31.05.2024 Trials and tribulations!

 ~o~

  Friday 31st 58F/14C. Heavy overcast. Threat of thundery showers. Up at 6am.

 8.30 Just returned from a short walk to the drives. The heavy overcast and spitting rain did not inspire me to go further. 

 A trio of professional tree planters has arrived. To decorate the banks of the neighbour's huge new drive. They were equipped with belt mounted hip boxes for carrying lots of small trees or bushes. 

 I wasn't near enough to identify the species. The mounds of sacks lying on the ground suggests a great many trees will be available to be planted. Given the great length of the drive and its broad banks it will take some time. Despite the experts calmly setting to work.

 I am still waiting to see what the neighbours will do about the Japanese knotweed outbreak near the road.  Mowing is never a good idea with this highly invasive plant. Every small piece of chopped material has the potential to become a new plant. It is already well established. From infected soil brought in by the council. For reinforcing the verge years ago.

  Rather more desirable plants are coming up in the greenhouse. Two types of cherry tomatoes. Grown from the pips of commercial tomatoes. Meanwhile, the "High Vis" Cornus, outside the kitchen window, is flourishing. The variegated bush beside is it is also in flower. 

 Both these plants and others, struggled for years against the odds. When towering conifers and a tall beach hedge completely dominated the front garden. After my wife's death I cut down the conifers and lowered the front hedge to head height. The much brighter available light has rather encouraged the weeds.

 I have been trying to get through to the Patient Transport service. To inquire about getting to my early morning appointment. It seems they have a major technical problem. A continuing problem. Judging by the news headlines. 

 I waited in the telephone queue, entered my NI number when requested. Counted down from 6 people waiting to 1st. Only to be dropped and sent to another number. This was repeated until I gave up. 

 It seems impossible to catch a bus from my nearest bus stop. Which is not far from the end of the drive but 5km from the nearest village. None will get me to my appointment by 7.30am in the city. Preferably earlier, for obvious reasons. A taxi would cost well over £70 equivalent. 28km one way. I checked.

 Driving there might leave my car sitting in the hospital car park for several days. First day of parking is free as a patient. It costs 12kr per hour [£1.40] between 8am and 4pm after the first day. Free, long term parking on the outskirts of the vast hospital site. Again, doable, if I allow myself enough time.

 I would [presumably] take a bus home on the same day as the procedure. NO driving allowed for two days after the procedure. No mention of chances of survival on public transport. No unnecessary bleeding on the seats please! No passing out and missing your stop!

 I would then have to bus back to the hospital to collect the car when I am suitably recovered. Inconvenient but certainly doable.

 I haven't a clue whether I will be sent home or kept in. It all depends on so many variables. YT videos suggest a huge range of outcomes and recovery times from this procedure. Making extra holes in people, after deliberately thinning their blood, does seem a tad careless.  😊

11.40  I tried the patient transport line again. I am now placed 14th in the queue. The line closes at 12.00  Life is too short. Let's not bother!

 Complete change of subject: The Brooks B67 is flaring badly and ridiculously uncomfortable. It almost doubles in width when pressed in the middle with the Mk1 thumb. Increasing nose bolt tension doesn't help. 

 I laced one of my B17s years ago and it saved it having a very short life at that typical mileage of 10,000km+. The Brooks leather sags in the middle and flares unless it is laced. Retensioning simply stretches the leather into a delta. Without solving the underlying [sic] sagging and flaring issues. 

 The B67 doesn't have much spare material below the embossed badges. So I will have to punch the lacing holes within the area of the badges. Preferably avoiding the B67 mark to allow later identification. 

 Lacing requires two or four holes. Two is neatest. The leather seems well able to survive the tension of the lace without tearing or cutting. Though four holes would spread the loads more evenly. A black, round, shoe lace will disappear against the leather. 

 I couldn't find any laces at home. So I fitted a temporary zip-tie. It works but is a bit brutal on the eye. I shall buy a round, black, shoe lace when I find an outlet. 

 18.15. The upstairs tool rack has been moved into the empty dormer window. Where I sat at the home computer for two decades. The laundry basket has been brought into the light on the now empty stage. With six, large plastic tubs allowing some basic sorting. Plus rapid transport downstairs to the washing machine. 

 Two loads of towels have dried on the outside, rotary airer. Despite the dire warnings of thundery cloudbursts. This after the first feeble attempt to dampen my spirits. It remained dry but occasionally cloudy. Peaking around 65F/18C with periods of sunshine. End doors opened in the greenhouse to shed the excess heat. 

 Dinner will be salad. With tuna and boiled, Spanish, new potatoes. It's odd how Denmark still has no consumer protection. They had it 60 years ago in the UK. 

 The Danish organic, "snack" carrots were slimy. Only the day after being bought! The Danish crispy lettuce was anything but. Half brown, half discoloured. Probably from being trod on by the cheap, seasonal labour they must hire. The workers had even thrown some dead lettuce leaves into the bottom of the tub! Then they add insult to injury with bullshit marketing printed on the packaging. "Produced in Denmark with care!" What utter bollocks!

  ~o~

30.05.2024 21km + broccoli.

 ~o~

  Thursday 30th 59F/15C [7.50] Bright sunshine. Thundery showers possible with hail. 

 Up at 7am after waking at 4.30. Doze mode. Dentist appointment at 1pm. More distant village. Where I can shop. I could ride there. Instead of taking the car.

 9.15 61F/16C. Sunny periods. Back from a walk to the lanes and even beyond. Testing my fitness on some mild hills. Only a little breathless. 

 Very warm. I had to take off my jacket. Which I had foolishly worn over a thick jumper. It had been cool and breezy when I left. Beautiful countryside with maturing crops softening the landscape. Cloud shadows crossing the fields.

 I ought to shop. Particularly as I really need to improve my diet. Not nearly enough fruit and veg. Too many sugary foods. Even in greasy, oven ready chips! Chicken and mushrooms have become the norm. Fish fingers and chips appear far too often. Chocolate biscuits have become my standard pudding after dinner. I have stopped eating organic apples. When I used to have one every day. 

