A little disruption

The washing is once more hanging on the line. It’s only the second time this year. The sky looks a bit questionable but the rain is holding off. It certainly isn’t warm. But there is a strong, if bitterly cold, wind, & that certainly seems to be blowing the water out of the sheets & clothes.

We dined out yesterday for a change. It was the Fox’s birthday. Usually we try to go out for the day but yesterday was Sunday & very near our holidays.

We decided we didn’t want to disrupt our sense of week more than it is inevitable as we go into full preparation for holiday mode. As you probably realise, Sundays are usually bed changing & washing sorting day for me, cleaning for the Fox. We decided to keep to routine. However we did decide the Fox should be let off cooking & washing up duties for once.

We went along to our favourite Chinese restaurant, Ricky’s. The meal was excellent though we both found it saltier than usual. We discovered as we ate, that Ricky himself was doing the cooking. With two bank holidays coming up next month, the first next week, he’d decided to give his usual chef time off. He’s anticipating being rushed off his feet over the holidays so he wants the chef to be fresh & ready to work hard then. As usual Ricky came over for a chat when things were quieter in the kitchen.

When we got home, & settled down to a drink - wine for the Fox, apple juice for me - to a bit of cool music, the phone rang. We were surprised. It was Mrs B, a retired headmistress, just ringing to wish the Fox happy birthday. A family emergency – her grandson & chauffeur had broken his leg playing football – had stopped her getting out to buy & post a card so she hoped a phone call would do instead. We thought it was very good of her to think.

As I say the week ahead is going to be disrupted. The fact I am writing today is a sign of that. Angie, our home help, is not here. She went down to Reading to visit her son for the weekend. She should be travelling back today. She’s coming on Wednesday instead.

Then tomorrow, we have someone from a landscaping company coming to look at our garden. We’ve decided the time has come to spend some money on it & make it easier to maintain & more accessible for me. We’re not sure quite what we want but it is increasingly looking a mess, not helped by the fact I can barely walk as far as the lawn these days. Al, our gardener, keeps the lawn cut, prunes the odd tree& shrub, but that’s about it. He can only spare us an hour & it’s a big garden. I’m thinking of there being a ramp in place on the patio area & a path down to the far end of the lawn so then I can get down there in my electric scooter to maybe tidy a bit myself. At the same time we want the garden to be wildlife friendly. We love to see the birds flitting around. It would be good if we could see a few more butterflies too. It would also be good to have a bit more colour. At present our garden is dominated by lawn, shrubs & trees. They give us privacy from neighbours & structure to the garden but they are also all very green & vary little through the season to give extra interest.

Wednesday not only sees Angie but the Fox is expecting a call from the GP to tell him what has caused his stomach upsets. It does seem to be largely settled down now. We suspect it was a bit of food poisoning. We’ll see.

A disrupted week ahead as you can see.