A Day At The Show

A day that started out a good deal colder than of late, but as the day went on, became quite sunny and pleasant. As mentioned in an earlier post, I booked a ticket on-line for the Buckingham County Show. I didn't see much point getting to the show too early (it opened at 8a.m.) so I left just after 9 a.m., driving out of Milton Keynes on Standing Way towards Buckingham, a road I know well enough and then turned off just beyond the Thrift Farm and used the Google Maps app on my iPhone to direct me more or less exactly to the show ground. No, I didn't use the mobile as I drove along. I had to stop in one of the villages and checked my phone to make sure I was heading in the right direction. The Google Maps app is probably more use than the built in SatNav which I have in the car.  I saw a couple of yellow signs which directed me towards the show ground. I had suspected that there must be some sort of sign somewhere for those who didn't know the way, such as myself.I continued on until I came to a  set of traffic lights, not for roadworks (fortunately) but to allow vehicles to enter the carpark. When I drove in I was confronted by his vast grass meadow, so I was very wary of having to drive across a not-too even surface and was directed by several stewards to the place to park. Then, having parked, I had to follow the crowd walking towards the entrance to the show. I'm so glad I bought my entry ticket on-line and had it printed out because all I had to do was show it to a member of staff who scanned the barcode on the ticket to then be let through the gate and into the show ground. This bought back memories of such visits as a child, usually the East of England Agricultural show at Alwalton, Peterborough, or before that, when the Bedfordshire Agricultural show was held on the riverside meadows along Cardington Road, on the way into Bedford, usually over a weekend in summer.

On arrival inside the show ground, I was confronted by a range of stalls and tents to explore. A lot of pennants and flags and one in particular, saying 'Ferrets' on it, so I made my way towards the stand. A lot of coloured tubes, and a board giving what I assume is the name of a different ferret, which I imagine is set up for ferret racing. As I've owned and kept ferrets I have a certain amount of knowledge about these fantastic, feisty little creatures. But there was absolutely no sign of a ferret, which was a pity as I'd have liked to see them racing. Then on to an area, a largish area of grass with a roped off pence and people standing and watching something going on in the ring. A man demonstrating dog-training, working dogs such as cocker spaniels, sheep dogs and labradors. He has a microphone attached to his face, similar to what are used in church, and what I presume is a radio link allowing his voice to be heard over the Tannoy system. What I watch is quite amazing, a sheep dog (I assume it to be a sheep dog) heading ducks or geese. Around six or eight, being cajoled by the dog, rather like a sheep door herding sheep. I've never seen anything like it, and it ends with the ducks being herded into an enclosure. It was amusing, to say the least and the crowd were loving it. I had my Canon digital camera with me, so I took a few shots, but unfortunately I didn't think to charge the camera's battery, so the thing, unfortunately, died so I ended up taking photographs with my iPhone, which isn't as easy as using the Canon because you can never see clearly through the little LED screen and it was a bit of pot luck whether any shots would be successful. You can see a few on the post, below.

Model T Ford on display at the show

Cattle in the process of being judged

 Well turned out horses in the equine area of the show

No agricultural show is complete without a display of the latest mechanical equipment, including
tractors

I had a good wander around the show, looking at a lot of the stands. I found a stand which was for a company called Dog Only Knows, selling a range of natural dog food and treats, so I had a browse and bought Alfie a bag of treats. Who says I never love hime? He deserves treats and hopefully he would take to these. Later I found a stall selling a wide range of brushes, and as Alfie needs brushing because he has a long coat, I managed to buy one which was more than suitable for the job. Quite expensive, but never mind, just this once I didn't mind paying for a brush that wasn't going to fall apart.

I saw several displays of dogs, beagles, seleham terriers (around the same size as Alfie, who is a Yorkshire Terrier.) and bloodhounds. I was surprised how big they are and I imagine how much food they would eat! Probably quite a lot.

I was feeling a little peckish and was contemplating where to stop to have a bite to eat and a drink when I came across a tent which was run by local churches, offering free tea and cake. Too good to miss. I couldn't believe that it was free. So, in I went, chose a rather  nice slice of what looked like walnut sponge and a large cup of tea and then sat at a table, by now really ready to sit down. People were really friendly and ready to chat. Having had my cuppa and cake, I left the tent and had another wander, having a look at tractors and other farm machinery. Well, let's be honest, an agricultural show isn't complete with tractors. Then, something of a surprise. Tortoises! No, it's not every day that you come across large tortoises. I think we saw some when we visited Twycross zoo, but nowhere else. They were quit4e large and you could pay £2 to get closer, but there were signs up telling you to beware that they could bite! Probably be a bit like being bitten by a set of pliers! They're mouths do look quite lethal and their teeth probably quite sharp and certainly give you quite a nip if given half a chance.

Then, viewing a selection of vintage cars, vans and farm machinery. I have taken a photograph of a Model T Ford, which is above.

Having seen all I wanted to see I decided it was time to leave the showground and make for the exit. A real crush of people coming in. I was then concerned that I wouldn't remember where I had parked the car in that vast field. Since I had arrived the carpark had filled up considerably but after a bit of a walk I soon found the car and then had to find the way out of the carpark as there was no real indication but it wasn't as difficult as it could have been. There were plenty of stewards to direct me out. Turning left onto the road I drove towards Aylesbury and eventually got on the road back to Milton Keynes, but I didn't realise how close it was to Aylesbury and even Waddesdon Manor wasn't that far away. A familiar road and not long before I was home and really pleased to have been out and had such a good day out.

Confounded Technology!

As I've mentioned in an earlier blog post on here, the way I have to order my repeat prescription is changing. From September I won't be able to merely ring Lloyd's in Sainsbury's and give them the order for medications, which will then be electronically sent to Ashfield Medical Centre for the doctor to then return the relevant prescription which will be then sent back to Lloyd's for them to then actually make up the prescription. You can always take your order directly to the surgery and put it in the box on the reception desk and it is supposed to be ready for collection within 48 hours, the order then being sent via electronic means to your chosen pharmacy, mine being Lloyd's, but it should be easier, with an internet connection, to order through the Ashfield website. Well, in theory, yes, but in practice, not easy.

I had to get a new password and went to the surgery yesterday morning with identity, my photo driving licence, proof of address on my bank statement and Council Tax documentation and I was given a printed-out letter with a new password. But when I got home and attempted to set this up on-line (I have a feeling I already had an account but I have never used it.) it simply refused to work and after a couple more attempts to re-set the password, I gave up. Does it mean I have to go back to Ashfield Medical Centre and get a new password? Probably, yes, but I don't have a lot of faith that the system will work.

