Join the conversation.

.Roberto Matta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

It is very good John is staying here with us, it is nice to hear Richie talking with him in the front room, that is when he is not in the here with me.

My physiotherapist Matilda was here this afternoon 1400 for my Monday physiotherapy session.

She left at 1430 and I've been trying ever since to get my post dictated to the voice recognition software which was not easy.

Mainly because either the Dragon voice recognition software just did not cooperate with what I was dictating and just seemed to invent words.

Or because John was in the here wanting to talk and Richie would come in as well and before I knew it was a wonderful three-way conversation.

I'm going to stop now and look for artwork by Roberto Matta I will publish this on my blog and join the conversation.

Remembering Stories.

Roberto Matta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

The day started early this morning as I had to be ready for 10.30

Because of an appointment concerning my shower chair.

The cushion that was made especially in 2010 to give me a better sitting position needed to be adapted because I need more support.

The appointment is with Annelies, my mobility advisor from the council, as well as two people from Beenhakker and a physiotherapy who is doing work experience in the rehabilitation clinic.

Richie had me showered, dressed and perfumed with Versace´s Woman, wearing earrings, necklace as well as to my favourite rings.

One is a purple Amethyst, the other is a blue Topaz, and both were presents from my Darling Richie, the Amethyst I got Christmas 2004.

The blue Topaz was given me by Richie when I lost two silver rings down the toilet, at work, they must have fallen in when I pulled my trousers up again.

When I rang home to tell Richie about it I was very upset as both rings had been given to me by close friends and where irreplaceable.

That evening as soon as I got in Richie had a present for me; I could hardly believe it when I opened the jewellery box and saw a beautiful blue Topaz ring.

It is a gorgeous ring and more than made up for the two lost silver rings, the next day showed my new ring to Hennie, the receptionist where I worked.

All day many colleagues came to the service desk and all they wanted was to see the ring, they had all been told by Hennie the receptionist.

A few months later it was my birthday and Richie got me a blue Topaz pendant as well as gorgeous blue Topaz earrings to match.

All my female colleagues thought that Richie was a wonderful man; some of my male colleagues were worried that their partners would hear about this.

Their concern was that their partners would expect the same sort of presents from them, they joked that Richie was letting their side down by showering with presents.

Every time I wear these rings I remember the stories which bring a smile to my face, just like it did again today, after the successful appointment I was smiling even more.

A Pleasant Start To The Week.

 

Roberta Matta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

Today Richie and I did the exercises early enough for him to take me to the bathroom to be showered and dressed as well as perfumed.

All this was done before Miranda; the wound nurse from the rehabilitation clinic came to check on the wound.

We were in fact ready just before 1200 which she is due to be here, as it was we had to wait until 1215 before Miranda arrived.

It was really good to be showered and dressed waiting for the wound nurse to arrive rather than to be got out of bed just before or just as she arrives.

Being ready made me feel much better, 1215 when Miranda arrived I was ready for her to inspect the wound which she did immediately.

She removed some tissue that she thought was probably stopping the progress of the healing, after which a photo was taken and Miranda left after 10 minutes.

After which Richie has put me back into bed, then they went into the kitchen and made us a delicious lunch, vegetarian sausages, chips and cauliflower cheese.

The plan is to eat some delicious pumpkin soup this evening with garlicky croutons and fresh fruit.

I am enjoying the day immensely, Richie is too so I think we will try and replicate an early start every day, I'm sure that will improve the days for us.

It’s brilliant that we have had our lunch, and I written my blog post for today before Mathilde, my physiotherapist gets here for our Monday appointment.

Nice to be ready so early it has put a different complexion on the day and I must say that it's one that I like very much, nice to feel on top of things.

What a pleasant way to start the week, much better than rushing to keep up, this way we both feel relaxed, positive and better able to cope.

What a relief.

 

Roberto Matta

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

It has been quite exhausting having two people working all day for two days in the apartment to install the air conditioning unit.

The dogs seem to think that they were here solely to play with them, so they had to be kept away from them if the installation was to go well.

When we were in the shower, Richie put the dogs in the spare bedroom so that Andre and Robert could carry on working without interruption by dogs.

Luckily the installation went well which was a relief, tomorrow Andre will be back to do the final touches, after which the installation is complete.