 No cabbage nor broccoli for ages. I am even reducing my bananas and plain yogurt these days. Which used to be my standard pudding after midday lunch. I have a handful of crisps instead! Not good. No real potatoes any more. They grow roots and go soft and wrinkly long before I want to use them. No self discipline! Myself, not the potatoes. 

 14.30 Returned from e-bike shopping and visiting the dentist. 21km. I brought a large bag of fruit and veg back with me. Now I have to fit it all into meals. Broccoli goes well with fish fingers. I bought no new biscuits nor crisps! 😇 

 Dinner was broccoli and fish fingers. The broccoli was added to boiling water and stayed for only two minutes. The idea is to retain the beneficial nutrients. Which are lost when broccoli is overcooked. It also remains crisp instead of becoming soggy.

 

  ~o~

29.05.2024 OMG?

 ~o~

  Wednesday 29th 55F/3C. Bright overcast and breezy. Fast moving clouds. Another rainy day is promised. 66F/19C indoors feels cold.

 Up at 6.15 after earlier perambulations. Severe stomach pain. Gas? A claimed side effect of the heart meds. No noticeable ill effects from yesterday's ride. 

 I want to deliver the second trailer load to the charity shop this morning. The rain is expected to arrive a couple of hours before the 10am opening time. However, there is a large, indoor loading bay area. So I should be able to back the trailer in. To save myself a soaking and that of the goods. No point in spoiling vintage/antique items for want of a little shelter.  

 I think I will just have time for a short walk  before it rains. The builders are back next door. They have been absent for a while. Always very quiet.

 A few hundred meters/yards of brisk walk along the road before it started raining. The rush hour traffic was nose to tail on auto pilot. Requiring that I take to the verge to avoid becoming a local headline. Fortunately [?] the verge slashing tractor had been along. So I could use the verge as a very rough path. I decided to retreat as the rain slowly petered out. 

 I need a tough pair of gloves to let me handle the spiny weeds, thistles and brambles.

 I have been watching YT videos about my intended heart/artery examination. Angiogram in English? The procedure can vary from as slight as a visit to the dentist. To weeks of serious pain and recovery. All depending on what is found and the skill of the surgeons and support staff. 

 After reading a few comments by "patients" on one video I felt nauseous with shock. I have been thinking it was just another, simple scan. Having somebody to monitor the patient afterwards seems vital. I thought I was going to "cheat" and drive home only a couple of hours later! It all seems to depend on the level of anesthesia and drugs given at the time. How much plaque is involved, site of catheter insertion and whether a stent is needed. To name but a few. Puncturing an artery is considered a fail. As is dislodging a clot to cause a stroke or heart attack.   

 09.40. Off to town with the trailer full of charity donations. 

 11.00 Returned with an empty trailer. Had a nice chat with the ladies at the charity shop. 

 Then went in search of strong chain for lifting the foundation blocks from the observatory. No hope at any of the big shed outlets. So I bought some 5mm stranded steel cable instead. I'll need to do some online homework to make a safe [strong] loop with the matching ferrules I'd also bought. Crimping tools are far too expensive for a single exercise. If they can be found.

 I saw a Red kite having a scrap with some crows.

 Dinner was chicken and mushroom curry using Ben's Medium Curry sauce.

  ~o~

28.05.2024 55km on the e-bike.

 ~o~

  Tuesday 28th 54F/12C. Very heavy overcast and raining heavily and steadily. A very wet morning is promised.

 Up at 6.15 after waking at 5am. Practicing my dozing.

 8.30 It is 70F/21C indoors but it feels cold. I have had to put on a thick jumper. 

 Later I drove the Morris to see my friend. Returned home, had lunch and then repeated the same journey on my e-bike. I had left something at home in the morning.

 17.30 60F/15C. 55km is only about 34 miles. The Brooks B67 was agonizing! I stopped three times to adjust the nose upwards. Retentioned it too. It only felt better for a short while. Tailwind going. Headwind coming back.

 Dinner was poached eggs on toast. I allowed the small glass cups with the eggs to sit in the water as it came to the boil. I had pre-boiled the water in the electric kettle for speed. Then filled the pre-warmed saucepan. 

 The addition of the cold cups had chilled the water. Taking it off the boil. This heat soaking was to stiffen the whites. It worked really well though invisibly. I should have included some of this heating time in the cooking total. After the eggs were released into the boiling water. The yolks were half runny and half solid. 

 I am using the new plates. Which were found during the sorting of the china collection upstairs. Their size suits a couple of rounds of toast perfectly.

 

  ~o~

27.05.2024 The e-bike is back!

 ~o~

  Monday 27th 58F/14C. Bright but cloudy. Showers possible. Up at 5.10. I tried, but couldn't stay asleep.

 I have a trailer full of charity shop donations waiting to go. The fitted tarpaulin has hopefully kept it all dry. There was half an hour of torrential rain yesterday afternoon. 

 Ten more boxes are waiting to make a second load on the lounge floor. The huge charity shop in town opens at 10am. I am still trying to decide where I can deliver the fifty-odd paintings and prints. I'll ask the charity shop if they can manage them. They have plenty of wall space in their warehouse. 

 10.45 Back from town after delivering the trailer full of charity stuff. I shall now load the trailer with what is sitting on the lounge floor. Plus all the paintings and prints. My hearing aid batteries have been delivered. That was quick. I wasn't expecting them until Wednesday delivered with the newspaper. 

 11.00 67F/19C. Bright overcast, warm and humid. The trailer is loaded with the boxes. I am dripping with sweat and need a rest. I have yet to bring all the paintings downstairs. While avoiding becoming too breathless. I wear grippy rubber gloves to ensure I can maintain a good hold without excess effort. It makes all the difference.

