Author: anniesleath@hotmail.co.uk

After a lovely weekend, we were back to it….. back to the regular hospital trips to Birmingham. This morning it was the Eye Hospital on the Dudley Road. A regular check-up and an appointment that John is always keen to keep. Always in the hope that they will find a magic cure for the soreness in his eyes.

There is, of course, no magic cure, but the dreaded instruction to drop ciclosporin into John’s eyes was not forthcoming today. “Your vision is excellent and you can leave off the ciclosporin for now as you are doing so well,” said Matt, the consultant’s understudy. “But you must use the other things prescribed for you regularly.” We all nodded our understanding, but, lest we forget, I made a note of it. Frequently we get home and can’t remember what has been said. Or, at least, one of us can – or thinks we can – and then we argue about it until the next visit…..

We were ages at the hospital. By the time we’d finished seeing the medics, our stomachs thought our throats had been cut. We were parched and peckish. “I’m going for a coffee,” declared John. So we went to the little in-house café and bought revolting tea and coffee, dry roast chicken and chips, and sloppy cauliflower cheese ‘n beans. It wasn’t great but it filled a gap.

“Do you mind if we call in to Solihull on the way back?” I asked John, when we’d finished. He didn’t mind, so I was happy. I just wanted to nip into Waitrose to buy some frozen pains aux raisins – a throwback treat from our time of living in France. They’d been out of stock when I’d ordered on line, so I thought I’d see in person whether there were any in the shop freezers. We were in luck. So I bagged a couple of bags. Heh-heh.

We didn’t get home until nearly four o’clock. We’d been out all day and felt weary. “A nice cuppa will set us up,” I suggested. Well, it set me up, but John not so much. In fact, he slept through the video call I had with William and Michael. Normally, William’s piping little voice is like a magnet and John zones in as soon as he hears it. Not today. Far too tired.

John was awake, however, when I Zoom-called Andrew. And we had a really lovely twenty minutes or so chatting to him. So enjoyable. Fingers crossed we see him in the flesh soon.

Later on this evening, I popped over to Paul and Harriet’s to drop in the bracelets that I’d made for Lily at the weekend, and collect some bedding I’d left at their house. So I saw all three sons today – except Paul was sleep-walking. He’d been fast asleep on the sofa when Harriet roused him to help with bringing the bedding down. Bless him – he could hardly keep his eyes open.

It was lovely to see them all though – Freddie ran out in his bare feet, ready for the big bear hug – but we didn’t, because Lily’s not feeling well and there’s the threat of COVID in the school air….. oh, Lordy, I do hope not. Despite feeling a bit out of sorts, Lily also came down in her bare feet to say ‘hello’ at the front door to receive her gifts – and I am so pleased that she liked them. I hope she feels the love and protection intended.

Fewer COVID infections today – which is a pleasant surprise – but there are way, way too many with 30,824. There were 61 deaths in the community and, since Friday, 43 in hospitals. 1,076 people were admitted to hospital with COVID today.

But, I’m thinking of today’s ‘Golden Moments’. A theme we explored in our yoga retreat. How many of them are there in a day? Hundreds, I reckon. Here’s a few of mine…… sharing a joke with ol’ man; holding his hand; seeing the boys; seeing the grandchildren; sharing the excitement of the remote cake-making in Sutton; sharing the excitement of Freddie being proud to be in Year One; watching Lily’s beautiful face fill with gratitude for her bracelets; chatting to Harriet, the dear girl; and so much more………. Yes, counting my blessings, counting my blessings….

Take care everyone. Stay as safe as you can. Keep on with all the COVID precautions so that you can enjoy many more days, weeks, months and years to come with your loved ones. God bless.

Three days of wall-to-wall yoga, nestled away at Braziers Park, was just what the doctor ordered. For both John and me.

