Christmas plans, or "what every woman wants"

Neither of us are huge fans of Christmas.*

As a result Christmas tends to be a fairly quiet day here. We do presents and a Christmas lunch. There will be a large honey roast ham and plenty of tasty treats around. We enjoy having visitors and seeing people. It is just that we really don't like the horrendous hype and nonsense that is spouted at this time of year.  It is not yet December and we are already weary of the commercialism and faux festive cheer, that seems to come from all directions. 

We had assumed that it would be our normal Christmas; me, 30% and TP, having a relaxed day featuring good food and some rather nice wine.  

That was up until a few weeks ago when TP informed us that he had purchased a one-way ticket to Vietnam and was flying out on the 23rd of December.** 

It was now just the two of use here for Christmas and plans were scaled back. We have now agreed that our plans for Christmas Day will be determined by fate.  We propose to head in to our nearest Waitrose supermarket, one hour before closing time on Christmas Eve. Our Christmas lunch will be the most appealing bargain that can be found.

The name for this new game is Waitrose Pot Luck!

Now on to the subject of presents. We are both of an age that neither of us really need or want anything for Christmas. We either have it already, or, if we need it, we have already gone and purchased it.  We therefore agreed that there would be "no presents."

Now I have been with 30% long enough to know what 30% means by "no presents." Firstly, Christmas is immediately after my birthday, so birthday presents are purchased and she does tend to go a little overboard. A phrase often spouted is "I'd finished my shopping, but then I saw this, and simply couldn't resist." I am also sensitive enough to know that "no presents" actually means, as a minimum, at least one present that has involved a high degree of thought and originality.

By way of example, one year, when TP was very young, we purchased a pair of red wellingtons for 30% and then spent several hours sticking black spots and googly eyes on the toes. She was absolutely over the moon with her "ladybird wellies", and still recalls the delight of opening them.***

In that vein, I have landed on the perfect gift for my good lady. For the last year, at least, she has positively pined for a yellow wheelbarrow.  Now we have two wheel barrows. One is green with a narrow wheel and is an utter bastard to use in the orchard. The other has a rusty black pan, a puncture proof wheel and is a delight to use. She is happy with either of these BUT she really wants a yellow wheelbarrow.

Today I took delivery of a yellow, 85 litre, replacement wheelbarrow pan. I spent the afternoon in the workshop carefully removing the worn out rusty pan from the black wheelbarrow. I have plenty of time to complete the upgrade before the 25th of December.  It may not the what every woman wants, but I know that 30% will love it.

The only other news was that I dug up the last of my leek  crop this morning. Half of which was converted in to another batch of leek and potato soup.

---

* I think it is matter of public record that my favorite part of Christmas is Boxing Day ... because that means it's over!

** This slightly infuriated 30%, as she had arranged a birthday outing for me on that very date , and TP had confirmed his availability.  His proposed return is "sometime in January."

*** Mind you! About that time TP also spotted a rather nice pair of ladybird earrings in a jewellery shop window, and commented that they "were just like 30%'s necklace." He wasn't to know it was a Faberge item ... and the earrings were a very expensive gift to purchase on behalf of an eight year old! ... She loves them too.

I'm definitely a "morning person"

I have never been one to lie in bed. 

Once I am awake I tend to rise promptly. I may lurk under the covers for a few minutes before getting up, and there are rare occasions when I fall back to sleep, but, generally, once I am awake I get up. I also tend to be a fairly early riser. It is rare that 30% makes an appearance before me. Even in these darker months I tend to be awake and up before daylight.

Over my working life I also found that I was most productive during the first half of the day.  If I had a complex and involved piece of work to attend to, I would always attend to it in the morning. If possible I left my afternoons to be filled with the less arduous activities.

I have found that this activity pattern has followed me through to my retirement. I'm keen to get on with the tricky stuff in the morning, but my afternoons are far more relaxed and casual

Let's take today for example.

A couple of months ago 30% ordered a 40 watt oil filled heater for the ornamental greenhouse.  I explained that it wasn't up to the job, so another beefier heating option has been deployed. The oil filled heater has sat on the worktop until I realised that it might be of use as a wardrobe heater.

The fitted wardrobe in one of the bedrooms has been constructed against a solid 8" brick wall and can suffer from condensation during the colder months. Last year I fitted oil filled heaters and these have worked really well.  The only issue was that one half of the wardrobe would only accommodate a 40 watt heater, due to the presence of a chimney breast.  The other half had been fitted with an 80 watt heater, which was far more effective.  I realised that the spare heater could be fitted to the chimney breast bringing the heater wattage total to 80 watts in that part of the fitted wardrobe.