(Monday) On Friday Phil and Robert came to give the grass another cut. Unfortunately, the mower Phil bought wouldn't start. Something to do with the 'pull' mechanism. Robert cut some of the back lawn (grass plot, not lawn!) with the trimmer and Phil had the idea of using my electric mower to cut the grass, but it turned out that the plastic cutters were missing, or just worn down. The state of the shed where this is kept is deteriating by the minute. It's beyond repair. It leaks, or must do, because the roof is falling in and our beloved landlord doesn't care less. He should be responsible for such repairs but I think his bank balance if far more important than any necessary repairs. Anyway, Phil managed to improvise cutters/blades by attaching fishing line and it worked! I have a pack of these plastic blades, but I hunted high and low and couldn't find it, so we were left with the fishing line alternative.

Yesterday we had the South African Braai at church. I'm not sure how many people were there, but it was quite busy and we had to queue around the cafe area to get the food. I think there may have been quite a few neighbours who came along as a lot of faces I didn't recognise, although, going to the first of the two Sunday services I don't always see new people who only go to the second service at 11.15 so I may start going to the second service just to get to know some new people. You see lot during the interval between services, when coffee and tea is served, so I may go to this service when we go back to two services from this Sunday.

It's  August Bank Holiday Monday and the sun is shining! I thought it  good excuse to give Alfie a bath. I have to make sure he doesn't get out into the garden once he's been bathed as I know he has a tendency to roll and it would defeat the object of a bath if he then goes and gets dirty again! I shut the patio doors into the garden and ran the water so it was warm enough but not too deep. I can never work out whether he likes it or not. He does make a fuss when he first goes in, but once you start shampooing him, I rather think he enjoys it. Anyway, as I write this (at 11.15a.m.), he's laying on the sofa next to me, giving me a look as if to say 'what next?' Let's be honest, it's far too hot to go out as I don't fancy getting too hot as it's not such a good idea if you have a heart health problem.

So, I did some washing . . . if it's going to be hot, surely it would dry quickly, and, sure enough, it did.  Have to take advantage of the weather and not leave it when it's likely the weather is going to change and be wet.

Still Sunny!

On my way to Aylesbury on Saturday I saw, at the side of the road, a poster advertising the Buckingham County Show. It sounded to me like something I might like to visit. As a child, my family, being farmers, were always attending such events, the largest being the Royal Show at Stoneleigh, Warwickshire, as well as the East Of England Agricultural Show at Alwalton near Peterbrough. This was formed from the more local agricultural shows, one being the Bedfordshire Show, which was staged on water meadows near the River Ouse in Cardington Road, Bedford, but which is now home to a Tesco supermarket as well as the Oasis Beach Pool, which is quite a prominent building, having the form of a pyramid, which  no doubt gave rise to it's name. The East of England Show came to an end in 2013 after 200 years I have since discovered, because it was making a loss, due, mainly, to the fact that it couldn't attract enough visitors. I think it may not have helped being held mid-week (I'm not sure that it was ever held over a weekend, which would be far more sense than mid-week, because so many people wouldn't be able to attend because of work commitments.) It may have just not kept pace with modern life. There is a show now held at Blenheim Palace, which is called Countryfile Live and associated with the BBC Sunday evening programme Countryfile, which probably has events which are more relevant to a 21st-century audience.

Anyway, apart from all that, I was considering whether I wanted to go, because, as I say, I think it would make a good day out. I went on their website and there's enough going on to keep me entertained for most of the day, a Thursday. I then decided to book myself a ticket on line and even got a discount because of my age and have printed out the ticket which you have to show when you enter. I now have to set the SatNav in order to find the show ground, and according to good old Google Maps it's no more than a 30-minute drive.

(Wednesday) I've just this minute finished making a batch of chocolate nut brownies for the braai which is going to be at church this Sunday, instead of a service. For those who don't know, it's a South African barbecue and people will be busily creating similar culinary concoctions to take along. I just hope we don't have the awful rain we had last Sunday as I drove along Chaffron Way. It was a real deluge but during the service it stopped and the sun came out. Just shows how weather in this country can change rapidly. Now have the brownie mixture in the oven baking and should be done in 30 minutes. As I write this there's about 15 minutes left before I remove it from the oven.

I've had my first bereavement counselling session at Ashfield Medical Centre. I'm not going to discusss this further on this blog, just to say there will be 6 in total over the next few weeks, at the same time each Wednesday.

(Thursday) I have had a telephone call from someone, not sure whether it was the Council, but it was about discussing me moving to new accommodation, possibly a bungalow in sheltered accommodation. I don't want it too be too sheltered, but hopefully it means I can move out of a house which has three bedrooms, two of which I have no need for, and pay less rent. With a landlord who takes no interest in the place, not having been to visit for well over a year (usually just 10 minutes once a year and they don't even notice if it's clean or not.) I'd rather be living somewhere I know will be properly maintained. The upstairs toilet in the bathroom doesn't stop flushing, unless you lift the cistern lid and fiddle with the mechanism (it keeps on filling when it should stop.), the side of the bath is loose and, frankly dangerous, the floor outside the bathroom has loose boards, definitely dangerous. The cold tap on the wash basin in the bathroom is loose (has been in all the years i've lived here.), one of the kitchen cupboard doors has broken off. I could go on.

Alfie has had an extra walk in the afternoon for the past two days. It has been bright, but not necessarily sunny, but nonetheless, he was surprised that he got out and had a run across the park. It's quite busy, with children playing and you come across people you don't usually see when we go out at around 6 o'clock early morning.

Sunny Summer?

(Thursday, last week)Today has been sunny and bright. Nothing particular has happened. I have been transferring more of my handwritten writing to my MacBook.

I should mention that I had the planned visit from the two ladies from what is called  the Integrated Community Support Team. They came after 2 o'clock yesterday afternoon. It would appear that they got my details through Ashfield Medical Centre. They can give me support with bereavement counselling, and this afternoon (Thursday) I got a telephone call from a lady at Mind and I have my first appointment at Ashfield next Wednesday at 2 o'clock and it's going to be on-going for 6 weeks.  The new service (as mentioned in an earlier blog post.) can give me support in different areas, such as supporting me with my health issues, considering I have a heart condition first and foremost and it was suggested (because as we spoke the telephone rang and it was Doctor Haye telling me that my diazepam prescription would be sent electronically to Lloyd's in Sainsburys.) and that perhaps my medication should be reviewed by the doctor before it is repeated when this new batch runs out. This is basically because Diazepam can be addictive as well as not being as effective after a while, so it may need changing to another type of medication which does a similar job. Also, I can be allocated a link worker who could help me with benefits as well as possibly finding me somewhere else to live, possibly smaller, such as a bungalow, within Milton Keynes and which would allow me to have Alfie with me, so it would need to have a bit of garden. Also, I could be given help to clear out belongings from this house which would allow me to move out. This, at present, is only a possibility and not a certainly, but this Integrated Community Support Team links the various agencies together, for example, the bereavement counselling from Mind, the doctor's surgery, housing benefit, cardiology at Milton Keynes hospital and other related agencies. It has also been suggested, at my recommendation, that I have a referral to start a  cardiology rehab regime which would take place somewhere in Bletchley. I have to say all this is giving me less stress and it's great to at last get the support and help I need to get me through a somewhat difficult, emotional and very stressful period.

