Isn't It A Lovely Day Today?

Sunday. 6.45 a.m. The clocks have changed, and gone back an hour, so it's a good deal lighter at this time. I've been out with Alfie, although he must have been a bit shocked, as I had to wake him up. It was really beautiful out, with the leaves on the grass and a thin fingernail of a moon more or less directly overhead. 

Thursday.  7.15 a.m. It's a rather overcast sort of day as I write this. 

Alfie was again asleep when I took him out about forty minutes ago. He didn't seem to object, in fact, I think he was more or less asleep as I carried him along the corridor.

Friday. 8.50 a.m. It's a somewhat overcast sort of morning. Never mind, it's what you would expect for a November day.

I was busy yesterday. I went to the Thursday Morning Life Group (which I've always called 'Bible Study' which it is, but it's a lot more than that. A lovely group of people.) I came home and had something to eat. I watched something on History Hit, which is a streaming service which has a very wide range of history documentaries to watch. This was about how would a modern man deal with wearing s suit of Medieval armour? Very informative, and also quite amusing.

Then, at 1.40 I had an appointment to have an echocardiogram. I'm not sure whether I've had one of these before. The location of the appointment was in Lloyds Court, opposite MK Centre shopping centre. I wasn't entirely sure where it was, but I looked on Google Maps, and even then I wasn't sure. I drove to the usual car park and then walked through the shopping centre and out about halfway down and across to Lloyds Court. I had the number, 30, but I walked along one side which seemed to be almost all restaurants and take-away establishments. I eventually found the place and walked in. 

By now I was exhausted. All that walking had paid it's toll. I reported to the receptionist and was sent upstairs. I had to sit and wait in the 'F' area. You couldn't miss the sign, painted on the wall in the biggest lettering you've ever seen. I think it was meant to be easily seen by those with poor eyesight. I had the feeling of the place, rather like the set for some science fiction film, set on a spaceship in the far distant galaxy, a bit like in Doctor Who, when they dematerialise in the Tardis and it's a space station, and the huge lettering on the walls are to inform you of the level you are on, but probably not numbered, probably in some sort of script used by some alien race. Also, clinical and empty, lifeless and probably uninhabited. One other couple was waiting. They didn't speak. There was no one else around, except a cleaning lady, sweeping the floor with one of those weird mop things which has a sort of hinge in the middle. Someone came out and called the name of the lady who was with her husband (although I assume he was. Never mind.) The person who appeared was dressed in a sort of green/blue oversuit, making him look like a surgeon or similar. The couple walked away and I was left on my own, with the cleaning lady pushing her mop around. The place had a sort of clinical feel to it. Well, as it was an N.H.S. establishment, it's not surprising, but no pictures on the walls, no television to watch on the walls, not even a pile of ancient magazines to read. Sterile, I think you'd call it. Plain white walls and the sort of seating which tend to become very uncomfortable the longer you sit on them. 

Then I was called into one of the rooms. The gentleman who called me said he was sorry for the delay. Well, my appointment was scheduled for 1.40 and it was well past 2 o'clock when I eventually stepped into his room. I had to take my shirt off along with my shoes. I was weighed and my height measured and then I had to lay on a bed and in such a position that I faced the wall and as far up the sloping head end as possible. the doctor (I presume he was a doctor.) proceeded to scan my heart, and it was fairly difficult to hold the same position with one arm held over my head. I could hear strange noises, but couldn't see a thing because I was lying facing away from whatever device he was using. Then I had to move to another position. It was then that I heard a sound like a pump, but splashing water and I then realised it was the sound of my heart! Not something I ever expected to hear. Rather like the sound of an ancient, rather inefficient washing machine! 

Saturday. 10.20 a.m. I haven't finished my Thursday adventures if that's the way to describe things.

To continue. I left the diagnostics centre, being told that the information found with the procedure would be forwarded to the cardiology department and no doubt I would be contacted regarding where my care would go from there.

I left the building and walked towards the shopping centre. As I did so, I saw a group of teenagers in front of me, one very blatantly smoking a spliff. I knew that was what it was, by the smell, and it was far bigger than a normal cigarette. He wasn't likely to be stopped by a police officer as there are never any about on foot as would be the case years ago, which might explain his smoking the spliff so openly.

I went home and had something to eat, as I usually do at midday.

At around 3.40 I drove to The Oaktree Centre because I had volunteered to help with the Light Party which was being held that evening. It's to be an answer to Halloween, which was on Thursday. As a church, we don't do Halloween and the idea of the Light Party is to show children that it's Jesus who is the light and Halloween is darkness. 

The hall was laid out with tables for a wide range of crafts, and I was in charge of one with black sheets of card which you scratched off to reveal colours underneath and the children could use stencils to make art or draw freehand. Other tables had drawings, lamp making and other crafts. After around half an hour there were games, one very similar to a game I think I must have played a bit like musical chairs, except there weren't chairs, the children had to simply sit on the floor when the music stopped. Then there was a short piece of drama and the evening ended with the children going through to the café area to have a tea of sandwiches and cakes. Oh, I should say that they then went back into the hall, which, by that time had been cleared on the tables, to have a dance around.

