Joyous

What a simply fabulous day! The sun is shining. The sky is blue. It's heating up a treat, but there is a cooling refreshing breeze. The birds are singing with the joy of it all & I'm inclined to join them. I glory at the sound of the mellifluous notes of the blackbirds, the cheeps of the sparrows & finches.

Yesterday we even managed to eat out in comfort - first time for a couple of years. I suspect we'll be out there again this evening. This is more like summer & long may it continue.

The only cloud on the horizon is how this will affect MK. I've just been speaking to him on the phone - a shorter conversation than last week as he had to soon resort to his oxygen mask. It's impossible to follow his conversation on the phone with a mask on. The oxygen machine is quite noisy even when I speak. The heat unfortunately seems to make his breathing harder, though it's partially that he's got another chest infection yet again. But, at least at home, he is able to appreciate the brilliance of the day, the glowing colours as he looks down to the canal, the sounds of the birds as they visit their garden. Long may he continue doing so.

Finished

I'm forced to admit this blog is essentially an echo of the Fox's latest blog entry. The blinds were installed yesterday. The kitchen is complete. I dare say we might find the odd decorative item to add, but it is essentially complete. We celebrated first with an afternoon zizz of a couple of hours. Bleary eyed, we got up & contemplated dinner. I, for one, wasn't sure I was up to supervising, let alone cooking, a meal. Instead we decide the Fox should pop to the local chippy & get some fish & chips. The spicy pork stir fry can wait another day. After eating, I get change. By now I'm sufficiently revived with the food to think I can keep going a bit, so we watch an hour of tv before opening the bottle of champagne to celebrate. Even that doesn't jog us out of a fairly subdued mood. We're both relieved &, on the whole, pleased with the results but we're just too drained, too pain-filled in my case, too exhausted to really celebrate. Finally I go to bed after seeing the news & sleep soundly for a further 8 hours.

It's been a long haul since we first decided to turn our attention to the kitchen. One workman after another has been interrupting our usually peaceful lives. The next big job will be the bathroom, then all the big jobs that make it our house rather than the previous owners will be done. After that it will only be the usual maintenance jobs, redecorating etc. But that can wait till next year. First we need to recover from the kitchen & all that that's involved. Maybe have a holiday......

An educational trip

They've brought the kids on an educational trip. The lesson? How to find your own food. Mother & father are closely accompanied by two youngsters, one of which is clearly bigger, & probably a bit older, than the other. The youngsters are still in their greyish brown suits, not yet matured into the speckled iridescent attire of their parents.

Mr Blackbird discovers the pile of breadcrumbs on the stoop, left over from coating the crab cakes yesterday. Instantly one of the parent starlings scoots away the blackbird, eats a bit, then goes back to the younger chick & feeds it. After a few trips, the older of the youngsters copies its parent & is soon feeding happily, the younger one remains happier to let the parents do the work.

Eventually the parents decide to move on & scavenge further around the yard, have a poke between the stones of the crazy paving, go exploring the bog garden. The older chick continues with the breadcrumbs regardless, the younger scurries around after his parents. Eventually the parents call the bigger chick to order & fly off. They're back again in the evening. The older chick is clearly the more confident, the more bumptious, determined to do his own thing.

I wonder if this family was responsible for the early Sunday morning activity.

Not so bad

The meal went well. Everyone seemed to enjoy it. The conversation flowed well. All contributed. From time to time laughter erupted. I was duly thanked for arranging it, ie one afternoon we popped into the pub for a drink & booked a table. Not long after we were home, the phone rang. Mrs B. She just had to ring to say how much she'd enjoyed herself. With this is mind, I'm turning my thoughts as to where we should go next time with a happier heart.

Meanwhile I've been busy making some crab cakes for dinner tonight. I still remember with delight, the numerous dressed crab meals I had one family holiday, some forty years ago, when we stayed near Cromer, Norfolk. I'm cheating, using tinned crab. I do find it a faff getting all the delicious meat out the shell, especially the claws of crab. I could buy them ready dressed from our local fishmonger but on the whole I'm quite happy buying the tins.

