Preparation

 After a coffee and a shower, I went for my morning walk. It was a bit cooler this morning, but the sun (once above the horizon) was bright and the day looked promising. As I wandered along my route, a black BMW veered towards me. I prepared to leap out of the way before realising it was Lottie (with a great big smile on her face). She waved and drove on by.

Once home, I made breakfast, and then Di went to collect some meds for Jasper from the vet. I went and cleared the Orangery. For the last 10 days, it has been the repository of all of the Christmas decorations, while a suitable subset was chosen for this year. They are now back in the garage, and the Orangery is habitable again.

The next item on the agenda was to cook the ham. This was a three and a half hour marathon. It is now cooked, wrapped in foil, and nestling in the bottom of the fridge. I'll slice it in the morning, before going to Zoe's.

I have received most of the results from my blood tests. All were normal except a couple, which were marginally above the recommended range. These are related to cholesterol, and the accompanying note suggested I might wish to take statins. Well, the fact of the matter is that I don't like taking medication except when absolutely necessary. So, should I or shouldn't I? I spent several hours reading the guidance on the NHS website, and still could not decide. Eventually, I wrote a very long description of my dilemma and submitted it to ChatGPT. I was delighted by the analysis it provided, and I now feel better informed so that I can have a discussion with the GP.

We managed a quiet hour or so with our Kindles before dinner, but now that dinner is over, it is time to wrap the Christmas presents.