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There was no need to get up early. Zoe had a day off, so I wandered around in time to take Ellie to school. Zoe would normally come along for the walk but was decidedly under the weather so she stayed put and Ellie and I walked together. Leaving her in the classroom, I headed off for a short walk before heading home for breakfast.

Much of the morning was spent doing admin. While I tapped away at the keyboard, Di did some ironing and Lottie arrived to help with some cleaning upstairs. When I finished, I left the girls to it and headed out for another walk. I didn't go too far today, but it was nice to stir up the bloodstream and listen to some more of my current audiobook.

Talking of the bloodstream, I was pleased to receive the results of yesterday's blood tests. All key markers had improved in the last 6 months, and only one is out of the recommended range. 

We both had some Kindle time this afternoon before Diane headed off to collect Ellie from school. There's great excitement at Zoe's. She and Ellie are currently "looking after" a 12-week-old kitten. Needless to say, Ellie loves it even if he is sleeping most of the day at present.

An Armful

 We were up early to greet Ellie as she was dropped off. She was in a bubbly mood and exploded into the house, greeted Grandpa and ran upstairs to get Nana. When the clock ticked around to 08:30, I took her to school and left her in the classroom before going on for a few laps of the lake (walking, not swimming) before breakfast.

Mid-morning, I grabbed my shoes and waterproof coat as I had an appointment at the Doctor's surgery. Despite the promises of the weather forecast, it was still raining. I told myself that it was only water and decided to walk there. I arrived in plenty of time and waited until the phlebotamist was ready for me. I was only having a blood test to check on things like sugar and cholesterol levels. I was in and out within a few minutes and started on the walk back. The rain had stopped, so I added an extra loop onto the more direct loop.

The afternoon was spent with our Kindles, though Diane went to collect Ellie after her Drama Club and took her straight home.

Repeat

 After a poor night's sleep, I wandered downstairs for a coffee soon after seven. Di followed me down at eight. We had a quiet and leisurely breakfast before we set about the day.

For me, the first items on the agenda were administrative. Zoe now has her replacement bank account and card so I had to transfer the balance of her old account back to her. While dealing with finances, I also updated our accounts. I then had some domestic chores as Diane started on her schedule of work which focused on blitzing the Orangery. We now have so much detritus in the garage that we need to get the skip man in to clear it in a single load.

I headed off for a walk. I selected an Ian Ranking "Rebus" novel as my audiobook, but realised that I had heard it before, but forgot to mark it as "Finished". I'll have to select another book before my next walk.

Back home, the radiator that I recently purchased for the Orangery had kicked into life and was taking the edge of the cool day. After lunch, while not warm, it was comfortable enough to have some Kindle time before I started on the Sunday roast.

E~llie has been with Pete at the weekend but is home now. She just knocked on our door because she wanted a cuddle from Grandpa and Nana. That is something we can always accommodate.

Jabbed

 We had a very leisurely start to the day. There was no hurry to do anything, though I did have my weekly Zoom call with my cousins. This was fun, as usual, and Tim, who was clearly suffering from a cold, flu, or Covid, got no sympathy whatsoever. In fact, he was teased mercilessly - as is only right in such circumstances.

After the call, we had to head downtown. We had appointments for our Covid jabs. This turned into a bit of a palaver. The centre normally can accommodate 250 jabs in the morning and 250 in the afternoon. However, maintenance work had reduced the usable space in half so we were queued around the surgery and down the stairs. The centralised booking system had not taken the reduced capacity into account. In fact, they had left the system open for too long and the centre actually had 900 people booked in for the day. They were trying their best, but it was chaotic.

When we got home, the rain that had plagued the start of the morning had stopped and the sun had shown its face. More rain was forecast so I thought I'd make the most of the dry spell and take a walk. By the time I arrived back home, I was within 10 minutes of the end of my latest audiobook. I grabbed some lunch and settled down to listen to the end. I must now select my next audiobook before I start my next walk.

With the audiobook finished, I switched over to the Kindle for a quiet afternoon.  We had some torrential rain for a while, which made me grateful that I hadn't gone to watch Bognor Football Club's game. This had been a plan for a while, but I was concerned the rain may set in - boy! was I right.

Organising

The alarm was set for an early start. Ellie was dropped off at 06:45 and was already washed, dressed, fed, and ready for school. There was nothing for us to do until it was time for the walk to school. We both walked her around to the classroom and made sure that her Stone Age girl project was handed over in one piece.

