Painting and garden tidying completion

Dinner out with George and Julie last night us helped us to persuade him to complete the now epic -delayed upstairs decorating for us and he returned as promised this morning armed with decorating kit.

By mid afternoon all the hard to get to bits had been completed, leaving the easier bits for us to tackle when we want to, just leaving the electrics to be completed by a competent electrician. I completed the garden tidying and it was noticeable today was a real improvement health-wise.

My last day?

I awoke at 3.30 am to find myself alone, which was a little disconcerting after solid sleep. Having read a chunk of my book I returned to bed alone at 0430 and after a short sleep returned downstairs at the more reasonable hour of 0730and had my usual breakfast routine by Lynne,  blood check,injection,fresh fruit salad, tablets ) and returned to bed,again alone.Overnight I had reconsidered my intention to return to rowing in the future as the distances involved to and from the club are excessive. Joining a nearby club would inevitably cause me confidence problems due to my health issues and the need to address /explain them all to the other club members, whilst members of my current club are all already fully aware of them and my capabilities etc. A quick check with my new physiatrist nurse eased my mind a little and I agreed with Lynne  I would continue attending the gym  until all options had been explored and resolved, although inevitably this resulted in a difference  of opinion and prolonged silences between us. I attended the gym and returned home in silence, having had a rewarding session. Lynne had no explanation for her absence and tersely blamed my mental state. Am I going mad ?

Fast escape from a dark place.

The day began much as yesterday ended -dark. Lynne's physio appointment was cancelled at the last minute due to physio sickness ( pregnancy?) but the opposite happened to me as my gym session landed on me unexpectantly. We almost missed it, so we rushed there only a few minutes late. Miraculously the session went extremely well and I left feeling in a  much brighter place.

A dodgy period

The last few days have not been my best. Various physical anomalies have had an affect on my mental state and so the saga continues as a circular puzzle almost impossible to break out of. Sleep seems the obvious answer but takes up a lot of time without providing positive outcomes. I am back in the "less positive phase",sadly. The way out? God only knows.

No movements,except bedrooms

I awoke at some unearthly hour aware I needed to visit the loo, nothing unusual there apart from the fact I could'nt. Visiting was one thing (or maybe two) but using the facilities was impossible. Strange but true.

I opted to make myself a hot drink and take some gunge  that usually works in this situation, staying downstairs without disturbing Lynne whilst awaiting results. I felt extremely cold although I was aware the ambient temperature was far from cold, so dressed and added a dressing gown and hot water bottle for good measure, the latter resting on my stomach area whilst I lounged/reclined on my "office chair" with my stomach churning and gurgling loudly, wihout result.

Lynne appeared downstairs and made another coffee and hot water bottle, settling down to discuss my condition and other related issues. I learnt a lot. I had blamed my gist, an uninvited "guest" ( I have always called it a vampire scrounging a living off of me ). However, Lynne chose this moment to inform me the gist causes no problems until it fails to "fit" in the space it has invaded,but the last biopsy (?) identified mine as an extremely slow growing one in a large vacant expanse and unlikely to cause problems for the foreseeable future, which was belatedly reassuring I suppose.

In the end (excuse the unintended pun) the matter has yet to resolve itself. Watch this space. Unprompted imagination required.

As part of "our" discussions we agreed to  swap our bedroom front to back,which gives us an en-suite arrangement and an "almost" completed room.

Cancel road salt. Order pumps

Wet night and wet morning. For some reason I awoke believing I was in Jersey ( we have friends there ). It took me ages to realise I was actually at home. Torrential rain and dropping temperatures. Summer, what summer? As if we did not have enough on our plates the house decorating/refurbishment is progressing slower than a geriatric tortoise race. Will it ever end? We have our doubts, all of which adds to the pressure on what is left of my brain. In addition Lynne went for some physio on her back yesterday but was in some difficulty driving home. My big concern is how long she will be able to carry on ferrying me about without taking a restorative break. Pressure, pressure, pressure.

Start of ice age 2

Winter woolies were the order of the day as we all awoke to frosts and freezing temperatures. The day gradually improved and we were down to shorts and tee-shirts by late afternoon.

Decorating starts

Not only did the UK vote to leave the EU but Owen voted also to start our long overdue interior decorating. Good news on both fronts. My gym appointment went well despite Derek volunteering at the last minute to drop me off and pick me up following Lynne suffering a debilitating bout of sciatica, making driving dangerous.

Leaving the EU.

Literally and poliitically we exited Europe following our return from holiday and the result of the recent referendum on our EU membership,in which the UK public voted in favour of leaving, a result that pleased me. I have always hated beurocacy for the sake of beurocacy ( jobs for the boys, if you are a politician ) and the EU is an expensive classic of the type.

I suspect it will take years to complete our exit, partly due to EU rules and resistance from Germany, who see their third attempt at ruling Europe fail.