My Special Day... 82 years!!! 20/12/42

 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE 1% ERS:

99% of people born between 1930 and 1946 (GLOBALLY) are now dead.

If you were born in this time span, your ages range between 77 and 93 years old (a 16-year age span) and you are one of the rare surviving one-percenters.

You are the smallest group of children born since the early 1900's.

You are the last generation, climbing out of the depression, who can remember the winds of war and the impact of a world at war that rattled the structure of our daily lives for years.

You are the last to remember ration books for everything from tea to sugar to shoes. You saved tin foil and poured fried meat fat into cans.

You can remember milk being delivered to your house early in the morning and placed in the "milk box" at the front door. Discipline was enforced by parents and teachers. You are the last generation who spent childhood without television and instead, you “imagined” what you heard on the radio.

With no TV, you spent your childhood "playing outside". There was no city playground for kids. The lack of television in your early years meant that you had little real understanding of what the world was like.

We got “black-and-white” TV in the late 50s that had 3 stations and no remote.

Telephones (if you had one) were one to a house and hung on the wall in the kitchen (who cares about privacy). Computers were called calculators; they were hand-cranked. Typewriters were driven by pounding fingers, throwing the carriage, and changing the ribbon. INTERNET and GOOGLE were words that did not exist.

Newspapers and magazines were written for adults and your dad would give you the comic pages after he read the news. The news was broadcast on your radio in the evening. The radio network gradually expanded from 3 stations to thousands.

New highways would bring jobs and mobility. Most highways were 2 lanes and there were no Motorways. You went downtown to shop. You walked to school.

A favourite singer.

Alison Kraus is my favourite Country singer, her song, 'Now That I've found You.'  was played so often by my daughter, my grand daughter at 4 years old used to sing along with the CD and knew all the words.

I still like her although many people have never heard of her. In the last school I worked, a teacher there used to organise a music quiz every year for a local charity. I astounded my colleagues by naming her when he played her most popular song, which gave our team the winning point!

How could I not know it when my grand daughter used to sing it all the day long, and I still like it.

Chrisxx

A calming carol to put right my traumatic day!

I need this carol to calm me down; I was awake in the night for hours which means so was Dh! I did eventually get back to sleep and slept till 9.. at 9:15 I had a phone call from the district nurse to say she was coming at 10:30 ish!! Big rush to shower and dress and to make sure there was a clean towel in the bathroom because she has always washed her hands.. what a good thing that we cleaned yesterday and cleared away the stuff we leave about,.. she arrived with  a young man, who is training to be a district nurse..

I was waiting for the questions, how I was etc, when she said the whole point of her visit was to change the catheter!!Oh no, pain my mind said! But honestly it didn't hurt one bit! This is a 12 week catheter, so bringing it to March before it can come out! Altho' I should be contacted by a Urologist before then, to decide what happens next??? I wasn't expected that, I thought this was a short time temporary thing. So I am not happy.

I already had an appointment with the chiropodist, she was supposed to come on 9th Dec, I had written the date and time down when she was here after last time.. she absolutely denied she had made that appointment for me and so I said 'what ever;' I seethed inside, she is  a very 'I am right' sort of person with very black and white views. She did annoy me! She insisted it was 1:00pm Dec 18th which is not a time I usually agree to, because we eat at that time.

But on top of that we had a phone call from the library to say the Book Group time had been brought forward from 2:30 to 1:00 pm!! 

So Dh informed them we would be late! Why and how some people expect you to fall in with their times, when they give you such short notice I don't know!  Its a one off thing because its Christmas, we were told and it will be back to our usual time after it... didn't the person who organizes it know to tell us last month?

So all in all a traumatic start to my day.

The  book group book was 'Foxash,' by Kate Worsley, I wouldn't recommend it. It was a depressing dark, horror story set in the 1930s, post the Great Depression, and based on true historical fact when unemployed people were set up on 4 acres of land, to grow produce to sell and make a living.

 So I was very glad to pick up a book by Erica James last night to read at bedtime, a real comfort read!

What a day I was exhausted and it was only Wednesday, there's the rest of the week to get through now. I hope no other phone calls to upset plans already in place!

Chrisxx

Its Beginging to Look Like Christmas

We did manage to decorate the outside of our bungalow yesterday and  although Dh had promised he wouldn't do daft things on the steps,  like over stretching and falling off, to make sure,  I supervised!

So we have coloured lights round our brick posts which flick off and on, so maybe annoying to our neighbours, whose music is sometimes very, very loud! Although this year they do have lights outside round their Olive trees! 

And one of the very large extended houses, whose house front is a large glass frontage have firm to decorate their house, so it probably can be seen from space!

Our town does have lights but they're not wonderful and there have been numerous complaints from the towns people and a query as to where does our money go to? 

One of the main roundabouts last year, we haven't got this on the roundabout this year because the reindeer were stolen! Sad!

Chrisxx

We're very happy!

