the bed, he climbed in and then got stuck! It was so funny, but he managed to get in, and it was clear that he liked it.

The following morning, when I went to take him out, I found Alfie sleeping in the bed, but on one end of the tipped-up bed! It looked so funny. I think he likes it, because it's his own little world, and it's draught-free and comfortable. I think it's a real success and I'm so glad I got it for him.

Wednesday. 10.20 a.m. I've just got back from Sainsbury's. The revelator is not working on the downside, so you have to use the lift. These bits of technology are constantly being repaired. I think it must be about the third time the thing has been out of action in the last six months or so. I have bought a couple of pillows. Yesterday I went over to Kingston and visited Homesense and bought another King sized duvet cover. I wanted a flat sheet (I don't like fitted sheets, because they never seem to stay fitted and they're difficult to fold.) I didn't find one, so I went on Amazon, and you're spoilt for choice and it should arrive sometime tomorrow.

The weather is still unseasonable and it was foggy when I took out Alfie earlier.

Sunday, February 25, 2024

Almost Spring-like

 Wednesday. 9.20 a.m. The weather is currently extremely mild and not wintery. Usually, at this time of year, we get snow and ice and freezing conditions.

There are daffodils beginning to show green shoots in various parts of Oldbrook, and at the front of Dexter House, there is a hedge with signs of green.

Friday. 9.45 a.m. I had a letter from the D.V.L.A. (Driver's and Vehicle Licensing Agency. You know the sort of thing I mean; they come in a buff envelope with an address window. The letter inside informed me that I had an 'untaxed vehicle.' My car, because it has very low emissions, doesn't have to be taxed, although I should inform the D.V..L.A. that it is still on the road and being driven. If the car wasn't licenced and I didn't register it, the car was likely to be scrapped, which I didn't want to happen, for obvious reasons. As a result, I went on the D.V.L.A. website and had hoped to be able to sort this problem out without speaking to a person, but it didn't seem as if this was possible. I then went on the 'chat' facility, but that wasn't much help and was given a phone number to ring. I needed a document, I think it was the paper part of the actual licence and to deal with the registration, I needed the VSC number off that piece of paper, but I couldn't get it from this chat facility. I then rang the number, I had to go through many menus and then the long wait, with that dreary music, until a human actually answered. When I was eventually able to speak to a human (who had a lovely Welsh accent, making me think of the character played by Ruth Madoc in 'Hi De Hi', Gladys Pugh.) I was told that I would need the chassis number of the car to continue. So, I went out to the car and searched for this elusive number. I'm not sure if I actually found it, and I had to go back indoors and phone that wretched number again.

This time, after the long wait for someone to answer (and that confounded repetitive music!) I spoke to another person and this time I was told I didn't need that VSC number. I couldn't remember if I'd received the letter from the D.V.L.A. which reminded me about registering the car and that I didn't need to pay for the annual road fund licence. I had to pay £25 for the document that I didn't have (I must have had it somewhere. But where it was I have no idea. So, I paid the £25, using the keypad of my phone and that was the end of the matter, thank goodness.

Monday. 10.10 a.m. I had a text message a couple of weeks ago, asking me to take my blood pressure twice a day, for a week. As I didn't have a blood pressure device, I would have found this very difficult, so I bought one from Amazon and it arrived very quickly.

I had a problem getting it to work, but after some fiddling with it (for want of a better way of describing it!) I got it to work. Unfortunately, when I couldn't get it to work, my blood pressure went up and so the reading was high. I was supposed to use a link in the original text message to send the blood pressure readings to the surgery, but when I came to use it, I got a message telling me that it had expired, which was somewhat annoying. What on earth was the point of it, if it had expired? I rang the surgery, to be told that the link could not be opened. I thought that I was going to have to ring the surgery to give them the readings, but after some thought, I decided to write each reading down and take the completed week's readings to the surgery, which is what I did on the final Monday.

A couple of days later I got another text message from the surgery. Could I make an appointment to have my blood pressure taken? I did this through the text message and thought no more about it, until I got another a few days later, telling me I would need to make another appointment as the practise nurse wasn't going to be available on the original date I'd booked. I got another date and time, which was last Tuesday at 11.10. I arrived there in plenty of time and the computer system, which has a touch-screen on the surgery wall, wasn't working, so I went to the reception desk to report that I had arrived. I then sat down in the waiting area. The time I was due for my appointment came and went. Many people came in and some went for their appointments, which came up on the digital screen. It got to 11.30, and I was still sitting and waiting, so I went to the reception desk and told the receptionist. She couldn't see my name in the system, and it turned out that it hadn't been keyed in, so I had to make a new appointment, for the next day, 21st February, at 11 a.m.

I went to the surgery and the practise nurse took my blood pressure. It was quite normal, thankfully. I am going to get a doctor's appointment soon, either face-to-face or via telephone, because I'm still not feeling 100%, certainly not since I had that blackout and ended up on the floor and not knowing why I was there when I came round and then having to go to hospital.  I am now on Sertraline, which might explain why I'm not feeling myself. But generally I feel better than I have done in quite a while.

Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Mild and Sunny Weather

Sunday. 8.15 a.m. Well, here I am again, once more writing this blog. I haven't real;y wanted to write it, but after such a long break, I did decide to continue.

I now have my bed reconstructed. It came with me when I moved from the house in Eaglestone and had come with us when we moved from the house in Crownhill. It is a rather nice IKEA king sized bed and because of it's construction, it didn't really appreciate being dismantled and then reconstructed. I think there were parts that got mislaid, and I had broken it up and put the mattress on the floor and attempted to sleep on it. I asked someone at church if there was the possibility of him being able to reassemble it, so he came to have a look one Saturday and then got some brackets which were used in the reconstruction. It is now in one piece and my sleep-pattern is getting more or less back to normal, thankfully.

Around three weeks ago, a Wednesday, at around 6 a.m., I had a sharp pain in my chest. Having had two heart attacks, I have a fairly good idea what a heart attack feels like, although in some ways if I have heart burn, it can feel very similar. I used my G.T.N. spray, but it didn't make a lot of difference and then I took a  Gaviscon, a tablet  which usually relieves heart burn fairly rapidly, but this time it didn't.

By about 9.30 the discomfort hadn't gone away, so I thought it necessary to get assistance from Vashti, the Dexter House S.H.O. She wasn't in the front office, so another tenant went to find her in a flat with another tenant, and she eventually came to talk to me. It ended with me using my mobile to dial 999 and the paramedics came within about 20 minutes.

The paramedics ran a few tests on me, one hooking me up to their portable E.C.G. machine and from the printout they could see I had an irregular heartbeat. From this they decided that I should go to Accident and Emergency at Milton Keynes Hospital, but then they decided that I should avoid A and E and go into the Maple Centre.

I was left in the reception area by the paramedics, who handed me over and I was eventually taken into a triage room and a nurse took my blood, which was somewhat difficult as I might have mentioned in earlier posts, I don't like giving blood, or needles and at one point in the past, I passed out. Anyway, she did eventually manage to take some blood and I was then taken through to wait in a corridor, which seemed to be for a long time.

I texted someone from church, just so they knee where I was. I was eventually texted back to say where I was and part-way through the afternoon I was joined by Margaret, who sat with e in that corridor.

I was eventually seen by a doctor, who had seen the various blood tests and E.C.G. readings and informed me that I had had a abnormal heart beat which would have caused the pain I had felt earlier. He informed me that I hadn't had a heart attack, which was a relief.

So, having had this piece of news I was free to go home, and Margaret, bless her, drove me there.

