November Sun

 Thursday. 12.35 p.m. The weather is terrible today. It's raining heavily, and it's overcast.

The digital thermometer currently reads 21ºc.

We had our weekly Life Group at the Oaktree Centre this morning, but there were only 4 of us there. We had a long conversation about memories of Christmases, instead of the usual Bible study.

Friday. 9.25 a.m. I have washing in the dryer, and I'm waiting for it to finish.

It is brighter on the weather front. There is a weak sun, and at least it's not raining or a howling wind.

The digital thermometer currently reads 20ºc.

12.55 p.m. I had a Christmas card I wanted to post, to my brother, Andrew. I waited until my washing was dried and put away, and drove to the Post Office in the One Stop shop in Coffee Hall. I had gone on line to check my bank account, because I wanted to go on to Sainsbury's after I'd dealt with the card.l Unfortunately, when I got to One Stop, I then discovered that the Post Office counter within the store had gone, and I had to buy a book of stamps for around £6, took one and stuck it on the envelope which contained the Christmas card and then posted it in the post box outside the store. I then had to return to Dexter House to pick up my bank card and then drive on to Sainsbury's. Meanwhile, I had to contend with roadworks as it would appear that the Council was doing resurfacing work at the roundabout, which I had to cross to get to Sainsbury's and negotiate a lot of orange traffic cones, and it wasn't totally clear where you were supposed to drive.

Saturday. 7.50 a.m. Yesterday I took delivery of an SD card for my Osmo Pocket 3, which I had ordered from Amazon. These things are tiny, no bigger than the nail of your little finger. In fact, I think it's a good deal smaller. It is quite difficult to remove it from the packaging. You have to cut through the card which houses the thing and then attack the plastic which holds it in place. You need scissors to cut through everything and be careful to not damage the actual SD card. Once removed from it's prison, I had to remove the current SD card from the camera and replace it with the new one. Then, initialise it to make sure it will work correctly. This done, I had to remove it and at this point, it is quite difficult, as the thing is kept in place with a strong spring, which only managed to make the SD card shoot out of the housing and disappear somewhere in the area around my chair. I began to hunt frantically for it, and decided that it was totally lost. Which annoyed me, as the thing costs £30. So I ordered a second one on Amazon. It was whilst resting on my bed, that I thought it might be a good idea to look inside my armchair, by lifting the seat cushion, and, there was the missing SD card, which I put in the camera case. I will have to be a little more careful when dealing with the SD cards in the Osmo Pocket 3.

1,800th Blog Post!

 Friday. 7.00 a.m. Today, this blog reaches the momentous milestone of 1,800 posts! It never occurred to me, back when I wrote the first post back on 27th September 2009 at 4 p.m., that  I would still be reporting on the goings-on around Milton Keynes, and in particular, in my life, so many years later. I manage to report on some of the absurdities of life, some plain crazy, some downright outrageous and some just plain monotonous, some laughable and some downright sad, particularly the passing of my lovely wife, Carol. Fourteen years! How many other blogs can you mention have survived that long?

11.00 a.m. I've just been out with Alfie. It looks very much as if it's going to rain, so we weren't out very long. A lot of dark clouds and I think I felt a drop of rain.

4.25 a.m. I bought a gimbal for my iPhone, which was supposed to be used for video and the idea would be to enable you to take video. The gimbal would keep the phone steady, and you should be able to do a series of camera moves with it. The thing works through an app and connects to your phone using Bluetooth, but, after more than a week, I hadn't been able to get the thing to work, so I have sent it back to Amazon. Returning items to Amazon used to be relatively easy. You could print off a return label from the Amazon website and just take it to a Post Office for it to be posted. But now you have to use Evri (the new name for Hermes.) You have to take the parcel to a specific shop locally. I took it to Tesco's in Oldbrook Boulevard, but it turned out that they weren't a 'sending' only a 'receiving' store. I had to take it to a One Stop store in Bradwell Common Boulevard, which is just along the road from my Doctor's surgery. I had to scan a QR code at a machine within this store, which I had printer off from the email I got from Amazon, and this allowed a label to be printed which I attached to the parcel which I then handed over to the assistant on the till, and she gave me a receipt.

Saturday. 6.00 a.m. Yesterday afternoon we had a tea party, given by members of M.K.C.C. (Milton Keynes Christian Centre) and organized by two friends from Shenley Christian Centre, who also go to M.K.C.C., which, incidentally, is just along Strudwick Drive from Dexter House. There were plenty of sandwiches and cakes as well as tea, and we had a quiz, which I won! I got a box of Maltesers as a prize!