(Friday) It's anything but sunny and bright today. In fact, it's wet and miserable. In other words, an almost typical summer's day in England.

(Monday) On Saturday I went to see a performance of 'The Addams Family Musical,' performed at the Waterside Theatre in Aylesbury. I saw it advertised in the theatre's brochure when I was having lunch at the Chrysalis Theatre at Camphill the other week and it sounded as if it would be worth seeing as I had known there was a musical based on The Addams Family and that it had run on Broadway for a while and that it had toured in this country for a while. It was staged by something I had never heard of, Stage Experience, which puts on professional-standard productions of well known shows, and cast with young people up to the age of 25. I had no idea where I was going to park the car when I got there because I don't know Aylesbury, except to drive through. We have driven through on several occasions, usually if we're going to West Wycombe Park, a National Trust property, or the time when Carol had to go to Stoke Mandeville Hospital for an appointment. It seems it's similar to Bedford in that if you want to get anywhere in that direction you have to go through the centre as there is no by-pass. The route through is the only way to get to High Wycombe, for example. I over-estimated how long it would take me to drive to Aylesbury. It's only around 14 miles from Milton Keynes. My main concern was, I had no idea where to park, although I had briefly looked on Google Maps so I had a vague idea where to park. I used to work for a care agency based in Aylesbury and had to go there a few times for training so I knew roughly where the multi-storey car park was I used to park in, but it would appear to now be only short-stay. I drove a round for a while and then found a multi-storey carpark which was long-stay. It turned out to be one of the most depressing places to park I've ever had the misfortune to have to park in. When I drove down the ramp I wasn't actually sure it was a carpark, really run down and hadn't been upgraded ever, it would appear. Not somewhere you would choose to enter in the dead of night, but at least it was somewhere to leave the car. I paid using a machine, but it didn't give change. Really mean. These council-run establishments must make a vast amount of profit if they don't dole out change, which is mean if you ask me (but please don't!)

I walked over to the Waterside Theatre.  Outside, sitting on a wall, is a stature of Ronnie Barker. He has a stature there because Aylesbury used to have a repertory theatre ('Rep') in the days when most large towns across the country had a theatre, where you could expect to have a season of plays running at one, two week's at a time, similar to what I was involved in during the early 1970's, but working in stage management. The theatre which he appeared at is no longer in existence, or if it is, probably converted into something else. The old rep in Colchester was a converted hall and now a building society branch and Bromley rep, believe it or not, was a converted swimming pool. Anyway, Ronnie Barker's statue is at ground level, as I say, sitting on a wall, so at least you can see it as if it's the actual Ronnie and not perched on a pedestal and out of the eyeline of most people. He joined the rep company in 1948 and the first play he was in was called 'Quality Street,' by J.M. Barrie and playing the part of Lieutenant Spicer.

I haven't been inside before. It is very modern and has a large foyer with a bar and café and because I was so early I had to sit and wait. The space soon filled up with other members of the public. As the show was due to start at 2 o'clock, and the doors hadn't opened to allow the audience in, we had to wait a good while and then, at about 1.45 we went in to find our seats. Mine was V13, some way back in the stalls and immediately behind the area where the sound and lighting was controlled.

It was a good performance and the cast really threw themselves into the performance. Before the curtain went up an announcement was made that the show had been rehearsed in 8 days, which, considering the amount of effort that has to be put into a show, more so a musical than a straight play, with not just dialogue but songs and dances needing choreography, it was a really good show. My only criticism would be that, although the songs were good, the actual story and plot was extremely weak. Pity a little more effort had been put into creating a more original plot, but I suppose if you are going to put on an existing show, and you have to accept the book and lyrics that goes with that show, you have no choice but to 'go with the flow.' I can see quite a few of the cast going off to stage school and probably making a career out of acting, so the show would be good experience and certainly a stepping stone to other things and if you'd had a leading part in such a show, something good to put on your C.V.

Changeable Weather

From being excessively hot, to rain and then humid, it's a really blustery day. I had intended washing

the bedding and stripped the bed and put on new duvet cover, bottom sheet and pillow cases and put the whole lot in the washing machine, with the idea of putting it all out on the washing line to dry, but it looked vaguely as if we were in for a downpour so, change of plan, the sheet has been folded and put over the bannister rail and the duvet is drying over one of the clothes racks. Not ideal, but it's the only way to dry clothes when it's so undecided. Alfie thinks it's some sort of game when I'm attempting to put the duvet on. He can't understand what I'm up to.

On Saturday I went to the writing group which meets in Starbucks in the shopping centre. I got there and found it really busy, with a long queue at the corner. I ordered a cold drink and a cheese and hame toastier and then sat near the entrance, having absolutely no idea who was going to turn up. Nobody I could see looked in the least bit as if they could be writers. How would I know, without going round asking? Would they be carrying notepads? Manuscripts in folders? Until someone came up to me and asked me, and a young lady who appears to be the leader of the group, and we went to one of the tables outside in the mall as it was far easier to talk, because it was so noisy within the actual Starbucks store.

(Monday) I went to the Willen coffee morning at John Lewis and sat with a different group with whom I haven't chatted before. I have been given a telephone number of a bereavement counselling service which I've not come across before, so when I got home I rang and left a message and later I got a call-back from their secretary. They have a drop in run by volunteers, but then I got a call back from Willen Hospice, and told them that I had got two nurses coming from the new N.H.S. service, which I've already mentioned in an earlier post on here, so I will wait until after they've visited me on Wednesday afternoon before setting up any further counselling. The woman at the Milton Keynes Bereavement Counselling Service said they couldn't help because they have such a long waiting list of people but that I could go in to the drop-in if I was feeling I needed to chat. I will wait and see what happens after the Wednesday visit.