This morning, after attending to dogs and chickens, I gathered tools and emptied the bottom of the wardrobe. I got busy, and can now report that the heater has been fitted and turned on. 

So that was my morning. 

I had planned to dig up the rest of the leeks this afternoon, but the heavens opened and it poured down. I selected option #2, which was an extended snooze on the sofa.

I am definitely a morning person.

"Soupy"

... It's a great first word if you're attempting the daily Wordle puzzle.  It also sums up my morning.

After yesterday's slothfulness, I felt that I really ought to achieve something today. After checking the veg patch and the kitchen cupboards, I discerned that I had sufficient ingredients for a double batch of leek and potato soup.  It is a lovely soup, we both really enjoy it, and it freezes beautifully, so I spent my morning knocking some up.

At this point I should mention that I didn't really think through the amount of soup I was preparing, and had a brief crisis when I realised that my chosen saucepan* was far too small to receive four pints of chicken stock. I ended up having to divide my "softened onion, leek and potato mixture" between two saucepans and completing the simmering stage in two vessels. 

Everything was recombined in to our largest mixing bowl for the blending phase, but I will report that the addition of the double cream brought the liquid level very close to the brim!

I ended up with ten portions of soup, one of which made a rather pleasant addition to my lunch.

In the afternoon I received a call from the local motorcycle workshop. The Honda is now ready for collection.  She has an MOT and the mechanic's report from the test ride is that "she rides really well, and is a lovely little classic." I arranged to collect her next Monday, as I have no-one to run me over to Alcester until 30% get back from Ashby-de-la-Zouch.**

The afternoon was slightly more sedate, but I did manage to cut back the Michaelmas Daisies, Sedums and Achilleas in the herbaceous border ... It's Brown Bin day tomorrow.

---

* It was the largest one in the cupboard

** They're not open on a Saturday and haven't been for a year or two. When asked why, they advised "we got pissed off with all the tyre kickers." They clearly know the market, as this approach doesn't seem to have impacted their business one jot.

It's that time of year

I appreciate that people do tend to slow down in the darker months. Apparently the shorter days, cooler temperatures and reduced light levels increase melatonin levels, leading to a tendency to reduce activity levels and increased sleep.

Based on today's activity levels, I can report that my melatonin must be reaching peak levels. I did next to nothing today. 

I needed to stay close to home, as my replacement helmet was to be delivered at some point today. It is an expensive item and there was no option for it be left in a safe place. Apparently I needed to be on the premises to take personal receipt of the item.

So, home I stayed.  30% headed off for yet another trip to Champneys, this time with Jules. They left in the early afternoon, so I am now home alone.

 This afternoon I retired to the sofa, managed to find sufficient space between The Rat and Traitorous Bastard, and entered a state of torpor for an hour, or so.

The helmet did arrive. It is lovely, and I look forward to wearing it when I have less melatonin coursing through my veins.

The rug looks lovely

I hadn't really got any plans for today. 

I expected to do the normal stuff, read a little, possibly cook a batch of soup, perhaps spend some time in the workshop, if the weather was sufficiently clement.

One thing that was definitely not on my list was carpet cleaning.

It's funny how things pan out.

I woke fairly early this morning and wandered downstairs accompanied by Hobson and The Rat. The Rat wanted to go outside, so I let her out of the front door, left it on the latch, and wandered in to the kitchen to make a cup of coffee.

I then settled in the lounge with my mug of coffee beside me on the floor.  After a few minutes scouring the BBC News website, The Rat pushed open the front door and came bounding back in to the house.  I got up to close the door properly. The Rat was behaving as is normal for her deranged self. She was excitedly bouncing and scampering around my feet.

Unfortunately, during this little canine dance performance, a full mug of black coffee got upturned on the rug.  I cursed and headed out to collect absorbent materials to soak up the large dark spill. After several minutes of mopping, I had used up a large quantity of kitchen roll and was left with a large, dark, damp stain on the rug.

I made myself another first cup of coffee and resumed my perusal of the day's news. 

I had already realised that my half-arsed attempt to mop up the coffee was definitely inadequate, so, after reaching a reasonable level of consciousness, I headed out to the store room and retrieved the carpet cleaner.

A merry hour was spent familiarising myself with the appliance,* preparing it for deployment, and cleaning the rug. 