I was out really early this morning, at 5.20. Alfie and I did our, by now, regular circuit of Oldbrook Green. 

7.40 a.m. Excitement! I have cleaned out my fridge. It was getting to the point where it really did need a clean. Taking everything it contained out and onto the kitchen counters and then all the shelves and the tray in which I keep fruit and vegetables, wash in the sink with soapy water, dry and then replace, throwing out anything which is past its 'best before' date, and then returning to the fridge. The sort of job which you tend to put off until it becomes necessary. So I can safely say, 'job done'! The freezer section could do with defrosting, but that isn't the easiest job, as you need to have somewhere to put the frozen food, such as another freezer until the freezer is defrosted and working again.

10.30 a.m. It's surprisingly warm and sunny today. As it's a Bank Holiday weekend (well, technically Monday is a Bank Holiday.) So, will it remain so warm? I say this because it is almost traditional to have bad weather on a Bank Holiday. So, let's wait and see. Then, next Saturday, we have the Coronation of Charles III and Camilla. Quite historic in some respects, as we're certainly not likely to get another within my lifetime (that is, of course, unless Charles turns up his toes within only a few years, which I hope doesn't happen. 

11.10 a.m. I went to Sainsbury's to buy one or two items. It wasn't busy, just after 9.00 a.m. I presume most people don't go shopping early at the weekend, which might explain things. I then came home and took Alfie out around Oldbrook Green. Not only that, but I didn't put my jacket on, so that's a first this year! I will next be getting my shorts out, as it's rapidly approaching knee-showing-off time around here. I remember last year, particularly during that extremely hot period when temperatures reached record levels, I lived in my shorts.

All In A Day's Work

Tuesday. 10.20 a.m. It's still mild. Not sunny, although a slight chill. For late January, really mild. I thought it was cold enough for snow, but it doesn't seem cold enough for snow at the moment.

I have been to post the parcel for the grandsons. I drove towards Coffee Hall, but for some inexplicable reason, I missed the turn, thinking I had gone past the turning for Milton Keynes Academy. So I had to take the next right turn into Coffee Hall. A real maze of roads and with some manoeuvering, I managed to get to Garraways where One Stop is which has the post office inside.

I'm gradually transcribing my handwritten work onto word processing. The new MacBook is certainly making life easier in that respect. I have well over 1500 words written and it's going well. Not just transcribing, but making alterations as I go.

Wednesday. 9.40 a.m. I'm continuing with the transcribing. It's going well. A slow process, but it has to be done.

Yesterday evening I watched the first episode of 'The Green Planet', the latest David Attenborough natural history series on BBC 1. (Although I watched it via BBC iPlayer.) What can I say, except that it's beautiful and totally amazing, especially the use of time-lapse photography, to show plants growing? As usual, the final ten minutes is devoted to the people who make the show, answering a question I had as soon as I saw this footage, 'how do they do it?' This is the type of programme which only the BBC can make. The patience of the makers is totally incredible. It's a bit like animation, something else that intrigues me. A very slow process to get a mere couple of screen time. 

Oh dear! Boris Johnson is in a pickle. Nothing new there. He's something of a loose cannon. Partygate, which it has been christened, is all over the papers. There have been parties, both Christmas and the birthday variety, within the hallowed confines of Number 10 Downing Street during the lockdown in 2020. It would appear that there has been a certain amount of hypocrisy going on here. One minute our esteemed Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has been telling us to 'remain at home' during the pandemic lockdown, during the almost daily press conferences, the next he has been holding gatherings within Downing Street, one of which was in the garden. It has since been revealed that he has a birthday party held in his honour. There is a picture circulating where he has been presented with a rather tasty-looking birthday cake and he has a wide grin on his face. It seems that he cannot resist cake at any price. Even though he must have know that a gathering of his cabinet or other political allies within Downing Street would have been against the rules. 

Johnson is a combination of Mr Toad, Bertie Wooster, Billy Bunter and Winnie The Pooh!

There is an investigation going into Partygate. It does seem rather extreme, to say the least, and somewhat unnecessary. Will Boris be forced to resign over eating cake? Will he bite the dust? All rather like an episode of the rather brilliant 1980s political sitcom 'Yes Prime Minister."  Even something out of Oliver Cromwell's time as Lord Chancellor. Or perhaps something out of the works of Frans Kafka. Certainly comedic. 

