Saturday Shopping and Afternoon Thunderstorm

(Saturday)This is becoming a habit. I go shopping once a week since the lockdown began and I go on a Saturday. I think most people don't get out of bed early on a weekend, (and who can blame them?) but I find that usually if I go shopping in Sainsbury's early it is easier to get in and out. I have learnt to go early enough, just before 8 o'clock, when the queue to get in is only a few people long, a lesson I learnt a few weeks ago when I got there at 7 and didn't realise that key workers and N.H.S. staff got preferential treatment so as not to have to queue. Anyway, I was in and out of Sainsbury's in a little over an hour, which was fairly good as far as I'm concerned. Having a shopping list makes all the difference but I do wish some of the shoppers would at least smile as they all look as if they're 'doomed' as Frazer used to say in 'Dad's Army' with monotonous regularity.

(Later) I've been watching a documentary series about the River Thames, presented by Peter Ackroyd on the History Hit platform (of which I'm a subscriber.) I have reached the third episode and then it goes dark outside. It was attempting to rain when I last went out with Alfie around 1.30, but I didn't let a bit of drizzle put me off, or Alfie for that matter. Then there was an almighty clap of thunder, very much like a bomb going off, and then it rained as if the whole world was going to end. It made me jump and I don't think Alfie liked it very much. It is still dark (relatively for being daylight at 3.20 approximately) and the thunder is still rolling around Milton Keynes. I don't think we will be going out for a while or at least not until the rain has stopped.

(Sunday) It's a rather dull outlook this morning. Probably just as well because the past week or two it's been unbearably hot.

I got the Apple Pencil delivered yesterday morning and I'm attempting to get it working, charging by putting it on the iPad. It's difficult to know how to get this going because it didn't come with a manual, which seems how most computer equipment comes delivered. I have to go on line and also watch YouTube videos to find instructions. I also got a parcel from Bibliophile, the discount book company, because I had ordered a rather beautiful book on Art Nouveau which I had seen when their catalogue arrived in the post and ordered on line. It has taken almost two weeks to arrive, probably held up due to the coronavirus pandemic. Likewise with the Apple Pencil.

Later. I've just been to the Tesco Metro store in Oldbrook Boulevard. It's almost comical, attempting to avoid other customers as I walk around the store. I think there's a game in there somewhere, a bit like Monopoly. It could just be called 'Lockdown.' I might even be an afternoon gameshow on television. How it would work I don't know. Probably start off with a load of points and as you go around the board you loose points if you meet other people and have to answer questions to move on round. Anyway, I wanted to get a Sunday Times and get some chocolate. Only in there five minutes and then home to then take Alfie out for another walk. 

The Return of the MacBook!

(Friday) I was informed by both email and text message, that the microwave oven I'd ordered through the Currys website would be arriving between 12.20 and 1.20 this morning. It arrived more or less dead on time and I had to sign using one of these crazy digital devices where it's virtually impossible to sign your signature properly. The parcel came via DPD, the courier company, who very kindly kept me informed of my microwave's journey from the warehouse. Very crafty to be able to keep a track of a delivery and to give fairy accurate information as to when a parcel is going to arrive. I had also ordered a box from Bilbliophile books a couple of weeks ago, a paperback of Gyles Brandreth's diaries of his time as an MP and, to make it even more worthwhile, it has been signed by him. I've always liked his style and erudite manner whenever he appears on The One Show and such radio programmes such as Just A Minute. I had wondered where this book had got to, but it arrived in the post, earlier in the morning, along with a DVD of 'The Favourite' which I got from Sky as part of my subscription, so I have that to enjoy at some not-too distant point in time.

At last! The telephone call I've been waiting for came at around 12 midday today (Friday) to inform me that the MacBook was ready for collection from Currys. They had found a couple of viruses on it and they were removed. So I went off to Curry's no sooner had the microwave been delivered. One lest thing to wait around for, but it's fixed and I feel a good deal happier that that rather nasty incident over the scam had been resolved. Although I got a telephone call earlier, one of those strange computerised calls, saying it was from BT, but after what happened exactly a week ago, I have my serious doubts that it was actually from BT. As a consequence of this I have now rung the real BT (well, I do hope that it was the REAL BT.) and informed them of the call last week. Apparently they are attempting to stop these malicious and false calls. You can get your provider to put some sort of software in their system to stop these sorts of calls, so I might call Sky, who provide my landline telephone and see if they can stop these calls and hopefully prevent a repetition of last Friday's incident.

Saturday morning. I've been out early with Alfie. Any idea that I might get some sort of lie-in because it's the weekend has completely gone out of the window. Alfie doesn't realise it's the weekend and that either of us could do with a rest. I did get up a bit later than usual, but not much. It would have been around 6.40 but the time we set paw and foot on the path outside the front door and the set off towards Eaglestone Park. Alfie came across a young bird as soon as I let him off his lead. I think it was a newly fledged starling. It was fluttering around in the long grass. Alfie, being a Yorkshire Terrier, showed his terrier instincts, and wanted to catch it. I had to prevent him from picking it up. I'm not sure what he would have done with it if he had, and I wasn't going to find out, so I had to pick him up, but when I put him down again, he tried to follow the little bird. No doubt the fledgling was being watched by it's parents from the safety of a nearby tree. But I managed to distract Alfie long enough for him to not follow the birdie. Then, in a tree at the rear of a garden which backs onto the park, we saw several squirrels playing in a tree. I thought they would make a really great photo and got out my iPhone in an attempt to get a shot or two, but it's not easy trying to get a decent shot with a Yorkshire Terrier in tow and pulling on his lead and barking. The squirrels were running up and down the trunk of the tree and then leaping from branch to branch above my head. They move very quickly and are extremely adept at hanging on to the very thin and bendy branches. But in the end I lost sight of them and we walked on along the path.

My car needed fuelling. The gauge in the car was showing low. I could have gone on for a few more days, but I didn't want to put diesel in until it was really necessary. The Renault Captur is a very economical car to run and I can go for several weeks on one tankful. I have been going to the BP station on Childs Way, behind he Xscape building, basically because it's convenient and I get Nectar points. When I got there it now seems they are going to give up on Nectar and set up their own points system. Annoying, because it means if you join it you have to have another card or app on your phone if you intend collecting them. At least with Nectar there are several places that give them if you shop with them. I also go to fuel there early because there's less traffic and it's easier to get out onto the road afterwards.