    Our new cooker is perfect with a lot of features we hadn't realised it had, a de-frost setting and a proving setting for making bread. So Dh is very happy, as its he who does all the cooking and I'm happy too! I might have a go myself and make some of the extras we have at Christmas time. We had a very tasty chicken Sunday dinner, the oven heats up a lot faster too, so perhaps the old one was failing for a while?

The only snag is the company we bought it from keeps texting to ask how was........ the delivery, the unpacking, the driver, bringing it into our house etc. I've given up answering and now delete them. And the phone call to push for the extra cover, no thank you; its guaranteed for 5 years, more than we thought.

To be honest if I was in better health and it wasn't Christmas I would have looked into having  the old one repaired, but needs must sometimes and I just couldn't face the stress. 

We had to connect it up ourselves, its a duel fuel but Dh knew what to do.

We were all set to go walking in the afternoon yesterday, but the heavens opened and the grey skies let us have what they've been threatening all week. I watched the squirrel skip through the drops straight to the fat balls we put out for the birds, not a bit bothered by the rain. He's amazing the way he hangs upside down by his tail, gobbling away, his little pink ears sticking right up. He's been digging at the edge of the flower bed, so hope he's left some bulbs for me!

So we're all calm with a cooker that works and some Christmassy things in the lounge and as we've sent our cards and presents to Dh's grand children so we feel organized.. I've sent birthday cards to two friends who have birthdays right after Christmas and Dh's remembered his son in law's.. so all happy here and our tree lights are twinkling!

                                 Chrisxx

Slimming group Christmas Dinner, no diet here!!

Bucks fiz

Starter:

Scallop, quail egg on a bed of smoked salmon and crab, dressed with watercress and a sauce of Gazpacho.

Main.

Turkey Wellington, mixed root vegetables, roasted sprout tops, roasted potatoes, pureed beetroot, drizzled with red wine gravy, dressed with pea shoots and cranberry sauce.

Desert

Home cooked Christmas Pudding with creamed custard.

Followed by...

Coffee with cream and a mince pie

All delicious!

 Chrisxx

Very tired!!

A very busy day and I'm out of 'go juice'  I am still waking at night wanting to wee! Its torture and I phoned the help line,  which is available 24/7 and evidently its normal, and she couldn't have an answer, except try to relax.

But how do you sleep if you have the feeling you're needing a wee??

I did go to my old hairdresser so I'm looking tidy in fact better than tidy, curled nicely....

So an early night for me, I think.

 A gentleman waiting for his wife in the hairdressers spoke to me while I was waiting for Dh.

Siarad Cymraig? And I was able to answer.

Ie, tipy ty bach,  sut dych chi?= yes a little, how are you?

He answered Dw i da iawn... =I'm very well. 

Then Dh arrived and I said..

Yma fy cariad= here is my darling,.... because I couldn't remember the word for husband! 

So even spoke some Welsh!

Chrisxx

A toastie and a naughty

We were up and out quite early yesterday, not to do anything really special, we needed a walk in the fresh air.

I collected some face cleansers from Boots, who didn't have it in the store,  in fact talking to the sales assistant last week you'd have thought I was asking for an unknown item, face wash cream didn't register with her at all, So I ordered it on line and had it delivered to the store. 

A mooch round the veg shops as Dh loves Russet apples and I got a pomegranate, which I love!

Then we did something we rarely do, we went to Costa and had a cheese toastie and a mince pie and coffee! Well we don't have an oven at the moment so an excuse to eat out, altho' we could have made a cheese toastie at home, and the mince pie was not the food plan, but very nice!

When we got home we decorated our tree, a smaller one this year but it is just right for our lounge. We used to buy really big trees but in the last few years 4 to 5 ft is big enough..we have more than enough sparkly decs to go on it and we have white lights. We still hang some bells on the lowest branches, which we always did, so we'd know if the dog went near to it, as its in a 'well' of water and given a chance she'd be there drinking it!  

A very nice morning strolling along looking in the Christmassy shop windows.

Chrisxx

We needed this, definitely!

I had another unplanned early start to my day, and although I wanted to go back to sleep I couldn't, so Dh and I were drinking tea at 6:17am! We had a leisurely breakfast caught up with the news and we were showered and dressed before 8:30 not my sort of start to the day, these days I like to take my time.

Dh suggested we went to town to post the parcel to Isla, her Teddy... which we didn't do yesterday because we dozed most of the afternoon! One of the results of broken night's sleep. I didn't really want to go to town, it felt too cold and the kitchen needed clearing up. We'd left everything after dinner because the cooker went phut!

It was out of the guarantee, and we hadn't extended it. We debated what to do, the grill wasn't heating up and hadn't for a while, but we waiting till after Christmas.  Now it was the oven!

Did we want the stress of finding a repair man, getting the part, fitting in a date etc!! Definitely not....... me and this catheter is enough stress, and broken nights sleep is tipping me over the edge and there's only 2 weeks till Christmas!

