Strange and Disconcerting Meeting

I have been out as usual with Alfie at around 7a.m. We walked along Strudwick Drive and crossed Oldbrook Boulevard, wandered along the path and then back. As I was crossing the road, which at this stage is in two parts, with a reservation in the centre (this is an attempt I imagine to slow the traffic.) I heard a female voice come out of nowhere, 'Can you lend me £1.50?.' I can't say that I'm easily scared, but to have such a voice come out of the dark is quite scary. It was the woman I have mentioned in an earlier post on here, whom I have encountered twice, asking for money from people she meets. It is quite concerning. I don't usually carry cash with me when I'm walking Alfie. I don't know whether she gets any money from the other people she meets. Is this a form of begging? What is her mental state? She appears well dressed, she doesn't look as if she's in any distress, no sign of blood or injury of any kind. I walked back home and immediately rang 999 but then was told to ring 101 and I gave details of this woman to the police as she needs reporting, more for her safety and perhaps more for the fact that she might come from a home somewhere and whoever looks after her needs to know where she is.

My friend Nick has been to visit from Northampton. H'e actually been staying with his mother in Bedford. He texted to say he was arriving on the bus at 11.45, so I drove into the centre of Milton Keynes. It was difficult to find a parking space in the usual car park, but with a bit of patience I found a place, paid for a ticket (the first machine I went to wouldn't take the two 50p coins I put in, for whatever reason. I went into the shopping centre and sat outside Starbucks, which was where we were meeting. The whole place gone crazy, shoppers taking over, it's as if the shops were going to be stripped entirely of their contents by a swarm of locusts. We didn't go into Starbucks as the queue at the counter virtually came out of the door, so we walked along to Costa opposite Marks and Spencer. We had special Christmas drinks, Irish coffee velvet cream latte. Very nice and I'd definitely have again, but I think they're only on the menu over the festive period. Also had cheese and ham toastie (I have these a lot, as you will have realised, if you read my blog posts on a regular basis.)and finally, a slice of rocky road cake. Then, we went into Marks and Spencer's. Nick said he wanted to buy a hat. We went up the escalator to the men's department and we found an array of different hats, ranging from Trilby-style to cloth and eventually wolley hats, one of which Nick chose and we went to pay. Quite a long queue at the till. People going crazy no doubt buying Christmas presents.

We walked along the shopping centre. We went into an opticians as Nick wanted to look at prescription sunglasses. My glasses have Transition lenses in them, which means they go black when I go into bright sunlight, but then return to clear when indoors or it's not sunny. Nick looked at a rather stylish pair of glasses which looked more like sky goggles, with wrap-around lenses which were reflective and with a yellow trim. He wanted to have prescription lenses in them and when he asked the assistant for the price, we were somewhat shocked by the more-than £400 price tag, so they went back in the unit.

We drove back to my flat, as Nick was interested to see where I was now living. He got to meet Alfie and then took him out for a walk around Oldbrook Green.

As regards the strange woman who was asking for money, I have not seen her since I reported her to the Police. I just hope that she is now back home, safe and being cared for.

Haircut and Car Service

(Monday) A bright but chilly morning. I took out Alfie before 6. I rang Bleak Hall Motors a little after 8 and got the car booked in for it's annual service tomorrow (Thursday). I'll have to get it there for 8 tomorrow and get a taxi back to the flat because I don't want to have to sit and wait there for hours and hours whilst it's being done. The Renault has this annoying computerised system with a digital screen right in front of my eyeline as I'm driving, with the annoying message that keeps reading 'Service now due,' with an orange light which remains on with a spanner symbol, in case I'm in any doubt that this work is required. Well, it's not driving at full capacity because of needing work doing, so I'll be glad when it's done, in time to drive to Worcester for Christmas with Chloe, Steve and the grandchildren. I'm looking forward to going, even if it's not for as long as last year.

A little later I drove into the city centre and parked near The Point (it really is looking terrible. I know I've mentioned it before, but this iconic building, which was the pride of Milton Keynes in the 1980's when it was one of the first multiplex cinemas in Britain, but now is an empty wreck, and the pyramid is just a rusting shell. Please, someone, do something with it, even if it's to demolish it and build something else on the site. Driving into Milton Keynes at night from Bedford you could see if from  distance as it was lit up.) I was going to the Central Barbers in the shopping centre to get my hair cut. They don't open until 9.30, so I had a good 15-minute wait, sitting on the seats conveniently placed outside. Getting chilly, but it's interesting to see the people who walk past. The Middleton Hall is now completely taken over with the traditional Christmas display. It seems somewhat mundane. It used to be excellent, with some sort of theme, one year it was pirates, or was it Peter Pan, with  large masted ship, with Peter Pan standing on it. But they seem to have run out of ideas or at least, originality, and it's just a sort of large-scale snow-dome in the middle, with Santa's grotto somewhere and a excuse to make money out of parents when there children insist on visiting.

