Covid Rears It's Ugly Head . . .

Tuesday. 5.20 a.m. A reluctant Alfie came out with me for our early morning jaunt around Oldbrook Green. It was worth it, if just to see a really amazing cloud formation over the centre of Milton Keynes, straight out of a J.M.W. Turner painting, who just happens to be one of my favourite artists. Anyway, I di around 1800 steps, as measured by my FitBit, which tells me, via the app, which is on my iPad and iPhone, that I do on average around 40,000 steps per week, which is approximately 30 miles, which can't be bad. I have worked out my B.M.I. (Body Mass Index), which is 29.6, which suggests that I am somewhat overweight. I put the blame on the so-called pandemic, being shut up like a prisoner for approximately two years, and eating stuff which I shouldn't have, for example, cake and biscuits. Definitely one of the minuses of such an event.

4.40 p.m. Another really great day at Camphill, in the performing arts workshop.

A longer than usual check-in. It took around an hour. Some people can spend around ten minutes discussing what they've been doing. I think there should be something like an egg timer, so people keep to a set length of time when they are talking.

A warming up session, to get the day started, but barely enough time before it was tea break. You can't possibly NOT have a tea break! Some of the group would be mortified if they were told they couldn't have a tea break, but no tea bags! Disasterville! So, someone goes off to find some.

Back to work, having to set up the green screen for our 'pirates' 'video. Terrie had managed to hang the main cloth on one of the bars on stage, which are usually there to suspend bits of scenery, curtains (technically called 'tabs', short for 'tableau.') Also, we have to put a green cloth on the stage floor. This is done so that backgrounds in scenes for the video can be edited into the footage to give the illusion of such things as being on a beach, in a shop or another place, without actually being there.

A great deal of hanging around, waiting to sort out costumes, some of the actors have makeup applied and our leading lady was involved in the 'western' video, which was being shot elsewhere, on location somewhere in Milton Keynes. We did manage to do some filming on the stage, the fight between the two pirate gangs. This means that, with only a small amount of footage needed, our video will be finished, apart from the editing.

Meanwhile . . .  The 'time travel' video, which was the original video I was working on and was supposed to have a part . . . It was being edited in another part of the theatre. It appears that they have the first third of their video editing.

So, things are going really well. Hopefully next week we will get to see the completed videos!

Thursday. 7.10 a.m. I have currently got an unpleasant cough, which includes really unpleasant phlegm at the back of my throat. It kept me awake most of the night and nothing seems to shift it, although sucking on a Ricola sweet relieved it somewhat.

1.20 p.m. I was shaving early this morning and looking at myself in the mirror and thought, 'Your hair looks as if it could do with cutting!' which prompted me to go online to Central Barbers and book an appointment for 10.30 a.m., so that is exactly what I did, and it was done, and I feel a good deal better for it. I took a couple of Paracetamol tablets before I drove into the centre and I think they did the trick. I had been feeling lousy, what with the cough and a slight flu sort of feeling.

4.15 p.m.I am still feeling fluey. I have taken two more Paracetamol and have just done a COVID-19 test. It has come out positive, so I think I will need to isolate for five days.

All In A Day's Work

Thursday. 12.40 p.m. I've been to the shopping centre to get my hair cut at Central Barbers. I booked online, so it was just a simple matter of going into the centre and waiting outside. I was actually booked for 11.30 but got there around 20 minutes too early.

From the barbers, I went to Costa on Middleton Hall and had an iced coffee drink with cream and marshmallows, a cheese and ham toastie, and a slice of rocky road cake. 

Then, a browsed in Lakeland and was really impressed by their new picnic sets. The glasses are made of plastic and look very convincing as cut glass.  Lots of equipment in this store which is useful to me if I am baking. A wander along the shopping centre and browsed in T.K. Maax, for nothing in particular, but with this store, you have to buy what they have immediately because there will only be one of any particular item, and you will lose it if you don't buy it straight away.

Friday. 10.50 a.m. I have made another batch of scones for Monday Club. I think I got the consistency of this batch more or less right by making the dough somewhat stickier. The only problem with the stickiness is that the dough becomes difficult to remove from the cutter when they are put onto the baking tray. I have baked them for 25 minutes, which means they come out a golden brown. They should now be far easier to cut in half and not crumble, which was the problem I had with the last batch I made.

Saturday. 8.25 a.m. It's quite chilly this morning, which means I put on a fleece when I had my breakfast. 

10.05 a.m. It seems a bit warmer now. The sun is making a vain attempt to shine. I've been to Sainsbury's as I wanted a decent size cake tin to put the scones in. The one I got is more than enough the right size and as it is airtight it should at least keep them fresh.

5.40 a.m. I've been to A Transformed Life afternoon at SCF. Praise and message. Very enlightening. There is a second session, starting at around 7 p.m., but unfortunately, my health issues make me tired and I wouldn't be able to keep awake, so I came home and made a salad which I will eat later.

It was bright and sunny when I got to the Oaktree Centre. It's summer, which, officially, it is.

Sunday. 5.05 a.m. I know, I'm up far too early. I was out, walking around Oldbrook Green at 4.35. I think it was a bit of a shock, even to Alfie. It's quite chilly, but still pleasant. A clear sky, no clouds to be seen, but I know it will be a bright and sunny day. Well, I do hope so.

6.25 p.m. Another café church at Shenley Christian Fellowship this morning. A lot of new faces and the place absolutely heaving. A bouncy castle was set up on the grass behind the building and lots of children using it. Plenty of coffee, cakes and biscuits.

I have mentioned the Hohem gimbal, which I bought on Amazon. I have got the thing working successfully and have discovered a video editing app from watching a video on YouTube and have it downloaded to my iPhone and now have it fully paid for which means I can edit and modify video footage from my phone without advertising and have all the additional assets for it. I went out around Oldbrook Green this afternoon and shot some test footage, which I have since managed to edit to a certain level. I have also purchased two Bluetooth Lavalier microphones from Amazon which connect to my iPhone, which means I can record better quality sound with each of them connected to my clothes and can be used if I want to record interviews on video. The experiment with editing has worked up to a certain extent and shows that it works, but I will need to do more work learning the software before I am totally satisfied with the results. Keep watching this space for further news.

Easter Week

Thursday. 6.55 a.m. I have a barber's appointment booked this morning at 11.50. It's so easy to book via Central Barber's website, and it means that I go straight to their shop and don't have to wait.

4.10 p.m. I have been to the main shopping centre and had my hair cut at Central Barbers. The young lady who cut my hair had never cut it before. It was done extremely quickly, and then I was back out in the shopping centre. I walked to Marks and Spencer, which is at the opposite end of the shopping centre to Central Barbers. I am somewhat surprised by the new offerings in the men's department. Some really bright colours make a change from the usual bland colours used for most men's clothing, usually greys, browns and anything in between.

There are quite a few new shops taking over spaces of other companies which have either closed down or moved. 

There was a very loud thunderclap later this afternoon, and as I write this, it's pouring rain.

Good Friday. 7.25 a.m. Went out well before 6 o'clock this morning. There was a huge moon hanging in a lightning sky, almost like a vast silver coin.  I would have liked to have taken a photograph of it, but things were changing so fast, it would have been virtually impossible to get back home for either my Canon digital camera or iPhone and if I'd had Alfie with me, it would have been even more difficult to get a photograph. Pity. Alfie and I walked around Oldbrook Green. 