It only took us less than half an hour to buy a new cooker, we knew what we wanted, and its coming Saturday and we've paid to have the old one, and the packaging taken away! We believe in being stress free, so buying new was the best idea for us.. just as well we don't spend our money on useless stuff these days! And we will be able to have a Christmas dinner!

Chrisxx

Oh Holy Night -

Yesterday we had a slow day after a broken nights sleep,  for some reason my body is waking me up the times I used to wake to use the toilet. It's so annoying and its like I'm walking through treacle all morning trying to keep  going!

In the morning Dh packed the teddy we've bought for little Isla ready to post it when we go to town later.

We had a quick clear up of our lounge because the chiropodist was due, however she didn't arrive, it seems its Thursday she is to come? I wrote the day and date down as she told me last time so?? No matter she can come next week and we needed to clear some of the books away. After visiting my cousin whose lounge was spic and span, we came home to ours with the piles of books on the coffee table and my scarf and gloves on the side, and slippers ready to slip on and shoes ready by the French doors to go out into the garden! 'Its our living room,' I said, we live here!

We are decorating our tree later and Dh is putting up some lights outside so we'll be Christmas-ed! 

Don't you love all the lights and carols?

Chrisxx

The Candle Song

https://youtu.be/TGAXlGBB10M

While living in Essex I often went to Chelmsford Cathedral. When I heard that Graham Kendrick was at the Cathedral promoting a new worship song, some church friends and I went.

The singing was glorious and he taught us all his latest then song, 'From a Spark to a Flame' a truly lovely song.

This song today is sung by children and is his Candle Song.

Beautiful!

Chrisxx

O Little Town of Bethlehem

Our little town was more or less closed yesterday because of the storm.. Dh had put everything that might fly in the wind away and we made sure we had the torch and mobile phone with us in the bedroom. We did wake at 4 as the wind was howling, but all was well. I do hope anyone in the red and yellow zone were alright and no damage to your homes. Very frightening and the text warning frightened me when it went off, as we were very quiet here and the noise was a shock!

One year Dh and I went to York to do some Christmas shopping and we had an amazing time. 

On the Sunday we went to York Cathedral for the Evensong Service. It was wonderful, the choir sang this and other carols, we thoroughly enjoyed it. The inside of the cathedral had its own atmosphere and we were both caught up in it all and it was very emotional. 

When I lived in Billericay I always helped set up the church for the Carols by Candle light.. altho as years went on we didn't have real candles, 'Health and Safety,' but it was still a lovely service.

My grand daughter was part of Kings College, (Cambridge)  Carol service one year and altho I was only able to see it on TV and couldn't really see her, I felt very proud. Her school was asked were there any children, who could be part of the choir and her teacher put her name forward. She had been 'Oliver' in year 5 in her school and 'Joseph' in year 6, so did a lot of singing. 

How can you not join in when you hear singing like this.

Chrisxx

I'll be singing too.

The Princess of Wales Christmas concert was recoded last evening and will be on our screens December 24th 7:30pm on ITV...I for one will be watching and joining in!

When I was teaching I played the piano for Assemblies and the Christmas concerts. I practised a lot at home and living by myself and in a detached house, at all times of  the night and day..I bought my piano with my first full month's pay when I started teaching in 1978.

One year in the 1990's we had succession of power strikes and I put two little tea lights on the music stand on my piano, so I could see the music and played for hours. Except for one evening when my phone rang and on answering it, I discovered it was from an  older lady living alone, who had misdialed and got me. She was lonely and only had a couple of candles, so was a bit afraid too in the dark. We chatted for an hour, till the lights came back.. I heard about her grown up children and grand children and I told about me practising the piano for my school.. She wanted to hear me, so I played the school song I had been practising and sang along. She said it was lovely, but I wondered if she could really hear, although the phone stretched across the dining room was near-ish to the piano! Anyway I wondered after what happened to her, we didn't swap addresses, but I wish we had.

I have continued to love singing although of course no longer play since my arm injury, but I'll be singing with the concert on Christmas Eve and hope they sing this one!

The concert will focus on themes of love, kindness and empathy. It comes after a challenging year for the Princess who has undergone cancer treatment and had stepped back from public engagements.

Chrisxx

The real reason why shops close for Christmas!

Christmas poem by Mary Oliver.

Says a country ledged told every year,

Go to the barn on Christmas eve and see,

What creatures do as that long night tips over.

Down on their knees they will go, the fire

of an old memory whistling through their minds.

I went, wrapped my eyes against the cold,

I creaked back the barn door and peered in.

From town the church bells spilled their midnight music,

And the beasts listened- yet they lay in their stalls like stone.

Oh the heretics!

Not to remember Bethlehem.

Or the star as bright as the sun,

Or the child born on a bed of straw!

To know only of the dissolving now!

Still they drowsed on-

Citizens of the pure, the physical world.

They loomed in the dark: powerful

of body, peaceful mind,

Brothers I whispered, 'It is Christmas!

And you are no heretics, but a miracle,

immaculate still as when you thundered forth

on the morning of creation!'