The following Wednesday night I woke up to use the toilet, but on the way back to bed I collapsed on the floor. I had no idea why, but it was somewhat unexpected. I told Vashti when she came to my door around 9 o'clock. The next thing I know is I'm laying on the floor, but having absolutely no idea why. I think I must have blacked out and, as a result, collapsed on the floor in the space between the bathroom and bedroom. It was the oddest sensation, and Vashti was standing over me, calling my name. She got me to sit up and said that, because I'd collapsed twice within 24 hours, it would be advisable for me to go to Accident and Emergency.

I had intended ringing 111, but I could not get through, so, instead, I rang 999 for an ambulance. It was around 30 minutes later that paramedics were knocking on my door. I was soon given a check and then an E.C.G. was connected to me. From this, it was possible to read the print-out and see that I had a somewhat irregular heart beat.

I was whisked off to A and E (although I noticed it isn't called 'A and E.' It's referred to as the 'E.D' department, which is short for 'Emergency Department.' But it could be mistaken for something else which has those initials. 

A great deal of being left waiting, which is the usual thing in any A and E department. I had bloods taken, several E.C.Gs and at one point, because I had fallen heavily when I'd blacked out, I had a C.T. scan and an X-ray, which didn't show any breaks, fractures or anything else. But they had to take a fresh blood sample because the first one wouldn't take, for some reason or other.

After a doctor had seen me, it was decided that I should be fitted with a heart monitor. This consisted of similar contacts  that are used when you're connected to an E.C.G. machine. This had contacts stuck on my chest and then to a machine, so I had to lay on a bed in the A and E department, which made moving around quite difficult, particularly if I had need of the toilet, because I had to get a nurse to disconnect me from machine. If I pulled any of the cables off accidentally, the machine made a noise. All this made life very difficult.

Quite late in the evening, it was decided that I would need to stay in over-night. At around 2-3 a.m. I was eventually taken upstairs to Ward 1,  a new ward and part of the Maple Centre. It was dark when I was eventually taken in, being pushed in a bed by a nurse. The unit had only 4 beds and t was very spacious.

A doctor came to see me on the ward during the morning. He said that my blackout was a rare occurrence, but, since  had had two heart attacks, it was likely to happen. He also said that I was on far too much medication and took me off caesarean and isosorbide mononitrate

I had breakfast and lunch and I was eventually discharged at around 3.30 that afternoon and was collected by Margaret Jobling. She managed to find a place to park at the front of the hospital. I had intended walking there, but I wasn't allowed to and had to wait for a porter to take me by wheelchair. I don't actually think I would have managed to walk as it was quite a distance, but I was glad to be out of the hospital environment and soon back in my flat.




Saturday, January 20, 2024

New Year!

Sunday. 3.05 p.m. I mentioned in the last blog post about the problems I was having with my Canon Pixma printer. I also had some difficulties finding ink cartridges. I eventually succumbed to Amazon and ordered a set of black and coloured ink cartridges. I was then extremely surprised to have them delivered only a few hours later! I never imagined them to arrive so swiftly and had thought they would at least 24 hours after delivering.

Even with a new cartridge put in the printer it still wouldn't work. There were a few streaks across the paper when I got the machine to print. My only solution was to find the Canon helpline and ring the next day.

I rang the Canon number and the lady who answered went through what was working and not working on the printer. She told me the thing needed a clean and, after several runs of the cleaning cycle, the black printed when tested but the colour remained stubbornly resistant. She told me that only a few cleaning cycles in any 24-hour should take place, so I gave it another go the following morning, but still, the colour would not work.

After church this morning I decided to drive to the Tesco Metro on Oldbrook Boulevard, only to find it closed! I knew that the parade of shops where it is situated was going to be demolished at some point, because Lidl, which is opposite, was going to also be demolished, and a larger store was to be built on the same piece of ground. 

Monday. 12.15 p.m. Quite mild and sunny as I write this, but there had been frost overnight, which I noticed when I took Alfie out earlier.

Thursday. 8.20 a.m. Yesterday wasn't a good day. It began at 6 a.m. I was shaving at the sink in my bathroom. It's not warm in there. No heating (another story there, I'm sure.) I suddenly got a pain in my chest. At first, I didn't take much notice and thought it might be heartburn. As a result, I took a Gaviscon tablet because they do relieve this sort of indigestion. It didn't seem to take much effect, so I thought it might be an angina attack, so I used my G.T.N. spray, which I spray under my tongue. It didn't make a lot of difference to the pain. In fact, nothing at all. By this time I was getting a bit stressed.

It was around 9 o'clock and I was at the point where I needed to ring 999 because the discomfort in my chest wasn't going away. Vashti, the S.H.O., would need to be informed so I went to the front office and she wasn't there. Another tenant went to find her, as she was working in one of the flats. When she eventually appeared, I told her my situation and said I wanted to ring 999. My main concern was leaving Alfie if I went to A and E and then possibly staying in overnight. Then she said that I should use my mobile because the Dexter House telephone couldn't be used (I don't know the technical reason.) So I returned to my flat to fetch my mobile.

I had the iPhone on hands-free, which made it far easier to speak to the operator when I dialled 999. I had to go through the process from the first pain I had at 6 o'clock when I was shaving and where I was with the pain at that time (which would have been around 9 O'clock.) The operator then said she would send an ambulance so paramedics could do their tests on me. It was at least 25 minutes before the ambulance arrived and the paramedics asked me further questions and then wired me up to their portable E.C.G. machine.  One of the two paramedics looked at the printed-out reading from the E.C.G. and could see that my heart rate was normal, but that there was a slight irregularity.

One of the paramedics said that I ought to go to the hospital to be checked out. I could avoid going to A and E and I could go directly to the new unit, The Maple Centre. He phoned and it was arranged. It would, hopefully, mean I would get dealt with without a lot of waiting. Not a lot of chance of that, I thought to myself. So I was loaded into the ambulance, which was parked outside in the street, and we drove off to Milton Keynes University Hospital.

It's only a short drive to Milton Keynes Hospital. It's actually in Eaglestone. I think it takes up around half the area of the grid section. The ambulance was parked near The Maple Centre and I was pushed in a wheelchair. I think I was capable of walking, but they pushed me in any way. The paramedics handed me over and a wrist label was put on my right wrist and I was parked in the waiting area. It wasn't long before I was taken into a triage room to have basic 'obs' done and blood taken. This, as I've mentioned in several earlier blog posts, is no easy task, because, first, I have a problem with this procedure and passed out once, and two, as I have narrow veins, it's difficult for anyone to find one suitable to take blood from, but eventually the nurse managed to raise a vein and took some blood. Then I was wired up to an E.C.G. which measures heart rate and shows up any heart irregularities. Then I went through into a corridor to wait. 

I was eventually seen by a doctor, who had been looking at the print-out from the E.C.G. She told me I hadn't had a heart attack (what a relief, but I guessed that already.) and she would have to look at the results of the blood test to decide what next to do. I had an irregular heartbeat, but she wasn't sure why this had happened.

I thought it was a good idea to let someone at church know where I was, so I texted Jennie, who is the leader of my Bible study group, on a Thursday morning. She texted to say that she wasn't currently at home, but she would contact someone in the pastoral care group.

I was given a cup of tea and a cheese and onion sandwich to eat, which was nice. I don't think I've been given any food when I've been in A and E. You usually have to buy it yourself out of a vending machine.

A lot more waiting in the corridor. You would think, considering The Maple Centre was a new building, that there would be space enough for people to wait and rooms provided so that patients could be treated or triaged without being in a corridor.

Part-way through the afternoon I was informed that the blood test I had done when I came in hadn't worked. Something about 'sticky blood,' which I had never heard of or what it was. The upshot was, that I'd have to have another one done, and the results would take a further hour or so. No point in complaining, these sorts of things happen. So, it was done and then yet another waiting session in the corridor.

