A Tropical Heatwave

I just have to sing the song 'Heatwave' from some musical or other, or 'Too Darn Hot' from perhaps the best-ever musical, 'Kiss Me Kate.' It's because we're enjoying a heatwave at the moment. I love it warm and sunny, but it's been far too hot. With a heart condition I have to be careful in sunshine. It can be quite dangerous. Likewise, Carol, with her health condition. Having been on chemotherapy for over six months too much sunshine can be just as dangerous for her as it can be for me. I don't want to complain about the warm weather. We don't get much decent weather as it is, and considering what we've had to go through during the past year.

It's been a really hot and sticky few nights. Even with the window open in the bedroom and an electric fan on at full blast, it's been rather difficult to sleep. Then you get extraneous sounds coming into the house, adding to further difficulties sleeping. It gets light early, the dawn chorus. Boy, can those little critters half sing? I don't think they sleep. A real racket. No wonder I wake up early in the summer months.

I've continued with the clearing of the brambles and other overgrown plantlife in our garden, such as it is. I did some more work on it early this morning, as it was over-cast at around 7.30. I was determined to get more done as a lot of the stuff I managed to grub out and cut back had gone in our Wheely bin and the rubbish is collected on a Wednesday morning. I had to bring it through the house as we don't have a side gate which would obviously make life easier. The space where the gate should be had to be blocked up when the fence was repaired and it would cost at least £150 to have a new gate put in. Our lovely landlord wouldn't spend out on having this done, I am sure. But it would make our lives easier if we could just push the bin round to the front of the house for collection by the Council workmen. I'm not sure whether they take this every week. I have a feeling it's only taken every fortnight because when I put it out a couple of weeks ago it was either forgotten or ignored by the Council workmen. I have no idea when it's supposed to be taken. But it was taken and emptied early this morning. Which means I can now fill it up again. With more garden waste.

I've been looking for new shoes. I went on line as I wanted something like a trainer but made of leather. Also, with substantial soles, so I don't feel gravel or whatever through them. On using Google I went on the Sports Direct site and found some Sketchers, a lightweight sort of shoe with a more substantial sole. When we went to Waterperry Gardens the other week, no sooner had we parked the car and were walking towards the entrance, across gravel, I could feel the gravel through the soles of my current pair of Adidas trainers. Not good. They are still in good condition. Since I was at school I have always kept shoes I own and wear clean. I use treatment to keep them waterproof and make sure they are polished or at least wiped clean. I don't suppose today's children have to worry about their shoes being cleaned like I did when I was at school. They should do. Having a sort of sense of personal pride should surely be instilled into the younger generation.

I digress. Never mind. Anyway, as I say, I found what I wanted on the Sports Direct website. I could have bought them through the website, but really wanted to try them on. Which you obviously can't do from a website. I could have bought them and tried them on, not liked them, for whatever reason and then had to send them back, which I didn't fancy doing. So on Monday we drove to the retail park at Bletchley and had a look at their vast selection. I found what I was looking for and then tried them on. A very helpful lady assistant got me the second shoe (a size 10 1/2, which I found to be slightly too large. I take a 10. When she came back with the size 10 pair I tried them on and they were perfect, so I decided to buy them, together with a shoe-care kit comprising special 'rain and stain' protector as well as instant cleaning spray.

We went to Frost's garden centre in Woburn Sands this morning. Carol had another scan this afternoon at the hospital and couldn't eat after 2 p.m. We had lattes and really fantastic scones, jam and cream. These scones are larger and far tastier than the average and are to be recommended. Also had a quick browse before we went home.

We decided to drive to the hospital for Carol's scan appointment. We could have walked, but, as it was so hot, it seemed a better idea to go in the car. On getting in the car, which had been standing on the drive all day in the full force of the sun, we discovered it to be extremely hot, rather like sitting in an oven (not that either of us has done such a thing.) I had an idea it wasn't as hot as the previous day, which was supposed to have been the hottest day this year, according to the weather forecast on BBC Breakfast this morning. Anyway, we drove round to the hospital and then had to park outside the scanning department which fortunately has several dedicated parking spaces for patients. I wasn't over-pleased that we had to park on a sloping piece of tarmac, so trusted that Carol had successfully applied the car's brakes, otherwise the car would have rolled forward and crashed through the scanning unit's glass facade. The unit was running approximately 20 minutes late. No reason given, but at least the staff on reception apologised. No doubt this was due to patients being bought in from the hospital wards to be scanned. Carol was soon taken off to be scanned and I was left to read the magazines in the waiting area. It was hot in the waiting area, but the staff closed the blinds and the place soon cooled down. About 45 minutes later Carol returned, the scan having been done, and she had to sit for 15 further minutes as she had a cannula in her arm. They put some sort of dye into the patient's arm (possibly radioactive? I don't know.) and eventually it was taken out by the nurse and we returned home, having had to make a somewhat difficult reverse out of the parking space outside the unit.