 13.30 Lunch. Trailer fully loaded. I'll deliver it tomorrow.

 6.15. I had a message that my e-bike was ready for collection. So I drove back into town with the bike carrier in the Morris. Returned and then fitted the new dropper post. I am delighted to report that I can now put both feet down when the saddle is lowered. No more toppling like a tree! A quick ride up and down the drive proved that all was well. 

 I saw a pre-war open sports car racer-tourer. Wide and low. With bare wheels. We both waved to each other. It sounded utterly amazing! 

 Dinner was salad. Somebody will have to do some washing up if I am ever to eat again.

 

 

 ~o~

26.05.2024 Home alone [again.]

 ~o~

  Sunday 26th 56F/13C.[6.40] Overcast and misty. With 200m invisibility. Risk of thunder storms and heavy showers.  

 Up at 6am after a quiet night.  

The flower bed at dusk last night.

 My visitor goes home today. After managing amazing results in tidying, selection for charity donation and reorganization of "the collection." My burden will be reduced by a further two, large trailers full, once delivered. 

 The former bedroom and stage area are finally clear of random boxes of stuff. There was the added bonus of companionship and endless talking. We exchange emails on a daily basis.

The raised "stage" on the landing hasn't been this clear in 28 years! My wife and I watched a whole series of ever larger TVs. Over the top of the banister and across the open stairwell. As the technology steadily changed from boxed CRT to flat screen OLED. From satellite TV to VHS tapes, to film DVDs to Netflix streaming and YouTube via fiber Internet. The black TV support bar can come down now. 

 9.00 60F/15.6C. Returned from a warm, sunny walk. The breeze helped to take the edge off the sun burning through my jumper. Light Sunday traffic.

 10.00 70F/21C. Mist cleared. Bright sunshine. The greenhouse doors have been opened to remove the excess heat.

 13.00 Lunch. I have driven my visitor to the bus stop in the village. To start her long journey home. A few rumbles of thunder but remaining dry locally. Bands of heavy rain, with lightning. Have been passing north and south of us on the DMI radar. 

 14.45 The start of half an hour of torrential rain.

 Dinner was mackerel on toast with tomatoes. Followed by full can of tomato soup and a bread roll. Washed down with the last smidgen of the red wine. Pictures tomorrow if/when technology catches up with its empty promises. Posted tomorrow by a time traveler. One day at a time.

 

  ~o~

25.05.2024 Hoard reduction.

 ~o~

  Saturday 25th 53F/12C [6.30] A bright and sunny day peaking at 20C is promised. Up at 5.30 after a quiet night. 

 I have to deliver half a trailer full of grass cuttings to the recycling yard. Otherwise I can't fill the trailer with all the boxes of charity shop donations. The large armchair is still sitting on the lawn. If I time my visit to the recycling yard for the 9 o' clock opening I can dump the chair as well. 

 Then I shall return home to collect the boxes. Before driving to one of the large charity shops in town. Which can easily handle the sheer quantity involved. It should all go into the trailer with careful packing. 

 Meanwhile my guest will be clearing the raised stage area by the upstairs landing. Lots of crockery needs to be wrapped in newspaper and boxed. A skill which she has already proven to enjoy. The results can be delivered to town during the week. Hopefully when I can collect my e-bike.

 8.15. 60F/15.6C. Bright sunshine. I have the trailer hitched to the old car. The armchair is lifted in and tied down. Still too early to go.

 9.30 64F/18C. Variable, warm sunshine. Returned from the recycling yard minus grass cuttings and armchair. The trailer has been swept clean and dry. Then carefully loaded with all the charity donations. I shan't take it to town this morning. It can go next week. Perhaps save a journey and collect the e-bike at the same time. 

 10.00 Had a rest and a cup of coffee to recover.

 12.30 Returned from a shopping trip to the next village. Where I ran across my foreman from the factory. I haven't seen him in probably 12 years or more. We had a pleasant chat to catch up. My Danish must have been much more fluent than it was back then. Meanwhile, back at the hovel, my guest has been busy tidying. I can hardly believe the incredible progress she has made. 

 17.00 Overcast. The stage area beside the landing is now cleared. Lots more boxes for charity. Another trailer load of glass, china, glass lampshades and ornaments is being wrapped in newspaper. To prepare it for safe travel. Another vast burden lifted. Her detachment from my wife's collection has been vital. She wrapped every fragile item and filled fresh boxes. To be taken downstairs to join the stack. Just the right balance of care and empathy. 

 I rewarded my guest by cooking again. Chicken, mushrooms and chips. Washed down with organic red wine. It was absolutely perfect.

   

 ~o~

24.05.2024 Bringing order to chaos!

 ~o~

  Friday 24th 56F/13C.[7.00] Brighter now, as the early clouds clear. Dry with 20C and some sunshine promised. Up at 6am after a reasonable night. My pictures have finally uploaded from my phone to the PC. No idea why they won't upload seemingly at random intervals. It is far too time consuming to select and upload. More than one or two images manually.

 The plan for today is to try to bring some order to the upstairs collection. Which I have hardly touched. Since dragging it all onto the steel shelving units I bought for the purpose. With the rest stuffed into translucent tubs on the floor of our former, even more cluttered bedroom. Despite the removal of a bed and multiple items of superfluous furniture. It is proving almost impossible to find anything in the present, random chaos.

 7.45. Time for a walk in the strengthening sunshine.

 8.30 Returned from my usual walk to the lanes. The sun was heavily veiled. There was not a breath of wind and the turbines up on the hill were completely still. I was too warm in a jumper as I tried to maintain a fairly brisk pace. The usual birds were singing. A white van man swerved towards me. On a straight section of road without any opposing traffic. No clear business markings. I was too surprised to note if his registration plates were Danish. 

 10.30 I have made a path to the balcony windows for the armchair. Having destroyed the 3-seater settee to make room for the hospital bed. For my wife's last few days in the living room. The matching chair owes me nothing more after decades of use. 