Around 3 o'clock, I was joined by Margaret from church! She is part of the pastoral care team. I was given the results of the various tests during the day. The doctor who spoke to me said there were no signs of me having a heart attack and that the pain in my chest was due to an irregular heartbeat. A lot of information is given from the blood test and one particular agent called Troponin T, which is produced by the heart muscle, and which shows up in blood would signal any heart problems, and this didn't. That was a relief. She said that I wouldn't need to stay in overnight and she'd get a letter typed up and one would be sent to my doctor's surgery.

Another wait. At least I had Margaret to chat to!

Another wait . . . The doctor came past and said, had I received the letter? I said, no, and she went away and around 45 minutes later I was handed two sheets, one of which was the letter.

So Margaret went off and got her car from the carpark and said she'd wait in the drop-off space outside and when I was ready I could come out and she would take me home, which is what happened and I'm so grateful for her coming to be with me and then take me home.



Monday, January 08, 2024

Into A New Year!

Monday. 1st January. 9.55 a.m. I didn't SEE the New Year exactly, but I definitely HEARD it. Fireworks were going off outside and being set off until the very early morning hours. They should last at most 10-15 minutes after midnight. I have only just got back from taking Alfie out around Oldbrook Green and there were the remains of many fireworks scattered all over the grass. There are several quite prominent notices which have been put up by Campbell Park Parish Council, who administer Oldbrook Green and the surrounding area, stating quite clearly that it is an offence to let off fireworks and that you can be fined quite heavily and even imprisoned for so doing. But some people will never obey such rules. But, saying that, there is really no point in having such rules and regulations if you don't enforce them.

4.15 p.m. If you read these blog posts regularly, and there's every chance that you might have read at least some of the 1,800-odd posts, (and believe me, some of them are very odd,!) you will have discovered that I am a creative sort of individual, writing, theatre, film, animation. I bought myself an iPad with a fair-sized capacity and downloaded an app called 'Procreate' which, with the addition of an Apple Pencil, allows me to do all sorts of art, not just drawing, but painting. But now, the company who developed 'Procreate' has introduced the world to 'Procreate Dreams' which will allow you to do 2D animation on your iPad (incidentally, these two apps will only work on an iPad. I don't think they intend rewriting the software to work on Android tablet computers.) The only problem is, that they never bring out a print manual to help you learn these software packages, so the only thing you have to guide you and discover all that these amazing apps will do is to look at videos on YouTube.

Tuesday. 1.20 p.m. It's a really overcast and dull day. Wet and not pleasant underfoot.

Wednesday. 10.40 a.m. I have been attempting to get through to my doctor's surgery. You aren't supposed to telephone to book an appointment and you are supposed to go online, having set up a username and password and make your booking from the appointments which should be shown there, but, even after all the rigmarole of password and username there were no appointments to book. The medication I'm on has to be reviewed, after three months. I at last got through to a receptionist, and she managed to book me a pharmacist's phone call tomorrow, so I will have to see what that person suggests.

The reason for all this was that the medication I was put on, Mirtzapine, was supposed to be for three months and after that time, I was to have a review, basically, to find out how I was getting on with it. The truth is, they are antidepressants and when I first took them, I felt a bit woozy, to put it mildly. When I was at Chloe's in Worcester, on Saturday afternoon, when we went out for a walk, I felt really awful. Over the next few days, things settled down, but last night I woke at around 4 a.m. and I could not get to sleep. Then, as the morning progressed, I felt more and more drowsy and it was quite pronounced and unpleasant. 

Thursday. 10.05 a.m. I have discovered an organisation called Simply Forward, which has outings and events for my particular age group. I have been sent their application form via email, but now the confounded printer refuses to function! As Victor Meldew would put it so succinctly, 'I don't believe it!'

Friday. 10.15 a.m. My Canon printer has been playing up. So, what's new? It doesn't get used much and sits on it's unit, all ready for when I need it. It's plugged in to the mains, connected via Wi-Fi to my laptop and when I require printing, it's easy enough to set it up. So, yesterday I needed an email printing, so I can join Simply Forward, the group that I discovered via AgeUK. I had the email sent which had the application form and a list of activities they do for a few months ahead. The idea was that I could print this off with my printer as well as the application form. Then, for some stupid reason, I thought it a bright idea to delete some of my emails. Well, they do mount up and it seems a good idea to do a bit of housekeeping sometimes. But I also deleted the email from Simply Forward so I had to text the lady who had sent it in the first place.

The printer would not work properly when I went to attempt to print the email. I kept getting a message on the digital display, telling me that the ink was running out. I thought at this point to buy a new cartridge. Which you will imagine to be a relatively easy process. I looked on the Argos website, which is where the printer had come from originally, but I got a message on there which said 'out of stock.' Then it occurred to me that John Lewis would be a good point of call so I looked on their website and it showed they stocked them. So, on Friday morning I went into the shopping centre and in to John Lewis, but they had none in stock! So the only alternative was Amazon, which had the right cartridges (black and colour, in the same package.) So I ordered it and I couldn't believe it arrived that evening, barely hours since I had ordered it!

Saturday, December 23, 2023

Wet and Cold

 Tuesday. 3.25 p.m. I wasn't going to keep this blog going over the Christmas period, but I now think I will write something. It has been raining continuously since early this morning. I hasn't been heavy rain, but thin and miserable nonetheless. I have taken Alfie out several times, but whenever he discovers it's raining, he turns tail and returns indoors. I can't blame him.

Wednesday. 3.35 p.m. Not a particularly exciting day today. It has been a good deal milder than of late. The sun even shone, which always lifts my mood. The last couple of days have been overcast and gloomy, which is definitely par for the course in late December.  I will be glad when Christmas is over, basically because when Carol was around things were busy, with us going out to visit such places as Waddesdon Manor, where they always put on some sort of extra effort with decorations in the manor and a Christmas market within the grounds. 

I have now watched the final episode of 'The Crown.' I have seen all six seasons of the Netflix series. I have to say, the final season wasn't up to the high standard of the earlier seasons. It seemed to run out of steam and I think they should have ended it with the fifth season. For all that, it had extremely high production values, such as sets, costumes, photography and so on. You could definitely see where the budget was spent. 

Thursday. 8.50 a.m. I am about to go to Sainsbury's to do a bit of shopping. I'm rather concerned that it might be extremely busy, considering we are only days away from Christmas. 

The weather has done another flip. From bright and sunny yesterday morning, to wet and windy this morning.

1.55 p.m. I went to Sainsbury's. I picked up everything I wanted, which was on a list. I would have preferred to have used a manned till to complete my shop, but, as usual, there was one of these tills open, but it had a long queue of customers waiting. I was left with no alternative, and so regrettably went to use a self-service till. All went well to start off, scanning each item and placing them in my shopping bags. But on three occasions the confounded thing stopped working, for the slightest fault, and I had to get assistance. This is why I don't like using self-service tills; they keep on breaking down, and you have to wait for assistance from a member of staff.

3.50 p.m. We've had a tea party here at Dexter House. As we sat and stuffed our faces with mince-pies and drank tea, a raffle was drawn, with the proceeds going to Willen Hospice. I have won a battery-operated fan, which will be useful in the summer when we get warm weather.