9.10 a.m. We've been for a second circuit around Oldbrook Green. We came across the tiny Yorkie which we see out with her master on several occasions. She's about half Alfie's size. I think she would be called a 'Teacup' Yorkshire Terrier. About the size that Alfie was when we first had him home.

12.25 p.m. I was scheduled to help set up the chairs at church this morning and arrived before 9.30, but it had already been done. Oh well!An amazing Good Friday service this morning. We are a multicultural fellowship, with many different nationalities. A Chinese couple read the Bible, in Mandarin. The English translation was projected on the screen and someone read the English version. The same with another section, read in Jamaican patois. Absolutely amazing! (I shouldn't keep saying that, but it was.)

I got home and then took Alfie out again because the weather was so warm and pleasant.

Hey ho, The Wind and The Rain!

Tuesday. 10.00 a.m. I should have been going to Camphill this morning, but there's been a problem with one of the payments for my car insurance. It wasn't taken out of my bank account. I had thought I could drive without any concerns, but then I thought, on the one day my insurance isn't absolutely cut and dried, I could have an incident, either me colliding with another vehicle, or someone running into my car, scratching either vehicle. It would be very stressful and I preferred to not risk it, so I'm at home. 

It's a really stormy day, wet and windy. Alfie keeps looking at me and almost saying, 'please, take me out!' but I know he won't like it. He's not a wet-weather sort of dog, so here we are, staying in the flat. 

I have rung Mears again, regarding not only the extractor fan, but the bathroom refit. It didn't take long to get a response, fortunately, but the line was indistinct. On the extractor fan front, apparently the company who will install the fan are waiting for glass to arrive. Which I wasn't aware of. I assumed that they would cut a hole in the existing glass in the kitchen window, but no, they will presumably take out the glass already in the window and put the new glass in, with a hole cut in it to take the extractor fan. I also asked about the bathroom, and I am still on the waiting list, but no word as to when the work will start. One lives in hope.

12.15 p.m. I have been experimenting with the Procreate app on my new iPad. It's actually quite easy to use, once you've been through some of the things it's capable of. I have been following a couple of YouTube videos and have actually posted my first piece of work on Facebook. Once you have mastered the fact that each colour you use can be adjusted separately,  because it's on a different 'layer', it means that it's possible to redo any of the layers, which means you can improve things easily.

Wednesday. 8.45 a.m. It seems like quite a calm sort of morning on the weather front. Let's just hope it stays that way.

11.05 a.m. As mentioned above, I had a missed payment for my car insurance. I had to ring the AA, my provider, and sort this payment out, as I was concerned that I wouldn't otherwise be covered if there was an incident. I rang the number on the AA documentation, but I got a menu which asked me which number to key into my phone. I went round and round, and it became really difficult to get to the right department. After several attempts, I did manage to reach the right department and explained my difficulties getting to the right place. I eventually had to key in the long number on my debit card, but the computerized system wouldn't work for me, regardless of how many times I attempted. Then the lady at the call centre told me to speak the numbers, which I found quite difficult, but eventually the payment went through, thank goodness, and the situation was rectified.

3.35 p.m. The weather has got worse. Wind and rain as I write this. 

I have been into Central Barbers to get my hair cut. I booked online, as is my custom now. At least, if you book this way, you know you'll be attended to quickly and there's no waiting.

I had a conversation with the young man who cut my hair. We got onto discussing things, and he mentioned a book he had read, about five young daughters who were going to be married off by their parents. I immediately recognized it as 'Pride and Prejudice' and I said it's not the sort of book that most men read, if they read anything. I know it's more of a female readers choice and Carol enjoyed it. Anyway, I am pleased to have had my hair cut and, after leaving Central Barbers, I walked through the shopping centre and had a browse in some of the shops, T.K.Maax in particular.

A Whitehall Farce!

Wednesday. 10.40 p.m. Scenes of total chaos in Parliament today. Well, that is what I have discovered, having watched the BBC Ten O'clock News. It looks as if the whole democratic process is in crisis and the Premiership of Liz Truss is crumbling. How long will this situation last? Will she be booted out? Who will replace her? How will the next Prime Minister be chosen, and can we expect around three months to be spent on the Conservative party electing a new leader?

I went into the main shopping centre to get my hair cut at Central Barbers. I had booked via their website earlier so it was just a case of turning up at 2 p.m. That was the easy bit. Even parking in my usual place, near the very dilapidated Point, was straightforward. Even the RingGo app worked and I had sufficient one-pound coins with me, just in case the app didn't work, as it has done on several occasions in the past. I drove home and then came across several diversions because sections of the grid road network were being resurfaced and they don't give you advance warning, so I had to make a more circuitous route around to get into Oldbrook. 

Thursday. 8.15 a.m. Oh, dear! I didn't wake up until 7.30 this morning. It's just not like me, because I'm usually awake early and take Alfie out around 6 o'clock. But oversleeping is not normal for me. I had to force myself out of bed and then get dressed and stagger out with his nibs. 

11.55 a.m. It's pouring with rain as I write this! I've been to The Oaktree Centre and helped with setting up the playgroup, although, by the time I got there the work had been done. The traffic was nose-to-tail all the way along Chaffron Way. It's certainly not the sort of journey I would contemplate having to make every day and I don't know how people put up with it. I think, if local businesses were to stagger their starting and finishing times, then this might be prevented, but as people almost insist on a '9-to-5' working day, then they have to endure this. It's also not helped by the current road works going on around Milton Keynes with resurfacing work going on.

4.00 p.m. So, Liz Truss has resigned. It seemed she had no choice. But was she pushed or did she jump? The question is, what happens regarding her replacement? They are saying that a new Prime Minister will be in place by 'Friday week', so how on earth is that going to be achieved, considering there was a three-month process whilst the Conservative Party had to go through its convoluted election process. Her Premiership will go down in history as possibly the shortest on record. As Shakespeare put it 'some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them.' I don't, in all honesty, think this applies to Liz Truss. 

Any Old Day Of The WeeK!

Thursday. 8.25 a.m. I have used my Vax steamer on the new kitchen floor. So, it looks clean (well, that's  the general idea, so I hope so!)

3.40 p.m. I've been into the Milton Keynes central shopping centre to get my hair cut at Central Barbers. I had booked and paid via their website on Tuesday and my appointment was at 10.20, but I got there in good time so I didn't have to wait. Its a good idea to book like this because it means you are guaranteed to be seen immediately without waiting. I then went to Lakeland, the shop which is in Middleton Hall and bought a plate rack for my sink drainer. The old one is too big for the drainer and because the new taps make it difficult to push the drainer back sufficiently I thought it would be an idea to replace it and the new one is ideal

Friday. 9.35 a.m. Alfie was more or less asleep when I was about to take him out. 

My washing is almost done. I'm about to go down and check if it's dry in the drier.

I have booked the car in for its MOT on Monday at 11.45 a.m. I rang Bleakhall Motors just after 8 o'clock to book it in.