Because of all the activity of the last couple of days, we totally forgot that Miranda, the wound nurse from the rehabilitation clinic would be here 12.30.

She will be coming in place of Milou, who is on holiday right now in Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama, where she is hopefully enjoying herself.

Miranda seemed a very pleasant person as well as a competent nurse, she will be back to see me again in two weeks time.

She was pleased with the progress the wound is making, which makes me feel hopeful that I will be sitting again, something that I was losing my belief in.

After she had gone, Richie and I talked about Cyril's sudden problems with walking, there seems to be something wrong with his right shoulder.

We immediately called the vet and made an appointment for this afternoon at 15.00 for Richie to take him for examination.

They had only just gone when Mathilde, my physiotherapist arrived for our appointment, she was upset to hear about Cyril's walking problems.

Just before she was about to leave Richie arrived back Cyril and he could immediately reassure us that there was nothing seriously wrong with him.

According to the vet it was just a sprained shoulder which should ease off after a couple of days, she did prescribe painkillers.

As well as advised Richie to keep Cyril on the lead for a few days when out in the park, in order to avoid any more strains on the shoulder muscles.

It was a relief to hear the vet prognosis, we were all very happy to know that Cyril should be all right in a few days time.

Richie has taken our three dogs for a walk in the Vondelpark, which I hope will be enjoyable for them; I'm looking forward to hearing all about it on return.

My plan for this evening is to take it very easy; after I've found a painting by Roberto Matta I shall place this on my blog and enjoy the evening with Richie.

Time flies by.

Roberto Matta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

I could not believe that it was already Thursday, which means that our time with Richie’s sister will soon be over as she returns to England on Saturday.

Probably best not to dwell on it and just get on and enjoy the time we got with Aud.

Matilda, my wonderful physiotherapist came by at 1504 for our Thursday afternoon appointment.

As usual we laughed and chatted all through the half an hour physiotherapy session, afterwards I felt relaxed which was good.

I'm going to keep this short so that I can talk with Aud and Richie, and enjoy our time together.

A Busy Day.

 

Roberto Matta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

Last night we were both fast asleep when just after 03.00 the phone rang which ripped as both out of our slumbers.

These days it's not possible for me to get my arm out from under the cover and stretched out in order to pick up the call.

The noise of the phone ringing eventually stopped and we both tried to go back to sleep just as we were dozing off the phone rang again.

This time Richie answered and shouted leave us alone and replaced the receiver again, we both tried to carry on sleeping.

Only to be disturbed by a ring at our apartment door, which got the dogs barking, Richie and the dogs rushed to our front door.

When Richie got there he was greeted by two ambulance men, apparently my alarm had gone off.

Something neither of us had noticed because we were asleep, the ambulance crew took some persuading that I was okay.

In fact Richie had to yell at them and then they finally understood that we had not activated the alarm, then they finally left.

It took us both a long time to calm down and relax and even then it was a long time before either of us could sleep again.

We wanted an early night because somebody from RTD was coming around at 10.00 to install the English as well as the German dictionaries on the Seetech computer.

On the phone Rini, the engineer told us he would not be long, he ended up being here from 10.16 to 14.30, in which time he installed everything successfully.

He also downloaded openoffice.org for me which has Word but sadly no e-mail program, it would be great to find a free downloadable e-mail on the Internet.

While he was here he reprogrammed the IPaq gadget because I could not activate the bed so could not adjust my position.

He also edited one of the numbers on the quick dialling page and he removed the control box on my wheelchair for the electric arm, which I returned the.

No sooner had Rini left but my lovely physiotherapist Mathilde arrived for our Thursday appointment.

Not long after she was gone Gareth and Paul came round to visit us one more time before they leave tomorrow afternoon.

It has been quite a day; I've never had so many phone calls as today or so many people coming round.

It would have been much pleasant had we both got a good night's sleep, I phoned Ata the alarm providers, and explained what had happened and how often the alarm goes off on its own.

I now have an appointment for someone to come here next Tuesday to replace not just the battery but also the box.

Once that is done we shouldn't have any more incidents with the alarm going off on its own like it did in the middle of the night.

A Pleasant Distraction.

Roberto Matta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

This afternoon Matilda my physiotherapist mentioned that it was cooler outside than it was in here despite the air conditioning being on.

When Richie leaned out of the window to check, he discovered that she was correct and indeed it was cooler outside than inside.