 It worked a treat! The window brace just cleared the chair as I dropped it over the sill from the first floor. It landed safely upright on the lawn. Ready to be dumped in the trailer. For the first time in nearly 30 years there is large, empty space in the corner of the attic. By lunch time the bedroom shelving held only a fraction of its earlier load. Large, bin bags of clothing, curtains, bedding are waiting downstairs. Plus half a dozen boxes of mixed stuff. 

 It can all go in the old car for a run to a charity shop. Probably into town. Despite the greater distance they are large enough to absorb a whole range of items. As could the large charity shop in the village. Though I am no longer willing to deal with the miserable and ignorant staff and manager.

 16.15 65F/18C. Sunny periods. Another break for a rest. The lounge floor is now covered in dozens of full boxes for charity donation. I would estimate we have reduced my wife's remaining hoard by 80%. Having somebody to help and guide my choices has worked wonders. 

 A lifetime collection is no more. The bedroom floor is clear. There are still all the boxed and packed glass items, the ornamental china. Her countless cats in all their variety. 

 Her teapot collection can go on Facebook small ads. It is too pretty and varied to be separated on the whim of a charity shop volunteer. No doubt a collector would enjoy adding them to an existing collection. For only a modest sum. I am not greedy. I just want them to be fully appreciated. For their craftsmanship and beauty. As did my wife.

 My visitor reports two deer in the garden today. The double gates on the drive kept them out for years. Now the drive is wide open.  

 Dinner was salad with fish fingers. The suggestion was a shock to the system but the combination was superb. One to remember as part of my culinary education.

  ~o~

23.05.2024 Giving it all away.

 ~o~

  Thursday 23rd 57F/14C. Heavy overcast but still dry. Rain is promised for much of the day. The radar presently shows a strip of heavy rain traveling NW just below Fyn. 

 Up at 5.30 after a quiet night. I have an ear wax removal session just after lunch time in town. I shall take my guest with me in the Morris. She can potter down the shopping high street while I am being treated. It is usually only a short procedure but waiting times vary. 

 I can ask about progress on my e-bike while I am there. The bike shop has had it in the workshop since the 10th! A lack of non-standard, Magura, hydraulic brake hose fittings apparently. Imagine having a Magura brake problem while on a cycle tour! No brakes for a fortnight? I have completely missed a uniquely warm and sunny spring. Albeit while suffering from the worst cold in human history.

7.50 Returning from my walk. Just down the road and then looped around the old and new drives. The result of yesterday's tractor drawn mowing was obvious. The Japanese knotwood had been literally mown over. Every fragment can result in another plant! It is highly invasive and subject to strict rules in the UK.

 It started raining lightly as I reached my own drive. The dilapidated, twin carports have been demolished at the old thatched house. They had been leaning and overgrown for years. With the adjoining field trying to flow over it. Now it is difficult to see where the structure once stood.

  8.35 Torrential rain! That will wash the dust off the cars.

 11.30 It has been raining hard on and off. I am going through the kitchen cupboards. To rid myself of stacks of crockery. All of it decorative but only a few of each item or singles. Lots of stainless steel pots I shall never use. It will all be donated to charity. We managed to fill four boxes in the end.

 14.45 Returning from town. It rained until after we came home. Magura brake hose spares unavailable apparently. They will try extending the hose with Shimano fittings. Possibly next week? I had my ears scraped. Appointment to go back in six  months. 

 We visited several charity shops. Delivered the boxes of donations to a rather low key acceptance. I found a nice little table for the rubber plant at a £5iver equivalent. Giving the plants more room to breathe in that corner of the lounge. I think I am finally getting somewhere now. The whole arrangement is more relaxed. The ceramic pots I bought yesterday were not much bigger than the plastic examples the plants came in. So I will have to go back for the bigger size.

 Dinner was home-made meatballs, brown mushrooms and chips. Eaten at the table with organic red wine. Birds flitted from tree to tree in our north facing view of the back garden. The dappled, golden sun piercing the tall trees of the windbreak to the west. The tall, half-dismantled observatory badly spoiling the vista. It will have to go! 

 My visitor saw a deer sneaking through the garden. It exited over the new gravel pad I have been building. It is years since a deer has been seen in the garden. Not helped by the former gate on the drive at the boundary. Now demolished and gone to the recycling yard.

  ~o~

 

22.05.2024 Contact!

 

 ~o~

  Wednesday 22nd 57F/14C. [6.30] Bright and breezy but cloudy. 

 Up at 5.30 after a very quiet night. I don't remember the last time I didn't get up even once. My ribs are still hurting.

 The view from the parking space over the flower garden to the rose hedge. The flowers aren't very visible yet. Mostly small, reds and purples.

 I have some more tidying to do before my visitor arrives. Probably after lunch. The kitchen and bathroom tiled floors need a mop too. 

 8.00 Back from a breezy, early walk to the lanes. I remained comfortable in only a t-shirt and shorts. Lots of birds as usual. The ground is covered in billions of tree seeds. Oval translucent, elm seeds are everywhere. Their little UFOs are easily carried by the wind.  

 10.00 66F/19C. Bright sunshine. I have swept, vacuumed and mopped all the tiled floors and dried them off.

  The variegated plant on the kitchen windowsill [Spathiphyllum?] needs dappled shade and regular misting. I may have to move it. The other windowsill is shaded by the greenhouse netting.   

Not sure this works. It looks too prearranged. The plant heights are too well matched.

12.45 I have had a letter from the hospital. They plan to push a thin tube up to my heart in a few weeks time. No driving within two days. No real exercise for four days. The patient must not be left alone at home without supervision. For the first day after the procedure. In case of uncontrollable bleeding from the insertion site. Or other symptoms. 

 How is that supposed to happen? There must be countless people living alone. With no family or friends to call on. I may have to stay at the hospital overnight. 

 Better? I managed to squeeze both plants onto the same table. It looks much better balanced.  Hopefully they can get along with some minor leaf contact.