Saturday. 12.50 p.m. I drove to Kingston because I was attempting to find shampoo. Now, I know that sounds totally crazy, but I have used Elvive dandruff shampoo for men, and it works, and I actually like it. I think I first bought it in Sainsbury's but for some reason, I can't find it again. There are so many versions of Elvive, virtually every permutation on the same product, for women mostly, I presume, but this particular variation seems unavailable. I went into Boots, but no sign of it there, but a whole section in the shampoo shelving, of all the Elvive variations, but not the particular one I would like. I know, you're saying, but just buy any shampoo, they're all the same. But I was determined to get that one. I eventually ended up buying a Tesco dandruff shampoo. Not a particularly good substitute for what I really wanted, but it will do I suppose.

Sunday. 5.55 p.m. I have signed up for Digital Theatre. I've been watching David Tennant and Catherine Tate as Beatrice and Benedick in Shakespeare's 'Much Ado About Nothing.' A really lively and inventive production, setting the play in Gibraltar in the 1980s. I always wonder about the 'Hero' plot line, which somehow doesn't seem to work. If you know the play, you might know what I mean. It's as if Shakespeare had finished the play, and then found it didn't run long enough, and the subplot with Hero being accused by Don John of not being a maiden (a virgin), seems incredibly contrived and put in to get the play to run longer. For all that, the interplay between David Tennant and Catherine Tate is what makes the whole show work. They are so good. I can see why they would be cast, because of their television work, particularly Tennant as a former 'Doctor Who' and Tate, because of her sketch show.  Just shows that clearly they are capable of a wide range of acting, not just television or film, and can flip from classical to contemporary. The clever set design, which utilizes a revolve, means that the scene changes are smooth and effortless.

Monday. 6.20 a.m. A relatively mild morning. Alfie was fast asleep when I was about to take him out.

10.25 a.m. The temperature, according to my digital thermometer, is 78ºF. That is probably because I have one of the electric fans on full blast.

1.25 p.m. I took the Renault to Bleak Hall Motors for its MoT which had been booked for 11.45. They are incredibly busy there, and you could tell this by the number of cars waiting in the yard when I turned up. The car was soon being taken into the workshop, barely minutes after I arrived. Then, around 12.35 I got the result. It had passed! One of the tyres might need replacing, but it was a real relief that it had passed, and I wasn't going to have to pay out for work to get it through the MoT. I will book it in for a full service in November, which should keep it in good running order.

The Rain It Raineth Every Day

Monday. 3.20 p.m. The weather has changed considerably. This is quite normal for British weather. One day, dry and sunny, the next, pouring with rain. Which it's doing at the moment. If you could hear, which is obvious because you can't, it is raining quite hard. It rained earlier this afternoon and we had quite a heavy downpour around fifteen minutes later, it was dry and sunny, almost as if it hadn't been raining. As the proverb states quite clearly 'nay cast a clout 'til May be out.' Now, whether that refers to the month of May or may the shrub, I don't know. Shakespeare mentions May in the Sonnet 18, 'Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?/Thou art more lovely and more temperate./Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,/And summer's lease hath all too short a date.' As I've discussed in an earlier blog post, Shakespeare uses many weather metaphors in his plays. King Lear and his Fool wander the blasted heath in a howling gale. Feste mentions rain  in Twelfth Night (the title of this post is from one of his songs). The Three Witches in Macbeth talk about ' . . .   foul is fair, hover through the fog and filthy air.' I could go on.

I am attempting to find some sort of doggy care for Alfie so that I can visit Worcester to see my grandchildren. As you should have read in an earlier post, I didn't go to Worcester as arranged on Friday. I don't want him to go into a kennel. The thought of him being put in a cage upsets me, and it would really upset him. I would prefer him to go to someone who would care for him in their home. I have discovered people who do this through a search online. Having read their requirements and the cost (approximately £25-£30 a day.) they also require owners to have their dogs vaccinated or the vaccines they already have topped up. Further enquiries I have made reveal that this costs around £75, covering kennel cough. It's because you have to protect your dog and other dogs that may be cared for. Just another expense. 

Tuesday. 6.10 a.m. Another mild morning, but not as warm as it has been lately.

2.05 p.m.The excitement is palpable! The bunting is up. A pile of cakes has appeared in the community kitchen. Tea and cakes are ready for the Platinum Jubilee tea party. What more can I say? Nothing. It all gets underway in one hour! Just fancy!

I'm not sure, but I think I might have just heard a thunderclap. Or something very similar to the sound of thunder. The weather is somewhat wet at the moment, so it might very well be thunder. 

4.50 p.m. We've just had the Platinum Jubilee tea party, Plenty of tea, sandwiches and cakes. HM Queen turned up (okay, it was one of the carers who comes into Dexter House, wearing a Queen mask. Funny. Yes. But slightly sinister. The sort of mask often used by bank robbers.  Also, there was a quiz, 19 questions about Her Majesty, and I won, the prize being a box of Thornton's chocolates. So, the second quiz I've won in two weeks. (Okay, the first one I was in a team.) But even so, not bad to have won, and all my reading of the history of the 20th century came in handy. 

12.35 p.m. I've been to Sainsbury's this morning. I have to say that I find it more than a little annoying that they had to move around many items which have been in the same position on the shelves for more or less all the time I have been shopping there, and now some bright spark seems fit to rearrange more or less everything and make it hard to find some things. What is the point of all this? It's just to annoy your local customers and drive them to probably shop elsewhere. There IS no point. Or, if you're going to do it, at least have some sort of sign up to tell you where a particular item has been moved to.

5.00. I've been into the shopping centre to get my hair cut at Central Barbers. I parked where I usually park and no sooner had I parked than the heavens opened and there was a heavy downpour. I, fortunately, had one of my Regatta jackets in the car, which I put on before walking into the shopping centre, but around two minutes later the rain had stopped, and the sun came out.  I had booked online yesterday so at least I knew I had an appointment, and it was paid. I was really surprised how busy it was in the centre. I imagine it's because it's half-term this week in Milton Keynes and the fact the Queen's Platinum Jubilee festivities are this week. A definite sort of atmosphere in the air. Thank goodness, because the country needs some sort of light-heartedness after two years of crazy lockdowns. 

Eventful Afternoon . . .

Friday. 8.40 a.m. I was up out of bed and out with Alfie by around 5.45 this morning. It's getting lighter and lighter each morning, so what excuse do I have? No use lounging around in bed. I have never been one to waste the day and can always find something to do with my time. It's particularly sunny and bright at the moment, although, as I write this, the sun has gone in, there's no sign of rain or wind, thankfully.

11.30 a.m. I've been to get my hair cut at Central Barbers. I always feel a good deal better once I've had a haircut. Just looks better and takes around 10 years off my age.

It's still quite mild. Fortunately, no rain, but it's still bright but not overly sunny.