John had a wonderful weekend without me. He was able to do just as he liked without a nagging wife tutting behind him. He ate pizza and Indian take-away, put his feet up on the table (metaphorically-speaking), got up when he liked, watched whatever programme he liked, went to bed when he liked and drank whatever he liked. “Oh, yes. You can do it all again, dear. I’ve been fine”

Well, it was a relief that he’d enjoyed himself. I didn’t have to worry about enjoying myself and feel guilty about having left him miserable at home. So, a great result all round.

And the Retreat was absolutely wonderful. Jaime had planned three days of brilliant activity and thought of everything. We had meditation and yoga from morn till night. What an experience. And I was chuffed, too, that nothing was actually beyond me. Jaime had exactly the right yoga levels that meant everyone could join in and feel happy with what they’d done. Clever girl.

In between classes, we had food or free time. The food was delicious every day and we were all thrilled with our experience of vegetarian dishes. The free time was to savour, too – which I did, setting off towards the summer house with my book, sitting in the sunshine and reading a few pages before nodding off. Bliss.

I had to laugh at myself, though. I was one of the first to arrive and was greeted by Jaime on the doorstep. She walked with me to the car to help with lifting a few things out from the boot. No sooner had I opened the boot than I realised that an essential piece of equipment was missing. No yoga mats…….. Oh, blimey. I had been so focussed on taking my bolster with me for the specialist practice of Yin Yoga, that I had failed to unhook the bag of mats from my wardrobe.

“I know,” I said, “I’ll order one to be delivered here tomorrow. I need a new one anyway….” But – no internet or, at best, intermittent internet. Bother. “Never mind,” said Jaime, “I’ve got a spare you can borrow.” and, turning to Will, one of the residents of the commune, she continued, “Anne’s forgotten her yoga mat!” Will gave me a wry grin. “We’ve got some we can lend you.” Really? Oh, brilliant! “Well, we are a yoga centre, so it would be mad not to have any mats, wouldn’t it?” So I was sorted.

In addition to yoga, Jaime had organised some other activities, too. In particular, one of our group is a jeweller, specialising in chainmail jewellery and semi-precious stones. She has a great interest in the properties of crystals and stones, too, so she brought a selection for us to choose from and some kits for us to make our own bracelets. Oh, we did have fun. I chose Rosy Quartz, for love, and Black Quartz, for protection, making them for Lily, our granddaughter, because she loves that sort of thing. I hope she likes them!

Last night we had a cracking evening, too. We sat out under the stars, by the fire pit. It was such a delight. We practised our chanting ‘Om…..’ and then nattered away to our hearts’ content. I was very moved by the sight of the starry sky, too, because it was Wallingford, where I have spent many a night with Dave and Chris, and George and his family, and all our kids, star-gazing at that very sky. Brought back wonderful memories.

And then, this afternoon, we had our final group session together before we said our goodbyes. Just before we left, Jaime gave us all a little ‘goody bag’ with seeds to plant for future life, a candle for meditation, a little personal note, and a ‘love’ tea bag for love (obviously). Honestly, that girl worked so hard to make our stay and experience perfect – and it really was. But look at the beautiful material she used to make our bags – reminiscent of that beautiful starry night – cool, eh?

As we began to pack up our things, Fleur, the jeweller, had brought more crystals for us to choose from. I chose the carnelian that you can see in the pic which, apparently, restores vitality and motivation. I could do with a bit of that!!

I think John was pleased to see me when I got home. “Hang on, I’m just doing something on the computer,” were his first words. And then his second words were something along the lines of, “God, you look grim,” Ah. Yes. My hair was a mess. I’d had a massage and the oil through my hair didn’t look the best. Hmmmm…. I think John had been studying my Mum’s ‘Book of Etiquette’ while I was away. Once I’d had a shower and washed my hair though, he relented and said it was lovely to have me home. And I was rather pleased to see him, too.

I’m saving the COVID news for tomorrow – don’t want to spoil the memory of a perfect weekend. Take care everyone. God bless.

Well, what a day! Generally speaking, I would say it’s been a cracker – with variety being the spice of life. So much so, that we have enjoyed our day for the most part – and we’d like to say: ‘roll on some more!’