It now looks lovely.

---

* This was its first ever use. It has sat in the store room for many months, securely cocooned in its original packaging.

Post Script:

30% was so enthused by the inaugural deployment of the carpet cleaner that she spent the morning cleaning all of the ground floor carpets and rugs ... well, the bits you can see, anyway.

Odds 'n sods

First job this morning was to put away my fishing gear from yesterday's outing.

With everything cleaned up and put away, I attended to the daily chore, restocking the log holder and preparing kindling for a fire later in the day.

I also found a few minutes to give the motorcycle workshop a call. They expect the final component to arrive towards the end of this week. I have, therefore, arranged to drop off a container of the 99 RON, ethanol free fuel at the end of the week. They will then have it available when they need to refuel the Honda.

Continuing on a motorcycling vein, I packed up the defective Arai helmet, and gave the supplier a call.  They had not yet responded to my eBay return request, so I was unable to get a postage label printed off.  

After a quick call, the situation was resolved and a return label QR code was sitting in my email inbox. I finished packing up the lid, and headed over to Alcester to drop it off at the Post Office.

By the time I had got home there was another email in my inbox from eBay advising that they were aware that the helmet had been posted. I was truly amazed at the speed and seamless integration between the Post Office tracking system and eBay's user portal.  All I need to do now is prey for a successful delivery followed by a refund of my payment.

At some point amongst this, we also managed to wander down the lanes with the dogs for a short walk.

I also found another Arai helmet in the right size and colour from a reliable supplier. An order has been placed, and it should be here in the next few days.

I jus hope there are no hiccoughs with the refund on helmet #1.

Not pike fishing

 Today I removed a bag of sardines from the freezer.

I then headed over to Fladbury, where I met up with Bubbles and Ben. One of the aforementioned sardines was attached to a wire trace and dangled in the Avon for five hours. During that time, not a single pike troubled the bait.

At around three o'clock I removed the sardine from the water, put it back with the rest of my dead bait, and packed up my gear.  Forty minutes later I was home and the sardine was back where it started.*

I had a pleasant enough day. The weather was sunny but there was a chill wind. The company was as per usual ... moments of fun, interspersed with the usual inane idiocy.

The thing I haven't mentioned, is that the dead bait is the same that was used the last time I went pike fishing.

I hope no-one, mistakenly, takes it out for supper!

---

* Hopefully better luck next time.

I think I preferred the frost

The temperatures have lifted above freezing, and the frosts were replaced by cold rain today.

The weather was vile when I awoke and it didn't improve at any point in the day.  We both spent as much time as possible indoors.

In the morning I bottled the last of the honey that I harvested at the end of May. I can finally report that, excluding wastage,* the harvest produced 125 lbs of saleable honey.  I may have actually produced a few more pounds than that, but I based my harvest total on the number of labels used, and I am sure I have given away, or sold, a few unlabelled jars.

I am delighted with how much has been produced by my two hives, and can only hope we do as well next year.

In the afternoon I made up another batch of leek and potato soup. This necessitated a spell in the veg patch to dig up the leeks and then a session with my hands in cold water trimming them and washing off the mud.  In only a few minutes I was cold and wet and anxious to get back indoors.

The soup doesn't take long to prepare and cook, and I was soon able to get a fire lit and settle in the warmth.

I had a huge snooze the sofa with The Rat and Traitorous Bastard curled up on either side of me, just in case I wasn't warm enough.

So that was my Saturday. A day of dodging horrible weather and achieving a couple of minor successes.

---

* There is always a little froth sitting on top of a batch of liquified honey. I use a sheet of clingfilm to lift the froth away from the honey, leaving a nice clear product to bottle. This method works really well, but I do loose a few grams every time.

On reflection, she is a selfish cow!

In the past couple of weeks I have taken stock of the limited range of crops I have attempted to grow in the veg patch.

The beetroot and carrots have been reasonable, taking first prizes in their classes at the village horticultural show.  I was far less successful with cabbages. My first plantings were ravaged by white fly and they ended up on the compost heap.

The hot summer was not exactly conducive to growing vegetables, but I persevered and planted some Savoy plugs and Spring cabbage quite late in the season.  I have never planted so late in the season, and had no idea whether they would amount to anything, or not.  Well, I can report that the Savoys have developed hearts, and it was definitely worth the effort. I haven't harvested on yet, but one will be cut in the next week or so. Allegedly the recent frosts will improve the flavour.

