Jam Yesterday, Jam Tomorrow, But Never Jam Today

Friday. 1.40 a.m. Yet another case of nothing being able to sleep. Never mind. I can always find something to keep myself busy, such as washing up, tidying the kitchen, sorting out the recycling and tying up the bags to take to the bin room. I did my Bible reading, which is 'Through The Bible In A Year, with Nicky Gumble.' I do this on my iPad. Then I feel hungry, and so I made several pieces of toast and had a really nice Lidl raspberry conserve on it. (Conserve, having a higher percentage of fruit in it than jam.) And far better value than other brands.

10.40 a.m. It's a bit overcast and dull. Where has the sun gone? I can hear the wind, making wind-like noises (!) The sort of whistling, yet not whistling noise. The sort of wind you'd expect in a rather clichéd production of 'Wuthering Heights.' You know what I mean, at least, I imagine you do, with Kathy outside and shouting to be let in, in the middle of a moor somewhere in Yorkshire. Sad, really, but very corny and the acting is somewhat over-the-top. Melodramatic.

2.30 p.m. I was about to take Alfie out at around 1 p.m, only to discover that it was pouring rain, so we only went out fleetingly. As I write this, the wind continues to howl around the building.

Saturday. 5.50 p.m. Where did the rest of the day go? Well, it began early, with me taking Alfie as usual around 5.00 a.m. We didn't do our usual circuit of Oldbrook Green, but I had all the recycling and rubbish bagged up and ready to take out to the bins. Washing up done and the kitchen tidied.

We had our monthly men's breakfast at the Oaktree Centre this morning. I thought it started at 8 o'clock, so I was there bright and early. There was nobody else waiting, so I sat in the car, listening to Classic FM, with the overture to 'The Flying Dutchman' blaring out of the car radio. I was listening as I drove up Chaffron Way, and, although I'm not a keen Wagner fan, it was very motivational, so I had to sit and listen to it in the car park outside the Oaktree Centre.  I have to admit, I was wondering if I had the day or the time wrong, but then Richard, who organizes the men's breakfast, arrived, with a load of what looked like bread rolls. The building was locked, so we had to wait for someone to come and open the place up.

A couple arrived to do the cooking of the food. They set up two gas-fired barbecue pans and proceeded to fry sausages and bacon. 

The group began to arrive and it turned out that it wasn't supposed to start at the usual time of 8 o'clock but an hour later at 9, which I didn't know.

We ate our bacon, eggs and sausage and drank tea (or coffee) and then we had a talk from someone who used to be involved with S.C.F., on advanced driving, which was very informative and instructive. 

I was planning to go to the history festival at Milton Keynes Museum directly after the men's breakfast, but, because it concluded later than expected, I decided to leave it until Sunday. As a result, and because I didn't want to be cooped up in the flat all Saturday, I drove into the Central Milton Keynes Shopping Centre and had a browse and went into John Lewis as I'm looking for a cable which would allow me to link certain peripherals to my iPhone, iPad and MacBook because Apple has changed the ports from lightening to Thunderbolt/USB 4. I didn't find what I was looking for, unfortunately. I may end up going to the Apple Store to find what I want, but, being a Saturday, the store is likely to be very busy, so I decided to leave it for another day.

I walked through the shopping centre and went to Waterstone's and purchased two books, one on 'How To Be a Victorian,' and the other about 'Peterloo.'

Sunday. 12.45 p.m. My goodness! What's going on? The sun is shining and it's really bright. Almost (Note: I said 'almost'!) like spring!

Came out of church early. Miss having my usual cup of tea, so that I could be ready to go to Milton Keynes Museum for the history festival. There were just TWO spare spaces in the church car park! 

My friend Nick (hello Nick, if you're reading this!) was coming over to Milton Keynes from Northampton on the bus so that we could go to the history festival at Milton Keynes Museum. At around 1.30, he texted me to say he was at the centre, so I drove in and he was waiting near The Point. We drove to the museum and managed to park, although the car park was very full and there were few spaces. Luckily I managed to find a place.

Because I had been to the museum some months ago, and paid and kept the ticket, I was able to enter, free. I have a few months left on the card, so I can go again. Today's history festival covered a vast timescale, from around the time of the Romans, the Medieval period right up to the time of the Suffragettes. There was a gladiator fight (quite scary) as well as a knight's battle from the time of the Wars of The Roses. 

We went into the café and had tea. I was ready for a drink, as by now I was thirsty. Then we went into the main museum building, which was the farmhouse, built in C.1840, at the time well before Milton Keynes was built. We learnt about the railway and Wolverton's part in the history of the railway in the mid-19th century.  We saw a display of Victorian music boxes, a pianola and a gadget which displayed photographs stereoscopically, When we emerged from that exhibition it was time to leave. I took Nick back to the bus stop in the city centre and said goodbye. There is to be a Victorian history festival in June, so no doubt I will be attending that and possibly Nick will come over from Northampton.

Monday. 4.05 p.m. I have done all the usual walks with Alfie and when I took him out at around 5.20 a.m. there was broken glass along the path leading to Oldbrook Green, which some delightful person felt it necessary to drop in our path. Fortunately, I avoided it before Alfie got his feet cut and I moved it out of the way. Not just his feet, but it would have punctured the tyres of anyone cycling along that stretch of path.