This morning it was more of the mundane, as per the Jungle Book – you know, sitting on a branch and saying ‘what d’ya wanna do then?’ with the response of: ‘I dunno, what d’ya wanna do?’ and a shrug or two of the shoulders.

My ‘dunno’ ended up with tackling admin jobs I’d got listed. John’s ‘dunno’ was similar. And each at our own computers – until John said, “Can you have a look at this item I’d like to buy? I can’t read the fine print.” So we ended up at the same computer poring over the items to scrutinise the fine print, before sacrificing any money. In the end, we were satisfied with our purchases in theory – it’ll be interesting to see what comes out the other end when they arrive. We have high hopes.

This afternoon, I left John to it at home while I swanned off to play badminton. It’s a small group of……well, what shall I say? Elderly ladies about my own age. However, when I arrived there were two new recruits, which brought the average age down to about 40. Regrettably, one of the newcomers was off to university within a day or two, so wouldn’t be coming again. Nevertheless, it was all good. Everyone had a game or two and everyone excelled themselves. I loved it. It doesn’t matter if you lose, or are rubbish. No-one minds. No, really.

When I got home, John was already out, having a jolly at the doctors. He’d phoned them a couple of weeks ago, sharing the gruesome sight of a skin discolouration. No worries, they’d said. Come on Thursday afternoon. Righty-ho! Only, when it came to it, today, we were puzzled. Isn’t the doctors’ surgery closed on a Thursday afternoon? “Ah, well,” John sighed, “I’ll go and see anyway. I can always come home again.”

Well, would you believe it? Not only was the surgery available, but it was open for minor procedures. The doctor dealt with the skin thing there and then. Zap! Zap! I know I wasn’t there, but that seemed easy – and John was quite happy.

I had a little run around before tea, getting the car washed, filling up with petrol and checking the tyre pressures because don’t you know? I am going on a yoga retreat tomorrow, for a day or two. Blogs may be sporadic or non-existent while I am away….

Then, this evening, we got ourselves ready to welcome Margaret and Chris, dear friends from church, who have supported us so well during the lockdowns, regularly bringing chocolate and wine and good cheer to our doorstep.

It is the first time that we have socialised within either of our homes, and we were really looking forward to it. It didn’t disappoint. What a brilliant evening we had. Margaret looked fabulous in a beautiful summer outfit, with personality to match – bright, cheerful, uplifting; and Chris bought his wry and dry sense of humour which, alongside Margaret’s levity, had us howling with laughter.

And, you know you can never arrive empty-handed to these sorts of evenings? Well, they really knew how to please. Just look at these:

Just beautiful, aren’t they? Along with several other flowers, gladioli are one of my favourites. I was delighted.

But, not only did they bring us flowers, but this is what they think about John – he is one of the…….. I think I agree.

A mid-week get-together is usually a sensible one, with work tomorrow, and so on….. hmmm…… but maybe the next time we meet up it’ll have to be a Saturday night. We were talking and talking and talking until late. Loved it.

It certainly took our minds off the doom and gloom everywhere else in the country with 38,013 people testing positive for the virus today. 167 people died in the community and 63 in hospitals on 7 & 8 September.

I continue to be amazed by the lack of awareness among the general public about the volumes of infections. In Sainsbury’s, paying for my petrol, the girl behind the counter thought things were ‘not so bad’. When I told her that this time last year there were 2,500 people infected with COVID each day, and were we worried then, but now there’s over 38k each day, she seemed surprised. “Each day? No!” she asked, shocked. Yup. Every day. The propaganda machine has done a good job, hasn’t it, don’t you think?

Take care everyone. Keep on with the mask-wearing (it does work), the hand-sanitising and social-distancing. These small actions will definitely mitigate against the worst case scenario. Don’t be fooled by the ‘let’s open up’ brigade, or be numbed by the numbers. Stay safe. God bless.

We were delighted to see that the sun was shining today and it promised to be fair all day. We were going to be entertaining and to be able to do so in the back garden was a real bonus.