Saturday. 3.25 p.m. Oh, dear! I feel really stupid. Well, you can agree if you want to. I don't care one way or the other. I had decided I would make another batch of chocolate cookies. The last ones weren't a great success. I hadn't taken into account the fact that they would spread out during cooking, so the batch came out of the oven a more or less one big cookie, but I did manage to cut them up into individual cookies. I went to Aldi this morning and bought some additional ingredients and set to with weighing out everything. I have to sort the kitchen out before I start as there is very little space and work surfaces are at a premium. I managed to get to the dough stage and put it into two metal trays. Then I had to sort out the oven, as the temperature isn't easy to set. I have an oven thermometer which I put in the oven, but then I found that the markings on the control knob have worn off, so it's even more of a guess when it comes to setting the oven. After the recommended twenty minutes, I checked the oven, but the cookies weren't cooked. They were still raw dough, so I put them in for a second bake. But I think I set the oven too hot and, as a result, after twenty minutes, there was smoke coming out of the oven when I opened the door. As a result, it set off the fire alarms, which went off throughout Dexter House. So, it was my turn to set the alarm off. I took Alfie out and after a few minutes, I heard a fire engine coming from the sound of its siren. I have to say I felt somewhat responsible for wasting their time. I went in through the main entrance with the lead fireman who came into my flat and told me to open the windows, which I did, and the breeze eventually dispersed the smoke and after a couple more minutes, the alarm stopped. That is the final attempt at cookie-making, as I don't want a repetition of this afternoon's events. Then, ten minutes later, a lady knocked on my door from the emergency alarm company to find out if I was alright, which I was, It just goes to show that we have all the facilities available here in case we have either a fall or a fire. Not really my favourite way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Sunday. 6.45 a.m. I ordered a DVD from Amazon on Friday. The new Stephen Spielberg version of 'West Side Story.' It was due to be delivered yesterday, before 10 p.m., or, at least, that was what the website told me, which tells you such things, so you can track a parcel's delivery. I had hoped to watch the film yesterday evening, and I waited in expectation of its arrival. I have had a look on the website once more, and it tells me that it has been handed to the recipient. Well, no it hasn't. I have not received it. So, I have to ask where on earth is it? Someone isn't doing their job properly. So I will have to do some investigations and discover its whereabouts. These delivery drivers don't read the address labels properly and if they don't know where the correct address is, it seems they post them through the nearest letterbox, just to get rid of them. Just laziness on their part.

On the way to church this morning, I drove towards Chaffron Way as I usually do and then left at the junction, coming out of Strudwick Drive and then I got to the roundabout which intersects with Saxon Street and discovered that I couldn't double back on myself as I would normally because it was coned off because of a running race/marathon. I was totally unaware of this and had to drive towards the centre of Milton Keynes and then along Childs Way to get to Shenley. Never mind. It was a bit of an inconvenience, but also quite a pleasant journey in the spring sunshine.

5.25 p.m. Alfie and I have been watching Crufts on Channel 4 this afternoon. I attempted to get a photograph of his nibs actually watching, and it wasn't easy (results, although not brilliant, on Facebook.) I had to entice him onto my knee with treats so that he would be in some sort of position to look in the direction of the screen, but he wasn't playing along. Carol and I went around 14 years ago, and we saw the agility being done by small dogs, especially Yorkshire Terriers, and it was this which lead to us getting Alfie. Carol was involved in an accident in her car, the Hyundai Matrix which she had at the time we first met. She was driving along Watling Street and if I remember right, taking Sam to school. I'm not sure if she'd just dropped him off, but she was approaching the roundabout which intersects with Childs Way and there was a queue of a few cars waiting to get onto the roundabout when the car was hit from behind by another car which didn't slow down in time. The force of the collision forced the Hyundai to collide forcibly with the car in front, to such an extent that the Hyundai got caught on the tow ball on the first car. Carol received a whiplash injury, and it took the emergency services quite a while to detatch our car from the car in front. I had just finished with one of my home care calls and had just come out of Beanhill and onto Saxon Street when my mobile rang and I pulled into a lay-by to take the call (bearing in mind that this was during the busy rush hour and the road was nose-to-tail up to the roundabout at Standing Way.) It was Carol saying she had been in a car accident and that she was at the A and E Department of Milton Keynes Hospital. I immediately drove there (not far from where I was at the time of the phone call.) and got there relatively quickly, although the traffic was heavy. This was bought to mind because we had to have a courtesy car when the Hyundai went to be repaired as a result of the collision and we had the use of a Ford Focus which I got to drive and we drove in it to Crufts and then when we went on holiday to Yorkshire. Just shows how something like that incident can spark a memory.

The Spring Has Sprung!

Tuesday. It's relatively warm and sunny this morning. Let's hope it stays that way.

Wednesday. Well, not a lot happened yesterday as you can see from the above.

Although I have watched 'Kinky Boots', the musical, on Broadway HD, a Netflix-style streaming service which has recordings of Broadway and West End musicals and plays on its service. It's a real spirit-lifting show, based on a real story and set in Northampton, which is no more than a twenty-minute drive from Milton Keynes. I have also watched the 1982 RSC production of 'Nicholas Nickleby,' as mentioned in an earlier post on here, as well as 'Private Lives,' and a one-woman show by Elaine Strich. Plenty more I want to watch and should keep me endlessly happy when there's not much else to watch, which is the case with traditional television at the moment.

It's surprisingly mild and dry this morning.

I had a telephone call from The Groom Room, in response to the message I left yesterday regarding a haircut for Alfie. The only appointment I could get was for July 9th, although I'm taking him to have his face trimmed next Thursday week as he can't really see where he's going. Then there's the build-up of mess under his eyes which he won't let me deal with.

Later. I have been into the MK Centre to get my hair cut at Central Barbers, and I have to say I feel a good deal better about it. Around six months since my last trip to the barbers. Enough hair cut off to stuff a cushion or more likely two cushions!

Thursday. Another bright and sunny morning. Also, not a great deal to report on here. Now there's a surprise.

I have to do a bowel cancer test every two years. It was time for it again, which I did (no need to explain the details.) I have had a response and it's a negative, so I'm all clear in that area. I only wish that Carol could have had a similar test. I have to have one done as I'm over 60, but because of her age, she didn't fall into the age group to be tested. I think it's about time age shouldn't come into it and everyone a good deal younger has to be tested, perhaps for all types of cancer.

I had my eyes tested this afternoon. There seems not to be anything wrong with my eyes and I get a new pair of glasses on the NHS, and the new glasses will be ready and bought for me at Dexter House in around two weeks.

Friday. 5.45a.m. It's still dark and I'm here sitting in my armchair writing this blog post and waiting to take Alfie out.

I had a plotline written some while ago, probably well before Carol's cancer diagnosis. I haven't worked on the writing project in some time and have only fairly recently picked it up again. Some points didn't make any sort of logical sense but now I have managed to find a way to tie things together, which I will not disclose here. All of which means that I can now continue with writing. All will be revealed, hopefully, in the fullness of time!

Life, The Universe and Something or Other . . .

(Thursday) My hair is in need of being cut. I can't remember when it was last cut. I know so many businesses are closed due to the confounded coronavirus lockdown, but going without this necessity means my hair is getting really annoying. Under normal circumstances I would have it cut around every 4-6 weeks. I have booked an appointment for 14th April through Central Barbers website. Paid and booked, so all I have to do on the day is merely turn up on time. Don't even have to worry about payment as it's done. A good deal easier and you don't have to wait. I think in the future I shall keep doing this.

Later. I turn on the television with the expectation of watching the latest edition of The Repair Shop, when the announcer says ‘there’s a change to our schedule with another coronavirus press conference.’ My heart sinks, as I really don’t need to listen to the doom mongers droning on relentless. Pointless is transferred to BBC2, but I just switch off the television instead.