Now on to the leeks.  These have grown reasonably well and ready to harvest. Unfortunately we have a mild infestation of Allium Leaf Minor.  The leeks have not been ruined, but they are far from perfect. Small pupae* can be found inside the outer leaves, and need to be removed before the leeks can be cooked.

30% and I agreed that whilst the leeks weren't good enough to accompany a roast dinner, they were far too good to throw away.

I therefore decided to make a batch of leek and potato soup this morning.  The recipe is simplicity itself and was a lovely addition to today's lunch. The recipe produced sufficient quantities to freeze a couple of portions too.

I also got a batch of honey bottled today. Normally I would process a couple of batches, but Bubbles had arranged for use to go and partake of an all you can eat buffet at The Summer Palace on the outskirts of Studley.  For some bizarre reason he had booked the table for half past five in the evening!

I have absolutely no idea why he selected this time? It was far too early in the evening for us to eat, and bit in to my honey bottling schedule.  30% attempted to put a positive spin on it, by saying that "we would be home well before nine."

I have to be honest and say I wasn't really looking forward to the evening.  I am not a huge fan of Chinese food, and I no longer enjoy a vast quantity of food.**  So an "all you can eat Chinese buffet" was, from my perspective, the antithesis of an enjoyable dining experience.  

Also, neither of us were looking forward to an evening in the company of Bobbyn. At best she is monosyllabic. At worst she is outspoken, incredibly immature, opinionated and not as well informed as she thinks she is.

I have to say that the evening panned out exactly as we expected. The food was indifferent. It was beige. It was greasy and uninspiring.***  Mike was his usual talkative self and Bobbyn was monosyllabic and disinterested.  The only moment of animation was when there was a brief argument when she reiterated that she would not be visiting Bubbles' parents for an hour on Christmas Day.

Fuck me, she is a selfish bitch.  I am not a fan of 30%'s mum, but I would always be willing to endure her for an hour or two. However Bobbyn steadfastly refuses to visit Bubbles parents.  I've met them ... they're fine.

She did mention that Bubbles mum "needs to recognise some boundaries." This had us both intrigued. I just think that Bobbyn doesn't like home truths or criticism.

---

* They are of the size and appearance of grains of brown rice.

** I used to be able to put it away, but, as I have aged, I much prefer a small portion of well cooked food

*** It was also fucking expensive. 30% and I could have had two amazing takeaways from China Twon for our share of this evening's bill.

Briefly fabulous

30% was off to spend some time with her friend, Jules.

It was another frosty morning, so I was quite happy to spend my time indoors "to keep the dogs company."*

I brought in some jars and a bucket of honey** from the store room.  I need to bottle another batch of honey, and it will be far easier to process if it is brought in to the warmth of the house overnight.

Around midday my new helmet arrived and I'll admit to a touch of anticipation as I removed it from its packaging.  Arai helmets are beautifully made and I have never had another helmet that fitted as well as this new Quantic model.

After a trial fitting I took off the lid, and gave it a good looking over.  Everything seemed beautiful until I looked inside. A section of the helmet lining just didn't look right.  The lining is black, plush and beautifully fitted to the inside of the helmet. However the section of the lining over the crown of my head looked dreadful. It was poorly fitted, and seemed to be peeling away from the inner polystyrene.  It looked incredibly jarring when compared to the quality of the rest of the helmet.

I gave the supplier a call, and they seemed to be quite understanding. They don't have another in the same size and colour, so an eBay return has been initiated.

As it says in the title, the new lid was "briefly fabulous," but I have been left feeling a little disappointed.

I've already mentioned that the weather was icy, so I decided to light a fire this afternoon ... a bonfire.  The metal crate in the orchard has sat for most of the summer, filled with a large pile of combustibles.  I have conscientiously avoiding lighting it until the weather cooled, and there was no chance of the crop of wheat in the adjacent field being ignited.

I had a splendid time warming myself by the fire, and then heading back to find another piece of rubbish to add to the inferno.  30% was mildly miffed when she returned and realised that she had missed out on the fun.

I probably need to make amends in some way, as my dear wife had kindly returned with twenty litres of 99 RON storage fuel for the Honda ... we won't be able to afford food for the rest of the month!

---

* 30% does get quite concerned about the dogs having company.  In my experience, as soon as she heads off down the lane, they retreat to their favourite positions and sleep. They will occasionally wake to bark at passing dogs, but spend 99% of their time snoring. I'm sure they see "company" as "disturbance."