Today the rain has really returned. And I suspect we'll have to do the shopping. We're getting low on milk once more.

Tomorrow's going to busy. The Farmer's Market in the morning - I'm hoping to get a leg of salt marsh lamb to roast on Saturday. Then, in the afternoon, we've got the man coming to put up the new blinds in the kitchen. So champers should be flowing in the evening.

Disappointment

So we get out the plastic table & chairs, give them a wash all ready to eat outside, then we go out for an hour or so. Things are surprisingly quiet for a sunny Bank Holiday, then we realise that the Big Match is on - Burnley at Wembley. Locals are all at home, eyes fixed on the TV. By the time we're home again the skies have clouded over, the temperature dropped & we're back to eating a simple homemade ham & pepper pizza, inside, as usual.

I wonder if this year we're going to do better than last year. Then we got the table out, sat out once and returned inside before we'd finished eating because it was just too cold, never to try again all summer. Oh where is that predicted BBQ summer?

Still the sky is blue once more today. Admittedly a chilly blustery wind has arrived, too. Not a day for eating out though I just might manage to do a bit of tidying in the garden.

This evening we're off out for the end of the month meal. Everyone is very excited. Except us. We just hope it's going to be better than last month's effort. I'm already beginning to regret to agreeing to make the arrangements.

The real problem is that this year there only seem to be 6 of us involved. MK & Helen aren't able to make it because of his health. PD & Lin are having an economy drive, encouraged too by PD's need to lose weight. Of the 6 that remain Little B, Fran & Den don't really get on too well, which leaves Mrs B & us to act as arbiters, trying to stop war being declared. And yet it is these three, Little B, Fran & Den, who are so keen on these meals. Through the month I keep being brought menus to look at, suggestions of places to try. I just wish they could get on better together so we could enjoy our meal in peace.

What rain?

I somewhat nervously put out the washing line. I've not entirely recovered from my fall last month when I last put out the line. My left hand still hurts when moved in some directions or when I use my manual wheelchair for any length of time. I'm sure it's only bruised, just taking its time to fully recover.

The "Today" programme on Radio 4 this morning ended by wishing us an enjoyable Spring Bank Holiday despite the rain. What rain? Certainly here it looks set to be the warmest day of the year so far. The skies are pure azure. The blackbirds are singing for the joy of it all, the sparrows cheeping. I'm even going have to put some water in the birdbath, it's dried out so much. I've flung open all the windows, again for the first time this year. I might even get as far as taking my jumpers off!! Shock, horror, that doesn't happen often. We're hoping to dine outside this evening. I'm telling myself not to get my hopes up too much. Maybe that rain the programme was on about is going to make its way up north by then, but there's no sign yet. In fact, at the moment, it's looking like the first summer day of the year.

7.30 am & it's all go

It seems to be the day for early risers. Maybe it has something to do with the sun shining.

Having had my wash, at 7.30am, I venture out. I forgot to water Basil Bush into his new home yesterday. To be honest it looked so grey & overcast, I thought he would be naturally watered in, but no rain arrived.

As I got out there I was struck by a wet patch near our new neighbours' car - they only moved in last week. They'd clearly already got an early start on the job of washing the car.

I then turned the corner to find Michelle (the neighbour who lost her husband earlier this year) chatting to Cheryl (the new neighbour), both dressed in pink dressing gowns. Cheryl's partner, Mark, was still busy rinsing off the car.

THIS IS 7.30 am I thought! A time when all sensible people should be fast asleep, not thinking about mowing lawns (in Michelle's case), washing cars or for that matter watering in herbs.

We're not the only ones. In the back garden the starlings are busy prodding every cranny in our crazy paving. The collared doves are cooing away. Clouds of midges are under the trees ready for the recently returned martins. The cries of the gulls waft in from the Bay.