I went out, alone this time, with the gimbal and noticed a blue tractor cutting the grass, which I haven't seen before. I think it would be a good deal quicker than the usual mowers they use for this job. I got the gimbal set correctly and the results were a good deal better I have got the video to work on my iPad.

Bread and Circuses

Friday. 6.25 a.m. It's mild and sunny as I write this. I'm going to the Central Milton Keynes Shopping Centre to get my haircut this morning. I booked my appointment online and it's paid for, so I just have to drive in, park and then walk through to the barbers.

Later. 11.40 a.m. I had to take his littleness out before venturing forth to the barbers. Easy enough parking in the usual place. I'm surprised to see that the old food centre, which is where Central Barbers used to be and in the same block which Sainsbury's vacated years ago, is currently being demolished to make way for a new development which is supposed to be a mixture of retail and residential properties. Just a pile of rubble and a bit of a shock to see it in such a state.

I'm also quite shocked by the number of empty units within the shopping centre. It looks as if Paperchase has gone. An empty unit. All shelving has gone. Carol would be upset, as she loved their products and we seemed to spend quite a lot of time- and money- in that store. One of Waterstone's two stores has gone, or so it would seem. As there had been two branches, one in the main shopping centre and the other in Midsummer Place, it's not surprising that one would close down. How many more are likely to close. Although I did go into the new Hamley's toyshop. This must be a new departure for them because they have always had a store in central London, Regent Street I think, which was a favourite place to visit when I was a child and a major focus on any London visit, especially over the Christmas period.

I got to Central Barbers and I had to wait outside until I could go inside the shop. Several other people also waiting. All this to keep to social distancing regulations. 

Came out after my haircut and a lot better as a result. I can't stand not getting my hair cut so the pandemic has been awful in that respect. A good ten years younger-looking I think!

I went into Lakeland's shop near Middleton Hall and bought two sponge baking pans. Heavy gauge as it's better, in the long run, to spend on better quality cookware because you get a far more even bake and they don't warp or rust like the cheap, thin baking ware. These also have loose bases which make removing cakes from the tin easier. Now to stock up on flour, butter, and other ingredients and get baking. Now I have almost all the equipment I need so there's really no excuse.

Saturday 3rd July. 6.50 a.m. Yet another mild and pleasant morning. Football this evening, England v Ukraine or something, but, as you know, I don't follow football, but I suppose it keeps the masses occupied. 

What did someone say, a Roman emperor probably, about 'bread and circuses? Keep the masses occupied and prevent revolution. (It was Juvenal who made that statement.) All that sport at school was just a means to work off excess energy. But at the school I went to in Bedford, Rushmoor, I reckon it was just a way to keep the heating bills down during the winter months. One of the reasons I hated it so much because I used to suffer excessively with cold and standing around (or running around.) didn't exactly help matters,  on a football pitch which was on the top of a hill, now the place where Bedford Modern School is today, in Manton Lane, was no fun when it was blowing a gale, or it was raining or snowing. Getting there was a bit of a hike from the school in Shakespeare Road and then up a sometimes muddy path to the top of the hill. Not my idea of heaven, although it might have been for some people. I think in all honesty it was because I don't like being told what to do, not compliant with the will of some people who should have known better. As I was no good at either football or cricket it was painful and then being the last person to be picked for a team for either game (I wasn't the only one to be left till last, there were several others.) Then they march back to the school and putting up with mud-clogged football boots and probably kit. Yuck! All that mud you had to pick off your boots was not a pleasant task. Memories! Memories! What is it someone said 'the battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Harrow. . .' or Eaton, or some other public school. Rushmoor was certainly not of that calibre, but you get my meaning, or at least I hope you do. I think the purpose of that place was to inculcate its pupils into being the drones who would be the backbone of Empire, working in the administration, pen-pushers, civil servants who would do the bidding of their masters without making any sort of fuss. Without question. Something like in one of my favourite films, by my favourite film directors, Terry Gilliam, 'Brazil', set in a sort of dystopian Britain, where people work in offices, run-down, with poorly functioning machinery. The whole plot revolves around an error that occurs when a man's name is misspelt and he lands up being interrogated by the state police. I won't divulge the ending as you should watch it, even if it's to see the amazing production design and laugh at what is, in effect very much a black comedy.

The 'New Normal'

What on earth do they mean when they say 'The New Normal'? It's such a stupid expression. It is related to the current situation regarding the lockdown which was introduced to attempt to slow the spread of the corvid19 virus? So, what was the 'normal' before the pandemic? Going about your business without social distancing? I give up because nobody seems to know. I have come to the conclusion that it's a rather empty term anyway, so I'll forget it.

Wednesday. It's somewhat miserable, overcast with a 'sort of' drizzle. We didn't exactly get drenched when I took Alfie out around 6.45 this morning, but there again we didn't come back dry. I now realise that what I have written in that last sentence doesn't make a lot of sense, but who cares?

I intend walking into the main Milton Keynes shopping centre later as I have a haircut booked for 10a.m. I don't really want to drive as I'm not sure whether I have enough change to pay using the ticket machines in the usual carpark, although I do have an app called RinGo (who comes up with the names of these apps? What a silly name. Never mind.) but it doesn't always work so I can't trust it although it saves having to take change with me. I prefer to walk and I don't want to have to think about parking and, after all, walking is good exercise.