A Day Out To Waterperry

Another warm, sunny and pleasant day yesterday (Wednesday). We thought it a good enough excuse to get out. We thought of places to go to, and decided we wanted somewhere green and pleasant, possibly a garden. We have a choice of several places, but not too far to drive. We hit on Waterperry Gardens, somewhere we've visited on a couple of occasions. We set up the satnav, but for some reason the thing insisted on taking us through Bletchley and not immediately along Standing Way and out towards Buckingham. It would have been more normal to take that route, but the thing insisted on the other route out of Milton Keynes.

We got to Waterperry at about 10.45. The place was busy, with the carpark nearer the entrance virtually full to overflowing and we had to park in a newer section near the farm shop, which I don't remember being there the last time we visited. I don't think they had a farm shop when we were last there, so I presume it had been built and opened since our last visit to Waterperry. We had to wait when a coach arrived. There were several more parked. It was from Milton Keynes. Ironic that we'd driven all that way when we could have gone on a coach and saved on all the stress of driving to get there. Perhaps the next time we could go on a coach, so it will be worth investigating for the future.

The was place absolutely heaving with people. Mostly 'of a certain age.' It was as well we arrived when we did. We paid to go in the garden. I don't remember us paying when we visited the first time, but I know we didn't the last time. It was worth it. People dawdling about the place. It was really nice to sit and just enjoy the quiet, just the sound of birds singing and the breeze in the tree-tops. Something soothing and relaxing about a garden, and in particular one that is so well cared for. It was certainly at it's best. Also, the smells and sights were really soothing. Necessary since we've spent so many hours in N.H.S. units over the last year or so.

We were in need of refreshment so we went into the café. The place was gradually filling up with those people who'd arrived earlier on the coaches, along with a gang of middle aged men dressed in garish biking gear. I had a tomato and cheese sandwich and Carol had a baked potato with baked beans. I bought a bottle of apple juice which we drank with our food and it has to be one of the best apple juice I've tasted. It was from Waterperry apples and very sharp and not tampered with in any way as some apple juice is when you buy it from a supermarket, pure juice, no additives or watered down or from concentrate. We took the bottle with the remainder of the juice home with us when we left.

From the café we went into the plant sales area as Carol was keen to purchase a plant for our garden, or what passes of a garden. She chose a dahlia in a pot.

So we wended our way back to our car and drove home. A pleasant morning spent.