It's all go for a quiet Sunday morning.

In the garden

It actually seems to be staying dry. If it's still dry by the time I've finished this, I'm hoping to venture into the garden, tidy up the herbs & finally get Basil Bush planted. He's looking well, now he's acclimatised to life outside. A bit of good soil will set him up a treat & that will be our basil for the summer months.

I would spend some of the holiday spell in the back garden, but the lawn is just one great bog at the moment. I put one foot on it & the water instantly squelched up around it. Not for walking on just yet. I hate to think how heavy the waterlogged clay soil would be, even if I could reach it.

One of the things I really appreciate about our herb garden at the front of the house is that it is accessible all the time. It's in a raised bed with plenty of good quality topsoil. And what a difference that is after all the heavy clay elsewhere in the garden! All around it is concrete & tarmac which makes an easy surface for me to put a stool to sit on while working in the garden, never squelchy unlike the back garden. It also means I can easily get to the herbs for picking for dinner.

At least this wet weather has pleased some characters. In the midst of cooking dinner yesterday, the Fox looked out of the window & guffawed. The cause? Mr Blackbird was having another bath in the pool blocking the way to the greenhouse. And a right good splash about he was having too!

Election time

Our ballot papers arrived yesterday. We started getting a postal vote when we moved here, as the local polling station was not wheelchair accessible. I look at the list of candidates, most of whom I've never heard of. So far we've had very little canvassing material arrive.

In the local election we have 4 candidates but we've only heard from one, a second arriving today. So what are the policies? No idea, just a load of waffle about what pillars of the community the people are & how they want to improve things without saying what their vision of an improved world is like or how they propose to achieve it. That's it.

As for the European elections, we have 13 candidates. Again I'm staggered by the lack of info on which to judge the parties. I've never even heard of the Christian Party "Proclaiming Christ's Lordship" or the Jury Team. I've no idea of their policies. If they do give any info at all, it is policies that may be relevant to a British election but not about things that are decided on a European basis. How do the political parties & independent candidates expect you to come to a reasoned decision without stating what they stand for & how they hope to achieve it?

I feel as though I'm expected to vote blind, just put a pin in. Since we moved to this area, North Lancashire/South Cumbria in 1975 we have only ever had one candidate turn up on our doorstep. She duly told us we had to vote for her & we duly went & voted for someone else.

We've even bought the local newspaper for some idea of policies. So far nothing. You wouldn't even realise there is an election due. I'm just hoping something appears in next week's paper, otherwise the only reason I can see for voting is to keep the BNP out.

And the politicians complain about the electorate being apathetic!

Rescuing a birthday

We're late arriving at Little B's party, & a very sad sight it was.

PD had called asking us to call in en route as he had something that needed witnessing. In the end the Fox decided to drop me off at the Pub then go on to PD. I went in.

At the bar were a couple of young people, off duty staff. A pair of lovebirds too involved in themselves to include Little B.

Sat down in the lounge was Little B in his best bib & tucker, all alone, no one talking to him.

I hastily joined Little B. His face spread with joy as he saw me arrive, bearing not one but two cards - we'd brought one along from MK & Helen. I concentrated my full attention on him & he flowered like a thirsty plant. I think he'd seriously thought we'd all forgotten about him. As if we would.

During the course of the next half hour the numbers grew. Along came Den & Fran - they'd been held up at the hospital & were now ready to celebrate Fran's dismissal from hospital as a liver problem she's been having for a few years has finally resolved itself.

Soon the Fox was back, bringing PD too. PD is a rare sight these days & always brings so much jollity with him. Mr P, the music teacher, arrived sodden after his cycle ride in the rain back from school.

We all made a fuss of Little B, who beamed & even offered to buy us each a drink - a rare event for a man notorious for his tightness with money. By 5pm, he was ready to collect Mrs B to take her to the local Chinese restaurant for a meal. By this time his spirits were high once more.