I'm really struggling to write anything vaguely interesting in these blog posts and had considered resting this blog until things change. It seems unlikely that this will happen any day soon, although I do miss my Tuesdays at Camphill. I can't believe my last text to Teo, the leader of the drama workshop, was in 30th March 4 months ago!

Later. I've been into the shopping centre to get my hair cut. I used the RinGo app to pay for parking, although I got there far too early. I had a chance to amble around the centre before walking along to Central Barbers where I waited about 10 minutes before my appointment, which was well on time and done to perfection and I'm so glad it's done. Over 4 months of hair being cut was wonderful and it makes me look about 10 years younger.

(Saturday) A mild day, but looking at the sky there are dark clouds so it's difficult to say whether it will remain dry or not. Quite a strong wind blowing.

I was planning to go to the creative writing group, which was meeting in the Milton Keynes Shopping Centre. At first I thought it was meeting in the Midsummer Place branch of Waterstones, but I got a message via Facebook which said they would meet outside Costa near Midsummer Place. It occurred to me that we would be able to sit in the seating area either outside or in the mall. As it was a pleasant and sunny afternoon I decided to walk and got to Costa but then saw that the seating had been removed in both places and even inside I could see that seating had been removed. I could have checked my mobile to get some idea where the meeting was going to be and would have sat and looked at my iPhone but all seating in the shopping centre had been restricted so that was out. So, I gave up on the idea and began to walk home. It was then that I needed a toilet but the main one in the shopping centre had a long queue outside and even the one in Midsummer Place was closed off to the public. Not a good idea. I suppose I could have tried the toilets in the upper floors below the carpark near Debenhams but I didn't bother so I began to walk home.

Reading and Viewing

I've completed reading the last of the Dominic Sandbrook books, 'Seasons In The Sun', which took the history up until 1979 with the election of Margaret Thatcher. A hefty read, but well worth it. I have now read all his books, from, 'Never Had It so Good', taking in The Suez Crisis of 1956; 'White Heat', which covers the 1964 election which bought Harold Wilson to power; next 'State of Emergency', covering the years 1970-1974 and that followed by 'Seasons In The Sun', 1974-1979.

I really want to find a book which covers the Second World War, but, as yet, I haven't found anything, and then perhaps a book which covers the period directly after the war and into the 1950's which would cover the Clement Attlee government and the foundation of the welfare state and birth of the N.H.S. I think I may have found something on Amazon. I have found books which I wouldn't otherwise have found if it hadn't been for Amazon. At any rate, even going into a traditional bookshop such as Waterstone's (as good as they are) I very much doubt I'd have come across them. It's obvious that a traditional bricks-and-mortar bookshop has limited space to stock every book that might be of interest, so an on-line bookshop like Amazon does have the advantage.

I'm currently reading 'Ripley's Game,' the second of the Patricia Highsmith's brilliant crime series. It's every bit as brilliant as the earlier novel, 'The Talented Mr Ripley.' The detail is amazing and some of the sequences, particularly that one on the train, is like reading a screenplay for a film. She must have done a great deal of research to get it accurate. You can almost feel your are there as you read it. Certainly a book you can't put down. Mind you, it wouldn't work in the early part of the 21st century, what with mobile phones with cameras and Closed Circuit Television everywhere. Or social media like Facebook and Twitter.

What am I watching on television. Good question. Several drama series. The first of the second run of 'The Frankenstein Chronicles', which is on ITV2. Not really what I'd call a mainstream drama series, and probably all the better for that. More aimed at the 18-30 age bracket and not something that is ever likely to end up shown on a Sunday evening at 9 p.m. Gruesome in the extreme. It has Sean Bean in the central role of John Marlott and set in the 1830s, at the time the first of Sir Robert Peel's policemen are on patrol. Not something for the faint-hearted, but it does have a sort of appeal, if you like that sort of thing. At least it has a sort of honesty about it, and considering it must be made on quite a tight budget, it's remarkably well made and acted. There are so many twist and turns of the plot that take you by surprise that it's that element which makes it such a good read. Thriller-writing at it's best.

Then there's a brand new Sky series called 'The Discovery of Witches.' It's based on a trilogy of books by the author Deborah Harkness. It's partially set in Oxford, and considering how Oxford has played such an important part in my life since my heart attack. I can think of no better place for a drama to be set. How many books can you name which are set in Oxford? Well, the first that springs to mind would be the 'Morse' series, which was made into a highly successful ITV series starring John Thaw and Kevin Wateley and then the spin-off series 'Endeavour' and then 'Lewis.' But think of Lewis Carroll and his 'Alice' books, first 'Alice in Wonderland' and 'Through The Looking-Glass,' then C.S. Lewis who wrote the 'Narnia' children's books and of course J.R.R. Tolkein, who was a friend of Lewis, author of 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of The Rings.' Both were connected with the university in some way or other (not sure of their exact job-titles.) but they lived and worked in Oxford. The there's the Philip Pullman series 'His Dark Materials' which are set in an alternative Oxford and have been adapted for the stage by the National Theatre and the first of the books made into a not altogether successful film. Coincidentally, the production company which makes 'The Discovery of Witches' is scheduled to adapt the Pullman novels for television, but as yet there's no news of when it's likely to be produced and then broadcast.