As for Bethlehem that blazing star

still sailed in the dark, but only looked for me.

Caught in its light, listening again to its story,

I curled against some sleepy beast, who nuzzled

my hair, as though I was a child, and warmed me

the best it could all night.

Chrisxx

My list is getting less.

I've started writing my Christmas cards hence the Christmas music, but when I looked at my list, I was over come with a sadness, as I saw I'd put a line through my friend Diane's name, as she had died early last year. We first met when we both started our nursing training in January 1960, so we'd known each other a long time. We did meet up once a year until a few years ago.

I was her bridesmaid and I remember it well. She had a white velvet dress and her sister and I had dark blue velvet dresses. 

I went to her home the night before as she lived in Newport and I was here in Porthcawl, I caught a bus.. I loved going there as she had a 'normal' family, a mum who was lovely and dad and sister.. so very different to me, I lived with my grandmother and two maiden aunts.

We both had a bath the night before, no showers in those days and her dad had put an oil heater in the bathroom, as no central heating either then! We slept on blankets on a bedroom floor because they had relatives staying. It must have been comfortable as I can't remember not sleeping, but we did chat for ages, so probably were very tired. What did we talk about?? Well this was a time when people didn't 'sleep' together till you were married, so we talked about what it might be like, we were totally unknowing about marriage!

So some lovely memories although sad.

She and her husband David were girl friend and boy friend in school so together for over 64 years.. when he phoned to tell me I was too choked up to speak. My list is getting smaller every year, so sad.

Chrisxx

A better end than a beginning!

I always enjoy our trips to town but yesterday morning was ugh!

I'd had a message, that it had been decided to have a Secret Santa at our SW Christmas lunch... Dh and thought the same, oh no what to buy and also what vile gift would we receive. Ok yes I'm a bit of a prude, but a chocolate 'men's' bits is not for me! I've had it in the past and the nearest bin received it!

But we had seen some things in one of the lovely gift type shops in town, that would be suitable and we could have a coffee in our favourite coffee shop. It was fairly crowded so we couldn't sit where we usually sat.. I found a table at the side while Dh got our coffees. There were two groups of older women there, chatting away and laughing, making quite a noise.  One lady got up to go and as she came past me grabbed my arm as though to swing around me! I let her know and the rest of Costa to 'get off me!' Why do some people have to touch you? I hate it!

Then Dh arrived with our coffees, he always has black with milk on the side, and as he put down the tray, he spilt the milk! Fortunately most went in the tray. But then he was discombobulated and sat down.. wondering should he get another milk, he did, but our coffees were cold! Normally we'd have asked for another one, but the noise, the spilt milk, it was all too much and we were glad to get outside!

Of course the best gift shop has a steep step so not for me, but there were things in the window so Dh went in to enquire the prices, £5 was the suggested price for the secret Santa, and to ensure one gift would be suitable for a man..

So we bought..this sequined bow tie for a man. The shop had it on a card as for your favourite pooch, but I thought it would be super for a man and a fun pressie without being offensive.

And this china tree ornaments for a lady, it says 'Nadolig Llawen' Merry Christmas.

So we were very pleased with our buys and hope who ever gets them will be too. 

Our morning ended quite pleasantly after all, and we bought new baby Isla, a beautiful Steiff Teddy Bear, that's creamy, soft and cuddly.

Chrisxx

Mary Did You Know? (Official Music Video) | One Voice Children's Choir c...

This is one of my favourite Christmas songs.

We haven't put up our Christmas decorations yet but we do have a few ready and Dh has a CD playing when he's  cooking in the kitchen, sometimes rather loud!

Even though there is only the two of us we have all the usual food treats, although we have duck rather than turkey. Its all ordered at our local butchers. The year before last when Dh went to pick it, as he was given it, wrapped, he remarked that it felt rather light and it wasn't the duck! But they sorted it and it was delicious!

We serve it with a red wine sauce that is a Delia Smith recipe.

4 tble sp Morella Cherry Jam

400 ml red wine 

Bring to the boil and then  simmer till sauce thickens. 

It can be made in advance,

And we make Jaime Oliver's gravy

2 Onions

2 carrots

2 celery sticks

2 rashers smoked bacon

Fresh bay, sage leaves, 2 each and a sprig of rosemary.

2 star anise

10 chicken wings, 2 chicken legs

optional port or sherry 

2 tbl sp flour

Olive oil.

We pare this recipe down to suit us

All ingredients are put in a cooking tray except flour and on the top of the cooker, break up the chicken wings, (bash with the end of a rolling pin) and boil vigorously, stirring. Then mash with a potato masher and cook for about an hour. Then stir in flour stirring all the time, add 2 pints boiling water, cook for a further 35 mins. If using the alcohol add now and heat through.

If it is a consistency that you want, strain through a sieve getting all the veg and chicken liquor through. It can be cooled and frozen if you want. 

We make this Christmas eve afternoon.. it is worth the effort, its delicious!