Shopping thoughts

Our visit to see MK & Helen was a pleasure as usual. MK seems so much happier for being home. Even Helen seems to find looking after MK at home - especially with the untroubled night sleep she can now have with someone to watch over MK while she has it - better than the twice daily traipse to a very depressing ward at the hospital.

As usual all manner of things were talked about, especially the doings of our mutual friends.

These days Helen has taken to doing most of her shopping on-line. In particular she's relieved to do the food shopping this way & have it delivered to the kitchen. So far she has had no problems. As we came home & thought about the fact that today we will have to go to the shops ourselves for the inevitable food, we couldn't help thinking that maybe we ought to have a go at shopping this way. It would certainly save the queues, the hunt for a parking place, the overcrammed aisles etc.

My resistance lies partially in the fact that it is impossible to judge the quality of fresh foods on-line. But then most meat & fish I buy elsewhere. As for fruit & veg, Helen has found they seem to choose the best produce, & anyhow anything dubious can be sent back.

I suppose my other reservation is the result of the fact I do most of my shopping at Morrisons &, as far as I know, they don't do an on-line service. But then would it be so awful to shop at Tesco, Asda or Sainsburys, all of which have local shops? It's not as though I would have to tackle getting around the actual shops.

I'm tempted to have a go but not today. I'm not sure how much notice we need to give & we will need some milk before the day is out. Besides this afternoon we'll certainly have to go out. It's Little B's birthday so we're off for a bit of celebration at the Pub.

But another time?

Back to the kitchen

The curry's made. OK I admit it. I'm not very good at doing nothing. I love my cooking so I have to be seriously off colour to stay away for long. Anyhow I've got an excuse. We're off to see MK & Helen this afternoon. Due to their new regime of carers coming in, we will have to leave earlier than we used to before MK's hospital trip. As a result we should be home to dine in our favourite restaurant - our own home. With the curry made, all we will need to do is warm it up while the rice boils & the naan bread goes on the griddle. A bit of cheese for after. What could be better?

Exhaustion

If you've already read the Fox's blog you will know how exhausted we both are. All this decision-making, waiting around & invasions of work people has taken its toll, not to mention 2 funerals & a friend in hospital. At last we can see the end, but that means, as we let go of the adrenalin we've been pumping to keep us going, reduces, we're hit by a wall of exhaustion.

Some time ago, I realised that overtiredness like this has two adverse effects on me. The first is that the tension I've been under is physical as well as emotional which means my pains hurt all the more. However, I'm not aware of that until I start to relax, as adrenalin is the world's best painkiller. In relaxing I therefore get struck by a wall of pain.

The second is similar. While tense I keep going. But when I start to relax, it's very easy to end up feeling very depressed, even suicidal. So far I've not got to that stage, but I am aware it's not far away & I'm having to resist the urge to just surrender. This being so, the Fox has decided as much as possible I ought to have a few days of doing nothing much, except catch up on sleep if I can & distract myself with jigsaws etc until I've got my energy level back to something like normal.

So it is, that he is cooking again today, even though it's Monday. He's doing a spicy tortilla lasagne. Contrary from what you might think from the title, there is no lasagne in the meal. Instead there are layers of tortillas interleaved with the spicy minced beef & kidney bean sauce. Should be good. I've peeled some spuds to have with it but that is all I'm doing for today.

Next I'm going to look on the net to see if I can find some tablecloths to embroider. Most of our old ones seem rather large for our new dining table. Then I'm off to the Bavarian Alps to jig a bit.

Faith

I've just been listening to "Sunday Worship" on Radio 4. Towards the end there was a poem read in which the refrain went something like "I do not know, but that is faith". I sometimes think that's a true reflection of my faith. I have so many questions, so many uncertainties. The one certainty I have is that a path has to be chosen & I have chosen Christianity. Now I must have faith in God & follow it.

The herb garden

The herb garden seems to be doing well this year. Everything seems to have bushed out so much more. We are quite stunned by the number of pinky mauve pompoms on the chives. Last year they never flowered.