As to 'Discovery of Witches.' It started off promisingly, but it stayed sort of static for several more episodes. I was on the point of giving up but stuck with it until episode 5 and I'm glad I did as it has moved in a different direction and I shall stick with it until the end of the series.

I'm also watching 'The Man In The High Castle,' which is on Amazon Prime.  I've been following this since it began in 2015 and it's been worth waiting for the third season of this Philip K. Dick adaptation which has now really got into it's stride and as absorbing as ever. Somewhat chilling (when you realise the concept of the plot, being a 'what if' thriller, of a dystopian nature, imagining what would happen if the Nazis had won World War 2.) Good acting, script-writing and production values. It must have a large budget and the use of C.G.I. is well done and not too obvious.

Then 'Doctor Who,' which began it's latest season two Sundays ago. Lots of changes, with, of course, the biggest being Jodie Whittaker taking over from Peter Capaldi as the first female Doctor. Also, a new show runner in Chris Chibnall. He was writer of the hit ITV series 'Broadchurch' where he would have worked with Jodie Whittaker and another former Doctor in David Tennant. A new broom, introducing new titles for the show as well as brand new theme tune and incidental music as well as several new companions, one of whom is Bradley Walsh. When I first heard that he had been cast in the latest series, I thought it was a hoax, but soon I discovered that it was correct. Certainly  long way from his compere role in the ITV gameshow 'The Chase,' although I'm half expecting Anne Hegarty or any of the other Chasers to pop up in 'Doctor Who' as villains! They've redesigned the interior of The Tardis, giving it a far more organic look. I don't have a problem with Jodie Whittaker. I know there was a lot of fuss when it was announced that a woman would take over as The Doctor, but she's making a perfectly good job of it. There is always some sort of fuss whenever a new actor takes over in the role, so it's perfectly normal when this happens. It will take several episodes before things settle back down. It's important that she gets good scripts and that the villains (monsters) are good (not necessarily 'good' but you know what I mean.) Unfortunately the monsters in the first two episodes have been rather feeble. Just a pity that we won't be meeting any of the 'classic' monsters in this series, such as the Daleks or Cybermen. Perhaps they have tended to rely to heavily on them over the past couple of series and haven't spent enough time and energy creating new, convincing ones to replace them.

Current Reading and Viewing

I'm currently reading 'The Story of Lucy Gault' by William Trevor. I studied another of his books for G.C.E. 'O'Level English Literature over 30 years ago. In fact it was the last year of G.C.E. 'O' Levels before they became G.C.S.E. The book was 'The Children of Dynmouth.' It's a good novel, I think I'll have to reread it. I have a volume of his short stories. I occasionally dip into it if I have nothing else to read (which is rarer, as I always have a stack of books to read. Not just novels, but also history books. Both Carol and I read a great deal and if we're passing either branches of Waterstone's in Milton Keynes shopping centre, it takes all our effort to not enter and browse and then come out laden with a load of books. Those tables they have near the entrance with 'Buy one, get one half price' or even 'Buy two, get one free' are far too tempting. We probably have more books than most people, also, more than we really have space for. Why cares? Reading is good for you. Expands your vocabulary, you learn something (generally) and it's often better than cinema or television. Adaptations of books as films or television series don't always meet expectations. They often fiddle around with plots and characters. ITV's series 'The Durrell's is good up to a point, but the latest series, which ended a few weeks ago, has veered off the track, away from the original Gerald Durrell books to such an extent I don't really recognise it. They have expanded the whole thing, no doubt so that they can extract as much as they can from the original material so as to allow more storylines and so develop as many series as possible.

We've had a good batch of television dramas on all channels. I've mentioned 'The Woman In White' in an earlier post. Then there's been 'A Very English Scandal,' about the Jeremy Thorpe scandal of the 1970's. Extremely well done. Hugh Grant showing a very different side to his acting ability from his usual 'floppy-haired' persona. Make-up and costume very convincing and no doubt he'll be in the running for a Best Actor award when the BAFTA nominations are announced.

We're not 'Poldark' fans. We've never seen it, so it's no good writing about something we haven't seen. Probably very good, but I for one am not a great fan of historic fiction, so a series based on such a series of novels doesn't really appeal.