I ordered printer ink cartridges on Amazon. Mid morning I got a knock on the door and flew downstairs to answer was it was quite aggressive. I was expecting it to be another of those door-to-door salespeople trying to flog energy, gas and electricity, but as I got there, the door was opened and a parcel was thrust in without waiting for me to answer. This is not the way for Amazon drivers/deliverers to complete a delivery. I opened the door to confront this young man and said he should put the parcel in the meter cupboard and definitely not just open the door! He was apologetic, but still, not acceptable because Alfie could have got out and I know what he's like if he gets out. He could get run over. In this instance, fortunately I was able to get to the door before he got out, although he did bark.

(Tuesday) Camphill as usual. The traffic going is again calmer than usual. I can't believe most of it would normally be school traffic, parents taking their offspring to drop off at the school gates. Is that correct? Anyway, it's not as busy as it would be during a school day. None of those impatient idiots tailgating me all the way. What is it with some people?

We did a line-run of 'Stranger Danger.' Apparently the residents had a training day with the Police yesterday and they were shown the video of 'Stranger Danger,' and they were impressed by it. The training was on safety, keeping safe on-line and more or less the same as the material provided in 'Stranger Danger.'

Teo wanted to rehearse 'Stranger Danger' as if it was a proper performance. Up until now it has been rehearsed in 'bits,' the separate scenes not linked together. It was something like a technical rehearsal, as I remember when I worked in rep, where the whole play is taken apart, once the set is constructed and the lighting and sound cues 'topped and tailed,' where the play is run, but then stage management is allowed to try out scene changes and the sound and lighting cues put in. It also gives the actors a chance to get used to the set, using props, making entrances and so on. This is something like what we did today, with the actors sitting on stools around the stage (but in this instance it was set up in the theatre in the space where the seating would have been (the Chrysalis Theatre has seating which can be folded back into the back wall of the auditorium in a very ingenious arrangement, and when needed, drawn out on a motorised mechanism. Quite amazing to see it in operation for the first time.) It meant that new movements of the actors could be tried out and how and when pieces of furniture such as tables and chairs could be set and 'struck,' which is where support staff come in handy, me being one of them.

(Wednesday) The weather has changed yet again. I did a load of washing (boring and mundane, I know) and was considering whether to put it out on the washing line. I'm glad I didn't and it's now on both drink racks.

I've now got two bits of writing posted on the WhatsApp creative writing group and I've had a few comments. So, it seems worth all the effort has at last paid off and after waiting to find a creative writing group the results look good. I'm reading other member's work and they look good too. It's certainly a boost to my morale to have this to work at.

Road Works

A couple of days ago I noticed a couple of men walking along Golden Drive, spraying marks on the road surface. It has been in a fairly poor condition for some while, great chasms along the centre. I think the roads around here, particularly those within each grid square, were really cheaply constructed, looking like they were laid in sections, with a sort of seam where the two sections of tarmac meet and they have gradually shrunk apart, leaving a sort of crack, so when it rains, these rifts or cracks fill up with water and then, in the winter, when there's frost and snow, when it then freezes, the expansion of the ice breaks the road up further. This has been the case quite clearly at the entrance from Saxon Street, which has since been patched up in a rather cheap method which was also used along the road near my house. Now the Council is coming back to do a far better job, using the more traditional method of using a pneumatic drill to dig out the old tarmac and then the workmen shovel in tarmac in the hole and then use a road roller or one of those machines that 'bounces' (for want of a better word.) to press down the tarmac. I'm not so sure they don't put down a layer or rubble or grit before they put in the tarmac. But a notice was put up a couple of days ago to warn motorists that the work was about to commence. Today being the day when the work would be done. I went out to Sainsbury's just after 9 o'clock this morning and had forgotten about this work and the possibility that I wouldn't be able to get back in to my parking space in front of the house. I saw the 'Road Closed' sign but ignored it, because I wanted to get back home with my shopping fairly sharpish as there were some items which needed to go in the freezer before they thawed. There was no work being carried out and this didn't start in ernest until well past the time I got back home. As I write, I can see out of the window where they workmen have filled in some of th holes with tarmac, but it now looks a bit patchy. I know this is a cheap job and we should be grateful for any repairs, but it would shortly have been better to completely remove the surface of the road and replace it completely, but perhaps that's expecting far too much. Be thankful for small mercies, as someone or other said.

I wanted to get a doctor's appointment. I just need to chat to my doctor about the medication I've been on and whether they are actually working. Just having 10 because diazepam is a controlled medication and you can only be prescribed that many may be in my best interests, but it's annoying to have to keep ringing to get a repeat. It didn't take long to get through this time and when I did get to speak to a receptionist I was told that, Doctor Haye, wouldn't be available to speak to until Wednesday.

I then rang Willen Hospice. I eventually spoke to a lady and said that I thought I needed further cerement counselling and she said that it might be a couple of days before they could set something up. I told her I had been going to the coffee mornings in John Lewis restaurant and then she said that it was herself who had set up the extra coffee morning in the John Lewis Express Bar, because there are so many people who need care and support who have a connection to Willen. Now I just have to wait until they ring me to set up this counselling session.

(Friday) I woke this morning to what I thought was the sound of rain, and it wasn't until I stuck my head out of the bedroom window that I realised that it was indeed raining. So Alfie was somewhat disappointed that he didn't get his routine walk around Eaglestone Park. But I don't fancy having him soaked to the skin and myself soaked, so it will have to wait until the rain either eases off or the stops completely. It was quite muggy yesterday evening, so the rain has eased the temperature considerably.

(Friday) I had a telephone call this morning from a lady who works for the N.H.S. It would appear that someone at  Ashfield Medical Centre has passed on my details to a new service which hopes to be able to support people in my situation, not only with bereavement counselling, but who has health issues such as mine. This sounds the sort of service that I could benefit from. She said that they could come out and visit me at home, two of them, one being a nurse, and could give me contacts of organisations which might possibly give me support. So they are visiting me on Wednesday next week to have a chat and see how they can help. So, this is making me feel a good deal more relaxed about things in general. All this since I met Doctor Ben when I went to see Danny on Ward 22 last week. He has a remarkable way with patients and Carol always got on with him very well. Some doctors might have the head knowledge and be good at their job, but then there are those who don't know how to deal with patients, particularly when it's something like cancer. He certainly had a knack of being able to understand the emotional side of what was, in effect, a terminal illness. It's thanks to him last Friday that I will now get the help and support I need.

Later I went to the Oaktree Centre to have something for lunch in the recently reopened cafe, nothing spectacular, just a cheese and salad sandwich and a latte, which was really excellent. I sat and spoke to John and Margaret, the couple who so kindly drove me to Worcester the other week to enable me to see my newest grandson. My N.H.S. manual handling training came in handy when I had to help with a wheelchair-bound lady who was stuck in the disabled toilet. No lifting of your service-user or client (depending on where you are working, to use the correct terminology.) but we were able to extricate the lady and all very successfully achieved.

