Huge thanks to Janine & Ross for putting up with me for almost two weeks, both at the cottage and back in Parson's Green, while H was in isolation chez Dora with covid. Luckily, the boy is now fine (barring a few missing taste buds) and I am back home – my, how good that first bath with a wild Diet Coke and an old Sunday Times magazine felt..
Since then, my new passport has appeared – just as the planned trip to Portugal with Liz T disappeared into 2022. A combination of Liz having been ill, me needing to see Mr H post-covid, Liz's Mum recovering from an op and it all feeling a bit tricksy. So here's to a trip next year when hopefully things are a tad easier. Minor miracle that my passport photo is better than the previous one – a touch less Rosemary West, always a bonus.
And then it's been a week of catching up on things – me visiting my two Age UK ladies, Jo & Maureen, now that my shingles have gone and I can see them face to face again. Nice to accompany Jo on her longest walk from her home since Covid began, and to help her out with taking a bunch of things to a charity shop for her. And to fix a new bulb in Maureen's fridge – behold, there was light! Maureen did however knacker me out, on a long walk round the park, ending with her spotting a 1p piece on the floor and swooping down to get it while I was still wondering if my back would allow me to bend down that far. Not bad for an 84 year old..
Caught up with Liz T for a walk and a very good pub lunch (best Cobb salad ever at the Plough in Sheen!), managed a very nice nip in to see Curly & James on my way back from watching Aces win at hockey, sharing a lovely bit of lunch in their sunny garden, and then went a-wandering with Pam & the Finn beast yesterday. Who's a handsome boy then?..
Also hopped onto the first ever Zoom run by Myeloma UK for their newly set up 50's and Under group. (Only 13 years since my myeloma chum Phil and I set up our version of this – good to see they finally see the merits of it!) I mostly went to try and offer a bit of hope to the much more newly diagnosed group of people on it – most of whom have had to go through covid times also dealing with a new nightmare of myeloma. Here's hoping that me saying 'I've been doing this for 13 years' was helpful to them, I certainly remember how I felt back in those initial dark days, and that seeing someone like me, doing well, would have been a positive thing in the overwhelming fug of myeloma descending.
The final social event, was finally getting out to see the Bond film with H. As brilliant as ever, with plenty of Daniel to enjoy, but I am still traumatised by the ending! Def didn't see that one coming… Also a bit sad as thinking that Daniel will be the final Bond who is the 'right' age for me to watch (ok, ogle). If the next one is in his 30s I'm going to have to embrace my inner cougar, sigh…
And today we are awaiting the arrival Lottie, Mark & Charlie's golden doodle, for a 5 day visit. I'm trying to warm up Scrumpy to the impending descent of ginger madness, but I'm not sure she's quite with me. Come 2.30pm, she will be!
Happy weekend all. x