The French lavender, too, is coming in flower. Whenever I tried to plant lavender in the back garden it never survived - too wet, I think, in our naturally heavy clay soil - so I'm particularly pleased to see it's becoming well established here.

This year I've planted some tarragon. We had our first cutting yesterday, some in the salmon en croute we had, & some in the accompanying sauce. The aniseed smell was almost overwhelming. Indeed the strength of the heady aromas of all the herbs has been amazing this year.

We had a couple of demises over the winter, some English lavender & some rosemary, but in view of the winter we had I think we did well. The garden catches the brunt of the weather as the wind funnels up the Bay, between the houses, straight to that spot.

In the next day or two I'm intending to put Basil Bush in the bed for the summer. He should have hardened off by now. He even accidentally spent the night out the other night & came to no great harm.

The lemon balm seems vibrantly yellow & green, especially after the watering they've had of late. The delicate featheriness of the fennel delights me. The Fox keeps thinking one of them isn't so well. I keep telling him it's perfectly healthy. It's just that it's a bronze one which inevitably means it's a different colour. He also worries a bit about the purple sage. I don't think he feels purple leaves are quite natural, but I deliberately planted for colour as well as texture & usefulness.

I keep feeling the itch to get out & tidy a bit, but it's been just so wet or I've been so busy worrying over the kitchen I've not got out. Maybe now the kitchen is all but complete I'll be able to get a bit more done in the garden. Hope so.

Causes of pride

The weather is back to normal. Rain, rain, rain. However, I'm not letting it dampen my spirits.

Just at the moment I'm stunned by our new dining set. It seems to give so much extra room to the space. And it's so much easier to get around, which will be a real boon on the rare occasions we have dinner guests.

It seems a pity to have to cover the surface with a cloth but where it is in position is in full sun - that is if the sun ever deigns to visit. The other hazard is our eating habits. Neither of us have yet worked out how to eat the likes of spag bol without feeding the table too. But I find I keep lifting the corner of the tablecloth & having a sneak look under the cloth, just to marvel a bit.

We've even managed to get comfortable chairs to go with the table. The seats are covered in a material in a colour & design, echoing the new carpet. The backs are in the same wood, beautifully grained, stylish, solid, neither too earthy nor too delicate, just right for our kitchen.

The blinds have been ordered. They won't be arriving for a fortnight. Then, it will be time to celebrate. and have that champers. And to get back to just living.

Meanwhile, during our long wait yesterday morning - nobody arrived until after noon - I noticed we've clearly got young in the hedge just beyond the greenhouse, outside one of the kitchen windows. A blackbird was busily darting to & fro with beakloads of grubs. I suspect we have another blackbird nest in the back garden too. I suspect the two male blackbirds who'd given up their happy winter companionship & been fighting earlier in the spring, & still have run-ins with each other, are both proud, and very busy, dads. Congratulations to them both.

Autumn returns

After doing the shopping we decide to adjourn to the village pub. A bit of a reward for getting the chore done. And anyway, the casserole is in the oven & that will switch itself on without our tender ministrations.

As we venture in I can't help being struck by the pile of dried dead leaves in the doorway. It's more like autumn than spring! The wind has obviously blown them in through the outer door.

We settle down to our drinks. The temperature seems to be dropping, the sky darkening as though for rain. Definitely more like autumn than spring! I can't help overhearing a couple of ladies on the other side of the room, expressing similar feelings.

So where's the BBQ summer we were promised not so long ago? With May any signs of it seem to have disappeared.

Our conversation moves towards the idea of holidays. We have been half-thinking of staying in Britain this year, Scotland maybe. If it stays like this, we conclude, somewhere a bit warmer & sunnier will be required. Portugal to remind MK of some of his good times, as we relate our holiday adventures to him when we return. Or Italy. Or maybe just back to France. Or perhaps even the Caribbean. One of my relatives is booked for Cuba. It's so much cheaper there than Europe with the exchange rate being what it is. We came to no very definite conclusions, just further dreams.