Sunny Wednesday

(Wednesday) Been to meet up with Ross, Pastor at Shenley Christian Fellowship, just to have a chat at Costa in Cotswold (the same building which used to be Borders Books.) Great to have his support and a good friend. I feel I have more support from church than I do from any of my family (Chloe and Steve excepted.) I have four brother, two older and two younger, and not a single phone call, email or letter to support me since Carol passed away, condolences or anything. I feel really upset that they've never been in touch. They probably didn't know my address, telephone number, email address or whatever, but I'm sure Chloe would have let them know so there's no excuse. It's not exactly difficult to get in touch, modern communication being what it is, what with mobile phones, email, text etc etc or even the use of telephone or old fashioned mail. Never mind. But I don't think it would have hurt to have some sort of communication from any of them.

Having left Cotswold, I drove to the carpark near the Xcape because I wanted to get the car valeted. I could have washed the car myself, but it's not that easy unless you have an outside tap with a hose attached, and I was more keen to have the inside of the car cleaned out, possibly with a vacuum of some sort, so, when I recently parked in that area I noticed the hand-cleaning business that was set up there. It cost the hefty sum of £28 to have the full works, the bodywork cleaned along with the interior and then a polish, even of the tyres and hubcaps, which now look as clean as you would get a vehicle if it came out of a showroom and even the interior looks sparkling. They put something, a spray, on the black plastic of the exterior, below the doors, and even the inside of the boot. I'm really pleased with the finish, and want to keep it that way. I sat on  chair to watch and wait, and saw what they were doing and then needed the toilet (sitting and waiting for too long has that effect, unfortunately, part of getting older.) so I left them to their work and went into the nearby Xcape building and found the toilets upstairs near the cinema. I don't go into that building much, as I don't have much call to go in there, but I saw a shop which I may return to at some time in the not-too distant further, called Outlet. I think it sells end-of-season stock, mostly sport-related stuff, like trainers, shorts, swimming trunks, etc. I can always sport a bargain and wouldn't buy something at full price if I knew I could get it cheaper elsewhere. I have several items of clothing with the Regatta brand on, particularly a couple of fleeces, and I've bought most from their website and at really good knock-down prices, around 60%-70%. I have a couple of jackets, I think they term them softshell or something, the idea being that you can wear these in cold weather, with layers underneath, such as fleeces, but both these jackets have zipped pockets which means I can put my wallet in them, as well as keys, when I'm out and about, but they cost something ridiculous, around £25-£30, reduced from well over £75. I recently bought a pair of cargo shorts, those which have pockets in them, which are ideal for carrying around my mobile in, during the warmer weather, and I got them for less than £10, full price, over £30. Certainly not a bad bargain.

I went back to see the car being finished off. It had by now moved to the final stage, with the interior being vacuumed and the black trim being given a buff with a cloth and then I paid and drove round to park the car opposite where they had the car-cleaning business. I had paid for around 2 hours and wasn't going to waste my cash, so I walked into the shopping centre. I wanted to get a loose-bottomed cake tin (I know, go on, make a joke about it then, if you must. Like something out of a really low-brow 1970's comedy like 'Are You Being Served?" 'Excuse me, have you got a loose bottom?" etc etc I will explain, because I want to make a banofee cheesecake, and Delia Smith recommends using a 20 c.m. loose-bottomed cake tin to make it in so I went into Lakeland, the shop that sells all manner of equipment for the kitchen and general home items, and there was one, on the shelf, more or less exactly inside the door. So, duly paid for I walked to W.H.Smith to see if the latest edition of Current Archaeology is in on the magazine racks. It is, and decide to pay using the self-service till. I'm reluctant to use these machines, because, from experience I always have a problem, such as the thing being unable to read the bar-code of whatever it is I'm attempting to purchase. This machine worked well enough, but the voice it is given sounds as if it/she has a bad cold, or at least, got a bunged up nose, which I voice to the world in general, and got a most odd look from the young boy using the adjacent machine. Well, come on, why does the thing have to have a voice in the first place, and then, why make it sound as if it's got bronchitis or 'flu? Get Judi Dench or Dame Maggie to do the voice. At least it would be clear and distinct. Can you imagine the character Maggie Smith played in Downton Abbey doing that sort of thing? I can't remember her name. Wasn't she supposed to be Robert thingy's mother? The Dowager Duchess of Grantham? It would certainly make people sit up and listen and make shopping a good deal more interesting than you get from the dull, lifeless voice that you get on these machines. 'Please don't place your unknown item in the bagging area!' Would be fun if she was to do it. Sort of, 'Lady Bracknell sort of thing, if you get my meaning.

I had intended having lasagne for my evening meal and wanted to have salad with it. I wasn't going to drive all the way to Sainsbury's for just that, so I thought I' go into Iceland, which was on my way when I walked to the Xcape to collect the car which was parked nearby. I went into Iceland and found a suitable prepared salad in a bowl and then browsed around the store to see if there was anything suitable as a sweet to follow my lasagne. But on approaching the checkout there was but one lone woman on the till, and a large queue forming, so instead of wasting my time queuing for just the one item, I left the salad bowl and the basket nearby and walked out of the store. Unfortunately I had entered the store with a red T.K. Maax carrier bag which contained the Current Archaeology magazine and the loose-bottomed cake tin in it. As I made to exit, this somewhat officious security man approached me and said, 'excuse me, sir, may I see inside your bag?' which I thought a little presumptuous of him, because I most certainly had nothing to hide and it was plain that I had left the salad bowl behind in the store, near the checkout. He looked inside the bag and could see there was nothing from the store in the bag, and I walked away, not exactly over-joyed by this intrusion on my perfectly innocent visit to Iceland and it has to be said, left a bit of a bitter taste (metaphorically speaking) in my mouth. It would be quite obvious that they don't trust a 'certain element' in their store and if they'd only had more staff on the checkouts (out of six or so, only one in operation, when there was quite a considerable queue waiting.) So, it has rather put me off every shopping in Iceland again. I seem to remember when I lived in Bedford and used the local branch of Iceland near the bus station and the somewhat curt treatment (to put it mildly) I got from one particular checkout woman, who could be quite rude, so it would seem Iceland has a penchant for employing officious staff. If you didn't place your items correctly on her conveyer, you got a sort of nasal sound, or intake of breath which suggested 'Not there, young man!' Enough to put you off shopping in Iceland with that sort of behaviour from a member of staff.