I've signed up to a streaming service, much like Netflix, called 'BroadwayHD,' which works through my Fire Stick. As a result of the pandemic lockdown, which means that all live theatres have been closed, I am more than delighted to be able to enjoy recorded theatre performances through this service. I have already enjoyed a performance of Noel Coward's sparkling comedy, 'Private Lives,' and I'm currently watching the RSC's amazing nine-hour version of 'Nicholas Nickleby' which was one of the earliest productions shown on Channel 4 when it opened in 1982. I did watch it then, but am so glad to be able to revisit it now. Ideal material to enjoy, done in 9 parts and a definite binge-worthy piece of theatre or television.

(Friday)12.55a.m. I've woken up. The usual thing, wander to the toilet. I can hear the wind whistling around the building. It's quite an odd sound. No rain, as far as I can tell. I hope it stays dry, but somehow I doubt it. Alfie comes into the bedroom to find a comfortable space next to me. Then I get a sudden urge to cough. I've had this annoying cough for some while, and I'm more than certain that it's caused by one of the medications I'm on, one of the side-effects. Having done a search on-line, I find that it is one of the side-effects. I bought Robitussin, a cough syrup, in Lloyd's in Sainsbury's and it seems to keep it in check so I've just taken a dose, finishing off one bottle and I have another in reserve.

I had to order atorvastatin, one of my medications. I realised when I did my evening meds that the one I took yesterday evening was the last one, so I went on the appropriate app on my iPad and ordered it. I was more than a bit surprised to find a text message from Lloyd's pharmacy telling me the meds were ready to collect this morning so I went to Sainsbury's, where Lloyd's pharmacy is to pick it up. I did a bit of shopping, milk in particular. I parked as normal in the underground carpark (that's not actually correct. It isn't 'underground,' It's underneath the store.) Usually the moving walkway or travelator (I've spent some time on Google trying to find the right word for this.) whisks you up to the store, along with the annoying voice which keeps on telling you that you must 'stand still and hold onto the rail' or whatever it is and reminds you to 'push your trolley off the walkway,' rather like some teacher taking to a classroom full or rather dim primary school-age children. As if you're going to forget to push your trolley 'off the walkway,.' What do they expect you to do, crash onto the floor in a heap? It is somewhat patronising. Never mind. Enough digression. The aforementioned walkway wasn't operating as it should (it seems the lifts and walkway in Sainsbury's has a habit of failing when it shouldn't.) So it was odd walking up the walkway when it wasn't moving. 

When I had finished my shopping, I paid, having used a self-service till (getting quite good at using these things by now, and the thing seemed to work perfectly!) I pushed my trolley towards the top of the travelator and almost got on it, as a member of staff stopped me, so I had to go down in a lift to the carpark. It's virtually impossible to go down on the travelator with a trolley when it's not running, because the wheels get caught in the grooves on the surface and you can't move the trolley off until you get to the bottom.

All Over The Place!

 So, we are returning to more restrictions, bought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The government seems to change the restrictions on a daily basis. Where did the number 6 come from, being the limit of how many people can meet? Just plucked from the air without any scientific basis. Why not 7, 8, 9 0r 10? Why do pubs and restaurants have to close at 10p.m.? What on earth difference will that make to the spread of the coronavirus?

Several of the electric scooters left all over Oldbrook Green. I presume the company who runs the business which operate these devices will collect them and return them to wherever they come from. It seems strange to just have them left in the middle of paths around the place and not in some sort of parking space, similar to the bike hiring scheme (there's a parking space for them near the Oldbrook Centre. I think Santander is sponsor of them.)

(Saturday) The last couple of days it's been raining. Not heavy rain, but rather thin and pathetic. Even so, Alfie doesn't like it very much. I took him out just a few moments ago (it's now 11.25a.m. on Saturday 3rd October.) We walked along Strudwick Drive, me wearing my new Regatta rain jacket, but as soon as Alfie discovered the rain, he turned tail and took me back home.

(Tuesday) The seat of the toilet in my bathroom has broken. It broke several weeks ago. Not the actual seat but the lid. The plastic bit came away from the mechanism which holds it onto the bowl, so I reported it to the S.H.O., Barbara, and was hoping that it would be mended, no questions asked. Well, I didn't break it deliberately, I didn't do a tap dance on the lid or poke it to make it break. I was told yesterday that it was my responsibility to repair it. The company who are responsible for maintenance of the flat look after the BOWL of the toilet, but not the SEAT! Crazy! 

I was quietly sitting and watching television when there was this noise. It sounded like something collapsing. I wasn't sure where or even what it was. I looked in the kitchen, thinking it might have been a box falling on the floor (not sure where or what, again) but it wasn't in there. Then I poked my head round the door of the bathroom and found that the shower curtain rail was the culprit. Weird, as I hadn't touched it or even been near it. These curtain rails are only held in place by a sort of rubber washer (for want of a better world) on the end of the rail in a sort of round arrangement which screws on the end and you screw it out until it grips the wall. I can't believe that that is all that keeps it in place. I have now managed to reassemble the whole thing and it's holding up, and it hasn't collapsed as yet (well, at least, as I write this but will keep you informed it it decides to collapse again.

(Friday) Still not a lot to write about. The Council have built a fence along the Oldbrook Boulevard she of the Green, presumably with the intention of preventing further traveller's caravans being able to get onto the grass. They completed around half and then some bureaucrat thought strong and hard and realised that caravans could be able to access the area the other side of the skateboard park, so a further fence has been constructed. Next to impossible for anyone to drive onto the grass now. Even a small bit of fence along the opening into Shackleton Place.

(Monday) I went on line to book an appointment to get my hair cut at Central Barbers. This was a couple of days ago. The last time I had my hair cut I went to their website and was able to book and pay for an appointment, so it made sense to repeat this as it saves having to wait and if you pay you just walk in before the appointed time and then at the end, be because you've paid on line, there's nothing further to pay. I wasn't sure that I had actually successfully got an appointment booked. There's nothing to acknowledge your booking, such as being sent an email as you get when you buy something from Amazon. So this morning I phoned the shop and it turned out I hadn't got the appointment booked, but they made the appointment over the phone, for this Wednesday (21st October.) at 10.15a.m.

Haircuts For Alfie and Me

(Monday) I have managed to book a grooming session for Alfie at the Groom Room at Pets At Home in Bletchley for 21st of July. He has been there before and he knows the staff and they make a fuss of him and he loves being pampered. Who can blame him? I set up and on-line account this morning and then did an on-line booking but then I had to pay a deposit. The Groom Room staff then phoned me and I payed over the phone with my card. It is rather crazy because we already had an account at the Groom Room but it doesn't link to what I had set up on line, but by using the reward card I was able to update my details. So, at last the poor little chap can have a wash and shampoo and a good trim because he is becoming really scruffy, his claws need a trim and the hair round his face needs tidying up so he can see where he is going. I'm usually very hot on looking after him as he usually has a good trim several times a year and it's because of the pandemic that he has got into this state.

(Tuesday) Another indecisive day on the weather front. It is overcast and I'm not sure whether it's going to rain or not. Probably rain, thinking about it since I've peered out of the window. Alfie is expecting to be taken out and at 8.35a.m. I may just do that to keep him happy.

We went out but got a wetting. Alfie just doesn't appreciate getting wet, under any circumstances. I don't blame him. I don't either. We didn't stay out long.