We were also grateful that Steve, our milkman and lawn/hedge cutter, had been yesterday and given the lawn a much-needed hair cut. It meant that we didn’t have to plough through lots of overgrown grass today.

I did a bit of food prep this morning, while John went outside to survey his estate. Yep, all good, but perhaps we should move the gazebo? Where it was situated, the lawn was showing signs of too much shade. So we shuffled it along to a different plot, and hammered home the pegs to secure it.

And how about the table and chairs? Yep, all good, but where is the collar to hold the parasol together? Erm…..last time I saw it, it was floating about on the lawn. It wasn’t there now though, and St Anthony didn’t come to my rescue, despite a very earnest trawl of the garden. “I wonder if one of the children chucked it in the pond?” I mused. John was all for getting his hands into the murky water, but I didn’t think that was the best thing to do, so we abandoned the search and hoped for the best, and planned on using our other parasols.

And what about the hedge? Hmmm…. Steve is scheduled to come and cut the hedge soon, but not today. “No worries,” I said, “We’ll clip it back a bit.” Ah… but Paul has the hedge trimmers, doesn’t he? Oh. Never mind, I’ll just use the old-fashioned shears. No sooner had we thought that, than Paul appeared – with the hedge trimmers. Marvellous. Now we can give it a bit of a haircut so that our meal on the patio isn’t overrun by trailing privet.

Anything else? Just the chairs to get out then. Yep, all good. They behaved. And we were ready.

What a delight to welcome Linda and Brendan, Malcolm and Caroline, and Hazel and Nigel. Oh, my! I was so excited to see them all in the flesh again. And to be able to sit and chatter to our hearts content, without having to worry whether the air was full of COVID particles, was bliss.

The gazebo was placed perfectly and shaded us all from the hot sunshine, before we adjourned to the patio table for our lunch. It was just brilliant. To sit round and just be together, so comfortably, enjoying each others’ company was just what the doctor ordered. Everyone was on top form and, once again, I found myself feeling grateful for such lovely friends.

Obviously, it being a Wednesday, it was Quiz time but, instead of Zooming in, there we all were! We could do the quiz face-to-face. How good was that? So, that’s what we did this afternoon and a cracking quiz it was, too. Nigel had prepared the first three rounds, and Hazel the last three, and all the rounds had us working hard to summon up the answers – whether they be right or wrong, it didn’t matter, we were just having fun, fun, fun!

I’d like to do it all again soon, but this was our swansong. Nigel and Hazel have already moved away and were down just for a couple of days; and Malcolm and Caroline are moving in a couple of weeks. Never mind. I’m looking forward to the quizzes on Zoom, and then, perhaps, visiting our friends in their new locations. Something to look forward to – but we are definitely going to miss their presence in the village.

All for now, folks, except a few numbers for the record: 38,975 people tested positive for the virus today; 191 people died in the community and 66 in hospitals on 6 & & September; and 933 people were admitted to hospital with the virus in the last 24 hours.

Take care everyone. Stay safe and savour every moment you can. God bless.

Goodness gracious me! It’s been a belter today, hasn’t it? Not that I’ve particularly spent anytime outside to enjoy it, but still….

This morning I decided to prep food for tomorrow. I forwent my yoga because I’d got a tickly cough. It’s not COVID, but it’s a silly thing which I didn’t want to take to class for fear of upsetting everyone.

So, instead, it was food for tomorrow. We’re having guests round, don’t you know? I am not much of a fan of puddings but I thought that’s what I’d do – sort out a few bits for dessert. What with one thing and another, it took me all morning however, with the obligatory trip to the shops of course, because I didn’t have all the requisite ingredients.

John meantime, decided to have another go at the wall. His footings are so good that he had to get the kango hammer out. At least he put his ear defenders on, which I was pleased to see – and apparently, Pete came and gave him a hand again this afternoon. Not sure how much there is left to do, but he’s getting there.

We both flopped onto the sofa at lunchtime tired after our exertions before we were up and at ’em again. For me, however, I was facing a very leisurely afternoon. John was still dealing with the wall. My plan? Visit Philomena.