It was nice to turn the air conditioning off after four days of having it switched on in the doorway of the bedroom.

Most of the hot air generated by the air conditioning unit is removed by the extractor fan which is on in the toilet, some escapes into the hall.

Because we cannot install it properly so that the hot air goes outside, it becomes extremely hot in the hall which comes into the bedroom as well.

So I am not only warmer because I'm further from the air conditioning unit, I am also feeling the hot air.

Right now I am leaning dramatically to the left as if I were surfing, a pleasant fantasy maybe, sadly the reality is uncomfortable.

When Richie is back from the Park with the dogs I will call him immediately to correct how I am sitting, luckily I can still use my voice recognition.

There is something quite amusing about writing today’s piece almost lying down, despite all the problems I've managed to write it.

Living For Today.

 

Robertbo Matta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

Yesterday was a horrible afternoon for both Richie as well as myself, I'm glad I don't feel more, otherwise it would have been very uncomfortable for me.

Luckily it had a good conclusion, however it has made us both extremely apprehensive about the next catheter change in one months time.

For the moment I'm trying to put it of my mind, which only seems to work in a limited way.

The weather is getting warmer today and according to Matilda, my physiotherapist it will be 30° over the weekend.

What is amazing is the fact that it's already 16^th of August and I'm still in bed patiently waiting for this old pressure wound scar to finally heal.

We've been waiting now since 23^rd of February for it to be healed up, so far it looks good, sadly without the kind of progress that we want.

It is really difficult for me to remain patient, positive and optimistic, I do my best, but I am finding that this new long period in bed is getting me down.

Not surprising I guess, I would have to be superhuman to cope with this incarceration in my bedroom for so long.

Hearing Richie tell me that was a spot of blood in my leggings on 23 February was a horrible shock.

When he told me he was sure it would be healed in two or three weeks, I just knew it would take longer.

However I did not think it would take this long, I thought I would be out of my bed well before Jaya’s visit on 3^rd of May.

When that didn't happen I was optimistic that it would happen before Angela came to visit us on the 9 of August, but that didn't happen either.

Now I've given up hoping that the wound would be healed before visits from friends.

What I need to do is put it right out of my mind and not think about when the wound will heal.

My best plan now is once again concentrate on the here and now and not on what might be, I can only live for today and forget about tomorrow.

Positive news.

Roberto Matta                                           .  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Matta 

Last night I slept very well which surprised me as I had been experiencing quite a lot of pain and discomfort as well as extra spasms late last night.

This morning I slept until 09.30 then I woke up abruptly because of the pain I was having due to lying badly in bed.

Richie soon corrected my position t his improved how I was feeling, some THC vapour made me feel much better.

Doing my arm exercises with Richie’s help relieved the tension in my arms and once Richie had done my leg exercises I felt even better.

A shower, clean clothes and a spray of gorgeous Lolita Lempicka  perfume as well as a pair of purple earrings soon lifted my spirits and I was ready to see our friend Anne.

It was a most pleasant visit, she is such a nice woman, always a pleasure to see her and hear her news.

The visit was over much too quickly but while it lasted it was good, yesterday afternoon I had a visit from another lovely woman friend, Cecile.

Always good to see her too, if I could I would see a lot more of both of them and they are both such good friends who it is good to see frequently.

This afternoon I called Dagma, our general practitioner, I needed to ask her some questions.

One of them was whether Mathilde my physiotherapist still needed to wear gloves during our physio sessions.

Dagma said this was no longer necessary, it had only been important to do while we were using the lotion.

She also told me that the antibiotics were having a good effect on Richie, as the results from the last swabs indicated that there were less living bacteria.

Our doctor is very optimistic that the antibiotics are working which means that Richie will soon be free of nasty bacteria.

The news is very good and has given us both a boost which we needed. It is always good to hear positive news.

Taking It Easy.

Oscar Dominguez.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%93scar_Dom%C3%ADnguez 

Last night the combination of the air conditioning unit in the hall and the fan next to my bed, allowed me to sleep well.

This afternoon I had an excellent physiotherapy session with Mathilde, the   physiotherapist who comes here twice a week.

The sessions always do me a lot of good, my arms and shoulders are much less tense than they were before Mathilde massaged them after we did the exercises.

Today I've decided to take it easy and enjoy the fact that the room is pleasantly cool despite the outside temperature being above 30°.