Friday. 10.30 a.m. It's my turn with the washing machine. I had my laundry ready and in the machine at around 7.40. I am supposed to start it at 8, but I'm not very good when it comes to waiting. I went back an hour later, to discover the machine stopped and nothing to indicate it was working, whether it had finished the wash cycle, with the clothes rinsed. The door wouldn't open as it should. As you can imagine, I wasn't a happy bunny, because I wanted my clothes out and in the drier. My only answer to the problem was to ring Mears, who are responsible for maintenance at Dexter House. I went back to my flat and rang their number. I'm sorry to say, I wasn't polite to the woman I spoke to, although I did apologize. She was going to email Vashti, the S.H.O., to see if she would be able to get the washing machine opened. I was concerned that, if the clothes were left inside the washing machine, wet. If they were left long enough, they would get mouldy and I would be without anything clean to wear. Well, that isn't exactly correct, I do have SOME clean clothes. It was because everything will close down over the Christmas and New Year period and nothing would be done about the washing machine. The woman I spoke to told me it 'wasn't an emergency.' Well, it wasn't a life-and-death matter I suppose, but to me, it was an emergency.

I returned to the washing machine, and it was working! Apparently, there had been a power cut, but then I discovered that there were workmen in Dexter House, and they'd turned off the power! But nobody told me, hence the situation with the washing machine. I managed to get the clothes spun and when the cycle was over, I put the clothes in the tumble drier and the situation was resolved.

Monday, December 18, 2023

Approaching Christmas

Monday. 10.25 a.m. It's a rather overcast and gloomy day. Certainly not as bad as it was a couple of days ago, but not what you would call inviting, by any stretch of the imagination. I have been to Sainsbury's, basically to top things up which were running low.

Tuesday. 2.55 p.m. I went to the Bridge Builder offices to complete my D.B.S. application. It appeared to go without a hitch, and I will have to wait until the certificate comes through before I can go further with my volunteering with Bridge Builder.

It is a wet and cold day. It has been raining more or less continuously since this morning.

Wednesday. 12.40 p.m. It was quite icy and slippery along the path towards Oldbrook Green when I went out with Alfie at around 7.25 this morning. It was quite deceptive and the leaves need to be more helpful. It really is about time that the Council workmen sweep them up. If they don't, they will begin to decompose and then become a hazard, becoming slippery, and then they will have to answer to those who fall over as a result.

I am learning the monologue I have been given as part of the Bridge Builder 'Christmas Cracked' presentation which we are taking into local Primary Schools. I have to wait until my D.B.S. certificate comes through before I can go to school. It's one of the formalities you now have to go through because of the possibility of someone abusing children. It's a sad world we live in, but without this piece of paper, you aren't allowed in and schools would want to see this.

Sunday. 8.45 a.m. I haven't written anything on here for a while. I did say in an earlier post that I wouldn't be writing much from now on.

Tuesday. 8.40 a.m. Yesterday was the fifth anniversary of Carol's passing. I was invited to a Christmas meal at The Barn by Ross. He had texted me about this, which was for the Monday Club people. It was a really pleasant meal. I'm not used to eating a full meal at midday because I always have my meal in the evening so in that respect it was great to not have to make a meal in the evening.

Apparently today it was four years ago since the General Election. I had forgotten this fact (not that I'm that bothered one way or the other.) But Sir Kier Starmer, the Labour Party leader, was on BBC Breakfast, when I put the television on at around 7.15. He was speaking from Milton Keynes, but I wasn't sure where he was. From what I could see in the background, it looked like a warehouse.

Wednesday. 2.15 p.m. At 9 o'clock, my car was booked to have an oil change. The traffic driving there was a good deal quieter than I was expecting, especially at the roundabout crossing Standing Way. I sat in the waiting area as the work was done, and it was ready to drive away at around 9.50. Paid and went home.

As I write this, it's really windy and wet outside. 

4.30 p.m. We have had a group from M.K.C.C. ( Milton Keynes Christian Centre) come to give the tenants here at Dexter House, me included, a really great Christmas teaparty. My friends Margaret and John, who go to Shenley Christian Centre (and it would appear, M.K.C.C. I knew John from when I was a helper on Alpha, which was run at M.K.C.C.) Part of the proceedings was a quiz and I won quite a haul of prizes!

Saturday. 12.30 p.m. I went with group from Shenley Christian Fellowship to the Nut and Squirrel in Westcroft for a Christmas meal. The group was made of of mostly those who are in some way or other involved with the Acorns playgroup. We were scheduled to meet at 7.30, but some people were ill, I think probably with covid.

Two ladies were already sitting at the table when I arrived, and the rest of the party arrived over the next half-hour or so. But, due to some of the staff at the Nut and Squirrel ringing in sick, only one waiter was available to do the waiting duties. Not just for our party, but, it would appear, for the rest of the restaurant, and, for what I would tell, serving behind the bar. He was literally rushed off his feet for the entire evening.

Monday, December 04, 2023

Anything Goes!

 Wednesday. 8.35 a.m. A bright, but chilly, morning.

Thursday. 8.35 a.m. It's quite frosty and cold this morning. A good deal colder than yesterday morning. The car windows are frozen over, so I have been to scrape some of the ice off, so I can drive to the Oaktree Centre after 9o'clock for our regular Bible study.

I got the printed bank statement with my address on it in the post yesterday morning from Nationwide. I wasn't expecting it, so it means my D.B.S. can be completed at Bridge Builder on Tuesday.

Friday. 10.15 a.m. It's yet another frosty and cold morning, but it's also foggy. You can't see the central shopping centre from my kitchen window, because the fog is so thick. It doesn't look as if it's going to clear at all today.

I am watching David Tennant in the central role in the Royal Shakespeare Company's  production of 'Hamlet.' Patrick Stewart plays Claudius as well as The Ghost. As they are meant to be brothers, it makes sense. It is on the BBC iPlayer, as part of the 400th anniversary celebrations for the publication of the First Shakespeare Folio. There are quite a few programmes on Shakespeare, a three-part drama/documentary on Shakespeare's life, which is very good, and I have discovered a lot of new stuff, one fact being that one of the Gunpowder plotters was a relative of Shakespeare and was executed because of his involvement. Also, a Simon Shama series about the Bard.

I might have mentioned this before, elsewhere in these blog posts, but I am something of a Shakespeare fanatic. I also 'collect' productions of Hamlet. I can't now remember how many I've seen, over the years, besides being an A.S.M. on a production when I was at Liverpool Playhouse in 1971. Carol and I went to see a National Theatre production of the play, which had Rory Kinnear in the central role. I find it intriguing to see how many ways it can be staged. It never seems to lose its power. They have more recently staged what's called 'gender blind' (not sure if that's the right term though.) with Maxine Peake playing Hamlet, although, in that production, I wasn't sure she was a 'he' or 'she'. Thinking about it, having second thoughts, her version might have been transexual. Thinking further, in Shakespeare's time, the female roles would have been played by male youths, because women were forbidden from appearing on stage. Some of the other roles have been gender-swapped, such as Polonius, becoming Polonia. 

Sunday. 12.30 p.m. It is a particularly unpleasant and wet day. I have just returned from the Oaktree Centre. I was scheduled to do tea and coffee, but an entire family were doing just that, so I had time to chat as it was what is called 'Cafe Church', which means there was no workshop, but a time of fellowship. 

My friends Margaret and Mike had invited me to lunch, so I came home to take Alfie out and as I got to my front door, I discovered a parcel, from Evri. It was difficult to read the label because the print was so tiny, so I had to get my reading glasses, but someone had put the wrong address on it. It was for the flat opposite. 

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Getting Wintery!

Wednesday. 8.10 a.m. Yesterday I took my application form to Bridge Builder. Next week I will return and they will apply for my D.B.S. check (Disclosure and Barring Service.), so I can work with children in the schools they visit.