It was the first time I’d ventured over to where Phil lives. She had been very excited to move into some sheltered accommodation in Earlsdon, 9 months ago, and which has absolutely everything anyone would ever need.

And it was a wonderful place. Phil has a beautiful flat, and the complex itself has a shop, a coffee shop and bar, a restaurant, hairdressers, gym and so on. Fabulous. And we had a great time, nattering away nineteen to the dozen. Not only that, but Phil looked very well and happy which was nice to see.

This evening we have sat, with every door and window open, in an attempt to get some breeze through the house – it got so very close and stifling here. The moths joined us, too, attracted by the light, so manoeuvres were implemented to eliminate them. A lot of wafting involved. Finally though, we were both so tired that we just abandoned ship and decided to start the nightly bedtime routine instead.

COVID is still a hot topic, too. 37,489 people tested positive for the virus in the last 24 hours; 209 people died (check that number again, folks….209) in the community and 56 on 5 & 6 September. 905 people were admitted to hospital.

It’s going to be another hot day again tomorrow, apparently – might get the paddling pool out….. Take care everyone. God bless.

We often like to take a trundle out to Baddesley Clinton, where they have a bed of dahlias at this time of year. In the past, we have gone along with Pete and Dawn, or even on our own, to witness the wonder. Last year, of course, with the unexpectedness of COVID, there were no dahlia beds, and we thought no more about it. But this year, we were hoping there’d be a fabulous display……. only to find that the dahlia beds have been replaced by pumpkins!!

It transpires that the dahlia beds have been overtaken by disease and they are no more. Ah, well, never mind, we took a trip out there anyway, chauffeured by Pete and Dawn, accompanied by Jack, and had tea/coffee and cake at the café instead, before taking a look at the pumpkins swelling in their by beds by the hundreds.

It was a beautiful morning and we enjoyed ourselves. We made strategic stops at every bench available and admired the view. We scampered into shady corners to avoid the sunshine as it scorched the earth beneath us, before we made our way back to the car. It was super. I think, however, that we were probably half an hour too long enjoying ourselves, because we had to fold Dawn into the car afterwards, and John landed with a thud on the back seat, with a sigh of relief at having a comfy chair.

After his rest in the car and following a continuation of a discussion we’d been having recently, John was fired up to remove the front wall in the garden when we got back. I was fired up to do nothing at all. I sat and watched the cricket while John beavered away in the hot sunshine, wheelbarrowing heavy bricks back and forth to the skip. “I think I’ve done too good a job,” he said. “Mmm?” I murmured, looking up from the cricket. “I mean, I did too good a job on building the wall in the first place. It’s got deep footings and I’m not even at the bottom yet…” Ah…. I see. Fortunately Peter came round for half an hour and helped with one or two bits before it was time for a cuppa and a rest, and they sat and had another good old natter before Pete went home again, wishing John good luck with the rest of the wall demolishing.

I wished I hadn’t bothered with the cricket. Wickets fell like the pins at a ten-pin bowling alley, one after the other. In despair, I gave up when we were not enough for 8. I was still weary, but had a walk up to the shops and back, and then did some more sitting down before I got the tea ready.

And that, was more or less it, for the day.

Just the 41,192 people testing positive for the virus today; 45 deaths in the community and, apparently, only 10 in hospitals on 4 & 5 September which, if true, is good news.

Hope you’ve all enjoyed the warm weather today – it’s been a cracker, hasn’t it? Take care everyone. Keep up with the mask-wearing and keeping your distance as much as you can to save the lives of others – it really isn’t over. ‘Learning to live with the virus’ is no good at all if we end up dying from it or suffering from long COVID for years to come, is it? God bless. Prayers have been said for each and everyone of you.

What a cracking day it’s been! Not only did Mum come for dinner, but those members of the family who could, came to see her. And, on top of it all, it was very nice weather!! I thought we were never going to see the sunshine again, but it certainly shone brightly today.