(Wednesday) I've been to Sainsbury's this morning and for the first time in months I didn't need to queue up to get in, which was a complete surprise. I managed to buy everything which I had on my list and therefore I was in and out of the store in barely an hour. There were very few people in the store, which made it so easy and I used a self-service checkout which by now I am fairly proficient at using. I think it's a question of finding the bar codes on each item so that it's faster to scan as you go and make sure that each item goes onto the packing area or else the machine will tell you off, but there was none of the 'unknot item in bagging area,' which, frankly puts me off.

(Thursday) I knew that barbers and hairdressers were soon to reopen after some of the loocdown restrictions were being lifted. I have said on here how I am in a real need of a haircut, so I have been on the Central Barbers website and have booked and paid for such a haircut on 8th July at 10a.m. It means that I just go into the central shopping centre and walk to Central Barbers premises and I won't even have to wait if it's prebooked, thank goodness.

(Friday) Last evening I was going to feed Alfie as I usually do. He has a small amount of mixer at the bottom of his bowl and then I put the meat on top, usually Sainsbury's own brand of dog food in a pouch, which is just squeezed out of the pouch on top of the mixer. But last evening I found that I had run out and he had to have what was left of my meal, mostly meat pie and veg, which he scoffed without any arguing. He has a good appetite for a small dog and I have now been to Lidl to buy him enough of at least a week, the Pedigree branded dog food which he has if he doesn't have the Sainsbury's own brand. Sorry Alfie that I forgot. I don't think he was that bothered one way or the other!

On the weather front, it's mild but windy. Not sure if we don't get further rain. We could do with it as everything looks very parched and dry.

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.

Technology Troubles

The Fitbit, which I've mentioned in these blog posts, has failed. It wouldn't charge. I have rung the helpline and run through some things that might have been causing it not to charge, like cleaning the contacts which take the charge on the charging station, but still nothing. I have been given a special number which I shall take with me when I go to John Lewis in Milton Keynes, which is where it came from, and they should give me a replacement or I can have a refund, which I don't want. I have to say, as this brand is supposed to be a leader in this type of technology, that I'm more than a little bit disappointed. It may do more things than the cheap model (not a Fitbit) and purchased through Amazon, lasted a good deal longer, even though the strap broke. I expect these things to last a lot longer than a week. Just have to wait and see when I return it.

I had to get to Ashfield Medical Centre for 10 o'clock because my appointment with Doctor Haye was scheduled for then. I needn't' have bothered to get there so early, because 10 o'clock came and went and I still wasn't called by 10.15 so I went to the receptionist and told her that I was still waiting. I think some people spend the 10 minutes, (which I believe is the average time your doctor's appointment is supposed to be.) spend far too long talking and don't think that there are other people waiting. I may be wrong, but I'm not one to over-spend my time with my doctor.) It was around 10.30 when my name came up on the digital screen. I have been re-prescribed diazepam, but the doctor is trying to get me off them because they can become addictive. I did manage to get through last night without taking the one I have left. He wants me to take them alternate nights, or at least, every third night, so I will take one tonight (the one which is left.) I had attempted to take the tablet a good deal later, around 10, rather than earlier, usually around 8. But I am still waking in the early hours of the morning. I have just seven in the current course so I'll have to wait and see what happens with them this time. I was out of his office within around 3 minutes, annoying as I don't get a chance to discuss anything with him. Perhaps that's because I now have the Integrated Community Team to call on if necessary. As I walked back along the corridor on my way out, I noticed they had their names on a door and there is a social worker in the team.

I could have taken the prescription to Cox and Robinson, the pharmacy a couple of doors along from the Ashfield Medical Centre, but because I was going into the centre of Milton Keynes to take the Fitbit back to John Lewis I thought I might go into Boots. Having driven in and parked near The Point, I walked into the shopping centre. In Boots there was a long queue at the pharmacy, so I didn't bother waiting and then walked through the shopping centre. I headed for Central Barbers, right next to John Lewis to get my hair cut. Jade cut my hair, the young lady who goes to Shenley Christian Centre. There was a really odd conversation going on as I was having my hair cut, begun by another of the hair stylists, about horses. I think he knew what he was talking about, but it was somewhat surreal, a bit like a Monty Python sketch, or from a play by N.F.Simpson. Really strange, but nonetheless, fascinating. I only wish I'd had a tape recorder, because it was something that would make the basis for a piece of writing.

I went into John Lewis and made my way up to the electronics department, which is one floor below the restaurant where we meet for the Willen coffee mornings on a Monday. I took the Fitbit in it's packaging. along with the code which I'd been given by the helpline when I'd rung yesterday and explained to the assistant at the counter what was wrong, the fact that it wouldn't charge. He plugged in the charging gadget and put the Fitbit into this and, lo and behold! It showed it was charging! I don't know what's wrong with it, or, indeed, whether it was actually faulty. It might have been that I hadn't put the thing in the charger gadget correctly, with the three contacts touching the contacts on the charger. Makes you wonder. It isn't entirely clear when the thing is set correctly.

Coming out of John Lewis and walking across Middleton Hall (correction: I couldn't actually walk across Middleton Hall because workmen are currently dismantling the summer attraction, which had at the heart of it a beach with sand. I saw them scooping it up the other day, and had wondered how on earth they would deal with its removal. There was a collection of those heavy-duty builder's bags scattered across the floor, so I imagine someone has the unenviable task of actually scooping it up with a shovel, into these bags, which are then loaded on to a lorry, probably taken outside the shopping centre on fork lift trucks.) I saw a display which turned out to show the proposed redevelopment of the former Food Centre. The old Sainsbury's unit has been empty for years. This is where the Age UK office is, and when I was in there several months ago, a couple of the volunteer ladies were discussing this proposed redevelopment and I was wondering where Age UK was going to transfer to once they start moving out and the demolition work begins. I had a good look at the designs, a mixture of commercial buildings with shops and offices. The multi-storey carpark is to remain and there are to be several storeys to some of the buildings, which seems to go against the original concept for Milton Keynes when it was originally proposed in the late 1960s, buildings weren't supposed to be much higher than the average tree, probably no more than three storeys. I had a chat with a lady who made notes of my suggestions, one of them being that there should be a concert hall included (not that it's likely to be built.) but that's the whole point of a consultation.

I went to Sainsbury's, because I had the diazepam prescription and I had asked at reception if the other repeat prescriptions had gone to Lloyd's pharmacy in Sainsbury's and they had apparently, so  drove there after my trip into town and I had a bight to eat in the café whilst I was there.

Having done my shopping and gone through the checkout, I had to go down to the carpark on the travelator, the moving walk-way or whatever you prefer to call it. Anyway, the moving slope which allows you to be whisked down to the carpark levels. It can be rather a bumpy ride. Something must be wrong with the mechanism, because part-way down you sort of lurch forward. This time it stopped dead, about three-quarters of the way down. I couldn't budge the trolley, try as I might to push it. What was I to do? Some kind man came and helped, but lifting the front of the trolley the remaining few yards of the, by now, stationary walk-way. The wheels of your trolley lock into grooves in the surface I imagine to keep it steady as you move down. I'm not sure whether they manage to get this moving once I'd left the carpark, but it was somewhat comical to say the least. But  not all this technology can be expected to work according to plan, the amount of work it gets, probably running for quite a few hours continuously when the store is open.