Once back home, I settled down for breakfast while Diane got her bits together and headed off to the local community centre for her post-rehab cardiac exercises. I spent the time while Di was out finishing breakfast, reading the news, and updating the accounts. Once she got back, I headed out for a nice walk in the sunshine.  I have now walked almost 60 km since the 1st of the month.

The feedback from this week's Band of Brothers' Lunch was such that I had to suggest some dates for a further lunch in the spring. I sent out some suggested dates and have already had positive responses. ~I guess I will have to start organising again!

After lunch, we both had some Kindle time before I went to collect Ellie from school. She came back for a snack before Pete came to collect her for the weekend.

Carpet cleaning

 We were expecting an early start - but not quite as early as things turned out. Just after 2 a.m. Jasper leapt off the bed and promptly vomited over our bedroom floor. We cleaned up the mess and went back to bed. Fortunately, there were no further interrupts before the alarm went off and I had to get up to greet Ellie as she was dropped off.

It had been very wet overnight and had only just stopped raining when it was time to take Ellie to school. I walked her to class and then had a short walk before going home for breakfast. with our weekly shopping list committed to the phone, we headed off to Sainsbury's. We were lucky. Arriving early we managed to complete the raid before the Zombie bus arrived to disgorge its Apocalypse.

Back home, with the shopping stashed, I sat down to do the accounts and check up on various bits of Admin and then went around with the carpet cleaner to sort out the various stain left by Jasper last night.

After lunch, we had some Kindle time before we had to capture Jasper so that Di could take him to the Vet for his annual jabs. I had to stay behind so that I could collect Ellie, so I headed out for a few loops of the lake before the end of the school day.

Ellie got changed when she got home, and then she finished her project on the Stone Age girl. We managed to get it all submitted online.

Stroll On

 There was no need to get up early. Zoe wasn't starting work until nine. I had a coffee and read the news before strolling around to make the walk to school with Ellie. Once she was in class, I set off for a short pre-breakfast walk.

Back home I settled down for breakfast as Diane left for her Pilates session in Angmering. I had plenty admin to clear first thing but then I set off for a longer walk. I headed off to North Bersted Street and walked across the bypass and onto Shripney. I turned back when I arrived at the A29.

Diane got back at lunchtime and after we had grabbed a bite to eat we sat down for some Kindle time.

I collected Ellie from school and took her to the park to run off some energy. Once home, she worked (with Nana) on her Stone Age girl project.

Meet up

 Though it was Zoe's day off, she had to go into the store early to provide a couple of hours of cover. As a result, we had the early drop-off for Ellie. As the weather was particularly wet (though not actually raining), I walked with her to school as she rode her bike.

Back home, I had some breakfast and then Diane took me along to Bognor railway station. I settled down with my Kindle to pass the next couple of hours as I headed for Victoria. AT Victoria, I asked Google Maps to guide me and set off walking to my destination.

I passed Buckingham Palace and took this photo to show Ellie. As I crossed the road into Green Park, it started to rain but it never really amounted to much. Turning onto Regents Street I headed for Piccadilly Circus and then looped up Shaftesbury Avenue for a while before turning again and heading for D'Arblay Street and "Vasco and Pierro's Pavillion Restaurant".

Paul, who owns the restaurant and used to go to St Columba's, had given us a table in the glass booth at the back of the restaurant. Mike and Brian were already there and the others drifted in over the next 30 minutes... Charlie, Richard, Max, and Peter. They had come from Cardiff, Northumberland, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, London, and Sussex.

Conversation wasn't an issue as we flipped into reminiscence mode and related and retold stories from our times together in the 1960s and 70s. I was also able to catch up on the health of my oldest friends. We had a lovely lunch. I chose a goat's cheese and tomato starter followed by a Scaloppini Milanese with salad, and finished with some lemon cake with apricots. As usual, the meal was fantastic, and Paul and his staff looked after us brilliantly.

As the clock ticked towards 16:00, we settled up and headed out. Some were destined for a local pub, but I decided to head back to the station. I was lucky, there was a train due to leave in 5 minutes and I found a comfortable seat and settled back down with my Kindle. The train arrived back in Bognor on the dot of 18:21, and Diane was waiting outside. It had been a brilliant day and the messages I have received since are asking for it to become a more regular occurrence (currently it's annual). 