We cleared up, and that was the end of the evening.

I must say it was a really successful event and I was surprised by how many children and parents turned up. I think it must have been around 30-40.

Windy City!

Saturday. 11.20 a.m. I have a Nationwide Building Society account. Well, in actual fact I have two, one a current account and the other a savings account. I manage them via the Nationwide website and their app. This morning I wanted to check the balance of the current account, so I went onto the website. But I couldn't get into my account because the customer number wasn't saved. I can usually manage to get further and actually see my balance and check payments in and out, and the basic information is usually saved, meaning I didn't need to input the customer number associated with the account. I don't have it written anywhere, so I had no alternative but to go into the branch in the Milton Keynes central shopping centre. I managed to get the all-important customer number from a nice gentleman in the Nationwide branch and then went to wander around the shopping centre. Well, I had walked all that way in, so there was no point going home until I had achieved something.

Part-way around one side of the shopping centre, it occurred to me I ought to get some one-pound coins. You need one if you go shopping in some supermarkets, to allow you to use a trolley or to park your car, and so I went back to Nationwide and intended to take a £10 note out of the A.T.M. outside the branch. But it had an 'out of order' sign taped to it, so I went back inside to use another machine. With my £10 note clutched in my hand, I went to queue up at the tills, not something I am used to because I usually either use an A.T.M. or the website or app. On getting to a free window, I asked the nice lady behind the counter whether I could have my nice, crisp, clean £10 note changed into one-pound coins. I was, told, not unless I paid it into my account. This seemed somewhat nonsensical, but apparently, you now can merely expect to have your ready cash transformed into coinage without having an account (which I have.) So, this is what I did. She told me it was because they have to have a 'paper trail', which is certainly a new approach to this whole business. I didn't argue, and she went through the process of paying it back into my account, for which I had to sign (!) and then she took £10 of one-pound coins out of her till, put it into a plastic bag, and handed it to me. Job done, but what a load of unnecessary bother, even faff!

Sunday. 12.05 p.m. Due to taking the Piriton, which leave you feeling drowsy, I didn't go to church this morning and watched via Facebook and viewed on the Portal TV gadget which is connected to my Hitachi television set. No problem with the sound, and I could hear everything loud and clear, but the video was very blurry. I don't understand the technology, so I can't say why the picture was so low tech. It is generally fairly good quality. Probably has something to do with the speed of the wi-fi somewhere between Shenley and Oldbrook.

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.

New glasses!

I hadn't heard anything from Boot's opticians as regards my new glasses being ready so I went into Milton Keynes Shopping Centre mid-morning. I have continued to deliver the IKEA catalogues, and managed around 60 more along the Chaffron Way side of Eaglestone. It's easier when you have a clear map, which I don't have. Google Maps is useful, but even that doesn't mark all the names of the little alleyways and roads. The photographic version is clearer as you can see the actual houses. I have done another 'block' of houses this morning, so that leaves a block coming back towards home for tomorrow and there's some flats within the hospital grounds that need to be delivered to.

I got to Boots and asked at the reception desk. I had been told that it would take two weeks from the original eye-test for the glasses to be made up, and was told that they would telephone when they were ready for collection, so, when I still hadn't herd anything, I decided to go to the store to find out what was going on. The lady on reception looked on their computer but could find nothing. They seemed to be having trouble getting into the system to track orders. I sat and waited, and after around 10 minutes they told me that my glasses were indeed in. I had to try them on, and they fit perfectly. The old ones, as I've already mentioned in the earlier post, fell apart, and not only that, they had kept slipping down my nose and making life really difficult. These, thankfully, remained on my face and didn't slip down my nose! So, I wore them as I left. Mission accomplished, and now I can see the world clearly again, thankfully.

Eye Test

I've been into Milton Keynes Centre and had my eyes tested at Boot's Opticians. I parked in Debenham's car park, as I was likely to be some while, having dropped Carol at the Academy, as they were having G.C.S.E. results this morning. I had some time to waste so I walked around the shopping centre, although most of the shops weren't yet opened, although I did go into W.H.Smith and browsed around in the book and magazine section. I got to Boot's at around 8.35, and was surprised to find them open. The eye appointment was at 9.00, but I had to fill in a form first and then had the pre-screening done, which includes the rather nasty test they do to check for glacoma, done with a small puff of air on your eyeball. I have had this done before and it's unpleasant. Even though I know it's coming, and you're expected to keep your eye open and stare at a red dot, I still jump when it comes. They have to do three for each eye, I suppose to get at least one of those three as an average reading. The you do the periperal vision test with a machine with lights that blink on and off and you have to click on a button. I had to sit back in the waiting area and then the actual eyetest began. No real problems, but I haven't had an eye-test for at least five years. Then I had to select a pair of glasses and an assessment was made as to the finished glasses, and I will pick up the finished glasses in a few days time.