So, what happens after the findings of the independent investigation are revealed? Will Boris be sent packing?

Just tell me, what did this woman Sue Gray investigate? Did she go round 10 Downing Street with a magnifying glass like Sherlock Holmes, looking for birthday cake crumbs? Did she find party poppers on the floor? The candles from Boris's birthday cake? The wrapping paper from presents? It all sounds so idiotic it sounds as if it's been fabricated by some sort of spoilsport.

No Milk!

(Saturday) I've done it again! The milk was off so I couldn't have my breakfast bowl of cereal or my mug of tea. I'll just have to wait until the local shop is open and then, once I've munched my cereal and drunk my tea, I can take Alfie out around Eaglestone Park. He's watching me on from his position on the sofa. Never mind. I just didn't realise the milk was off. It came out with horrible floaty bits in it so that's the end of it.

Later. I've been to get milk from the One Stop shop in Garroways, Coffee Hall. I came back and  took Alfie out for his walk. There was absolutely no way he was going to let me have my bowl of cereal and cup of tea before we went out. But I had this when we got back. Funny little dog, a bit of a control freak, but I love him to bits. He's been a fantastic support for me during Carol's diagnosis and since she's died. made myself a cup of tea

I went to Aldi at Bradwell Common. I'm trying to wean myself off Sainsbury's. Nothing wrong with them as a supermarket, but compared with Aldi, they are not cheap. I was in and out in barely 10-15 minutes. No lingering, which is how the big supermarkets want you to behave, selling stuff that you don't really need, such as clothing, so you put it in your trolley and before you know it, your final bill has doubled or trebled. I like the fact that Aldi, as well as Lidl, is relatively small footprint and that you have little choice for some products so its easy to make a decision. Why have so many versions of the same thing, washing-up liquid, breakfast cereal, coffee or tea? Just put it in our trolley. Then, at the checkout, they speedily scan it through. Someone has had the sense to make the barcodes easy to find and they're larger than on other supermarket's packaging. You just have your shopping scanned straight into your trolley and you pack it into your own bags on a nearby shelf once you've paid, which means less waiting in the queue.

Yesterday was hot. Infact, far too hot. After the glitch on Thursday, when my heart rate increased when I went out on my way to the Oaktree Centre, I made sure I stayed indoors and out of the heat. This morning it's not as hot, although the sun is shining at 6.55a.m. I have taken Alfie out around Eaglestone Park, a bit of a surprise for him and before I had my breakfast. Now watching BBC Breakfast and Donald Trump visiting the D.M.Z. (Demilitarised Zone) between North and South Korea. I'm not sure how the pictures are being transmitted, probably via a satellite link, but the pictures keep freezing. Trump preening and making the most of the photo opportunity. He really is a narcissist and relishes being the centre of attention. But, it depends how you read this 'historic event,' and I suppose it it, but don't forget that Trump intends to stand again for next year's Presidential Election, it's just a photo opportunity. But will President Moon, North Korean President, turn up to meet him? Of course, Trumpy has to broadcast this all over Twitter. Just surprises me that the President of the USA should be allowed to use Twitter or any social media, more from a security perspective than anything else.

I've decided that the world, at long last, will have to endure the sight of my knees and my legs! I've put on my shorts and the short-sleeved shirt I bought in Marks and Spencers some while ago. Just need to keep cool today, that's all. The sun continues to shine at 8.15a.m. Just sitting here in my armchair in the lounge writing this.

I've been to Shenley Christian Centre. The speaker was someone from Newlife Church called Dave Eyeington. One of the guys I work with in the drama workshop told me he went there. No end of people in the café area during the break between services when they serve tea and coffee. But NO BISCUITS! I know, I shouldn't eat them, but I do like a biccy with my cuppa and disappointed when there wasn't a Hobnob, Ginger Nut, Digestive, Jammie Dodger (I like them best, especially the red, jammy bit in the centre.) or Custard Cream. Now I've talked myself into going out and getting a packet from the local shop. I think it's called, I can't think now, but I know what I'm attempting to say. Something to do with psychology. It's how supermarkets get us to buy, buy, buy.

I left the Oaktree Centre and immediately drove down Chaffron Way and went to Waitrose and into the café to have a latte, egg sandwich and rather nice Danish pastry. I have bought myself a water bottle because I think I need to drink more, particularly in this warm weather. I think it was when my heart rate increased because of the heat the other evening that encouraged me to buy this item. I just now have to remember to actually fill it with water and take it with me and not leave it at home.