AI

 We were up and about early so that Ellie could be dropped off on Zoe’s way to work. The pre-school activities followed the usual pattern. We dropped her off (clutching a huge bag of Harvest Festival goodies) and then headed home for breakfast.

Ellie has a project to complete regarding a Stone Age girl and what she might wear. She has already started on this and is doing a very good job. It got me thinking, however. Could I get AI to generate an image of just such a girl? I searched around and found “Bing Create” from Microsoft. I gave it a verbal description “Generate a young Stone Age girl, wearing a necklace of teeth and bones, with a pouch over her shoulder”.

This is one of the images it generated. I was not sure her skincare regime matched what was available in the Stone Age, but I must say that I was impressed.

Once I had completed my morning admin, I headed out for a walk before the forecast rain. As it happened, there was no rain so there was no particular hurry.

Once back, Diane and I set off for the Doctors' Surgery for our annual Flu jab. Kim was also due to have her jab, so she stopped in to see us on her way home. She wasn't here for too long, but it was nice to have a chat and catch up on her progress at University.

We had some Kindle time before collecting Ellie from school and taking her straight home to Zoe's ready for Zoe to finish work.

Annoying

 It's annoying to wake up early when there is no pressing need to greet the day. I wandered down the stairs soon after seven. Coffee was first on the agenda with a side order of tea for Diane. I read the overnight news and checked the weather. The forecast suggested some light rain mid-morning then nothing significant until late afternoon. This was my cue.

I headed out for a walk, a new audiobook was getting started as I headed around the lake, through the dark side and back towards the path behind the school. Ultimately, I decided to turn left and head down North Bersted Street and across the bypass before continuing to Shripney.

It was a lovely walk. It wasn't too cold, and wasn't too warm - it was ideal walking weather. The fine rain never materialised as I marched on. I do like this route as there are some lovely little cottages and houses along the way.

When I reached the junction with the A29, I turned around and retraced my steps. I like the peace and solitude of this route, whereas the alternative would have been cursed by the continuous sound of the traffic.

Diane has spent much of the day switching from her summer to her winter wardrobe. I provided regular infusions of tea, but otherwise left her to it. I spent some time with my Kindle before starting to prepare dinner.

It's very noticeable that the sun's daylight shift seems to be ending earlier and earlier. I suppose Night will be claiming overtime before long.

Fraud

 I had my usual Zoom call with the cousins after a leisurely start to the day. There was not a lot to report other than the failed development and marketing of "Brexit Chess" that Tim had tried. He had developed the game and managed the production run... but only managed to sell sufficient units to lose significant money.  It did make me chuckle (not the financial loss, which as a socialist you would expect, but the whole venture).

I managed to head out for a walk, stopping at the Pharmacy to collect Diane's prescription on the way past. Bladder pressure prevented me from going as far as I would have liked, but at least I managed some exercise.

While enjoying some Kindle time this afternoon (I have just finished another audiobook during my walk) I received a call from Zoe. Without revealing too much, I can report that her Credit Card had been used fraudulently. This appears to have been happening (in small amounts) for about a year. What brought it to a head was the perpetrators getting greedy. Santander called Zoe to say there was suspicious activity... and it all kicked off. Santander is hopeful the money can be refunded, but in the meantime, the bank of Mum and Dad has to provide cover. 

Outing

Ellie had stayed with us overnight. She was awake early, but at least we didn't have to get up. When we finally did emerge, I made coffee and tea and prepared an apple juice. Ellie's class had an out today so the dress code was fairly relaxed... but had to be warm.

After dropping Ellie at school we headed back for breakfast and the opportunity to read the news. After a suitable pause, I headed out for a walk grasping my old router so that I could drop it at the Post Office and return it to EE. I was out for about an hour and demolished a bit more of the current audiobook.

After lunch, we had some Kindle time before heading out to collect Ellie from school. Ellie wanted to go to the park, but Diane went straight home as she had to prepare to take Jasper to the Vet. Ellie played for a while but was very good and came immediately when I called "time'". As we were walking back, Ellie told me about her outing to Butser Hill Farm. She really enjoyed it and had the opportunity to make stone-age jewellery, make some pots, and even start a fire by rubbing sticks together.

Once home, she decided she wanted to go to the Vet with Diane (and Jasper). Off they went, and Diane dropped her home at Zoe's on the way back.