Car Passes MoT

I'm somewhat relived that the car, my beloved Renault Captur, has passed it's MoT. I took it to Bleak Hall Motors in good time, arriving at 12.45, a good 15 minutes before the time it was booked in for. I sat and read my book, Breaking The Code, Gyles Brandreth's Westminster Diaries, from the early 1990's until well into the 2000s. It's actually a signed copy which I bought, I think, from Postscript, an on-line and catalogue bookseller which has good discounts on the books it sells. I have always liked Mr Brandreth, a good presenter of a range of television programmes such as 'The One Show,' and he's into subjects that I like, such as words, literature and being on Radio Four panel shows such as 'Just A Minute.'  I was told that the brakes on the Captur will need work doing, so I think I will book it in sometime next month, although the timing belt needs replacing.

I've just finished reading 'Zippy and Me,' by Ronnie Le Drew.  The book was crowd-funded and published by a company called Unbound.  I payed £30 and part of this went into the fund to produce and publish the book and all the ancillary work that would be needed to get it produced and I got my own, signed, copy, which arrived in the post about two weeks ago. I have a passing connection with Mr Le Drew, because in 1971, after I worked as an A.S.M. at Liverpool Playhouse, I needed work and eventually went to work as a technician, not exactly stage management, but near enough, working for the puppet company run by John Blundell, at the Midlands Arts Centre at Canon Hill Park, Birmingham. Ronnie was one of the puppeteers and it was from that job, operating a follow-spot on one of the shows, it might have been their production of Pinocchio or Peter and The Wolf, that I got interested in puppetry and my career (such as it was) took off in a slightly different direction. It's quite a difficult job, operating a lime (follow-spot), purched up high above the auditorium in the Studio Theatre at the Arts Centre, and attempting to follow various puppets with the light. It was a 'black theatre' production, which means the puppeteers are swathed from head to toe in black, even their faces are covered by black gauze, so that the audience can't see them, but the puppets are lit in such a way that they stand out clearly. I had to be able, at various points in the play, to turn off the follow-spot, and at another point, put it back on and accurately manage to pick out a specific puppet a bit later on, but do it in such a way so as not to illuminate the operator, no mean feat. Staring with concentration on a circle of light for any length of light tends to have a quite bad effect on your eyesight and you soon have blobs of light in your eyes for quite some time afterwards, which makes accuracy with a hot followspot, which needs to be kept at the correct angle otherwise it can tilt down, although you have handles on the back and sides to hold on to and knurled knobs which allow you to screw them up to make the thing stable.

I might have been a  trainee lighting assistant (I don't think I was exactly) and the man in charge of the lighting was a bit of a prankster. I was no more than 20, and what you would call 'green.' He would clamber up a ladder or onto one of those platforms that wheel about the stage, I think it's called a cherry picker, for he purpose of adjusting the lighting above he stage, or to take out the bulbs in several of the lights. I was detailed to stand below, presumably to steady the ladder, and he would undo a bulb and then throw it down to me below, where I was supposed to catch it. Much larger bulbs than your average domestic bulb and probably a good deal more expensive, so if I dropped the bulb, heaven forbid, I was in real trouble, but this never happened, fortunately. I also helped with the making of some of the puppets, which were going to be used in the next production which was a show based on two Hans Christian Andersen stories, The Emperor's New Clothes and The Steadfast Tin Soldier. The other puppeteer who went on to become well known was called David Claridge. I seem to remember it was he who designed the sets and puppets for the Hans Andersen double bill. He was responsible for creating and operating Roland Rat, saviour of TV-AM and the character went on himself to have his own television series in the 1980s.

I would have liked to have become a puppeteer there and then, but, first, there were no vacancies in the company, and, secondly, I wasn't a trained actor, because of learning lines and having some sort of experience of performance (apart from a few 'walk-on' bits-and-pieces when I was a Student A.S.M. at the Everyman, but certainly nothing concrete. So, if I wanted to become a puppeteer I would need to work for a company which used a pre-recorded soundtrack of the dialogue and work the puppets to that tape. Not always a particularly good way to work puppets, because once a recording is made it is 'fixed,' which means you can't vary each performance for the different audiences you would be playing to. In a 'live' performance, as with any play, the actors can vary the speed of their delivery when there is an audience reaction, for example, if they laught at a specific line, and would vary from performance to performance.

Hospital Visit

(Friday) I've been to visit one of the leadership team from Shenley Christian Fellowship, who is currently in Milton Keynes Hospital with some sort of leg infection. I have him on Facebook and he's taken a photograph to show the extent of the infection, and how his leg has blown up (if that's the right way to describe it.) and not looking nice. As it's such a short walk to the hospital, I decided to walk, thus making it easier because I wouldn't have to drive and then find a space to park the car. I found out he was in ward 22 and had a vague recollection where it was, because it was one of the wards Carol was on at some stage or other. Once there, I totally forgot where it was, thinking it was up the stairs when you enter from near the Cardiology department, but then, having enquired of a member of staff, that it's not actually in the main building, but on it's own, nor a short walk from the cafeteria and the shop. It then dawned on me that it was close to the M.R.I. scan unit. as far as I remember, just over the fire road (called, presumably, because that would be where fire engines would come in if the hospital caught fire.) and close to the courtyard which was set up with tables with umbrellas on them and where they had a barbecue last year, as part of the 70th Anniversary of the foundation of the N.H.S., and a BBC television crew set up cameras to interview staff and shown on Look East, live that evening, a day when I went to see Carol on Ward 22 and during that exceptionally hot summer we had last year. Ward 22 is upstairs and on the ground floor is the Endoscopy department, where Carol had to go for a scan at the beginning of the process which eventually gave the diagnosis that she had bowel cancer. Not the best memory to have, but still part of the same story, unfortunately.

I went up the stairs to the ward entrance and had to press the button beside the door to gain entrance. I think it has a camera on it so that staff on reception can see who's wanting to enter. I had to press several times before someone came to let me in, I think one of the doctors.

I had no idea where on ward 22 Danny was. It's not like a general ward, where you have patients in a sort of communal area, each with curtains that pull round on a track whenever you need privacy, a bedside chest for your personal belongings and a table on wheels that moves up and down and on which you have your meals. But on this ward there are separate rooms, some single, but a couple, like the one Carol was on, had four beds, and they had the use of their own bathroom and toilet (which I soon discovered I wasn't supposed to use, something to do with cross-infection, although I could use a toilet on the main body of the ward.) As I walked along the corridor, hoping to find the nurse's station, which is usually central to any hospital ward, and which is where there is usually a receptionist and ward administrator/manager, and where the door to the ward is opened when you press the door button outside in the corridor, I came upon the doctor who cared for Carol and was responsible for her pain control. Doctor Ben, but I don't remember his surname. A very easy to talk to young man and very good at his job, and was seen on occasion when Carol was in Willen Hospice.