** The last of the May '25 harvest

'ow much?

It was even colder overnight, but I can report that the new greenhouse heater has kept the temperature in the ornamental greenhouse above freezing.  My only questions are how long did it run for, to achieve this feat, and at what cost?*

I spent most of the morning out in the workshop reacquainting myself with my mortiser.  It really has been a long time. 

I realised that I purchased this piece of equipment back in 2012, to construct a cupboard in an alcove at our last house.  After making the cupboard doors and frame components, it has sat in the workshop gathering dust.**. I now need to use it to make the panelled doors for my carpenter's workbench. 

After a couple of hours of fiddling, interspersed with trial cuts in offcuts, I can report that I am just about ready to start marking out the mortice cuts on the door frame stiles. The observant will note that, at no point, have I used the word "confident" in the preceding statement!

I've already mentioned that the weather was bitterly cold, so I did my best to stay in the warm, whenever possible.

In the afternoon I filled the log basket and chopped kindling before reaching out to our Financial Advisor for some guidance reclaiming tax on a pension payment.  I have a feeling that certain documents should have been provided, but haven't, or that vital information should be available on a portal, but isn't. 

I appreciate that it could be me, but let's wait a few days and see how this pans out.

Now on to the title of today's Journal entry. I have already made reference to cost, with my comments on the greenhouse heater. I think a call later in the day pushes the price of things in to an entirely different realm.

Simon rang from the motorcycle workshop this afternoon. We had a lovely chat, BUT the key points are that my Honda needs a new set of tyres, they are waiting for a replacement petrol tap, and the bike is in lovely condition.

I am aware that new rubber is going to cost me in the region of £250, so I asked for an estimate of the bill so far.  I pictured Simon scratching his head, before advising that it was going to be around the seven or eight hundred pound mark.  He advised that much of the fuel system had had to be cleaned or replaced due to the ravages of fucking ethanol in modern petrol.

I do want to continue riding the bike, and I am aware that TP is incredibly keen too, so I bit the bullet and committed to new tyres.***

There is one final element in this "how much" narrative.  Clearly the Honda will need to run on fuel without ethanol, or this refurbishment will need to be repeated in a year or two.  I therefore tasked 30% with picking up ten litres of 99 RON, unleaded storage fuel when she is in Worcester tomorrow.

I checked on availability and asked about the price ... £46 for ten litres! That is over three times the price of E5 fuel in the UK.

It's a bloody good job I won't be doing that many miles on her each year.

One might think that that is enough news for one day, but there is one final event.

This evening we headed out with Mummy Sheila to see a performance of A Christmas Carol performed by Redditch Operatic Society at the Palace Theatre.  It was a very traditional production, reasonably competently performed by an amateur ensemble. There were a couple of stand out performances, particularity the lead role, but I have to say that the ghost of Christmas past was like Stevie Nicks with dementia ... she was bloody funny, but I'm not sure that it was intentional.

---

* ... and, are the few plants in there really worth it?

** and a little rust, but I have conscientiously applied tool wax fairly regularly to keep the worst at bay.

*** I've not heard from Buzzer, so I am assuming he has let someone else have his VFR. That leaves me a couple of grand in pocket.

How many parcels?

The weather has been fine, but bitterly cold for the past couple of days.  The blue skies encourage outdoor activities, but a coat and hat are needed, along with plenty of coffee breaks in the warm.

After yesterday's trip to Nottingham I decided that I should really spend some time in the garden today.

First on my list was to attend the tomato greenhouse.  It will soon be home to our tree ferns, as hard frosts are likely to happen, so I wanted to get some manure dug in to the soil.*

30% had removed all of the tomato vines about a month ago, so all I needed to do was empty three bags of cow manure on the beds, dig it in and then give them a good watering.  My hope is that the climate in the greenhouse is sufficiently mild that the soil biome remains active across the winter, and improves the soil structure and fertility.

I also moved some large pots and a bag of compost to the greenhouse. 30% will pot up her tulip bulbs and then leave them secure in the greenhouse along with the tree ferns.**

In the afternoon I headed out to the workshop and continued my project to construct a pair of doors for my carpenter's workbench.  I now have the timber planed to the appropriate dimensions and have started to mark out the rails and stiles.

So that was my day. As it says in the title of today's Journal entry, it was also a day of parcel deliveries. I can report that, as a result, I will now be able to descale my coffee machine, take accurate blood glucose readings and, hopefully, keep the ornamental greenhouse frost free.