Then I drove home, unpacked the few bits I had bought and then put the Fitbit on charge. This time it seemed to charge without a problem. I have to say it's not easy to know exactly whether it's charging. With some items when on charge, such as the bluetooth speaker I have, you know it's charging because it has a red light that glows, the same with the Canon digital camera battery, the charger has a light that is red for discharged and green for charged. With the Fitbit it has no indication of whether it's actually taking the charge, but as I write this, it's on my wrist and working.

The bird feeding station is extra-busy at the moment. I have managed to keep it topped up with food, usually peanuts, but unfortunately it seems that the local squirrels seem to think it's a free-for-all for their use and the little blue tits (I imagine that's what they are, but perhaps I should do a more accurate identification.) come and around 6-8 of them are constantly feeding. I think perhaps I should get a disc which fits around the stand of the feeding station and prevents squirrels climbing up. Amazing that they can do this, but I really don't want them to.

At the end of all this, I had a problem of another sort. I have mentioned that I can no longer order my repeat prescriptions by merely ringing Lloyd's pharmacy in Sainsbury's and giving them the list of items required to be ordered, and then they contact Ashfield Medical Centre and it's all done electronically. But some bright spark, some bureaucrat within the N.H.S. has decided that this is inefficient use of their resources and that we now have to order direct from our doctor's surgery. We can take our order to the surgery and fill in the required order form and the repeat prescription will be signed off by the doctor and then sent electronically to our pharmacy (as was the case originally.) But, if you have access to the internet, you can order on-line, provided you set up an account (and this is through the surgery website.) I already had an account set up but needed to have a new password (you have a username and then put in the password when prompted.) But I have attempted to do this several times, having been given a fresh password by reception at Ashfield, but on each occasion it will come up when it doesn't work with 'unrecognised' or 'wrong password and username.' Let's be honest, it just doesn't want to work and no amount of resetting will allow it to work, adding further to the frustration. So, I beg the question, why do they have to change something which was working perfectly well??? What is the benefit of all this? Words fail me. I certainly don't trust this new set-up and wish they'd left it well alone. Not a happy bunny when I just want to make sure my meds don't run out.

Hair Cut

It's been quite cold today. I was surprised by how cold it actually was when I stepped out of the front door with Alfie on his lead at about 6.35 this morning. Quite a layer of ice of the car's windscreen. I made sure I was well and truly wrapped up with my gloves on my hands. Alfie couldn't care less, so long as he got a good run and a sniff around all the trees and lamp posts .

I'm currently cleaning the house. Not the most exciting or stimulating of tasks, but it has to be done. It had been allowed to let slip when Carol was diagnosed and I really wasn't in any mood to don rubber gloves and scour the bath or scrub floors. As a result the kitchen floor had become quite dirty so I decided to give it a mop. It's easy enough the end near the sink, but the rest of what is actually a kitchen/diner, needed things such as a table, drying frame, chairs, stools and so on, moving out so that the floor underneath could be mopped. I did the sink end yesterday and then, around 8.30 this morning, began to move the items from the patio-door end into the other end so that I could give the floor a good mop. I left the sliding patio doors open to allow the air to dry the floor and had to keep Alfie corralled in the lounge as I didn't want little paw marks all over my nice clean floor. A squirt of Sainsbury's best floor cleaning product, with a hint of lemon in it (actually about half the price of Flash, virtually the same product and a little bit further along the shelf when I went to buy more a little later.) and the job's done. Amazingly hard work slinging a mop about, but worth the effort when I see how clean the floor is now.

Items now replaced in their original places and I'm about to leave the house for the centre of Milton Keynes to go and get my hair cut at Central Barbers, which has recently moved from the food centre to the main shopping centre next to John Lewis.

Really quite cold as I park the car near The Point. I now have an app on my iPhone, RingGo, which allows me to pay for parking. It means I don't have to bother with coins and it reminds me when my parking time is about to run out and I can pay if I want to increase my parking time. Quite handy if you don't carry loads of coins with you or you forget.

I walk through the shopping centre and arrive outside Central Barbers, near John Lewis. It's around 9.20 and this means I will have to wait 10 minutes as they don't open until 9.30. I'm sitting looking at my iPhone and then an alar goes off. I think it was the test of a fire alarm, but I'm not sure where it's going off. I think it's within Central Barbers shop. I can see the staff inside, and a couple of them have their hands tightly clasped over their ears. I'm sure the alarm-test is going on too long. It makes me laugh when these things go off, not just fire alarms, when people take totally no notice of them, they don't attempt to stop the alarm or go to whoever is in need of an alarm. Just a waste of time.

Colourful and eye-catching signpost near Milton Keynes Theatre. No excuses to loosing your way around Milton Keynes.

Having finished at Central Barbers, I decided I wanted to see what had been happening at the art gallery near Milton Keynes Theatre (they could have come up with a better name for the theatre, surely. Not very original. Are they ever likely to come up with something more memorable?) It's not a long walk, but when I got there, I discovered that it didn't open until 11a.m., so it was a bit of a waste of my time so I decided that I'd go back into the shopping centre and plan to visit the art gallery on a day and at a time when it's open.

Frosty and Chilly

It's getting lighter a lot earlier. So it seemed a good idea to take Alfie out for his routine walk across Eaglestone Park. I can't avoid his eyes as he was sitting on the sofa watching me closely. But by the time we got outside it was surprisingly cold and the car had a layer of ice on it, which means I will need to scrape it off when I drive out later on this morning.

Alfie loves being let off his lead when we get to the grassed area, but unfortunately things didn't go as usual because the woman who has a large Alsatian and walks it from her wheelchair was crossing the park. Alfie's immediate reaction is to chase after the dog and make friends. He doesn't see any danger, but I don't trust this dog as the woman has no control over it. I don't want to see Alfie attacked. The bigger dog growled at Alfie and I ran after him to put him back on his lead. He wasn't going to be caught, but I did manage to catch him and we walked away at speed along the circular path and took a short cut back home.

Some time later. I've been to get my haircut this morning. Some while ago I went to get my hair cut at my regular place, Central Barbers, which has been in the Food Centre for years and I've been going there on and off since I moved to Milton Keynes in 2007. Then I went to the barbers in Monkston Park (which we found quite by accident when we went to buy something in the nearby Budgens store). Then it closed down, only discovering when I was waiting for them to open up and someone told me that the man who owned the store had gone out of business (for whatever reason.) The branch of Central Barbers moved into the main MK shopping centre and this I only discovered when I read the notice on the door of the boarded-up shop. They are now located opposite John Lewis's store in the shopping centre. I was there sitting outside the store at 9.25 and went in to get my haircut by a young lady who it turned out went to Shenley Christian Fellowship, but goes to the second service (I usually go to the 9.15 service, so it's unlikely I'd see her.)

I then went to the coffee morning within the café in John Lewis and saw the bereavement counsellor and we've set up a new meeting for Wednesday at 2.30p.m at Willen.

Walking through the shopping centre I noticed that some areas around Middleton Hall were closed off. Something to do with a gas leak. But I couldn't smell anything like gas. But when I came back out to walk through the centre on the way back to the car all the closed-off areas were re-opened. So one assumes that the gas leak had been resolved.