 14.30 I am leaving early to collect my visitor from the village. I have some shopping to do.

 15.30 Returning with my guest. I bought the ceramic pots before picking her up in the Morris.

Dinner was sausages, eggs and chips. We ate at the dining table like adults do. With a glass or two of red, organic wine. Photographed by northern light without artificial lighting.

  ~o~

21.05.2024 Filling the ugly, empty spaces.

 ~o~

  Tuesday 21st 57F/14C [7.15] Another sunny but windy day. High pressure sitting north of Denmark is giving warm and steady weather. Elsewhere it is anything but steady. 

 Spathiphyllum wallissii Sensation Variegata?

 Up at 6.30 after waking at 5am. I am tidying and cleaning in readiness for a rare visitor. I shall have to go shopping now the bank holiday weekend is over. 

 The boundary hedge beside the drive has gone berserk! I cut it down to the fence height two years ago. Now it is as tall as the house! I have been struggling with these hedges for the entire time we have lived here. 28 years and counting. We had an agreement with the first lot of neighbours to maintain it. Since then it has been completely ignored by every owner and tenant. So it fell on me to keep it in check.  The trees on the other side, of the absent neighbour's "back garden," continue to grow skywards. Though they don't have the same effect. Of closing down the light and feeling of space caused by the nearer hedge. 

 Most of the hedge is composed of vicious, spiny, wild cherry trees. Which are so dense they are completely opaque even to bright sunlight. Only reducing the height helps.

 8.30 Back from the lanes. I walked deliberately briskly and made it to my usual turning spot. No ill effects. Now the Internet is broken. Perhaps it was just a glitch but some email services weren't available. It has clouded over now. After a clear sky when I left. Much breezier too.

 I had a haircut after lunch, collected my heart meds and bought a couple of indoor/house plants. A Monstera, a variegated rubber plant and a pretty but unknown variegated plant for the kitchen window. The cupboard for the rubber plant is too high. The detail in the upper foliage is lost to the ceiling. I shall have to find a solution. These plants will help to hide the ugliness of the unfinished wall. I forgot to buy clay pots for them. So I'll go back tomorrow. The Monstera needs a bigger pot. It is root bound. I bought large plants to avoid waiting for years for them to grow big. I may not have enough years left to practice my usual impatience.

 The garden is increasingly full of flowers. With the rose hedge packed with white blooms. I had cut it back a couple of years ago. Which meant it didn't flower last year.

 The front indicator bulb on the Morris packed up. I could see it was not flashing. As I parked in front of a shop window. So I bought a pack of two at the garage. Several people spoke to me about the Morris today.     An entitled psychopath, driving an ugly, bulbous Audi, barged in front of me at a roundabout. Absolutely no right of way nor space between my bonnet and the car in front. Only emergency braking, on my part, prevented a serious dent. In his overpriced, Chinese slave built, piece of battery driven crap.

 I found a pair of khaki, cargo shorts at the charity shop. Finally I can stay cool and still carry my phone. I have finally made an appointment to have my teeth checked for a new plate. It doesn't sound as if there will be any change from £1000 equivalent. I am already £500 out of pocket on the X-rays, cleaning and one extraction.

 Dinner will be a salmon pasty with chips. I ought to have some peas for a token nod to the absence of veg in my diet. The mini oven is definitely not heating properly. The pasty took 35 minutes to brown. Even the tan on the chips was hardly convincing. 

 The cuckoo was still calling when I went outside to admire the flowers in the evening light. A mistake, because it suddenly made me feel very depressed. My wife would often come back indoors. To tell me her flowers were glowing in the twilight. We would go back out together and admire her garden. She cried only once, towards the end. Saying she only wanted to see her flowers again. It was already much too late.

  ~o~

20.05.2024 Another sunny day.

 ~o~

  Monday 20th 57F/14C [7am] Bright again. Up at 6am. Bank holiday.

9.30 Returning from a walk to the lanes in warm sunshine. There was enough air movement to make it comfortable. Yet again I was surrounded by birdsong. Mostly warblers but many other voices could be heard. 

 The front garden from the greenhouse by evening light.

 The traffic was light enough not to spoil the sense of rural calm. Most drivers gave me a wide berth. More easily achieved when there is so little opposing traffic. 

 The trees and hedgerows are rapidly thickening their foliage. Making for dense shade and wildlife cover but hiding the all too familiar views. I had a chat with my nice neighbours on my past. 

 11.00 70F/21C. I ought to shop.  It looks as if the village supermarket is open. I could have another trike ride.

  12.15 Returned from the village shopping. There was too much to carry for the trike. So I went in the Morris. 

 Dinner was poached eggs on toast. The appearance was okay but I overshot by a minute. Making them more firm than runny yolks. Still tasted fine.

 

  ~o~

19.05.2024 More spring cleaning.

 ~o~

  Sunday 19th 55F/13C [6.45] Another warm, sunny and breezy day. Up at 6am after a quiet night. My ribs are still hurting.

 A walk to the lanes yet again provided entertainment from the vocal warblers. Light Sunday traffic on a bank holiday was to be expected. 

 I have changed tactics on the ants. Instead of stomping on them with a fingertip. I scrubbed the windowsill with bleach. My [clever?] thinking being: That denying them all hope of sustenance. Would send them foraging elsewhere. 

 Sadly, the ants just poked their tiny tongues at me and carried on regardless. Though their numbers are presently down to a highly visible three. A manageable, if not sizable majority. Though I do have the advantage of brawn. If not their brains. Meaning AI, in layman's terms. I just hope I don't have to spell it out for you. 

 What I should be doing is tidying and vacuuming but where's the fun in that? It's a very thin line between satisfaction and smugness!

 Nevertheless, I spent some time laundering, vacuuming and cleaning in the afternoon. The ants had amassed reinforcements and regrouped in another corner of the windowsill. Caught me completely by surprise. I felt I had to end the uprising. So resorted to heavy artillery. Wet fingertips!

