22.10.2026

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  Thursday 22nd 49F/10C [8.15]  A cloudy day. With rain later. Peaking at 11C/51F. Windy from the south.

  A comfortable 22C/72F in the room. Heat pump remote set at 19.5C on the desk.

 Up at 7.40 after a rather disturbed night with weird dreams. Headlights shone into the room several times in the night. Presumably from neighbours at the rear coming and going. Very unusual. 

 Cooking class this morning. Some vital grocery shopping required. 

 13.15 Back form cooking class. Where I made a carrots dish with Timian.

 

 

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21.10.2026 Rubber fingers.

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 Wednesday 21st 46F/8C [ 8.30] Overcast and showers. Followed by continuous rain.

 A steady 22.5C/72F in the room. 20C/68F in the kitchen.

 Up at 7.45 after waking at 7am. A quiet night.

 After a half hour chat with my minder. I switched on the bright light over my jungle. The 120cm tall rubber plant is leaning heavily towards the window. The Internet says to rotate such plants regularly. Out of ignorance I hadn't been doing that.

 There are three stems in one pot. Perhaps I ought to repot it. Using the huge bamboo support pole I bought. The current, plastic pot is only 17m in diameter at the top. Which always looked far too small to my unskilled eye. 

  The light was sold at a discount. As a builder's working floodlight. Using LEDs to provide a lot of light for comfortably low, power consumption. I fixed the support bracket to the boarded ceiling. Inboard of the south facing windows. Which are covered by the lean-to greenhouse and shaded in summer.

 10.45 Back from my walk. I was going much faster and more upright than usual. No breathlessness. The neighbour's mower was busy again after an absence. The fluffy Alsatian guard dog must be getting old by now. It turned its back on me and wandered away. It has never done that before. Despite years of turning its head away whenever I spoke to it.

 15.30 Following a quick search online. I have repotted the three stem, variegated rubber plant into a ceramic pot. Just one size larger. 22cm x 22cm With a 1.5m tall bamboo, support pole around 25-30mm diameter. I needed only two scoops of fresh potting compost. To fill the small gap around the original root ball. 

 There was no sign of root crowding. So it/they should not suffer from shock. Not with so little extra volume of new soil. I used a thick, soft cord to loop around the stems and pole for gentle support. I was completely breathless after carrying it back indoors. 

 The image was posed to simplify the background. The antique "bodgers" stool is concave in the oak top. So the whole plant can be leaned or leveled at will. If the plant grows even taller the pot can sit on the tiled floor. The advice online is to chop the plants head's off. To make them branch and bushy. I prefer the present "fastigiate" arrangement.

 Dinner was scrambled eggs on toast. With cherry tomatoes. That's what I am calling it and I won't hear any different! 

  

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20.10.2026 Winter arrives in slow motion..

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  Tuesday 20th 45F/7.2C[8.00] Overcast with showers promised. Easterly wind gusting up to 10m/s.

 A comfortable 22C/72F in the room. Heat pump remote still set to 20.5C.  

 Up at 7.20 after a fairly quiet night with repetitive dreams. I wonder if there is any connection to watching YouTube videos? Three pillows is too much. I'll try going back to two. 

 10.20 After my chat with my minder I went for a walk. It was chilly, windy and drizzling! Cruel and unnecessary treatment! No dogs again today. The abandoned restoration project grows more dilapidated each day.

 The neighbours' Husqvarna robot mower has everything back under control again. It was struggling the last time I saw it. Mowing a paddock that had got away from it during its absence. The mower was moving forwards just a meter or so then stopping and rattling. 

 Now the same paddock is trimmed in neat, amazingly straight lines. The mower itself was at its charging station. Presumably having a rest while it rains. Most mowers have rain protection for the grass. Which tends to stick and build up inside the machine. If it attempts to mow while damp.

 The kitchen has sunk to a noticeable 17C/63F. So I have turned on the oil-filled radiator. Just to take the chill off. The bathroom is am even chillier 14C/57F. So The small radiator in there has also been turned on. I am not aiming for comfort. Just a lack of discomfort. No point in heating a room in which I spend so little time. I only use the fan heater when I shower. So that is only a few minutes of electricity consumption.  

 Dinner is a salmon pasty, peas and chips. 

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