Thursday. 7.45 a.m. It was an amazing sunset as I took Alfie out at around 7.20. The whole sky was blazing red. I would have taken a few photographs, but it would have finished by the time I'd returned to my flat and picked up my phone or camera.

Friday. 3.00 p.m. I have been taking Mirtazapine for around a month. It is an anti-depressant and it helps me sleep. I will admit here that I have been going through a depressive episode for the past couple of months. I had been taking these tablets for around a week when I went to Worcester, and the Saturday afternoon I was there I felt awful and wasn't particularly sociable. For the first few days, I felt horrible and wasn't sure I wanted to go on taking them, but I persisted with them as they were going to take several weeks before I felt any sort of benefit. I am sleeping far better now, and the depression has lifted to some extent. 

I was told by the doctor who prescribed Mirtazapine that I would have to have a review before a new prescription was given. I rang the surgery several weeks ago to book an appointment with the doctor to review this medication before the current course ended. The telephone review was to be with the surgery's pharmacist, and she would ring me this morning, which she did. I told her how I was getting on with the medication, and she gave me a prescription and the new anti-depressants would be reviewed after three months. I didn't want the prescription to go to Lloyds Direct, because it was likely that I wouldn't get the next course of tablets. It might take a week, or even more, for them to arrive in the post. So, the prescription went to Boots pharmacy, next door to Central Milton Keynes Medical Centre. I drove to the pharmacy and managed to collect the medication, which means that I can keep on with them when the current course ends on Tuesday.

My car needs servicing. I usually get it done at this time of the year and the digital system keeps on reminding me of the fact the car needs servicing. It also needs the oil changing and there is a small light which has come on the dashboard which I've not seen before. I should get my Winter Fuel Payment any day now and that will be used to pay for the servicing. As a result, I won't be driving the car until the service has been done. This cash was usually in my bank account around now, but it seems it was later because I checked my bank account. I will just have to be patient until it is in my account and then book the service with a local garage. 

From Boots pharmacy, I walked the short distance to the surgery to ask at the reception for my blood test result, which was done exactly two weeks ago. It turns out my cholesterol level is normal, which would be 5 or less, with the label on the result, 'no further action,' which is a relief.

Saturday. 8.10 a.m. A cold morning, with a light frost on the grass when I took Alfie out at around 7.15.

Monday. 8.55 a.m. It must have been raining at night because the leaves appeared to be wet when I took Alfie out.

6.05 p.m. I had my first Zoom meeting with the Social History group of U3A. I just found out there were Zoom meetings like this recently. It was about letters, letter-writing and communication in general. It was very interesting and I found out a great deal. I had trouble connecting, basically, because I was given the wrong ID code and password, but, when I went on email, I got the correct information.

Tuesday. 6.30 p.m. I've been to the Bridge Builder office in Bletchley to start my D.B.S. application. Unfortunately, I need a printout of my bank statement. The other documents are suitable and used to prove my identity. I have since printed out my bank statement from the Nationwide website.

The rest of the afternoon was spent doing a safeguarding training. I  have done similar training, having worked in care in various situations. 

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

Bright and Sunny!

Wednesday. 8.55 a.m. It's a bright and sunny morning, although it's not as warm as expected. I have taken the cage which Alfie sits in when he goes anywhere in the car. I've had it when I took him to the lady who looked after him when I went to Worcester, and it was in the car all the way there and back and because I'm about to go to Sainsbury's, it makes more space to put shopping in.

10.40 a.m. What a performance! I've just got back from Sainsbury's. The traveller is closed, the 'down' one, and when you've finished your shopping trip, you have to go down to the car park in the lift. Then the self-service till I used was playing up. I'm scanning everything correctly, but the confounded thing stops working and keeps on telling me 'item in the wrong place' or something else. Frustrating, to say the least. It means a member of staff has to come and sort out the blasted machine, so I can continue to scan and get finished and then go home with my shopping.

Friday. 1.05 p.m. You may have noticed that I haven't been posting such regular posts on here lately. I just think I want to spend less time writing this. So, please don't expect such regular posts from now on.

I haven't mentioned that I went for the interview at Bridge Builder last Tuesday afternoon. It seemed to go well. A lovely team. I am in the process of filling in an application form and asking people at church to give me references. The business relating to the 'incident' at Camphill regarding Halloween is still to be resolved. I have a meeting on 27th November. I will not be returning to work in the theatre workshop.

I have completed reading the sixth and final book in the Peter Ackroyd series 'History of England.' The first one in the series is called 'Foundation', the second is called Tudors', the third is called Civil War', the fourth is called 'Revolution', the fifth is called 'Dominion' and the sixth, and final volume is called 'Innovation.' 

Saturday. 12.30 p.m. Anything but 'bright and sunny', which is what I used as this post's title. It is windy and there is intermittent rain. Taking Alfie out, we have to negotiate the leaves which cover the grass alongside Strudwick Drive and I had to step aside as an electric scooter shoots by and barely gives me space on the path. Two people are riding it, which I'm sure isn't such a good idea as they're probably intended to have only one rider on board.

Monday. 1.25 p.m. A reasonably mild and sunny day.

I attempted to ring Central Milton Keynes Medical Centre to get the result for the blood test I did over a week ago, but I spent over 45 minutes hanging on, with that horrible music repeating over and over that I gave up and didn't get through. Maddening.

Then we had the fire alarm going off at around 12.15. It was eventually turned off when the fire engine arrived. Why can't they merely throw a switch somewhere to turn it off? Crazy. The thing is so loud that it gives me a headache.

I have cleaned my fridge out. The shelves were getting dirty, bits of bread, crumbs and so on. Each shelf was taken out and rinsed in the sink and then replaced. Great to have it clean again and somewhat therapeutic to have that done.




Wednesday, November 15, 2023

All Change!

Saturday. 9.55 a.m. I have returned from Sainsbury's, where I have done a pop-up shop. 

The travelater, that is, the moving 'slope' (for want of a better description) which takes you from the underground car park up to the shop floor, isn't currently operating. The DOWN one works, but not the UP. There have been repairs going on with these machines over quite a considerable period, but it doesn't seem to have made much difference to the travelator

I had a list of items, which made it easier and quicker to shop. But some items have been moved to different locations, particularly bath sponges. They have been located in the same place all the time I've been shopping in this branch of Sainsbury's, so I had to ask a member of staff and he was helpful and I managed to locate two bath sponges!

On the way into the store, having came up on the travelater, (which wasn't moving. A rather strange experience, because your eyes try to make it seem as if the thing is moving when it isn't. I can't explain it any other way.) I noticed some small Christmas trees on a display unit. I went to have a closer look. They were complete with battery-operated lights and at £10 seemed good value. I went through the barrier (which is the latest addition to the store.) I found I couldn't get to the Christmas trees without setting off an alarm. So, I had to ask another member of staff to allow me near enough to the Christmas tree display to select one so that I could buy it. Another mission accomplished.

I learnt, on the BBC Breakfast programme this morning, that Booths, a north of England supermarket chain, is removing self-service tills from almost all their stores, because of the feedback they have had from customers. They will put back staff on tills to replace them. Let's hope that this is the start of a return to common sense and that other stores, such as Sainsbury's, return to manned tills. It doesn't make sense when they have to have staff close by the self-service tills for when they go wrong, as they always seem to do when I use one in Sainsbury's. 

Sunday. 2.15 p.m. It's been raining this morning, and it's really colder. Definitely autumnal, murky and very low light when driving to church along Chaffron Way this morning.

Monday. 12.30 p.m. It was quite a shock early this morning, when I took Alfie out, to discover that it was raining. Not too hard, but enough to get a drenching. But as I write this, considerably later, it's sunny and bright, but there's a strong wind blowing.