'Car Share,' the comedy series written, directed and performed by Peter Kay has been a great success on BBC1. I for one have really enjoyed it. It's such a simple idea for comedy. A manager of a supermarket drives to and from work and the company he works for sets up a car-sharing scheme and the manager (played by Kay) takes an employee called Kayleigh (Sian Gibson), to work and then takes her home each day. Nothing like it has been attempted before. They chat as they travel. Very little happens, but it's done so well you can't fail to find the characters likeable. They build up a very close relationship. We never see their work-place. We hear about others they work with, but never get to meet them. Technically it must have been extremely difficult to film inside a car. It seems so natural. This simple show has taken traditional sitcom to new heights. There's no audience on the soundtrack. It doesn't need one. It's not 'laugh out loud' comedy. It doesn't need to be. It's about a really mundane subject, a lot like so much comedy, for example, the stuff the late great Victoria Wood wrote and performed. It's the sort of subject-matter we can all identify with, the every-day things that we all go through, the basics of life, getting to and from work. Think of what Alan Bennett wrote about. I remember with great affection his wonderful television plays. One-offs which we don't get anymore, unless you think of the daytime drama series which has run for several seasons on BBC1 at 2.15 during the winter months called 'Moving On.' There have been very few episodes of 'Car Share.' Much the same amount as 'Fawlty Towers.' Only two series and 12 episodes. It seems like there must have been more. It didn't over-stay it's welcome and then just limp along. Episode well-written and acted. So with 'Car Share.' The BBC even had the first series on iPlayer so you could watch the series in it's entirety if you so desired. I personally can't see the attraction of 'binge viewing.' If you wait for each weekly episode, as we would have done in the early days of television, it would be like enjoying something, savouring each episode as it was aired. Before we had V.H.S. cassette recorders, and the only way you could see something was when it was broadcast.

A Miserable Wet Day

We went into the Central MK shopping Centre this morning (Wednesday). It's been a miserable wet day so there wasn't nothing much else to do. At least it's undercover, which is one good reason to go there, rather than sitting indoors watching depressing daytime television. Well, it seems Carol has come a long way since her cancer diagnosis, when we couldn't go anywhere last summer, and she's walking a long way as well as driving the car.

Arriving at the multi-storey carpark next to Debenhams far too early, because Debenham's wasn't yet open (at 9.30, we discovered) we found that they're currently refurbishing the carpark, areas under cover and weird noised emanating from this area. Scaffolding is up as you'd drive up the ramp and into the carpark. There were plenty of spaces and once we'd parked we came down into the shopping centre on the escalator. We walked through the mall and went into Waterstone's and browsed as we were looking g for a book of study notes and guide to 'The Woman In White.' We've been watching the BBC1 adaptation and wanted to learn more about the novel. You can find plenty of study notes on Amazon, but for once we wanted to buy from a bricks-and-mortar shop. A staff member went out of his way to help and even went on Amazon to find something suitable, but unfortunately we didn't find exactly what we wanted. We bought a set of CDs of Alan Bennet reading some of his stories. We can listen to them in bed as we have a digital radio with a CD player in it which is ideal for listening to not only digital radio, usually BBC Radio 4Extra, but also this type of thing.

We walked through Midsummer place and into the main shopping centre. Several of the shops have moved into different units. W.H.Smith moved from where they've been for years, no doubt from when the centre originally opened, into a new, smaller unit. On one floor. They gave up selling CDs and DVDs so didn't need the upper floor. We went in to see whether they had the study notes we wanted. This area is at the back of the store, hidden away in a corner. Probably if 'The Woman In White' was a set text for A Level they'd have it, but no sign of anything related to it. Probably go on the W.H. Smith website and have a look.

Patisserie Valerie has moved. They were up the end nearer Marks and Spencer and House of Fraser. When we saw the old unit boarded up the other week, we assumed that they had closed down completely, but this morning we saw the new unit they've moved into, further along from the old W.H. Smith's unit. Also, River Island, gone to where H.M.V. used to be. Infact, H.M.V. gone into a much smaller unit. Also, Holland and Barrett, which used to be in one of the malls that run between the main malls, a newer and bigger unit along from Boot's.

We walked as far as Middleton Hall and had lattes and croissants in Pret-A-Manger. Not busy, but as it was a Wednesday morning, not really surprising. Plenty of places to sit and eat. We eventually reached John Lewis and walked through the store until we got to the escalators and went up to the top floor, near the restaurant, as Carol wanted to look in the haberdashery department for something for one of the felt fairies she's making, some sort of crimped wool. I'm not exactly sure what it is but they didn't have any of what she was looking for. The staff in these shops must be bored stiff as there were so few customers to keep them occupied.

From John Lewis we wandered out into Middleton Hall and then on to The Works where you can always discover a bargain in books and other items. Carol had a browse in the craft section and I went to look at the history section. Quite a few I'd like, but at the moment I have plenty of books which I have to read when I've done with my current reading material. Carol came to join me and had a large item which turned out to be a jigsaw puzzle mat. A Porta-Puzzle mat. She's bought a jigsaw on Amazon and it means she can keep all the pieces together and as I write this, it's slid under the television unit and can be bought out and continued without any trouble. At £20 a good deal cheaper than elsewhere, including Amazon.

We began to walk back through the shopping centre and arrived back in Midsummer Place and got back to Debenhams and went downstairs as Carol wanted to look in the Manraray clothing range. There's currently a sale on but if we buy anything we'll come back to purchase something. Then we went back to the car and went home. By this time it was really raining hard.

As I write this at 5.30 in the evening, the weather has improved. It's sunny and bright, but I somehow doubt it will remain dry and we get rain over-night.

Wild and Windy Night

It was very wild and windy last night. I could hear the sound when I woke up during the night. I just hoped the garden fence wass strong enough to withstand the storm and we din't end up having the fence repaired as we had to a couple of years ago and woke up to find part of it laying across the garden. Alfie is spending a lot of time in the rough area at the end of the garden at present. No doubt he has come across something that might possibly be a hedgehog or other small animal which has left it's scent in the grass or rough area where the mower can't go. I'm just concerned that he might get into the old garden shed as he once got inside and got stuck and it took some while to rescue him.