On Monday afternoon Richie saw the doctor, because he was starting to feel the first signs of his skin complaint happening again.

He should have started taking the antibiotics that night in order in order to prevent it spreading.

Due to some mix-up, Richie did not get the antibiotics until yesterday which means it has developed from itchy fingers to being extremely painful.

If only the antibiotics had been brought around on Monday, Richie would not be in such discomfort.

This stage it reached yesterday is when Richie fingers start to lose a layer of skin, this makes doing anything painful for him.

Hopefully now he has started taking the tablets they will halt the further progress of this nasty skin complaint.

My plan now is to post this once I have found a picture for this piece, then I intend to relax and enjoy the evening together with Richie.

A Beautiful Sunny September Day.

Alfred Georges Regner

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred-Georges_Regner

My session with the physiotherapist, this afternoon,  was not easy because of the spasticity, the incredible stiffness in my right arm.

On Monday I could still touch my nose with my right arm, today I could only raise my hand as far as to my chin.

Not nice to feel and experience, this afternoon, I am going to try not to let it upset me; all I can do is stay cheerful and keep doing my stretching exercises with Richie’s help.

The new worry is that my left hand and forearm are also getting stiffer now, on the plus side,  I can still move my left arm freely and I can still type, although laboriously.

As long as I can write my posts, write and answer e-mails, read newspapers as well as surf the net and play free cell and solitaire I am happy.

Seetech software will allow me to do everything I want to, so I am looking forward to seeing the package Herman is putting together for me.

I can hardly wait to get the software and start to use it to write my posts, it’s good to know that there is software available when my hands stop functioning.

Hopefully once I read and; agree with what Herman has suggested, it will not be long to wait, think that I am going to be optimistic.

Today is a beautiful very warm September day, sunny and dry, nice for friends returning from their holidays in warmer places.

A nice goodbye to summer today, as the forecast is for high winds as well as a lot of rain, all because of the tail end of a hurricane, shame a sunny autumn is nice, but who knows it maybe still lovely.

   

It Felt Like Progress Today.

Joan Erbe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_Erbe

 It, has been a good day today I feel like progress has been made which is a pleasant feeling, it makes a nice change.
After a nice shower Richie sat me in my wheelchair at 11 o’clock, ready for my appointment with Ruud from Summit and Maurits, my occupational therapist, from the Amsterdam Rehabilitation Clinic..

We contacted Ruud at 12.45 when there was no sign of him arriving, turned out he had complications at his other appointment and would get here as soon as he could.

Maurits had been here on time at 12, sadly he couldn’t wait for Ruud to arrive, however we discussed several things, which was extremely useful.

Maurits made an appointment with RDT Het Dorp for a gadget that would fit on my wheelchair and support my left arm which would allow arm movement, maybe even let me feed myself.

He also sent an e-mail to Edith, who is standing in for Annelies, to ask her to organise an appointment with Permobile, my wheelchair supplier, to investigate other ways of steering.

Ruud arrived at the same as Mathilde my wonderful physiotherapist who did a few exercises with me and massaged my neck, shoulders while Ruud set up his equipment.

Then Mathilde and Richie assisted Ruud in moulding the seat around me, this took an hour, it felt like it gave me much better support, finally I can sit up properly.

A first for me, I have not been able to do that since I had functioning torso muscles in 2008, I can’t wait for it to be made, it takes 2 to 3 weeks, Ruud will try to get it made in two.

It Feels Good To Overcome My Fear.

Lesbia Vent Dumois.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesbia_Vent_Dumois

Today is a changeable day, clouds come and go, when they go the sun comes out again which is lovely.

Mathilde, my physiotherapist was back from her summer holiday in Slovakia, it was good to see her again.

It was pleasant having a break of 3 weeks from my physiotherapy, equally nice to have a physiotherapy session again today.

After Mathilde massaged my shoulders at the end of the session I felt much better, having this done has become an important part of my daily routine.

Richie does it several times every day, it seems to have a very positive effect, last thing at night  a shoulder massage helps me to sleep well.

I am feeling pleased about myself today, because I got an e-mail with a 8 page form to fill in, this is to apply for a 2 year extension of my Carer’s Allowance.

The allowance pays Richie to look after me, so I am glad that I quickly put my fear of forms to one side and did it.