Dinner was chicken, mushrooms and tweggs. I broke one egg turning it over in the pan. Again! The pan is dry by the time I drop the eggs in. The small bit of butter is soon absorbed by the chicken and mushrooms. I have given up on oil. YouTube says it oxidizes.

 

  ~o~

18.05.2024 It's hell out there!

 ~o~

  Saturday 18th 55F [7.15] Bright sunshine again. It could top out at over 22C/72F today. 

 Up at 6.45 after waking at 5am. Because of the bank holiday it was recycling bin day but I didn't know that.

A better picture of the roadside lilac in sunshine.

 09.30 61F/16C. Returned from a warm walk to the lanes. Countless birds in the hedgerows. Saw several warblers moving between trees. A solitary swallow. Loads of skylarks. The garden trees are full of birds as well. I can hear the tiny wren competing with all the other birds. 

 The traffic was very light on the outward leg. Busier on my return. Scrap man has dumped more scrap. I haven't seen him for ages. 

  15.00 72F/22C. I have been mowing the lawn under a merciless sun! I would still be out there but the batteries went flat.

 I found a bike shop in the city. Where they were willing to search for a replacement frame spring for the broken Con-Tec saddle. They have sent me a message. Unfortunately the wholesaler won't have spares until November! 

 Dinner was salad. Boiled eggs might have been nice but it was already late after washing up. 

I had better go out and tidy up the mower. The ants are still waging war with me on the kitchen window sill. An asymmetric war with no winners.

 

  ~o~

17.05.2024 Heads you win. Hearts you lose!

 ~o~

  Friday 17th 55F/13C [6.30] Another warm, sunny and breezy day is offered. 

 Up at 5am. Escaping from the torment of memories.

 It is finally heart scan day at the city hospital. My original appointment was cancelled three weeks ago. I shall go in the Morris.

13.30 71F/22C. Returned from the hospital. The radiologists were young and pleasant and fun. Everything was said and done in English. My doctor  will get the scan results eventually. It was hard to stay awake in the warm sunshine driving back.

 The bike shop rang to say they still haven't matched the Magura hose fittings. Bank holiday on Monday. So who knows when I'll get my e-bike back. 

 That was quick! I just had a secure message from the consultant at the hospital. My scans show I have calcification of my three main arteries. They are suggesting I take several medications in future to combat this problem. A catheter examination is also recommended. Though the 1% risk of a brain clot doesn't sound very healthy! 

 Dinner was tweggs, chicken and mushrooms.

 

 

  ~o~

16.05.2024 Hiding from the sun.

 ~o~

  Thursday 16th 63F/17C [8.45] Another warm, breezy and sunny day.

Up at 5.0. Regurgitating bad memories. Ribs hurting. Cough and congestion gone.

8.30 Returned from a short walk looping along the drives. Warblers singing. Skylarks overhead.

Went back to bed to catch up.

11.15 I rang the bike shop to see what's happening. Hmm. They have not received the Magura brake hose fittings yet! Disappointing.

11.45 Another mound of washing up completed. 

 17.30 Returned from a drive into the village for groceries. Bright and warm but very windy! The promised phone call on brake hose updates never came. (Sniff!) 😭

 Dinner was a salmon pasty and chips. The mini oven doesn't reach the indicated temperature. I checked the baking tray with a pistol remote thermometer. 175C instead of 230C. It takes far longer than the cooking instructions to brown chips. The pasty took 40 minutes to brown and swell. What to do about it? I haven't a clue. I am not buying another old fashioned cooker! Nor a replacement mini-oven.

 

  ~o~

 

15.05.2024 A fine crop of Japanese Knotweed?

 ~o~

  Wednesday 15th 57F/14C [7.15] Another warm, dry and sunny day. 

  2023 was the warmest in 2000 years according to the tree ring growth experts. Global sea temperature records have been broken every month for a year now.

 Up at 6.30. Woke at 5am but went back to sleep after a quiet night. My ribs are still hurting but my coughing has stopped completely.

 8.15 Time for a walk. I hope I'll be able to pick up my e-bike soon.

10.00 68F/20C. I eventually walked to the lanes after various delays. It was delightfully warm but with the cooling breeze keeping things comfortable. The different voices and songs of the warblers was entertaining. Some of them can sing extremely loudly! The traffic was unusually light. My neighbour has mown the grass banks to their new drive. And run over the highly invasive, Japanese Knotweed beside the road! I fear they will soon have thousands of square meters of Japanese Knotweed to cope with!

 The sun was very bright. Which exaggerated the light coloration of all the fresh spring leaves. Most of them will darken over the summer. 

 There are only a few lilacs in the hedgerows locally. Miles/km of continuous lilacs elsewhere. The usual colour is pale purple but variations exist from white to blue to dark purple. The vast areas of oil seed rape are just beginning to go over now. Changing from bright yellow flowers to light brown seeds over time. 
 
11.00 70F/21C.  I have been hedge trimming along the drive. Scrapman's hideously abandoned building site had hedges overflowing the drive. The view along the main road was also blocked. The official hedge slashing tractor hadn't touched it. Leaving ash, field maple, roses and lilacs projecting wildly out into the road. No longer!

 12.30 72F/22C. The garden is full of birds and birdsong. Lots of warblers. Campanulas are coming out in my wife's flower bed. The black elder and cotoneaster salicifolia are looking well now they are in leaf.

 13.45 72F/22C. Windy. The Yato 3T farm jack has arrived. I managed to break some old rope and some thin, old, ratchet strap band. While trying to lift the steel post from its concrete backfill in the ground. I had to excavate the rock hard, self stabilizing gravel around the pole first. I might try the chain on the hoist next. 

 I just realised that I need the timber bridge supports much further apart. The concrete surrounding the pole is much larger than the pole itself. Trying to lift with a short support bridge is just compressing the gravel over the concrete! Silly old wotsit!  