12.45 p.m. Well, as I write this, the wind has dropped and the sun is out. We've been out, into the MK Centre to browse the shops. We walked through the centre, having parked in Debenham's carpark. Actually, I don't think that carpark is part of Debenhams, it's just in the centre and you walk in through Debenham's store. We didn't on this occasion as it looked as if there was a security alert as there were staff standing around near the door so we went into the shopping centre down the escalator and came out opposite the main Debenham's entrance. I don't like these moving staircases as you have to be so careful because if you mis-step you could come down faster than you would normally want. Also, going up I have a real thing about heights so don't want to look down. Sad really. I have to admit that I don't like heights at any price and no matter where.

We walked through the shopping centre and were going to buy something to take home for lunch and went into Gregg's to find sandwiches but we weren't over-impressed by the selection on offer and there was quite a long queue to pay so we gave up and left. We went into W.H.Smith's to find a suitable birthday card for our grandson George, who's birthday is coming up and browsed in the racks, found what we wanted, paid and left. We walked back towards the carpark at Debenham's and went into Waterstone's (there are two branches in Milton Keynes, one in the main shopping centre and the other in Midsummer Place, which also has it's own coffee shop.) A good range of books as usual. It's building up to Christmas so all the newest titles are on offer and on display. Clever that they have books on tables which are laid out so you can pick them up to look at them, which makes it far more tempting to buy. We then went into Marks and Spencer's to get the sandwiches for lunch and returned to the carpark and left to drive the relatively short distance home.

Relaxing Easter Break

Carol decided to take Alfie for a walk across Eaglestone Park early this morning. I don't know how Alfie knows we're planning on going out, but somehow he can tell and once he picks up the idea he starts yapping and gets over-excited. He's got used to the idea of walking with us when we go to the Academy when I go with Carol when she's going there early on a term-time morning. He is apparently building up quite a sizeable fan-base with those who either work at the Academy or are pupils there. When they got back from the walk, Alfie was just as hyped up as he was before they went and looked wet, no doubt as a result or running about in damp grass.

We had planned to go to Nuffield Health this morning, but somehow ended up visiting the MK Central Shopping Centre. Carol wanted some clothes, and we went into several shops, which included Next, Super Dry (a shop I've never been int before and probably won't again as I don't think they have the sort of clothing I would ever buy or wear.) We had a snack in Debenham's restaurant as we had parked in the multi-storey car park when we arrived and it's such an easy place to get to through Midsummer Place. We went into T.K.Maax and Carol found a pair of shoes she liked and they bought. A good place to shop, with many well known brands at exceptionally low prices, but you have to make up your mind to buy when you see something you like because they don't hold particularly large amounts of each item and if you return expecting to buy that particular item it will have gone. We went into Next but nothing of particular interest and then into Waterstone's. As we're great readers, we can never resist browsing and love their 'buy one, get another half-price' so Carol selected what she wanted and I selected what I wanted. Carol's book was 'Date With Death' by Julia Chapman (not an author I've heard of. Described on the cover as 'The Dales Detective Series' it sounds as if it might be a good read and set in an area of the country we love, Yorkshire, so no doubt it will include places we've visited when on holiday there. My book was 'The Story of Lucy Gault' by William Trevor, an author I have read before, and in particular, his short stories, which are some of the best ever written. We went into Costa coffee near Middleton Hall, but were somewhat annoyed that there was a long queue before we got to the till to order and pay. 

From the shopping centre we went off to do some shopping in Sainsbury's at The Hub and then home. We decided that we'd go to Nuffield Health tomorrow morning. 

It's been a particularly fine and sunny day today.