Eventually got into Central Barbers and was sitting in the chair having my hair cut (so, what else would I be doing? No surprises there.) Very pleased with the result and soon paying and back out and walking back along the shopping centre and taking £20 out of the A.T.M. at the Nationwide Building Society, because I will need the cash to pay for a taxi once I've dropped off the car at Bleak Hall Motors tomorrow morning. Then, once the car is finished being serviced, I can get another taxi back home to the flat.

From the shopping centre I drove to Bradwell Common to do some shopping in Aldi's. Of the two discounters, Lidl and Aldi, I think I prefer Aldi. I'm not sure why, but they have a better range. I like the fact that there's no fiddling about at the checkout. The way they whisk the items through and you can pack your items on a shelf rather than actually at the checkout is a good idea and the way they put larger barcodes on each item is brilliant. They don't spend an age searching for tiny barcodes that you get on the products on any of the larger supermarkets such as Sainsbury or Tesco. And the bill is usually a good deal cheaper. Probably around a third of what it would cost in Sainsbury's.

Then home and unpacking shopping and one small Yorkshire terrier desperate to go out for a walk. You can't really avoid his gaze, or his yapping when he thinks it's time to go out. So, lead on, shoes on and out walking along Srudwick Drive. As we near Oldbrook Green, I notice a large black crow on the grass. It is standing near a discarded  clear plastic package, no doubt containing food that some thoughtless person has thrown there, having eaten the contents and not bothering to put it in a rubbish bin. The crow is having a good time, tapping the package with it's long, sharp beak. I stand and watch, totally intrigued by the antics of the crow. I manages to turn the box over and it attempts to gain entry by stabbing it with it's beak. It doesn't manage to get inside, although from where I'm watching I can't see if it has the remains of food inside. So why is it going through this business? Can it smell the remains of the food, or is it merely playing with this shiny item it has come across? who knows, but it makes good entertainment and I only wish I had my mobile with me to be able to video this incident. We walk on, to traverse the park, but by the time we walk past where I saw the crow with the plastic package, there was no sign of the bird. It probably lost interest and merely flew away. It just goes to show how intelligent these birds are.

(Thursday) I couldn't sleep last night. Nothing wrong, but just awake at around 2 a.m. I have sleeping tablets but the doctor gave me some new ones and says they can be addictive, so I'm reluctant to take them and I was concerned that I would be sleepy this morning because in the leaflet you get with them it says. 'Do not drive or use machinery if you feel sleepy the next morning.' It also makes me laugh when you get the label on the box they come in which say 'Can make you feel drowsy or sleepy.' Well, there's a surprise! Sleeping tablets which make you feel sleepy. Just tell me, what do they put on packets of Viagra? No . . . please don't reply to that! Just amuses me that now you can have Viagra without a prescription (incidentally, I can't have it because of my heart medication. And funnily enough, it was created for the treatment of heart problems, ironically.) Anyway, whenever I go to collect my medication from Lloyd's pharmacy in Sainsbury's, there's advertising all over the place for Viagra. You can't miss it.

I've taken the car to Bleak Hall Motors for it's service, which I managed to book by ringing them yesterday morning, as mentioned above. I got there in good time, gave the keys to reception and got a taxi home, because it's going to take around half a day to do the service. Then, when I got hack I immediately took Alfie out for a walk around Oldbrook Green.

For a couple of days, when I've been out with Alfie around Oldbrook Green, I've been stopped by a woman who keeps asking for money. At first I thought it might be for something like the use of a phone, but there's no telephone box anywhere to be seen. You just don't see the iconic BT telephone boxes any more, probably because most people have a mobile phone. She asked me for £1.50, but at this time I had no change on me. I don't usually carry change of any kind when I'm out with Alfie. Then, yesterday, she was out near the road crossing from Strudwick Drive over Oldbrook Boulevard. This time she wanted £2.50, but, again, I didn't have any change. She was standing in the road and I had to tell her to move out of the way because there were cars attempting to get past. This is when I thought that perhaps she wasn't mentally stable. It made me wonder whether she was from a residential home or perhaps from the Campbell Centre, which is part of Milton Keynes Hospital. By this time she was stopping cars and asking for cash, and there was a build-up of several cars because she was talking to one of the drivers. I don't know whether she got the cash she was asking for. She was well dressed, didn't look in any sort of distress, so it was unclear why she was behaving like this. When I lived in Bedford there were a couple of people who used to stand and constantly ask for cash. One became quite aggressive and had to be given a court order which prevented him being a nuisance, because he was putting off customers to certain businesses in the town centre. I don't know how they managed to stop either of these people being what were, in effect, aggressive beggars. I can't think where the woman came from, but presumably somewhere within the Oldbrook area of Milton Keynes.