More immediately we're back to waiting. We shocked ourselves by buying a new dining table & chairs at the second shop we visited on Tuesday. This is a big deal for us. Not only have we decided so quickly, but it is the first time in our life we've been in a position to buy dining furniture we like. We've always previously had to put up with hand-me-downs, reflecting other people's tastes rather than ours. Something that will do. The new table & chairs are coming this morning.

Then this afternoon someone is coming to measure up the windows in the kitchen for the new blinds. Assuming we can find a design we like, that means in another week or so the new kitchen will be complete & we will be breaking out some champers to celebrate. And we can turn our thoughts to more normal things - holidays, the garden, wildlife, our friends......

Happy feeders

Yesterday morning turned into a busy time. At the Farmers' Market last week I'd bought a shoulder of pork. Ideally I would have bought it diced as I wanted it to make a stew. Unfortunately they only had the cut as a bone-in joint. So yesterday I had the job of boning & de-fatting it. Then it was on with the stew. From time to time I had a check of my washing that was hanging on the line to dry. By the time I was done, it was turned midday.

As the sun was shining, I decided to sit out & finish my novel. As I did, my eyes lifted from time to time to see who was coming for the pork fat. The first on the scene was a huge black-backed gull. surprisingly he didn't stay long or take much.

The next was a shyer creature, a blackbird. He tried to look oh so nonchalant, as though he really wasn't interested. He sidled along, grabbed a huge piece of fat & disappeared rapidly into the undergrowth.

Another gull appeared. This one stayed to make the most of his meal, but decided to go after a while.

The next visitor was a magpie, smartly dressed in navy & white.

It was good to see such a range of birds having a look-in for once, so many well fed.

Happy bathing

I finish the ironing - considerably easier this week now my hands have all but recovered from my fall. I toodle round to the laundry room to return my empty bag, when I hear a strange sound emanating from around the corner. I go to investigate. There, in the lake that's recently appeared by the greenhouse, is a blackbird having a grand bath. I almost expect him to be getting out the scrubbing brush to do his back or to start playing with his rubber duck. He's obviously having a great time.

On the up

Things are on the up.

We visited MK in hospital yesterday. He looked so much better, sitting up in his chair, without his oxygen mask most of the time. He's due to go home on Monday & clearly looking forward to it. Night care has been arranged so Helen will be able to have a good night's sleep to cope with looking after him during the day. Even during the day, there's going to be a bit more help for her.

We get home to see the answerphone flashing. The carpet has arrived. They're coming to fit it tomorrow. We'll soon be able to get our usual clutter back in the kitchen & get back to everyday living. There's only the blinds people to organise but I'll get on to that later this morning. It's finally coming together.

We actually cooked at home yesterday. It was great to eat, watching the antics of birds in the garden. The blackbirds are still squabbling, having mid-air fights. The tits are feeding ravenously - I suspect to regurgitate for young. As it was sunny & mild, we had the door open. The birdsong was particularly loud. They were obviously as joyous at having us back as we are to be back. (A bit of me says, they're only keen for the extra food scraps they get when we're cooking, but it's still a lovely sound.)

Things are definitely on the up.

Ours again

She's been and gone. The Lady Decorator finished papering yesterday, cleared up & left the kitchen to our tender mercies. She was certainly speedy &, on the whole, did a good job.

It's good to get the home back to ourselves. We still ate out last night - the kitchen still smells a bit. But this morning I set to & peeled some spuds. We're going have to do some food shopping today, so a quick meal is in order. PD gave us some tiny bantam eggs on Tuesday so I think it will be an omelette for dinner tonight.

We don't feel entirely free to move all our clutter back in yet. The new carpet is due any day, so it seems silly to move everything back in to move it back out again when they come to fit that.

After that the only things that remain are some new blinds, & we're thinking of looking for a round table. We feel it will fit the space better, making it easier for guests to get round the other side without sharp corners sticking into them. That, though, might take a longer hunt.