Saturday Shopping

The first weekend of the school holidays. Well, for the children it is. The teachers, including  Carol, still have to go in to the Academy on Monday and Tuesday because they have training. Unfortunately. We went in to the Milton Keynes Central Shopping Centre early this morning and parked in Debenham's car park near Midsummer Place. A good deal easier if you park in there as I've probably mentioned on this blog before now, as you're more or less guaranteed a parking space and it's cheaper in the long run. I remember when the shopping centre opened back in 1979 and it was quite a novelty to have so many shops under one roof, you could park virtually anywhere and it was free. Now it is divided up into areas which have more expensive charges and not-so expensive and at one time there were a few free spaces if you got there early enough in the morning. But, unfortunately, the Council got greedy and made it paying. The same happened where I used to live in Bedford and the Council there put parking machines on the street so you had to  pay to park. I wonder how much business was lost when they introduced these parking machines? Quite a lot, I should imagine. At least if you park in the Debenham's multi-storey car park you can just walk in through Debenham's store and if the weather is bad it is at least under cover. We went in and went down the escalator and into Debenham's as I want to look in the menswear department as I wanted to buy some shorts. As the weather is so warm at present I wanted to make the most of it, as I don't currently own a decent pair. I had looked on heir website and saw some I rather liked. Tailored one's in particular. We found several pairs on a rail and a very helpful member of staff came to assist and I took a couple of pairs to try on in the changing room and found that the ones I tried on fitted perfectly so we paid and then went out into the shopping centre. We went into Sports Direct and bought several shirts in their 'buy 3 for £10' together with a smart Pierre Cardin polo shirt for myself. Next into Waterston's to look for the new Harper Lee book which has just come out "Go Set A Watchman" which is a sort of prequel to her other novel "To Kill A Mockingbird." I have read this book as part of a G.C.E.  'O' English Literature course I did years ago. Also, we went to see a stage adaptation of the book a couple of months ago, so we were interested in getting a copy of that and the newly-published book. It was a good deal cheaper in Waterstone's and they had a special exclusive hard-bound edition of the first book, which was supposed to be a facsimile of the original edition which came out in the early 1960's. We eventually decided to not buy it at that time. We then went to Marks and Spencer's because Carol wanted to buy a pair of trousers for herself. It took quite a while to find exactly what she wanted. From there we went to Costa coffee to have a break, lattes and a rather tasty chocolate slice to share. Good to sit for a while and rest before walking along the shopping centre and eventually reaching W.H. Smith's where Carol wanted to get a magazine on dolls houses. We found they had the Harper Lee book for around the same price as in Waterston's but we hd got a voucher when we'd paid at the checkout for £5 off when you spent £15 on books so we bought the copy of "Go Set A Watchman" as well as a paperback edition of "To Kill A Mockingbird," together with a copy of a book which has been made into a film, "The Help" and if you bought two paperbacks you got one half-price, so with the £5 off voucher we seemed to get a really good bargain.

Can't Start . . . won't start . . .

Drove over to Arcana Studio hairdressers in Shenley Brook End early this morning. Carol wanted to get her hair done and we went on the off-chance she could get an appointment. We arrived in the carpark at 8.30 and they weren't yet open, but once they came to open up we went in and managed to get her an appointment for 11.30, which meant we could go into the city centre as we needed to go to the bank. On returning to the car we then found it wouldn't start . . . we're back on this again, unfortunately. After several more attempts it still wouldn't play ball. Our car insurance is with Swinton and fortunately we have breakdown cover and after a bit of phoning we managed to get a call-out and the breakdown truck arrived. Carol re-arranged her hair appointment while the driver tried to get the car started. Still nothing as regards getting the car to start. He suggested it was something to do with petrol getting into the engine or something. Having spent quite a bit recently, first getting the car through it's MoT and then getting the clutch cable replaced, we imagined the car was going to be fine for a little longer. It had been fine yesterday when we went shopping in Sainbury's and then when we went to Toys R Us for the bicycle. To cut an extremely frustrating and drawn-out story short . . . the car was put on the transporter and I went with the car back home where it was dropped off while Carol remained to have her hair appointment and came back via taxi . . . we later telephoned Mark who had repaired the clutch cable and who told me on the telephone that we we attempt to come out and look at the car-not-starting situation and, hopefully, tell us whether he could resolve the said situation. So our outing to Whipsnade is on hold until the car is back up-and-running, which hopefully won't be too long or costly. The joke is, now we've got the bikes we probably don't need the car as much. We need to get locks so that we can cycle to various shopping centres and leave them and lock them without the fear of them being stolen. Also, I would like some sort of pannier-attachment on mine so I can carry shopping. It will also be easy to cycle to church on a sunday and leave them outside as there are cycle racks. No point going to all the effort of getting these bikes if we don't use them. We should also be able to get to D.W. Fitness near the stadium which will mean we get a double benefit of exercise- swimming and bicycling there and back. I have noticed that there are cycle racks outside when we've been recently. Also, when we were waiting for the bus to leave the shopping centre I saw quite a few cycle racks near the shopping centre.
No sooner had the car been unloaded from the wagon than Carol turned up in the taxi. I was surprised how quickly she had managed to order the taxi and the then get her lift home. On arrival back home we decided to get the bus into the city centre as we still needed to get to the bank as we are going to need to pay our landlord our deposit in monthly instalments and needed to get to the NatWest branch in the centre to set up a direct debit.
We got the bus from the bus stop near the Academy. We went a different route into the city and got off the bus near Midsummer Place shopping centre. We walked through the shopping centre to NatWest and managed to get the direct debit set up. Having finished in the bank we came out and went back into the centre, going through Marks and Spencer. On the way through there was a lady doing market research on a new range of Mexican food, and it was great to be asked our opinion on this. I did think, though, that some of it was very expensive. For example, a sort of 'mix-and-match' platter of food 'bites' was rather over-priced at £7. I think they are getting customer feed-back on future 'buy two meals for £10' or something. Actually very good value when you consider they usually include a bottle of wine which separately costs around £4-£5. It seems most of the major supermarkets do these 'meal deals.' We quite often buy them, especially at the weekend.
Having bought a card for Steve and Chloe's first wedding anniversary which is this weekend (can't believe it will be a year.ago. How time flies.) we decided we wanted something to eat. At first we were going to go to Pizza Hut, but there was a queue and changed our minds and opted for Giraffe where we've been before. We soon got a table and the meal was served quickly. Having been somewhat frustrated and annoyed with the car breaking down it was good to relax for a while.
We walked down the shopping centre and ended up in Waterstone's and looked at their 'buy one get one half-price' book offer but then decided we'd go to The Works where we ended up buying three books for £5. Then we walked down towards John Lewis and out towards the bus stop near the theatre and caught a bus back home. 