Tuesday. 9.30 a.m. Here I am in my flat, not going to Camphill. Never mind, I have the possibility of voluntary work with Bridge Builder. I have an interview there at 2 o'clock this afternoon.

There is a large amount of fallen leaves outside on the grass where I take Alfie, alongside Strtudwick Drive. He doesn't like being taken through it, so I carried him to the leaf-free section of the grass.

An electric scooter lies in the grass, where it has been since yesterday morning. I moved it onto the grass, as it was likely to be in the way of anyone walking along the patch, most particularly someone pushing a child in a buggy or someone in a wheelchair. These things are left, presumably, when their batteries run out. I was surprised by how heavy it was. No doubt someone will come along and collect it at some point during the day.

Saturday, November 11, 2023

Back Home

Tuesday. 1.35 p.m. I mentioned the fact that my washing got stuck inside the tumble drier on Friday before I was due to drive to Worcester. Well, the good news is that it has all been removed from the machine, although the drier isn't repaired. 

It's bright and sunny out. Thankfully, no wind or pouring rain. Let's just hope it stays that way, at least for a couple of weeks or so.

Thursday. 8.15 a.m. A wind and rain-free morning. I just hope it remains that way for at least the weekend.

I wasn't going to mention this, but I think I ought to. Two Tuesdays ago, which was Hallowe'en, I wasn't going to go to Camphill. But then I decided that I would go and drive there after 9 o'clock. As I walked into the Chrysalis Theatre, people were unloading pumpkins from a car parked outside. It was obvious that Halloween was going to be the centre of things and no work on drama was going to take place. So, I said to Terrie, the lady who leads the performing arts workshop, that, as a Christian, I 'didn't do Halloween.' She replied that it would be all Halloween stuff and that, if that was the case, I had better go home, which is what I did.

I didn't think any more about this situation until I got to Worcester on Friday evening and was looking at emails on my phone when I came across an email from the lady in charge of volunteers. It said that being a 'diverse' community, all 'religions' were included, and that my reaction was 'inappropriate.' The email was something of a shock and made me really upset. I don't remember that Halloween was a religion, but that doesn't seem to make a difference. I have given five years of my time (excluding lockdowns) for nothing, as a volunteer. I have no end of experience which the theatre group has benefitted from, and many relationships made and built on since I started there. The email said that maybe 'Camphill isn't the place for you.' Not true. I have set up an interview with Julia, the lady in charge of volunteers on 27th November, and I will apologize, even though I can't see that I've done anything wrong by stating my feelings towards Halloween. I can't be a true Christian and be dabbling in Halloween and all it stands for.

I have since contacted Bridge Builders, which is based in Milton Keynes and have an interview this Tuesday, to discuss being a volunteer for them. I will wait and see what this interview produces, which will mean I won't be going back to Camphill.

1.45 p.m. We prayed about the above situation at Camphill. The prayer group knows the situation. I have to walk away from Camphill without any sort of ill feeling, which is necessary if I am to expect a reference from them.

I have been to find Bridge Builder's office in Bletchley, just opposite IKEA. Very easy to find, and it makes it easier to know exactly where it is when I go for my interview there on Tuesday afternoon.

Friday. 1.00 p.m. I have been to Central Milton Keynes Medical Centre to have blood taken, so it can be tested for cholesterol. As I may have mentioned in an earlier post here, I have a problem with this procedure, because the nurse usually has a problem finding a vein. It went well, and I should get the result in about a week.

Tuesday, November 07, 2023

Wild and Windy

Wednesday. 7.20 a.m. It's a wild and windy morning. Just been out with Alfie, but we didn't hang around, because we were both getting wet. 

1.20 p.m. I have been to have my covid vaccine. I had a text message telling me the vaccine was available and that I could book an appointment through the text, which is what I did and the appointment was at Jardine's chemist in Shenley Church End. The vaccine used was the Astra-Zenica vaccine and went into my right arm, because the flu vaccine, which I had on Saturday, went into my left arm.

Thursday. 7.40 a.m. I will, hopefully, drive to Worcester tomorrow morning,  and come back on Monday morning, so I won't be writing any posts during that time. I say, hopefully, because of Storm Ciårn, which, as I write, is raging across the south of England, mostly along the coast. I am keeping an eye on the situation and it would appear Milton Keynes and Worcester are not affected, although we are likely to get rain and wind, but not the strength they have been having in the Channel Islands., up to 92 miles per hour.

A little discomfort in the area where the vaccine injection was in my right arm, after the covid vaccine, but nothing too bad, thankfully.

Friday. 10.35 a.m. I'm all packed and ready to drive off to Worcester. I've been to put diesel in the car and now have a tank full, so I should be able to get to Worcester and come home without having to refill. 

The weather is calm! Yesterday there was quite a strong wind, but not as strong as the wind on the south coast of England or the Channel Islands. If I couldn't go today, I would have gone tomorrow, Saturday, morning.

Only one problem. As usual on a Friday, I did my washing. All were put in the washing machine at around 7.40, left to get on with the job and then came back an hour later to put it all in the tumble drier. I went back to take the dried clothes out and found that the door of the drier wouldn't open, so I now have a load of clothes locked inside and there's no way to open the door until someone from Mears comes to deal with the matter.

Monday. 1.00 p.m. I'm back from Worcester. I had a lovely time with Chloe and Steve and the grandchildren, George, Eddie, Arthur and Rosie. It got quite noisy at the time, but that's young children. 

I left Milton Keynes around 2.15, having dropped Alfie off with Irene, who was looking after him for the weekend. The journey was trouble free and I got to the M40 in well under an hour. Having the SatNav made things easier because I don't like having to change between the three motorways, M40, M42 and M5, but it all went smoothly.

I arrived outside Steve and Chloe's house at about 4.10. I rang the doorbell and Steve came to the door, He works at home and Chloe came back around 40 minutes later, having left work and having collected the children from their various activities and school.

The next day, Saturday, it was raining, and, rather than spend the morning stuck in the house, we went with the children to the centre of Worcester, to visit the cathedral. A truly awesome place, the cathedral, No end of history, which interests me, which included an archaeological find made some years ago, of a shoe (or, maybe a boot) which was discovered when some work was done in and around the cathedral precincts, said to be worn by a 15th-century pilgrim, whose headless skeleton was unearthed in 1986. This is on display in the cathedral crypt.

In the afternoon Steve's parents and two lady relatives visited and later we went for a walk across the park, by which time it was beginning to get dark, and a mist began to rise. We had a meal together, the first course being lasagne, which Chloe had made and as a pudding, Steve had made sticky toffee pudding, really delicious and I want the recipe. As good as you would expect from a restaurant.

Sunday was bright and sunny, although it clouded over later in the afternoon. I sat outside in the garden as Steve, Chloe and the children swept up some leaves which covered the lawn.

The following morning, Monday, I woke early and got ready to drive back to Milton Keynes. I waited for everyone to leave the house and had already said my 'goodbyes' and left around 8.25. The journey home was relatively straightforward, except for a hold-up around mid-way. I don't know what caused it, but the traffic slowed to around walking pace, but at least it didn't stand still. I got back to Milton Keynes around 10 a.m. and went straight to the house of the lady who had been looking after Alfie. It was a possibility that she would be home, although I had said I'd be there at 11, so I went to Dexter House to unload my stuff and went back at 11 and she was at home so I collected Alfie and went back to Dexter House.

Tuesday, October 31, 2023

Happy Bunny Time (Or maybe not . . .)