He turned to me and spent some time chatting to me. It was obvious that he knew of Carol's passing, well, he would have known, working as he did at Willen and spending a lot of time with us, trying to get Carol's awful pain under control, which was the main reason she went into Willen Hospice. I can talk about this now, write it on here, but only a few months ago, I would have found writing this extremely traumatic, but actually, but writing about it now, it's sort of therapeutic. He asked me how I was coping, and I said that it was a sort of roller-coaster ride, up and down, at the moment, more down. I told him I had been prescribed medication to help me sleep, and was currently on Diazepam which was helping me calm down as well as sleep, but that I was getting panic attacks (I don't know why.) and was caused mostly because of being messed around my various government departments regarding benefits and also, not having my rent paid in full by Housing Benefit. He asked me if I was getting any support. I said I had been to Willen and had some bereavement counselling, but it had finished because the lady who counselled me didn't think I needed any further support. I said that I had been to Macmillan to see the counsellor there, but I was told what the Willen lady had said and that I was moving forward, especially with my volunteering at Camphill. He told me that I should go back to my doctor as the N.H.S. should have some sort of support for me in my situation. Perhaps going back to get support from Willen Hospice might be part of the answer. I'll have to wait and see.

I wasn't sure exactly which room Danny was in, so Dr Ben asked a nurse, who wasn't sure and had to consult a list, but eventually we discovered which room it was. I walked round the ward, which is so much quieter than the average ward. I remember when I was in hospital after my first heart attack in 2006, on the C.C.U. (Coronary Care Unit) at Bedford Hospital, there was a corridor which passed more or less straight through the ward, and, even in the middle of the night, you'd get people walking through, almost always talking at full volume, and then there was a noisy refrigeration unit on the roof outside the window which made the most awful sounds all through the night. And on top of that you had new patients being bought in, on beds usually, and the nurses weren't exactly quiet.

I was directed to Danny's room. A single room. His wife Chris was there, but no sign of Danny. He was in the bathroom. For some strange and totally unaccountable reason he couldn't open the door. If it would have been me I would have been stressed, because the thought of being trapped in a room with a door which I couldn't open wouldn't be a pleasant experience. I don't like enclosed spaces at the best of times, but being stuck in a bathroom or toilet when the door doesn't unlock would be my worst nightmare. Most N.H.S. facilities, usually toilets, have similar locks which are usually easy enough to open (I recall the bathroom when I worked as a Support Worker at Country Cottage in Everton, part of the N.H.S. Learning Disabilities Service, where the bathroom had similar locks to those in the hospital and all the equipment, grab-rails, waste bins with that strange mechanism that you weren't supposed to push down with your hand and coloured yellow, even the taps and shower units and flooring were the same.) so I had a vague idea how to get out, even if it meant pulling the red cord which would call a nurse to your assistance. Then suddenly Danny appeared, but not from the door into the main room. I presumed there was a second door which opened out into either the corridor or the adjoining room. He looked pained. The leg which is causing so much trouble, probably an infection, is bound up with bandages but it's a bright red, from what you can see. He looked in real pain and managed to get to the bed and lie on it. But in these wards there are never enough chairs. Usually a high-backed one with padding for the patient, but visitors get to sit on plastic chairs. They may be one in the room, but if more visitors come then you have to hunt them down, usually stacked elsewhere on the ward. I remember several years ago, when I had a brief stay in hospital, following a rather prolonged angina attack which meant I had to remain in hospital for a couple of days, Carol needed to sit down and sat on the bed. Just never do that! It's against the rules. There was a very officious woman of indeterminate age (I think her role was probably ward administrator, but I'm not sure, but she might have been a volunteer.) Carol got told off for sitting on the bed and when she started reading my notes (which were kept in a folder in a slot at the end of the bed, she got even more of a telling-off! Even though we were husband and wife, she wasn't supposed to look at my notes, which could have been read by anyone who came on the ward. Now, with new computerised technology, all notes are stored on a computer system (which was being started up whilst Carol was in hospital.) so it would now be very difficult for anyone without the relevant password to get into such personal and sensitive material. All patients, when being admitted to a ward, has to have a paper wrist band put on, which shows your name, date of birth and has a bar code which is read by a scanner when a  nurse comes to do your 'Obs,' or gives out your medication.

Several nurses came in to do the various checks, to do the obligatory 'Obs,' give medications and check Danny's leg, which looks redder and as painful as ever. All these checks done by technology. Then Carline Swann arrived, another member of S.C.F., who I have seen in church but have not had an opportunity to speak to. She seems to know a great deal about nursing and care (not sure what her job is exactly.) and as a result of her arrival another chair was required. Another difficulty of these small rooms, never enough space when you have several visitors requiring seating. And those plastic chairs which are in all these wards for visitors, made of plastic and not as comfortable as they might be. I think they have them as they would be easier to clean for hygiene purposes, but you begin to slip off the seat after a while. So, by this time it was my time to leave and bade farewell, just hoping and praying that Danny's leg heals soon so he can leave hospital and return to his home.

Change For Change Sake

I've been to Bleak Hall Motors after 9 this morning (Thursday) to book the Renault Captur in to have it's annual MoT. I discovered that the current MoT runs out on 8th August, so it's as well I had thought to have it done. It's booked in to be done at 1p.m. on Monday. I just hope it doesn't need much doing to it to pass. I have a feeling that the brakes might need doing as last time it was MoT'd they said one was in need of replacing. The other thing I was told was that, because it's a diesel car, the timing belt will need replacing before December, another expense, but it has to be done. It has something to do with how the pistons are timed. It can't be left, but with my financial situation, it will have to be done in the next month after my pension has gone into my account. It will cost around £300 or so.

As I was driving along Standing Way, going to Bleak Hall and was turning right on the roundabout, a car very nearly hit me, speeding across without stopping. Another couple of feet and he would have hit me. No wonder my nerves are a wreck after driving. Stupid idiot, it's people like him who make the roads a battlefield and are responsible for high motor insurance premiums. I wouldn't be surprised if this youth, because I saw him as he sped by, doesn't have any insurance, so if he had hit me, goodness knows what would have happened. Scary.