There was quite a queue of cars coming out of the carpark and going up the slope leaving Waitrose. Why on earth is it such a tight turn coming up that slope? Why do drivers insist of trying to turn right coming onto Chaffron Way? It's a particularly dangerous turn in the first place and surely it's safer and easier to turn left, go round the roundabout and go straight ahead, or is that too simple and easy and far easier? I just wonder how many accidents there have been at this junction. The local authority needs to put some sort of barrier in the centre of the road so that people can't turn right. I imagine if they did this, then there would be an outcry. Always someone who will complain, even if it's a safety measure. Driving at full speed around Milton Keynes, at whatever the speed limit is is also dangerous, but it needs to be no more that 50 miles per hour.

As I drove back along Chaffron Way back home I got a phone call through the media system in my car. I have managed to connect my iPhone to the sound system via Bluetooth. This was only the second such call I have had since setting this up. It was from a friend, Margaret, who goes to Shenley Christian Fellowship. It was inviting me for lunch at 2 o'clock. I immediately said yes. It's nice to be invited and a chance to get out of the house. Also nice not to have to prepare a meal and also it means I won't now need to have a meal this evening. They live in Downhead Park, which is next to Willen, no just Willen Hospice (barely a five-minute drive when Carol was in there) but also Camphill.

1360th Blog post. Still Sunny!

This will be my 1360th blog post! Why should that be so important? Well, it isn't, but it's quite an achievement to have kept this blog going for so long.

The sun is shining, the birds are singing! What more can one want? I can do without wasps, flies and other insects which invade the house. I can also do without pop music blasted at me from whatever quarter. People have their windows open, which means there is a leakage of boom-diddy-boom-diddy-boom-bom-boom. You know, or perhaps you don't, that drum beat that a lot of pop music seems to have. It's right what Noel Coward said, 'strange how potent cheap music is!' which is a line from his play 'Private Lives.' The joke is, if you know this play, that the music which is playing in the background is 'Some Day I'll Find You,' which he wrote! So it's sort of turning things on itself. But, regardless of all that, I do agree. I suppose that the sentiment in that line is that popular music has to be potent, in the sense of probably, a drug or alcohol, it has to work it's magic by being repetitive or overwhelming. Anyway, my thing is that drum beating in the distance can be just annoying and puts me off whatever I'd doing, probably attempting to plot a piece I happen to be writing. Then there's those crazed individuals who insist on having pop music blasting from the speakers in their cars as they speed by. So loud it makes the car vibrate and all you get is the booming sound, no music to speak of. Why can it never be Beethoven or Mozart of any other composer's music you care to mention? But if that's the case, why have it so loud that everyone else has to put up with it, regardless of whether they want to or not.

Later. Yesterday evening (Thursday) I went to S.C.F. for another session of The Bible Course. There are three more to go. I was undecided as to what to wear and in the end I didn't wear my new shorts and short-sleeved shirt. As I left the house, I was suddenly hit by the heat. I was around 6.45 and it was quite intense, not helped by the fact that when I got in the car I found the interior hotter still, by quite a few degrees. It made my heart rate increase. I was feeling quite unwell, not exactly helped by the other drivers who insist on tailgating me as I drove up Chaffron Way to the Oaktree Centre. I had to have a drink of water on arrival and I found the main hall cooler than the café area and by the time we started the course I was feeling better. But I think it's a warning to be more careful when the sun is so hot and I was shocked by how hot it was so late in the day.

(Friday) I was quite insistent that I get a lie-in. I was more than determined that I wouldn't get up before 6a.m. I actually took Alfie out at 7 this morning! He wasn't exactly pleased, but it was worth the extra time asleep. I hope to continue with this regime.

Too good to stay indoors today. I had to get out, even if it was just a trip into central Milton Keynes. I had to first go to get some change for the carpark. I do have the RingGo app on my iPhone, but it doesn't always work, so I had to have change for the machine. I went to the Eaglestone shop to use the A.T.M. outside but when I got there, it wasn't working. No cash in it. I know these machines have a tendency to run out of cash, but it was somewhat annoying because I then had to drive all the way to the One Stop shop in Coffee Hall. Fortunately the machine was working, but because the sun was so strong it was next to impossible to read the screen, but fortunately I was able to extract £30 from the maws of the mighty machine and then go into the shop to buy two bags of wine gums and fruit pastilles in order to get change.