Saturday. 6.30 p.m. I went to the Central Milton Keynes Medical Centre for my flu jab, although 'jab' is not the best way to describe how the vaccine is delivered to patients. I was due to be there at 12.20 p.m., but I got there at 11.55. I had only just signed in on the computer system and sat down to wait when my name came up on the digital display. I was the only person waiting, but in previous years, when I had my vaccine, there was a queue outside and many people inside. Very soon I was in the room, sitting down on a chair and having the vaccine.

I managed to say to the nurse who did the vaccine shot that I had attempted to get a doctor's appointment so that I could discuss my medication, in particular the sleeping tablets which will finish on Wednesday, as I only get a five-day course. She said perhaps I could get an appointment today, so we went to the reception desk and I have an appointment booked for Monday at 11.10.

Sunday. 7.15 a.m. The clocks have changed, so it's daylight when, a day ago, it was pitch-black outside. 

I took the sleeping tablets at around 10.30 last night, and I slept through until around 4.30-5.00 and I have to say, I feel a better deal than I have done. Difficult to say, but my mental health has deteriorated over the past couple of months. The doctor has helped, with the sleeping tablets. I would wake up in the night and find it difficult to get back to sleep. 

1.00 p.m. I have had problems with the built-in SatNav in my car. I can never get the voice to work, for whatever reason. When you attempt to put the Postcode of a particular place you want to get to, it will not allow you to put in the whole Postcode. I don't know why, but there it is. But today, I got it working and even got a male voice to work, and it can be heard with the radio on. But, when I went to church this morning. the SatNav insisted on taking me to Worcester! So, it got annoyed with me when I    went in a different direction, insisting that I 'turn right in 20 feet. . . . Take the second exit on the roundabout . . .' etc, in an attempt to get me on track. So, at least it means, that when I drive off to Worcester next Friday afternoon, I will have the SatNav directing me. I don't have a problem getting to the Motorway, it's once I have to take the exits off the M40 and get onto two other Motorways which is the problem, But it's barely two hours in the car, an hour to the junction where I get onto the M40 and then a further hour to Worcester.

As I write this post, there is a steady, but light rain falling. Not something Alfie will be keen about, so I will be overkeen about it, as he doesn't like getting wet. Well, as it so happens, either do I, so we will have to wait for it to either stop or at least, be sort of, less, if that makes any sort of sense.

3.00 p.m. In the past, when I have had the flu vaccine, I would have some sort of reaction around 24 hours later. It would be mildly flu-like and the site of the needle going into my arm would be uncomfortable, so much so that, going to be, if I lay on that side it would be uncomfortable. I have to say that, more than 24 hours on I haven't had any such reaction, thankfully.

Tuesday. 3.35 p.m. I went to Camphill, but I had intended to go later than normal because the sleeping tablets I'm on can have the side effect of leaving you dizzy. They do warn you in the leaflet which is in the package, along with the meds, that you shouldn't drive or operate machinery. I woke without that side effect and left at around 9a.m.m but then I found that the theatre was being taken over by Halloween. As a Christian, I said to Terrie, that I \didn't 'do' Halloween, and she said that the day was all Halloween. So, I went home. I'm glad I did, and when I got back to Dexter House, I went into the community lounge and had a long conversation with some of the residents and mentioned my work at Camphill and why I had come home. 

(Note:I know, the title is stupid, but I couldn't think of a better title for this blog post.)


Saturday, October 28, 2023

Autumn Stuff

Wednesday. 8.15 a.m. Another really great day yesterday at Camphill, in the P.A.W., in the Chrysalis Theatre. Games played on the stage, one called 'Splat' (which I won't explain on here at the moment.) and other game called 'Who Stole The Cookie?" and then some voice warm-ups, then discussing characters and storylines for the World War two play project.

We sat on the stage. The front curtain was closed and the lights turned off. Then, a recording of Neville Chamberlain was heard, a recording of the 1939 speech in which war is declared on Germany after they invade Poland. It was really moving, listening in silence and hearing this speech, broadcast on BBC radio.

After tea break, Terrie came up with the idea for a game show, which was actually a furtive exercise to show call-up of troops and others for the wall. Everyone was give a slip of paper with a character on it, age, job and some other detail, and then you were called forward by the recruiting officer and had answer relevant questions to find out if you were suitable to be called up, if not for one of the services, but whether you had skills that might benefit the war effort, or whether you worked in a reserved occupation. It seemed a good idea to create possible characters for the play.

After lunch, a bit more work on story and character and at the end of the day, company work, which means drilling and marching.

Friday. 8.15 a.m. Autumn is definitely here, even though clocks change on Saturday night and Summer officially ends. I took Alfie out at around 7.20 and there was fog, although not particularly thick, and shrouding the city centre, seen from across Oldbrook Green. It's also noticeably chilly.

I bought myself a new waterproof jacket from the Regatta website.It's a men's Bosfield waterproof jacket, full price £130, and I paid £33, which has to be a bargain. I wanted a jacket that had zipped pockets and a hood, which this has. I need a jacket or coat with zipped pockets, so I can put my keys in the pockets as well as my wallet. This has all that I need, as well as being lightweight. If it's exceptionally cold, I can always layer up with a fleece underneath, which this will allow.

2.10 p.m. It's sunny but chilly. I have been out with Alfie. He was reluctant to walk far, although I can't blame him.

I haven't mentioned the fact that one of the two metal benches that are on the walk around Oldbrook Green is missing. It had a plate on it, in memory of some local councillor who was connected to the area. It had a rather nice design on the back of the seat. The one further round has been designed with soldiers, presumably of the First World War, on it in silhouette along with several poppies. I think it was probably put there for the centenary of the start of that war in 2014, although I may be wrong. 




Saturday, October 21, 2023

Water, Water

 Saturday. 12.30 a.m. It rained really heavily yesterday evening. So much so that I couldn't take Alfie out, as he really does not like getting wet. Come to think of it, neither do I.

We reached the fifth session of the Alpha Course this week, and I was due to go to the Oaktree Centre at around 6:40. I was in my lounge, watching television, and then I heard a tapping sound. At first, I couldn't work out where it was, or, indeed, what it was. Going into the flat's entrance hall, I noticed a dripping coming from the ceiling. 

Vashti, the S.H.0. (Sheltered Housing Officer) of Dexter House, had gone home. It was around 5.30. I decided to ring the Mears helpline and was told that someone would come and inspect the leak, but it might be 4 hours before they arrived. It was around an hour later that a man knocked on my door, looked at the place where the drip had come through the ceiling near the smoke alarm, and told me that it wasn't his responsibility and rang the contractor who was responsible. He did a check of the light fitting, which isn't far from the smoke detector, and did a safety check and found no sign of water or anything dangerous and then left.

I mopped up the water from the floor and that was the end of it, although I think there must be a blockage and possibly an overflow somewhere in the roof space due to the heavy rain.

Sunday. 9.25 a.m. It's bright and sunny, but chilly. At least it's cool enough to sleep. The digital thermometer currently reads 19ºC. 

Tuesday. 7.40 a.m. I went to Camphill yesterday evening. The silent movies we have been creating since February were premiered. Actually, not just the three the Tuesday group made, but several others which were produced by the Monday group. There was a red carpet in the foyer of the Chrysalis Theatre, and as people arrived, they were photographed by Craig, so it was a version of the traditional Hollywood 'Red Carpet' treatment as celebrities arrive at a premier.

Thursday. 7.40 a.m. The Zolpidem tablets which I have been waiting for arrived in the post yesterday morning. I took two at around 10.30 last night and slept well, waking around 5 a.m. I have to say, as a result, I feel a good deal better.

Friday. 7.25 a.m. A wild and wet night. It probably was nowhere near as bad in other parts of Britain, especially in Scotland.