From Bleak Hall I drove to Sainsbury's. I had to collect medications I only recently ordered over the phone, one of them being Diazepam. I was surprised that the Bisoprolol which had only been ordered a day or so ago was ready for collection. I have heard from the pharmacist at Lloyd's that the procedure for ordering will be changing in September. I won't be able to order as I currently do, by merely ringing Lloyd's and giving them the medications on my repeat list. They contact Ashfield Medical Centre to get the doctor to provide the prescription, which is signed and then emailed to the pharmacy. But from September I will have to order direct from Ashfield. I can set up an on-line account with the surgery and use that to order what I need to have on repeat. It worries me that this isn't going to work. I don't think I trust the system. I will be on edge that if I order that the surgery will get the order and then contact Lloyd's to make up the order. I feel sorry for the older patients who don't have access to the internet, let alone a computer, and wouldn't have any idea how to use one, so how are they expected to reorder their repeat medications? Does it mean they have to go to the surgery and make a paper order? Am I expected to do that? Why change a system which is working so well? It has been so easy, just to ring in my order, which I do when there are enough days for order to go through before my stock runs out. Some crazy pen-pusher somewhere, with no idea of the dress and upset this will cause seems they have to change things for change sake. If enough people were to complain I reckon it could be left alone. It's the people who waste such things as appointments, make them and never actually go to them, wasting N.H.S. resources in a really negative fashion.

Friday. Noon. It's a bright and sunny day. But the sun keeps going in and out. One minute, Bright, the next, it clouds over. Never mind. I'm actually bored silly. If Carol was here, we'd be going out and about, to Whipsnade, probably London, one of the National Trust properties, Wimpole Hall perhaps. But she's not, and my life's empty. I mustn't get myself upset, but it's days like these when the loneliness is the worst.

This morning I was planning to go to the Oaktree Centre to sample the food in the newly-opened café. One of Shenley Christian Fellowship members, Tim O'Brien is part of a musical group called Fadin' Shoes. It was he who drove me to the John Radcliffe Hospital to have my stent fitted. I drove out of Eaglestone at around 11.40 which would have given me plenty of time to get to Shenley, but, driving down Chaffron Way, the road ahead, at the roundabout where it intersects with Fulmer Street, there was a road sign in red stating quite clearly 'Road Closed, and a gang of workmen, presumably resurfacing the road. There was absolutely no advance warning as I drove along Chaffron Way, so this came as rather a shock, to say the least. I turned left and came to Standing Way and eventually got onto Watling Street and drove as far as Childs Way with the intention of hopefully getting into Chaffron Way further up towards Morrisons at Westcroft, but even that road was closed off at the roundabout at the intersection with Fulmer Street. So, not feeling very happy that my day had been ruined, I decided to head home along Fulmer Street and get home. Annoyed isn't the word, because I have wanted to listen go the music and have something to eat in the newly-opened café which has been a long time in the planning.

Another Fine Day

Thankfully the weather is cooler. As much as I like it sunny and warm, it's not advisable to be out in it when you have a heart condition as I have. After the incident at Camphill when I mistook a bout of reflux or heart burn as either an actual, full-on heart attack (correct terminology is myocardial infarction) or angina. I was relieved that it was cooler as I drove to Camphill yesterday (Tuesday.) No the full compliment of residents at the 'check-in,'where everyone has to give a brief description of how they were feeling at the beginning of the day (as I volunteer I don't get off the hook, but I've got used to it. From my first day when I was only there for a few hours, to get the feel of the drama workshop and had the residents firing questions at me to see where I would fit in.) which was somewhat nerve wracking, to several months later when I am feeling as if they are all my friends and chat to me freely and we have such a lovely relationship. They are truly a lovely lot and I am so pleased to have found something  so amazing to be part of. 

Teo, the leader of the drama workshop and coordinator/manager of the Chrysalis Theatre, was busy elsewhere in the building, busy with a young man who had come in to view the theatre from The Scouting organisation because he was involved in a Gang Show which was going to be staged in the Chrysalis Theatre. We hardly saw him all day because he was also involved with reorganising the rooms beneath the stage, a larger room called 'The Crypt', which is where we've worked on a couple of occasions, as well as the dressing rooms, and another room which used to be a prop room and which is being converted into a sort of tea and coffee bar for organisations who hire the under-stage rooms for various events and courses so they don't have to come upstairs to use the facilities in the theatre foyer when the theatre is being used by other organisations.

We sat in a circle and did a line-run, with some of the absent actors parts being read by either myself or some of the 'co-workers,' as the support staff are called at Camphill. The two girls who have beeb working with us, (one from Brazil and the other from Japan, both have remarkable English-speaking skills, incidentally, and get on well with the drama guys.) and then we were broken up into groups to work with the actors to get them to really push themselves to improve their performances. When we went back into the circle, the drama guys had to take a line from their roles in 'Stranger Danger,' and really give it their all, taking one of us support staff as a sort of audience and really giving a full-blown performance which was intended to get them to give their best. It really worked and it gave an idea of their potential as performers.

We sent some time brainstorming ideas for 'Treasure Island,' which will be the next production. This time we were trying to find out how the production will end and lots of ideas were thrown into the ring. It was really amazing what the guys came up with. I had plenty myself, but I don't really want to over-do it as it should be there ideas that get used. I have no real excuse in this area because I've done a lot of research on story theory, particularly from one academic, called Joseph Campbell, who created the Hero With A Thousand Faces and was used as the blueprint for such movies as the original 'Star Wars' created by George Lucas and has since been used by other film-makers and almost a standard text.

Towards the end of the day Teo put a slideshow on the computer and it was shown on the large screen in the Chrysalis, to show those of us who had more recently come to work or volunteer at Camphill. Over nine years it appears that they've produced quite a wide range of plays, from a production based loosely (and it would appear very loosely.) on Sherlock Holmes, a sort of pantomime version of Robin Hood and other assorted shows, many which not only starred the residents (many of them in the current drama workshop.) but also many volunteers and what they call 'Co-Workers.' One of them being Luke, who seems to be a sort of 'jack of all trades,' from gardener, mower of the lawns at Camphill, to supporter of the residents in various capacities as well as having quite a good go at acting and, so it would appear, being the leading light in many of the productions. The sets and the costumes looked quite remarkable, and quite a few would appear to have been stored in the wardrobe department under the stage, whilst the set for the Sherlock Holmes production appeared (from what I could see from the photographs on the slideshow.) included a revolving stage which would have been used to do many of the scene changes, with one set on one side and then, when it was turned round, would reveal a different set.

When we'd finished watching the slideshow we went downstairs to the area beneath the stage to see what work had been done. We were amazed by how much stuff had been shifted and a lot of it was in The Crypt and the former prop room was being converted into a kitchen area for those who hire these rooms, although there was obviously quite a lot of work to be done with the installation of a sink and kitchen cupboards as space for making tea and coffee.