It is unpleasantly hot working outside in the sunshine. I had forgotten to open the greenhouse end doors. It was 105F/41C out there. Ideal for kiln drying the logs? Quickly dropped to the low 80sF once the doors were opened. 

 To my surprise I have discovered my sister owns a farm jack. She uses it to lift unwanted shrubs and tree stumps. She has recommended some YT videos. Which show lengths of timber used as tripod legs. I will make some legs to resist the jack's leaning tendencies. Some new chain and shackles will be on my shopping list too.

 Dinner was cheese on toast with halved cherry tomatoes. The image upload to Google doesn't work again! I am having to upload them singly and manually.

  ~o~

14.05.2024 A tidying we shall go! Tra-la!

 ~o~

  Tuesday 14th 59F/15C [7.30] Bright sunshine  in a clear sky again. Breezy again.

  Up at 6.30 after a quiet night. My chest and back are hurting. [Furniture moving?] 

 The kitchen seems twice the size after yesterday's tidying! Still plenty to do. The dresser shelving has become a repository for junk. The bottom cupboards are full of glasses. Which are highly unlikely to ever get any exercise. 

 A large trolley, covered in more junk, sits in the left corner beyond the countertop. It isn't earning its keep. The whole mess needs to be sorted, donated to charity, or dumped. There is little even potentially useful. Just forlorn memories clinging to an absent soul.

 The other corner has become a repository for my unused building materials. Mostly small bags of cement, tile adhesive, etc. It probably has a "use before" date on most of it. Built in chemical obsolescence. It can probably go over to the gravel, carport pad I have been building. To be become more rubble/hardcore. 

 I have plans for reserve stocks of tiles in the corner of the lounge near the stove. It was never finished. [By me] Leaving a strip of floor against the wall lower than the rest. It was soon hidden from view by an accumulation of excess furniture. Now I can cut some tiles to complete the job properly. I have already moved an oversized coffee table into that corner. With another untidy aspidistra for company. 

 I don't think they work well in pairs. A contrast is required to avoid clashing with each other. So now I have to go window shopping for a suitable house plant! Monstera? Anything will help to hide the hideously unfinished wall. As usual, photos of the interior make it look far worse than the eye can fathom. 

 13.30 71F/22C. Breezy with solid sunshine. A lovely day. The countryside is very beautiful. With miles of lilac hedges in flower. Fresh leaves on the trees. Returned from visiting my friend. I went in the Morris. I can feel my heartbeat as a pulsing pain in my ribs.  

 Dinner was fish fingers and chips.

 

  ~o~

13.05.2024 Spring cleaning? Surely not?

 ~o~

  Monday 13th 57F/14C [8am] Breezy and bright sunshine.

 Up at 7am after waking at 6am. My cough has all but disappeared. Though my ribs still hurt. I should have gone for  walk  but decided to use the time to tidy up and launder new items prior to use. While I am in the mood to be constructive. I emptied the recycling bins and watered all the aspidistras. I plan to bring down the now empty, tallboy chest of drawers. It would provide a more sensible, minor clothes storage system than the large, oak chest of drawers. 

 Location is the problem. My wife used it and kept it beside the chimney. Where it blocked free movement. I have now removed the plastic baskets of logs and kindling from the room. The baskets nest well. So I can stack them neatly in the greenhouse and return the logs to the pile.   

 Will I be able to collect my e-bike from the workshop today? There was a severe danger of the front brake line [hose] being stretched by the new, swept back handlebars. So I asked the workshop to fit a longer line/hose. Just to be safe. 

 Why wouldn't Magura use standard hydraulic fittings for its brake lines? I think the workshop tried to use Shimano standard fittings but they wouldn't hold any pressure. I presume they have ordered new parts from their wholesaler. So It might take some time to receive them. I imagine the bike trade has a quick spares delivery system. Much like the motor trade.

 I prefer to use the skill of the workshop staff to get it right. Rather than attempt a clumsy bodge myself. It involves using the correct hydraulic fluid and bleeding the brakes afterwards. Something they do regularly. Using the correct methods and quite possibly, unique tools. Not something the average owner of disk brakes needs to guess at. Though no doubt there are countless YT video guides. Brakes matter! It's life or death that they work flawlessly. With the the subtlety of power one expects when needed.

 11.30 68F/20C. Breezy, full sunshine. I have brought the tall chest of drawers downstairs and filled it with socks and pants. I had to cut away a crude, wooden windowsill. Which prevented best positioning to the left. 

 The greenhouse end doors are open. With two windows open into the house. To air and warm the interior. The ants are back on the kitchen windowsill. I have repeatedly dusted them with the expensive poison but it has no obvious effect.  

 I spent the day tidying and laundering. Moving furniture. Reducing the mess I had made myself. For myself. By myself. Feeling sorry for myself. When I was jumping from one project to another. Never finishing anything properly. Overwhelmed by the sheer burden of it all.  I made a small dent in the whole mess of the kitchen. It needs the self discipline I sorely lack. The motivation usually reserved for hobbies. Useful storage space I still lack.

 Dinner was mackerel on toast with cherry tomatoes. Washed down with a beer and then a milky coffee.

 

  ~o~

12.05.2024 Keep on trikin'!

 ~o~

  Sunday 12th 52F/11C. [8.00] Bright white sky, with a week of warm sunshine promised.

 Up at 7am after a reasonable night. I have gone from repeated coughing to occasional and unpleasant bouts.

8.15. A walk I think.

 9.05 57F/14C. Warm sunshine. Back from my walk. I took my Lumix G9 with the 50-200 Leica lens. Though I still took some pictures with the mobile phone. Where the long lens provided too narrow a view. The stone collector was not present today. So I could not make them aware of the dangers of mowing Japanese knotweed. 

 I wandered down the shared drive. Through scrap man's affront to the natural order. Where I was eventually confronted by a hairy "guard dog." Somewhat lower than my knee cap. I stood quite still until it stopped barking. It sniffed and then quickly lost interest. I retreated the way I had come.