Later. I got the call to tell me the car was ready for collection at just gone 11 o'clock. I rang for a taxi so I waited outside in the road and around 5 minutes later it turned up. I was somewhat surprised that the driver couldn't find Bleak Hall Motors. I was always under the impression that taxi drivers knew virtually every place in the town they operated in, but this wasn't the case with this driver. We eventually found it (I usually drive in from the opposite end. It's in a sort of service road and can be tricky to negotiate because of lorries parked all the way along and some pulling out of the various units along it's entire length.) I was somewhat shocked that the cost of the service was considerably more than anticipated, but they have done a good job, changing the oil, topping up water, brake fluid and replacing some parts, so it's done for another year. It will leave me rather short of cash for the rest of the month, but I will have to manage. I can't have the car not running efficiently, breaking down or not working properly, what with the winter weather coming up, so, in the end, it was worth it.

Tuesday at Camphill

I went to Camphill as usual on Tuesday. I leave to drive there a good deal earlier in an attempt to avoid the traffic, which can get really busy at around 8.30a.m. Regardless of this, it can still be extremely busy. Crossing the roundabout where Chaffron Way crosses Marlborough Street as well as Brickhill Street crossing Childs Way and finally Portway, can be really hairy. It's a matter of just being a good deal more aggressive and go for it when the road is clear, but it's not pleasant and a build-up of traffic which can tail back a long way. The journey should take no more than 10 minutes, but at that early hour it can take a good 45 minutes.

Lot of people missing today. Co-workers as well as residents. I had to read in for those who were missing, although it was only a line rehearsal. Then we were sorting out costumes for the actors. We had to go under the stage and into the costume store and bring up rails of the costumes, some of which had carrier bags attached which had hand props and bits and pieces which made up the various costumes. But when we got to the door of the costume store the keys would not unlock the door so we spent a great deal of time trying various keys but still the door would not unlock. It took at least 20 minutes before we were able to find the correct key and then take the rail of costumes up into the theatre.

We have now been told that the final drama workshop session before the Christmas break will be on 17th December. A group who use the Chrysalis Theatre,  Phoenix Rising, will be coming to see what will be, in essence, a dress rehearsal of 'Stranger Danger.'

I've been asked if I would like to work on a Monday with the singing workshop. It would be good to have an additional day's volunteer work. When I went to the Willen Hospice coffee morning in John Lewis I sat with the group that are newly bereaved and separate from the larger group I usually sit with. I spoke to one of the volunteer ladies and we were talking and I mentioned my interest in Shakespeare and she said, had I ever considered being a volunteer at the Shakespeare Globe, the reconstructed theatre on the Southbank of the Thames? I had never even thought of it. She was a volunteer there and said I might be good at that sort of thing. You have to go for an interview and it's not about your knowledge of Shakespeare that would want, more your ability to engage with the public, being a  friendly face that the audience members would see when they visited. I'm not sure I want to go all the way into London (you get your train fare reimbursed, apparently.) And it's likely to be a long day and coming home at night would put me off, crossing London on the Underground and the fact it's noisy, dirty, and generally unpleasant so it might not appeal to me in that respect, even though I would love to be involved.