I arrived at the carpark and then I found the RingGo app wouldn't work, so I was glad that I'd had the foresight to get change for the parking meter. This technology can be great when it works, but when it doesn't, it's just a waste of time. So it's as well to not always rely on it and use a different method of payment. I walked into the shopping centre and paid some money into my Metro Bank savings account. From there I went into Midsummer Place and as I was waking through I heard my name 'John!' but at first I didn't respond. Then one of the guys from Campbell ran up to me. He said he was about to catch a bus to Peterborough. It's great that they can respond to me and we have long chats when I'm there. I told him he'd better not miss his bus, so he went off, presumably outside to the bus stop. No doubt I'll hear more about his visit (which I believe is where his parents live.) when I'm at Camphill on Tuesday.

Next. Something to eat. Waterstones was near so I went in and as there was nobody queuing I decided to order a latte, toastier and a bun. Very efficient staff and I was soon sitting at a table. As I had my iPhone with me I was able to connect to the internet and look at Facebook and Twitter. Are these devices such a good idea? In some respects, yes, but when people spend a long time on them and disregard those around them, for example, in a work situation, with family and friends, they are more of a distraction and aren't really a replacement for face-to-face conversation, but can be useful for keeping in contact with family and friends and if you want to be easily contacted, ideal. But being in a bookshop it's an ideal place to have a café. Put me near books and I'm quite happy, so once I'd finished my snack I had a browse of the tables that Waterstone so craftily has set up which entices you to look at the books on display and then I went upstairs to the history section to have a further browse. I left before I purchased a book. I have to be honest that I have more than enough books in my bookshelf and could easily buy more. I have several which are waiting in a queue to be read.

From Waterstones I went into the main shopping centre and walked along the mall towards John Lewis and was interested in a store which is going to open soon, called Typo which I have discovered sells stationary. As Staples has since disappeared from Milton Keynes, which is a disappointment because where am I to buy fresh stocks of computer ink cartridges, paper and all the other paraphernalia, pens, pencils etc etc? I'm not sure when it's due to open, but I will have to visit once it's up and running. Also, I had to go into The Works, because they're stock changes rapidly and you have to buy whatever catches your eye when you're there because otherwise it's gone and by the time you return it will be gone, which is the same with T.K. Maax, another store I love browsing in as well as their partner store called Homesense. A good place to go if you're looking for kitchen items, such as saucepans, baking tins etc. 

Saturday Morning At Stowe

A bright and sunny morning again. We were quite prepared to make the most of it. We chose to visit Stowe Landscape Gardens near Buckingham, about a 30-minute car journey from home. There are a lot of other National Trust properties we considered, but in the end Stowe was where we eventually chose to visit.

It's a quite spectacular drive when you turn off the road from Buckingham onto the avenue that leads to the magnificent Corinthian arch which you see from the distance. The road goes between two lodges either side of the road and out into the tree-lined avenue. As the road makes it's way you loose sight of the arch as you dip down because of the hilly landscape and then it comes back a couple more times as you approach. Today it is lit by the sun which almost makes it seem to glow. It would have been even more astonishing back in the 18th century when visitors approached via horse-drawn carriages. Ir would obviously have been a good deal slower than modern-day mechanical transport, such as cars and coaches, adding to the excitement before you arrive at the entrance, which was originally through this arch.

You now park in a more recently-built and opened carpark from where you parked your car when we used to visit years ago, near the Stowe School playing fields and enter through a temporary building on the opposite side of the gardens. This was intended to replicate how visitors came to the gardens back in the 18th century, when some would have stayed in the inn, which now forms part of the visitors centre, which includes a café, toilets, shop and garden centre area outside and then you can walk down the road which leads into the gardens, or you can take one of the several buggies which ferry visitors the short distance if you don't want to walk. We saw many visitors walking with children in pushchairs as well as walking dogs, as this property seems to be a favourite dog-waking venue. This lane is known as Bell Gate Drive, because it leads to a gate into the gardens which used to have a bell which visitors would ring in order to be let in by a servant who lived in the near-by house. All the planting near the carpark is beginning to mature and the bushes and trees have grown considerably since we last visited. Also, the surfaces of the paths have been given a far more substantial finish, better for walking on or pushing wheelchairs or buggies on. We also noticed that there seem a few more ride-on buggies for those who prefer not to walk and some which circulated within the garden. A good idea, because it is quite a long way to walk if you come from the carpark along Bell Gate Drive and then go across to, say, Stowe House, which is on the opposite side of the gardens. Today we walked down but took the buggy back when we left to go home.