I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to getting back to regular cooking, no more disruptions & invasions from workmen. And that will be the end of house renovation for this year. I dare say there will be a few minor repairs that will have to be done, like replacing the window where the seal has gone & fixing the curtain rail in the study, but that will be it.

There is just one more room in this house left that needs a lot doing to it. That's the bathroom. I want to get rid of the bath & just have a shower, possibly even a wet room. It will make life so much easier for me. We also both hate the avocado green of the present suite.

We moved here in September 2000, & ever since we seem to have been on the go, making it ours, reflecting our taste rather than the previous owners' taste. The end is in sight. After that there will be the routine maintenance to do. And the garden and ....

A whirlwind strikes

The whirlwind has arrived. The decorator arrived promptly at 9.30am - she doesn't believe in making her customers get up too early. She'd done for the day by 1pm. A short day you may say. In that time she's stripped off the old paper, prepared the woodwork, put the first coat of matt on the ceiling, undercoated the the door frames, skirtings etc, undercoated & glossed the dado rail. She couldn't do more until the paint dried. The kitchen already looks considerably brighter for her effort. A real whirlwind!

We had been expecting to have to eat out every day as I didn't feel I could leave prepared meals around & it would be too late to get started by the time she finished. As it turned out, we had plenty of time to make a simple prawn curry & eat at home.

I think we've finally found our decorator. No more Uncle Podgers or other disaster zones of previous experiences. And she doesn't even cost the earth.

New fashions

After much thought I've concluded this is not the day to go to church.The Mean Machine, my electric scooter, is designed to be used with one hand so in theory there shouldn't be a problem getting there. The prospect of all those handshakes as the peace is passed, & of holding heavy service books at a level to be read, fills me with dread. My hand just isn't ready for it. God has clearly come to the same conclusion as now it starts to rain.

Instead I think of a phone call I had yesterday from an old friend in Arnside. She & her husband have a dog, quite the biggest German shepherd I've ever seen. He's getting on a bit now, 12, which for such a big dog is old. As with many older creatures, including man, he has a tendency to not to pick his feet up well, to shuffle along, these days. The owners have recently bought him two sets of 4 red shoes to protect his feet as the shuffling was causing his feet to bleed. Andy, the husband, has taken up a new hobby, cobbling. He's already had to re-sole the shoes once. The dog may not be walking well but he still enjoys his daily walks of several miles at a time. The image of this huge dog, elegantly attired in red shoes, makes me smile.

These friends are really very good to their animals & very inventive. One of their previous dogs had its back end go, so what did they do? Andy, an engineer by profession, made a little wheeled carriage to put her back legs in & strap her in, so the dog could still go on her much enjoyed walks, using her front legs & pulling the little wheelchair behind her.

It's good to hear from old friends.

Problems all round

I'm having a go at cooking today. Just a simple cheese pasta medley, a regular dish. It's taken just about all morning to prepare. But I've done it. It will just need to warm up in the oven this evening.

My hand is still sore but it is a lot easier than it was. No point asking me to open tight screw top bottles & jars. I just haven't got the grip. We stopped at a cafe after our hospital visit seeing MK (I don't know why but hospitals always dry you out!). The Coke came in a bottle. I suspect I'd have still been sat there now if the Fox hadn't opened the bottle! All the other bruises seem to be going a sickly yellow now.

Clearly we're not the only ones having difficulties at the moment. Our neighbour, Michelle, the one who recently lost her husband, has been rushed into hospital. No one's quite sure why.

But at least MK has had some good news. Next week there's going to be a conference about getting him home. The hospital has come to the conclusion there's not much more they can do for him, than could be done at home. Both MK & Helen are pleased, provided appropriate extra help can be given to Helen. If that happens, maybe this hospital trip has had some value. It's let Helen have a chance to catch up on her sleep &, at the same time, made the authorities realise just how much help MK needs these days. I hope it goes well for them.