This And That

I've been doing The Bible Course at church and fortunately it's being run during the day, which is better for me, because if it was run in the evening, as most of these courses are, by about 8 o'clock I'm beginning to flag somewhat and my concentration goes out of the window. There is one more session next week and the 8 weeks is over. I think I'll give it a rest on the course front for a while. I went from the Oaktree Centre to Sainsbury's, because I had been texted by Lloyd's pharmacy that my repeat prescription was ready to collect. I can't believe they had it ready so quickly, because I did the order on line only a couple of days ago. From there, I went home, and had lunch, a sandwich bought in Sainsbury's, sitting and watching Bargain Hunt, something of a habit, I know, but nevertheless, I have learnt quite a bit about antiques from this show. It was being done in aid of Children In Need, with Debbie MaGee and Joe Pasquale and Richard Cadell and the infamous Sooty (in a box. WHY? We all know it's a man with his hand up the backside of a bit of fur fabric, so why the pretence? And why does Sooty never speak??? I've always wondered that, as a child, and even more so as an adult. Well, the wretched Sweep squeaks, so why doesn't the bear talk?) what has happened to Sooty? He looks different. His face is fatter. Has he been stuffing his face on cakes and buns? It's not the same Sooty I remember as a child. Mind you, when I was an A.S.M. at Liverpool Playhouse in the early 1970's I remember Harry Corbett bringing Sooty to the Playhouse for a week of shows, and being disappointed that there was actually more than ONE Sooty! I saw the many and various versions of Sooty as a puppet and it somewhat spoilt the illusion that they used more than one puppet. How soon the innocence of youth can be spoilt by such things.  But, it was for a good cause. Then, with his pleading eyes, Alfie insisted on going for a walk around Oldbrook Green. (Well, he'd been left all alone since I went out at about 9.15, so he did deserve it, poor little mite.)

A lot of really good television drama coming up. 'His Dark Materials' has already got to the second episode, of, how many? Is it eight or ten? Well, at least they're giving it space to breathe and do justice to the really complex storyline. Season two already in the works, so I believe. They're got the feel of the 'alternative Oxford,' Sort of steampunk feel, with airships as a form of transport. The Daemons are C.G.I., photo-realistic and seem to work very well, fitting in to the action very well and don't look as if they've been pasted on as some C.G.I. characters do, such as has happened in the revived 'Doctor Who.' Then, following that series, 'The War of The Worlds.' I'm intrigued to see how they manage to do this, set in the late 19th century, at the time it was written. I read all of H.G.Wells science fiction books when I was a teenager, 'The invisible Man,' 'First Men In The Moon,'The Time Machine' and 'The War of The Worlds.' Wells was amazing in that he was writing far in advance of his time and probably best described as The Father of Science Fiction. His short stories are also worth looking at and some are really creepy. Then 'The Crown' returns on Netflix, with Season 3, which, as far as I can understand, takes up the story in the 1970's and I think covers the Miners' Strike and other matters. Meanwhile, not to be outdone, Amazon concludes 'The Man In The High Castle,' which I've been following and have found to be really intriguing and I'm looking forward to how it all ties up. Can't wait to see what all these channels and other television services come up with. I know Apple TV + has just started and then there's Britbox, which is a joint venture between BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5.

Alfie Has A Trim (Amongst Other Things)

(Monday)I went to the Willen Hospice coffee morning at John Lewis this morning. I haven't been for
quite a while, basically because I've been so busy moving to the flat. I was the second person there and some of the tables we usually sit at were missing. When more of the regulars arrived, they decided to move the tables back so that everyone could sit at them. Logical, really.

I sat next to a man who told me he worked as a supporting artiste/extra, so we had things in common to talk about. I am envious of him because he worked on the film version of 'Les Miserables,' and got to sing in he finale of the film, which was shot in Greenwich.

Alfie has been booked in for an appointment at The Groom Room at the Bletchley branch of Pets Are Home for the past few weeks. His coat was beginning to look really untidy. He could barely see where he was going because of the hair over his eyes and he has a build-up of the horrible mess under his eyes. I do try to remove it, but he doesn't like it. I had to discreetly take the cage, which folds up and is stored under my bed (definitely no room elsewhere in the flat.) and took it out to the car on Sunday afternoon. So, at around 12.40 on Monday I got him ready to go, with the usual barking and yapping which goes with putting on his lead. I got him out to the car, hatch open and the caged door open and he goes in without any problems, with the end of his lead outside the cage (I have learnt all these 'tricks' over the years.) The cage door has to be arranged inside the car facing right, the small end of the cage, which makes it easier for Alfie to enter. Then, cage door shut and firmly closed so he can't push it open from inside, I drive off to Bletchley. With the luggage shelf in place, it makes the cage darker and this seems to suit Alfie and he likes to have calming music playing on the car radio.