We walked quite some way within the gardens. Some areas which we have never visited before. It's such a large place that it's surprising that we saw parts we had never seen before. Everything looking well cared for and tidy, a good enough thing to notice particularly as we're National Trust members.

We had intended having ice-cream or coffee in the café when we arrived back at the visitor centre, having had a lift on the buggy. I went off to the toilet and Carol went to see what was on offer in the café, but by the time I got back to her she said that there was such a long queue that we'd have to wait too long and it would be better to just return home. Which is what we did. On arriving back in Milton Keynes we went to the One Stop shop in Coffee Hall to buy milk and Cadbury's Dairy Milk ice creams which we took home and sat and ate in the sitting room.

Another Hot Day

It rained in the night. (Friday into Saturday) We were told on the BBC1 weather forecast yesterday evening. I wasn't aware of it. It clouded over during the evening and I thought it was suddenly going to pour, but it decided against it. But when I got up this morning and peered out of the bedroom window I noticed that the grass in the garden was sprinkled with drops of what must have been rain, but it had hardly dampened the ground. The road outside, having opened the bathroom window when I was shaving, didn't so much as appear damp. I took Alfie our for his early-morning walk (if you can call it a 'walk.' I do the walking and he does the running.)

I went to the One Stop shop in Garraways after 9 o'clock this morning to use the Post Office within the store as I needed a First Class stamp to put on an envelope as I had to post off a form which came from Carol's work, from the salary office. I don't know what it's about, but something to do with her no longer getting S.S.P. (Statutory Sick Pay) and it had to be posted off fairly promptly. I had fun looking for an envelope, but remembered a pack of them which were tidied away when we took the books off the old bookshelves at the time we replaced them with the new IKEA ones a few months ago. All the books were put into various containers and then deposited in the spare room. Fortunately the envelopes were in one of these containers.

Then a shopping trip to Sainsbury's. A need to pick up something for my evening meal, together with milk and a few other items before I went to see Carol on Ward 22.

I decided to walk to the hospital. At least I would be saving on the cost of parking. At the weekend the Macmillan unit is closed so you can't get your parking ticket clipped so you don't have to pay when you leave. It costs at least £4.50 a day to park which soon adds up, so the fact you can park for nothing if you are a cancer patient is something of a relief.

When I got into the ward, Carol said I was just in time as she was going for another M.R.I. scan. Or, at least that's what she thought. There seemed to be something of a mix-up and none of the nurses were sure whether it was booked. Generally you aren't supposed to eat within 3 hours of a scan, and Carol hadn't had breakfast. Then one of the nurses discovered that a scan wasn't booked, which was annoying. We want this done fairly soon because Carol's temperature is now stabilised and the doctor on the ward said that it had to remain stable for at least 48 hours before they could let her be discharged. They needed to see the scan of the infected area in her abdomen before discharging her. Thinking about it, she could have gone home, as she was told she could return home but return to the hospital for the scan and another check-up. A bit of a waste of time, considering she's been in hospital for nearly 4 weeks.

Then a nurse came in to say that, yes, Carol would be having the long-awaited M.R.I. scan. But it wouldn't matter whether she ate, which pleased her somewhat. It seemed to take some time for her lunch to arrive.  Everyone else seemed to have their lunch on the ward well before Carol's arrived. Some people had even finished theirs by the time Carol's arrived.  When it eventually arrived it was a sandwich of some sort, possibly ham, and soup. I don't personally think I could eat hot soup in this current hot weather. I had bought a sandwich from Sainsbury's, along with a bag of Popchips, a flapjack bar and an Innocent smoothie. Carol said that the soup was tasteless, so she had to ask one of the nurses for some salt to put on it. I don't think it exactly improved the taste.

Then the porter arrived with a wheelchair and Carol was whisked off to the M.R.I. scan, not more than a 5-minute ride across the road. The whole procedure took around 20 minutes and I waited in the waiting area.

It was back to the ward after the scan, by which time it was time for me to walk home. I just hope Carol's temperature remains stable and nothing too nasty shows up on the scan so that she can at last be discharged as she really longs to get out of that hospital ward.

Fortunately it hasn't be as roasting hot as of previous days, although the weather forecast says that we're going to get even warmer weather. We do desperately need rain, as the lawns and grass all along the grid roads around Milton Keynes look so parched and brown.