Chrisxx

A Bun

A story I wrote when I belonged to a writing group.

Eleven Pounds

 ‘Only eleven more,’ she said.

‘You could do that in two months, Clara said.

‘I know I could, if I tried really, really hard,’ Said Laura.
Thoughts rushed through her mind. Once she reached that target weight all her troubles would be like sand in the wind. She’d be beautiful, people would look at her differently. No longer a blob stuffed into clothes much too small, no more trying to get her battle ship of a body into those magic knicks. She would find the man of her dreams too, just eleven pounds that’s all.

She looked down at the small plate with the cream cake and the large late´ coffee. ‘I 'll start after this cake,’ she said. ‘Or I could chuck the cake and start now.’ 

It was so hard, so hard to give up the foods she liked. Already one hundred and two pounds lighter and the clothes she wore now, were more fashionable, but she needed those eleven pounds more, to be really slim. She absent mindedly bit into the soft squelchy bun, cream oozed out of the side and the sweet icing stuck to her top lip. ‘If only I could lose those eleven pounds.’ she said and she swallowed the soft sticky sweet bun, ‘only eleven.’

Would you like another bun?’ asked Clara,’ they’re priced three for two.’
‘Oh alright then, pity to miss a bargain.’ Said Laura, as she looked at the bun in her hand, how could this small bun be so bad, there's always tomorrow for the diet, she thought.

               ********************************************

I don't think like that today, but I do like cream cakes, so we don't buy any, nor ice cream as that is my real failing! Since having this catheter I have gained weight, not eleven, but I am back on the plan. It will take me a while to lose this gain of four pounds, but I will, pound by half pound, so definitely no cream buns!

Chrisxx

A fun watch.

 Sometimes you just need a film that needs no deep thoughts and this one 'The Merry Gentlemen,' is one of those.

The main female star, Ashley who is a big city dancer and has been dropped from a regular show for a younger girl with 'pert boobs'  (the films words not mine!) returns home for Christmas, to find her parents small town performing venue, is failing. 

Of course she saves her parents business by staging an all male Christmas theme review. there is a love interest too. Luke, a fit looking young man who helps her parents by doing their repairs. A film with all the usual story lines you can predict.. but sometimes you just need an easy watch! It was very enjoyable and Dh and I sat and watched in silence and when I took a side wise glance at him, he was smiling at a silly bit! I'd recommend this for anyone who enjoys these sort of Rom Coms... Can you tell I'm not full of beans rushing around. but very willing some evenings just to sit and relax and watch TV. Almost like lock  down when our world stood still!

Chrisxx

More Money than Sense?

 What do you do when you can't sleep? I read, I'm on my 76th book, which is more or less the norm for me, so by the end of the year I'll have read about 86 to 90! I am not awake for hours now, but am waking at the times I used to wake to wee! 1:30am and 3:45am so I get out of bed, no easy feat as the tubing for the night catheter is quite long, and is in an old washing bowl along side our bed, I thought I might trip over a stand, so hence the bowl.  I have a drink  of water when I'm out, tidy my pillows and get back into bed and go off to sleep right away! Dh usually wakes too and helps me with the duvet. But apart for that, I am now coping with this!

I had arranged to miss Slimming World yesterday morning, but I did weigh at home, and ugh I've gained weight, which was to be expected, as I had some days way off the food plan, but hey ho it is what it is, and we are now back on plan, so no extras when we go out for a coffee. 

Which we really enjoy, our town 'Costa' has a lovely ambiance and the girls there, know us. Going out is a break from the house and also rests my credit card! This week I've bought 2 enamel dishes, because we both fancied Bread and Butter pudding on Boxing Day and we don't have any of these.

a 4.7l steel oven safe pot, because I watched  a Delia Smith video of cooking for Christmas and she cooked her Spiced Red Cabbage in one of these in the oven, so we had to have one!

and another jigsaw, instead of the Advent one I bought last year, which I hardly did, because I didn't like it!

Isn't this one pretty?

Having bought these things I could hear my aunts voice in my ear

'More money than sense!'

And a totally different genre, a book by Ann O'Loughlin

Which I read in no time, another new to me author,  along with Jo Spain and Andrea Mara, who write suspense novels; Barbara O'Neal, romantic novel writer and now this one Ann O' Loughlin. Her books are the sort, where it's the relationship between the characters and it sort of just goes along with events happening, but nothing too startling! However it did get me thinking, what would I have done.

Cora is a successful artist living in Long Island New York who learns that, her long time partner Jack of 12 years, has been killed in a car accident in Ireland and the other person killed with him was his wife of 3 years! She travels to Ireland, as he has left everything to her, including the house, where he lived with his wife! She gets very involved with the other people living in De Courcy Square and so the story unravels. 

Would I have done what she did, go to Ireland to try to find out about his other life? To right I would have, what a cheat he was..... she finds out a lot more than she bargained for. It was a good read and not the type of book I usually read, but I really enjoyed it.