I have mentioned the problems I've had receiving the Zolpidem which II have done a repeat prescription for. I got one delivery, then yesterday morning the larger order I made a few days ago arrived, including the sleeping tablets, (ie, Zolpidem.)

Saturday, October 14, 2023

Arrival of Autumn

 Sunday. 8.25 a.m. I've been out twice this morning, first, as I usually do, with Alfie, at around 7.00. Then, I went out again and we did a circuit of Oldbrook Green. Basically, I have my FitBit working properly again and it does motivate me to walk and build up my step count. Unfortunately, some selfish person has seen fit to break bottles near the bin when I cross over from Strudwick Drive and onto Oldbrook Green and then, further along the path, near the skatepark there is more broken glass on the path. I saw a lady with several dogs further on, so I had to tell her about the glass, as like me with Alfie, I wouldn't want her dogs getting their feet cut on this broken glass. 

Besides the glass, there is a great deal of litter all around that area, near the seating 'hub' (for want of any other term for it.) which is where a lot of youths gather and sit, not that I'm blaming them entirely for the litter, but there is a great deal of this mess.

Monday. 7.55 a.m. Another very close, stuffy, humid night, making sleeping difficult. The digital thermometer reads 24ºC as I write this.

Tuesday. 6.05 a.m. It's too dark to take Alfie out. I should be light enough to go out in around an hour.

Yesterday I thought it a good idea to check the tyre pressures on my car. This is a bit of an issue with me, because once, when I went to a petrol station when I lived in Bedford, I let out more air in the tyres than I put in, probably because the air-line at the petrol station was faulty. I did manage eventually get air into the tyre and the right pressure. Not something I want to repeat! 

To use these air machines (free air? It's not.) you have to have a £1 coin. I wasn't sure whether it used a £1 coin, several 20p pieces or even a 50p piece, but, fortunately, the thing used £1 coin, and I fortunately had one with me. You have to drive into the space provided and then take off the caps on the tyres, put the coin in the machine and then you have all of FIVE MINUTES to use the hose, after you have set the tyre pressure on the machine's control panel. It's when you pull out the hose that you realise it won't be easy to put air in the tyres and prevent the thing winding itself back into the machine. It actually needs two people to do the actual job, one to prevent the hose rewinding itself back into the machine and checking the pressure as the other person connects the end of the hose to each tyre. Regardless of all this, I did manage to not only check the tyre pressures, but to put some more air into each tyre, although they still had a good pressure in each one.

Wednesday. 7.45 a.m. I went to Camphill as usual for a Wednesday. Terrie, the leader, was on leave, so things were somewhat different. We started off with check-in, which seemed to go a good deal faster than usual and then a few games, some of which I have not come across before, but never mind. Then we had a brainstorming session on 'letters from home' for the World War two project. I discovered a lot from this. Then, after lunch we watch the remainder of the 'Dads Army' film which we started watching last week. It's not as good as the original television series and a good deal better than the more recent film, which didn't have any of the original cast in it.

Thursday. 6.15 a.m. I woke up in the night and could hear torrential rain. Thankfully it has relieved the heat, and it's now a much lower temperature, making sleeping better. 

The digital thermometer is currently reading 22ºC.




Sunday, October 08, 2023

October Fun?!

 Saturday. 8.30 a.m. I awoke at around 6:45, which must be the latest I've woken in goodness knows how long. We had the third Alpha Course session last evening at the Oaktree Centre, good conversations as we sat and ate our meal, which was chilli con carne. I went home and had a drink of hot Ovaltine and then took two of the Zolpidem tablets just before I settled down in bed. The next thing I knew, I was awake with light coming through the window and I realized it was morning. At least I didn't wake in the night and then lie awake with 'stuff' going around in my head. I only have a week's worth of these tablets, so I will have to wait and see what happens when the course has finished. I will contact the doctor to see what she recommends.

Friday. 7.15 a.m. If you are a regular who reads my blog on here, you will realize that I haven't posted anything for some time. I don't intend to close this blog down, but I won't post quite as regularly as I have done in the past, so please don't expect anything to be reported quite so often.

The weather is doing its 'thing', which is what you come to expect at this time of year. Having just returned from taking Alfie out, there is a chilly wind, which means I put on my red fleece.

5.00 p.m. I have two bank accounts, one with Nationwide, which is my main account, and the other is an online-only account with Starling Bank. I had saved some cash 'for a rainy day' with the Starling Bank but hadn't taken any cash out of it since setting it up earlier this year, but I decided that my Nationwide could do with topping up, particularly as we're approaching the end of the month and I need to make sure that there's enough cash to pay some direct debits which are due to come out soon.

I duly drove into the shopping centre, to use the Starling card in the A.T.M. outside the Nationwide branch. I had a P.I.N. which I used to get into the Starling app, but when I tried it in the A.T.M. it would not allow me to access my account. I attempted it again, and, as I eventually walked back to the car, I found another A.T.M., but still the card wouldn't work.

When I got home, I had a look at the card I had for Starling in my file box which has details of such things as passwords and I found that the A.T.M. P.I.N. was there, a different one to the app password. I went online on the Starling app and got the agent (via 'chat') to unlock the card. This meant I could then go back to the A.T.M. outside Nationwide and withdraw the cash which I had intended to do originally and transfer this cash to my Nationwide account. All this was done and the mission was accomplished.

Wednesday. 

Friday, September 29, 2023

Another Week

 Friday. 9.45 a.m. It seems bright and sunny outside, but I have a sneaking feeling that it's cold. I will find out when I take Alfie out again later. Currently, the digital thermometer, which incidentally is indoors and sitting on the television unit, is displaying the temperature at 23ºC.

Monday. 10.25 a.m. There's not a great deal to report on here over the last day or so, hence, nothing on here!

It's bright and sunny as I write this. It can be chilly first thing. So I put on a fleece and then, by the time I get back indoors, I'm really hot. I suppose it's just that time of year, moving into autumn, when the weather is undecided.

I have been doing homework for the Camphill World War Two project. Doing a bit of research on the internet on various aspects of the war, such as ARP Wardens, the so-called 'Phoney War' etc. I have got it on a Word-processed document and have printed it out and will take it with me when I go to Camphill tomorrow.

Tuesday. 4.25 p.m. I have just got in from Camphill. I have to say it has been really successful. We are putting together ideas for the World War 2 theatre piece and the group is suggesting what they want to put in it and how the story will be told. A lot of material about Bletchley Park and the Codebreakers.

Wednesday. 1.00 p.m. I have been having problems receiving some of my medication on order. I went to the doctor around two weeks ago and was prescribed tablets to help me sleep. I also had to order Atorvastatin, which I have been on for years, I think, since the time of my first heart attack in 2006. In fact, I was put on a different type of statin at that time, but that particular version had a bad effect on my stomach and I had to try several different statins before settling on Atorvastatin which doesn't have any side effects. 

I was also given a prescription for sleeping tablets. This prescription was supposed to be sent to me via Royal Mail, through Lloyds Direct, but I found out that there was a manufacturing problem somewhere in the system. I found this out because I was sent an email which had a barcode in it, which I took to the branch of Boots next to Central Milton Keynes Medical Centre. I was told by the pharmacist that I would need to contact the surgeon, which was closed because it was a Saturday. , 

Thursday. On Monday, I rang the surgeon and they sent me a code via text, which I took back to Boots on Wednesday and managed to collect the Atorvastatin. A long and complex situation. THEN I got an email from Royal Mail, informing me that the remaining medication, the sleeping tablets (called Zolpidem). Two of these are to be taken before retiring for the night, which I took at around 10.30 last night. I did sleep, but still woke at around 4 a.m.