Regrettably, I was too busy enjoying myself to think about taking photos of everyone together, as was John, but Michael had the presence of mind to catch Mum and me together just before she went home. She looks good, doesn’t she?

I ran around this morning to get a few nice things for lunch and prep them. I had intended to give Mum some lunch about one o’clock, but the Sutton Sleaths said they’d eat with us too, so I aimed for a very late lunch at 3.30 instead. Mum wasn’t all that hungry so didn’t mind a wait for a late lunch. So it all went swimmingly.

Paul said he’d come with Freddie about 2 o’clock. Disappointingly, Harriet had a bit of a cold and didn’t want to share (thank you). The Sutton Sleaths phoned as they set off and thought they’d arrive about 3. A little voice piped up in the background, “Is Freddie there?” Yes, William, Freddie’s here. “Can I play with Freddie when I get to yours, Grandma?” A nice little overlap of cousins would be just the ticket, Michael suggested. Well, we really didn’t mind Paul and Freddie staying longer, at all.

Grandma Hazel was thrilled to see everyone, and was particularly taken with the great-grandchildren, of course. Although Thomas wasn’t having any of the offer to sit on great-granny’s lap, thank you very much.

She made us laugh, though, at the things she said and did. She couldn’t keep her hands off Paul’s hair. “You’ve got such lovely auburn hair,” she kept repeating. “And so have you, haven’t you, Freddie?” Freddie, being a good boy nodded appeasingly. I am sure he has no idea what auburn means. But he will.

We had at least 15 renditions of ‘I was born under a wandering star” today. I’d had four renditions of the bloomin’ song in the car journey to Balsall before we’d hardly started! “That’s my favourite song,” says Mum. You don’t say? But I sing along with her and we have a laugh at the end of it and say how we enjoyed singing it together.

I think Mum really enjoyed her afternoon, but was tired by the end of it. So tired, in fact, that Michael had to heave-ho her into the car for me to take her home. When I’d collected her, she’d nipped into the car as nimble as you like, but it was a bit of a struggle later on.

I handed her over to the care staff at her home, along with boxes of tissues and a box of chocolates. All afternoon, she’d searched about her person for a tissue, finally finding one tucked under her jumper, neatly folded. After using it, she’d neatly fold it up again and pop it back under her jumper – until she lost it in the loo, where it went the way of all tissues – down the U-bend. In its absence, she resorted then to using her blouse. “Mum!” I said, shocked, “Don’t use your blouse!! Here’s another tissue for you.” She looked sheepish and clutched the new tissue close to her. Not sure if she ever actually found it again once she tucked it up her jumper, but still….

When I got home from dropping Mum off, I am not sure how the revelation came about, but it transpired that the box of chocolates I’d given Mum was only half full….. “Oh, I wondered what those were,” said John, “I’ve been eating those.” I thought he was joking, of course, and had to ask him three times if he was serious. He was deadly serious. Yep. He had no idea what they were on the dining room table for, and had helped himself. “Well,” he reasoned, “the box was already open.” Oh. Ah, well, I don’t suppose Mum will notice a few missing from the box.

Meanwhile……William remembered that, yesterday, he was having a very good time with ‘Daddy and me an’ Grandpa – us three…’ and was keen to do it all over again. I am not sure how keen the grown-ups were, however, when faced with this……

William presented them with a very complicated car to make, which takes years (we know, we made it with one of the boys many years ago), so they came up with this. It may not look much but, by gum, it doesn’t half go! (It’s got some mechanism in it that speeds it along, somewhere!!). William was thrilled. And it kept them all quiet for a good hour. Heh-heh.

So, just for the record: 37,011 people tested positive for the virus today. 68 people died in the community, 985 people were admitted to hospital.

Enjoy the week ahead folks. It threatens to be good weather. Stay safe and God bless.

“What are you doing today?” John wondered as we sat at the breakfast bar. “I thought I might do a bit more rummaging,” I replied. “What about you?” John thought he’d try and clear down the side of the house. Since the trailer tent went to new owners, it’s revealed a bit of a messy area, and he’s been itching to get at it ever since. “Right,” I said. Both jobs to be undertaken with the aim of putting rubbish into the skip before we send it back this week.