On the way home I went to Lidl in Oldbrook Boulevard and then returned home to unpack what I'd bought. I had to be at The Groom Room to collect Alfie so I had plenty of time. You can see the results of the grooming session if you look at the photograph I've attached to this blog at the top of this post. It's great that his eyes are now clear of that nasty gunge which builds up under his eyes and the hair on his face is cut so he can see where he's going. They didn't give him a very short all-over body trim and left it a good deal longer than last time. I bought him a rather smart jacket because I didn't think it was fair to have him clipped when we're about to go into colder weather. Rather nice, with a zip along the back which makes it a good deal easier to put on him.

Foggy and Cold

(Saturday)From a cold, frosty morning yesterday, we now have fog. When I went out to take Alfie for his early-morning walk, I discovered fog no sooner I had gone through the front door. Then, walking along Strudwick Drive, I discovered think fog across Oldbrook Green, which meant I couldn't see the other side and the buildings around The Hub which are usually easy to see from Oldbook.

I went out with Alfie for a second walk at gone 10 o'clock this morning. The fog had lifted and it was quite sunny. We walked part-way around Oldbrook Green, but didn't do the complete circuit because there were two dogs running loose and I wasn't sure how they would deal with Alfie, walking as he was on his lead and behaving himself as he usually does.

During the night I woke as I sometimes do and it took me some while to get back to sleep. Last night I could hear the sound of cars having their engines revved. I'm not certain where they were, somewhere nearby, but possibly being driven, at speed, around Milton Keynes. This morning, when I went out, I was surprised to see a Mini sitting on the side of the road along Strudwick Drive, on a grassy mound, near the roundabout which leads into Dexter Avenue. It would appear that it had been stolen (I assume. No proof of course), no doubt taken by youths (only speculation) and 'Joy Ridden,' before dumped on that grassy mound. When I took out Alfie earlier this morning it was then I spotted it and, having walked Alfie towards Oldbrook Green, I walked back and a couple were there, with one of them on their mobile, no doubt informing the police of the vehicle. Then, a few hours later, Alfie and I went past, this time in pouring rain, which was the reason I cut this walk short, the car had disappeared, no doubt removed by the police and one would hope, returned to it's owner.

The continual sound of coughing from the flat beneath mine is driving me nuts. It wakes me up and then I can't get back to sleep. I think I might buy a pack of cough sweets and stick it through their letter box. Well, if it was me, I'd take some form of cough medication to relieve things. But my solution to the situation is to stick ear plugs in and therefore become totally resilient to the noise of coughing. Simple, really.

Currently reading a book called 'Six Minutes In May: How Churchill Unexpectedly Became Prime Minister,' and written by Nicholas Shakespeare. We get a completely different picture of the great war leader, but not the outstanding man he was to become, botching the leadership of a raid of the Norwegian town of Narvick, which was taken by the Nazis and caused a scare, since there was the possibility that Britain would immediately be invaded. Very well written and researched and adding to my learning of a period of our history of which I am very ignorant.

Fire Alarms Set Off

I was just laying on my bed, spending time doing nothing. A time to relax and think of nothing in particular. Then I was violently woken (no, I wasn't sleep, just dozing, though I wasn't even doing that. Minding my own business.) by the noise of the fire alarms. Boy, did it make me jump! Not only that, but deafen me. Mind you, perhaps it has to be loud, to wake people if they are asleep.) I thought that at first it might have been the weekly test, but when it didn't sop after a few seconds, there were thoughts racing through my mind, is it because of an ACTUAL fire, somewhere in the building? What should I do? You usually get told, leave the building, and go to the assembly point, exit by the marked fire exits (probably gather in the communal garden, which has a door at the bottom of the stairs.) I immediately put Alfie on his lead, which made him start off barking (which he almost always does when we're about to go out for a walk.) I didn't 'stop to collect any belongings,' which is what you also get told, and went out of the front door, locking it behind me. I got to the foot of the stairs and could see along the corridor that the doors had closed, automatically, because the alarms had activated this mechanism which releases the fire doors (to stop any fire spreading.) I went down to the front door of Dexter House, but no other residents there. I saw a sign which mentioned if the Duty Officer wasn't on duty, so I went back to my flat to get my iPhone and then rang the  number, and was told that a fire engine was on it's way. A relief. I went out onto the pavement outside. Nobody else there. I went inside and saw someone standing along the corridor, and she said that 'we have to remain in our flats.' Well, after the Grenfell  Tower fire, where the fire department told residents to stay in their flats, I wasn't doing that, so went outside with Alfie, who continued to bark loudly. After a minute or two I could hear the approaching fire engine and as it hurtled round the corner from Strudwick Drive, it drew up outside the flats and the firemen got out and one entered the building. All the firemen went after him and they were gone for several minutes, during which time the alarms went off and I went back inside. It turned out that someone in one of the flats had had a cooking accident (let some boiled eggs over-cook and no doubt they burnt dry, thus setting off the fire alarms.) What relief! But no some without fire, as they say, and the rather strong smell of burnt toast. I thought if might have been someone's cigarette which had set it all off, but it wasn't.