The 300th Post!

Quite a momentous day, this, as this is the 300th post. The first post was written on 27th September 2009. A little over three years. I was writing about 'the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.' Yes, a very similar day as I write this. The trees are slowly changing colour to every variation of brown, russet, red etc. It's a rather over-cast and dull sort of day. The sun is out and it is fairly bright, but there is quite a keen wind.

I can safely say that I feel a good deal better than I did when I began writing this blog, considering the fact that I had a heart attack in May 2006 (see earlier post for greater detail.)  I had intended the blog to be a discussion of my experiences of having a heart attack, and hope that my thoughts, experiences etc might be of use to anyone else who is going through the same things or has a partner or knows someone who has had a heart attack or has problems with, say, the side-effects of the medication. I think that a lot of my health problems are caused by the side-effects of  the medication, particularly statins (for example, muscle cramps, particularly in the stomach. I have now discovered that drinking some fizzy drinks such as Lucozade, can help relieve these side-effects, along with taking mint capsules, which I have on prescription.) I have not had a really bad angina attack, having been prescribed with isoborbide mononitrate. This working in the same way as the glyceryl trinitrate pump spray which I used to use if I had a really bad paid with an angina attack, as it opens up the arteries and allows better blood flow. I take these tables twice a day, at 8 a.m. and 2 p.m.

As mentioned in an earlier post, I am writing a novel. This, since the beginning of writing this blog. I never thought that it would develop the way it has gone, but I am really getting into my stride now. I'm currently reading Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo (the novel which is the basis for the musical and soon-to-be-released film version.) I'm quite amazed by this. It is an almighty work of fiction, some 1,500 pages. I am being influenced in my own attempts at writing, not necessarily by the story or the characters, but by the construction (ie. multiple storylines and characters that intertwine.)  For those who have not read this novel, I can recommened it, and in particular the version I am reading currently. It in a new translation by Julie Rose, and is in paperback, published by Vintage Classics.  The ISBN number is: 9780099529965 for those of you who want to find it in whatever catalogue or computer system you are likely to use. In Waterstone's, the British bookstore, it is currently on display, or was when we went to the Oxford branch two weeks ago.(no doubt in preparation for the imminent release of the film.) In America it was published by The Modern Library. There are good notes at the back, which are always useful for a novel of this sort.

Self-Service Slip-Up

I had to go shopping today. It's not particularly bright and sunny today, rather wet and overcast. I had intended going to get my hair cut, but the thought of waiting in the hairdressers and the fact that it was decidedly chilly, once I'd parked the car and got out, I made up my mind not to get my hair cut. It can wait for another day, when it will be a little warmer.
Carol and I went into Milton Keynes shopping centre on Wednesday and went into Waterstone's. There is currently a series on BBC2 called "Faulks On Fiction", presented by the author Sebastian Faulks, in which he goes through genres of fiction, from "The Lover," "The Villain", "The Hero" and "The Snob" (not necessarily in that order.) and mentions quite a wide selection of novels. Also, at 6.30 each evening, on the same channel, there is a show called "My Life In Books" where Anne Robinson (she of "Weakest Link" fame.) talks with various well-known people about their favourite books. Where this is leading is that Waterstone's bookshop has most of these books on offer and many are in their  current 'Buy two, get one free" selection. We chose our books but I went back to buy them this morning. They are: "On Day" by David Nicholls, "Minding Frankie" by Maeve Binchy and ""Right Ho, Jeeves!" by P.G. Wodehouse (the one I choseas I'm a fan of Wodehouse and love the Jeeves stories.) We had gone into "The Works" the discount bookshop, which just happens to be next door to Waterstone's in the shopping centre and I saw a fantastic book in there on The Mona Lisa, reduced in price from around £35 to £4.99. It's really detailed on this iconic painting by one of my heroes, Leonardo DaVinci, everything about it you can possibly imagine, so I had to get it. That shop has some amazing bargains, and if you don't snap them up immediately then they're gone for good, which is why I got this book. There is one problem, though. It's such a large book I'm not sure where I'm going to keep it as it won't fit in any of our book shelves, unless I rearrange things considerably.

I then went to Lidl to do some shopping. I found that I needed a £1 coin to be able to use one of the shopping trolleys, and, as I didn't have any change on me, I decided to go to Tesco's and get £10 out of the cashpoint. I went into Tesco and bought today's Guardian newspaper. Instead of going to a human cashier to pay I made the mistake of using one of the self-service machines. When it came to pay, the machine tells you to choose your method of payment and I pressed 'cash' and then was supposed to put my £10 note into the machine, but for some reason best known to myself I managed to put the note into the slot meant for coupons. Which is why nothing further happened, so I stood and waited for the thing to respond, which it didn't. I then pressed the screen to ask for assistance and then someone appeared. It would appear that I'm not the first customer who's put cash in the slot meant for coupons. Well, it would be more sense if the machine had a flashing arrow to show where to put the money. I just felt a bit foolish making such a simple mistake. It then meant I eventually got my change, after the staff member opened the machine and retrieved my £10 note and I put it in the correct slot!