Carol had to be at the oncology suite for 9 o'clock this morning. We had intended walking, but then decided that, as we had other things to do, we decided to drive. We had to go to Ashfield Medical Centre to discover whether the prescription for Carol was ready. Carol drove and I went in and fortunately not many people in he queue in front of me. A mother with two little girls ahead of me in the queue were having fun with the footprints painted on the floor, being able to stride onto each step, the older one had no problem, but the little, youngest one had to make a real effort. Good to see their mother interacting with them instead of fiddling with her smartphone. When I eventually reached reception, it wasn't clear whether the ordered repeat prescription was in the surgery or at Lloyd's in Sainsbury's. I went back to the car, where Carol was waiting, and she had to go back in to the surgery and, because she remembered which three medications they were. It then transpired that whatever it was had gone to Lloyd's. This is becoming so annoying, having to go through Ashfield to order medication and then not knowing whether Carol can have a particular medication and on top of that, where it is in the system. Our patience is at breaking-point and it's causing no end of stress as a result.
Our next stop was the hospital. Not a long drive, as it's relatively close to Ashfield, but there was quite a long queue along Saxon Street and back onto the Standing Way roundabout, another cause of stress as we'd barely given ourselves time to get from home to Ashfield and then on to the oncology suite at the hospital. The carpark near cardiology and oncology, where we normally park was, had plenty of spaces, so that was one less thing to get stressed about and the entrance barrier was raised, so no ticket. No great bother, the thing is almost always out of order. I know we don't have to pay as Carol is on chemotherapy, but even so it is annoying to have to go through the process of having the tickets clipped in the Macmillan unit. On arrival in oncology is was beginning to get busy. One lady who came to sit opposite was at the beginning of her chemotherapy. She was having some sort of cap-arrangement set up to wear on her head. Carol said it was something that they use which is supposed to help prevent a patient's hair being lost as a result of chemotherapy. She suddenly went limp, and she fell backwards in her chair. As if from nowhere, a whole host of nurses and doctors appeared to deal with what was probably an epileptic fit, or seizure, or diabetic reaction to the treatment. We moved out the way, as they began to draw the curtains around her and it seemed only decent to not be party to the doctors speedy intervention. So we transferred to chairs around the corner to let them get on with their job. It wasn't long before Carol was seen, her blood test carried out and we were out of the unit and driving out of the hospital carpark. I'm just impressed by the speed of the doctor and nurses getting to the poor lady's reaction to whatever it was. No doubt she had an underlying health issue. It just goes to show how well trained and efficient the staff in that unit are and how quickly they came to that lady's aid. It makes you feel far more confident that, if something was to happen to Carol or even myself, with my heart issues, you would be dealt with in a very professional manner. Everyone knew exactly what to do in an emergency.
We had to go into the main Milton Keynes shopping centre because I had a cheque that needed paying in to my Nationwide account and Carol said she would like a coffee and something to eat. So we parked in Debenham's multi-storey carpark and we walked down through the store and out into the main shopping mall. First off, we walked to Pret-A-Manger and ordered lattes and croissants. Mine an almond one and Caro's a chocolate one. Good customer-service, a nice clean store and the girl who served us very friendly and gave eye-contact. Nice to be able to sit and relax after the experience of the hospital, and the fact that things regarding chemo going well. Hopefully by Thursday we should know when Carol will have her operation and more, the radiotherapy which will be done in Oxford.
We walked into the main shopping centre. Got to Nationwide and paid the cheque in via one of their self-service machines. How does the thing know how much the cheque is for? How is it able to read the printing and then allow you to see a sort of image of the cheque on the video screen and then print it onto your receipt? What I want to know is, why does it take so long for a cheque to clear? It used to be no more than three working days, so why does it now take at least a week? You'd think, what with modern technology, it would be shorter. I know that most people use contactless payments, chip-and-pin and other technology to pay for things as well as having money paid by B.A.C.S., so I can see no reason for it to take so long to clear. Just a little moan, I know.
Carol wants to replace a silver chain which has a silver chain and pendant I gave her a couple of Christmases ago, but unfortunately the silver is tarnishing and she said she would like a replacement. It has a 'tree of life' design on it. We went into several jewellers to try and find a replacement. In one we were shown into a sort of lounge-area, where one of the sales assistants was quite helpful and went out of his way to find what Carol was looking for, but the price was more than we wanted to pay. He did a reasonably good job, but I think he was on commission so was going to be over-assertive to get a sale. There are far too many jewellers in the shopping centre. How on earth do they survive when there is so much choice? No wonder that assistant was so assertive. We eventually went to another store and Carol got what she wanted. Not such a pushy sales assistant.
We walked along the mall and went to the Disney store. Why has their stuff become so cheap and tacky? They used to have far more quality things on offer, particularly from their classic period, collectable things as well as books on the 'making of' their animation in particular. Why no Henson stuff, particularly from The Muppets' which are owned now by Disney? Nothing that you'd buy for an adult, something with the original designs from the 'golden age' of the studio. It's a pity that Disney owns so much, from the Muppets to Marvel and 'Star Wars,' as well as Pixar. Just becoming a conglomerate with far too much power. Why do they have to keep re-making their classic movies? Just a bit lazy to keep on re-hashing stuff. I think Walt Disney would have a fit if he knew what they've done to his studio. Just a pity that their films seem to be just an excuse for a load of merchandise. It should be 'story first,' 'quality movies' and then merchandise as s spin-off. Just a pity that the moves are, in essence, now just glorified advertising. Just love the hand-drawn animation from the 'Golden Age,' but some of the modern stuff isn't up to much. Pixar is the best at computer animation, but they shouldn't keep doing sequels to their best movies, such as 'Toy Story.'