 A mix of warblers were singing in the roadside trees. A Greenfinch wheezed in the garden. Lots of other birds were heard but not seen. I wore a shirt over a t-shirt. Either garment alone would have been more than comfortable in the bright sunshine. The trees and shrubs were looking at their best in their brand new foliage. 

 An ideal day for a ride. Dare I take the trike for a spin? Perhaps just into the village for some bread rolls and milk? Have I lost the knack for riding a trike? Do I have breath enough? Panting might clear my chest more quickly. So many unanswered questions. Until I try.

 11.30 63F/17C. Back from a trike ride into the village. Warm and sunny.  5km each way. Headwind going. Tailwind coming back. Borderline breathless quite often. Not much strength in my legs. Better on the way back. Probably helped by the tailwind. My ribs hurt most of the way. Leaning forwards was not very comfortable.

 Dinner was salad.

 

  ~o~

11.05.2024 Tramp alert!

 ~o~

  Saturday 11th 49F/9C [7.30am] Bright white sky with early mist thinning rapidly. A dry, sunny day with a high of 18C/64F is promised.

A quiet night. Up at 6.30 after waking earlier. Deliberately staying in bed to rest in the mornings. I am trying to train myself out of negative thoughts and having to get up to escape them. My chest feels wet and bunged up and I have a runny nose. Another cold? Not sure what this means in the context of recovery and penicillin. 

 Two different, saddle dropper posts: A 150mm travel, Kind Shock and a 125mm travel XLC. Both presently separated from the e-bike by miles of rolling countryside. The KS 6" dropper exceeds the maximum insertion depth. So the saddle will greatly exceed the desired ride height when the dropper post is extended. While the 125mm travel XLC will have 30mm of seat tube showing above the frame's saddle clamp when fully extended. Not perfect, but close enough to a minimum saddle height. When the dropper posts is fully depressed, by my weight, after remote lever actuation.

  No real plans for today. I ought to try to cut the lawn but it will take time to dry out. I haven't been for a walk recently.

 10.45 Back from a walk to the lanes. Skylarks singing overhead. Two severe bouts of coughing. I was too warm almost from the start. Purple lilacs were going over but underpinned by white, daisy-like, wild flowers in two sizes. 

 There were several completely invisible warblers in the roadside trees. Try as I might I could not see them. Not even through my binoculars. A pretty girl was sitting in the road in a go-faster Golf. A dangerous spot to stop but presumably one without prior choice. She must have been waiting for rescue services or perhaps a boyfriend. She gave me a lovely smile as I passed.

 My lady, landowner and major landscaping neighbour. Was still working the banks of her newly raised drive. Several weekends of work suggest she has remarkable patience. She was raking up small stones in readiness for a first cut of the grass. ]Best guess. There is no shortage of stones in this world of ours]

 Dumping them from her bucket into waiting excavator buckets. Left casually along the length of the drive for that purpose. I pray that they don't mow over the Japanese knotweed infestation near the road! The result would be heartbreaking!

 Proof, if any were needed, that I actually reached the lanes. I never tire of that view. The juxtaposition of the intersecting curves. That sort of thing.

 The lady glanced at me but ignored my casual but friendly wave. Our paths have never knowingly crossed before. I was tempted to congratulate her on the superb landscaping but plodded on towards Chez Hovel. No doubt she was enjoying the exercise in the warm sunshine too much. To lower herself to chatting with mere peasant neighbours. Perhaps she didn't recognize the passing tramp as the hamlet's token hermit? Perhaps she did. 😏

 The guard dog was back on duty and dutifully barked at me. Short [or long] term memory loss? We usually see each other ever day of the year. Another new neighbour was cutting the grass. His son playing with a metal detector. Which reminds me that a harvest of dandelions awaits my own mower. I had better start earning my lunch!

 11.30 60F/15C. Time to do something useful. Latest load of laundry put out on the rotary airer. Then on with the mowing.

 12.30 64F/18C. Hot sunshine. I have all but finished mowing at a high setting. [10/12] The batteries need recharging before I even think about a lower cut. The Makita lacks the sheer power to cut through 4-6" deep grass. 

 The draught from the twisted cutting blade doesn't keep the exit port clear of damp cuttings. Causing stalls as the blade is physically blocked. Nor does it like picking up fallen grass cuttings. Clearly beneath its dignity.

 Now I am hot and knackered. My hands are shaking like jellies. I kept up a good pace to test my wind. Not great, but nothing serious. No breathlessness. Time to make some lunch. There are clean dishes and cutlery too! Whoopee! 

 6.45. Dinner will be toast. I have earned it. Not in great quantity. Nor riches in square yards of investment property. Two slices will suffice and no more. I shall have two poached eggs and be rewarded beyond measure. I deserve no more and certainly no less.   

 7.15. I went out to finish off the mowing and to tidy up. Brought in twelve, ragged t-shirts for a rainy day. Found the wren's nest under the shed overhang. No wonder it is using the sloping pole as a perch.

  There's been a glitch. No images can be uploaded. Google is preventing effortless blog editing again. It's a conspiracy!

 Yet again I experimented in advanced poaching. Desperate to avoid previous failures to perform on the cosmetic front. Small frying pan. Two glass cups. Up to their middles in boiling water. Sitting with a single broken egg within each. Trying to stiffen up the whites. Before they explode into soggy candyfloss. I still had to pour them into the pan anyway but they came out fine. 3.5 minutes after release into the wild was optimum. Success!

 However, Google wants the patent. There is no other explanation for their blocking behaviour. Preventing this "life changing" culinary triumph from release to a shocked world. It has to be "shocked" or there will be no viewers on YouTube. Everybody uses it. Even for sleep therapy nonsense and meditation. Or, if I was advertising, it would have to be: "taking Denmark by storm!" Or whatever.  

 11.00 Still coughing. Bed.

 11.20. Still trying to upload my dinner pictures and fix typos. Done.

 

 ~o~