Escaping Another Marathon

With the possibility of being stuck in Eaglestone due to the fact that yet another marathon is going to thunder past our front door, we drove away early up the A5 to visit one of the many and various retail outlets, Heart of the Shires Shopping Village which have sprung up along this road in the past few years just beyond Weedon. We have been there several times before and it's a pleasant enough place with small shops selling a wide range of products from clothes, kitchen wares to plants, flowers, and antiques. We had coffee and cake, a good, old-fashioned stand-by for us, as you will have realised if you've read and followed these posts avidly. I presume this place was previously a farmyard and the restaurant was the farm house. A good enough use for such a house. It was hardly busy at the hour we were there, no doubt because it was a Bank Holiday Monday and most people would have hardly been out of their beds. You will have also noticed that we don't hang about and seem to make a habit of arriving excessively early for things. I for one cannot see much point in wasting a good day off, with the sun shining, lounging about in bed, so arriving early is always a good idea as far as I'm concerned. We wandered around looking in the various shops. The antique centre was worth browsing in but quite frankly the objects on offer are really over-priced, probably because such television programmes as Antiques Roadshow, Bargain Hunt, and Antiques Roadtrip have made people aware of such famous names as Lalique, Moorcroft, and Clarice Cliffe, which, to be honest, I hadn't heard of before watching any of these shows. Several of the shops have gifts in them, such as teddy bears, cards, and other items, but a lot of the stuff is just rubbish and you'd find it in most places which attract tourists. Really naff ornaments that are only fit for a skip to be perfectly honest. Am I being snobbish? Probably. I have to say the quality of some of the stuff they sell here seems have gone down dramatically, which is a pity. Some of it is rather like the low-quality souvenir gifts you find at some seaside resorts.
We didn't stay too long. We intended being out of Milton Keynes until gone midday when the marathon was scheduled to end and the roads in and around Eaglestone back to normal. We drove back south on the A5. Carol said she had seen a signpost to another place off the A5 as we drove north just south of Towcester. I wasn't sure exactly where it was but she was certain. We came to a right turn which was actually quite difficult to see. You could have gone past if you didn't have particularly start eyesight. The sign was for The Old Dairy Farm Craft Centre. Another one of those places which don't seem to advertise too frequently and if we hadn't seen that sign on the A5 we would probably not been aware of. We drove along a rather narrow country lane and came to the village of Upper Stowe and eventually came to the Craft Centre. The houses around here are of local stone, very similar to those in the Cotswolds and we soon parked in the carpark. We wandered around the small shops within the site (presumably, like the Heart of Shires Shopping Village, a former farm. Well, 'Old Dairy Farm' does give things away.) A lot of really nice hand-made products, such as jewelry and pottery items, as well as paintings and prints. We eventually decided we'd need something to eat as it was now around midday, so we went into the restaurant on the site, The Barn Restaurant. This is a really attractive barn conversion which was really busy with people coming and going, which suggested to me that it must be popular. Also, like Waterperry Gardens, which we visited a few weeks ago, popular with bikers. We had to wait at the door to be shown to a table upstairs, a good deal quieter than the downstairs area and ordered toastie for me and salad for Carol, all very well presented and cooked. Another very pleasant place to visit and to recommend. Out of the ordinary and not like a lot of 'chain' establishments which are taking over the high street of many towns. It's good to find somewhere that is quiet and has a uniqueness about it.

We drove back down the A5 and by the time we got to Saxon Street we saw runners along the Redway, which suggested that there were stragglers finishing the marathon. But by now the sun was shining. The weather has been mixed all Bank Holiday weekend, but at least we've managed to make the most of it.

Waterperry Gardens and Medical Appointment

On Sunday morning, it was bright sunshine. Rather than sit indoors we wanted to make an effort to get out. Saturday it rained constantly. The grass remained partially mown, unfortunately. Carol is eager to get plants and other items to get the garden turned round. We went to Wickes the other day and bought some tools. Saves us having to borrow off other people. A spade and lopper which means we can cut down any stray branches and dig any holes as required for planting. We also bought a chimenea from the on-line company, Very, which arrived last week, which is why we went to Wickes to buy tools, including screwdrivers in order to put the chimenea together. The thing came in a large parcel and it didn't include such items as a cross-head screwdriver. We now have one which has interchangeable heads for different size screws. It wasn't such a big deal putting it together if you followed the instructions  which came with it, as with most things you buy nowadays. Although, if you buy something from IKEA, for example, such as a piece of flat-pack furniture, it usually comes with at least an Allan key which allows you to put it together. 

We wanted to go to a garden centre and had intended visiting one near Waddesdon Manor. We went there several years ago, and I think it may be part of the estate. We looked on Google Maps, and had found where it was, but when we drove all the way there we couldn't find this garden centre which was somewhat annoying. It's around 40-minute drive from Milton Keynes to Waddesdon. We then decided to drive toWaterperry Garden, which we visited several years ago. But, unfortunately,  we had no map with us in the car and spent some time driving around somewhat aimlessly until I decided to try and find the address on my recently acquired Samsung smartphone. But I found it was very difficult managing to input text as we drove along, so we stopped in a layby and managed to find where Waterperry Gardens were. Near Wheatley, Oxfordshire, and just off the M40 a few miles east of Oxford. Once we had the address it was relatively easy to find, but in the process of driving around rather aimlessly, we discovered some really attractive villages and the scenery is really beautiful. We spent some time wandering around the garden centre at  Waterperry and had coffee and sandwiches in the restaurant. We met a lot of cyclists as we drove around the Oxfordshire country roads. In brightly coloured Lycra and cycling in convoy. Unfortunately there we numerous cyclists as we got to Waterperry and some of them in the restaurant, one in particular with a rather loud laugh which was enough to put anyone off. Why is it some men, in particular, seem to get over-enthusiastic at such times, and can't control their behaviour and have to be so LOUD? We bought a couple of plants, a tray of wildflowers and a buddleia and, as it was beginning to cloud over, decided to drive home.