I have read books by other authors I'd not read before too, but I probably won't read another by them. 

I'm looking forward to Christmas and we will make some sort of cake but not our usual fruit one. We have ready bought some Christmas bits which are in the freezer so we'll buy our tree this weekend..so even though its only Dh and myself we enjoy ourselves!

Chrisxx 

Normal?

 I was dreading getting an appointment with a Dr, can't say my Dr because you see a different one each time and getting through is difficult. But yesterday morning I got through right away and got an appointment with a Dr I'd seen before.  A sympathetic female Dr. She was lovely, kind understanding and gave me a whole lot of medication, a carrier bag full!

This all goes with a huge box of supplies that arrived the day before, all ordered by the District Nurse.. 60 night collection bags because the day bags can be emptied but the night ones have to be changed, I don't know why and loads of other stuff. 

My Dr's appointment was 9:40am so we were up showered before I was awake!  After it, we went to town for a coffee.. so nice to be out and it was a lovely morning, calm and sunny and didn't feel cold, but I was wearing layers.. We drove home round the front prom, so different to Monday the sea was like a mill pond!

After lunch we went out to the garden and sorted out the last flower pot; gone are the dead cosmos and daff bulbs planted in their place.

 Dh's made marmalade with the tinned concentrated oranges you can buy and we have 9 pots!

The Christmas puddings are cooked in the slow cooker as well, so we feel we're back to normal, well what ever normal is!

It feels good and I feel I am coping better.

It was only a week ago when I went to A&E,  but feels longer. 

I am grateful for all the treatment I'm getting but rather I wasn't in this situation.

Chrisxx

First Outing!

I used to get up for the loo every two hours so three times each  night! Now with a catheter obviously I don't have to. However I can't stay in bed all night, I'm waking and can't get back to sleep, so I read. Dh woke as well the night before last, so we had a cup of tea and we both read for a while. It means I'm very tired and am a bit wobbly, also I haven't been out since last Wednesday. 

Today I was determined to go to the U3a Gardening Group Christmas 'do.' Dh attached the collection bag right up high on my leg and my pop sock came up over the end. 

It was such fun and the bring and share meal was very tasty. I was so glad I went, altho the wind whooshing down the main street from the sea front, was so strong it was pushing my wheels to one side. Lots of chatting and laughing and a group singing of 'The Twelve Days of Christmas,' had us laughing so much, I was glad I had a catheter!

And we all bring something for the raffle, so every body gets a prize. We got a tin (very pretty) of short bread and a huge selection packet of biscuits, so that's sorted us for Christmas! 

I had so many 'what ifs' I nearly didn't go, but I'm so glad I did.

So I'm ok going out and will go out again!

Chrisxx

Struggling a bit!

 Having a catheter in situ is a bit of a faff.  The District Nurse came yesterday morning, just after 9, we'd only been up a few minutes and were drinking our first cup of tea. We were up in the night drinking tea, my fault. I am not comfortable and I haven't spent 8 hours in bed in one stretch for years!

She was very good and allayed some of my fears. She checked me all over and all ok. She brought extra wee bags, the day ones can  be emptied, but I have to have a new one each night, I don't know why.

She empathised with my feeling of being uncomfortable, and knew how I felt because she had had a catheter once too. She was here over two hours!

I'm hating the whole thing. I'm not sure how I'll manage going out as the collection bag is on my leg and I haven't got a dress that long. so I've order one from Seasalt. I don't wear slacks.

Dh is very supportive and helps me empty the bags.

I'm only just coping but hating it!

Chrisxx

A Rollercoaster Three Days!

 We've had a roller coaster few days, hard to believe, but it did happen.

We decided on the hop to go to see the new baby, because I've been really well and had some antibiotics for my never ending wee problem. We went Saturday and had a lovely time on Sunday with the new baby and her parents of course, but it was the baby we went to see! She is so pretty the photos didn't do her justice. She is absolutely gorgeous, we were delighted. It was also her mum and twin sister's birthday, so good to give them their presents. We ate a lot of cake!

We only stayed the day with them and went back to our hotel ready to drive home Monday. We were woken at 11:45 by the fire alarm!! I thought I was dreaming, but we assembled with the other guests in the lobby, only to be told it was a false alarm! I saw old men  in their jim-jams and women with bed hair worse than mine! I did go back to sleep, but then it happened again at 5:45!! Although we guessed it was another false alarm, we got out of our room like every one else.. We decided no point going back to bed and had a cuppa watching the early morning news.

Our journey home 145 miles was uneventful and with each mile nearer home, we said a thankful prayer, as Dh hasn't driven along busy motor ways for a couple of years. And we were so pleased when we drove up onto our drive, desperate for a cuppa and me the loo.

Inside Dh switched on the heating and 'nada' It didn't come on! I have a plumber's details in my phone, so contacted him and he came after he had finished his day's work.. We were ok as we have an oil filled electric radiator, which we used in our summer house and the electric fire in the lounge is fan assisted, so we weren't cold, but no hot water.