We sat there a bit longer, chatting, and then John wondered again, “What are you doing today?” Oh. “I thought I might do a bit more rummaging…..” I replied. “Ah, yes. You already told me that, didn’t you?” I nodded. Phew. I was glad it was him who hadn’t been listening, and not me…..

Anyway, I went upstairs to do a bit of faffing about on the computer, some grocery shopping, paying some bills and so on, before I started rummaging. John, meanwhile, went outside and did the clearing that he’d been longing to do.

John fulfilled his side of the bargain and put several bits into the skip. I never did fulfil my side, however. I took a phone call from Michael – they were coming over to view a house in the village and did we have anything in for lunch? Of course, I immediately go into overdrive and abandon all previous plans. No rummaging for me today.

We all ate lunch and then we toddled over to look at the house for sale – apart from John and William. William would like to stay with Grandpa, thank you very much, and sit and watch a bit of TV. Now, this is becoming a regular thing – I think William enjoys his Grandpa’s company, and snuggling into his arms while they cosy up and watch a programme. How lovely is that?

Disappointingly, the house wasn’t a match for Michael and Danielle’s requirements. It was a very lovely house but the garden was non-existent – and that is a real requirement for them. You gotta have a nice bit of garden for the kids to run around in, haven’t you?

Unable to find a house that meets what they both want is proving very difficult and this sent Michael into a very pensive, almost despairing, mood. He’s beginning to wonder if they will ever find a house that will suit…… Come on, houses! Reveal yourselves!!!

After the house-viewing, we played in the garden and then went up to the park for a play there. The weather turned out to be lovely and it was great fun. By the time we got back, it was tea-time, so the family stayed for tea, too. Very nice. Ah….. how wonderful to be with some of the family for the day.

On the COVID front, things are much the same. 37,578 people tested positive for the virus; 120 people died in the community, with data for those dying in hospitals available on Monday. 985 people admitted to hospital. All within the last 24 hours. Anyone surprised?

Look after yourselves. It’s tough but we’re not giving up. God bless.

I happened to look back at the blog from this time last year, thinking I’d post a photo from then, to show ‘how it was’, and one from now to show ‘how it’s going’, but I was waylaid in my search, because I started reading the blog I wrote on 2 September 2020 and I had to smile, because this is ‘how it was’……

Jack was cleaning and polishing the car in readiness for our trip to Cath’s holiday home in Norfolk and then I wrote: ‘No sooner had Jack left than Michelle and Tim arrived. What joy! It is more than year since we’ve met up (might even be two?) and so I was delighted to greet them.’ That was then. And this is ‘how it is now‘, today: Michelle and Tim called in this morning.

Well, well, well – who’d have thought it? A year, almost exactly, to the day, for a Broadribb visit.

Interestingly, last year, we sat out in the garden and the weather was chilly, so we stepped indoors, keeping a safe distance. This year, we sat in the lounge because the weather was chilly, also keeping a safe distance, with the windows open and a CO2 monitor to keep an eye on saturation levels.

In COVID terms we now know, definitively, that the virus is airborne, and ventilation will help with keeping the volume of bugs at bay. Also, we’ve all been vaccinated – although there’s no data yet on how effective that is, in transmission terms, for the Delta variant.

We had a lovely time with the Broadribbs as usual, because they are very good company, but there had been an upset because Michelle’s car had been pranged in the hotel car park where they stayed overnight last night. The driver hadn’t stopped and reported the incident, so now it’s hunt the culprit.

Michelle had spent a fraught morning speaking to the insurance company, the hotel manager and the police. I think she felt a bit better when she left our house though, because she’d finally managed to report the incident online to the police, who hadn’t been able to take a verbal report last night. “Sorry, madam,” they’d said, “You’ll have to report it online.” The hotel internet wasn’t secure, of course, so no reporting could be done from there. Honestly!! Such bureaucracy makes me grind my teeth. Whatever do people do who haven’t got access to the internet?