But throughout all this, a bit of excitement and a large red fire engine, with lights flashing and siren blazing certain livens things up.

Oh dear! Coughing Kate if off again! Probably set off by the fire. Well, I do exaggerate, but it must be caused by something or other. I certainly wouldn't allow a cough to continue unless I took something for it, cough linctus, some sort of pastille or sweet. Something to suck. But no. It continues and it's so annoying. How about i go out and buy a packet of lozenges or other sweets which you suck to elevate coughs? Which is what I get if I have a cough. Then there's Benylin, a good strong cough medicine.

Car Repair

My Renault Captur needed work doing on it. I was told some while ago that it would need the timing
belt replacing. I don't even know what a timing chain is or what it does. I've been driving for 50 years and owned several cars but never come across this item in the engine. Well, I only drive my car and don't entirely understand how the thing works. The same with this MacBook Air, on which I write this blog. How on earth does the internet work? It's beyond me, but all I know is that it does work, miraculously. Anyway, I had to wait until my pension was paid into my account and then I went to Bleak Hall Motors to make an appointment for the car, which was yesterday (Friday). I was told it would take quite a long time, so there was no way I was going to sit in their waiting room until the work was finished, so I called for a taxi and went home and waited. I thought it might be a couple of hours, by which time the garage would phone me to tell me the car was ready to collect. This eventually came at around 4.15, and I then had to get another taxi to convey me back to Bleak Hall.  Bill paid and then I returned in the car, glad that the work is complete. Now the car needs servicing, basically because it's no point in having a car that doesn't operate properly, and anyway, with the computerised read-out on the dashboard constantly telling  me that it needs servicing in 20 days or so, I don't have much choice. It's sort of nagging me to have it done, so I will have to abide by it. I'll either go into Bleak Hall motors to arrange this or I can always ring.

(Saturday) Been out with Alfie at around 6.45. It's light enough at that time in the morning and the poor little dog was eager as ever. A cloud of seagulls on the green near Oldbrook Boulevard. I think they're probably after the worms or something, but they make a lot of noise and it makes me think of the seaside.

Someone coughing their lungs out in a nearby flat. I think it caused by smoking, so it begs the question: if that is the result, why smoke? If I get a load of smoke in my lungs, then it causes me all sorts of problems, and I was told, after I had my first heart attack, that if I'd smoked, then my heart attack might have happened around 5 years earlier.

Last night I heard fireworks being let off. Thank goodness Hallowe'en is over. A really nasty import from America, just a way to make money out of a load of tat which then ends up in land-fill. I think some individuals don't know the difference between Hallowe'en and Bonfire Night (Guy Fawkes Night.) and that you don't have fireworks as part of Hallowe'en. Hopefully the rubbish being sold in the shops will now be gone, but we now have all the Christmas tat in the shops, endless shelves full of mince pies, Christmas puddings and wrapping paper and other stuff you don't need immediately for Christmas.

Later. I've been to Sainsbury's and I wasn't there long. The carpark was virtually empty. The store wasn't busy. I don't think the average shopper goes to a supermarket early on a Saturday. Most are tucked up under their duvets. But I suspect it's more to do with the rugby match in Japan, England v South Africa. I'm not sure what the time difference is between the United Kingdom and Japan. It does interest me, a good deal more than football, but I can take it or leave it.

I got hame and unloaded my shopping and was on the point of taking Alfie out for a walk, but the weather is foul as I write this, raining and there a high wind, but that wouldn't put off our Alfie.

Went to an archaeology exhibition in the Church of The Cornerstone. I've been inside the building, but not inside the actual church and was surprised by how small it was. It seemed an odd place to hold such an exhibition. It would have been better in the Middleton Hall, which is part of the main Milton Keynes shopping centre. Discovered that a Roman villa has been unearthed in a village called Piddington in Northamptonshire. It's just off the Bedford/Northampton road and not a long journey from here. There is a museum attached to it and I may visit in the near future. It's surprising what you discover when you visit such an exhibition and what other archaeology is going on in this area. I think I've driven along that road many times but knew nothing of this discovery, which was made around 40 years ago. Even so, nothing in the local papers to even mention it.