He said he'd thought it was the ??? can't remember what, but our boiler was 17 years old, so we decided to have a new one. We've always bad a bank account called 'emergencies' so it wasn't a problem. He could come the next day. whew, we were so grateful. We were boiling kettles of water to wash as no shower and then right in front of us, it went bang and that was the end of that! We went out and bought another right away. I said to Dh, Do not say, that's 2 what else can wrong to make it 3!!

That night (Tuesday)I had that awful thing where I couldn't wee again. The pain is horrendous, so at 4:00am, we were off to the hospital about 10 miles. The temps were -2 and the car was frozen up.. We got there me groaning but there were only one couple there and having said what the problem was and me groaning even louder by now, I was seen to right away. 

The insertion of the catheter was hell, evidently my urethra was inflamed and swollen, so stopping the flow of urine, but as soon as my bladder started to empty the pain reduced.  I had pain relief as well and checks for infections, so by 8 o'clock I was feeling much better. However it seems that as I've had this before, but never went to A&E, the Dt suggested I keep the catheter for 12 weeks!!! 

A nurse is to come from my own Surgery to check me etc,,It wasn't easy last night, but I did sleep for longer than I have for two and a half years! This wasn't something I was expecting and although it has relieved my symptoms, it's not an easy thing to cope with. But I am and so is Dh helping me to empty the bag. He is a true love!

And the plumber came and we have heating and hot water.

What a few days we've had so hopefully now all the 'excitement' is over! Difficult to think all this has happened to us, but we have risen to each one and coped!

Chrisxx

When life throws you lemons....

 You drive to the front prom, sit on a bench, gaze at the calm sea and eat ice cream! 

I'm sleep deprived, as was in the wide awake club again last night, so very tired today.. and everything has annoyed me, or at least I've allowed things to annoy me!

1. A dispute with a firm who insists I received the goods and I didn't!  Turns out we were talking about different dates! 

2. I'd bought a pretty little sleep suit for my new step grand daughter and then realised it was the wrong size, so wanted to exchange it, but couldn't find the receipt. I looked high and low, got myself in a sweat then Dh found it in the recycling bag.. then we went to the shop and they didn't need the receipt!

3. Email from the library to say books needed to be renewed, but we haven't got time to go to the library this weekend, so phoned and I'd read the email wrongly, they had been automatically renewed! But I did practise my Welsh as they 'siarad cymraeg yno,' (speak Welsh there.)

4. I've allowed someone, who acts very superior to get under my skin, so emailed her a curt answer and now I look shit to the others in the Chit Chat group!

5. And worse of all I've cried myself silly over it all and none of it really matters!

Dh has been lovely and given me a cwtch and honestly I've worked myself up over nothing, well it didn't seem like nothing to me at the time! And I still don't like that person!

It was very calming looking out to sea and the ice cream was delicious. Just a day in my life.

'There's a great big, beautiful tomorrow shining at the end of every day, thank goodness because I've had a horrible day'

Chrisxx

Paw print.

Dh and I are not Sunday morning car washers or any time to be honest, we go to one of those car wash places, where big rotating brushes with foaming suds swamp your car and then hot air blows over it to dry it. You can have someone to polish it dry, but we don't usually, we like our car,  but being shiny clean is not important to us. We leave it on the drive, as the garage has loads in it, so when it rains we think that's enough to clean the car!

But a friend said, why didn't we use the hand car wash in the garage just a short distance from where we live.

So Dh took it there yesterday afternoon. Wow! Its clean and shiny and looks new.. when the young man came to soap the doors, Dh was telling me, he gave him a look and pointed at the moss growing in the window groves! Dh told him we don't clean it ourselves and the young man laughed saying,  'I can see that!'

Anyway it is amazing and shiny and we had inside cleaned too, except he cleaned away the last signs of our back seat passenger, Nell. There was one faint, sandy paw print still there on the upholstery, squashed into the pile, as she walked onto her blanket.. Well it wasn't a paw print any more, just some sand, but it used to be. I felt really sad, as I used to notice it when I put my handbag behind my seat and I watched as it got less and less.

But now gone...... gone for ever.. I admit I did have just a little weep,, still miss her dreadfully.

Chrisxx

CAROLS.

 Isn't it lovely to see our beautiful Princess of Wales looking so happy to be back in the role as a working Royal. Here she is getting things organised for her 'Together At Christmas,' carol service. It's scheduled to take place at Westminster Abby on December 6th. 

On her X account there is a video of the invitations being printed. Set to the back ground of Jingle Bells, there is a montage of gears and machinery whirring into motion, as they stamp out the Princesses gilded gold royal cypher; a cursive C for Catherine, placed underneath the crown.

'Something exciting is coming,' the post caption reads, the invitations are hot off the press for this years 'Together at Christmas'

It's to be shown on ITV Christmas Eve..We will be watching it.