On the way home I decided to go to Waitrose, but I didn't realise until it was too late that I wouldn't be able to return home along Chaffron Way because there was some roadworks going on and there was a barrier up on the opposite late so I would need to find an alternative route home along Brickhill Street and then Child's Way. They're forever closing the grid roads around Milton Keynes, usually for other things such as putting in safety zones, which they've done along Chaffron Way. This consists of signs to get drivers to slow down as well as central kerbing and red painted areas. Whether this works I don't know, because from experience a lot of drivers don't want to slow at any cost. There's an element who won't adhere to any sort of rules and regulation. No matter what they're told or meant to do, such as slow down, as they should along Saxon Street between Milton Keynes Academy and the hospital, which is a 40 m.p.h, zone, they will not slow down. Probably because they know full well that they won't get caught and fined. You very rarely, if ever, see a police car around Milton Keynes. There's no deterrent to motorists who get round the law, not just speeding but tailgating and other misdemeanours. There used to be a 'smiley face' sign that lit up when you were driving at the correct speed. It was on the footbridge that takes the Redway over Saxon Street, but it gets taken away, but it's quite effective at getting drivers to slow down. It would appear that a lot of people don't realise that there's a speed limit or just ignore it anyway.

So, why don't they do all the road repairs at the same time? Surely it can't be too difficult to make sure they coordinate all this sort of work so that it doesn't inconvenience people.

Another Hot Day?

Tuesday morning.It's only 7 a.m and the sun is shining brightly. It looks as if it's going to be another hot day. I hope not too hot as it's quite difficult to cool down in the hospital ward.

I took Alfie for a walk at 6.20. I've managed to put his harness on, which he had on more or less permanently a while ago, but Carol took it off when the warm weather started. It was parked on the bedside cabinet in our bedroom. Alfie kept looking at it. He'd stand on my side of the bed, the side the cabinet is, and touch it with his nose. I'd connect his lead on to his collar to take him for a walk, but there is a slight problem which Yorkshire terriers have, as you have to watch their windpipes don't collapse which could be fatal. If he pulls when he's on his lead, he coughs, and this isn't something I want to let him do and have horrible consequences, so I managed to get him into his harness yesterday evening. He almost got himself into the thing on his own. He knows where his head goes. So this morning we went out as I say. We went out through the front door and crossed the road and down the patch towards the park and round the circuit we usually go, Alfie being let off immediately we hit the park. The grass has been cut and it looks brown and almost like a field of newly-mown hay, which I suppose it is. It's almost a pity it's not baled and sold off for pet bedding, for rabbits or hamsters or other small rodents. Part-way round I saw a cat in the distance, so I had to take evasive action to prevent Alfie seeing it. Carol said that he wouldn't bother, because the cats who cause him bother when they enter our garden are merely trespassing on his territory, so if he sees on outside in the park, they aren't on his territory, so he wouldn't bark or chase after it. I don't know whether this is correct, but I'm not going to give him the chance, because if he chases a cat he might end up on the road and get run over which isn't something I'm prepared to risk. We walked up towards the road and over onto the Redway and then back towards home. I'm attempting to increase the number of steps, as I have a step counter, rather like a Fitbit, which measures my steps. I'll possibly take Alfie for a further walk when I get back from the hospital later this afternoon.

Later. I had to go and collect the medical certificate from Ashfield Medical Centre early thus morning. I was going to leave it til gone 9 o'clock. Generally, once the early-morning rush is out of he way, there is less traffic and as I had to negotiate the roundabout which is where Saxon Street meets Standing Way, which can be difficult to cross when it's busy. But then I decided to risk it and left the house at 8.40 and got through without incident. I even managed to get the aforesaid certificate without any bother. The doctor has dated it up until January 2019, which should mean we don't need another unless Carol isn't capable of returning work well into the New Year.

I returned home and posted the medical certificate and then immediately went out again. I went to get my hair cut at Central Barbers in the Food Centre. I parked near Xscape and walked through to the barbers. As they opened at 9.30 I had to wait around 10 minutes until they opened. I used to get my hair cut here for several years but then I discovered the barbers in Monkston Park until they closed down. They were probably more convenient, easier to get to and it was easy to park immediately outside. But it's not to difficult to park near the Food Centre. I always attempt to arrive as they open. As it happened there were no other customers, so I was in the chair and having my hair trimmed within minutes of arriving. Once I'd finished at the barbers I went back to the car because I had to collect a folder as I was going to the Civic Centre as I'm in the process of claiming Housing Benefit which we have to claim since Carol has been ill and her salary has been stopped being paid. I had to take identify for us both, so I had our driving licences for that purpose. I had to go to the Nationwide and NatWest to get print-outs of statements for earnings and some of Carol's wage slips for proof of earnings (or not.) You walk in through the front entrance at the Civic centre and you're immediately confronted by a small table. No reception desk. This seems the norm nowadays. It was the same in the Jobcentre the other week and it would appear that it's how NatWest operates. There's no reception desk as there used to be. In there you greeted by a young lady with an iPad and she books you in for your appointment. Not a problem. But in the Civic Centre I was taken by the lady in the reception area to a computer where they signed me in and I was given a ticket with a number on and and told I'd have to wait until my number came up.

The place has a lot of vacant space in it. It's almost as if they've got rid of a lot of furniture. You could hold a ball in the space. Or rent it out for some sort of function. It really is rather a waste. I know they have to allow for people moving about, but it is rather ridiculous.

My number soon came up. I am somewhat intrigued how these systems work. It not only shows up on a video screen, but a very polite woman's voice tells you where to go, in the nicest possible way, of course. Just a thought, would a male voice have the same effect? Then I had to find 'Desk 9.' The red video numbers were rather confusing, and it didn't seem as if they were in a logical numerical order.

I had to hand over the documentation required to the lady who was dealing with our Housing Benefit claim. It was all in order. All we need now is either our Tenancy Agreement or a letter from our landlord. All this dealt with fairly quickly and painlessly. I was able to leave the Civic Centre and walked across towards the main shopping centre and went into Marks and Spencer, which is immediately inside the centre. I was struck by how much cooler it was. Thankfully not as scorchingly hot as on previous days. I selected a sandwich, a drink and crisps, went to the checkout to pay and then walked back through the shopping centre and across to the car which was parked near Xcape.
As it turned out, it hasn't been as bright and sunny as it has been for however many weeks we've had to endure the heatwave. It's been warm, but still somewhat overcast. Not the scorching heat, thankfully.

I returned home to offload a lot of the stuff I'd taken with me in the folder as I didn't want to take it to the hospital ward. I decided to walk to the hospital because it occurred to me that if I went in the car it might be virtually impossible to find a parking space.  It is, after all, only about a 10-minute walk and when it's sunny it's actually quite pleasant.

At around 6 o'clock on Tuesday evening I rang our landlord to ask for either a letter or a copy of our tenancy agreement and he says he wants to do an inspection of the house. I told him why we needed to apply for Housing Benefit and I trust he is understanding of the situation. He may be coming over the weekend so I have begun to clean the house. If I work steadily over the next few days, cleaning each room from top to bottom there should be no problems. As I write this, at 6.30 on Wednesday morning, I have done a load of washing and it's out on the line. As it's so sunny it should be dried within a few hours.

With all the walking on Tuesday I managed to clock up over 9000 steps. Just goes to show how many steps you can achieve when you walk so far in one day.