Luckily I could open the attachment and fill in the form digitally, then print it out with no problems, Richie put it in the post box, so it will be there tomorrow.

It feels good to overcome my fear and get this done, even better to acknowledge and accept that I can do well.

All You Need Is Friends.

Brian Kershnik, 2005.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Kershisnik

Its been raining all day; my physiotherapist said she would by choice have stayed at home.

I hope tomorrow will be a better day, feel quite optimistic that it will be a nice day, although it is still overcast now.

 After my physiotherapy session I called a good friend, Eva, who came over to visit us, very nice to see her as she is moving to Brighton, England tomorrow.

I am going to miss her very much, even though I never saw her, as much as I would have liked to, just knowing she was nearby was good.

Eva is a wonderful woman, I hope she has a good time in Brighton, and finds work as well as somewhere to live.

Miss having friends like Eva here in Amsterdam, I often feel like I am missing a special best friend here.

My best friends are scattered around the world, guess that is how it is, you meet, then life intervenes and people move.

I did too, left England to come here in 1981, that’s already thirty years ago in August this year, not all of which went by quickly as it seems to now.

Feel more positive after Eva’s visit.

A Good Monday.

Edgar Ende.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Ende

Today has been good, getting up at 09.00 was very pleasant indeed and made an enjoyable change for us both, which we liked.

I was sitting in the wheelchair just after 10.30, having been given an invigorating shower by Richie, which I enjoyed tremendously.

The man from Beenhakker was here at 10.40, twenty minutes earlier than we had arranged, so he was very happy the shower chair was waiting for him.

So he could carry on his round without any delay, no wonder he looked so happy, I am sure he often has to often wait, which can muck up his days schedule.

Today started off misty, and then the sun shone until 13.00 when it became cloudy and cold.

Mathilde arrived at 14.00 and I had a good, if somewhat painful physiotherapy session.

Massaging my arms soon stopped the pain and after a good shoulder massage I felt relaxed.           

After Mathilde left we had some lunch, goat cheese, water cress and cucumber and delicious bread, made by Richie using zero-zero flour, the best for making bread.

I thoroughly enjoyed getting up earlier and spending the whole day with Richie, talking and laughing, it was great fun, and we shall be doing this everyday from today.

Determined To Make The best Of Everything I Can

Cowcaddens Streetscape.

Alasdair Gray.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alasdair_Gray

http://www.alasdairgray.co.uk/

Today has been yet another grey, misty and cold day which is a shame as it would have been good to have a bright, sunny day.

We have only had grey, misty, cold weather for the last two weeks, but I guess as 

 it is only the beginning of February that this is normal for this time of year.  

Today I had a good session with my excellent physiotherapist Mathilde, we both noticed again how difficult the exercises are for my right arm.  

Nevertheless it is important for me that I have the two physiotherapy sessions with Mathilde as well as doing my arm exercises every morning.

I have been noticing recently that my arms are not functioning well at all; today I could not do very much with my right arm.

Very scary that my arm functions are so much weaker every week, last week I could still just about touch my head.

This week I just managed to touch my forehead but only just, really hope that I  can still do that next week.

I learned to live with being so handicapped, despite that I am very scared at the latest developments.

I am determined to make the best of everything I can

Yesterday Turned Out To Be A Good.Day.

Woman With A Guitar. 1913.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georges_Braque

Yesterday turned out to be a very good day indeed, certainly when compared with the days before it was so much better.

Feel so good that despite feeling worse than the day before I had a good appointment with Mathilde, my excellent physiotherapist.

I was so happy that I even managed to do the arm exercises using the weights around my wrists again.

After the session I could actually feel that my arm muscles were pumped up because of my hard work with the ½ kilo weights.

What made the day better was the fact that I no longer felt nauseous and was looking forward to dinner, having eaten bread & marmite during the day.

Last night I really enjoyed eating the lovely dinner Richie had made for us, despite him feeling so weak from this horrible influenza.

It was so good to be able to taste the food and to enjoy it all again and to be able to eat it all was also splendid.

Richie baked two apples stuffed with mincemeat, which is made with dried fruit, and mixed peel.

The baked apples were delicious a great way to finish off an extremely enjoyable meal, I liked every tasty mouthful.

A Bright Cold Day Today.

Le Pont de Europe.