When I got home I thought I'd treat Alfie to another walk. I looked at the post and another letter had arrived asking for some paperwork for our benefit application. I'm now confused as to which address I have to send the form from the salary department, so I scored out the one I had already written on the envelope and put the address they had on this new letter and when we went out for the walk across Eaglestone Park I posted it in the letterbox just along from our house. Alfie was really keen on his jaunt around the park and all told add a few steps on my total for the day, which is now 7712.

More Marathon Misery

I know the moment I post this I'm going to upset someone out there. It's almost as if you're not allowed to have an opinion, particularly if it doesn't fit in with someone else's. But hard cheese. Hard luck or whatever. We're going to have to put up with a load of runners through our estate tomorrow. I have no problem with these marathons or whatever they are called. All good fun, good exercise, excellent for various charities.  Each to his own. It's just annoying that if we want to get out of Eaglestone we can't or will be inconvenienced, for example, having to park our car outside the closed-off area. I know it's for only a few hours on a Sunday, but it's still annoying. It's just that I think the organisers of these events could at least cooperate with the residents of the estates which the marathon goes through, or at least change the route once in a while. But they won't. So, if I want to get out of Eaglestone tomorrow morning, early, I'll have to park somewhere else and drive out somehow or other before things get going. Park outside the area not run through by the marathon runners. End of story. Thinking about it, I don't think it is actually a marathon, but who's splitting hairs? Not actually a marathon misery, but as I love alliteration in my subject-line for my blog posts.

We've been playing with Alfie. He knows where the treats are kept. In a tin near where Carol sits on the sofa. Under different circumstances he would tap it with his nose or his paw, but he's just being difficult. Just too clever by half.

We've had that confounded squirrel back in the garden and on the bird feeding station. It's been several times. Alfie doesn't seem to take any notice of it. I don't really want it eating the bird food. After all, a squirrel is really a big rat with a large fluffy tail. Next door's cats have been prowling around, wandering along the top of the fence and scaring off the birds, which is a shame. They know that Alfie can't touch them, and as soon as he seems them, he starts barking madly.

We went to Garroway's to use the One-Stop shop. Carol fancied bacon sandwiches for lunch. Also, bread and eggs. As a last resort, imperial mints. She didn't come into the shop, but stayed in the car. I could find white bread, but for some reason they've moved things around so I can't find eggs. I walk around the shelves several time. It's just annoying that they need to shift things around. Just to get customers annoyed. You know where everything is, then it's moved, for no good reason. I have to ask someone where the eggs are. Imperial mints? The sweet section has moved. Now that area has greetings cards. Crazy! It's a small shop. Why this ceaseless shifting stock around? I've mentioned this before, regarding supermarkets. Well, One-Stop is owned by Tesco. Need I say more? 

Carol's Birthday and M.R.I. Scan

Today is Carol's birthday. Unfortunately she has her scan at 6.30 this evening. She can't eat anything after three hours before, so it will make things difficult as regards our evening meal. It won't matter one bit to me, of course. We're likely to get back around 7.30, depending, of course on if the scanning department is running to schedule. We were determined to go out somewhere at lunchtime, so we had to think of a place to eat, have coffee, had easy parking and didn't require too much walking. So we chose to go to Marks and Spencers at MK Stadium. It's not too far away and is relatively easy to get to. On arrival there was a fairly long queue and we couldn't avoid the fantastic selection of cakes on display. Who couldn't resist cake? We chose a piece of chocolate fudge cake and a piece of carrot cake. Also, sandwiches from a display unit.  A female member of staff came along the queue asking people what hot drinks they wanted. When I was about to say, she walked away! So what was the point of this exercise? As this was Marks and Spencer, I was surprised by the rather odd bit of customer care (or lack of.) Carol went to sit at a table whilst I got the order (eventually taken by the man on the till) and I had to gingerly walk over to the table with the tray of things, attempting to not spill the coffees (I ordered mediums, but the size of the cups were more like large. No complaints though.) The café was extremely busy. Mostly retired people (or I imagine so) and families with children. No doubt grandparents looking after grandchildren. One little girl sitting at the table next to us, probably no more than 3, very capable of opening one of those drinks that come with a straw. They can be difficult for me to open, to remove the straw from the side of the cardboard packaging and remove plastic wrapping and then straighten out the straw (why do they have to bend them in the first place?) but her grandad had to help her put the straw in the hole in the top of the packaging.

Our cake was pleasant. Along with the sandwiches, although somewhat over-priced. Never mind, it was a birthday outing, so the cost didn't matter.