A further walk towards Boot's. In the oncology suite, the nurse who had taken Carol's blood somehow over-looked the tube gauze she is supposed to have to cover the cannula she has for her chemotherapy. I was somewhat concerned that it might get knocked or even pulled off, even though it was taped on fairly securely. So we bought a roll of it, having to ask at the counter for scissors to cut of enough to cover her arm. We then went out of the store, having paid, and sat on a bench so she could pull it over her arm. Then on to W.H. Smith to buy a couple of notebooks and then a walk home towards Debenham's and up the escalator to the carpark and then to Sainsbury's to collect the medication that had been made up from the prescription.
On arriving home we had two parcels delivered. One had been left in the meter cupboard when we were out, a Regatta jacket I ordered from their website. A really good bargain as it was originally around £60 but bought for £25.50. A softsshell jacket, lightweight but very efficient to keep out the cold and wind resistant. It is so designed that it can be packed up into a small space and ideal to take away when we go out and might need a jacket if it's cold. Unlikely at the moment, as it's quite warm. Although, saying that, compared with the weekend, it's quite a few degrees colder so it was necessary for me to wear my fleecy top I bought in Dobbies a few months ago.
The second parcel was from Amazon, a set of head scarves for Carol to wear on her head when undergoing chemotherapy.
We walked into the main shopping centre. Got to Nationwide and paid the cheque in via one of their self-service machines. How does the thing know how much the cheque is for? How is it able to read the printing and then allow you to see a sort of image of the cheque on the video screen and then print it onto your receipt? What I want to know is, why does it take so long for a cheque to clear? It used to be no more than three working days, so why does it now take at least a week? You'd think, what with modern technology, it would be shorter. I know that most people use contactless payments, chip-and-pin and other technology to pay for things as well as having money paid by B.A.C.S., so I can see no reason for it to take so long to clear. Just a little moan, I know.
Carol wants to replace a silver chain which has a silver chain and pendant I gave her a couple of Christmases ago, but unfortunately the silver is tarnishing and she said she would like a replacement. It has a 'tree of life' design on it. We went into several jewellers to try and find a replacement. In one we were shown into a sort of lounge-area, where one of the sales assistants was quite helpful and went out of his way to find what Carol was looking for, but the price was more than we wanted to pay. He did a reasonably good job, but I think he was on commission so was going to be over-assertive to get a sale. There are far too many jewellers in the shopping centre. How on earth do they survive when there is so much choice? No wonder that assistant was so assertive. We eventually went to another store and Carol got what she wanted. Not such a pushy sales assistant.
We walked along the mall and went to the Disney store. Why has their stuff become so cheap and tacky? They used to have far more quality things on offer, particularly from their classic period, collectable things as well as books on the 'making of' their animation in particular. Why no Henson stuff, particularly from The Muppets' which are owned now by Disney? Nothing that you'd buy for an adult, something with the original designs from the 'golden age' of the studio. It's a pity that Disney owns so much, from the Muppets to Marvel and 'Star Wars,' as well as Pixar. Just becoming a conglomerate with far too much power. Why do they have to keep re-making their classic movies? Just a bit lazy to keep on re-hashing stuff. I think Walt Disney would have a fit if he knew what they've done to his studio. Just a pity that their films seem to be just an excuse for a load of merchandise. It should be 'story first,' 'quality movies' and then merchandise as s spin-off. Just a pity that the moves are, in essence, now just glorified advertising. Just love the hand-drawn animation from the 'Golden Age,' but some of the modern stuff isn't up to much. Pixar is the best at computer animation, but they shouldn't keep doing sequels to their best movies, such as 'Toy Story.'
A further walk towards Boot's. In the oncology suite, the nurse who had taken Carol's blood somehow over-looked the tube gauze she is supposed to have to cover the cannula she has for her chemotherapy. I was somewhat concerned that it might get knocked or even pulled off, even though it was taped on fairly securely. So we bought a roll of it, having to ask at the counter for scissors to cut of enough to cover her arm. We then went out of the store, having paid, and sat on a bench so she could pull it over her arm. Then on to W.H. Smith to buy a couple of notebooks and then a walk home towards Debenham's and up the escalator to the carpark and then to Sainsbury's to collect the medication that had been made up from the prescription.
On arriving home we had two parcels delivered. One had been left in the meter cupboard when we were out, a Regatta jacket I ordered from their website. A really good bargain as it was originally around £60 but bought for £25.50. A softsshell jacket, lightweight but very efficient to keep out the cold and wind resistant. It is so designed that it can be packed up into a small space and ideal to take away when we go out and might need a jacket if it's cold. Unlikely at the moment, as it's quite warm. Although, saying that, compared with the weekend, it's quite a few degrees colder so it was necessary for me to wear my fleecy top I bought in Dobbies a few months ago.
The second parcel was from Amazon, a set of head scarves for Carol to wear on her head when undergoing chemotherapy.
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