Gustave Cailleboutte.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Caillebotte

Yesterday had a good session with my lovely physiotherapist Mathilde; she massaged my arms and shoulders before we started to do arm exercises.

Massaging my arms and shoulders helps me to stretch my arms, makes doing the exercises much easier, which is good for me.

After Mathilde left we had a late lunch and then I wrote my post, was funny to notice how foggy it was

Today the weather is clear and bright, with a pale blue sky and sunshine; perhaps it is colder than yesterday.

Have to wait until Richie takes the dogs out to get a report about the temperature outside today.

Last night Richie took Spike and Marleen for a late night walk in the park, the dogs were very happy, as they obviously thought they were not getting a walk anymore yesterday.

Spike had a great time in the park charging around and thoroughly enjoying himself, Richie said it was a fine sight.

The extra calorific food has had quite a dramatic effect; Spike looks much better, he does not look pathetically skinny as he did last week.

He has more energy which is very lovely to see, and good to know that something as simple as the right extra food, with extra calories gives him such a boost.

Had helping Spike enjoy his life, while he is still here, we are both very aware that Spike’s condition can change quite dramatically.

For this moment, we are enjoying our lovely Spike and not even considering what the future will hold.

Today is sunny and bright which I am enjoying tremendously, I feel good despite all my pain and discomfort.

Living in the moment is a good idea, it takes some getting used to, but I think that I am getting the hang of it now.

Being Handicapped Does Not Mean That I Have Become Stupid.

A very dreary cool, grey and rainy day, Richie just came back with two very damp dogs, from taking them down to the dog toilet by the canal at the end of our street.

Today is my physiotherapy day, Mathilde will be here at 14.00 for 30 minutes, it is always a good session and I generally benefit from the exercises and shoulder massage.

Michelle, the advisor from the local council will also come by to check my arm supports; hopefully the saga of the wheelchair table will come to a good conclusion soon.

Still can’t believe that while I was waiting for the table to be made from the lengthy measuring session which took 2 1/2 hours on 25 august nothing was happening.

To my amazement found out last Wednesday, that nothing was actually happening as my occupational therapist Johanneke had to come and check the height first.

No one, neither Harm, from Welzorg the mobility company, nor Michelle told either Richie or me this on the 25 august.

If they had have done so, I would have immediately got in touch with Johanneke right away for an appointment ASAP.

But I did not and Johanneke said nothing either, nor did she tell me she was the cause of why the whole project had stagnated.

She just told me that it was stagnated, found out that she or rather her lack of coming to check was the reason nothing was happening.

Really incredible that this has happened especially, after the whole saga of things such as the arm supports, this took months to get adjusted.

Months of painful arms and shoulders because I had to support my arms and shoulders myself.

Can’t believe that my occupational therapist seems to have let me down so badly by not coming by quickly to check the arm supports.

Know for a fact that my old occupational therapist Ludwine would have made an appointment right away, she was very supportive of us both.

Ludwine came to visit us last week Wednesday which was very nice of her, good to see her again.

Shame she is not still my therapist, she is outstanding always acted in my best interests, never adopted a different tone of voice when talking to me.

Always felt like equals which h does not happen too often most including Johanneke adopt their voices.

They talk to me in that sugary tone of voice for the hard of thinking which I hate so much.

Decided the next time that happens, instead of ignoring it I shall ask whoever it is to not patronise me, as I am an equal, being handicapped does not mean that I have become stupid, my handicap has not diminished my intellect.

Quiet Day.

Gareth's Photos From Wales.

Took my occasional sleeping tablet last night, as I had not been able to sleep well all week thanks to noisy drunken people on the street.

Quite annoying for us, fun for the drunks as they shout at each other with no thought for anyone else, when standing right next to each other.

Going to get a quick post written and get Richie to heave me out of bed before it gets later.

The dogs are happy they have been out to the park and are happy in their beds dreaming of their adventures.

We are both a little tired after Friday but still keen to do it again soon, nice to spend time with others.

Especially us as we often only see Mathilde my physiotherapist and no one else all week

We have nice friends here that we see for brief visits, it’s not like I remember in England or Germany or Trinidad, people here are a touch more reserved, they are nice kind people, who are good fun.

Maybe it is me and not them, next year it will have been here 30 years and still feel like I just arrived.

Oh well living for now, today lots of pain and stiff clumsy fingers difficult to type but does not stop me being me.