When we lived in Essex we went to a different Carol Concert in London every year.. there is one here but these days we choose to watch them on TV and attend an afternoon Carol Service, which we love,,...roll on Christmas, we love everything about it.

Chrisxx

Thank you everyone for your kind comments, I'm more or less ok,  still a bit wobbly as a sleep deprived

A bit fragile

 I don't know if I need a week but do need a few days rest, not well.

Same o same o problem, but seen a Dr so on the mend but still a bit wobbly.

I've put my order to Dh for the snacks to be ice cream!

Chrisxx

We Will Remember Them

 

Such a waste of lives and there are still wars today in our troubled world.

Chrisxx

A life changing brief moment.

 Isn't strange how our memories can hop around and suddenly you're back there, living it all over again. That was me a few days ago, all because some one asked me why I walked with my 'Rhet Butler' my wheels! And I was back the memory of nearly over balancing 5 years ago in lockdown, while we were living in Suffolk. And I bought my Rollator. I can walk on even ground without it, but still using a walking stick.. all because of a broken arm. 

It all happened just like that, so simply... we'd had our Italian Evening class and were leaving the college, hand in hand as you do, and at the exit doors the group of people in front of us, stopped just outside to light up their cigs.  Dh and I let go our hands and as I went to step aside to go round them, the next thing I knew I was pitching forward and put out my hand and that was it, my right humerus broke!

I spent over an hour on the ground and when eventually an ambulance arrived and tried in vane to put a needle in a vein; I was then taken to Colchester hospital. It was a night mare, they wanted to keep me over night and I was worried about the dog at home. Dh left about 11 and I spent a very uncomfortable night in the ER on a trolley. They had cut open my beautiful cerise coloured jumper, which really upset me. The pain was controlled and I did doze, but I was very unhappy.

Dh came to get me the next morning and I was allowed home with a brace, not a cast and told there would be no need for an op. and it would heal in the next few months. It didn't and it hasn't really healed, That was 2015, the next year a different consultant operated on it twice and in 2017 I was referred to The Royal London Orthopedic Hospital,  where I had two more ops, including a shoulder replacement.. And all I can say is,  that one broken arm has changed my life completely. I don't have full use of my arm, so struggle to do loads of things.. but buying that Rollator was a good idea because it has taken the fear out of falling again and I walk really well with it. Yesterday I walked along the sea front, well wrapped up, although it wasn't that chilly!! And watched the sea, quite calm and gently rolling in.. lovely! For a short moment the clouds parted, but most of the time, it was a grey afternoon. But the fresh air was clear and I enjoyed the walk... still under a mile but I want to go a bit further each time to strengthen my legs and help with losing weight

Chrisxx

Memories.

 Sometimes when I'm feeling low I delve back into memories of my past. I've said before I didn't have the best of childhoods but my one Aunty, Aunty Glad did her very best for me.

She bought this for me every week and the Christmas annual too.

I absolutely loved it and while some of the stories revolved around Secret Societies, wrongly accused heroines, plucky girls getting caught up in some passing intrigue, ski trips, historical tales, it did occasionally stray into the supernatural tinged adventures. 

Strange thing is it was written with middle class girls in view and I was well down in the pecking order of wealthy families.. It never occurred to me that I was so very different to them, I just accepted the stories as being there. I loved the 'Silent Three,'  girls who got up to all sorts of scrapes.  They were in a boarding school which was well beyond my imagination.. little did I guess that, at 12 years of age I too, was in a boarding school, which I loved.. I loved everything about it.

I shared a room with four other girls, one with whom I'm still in contact. Such a very happy time in my life, all paid for by my Aunty Glad. Such a lot to thank her for.  When I was living in Essex and she was older, I used to visit her every third weekend, driving the 230 miles to see her. When she went through a bad state with arthritis in her knees I got a wheel chair from the Red Cross and we used to go to the prom for a delish ice cream, an escape from my gran for an hour or two and we drank coffee, probably Camp!   Great times.

What about you, what are your happy childhood memories?

Chrisxx

Baby Quilt

 This has been a real labour of love and a lot of tears of frustration, with my useless right arm. I could not get my arm up onto the machine plate to guide the stitching and did this mostly one handed.

But with tears and screams I've done it. They are the best corners on the binding I've ever done. I watched a 'you tube' quilter about 20 times, I was so determined to get them perfectly mitred. I've hand stitched around the figures and 'machined in the ditch' the seams.

It has not been easy and although I've cut enough squares to do another one for charity, I think I'll give it a rest for a few weeks.

But I did it,..... ta----da!

Chrisxx

Happy News

 We had very broken nights sleep Saturday night as Dh's daughter was in hospital expecting her first baby.. She had gone in, because it is an IVF baby and was being treated with kid gloves.. 

She didn't go to the maternity ward till late on the Saturday night so we were on tender hooks.. but nothing was happening.. we waited all day and had the phone call late yesterday ....a baby girl, 7lbs 3oz by caesarian section.. such happy news and a relief.. we both slept soundly last night!

Chrisxx