After Michelle and Tim had left, we grabbed a bite to eat. I am not sure if it was the food itself that had a soporific effect or whether we are just feeling our age, but after lunch, it was ‘watch-the-cricket-and-snooze-time’. We did absolutely nothing this afternoon. Just whiled away the time, pretending we were actually there at the Oval, and resting our eyes whenever the mood took us.

This evening we watched a film about how time flies and how we may regret putting things off until later, not following our dreams. It was a bit of a trashy film but it gave me food for thought. I am a great procrastinator. Maybe I should ‘have a go’ at the things I dream of. Yes. Maybe tomorrow……..

So, just so you know, the COVID figures are still not going down. Funny that. Can’t think why…… which brings me on to people’s behaviours and beliefs. I had a run-in with a woman at the pharmacy today.

The pharmacy has a policy of 2 people in the store at any one time. Being mostly a law-abiding lot here in Balsall Common, there are often streams of people waiting outside to go in. Anyway, I had been in a queue, but there was no longer a queue and I was in. There was one other, vulnerable lady in, who had been recently discharged from hospital.

The pharmacy assistant had just stepped into the back of the shop to check on our prescriptions when a group of three mask-less adults and two children opened the door and half-bundled themselves into the shop. In the absence of the assistant and knowing that the lady was vulnerable, I turned and said, “It’s only two people in the shop.”

“What?” came the reply. “Two people, it says on the door,” I re-iterated, indicating the notice on the door. “What? Are you the police?” said one of the women. “No, but that’s the store policy,” I said, standing my ground. “Well, COVID’s not as bad as it was,” retorted the woman, a little bit aggressively. “I think it is!” said I.

Anyway, the upshot of it was that the group fell back out through the doors and went off down the road, but not before the woman shouted through the glass at me, “Shut up!” Oh.

How can you believe that COVID is not as bad as before? This is ‘how it was’ this time last year – 1,508 new cases and 10 deaths. This year? This is ‘how it’s going’ – 42,076 new cases today, 121 deaths in the community and 45 on 1 & 2 September in hospitals. Not as bad? Not as bad…..???? Oh, Lord, give me strength.

Take care everyone. As you see, it’s still not over….. anyone got any conspiracy theories on it all? God bless.

It’s Thursday. That must mean that it’s housework day…… or not, as the case may be. It’s so daunting to tackle all of the housework in one go, and we’ve agreed, after a bit of an abortive attempt today, that maybe we won’t try and do it in one go, after all. Especially as I’ve been doing yoga and badminton on a Thursday, not leaving much time for housework. So, if you arrive at our house and it’s messy, you know why.

Thursday is also bin day much to John’s excitement and so he’s been out already and put the bins on the front drive. Honestly, this is what our lives have sunk to now – housework and bins……must get a grip.

However, we did cosy up in the lounge this afternoon. I know it’s not ‘cold’ cold, but with meteorological autumn now officially arrived, it felt chilly and we needed a cheer-up, so we lit a fire this afternoon. It was lush. I do love toasting my toes by the fire.

I did a bit more rootling for photos this morning before I went to yoga, but didn’t come across anything particularly exciting for the purpose of ice-breaking at Cath’s son’s wedding. More rummaging tomorrow, I hope. I have found some hilarious and touching photos of the family at large over the years though, so I might share a few with you when I get organised….. which, of course, might be never, because life seems to be fairly hurtling by at the moment! It’s all the housework and bins….

More of the same on the COVID and political front which I find distressing to think about so I am trying to focus on some positives instead. and there are quite a few of those – particularly when the family send me photos of the grandchildren….. this one of Thomas, entitled ‘FFS’ made me laugh, anyway. I do love a curious child, don’t you?

Take care everyone. God bless.

Here are the figures by the way, lest you think I’d forgotten: 38,154 new cases of COVID today; 178 people died in the community; 68 on 31 August & 1 September in hospitals; and 848 people admitted to hospital with the virus.

I’m off for an early night now. Night, Night.