Today (Monday) Carol had an appointment at the medical centre in Stony Stratford. I think I mentioned in an earlier post on here that she had the appointment come in a letter and I had to drive all the way over to Stoney to make the appointment for her as she was at work. This seemed a complete waste of time and effort because we live around a ten-minute walk away from Milton Keynes Hospital, but we had to drive all the way across Milton Keynes for the appointment in Stoney, leaving at 8.20 for the appointment at 9.15. We got there far too early so we had to waste around 30 minutes so we walked along Stony Stratford High Street. A really interesting place which is full of history. We went into the medical centre, a rather run-down looking building which looks totally out of place in such a beautiful place and not the sort of design that would be allowed today. It looks stuck in the 1960's or '70's and most likely hasn't been given a lick of paint since then. Once inside it was heaving with people either queuing up or making appointments. We went into the waiting area and, well, yes, you've guessed it - we waited. As with most modern health centres and N.H.S. facilities, there was one of those computerised check-in screens and Carol was therefore registered, although, to be honest, I never trust them because the one at Ashfield Medical centre, where we're registered, never always works. You sit and have to stare at this computer screen on the wall in front of you and you're bombarded with a welter of instructions and information on everything from their policy on aggressive behaviour to a range of services for those with dementia to bi-polar disorder. It's really over-done as it flits past at such speed, so how are you expected to take it all in? People come and go, and everyone else sits and coughs, splutters and mutter to themselves. It's an a real barrel of laughs.  I needed the toilet. When Carol arrived she went to the ladies in the reception area. But where were the gents? Why no toilet next to it for men to use? Which is usual in such places. I had to ask at the reception desk and found it was away from the reception area in another corridor. Why no sign to show you where it was? Crazy. What a depressing place. As I said, run down and desperately in need of redecorating. I know the N.H.S. is short of cash, but surely they could make this dismal place a little less depressing. 

Carol's appointment came up, a good ten minutes later than it was supposed to be. I was surprised the nurse came out to call her and her name didn't come up on the digital screen (similar to Ashfield Medical Centre.) 20 minutes later she came out to tell me she has yet another appointment on 4th May. We left and then went to Costa to have a latte and cake before getting back in the car and going across Milton Keynes and the Academy and me back home.

Sunny May Bank Holiday Outing To Waterperry Gardens

What's this? A Bank Holiday Monday and the sun's out? Goodness! It generally rains, so there's no point going out. But this time it was sunny and bright and we just HAD to get out. Last summer was the wettest on record, we had the really coldest and miserablest winter  on record with endless snow, ice, frost and cold and then, to cap it all, spring was also cold, damp, miserable and over all really horrible.  Being stuck indoors doesn't suit us. Signs of spring are showing all over the place. We're told that it's around 4-5 weeks later than usual. Daffodils are making their final show and bulbs such as crocuses are more or less over. So, we decided that we would go out somewhere for the day so chose Waterperry Gardens. Somewhere we haven't been to before and not too far to drive. It's between Aylesbury and Bicester, so it wouldn't take much more than an hour to drive there. We drove out out Milton Keynes on Standing Way, first of all stopping for petrol at the BP filling station on the way, and out through Buckingham, the route we take when we visit Stowe Landscape Gardens, which is just outside Buckingham.  We went through Bicester and past the outlet village, Bicester Village and also Bicester Avenue, which we visited a few weeks ago. It wasn't difficult to find Waterperry Gardens.

On arrival the place seemed totally deserted, which was strange for a Bank Holiday. There's lots to see there, a museums, gallery and quite pleasant gardens to wander around, and an extensive garden centre selling the usual range of gardening paraphenalia, plants and so on, and all set in the grounds of a large mansion, which, incidentally, wasn't open. Also, a rather pleasant tearoom where we had something to eat and drink. It seems most places we visit have a cafe or tearoom where you end up, which suits us. Overall, very peaceful, pleasant and calming. By the time we eventually got back to the car the place was really busy, the carpark virtually full. I imagine that most people don't go out until a good deal later on a Bank Holiday, whereas we always want to make the most of the day and get wherever we decide to go as soon as places open.