Stone Age

 There was no pressing need to get going this morning. After a leisurely coffee, I wandered around to Zoe's to accompany the girls on the school run. Then, with Ellie safely in class, I headed off for a walk before breakfast.

We were expecting delivery of a new radiator during the morning and the timeslot was a 4-hour window (which wasn't very helpful). We had shopping to fetch so in the end, we asked Ian if he would accept the parcel if it arrived while we were out. We headed off to Sainsbury's where we faced a Zombie Apocalypse. I can understand how people suddenly lose it and go berserk. I somehow managed to complete the shop without ramming anyone, but did at one point say quite loudly, "I'm going to get out of the way because nobody else has the manners to do so".

FedEx arrived soon after we got home and our new radiator was swiftly unpacked and set up. It has many nice features, but at the moment I am concentrating on the "Frost" setting which will fire it up if the temperature drops overnight. I'll worry about the other settings as we go.

I took another walk after lunch and then settled down until it was time to collect Ellie. She was full of the joys of Spring (yes, I know it's Autumn). Back home she worked with Nana on a project to show how a stone age girl might dress. I helped out with some drawings of teeth that she could form out of clay and then found some illustrations of stone-age clothing. As I write they are in Nana's study working to make a model they can dress.

I was pleased to receive a call yesterday evening from "Sir" Richard. He confirmed that as long as the water from the recent flooding downstream from Bedford had subsided around his home, he would be coming to the Band of Brothers lunch on Tuesday. I was sad to hear, however, that he was unexpectedly single after his wife walked out. I decided to take no chances and locked Diane in the Orangery; I never forget what a lucky man I really am.

Quiet Night In

 Diane didn't sleep well last night and decided she was too weary to attempt Pilates today. After my first coffee, I wandered around to Zoe's to join the walk to school. Leaving Ellie in the classroom, I set out to do a loop of the lake before breakfast.

We had a quiet morning. I was looking at the latest information from Skoda and generally pottering online. After some lunch and some Kindle time, I headed back out for another walk. This time I went much further but in so doing, got caught in the rain. I was soaked by the time I arrived home.

We have a quiet night-in planned for tonight after two nights on the tiles.

Two in a Row

 

I walked around to Zoe's to accompany her and Ellie on the school run. Then, instead of going straight home, headed off on a short walk before breakfast. It was a little grey, but it wasn't cold. 

I wandered through the estate and looped back past the lake as I dodged numerous dog walkers and pram pushers. I wasn't out for long, but it was a nice set-up for breakfast.

Diane had an appointment at the dentist, so headed into Chichester, leaving Jasper in charge. We had arranged for Lottie, the nice lady who cleans for Zoe, to come in and help us. Today was her first visit and, with Diane out, it was left to Jasper and I to pass on all the various messages as she arrived and got started. She was an absolute delight and did a superb job. We just hope that we can get a regular weekly slot in her schedule.

We hope to make more use of the Orangery in the Winter months than we have in the past. With this in mind, I spent some time researching electric radiators (we already have underfloor electric heating, but it isn't really man enough for the job by itself). I finally selected a radiator that I hope will be suitable and have ordered that. If it turns out to be successful, I will order a second one; one for each end of the room.

After some Kindle time in the afternoon, I headed out for another walk while Diane washed her hair, ready to go back out this evening. Yes, that's right, two nights in a row. You'd almost think we had a life!

We headed for Southampton. The traffic was very slow around Portsmouth, but we arrived in plenty of time. We had tickets to see Frank Skinner at the Mayflower Theatre. We arrived just after the doors opened and made our way to the bar, where sat down with a coffee and Dine got chatting to a lady (ex-Nurse) who was a fellow "Strictly" fan. They expounded on the rights and wrongs of various aspects of the show and its dancers while I drank my coffee.

In the auditorium, our seats were in the 5th row and afforded us a brilliant view. The show started with a warm-up comedian called Steve Hall. Though we had never heard of him, he was very funny and had been around for about 20 years or so. There was a brief interval at the end of his set, and then Frank Skinner came on to rapturous applause. His show would probably have given a maiden aunt an attack of the vapours but did seem to stay on just inside a fine line. I must say that we laughed solidly for the next 90 minutes or so. 

We filed out of the theatre and back to the car. Google seemed to choose a strange route to guide us home, suggesting we would arrive at 22:45. The route was quite good and avoided the roadworks on the M27... and we arrived home on the dot of 22:45. It's a clever little system.