I had intended buying some flowers for Carol. We went into the food section of Marks and Spencers on the way out of the store. She likes daffodils and tulips. They had some daffs near the tills, but they looked a bit bedraggled. No use buying flowers that are too well advanced, opened. They need to have closed buds, allowing for  few days for them to open. We selected a few items to eat later and then, when we got to the till there were several buckets of tulips, so I selected the least advanced bunch and paid.

We had to buy top-up for our electricity meter. So we drove to Garroways to go to the One Stop shop. I went to the till, and, having waited for a customer to be served ahead of me, was told that they would only take cash so I couldn't use my debit card to pay. So I had to go outside to use the A.T.M., and by the time I went back inside the shop there was a queue of several people. I must remember that they will only accept cash next time I have to top up our electricity meter.

We were due at the hospital for 6.30 this evening.  Fortunately we knew precisely where we had to go. One of the advantages of now knowing our way around the hospital site. The carpark had plenty of vacant spaces and the barrier was up so we drove in and out without the need for a ticket or to have to pay on exit. We got to the M.R.I. department  in plenty of time. I'm glad we did, as Carol was soon called in to be prepped for the scan. A good 15-20 minutes before the scheduled time. I had to sit in the waiting area. I suppose the scan took around 20 minutes. You can hear a computerised voice say 'you can breath properly now' or something, which indicated that it was over. Carol was bought out, not looking 100%. She had to be helped by a member of staff and the nurse went off to get a drink of water for her. Carol sat next to me for a while and then another member of staff came to clean up the cannula she has in her arm for the chemotherapy.  This was soon dealt with and we were soon walking back to the carpark and driving home. We should get the results of the scan on Monday when Carol goes to the oncology department for the beginning of the seventh chemotherapy cycle.

Fixing the Car Door and Enabling Mobile Top-Up

I've been back to O.K. Garage this morning. The speed that traffic has been moving is making me feel quite unsafe. The people at the garage were talking about this matter, saying that there should be a lower speed limit on the grid roads around Milton Keynes. So, it's not just me thinking that drivers around here have become excessively aggressive. The mechanics have had a really difficult job trying to find where the thing is in the car that controls the car. I waited in their reception area for around an hour and a half and was eventually told that this 'thing' that controls the sliding doors and which is, presumably, playing up and preventing the driver's side door from working properly, is actually INSIDE THE DOOR!!! I can't believe it. It took most of yesterday and near enough two hours this morning to discover this. I would have thought there would be some sort of diagram somewhere or other, probably on a website, which would show the electrical circuitry for the car. There is, but apparently it doesn't show this electrical thingemy. The garage will let me know when they've managed to track down a replacement so that it can be fitted, but it means we have to drive around for a little bit longer with the door still not working properly. It's beginning to become somewhat annoying and wearing having to use brute force to open and close the door and sometimes having to contend with the alarm going on to tell us that the door isn't closed properly.

The other problem has been not being able to top up my mobile, using the 02 code which I bought in One Stop in Garraways. I decided the only solution was to go into the actual 02 shop in the Central Shopping Centre in Milton Keynes. I wasn't exactly over-enamoured of the idea as it was pouring with rain, and, having just spend so long at the garage I wasn't actually in the right frame of mind to be walking around inside the centre. But I was eager to sort out this problem. So I drove into the centre and parked where I usually do near The Point. It's becoming more and more dilapidated and really needs demolishing. As I've mentioned before, it seems awful that such an iconic building should be allowed to get into such a state of decay. How come nobody has been able to take the site over and refurbish it? It has 'For Sale' signs all over it and no doubt it will eventually be sold and the site cleared for more shops and offices. 

I walked into the centre and reached the 02 shop and explained my problem. I was told they could do nothing, the assistant attempted to top the mobile up with the code on the voucher I'd bought in One Stop. It still would not work. I'm beginning to get heartily sick of the woman's voice you have to listen to who tells you how to top the thing up. I bought a sandwich and drink in Boots and then left to return to the car and drove to Galloways in Coffee Hall. I had to queue at the till and eventually got the assistant to try the top-up once more, but no joy. I don't think she had much idea how to resolve the problem but decided to give me the benefit of the doubt and gave me a fresh voucher. I went home and tried it. Thankfully it worked. So the old voucher must have been wrong, but I can't see how, as these voucher codes must be randomly generated. I'm just glad that it now works and I have my £10 credit on the mobile.