On reflection, I wonder if a single delivery of three parcels would have been better for the planet?

---

* Without having to fight my way around two large potted ferns!

** Bloody rats dug up last year's bulbs and, as a result, we had a very poor showing.  

Have chainsaw, will travel

 A couple of weeks ago I was pinged by Gary.

Gary is a frolleague from my last employer.  Now I didn't really have a great time in my last, or should that be final, employment.  I sat around for months doing absolutely nothing and when a piece of work was finally allocated, it wasn't really appropriate to my role or skillset.*

The final straw was a "pre-RFP" engagement to assist in shaping a possible solution for the client. It was also focussed on the modernisation of an aged application estate.  These are not the things I was employed to do, and are certainly not my primary strengths.

I muddled my way through a very stressful engagement and, ultimately, actually produced a deliverable, of which I was very proud.  I'm not sure that the Sales team liked it, but I was bang on the money.

I pointed out that the potential client had repeatedly demonstrated an inability to modernise their suite of legacy applications, and would need a period of more than five years to achieve their alleged aims.  I added that they lacked the skills and management consensus to progress this initiative and that our best option would be bring in a team of management consultants to evaluate their requirements, develop a modernisation strategy and educate the customer in order to set off on a long-term journey of software development and business process revision.

As I said, I was proud of this incisive and accurate summation. I really didn't give a fuck about what the Sales Team thought, as I handed in my notice during this engagement.

Basically it was a crappy job and the pipeline of work, hinted at during my recruitment, never appeared. I sat around and only managed to form one working relationship in the eight months I was there.  That is a pretty sad indictment on the abilities of my manager.

He totally failed to engender any sense of team in the group of people he managed. Basically it was a bunch of ten or twelve guys who each worked independently. There were no team activities that allowed or encouraged us to work as a team, share knowledge or assist in any way.**

It was an unpleasant place to work, so after eight months I told him that the job was neither meeting my expectations nor my needs, and that I'd be leaving at the end of March 2024.

Now I appreciate that that is one hell of a tangent, but I will get to the point.  The only member of the team that I developed a relationship with was Gary.  We are of a similar age and have a shared interest in shooting. We also both have a cynical sense of humour, and a shared ability to spot a bad deal from twenty miles away.

We got to know each other, as I was asked to shadow Gary on an opportunity that he was working to familiarise myself with the relevant processes. A friendship has developed and we have maintained contact since I decided to retire.

A few weeks ago Gary pinged me on WhatsApp and asked if I knew anyone with a chainsaw.  I'm pretty sure that he knew I would have one, so I took the bait and offered my services.  He had a few sleepers in his garden that needed to be sawn in to more manageable chunks, so I arranged to pop up to Nottingham, saw up his sleepers, drink several cups of coffee and make him buy me lunch at a rather nice pub.

So that was my day. I defrosted*** the car, headed North and had a rather pleasant time chewing the fat with an ex-workmate.  It was good to catch up and it further reinforced my view that I was far too old and jaded for a career in outsourcing.

---

* I was employed as a solution architect. As such I would be engaged when the prospective client issues an RFP, accompanied by a clear set of requirements. I would then ensure I was familiar with what was wanted, develop a solution strategy and engage the appropriate subject matter experts to assist me in developing a solution that was technically viable and accurately costed ... Oh, and hopefully at an attractive price point.

** He did host team calls, but they were just an opportunity for him to talk at us. He had no interest in any input from the rest of us, or for engendering mutually beneficial relationships.

*** The first frost of the Autumn occurred overnight. It wasn't too bad, but I did need to scrape the windows on the car.  On the gardening front, it'll be the end of the dahlias.

Normal Stuff

It's Sunday and I haven't made a Journal entry for a few days.  I'd say "I have been far too busy to put virtual pen to virtual paper," but, as you will see, there has been plenty of spare time.

Friday, 14th November

The weather was horrendous today. It started out wet, and then got even wetter as the day progressed.  Needless to say, we both did our best to stay indoors.

I have recently made my first draw down from my personal pension, and now need to reclaim the tax that has been deducted. I therefore did some fact finding about the relevant process. It seems that I need to submit a P55 form to HMRC. I have determined how much tax has been paid, but I think I need a few more details from my friendly Financial Advisor before I am in a position to make the claim.

Another indoor job related to my Freestyle Libre blood glucose monitoring app. I had been using these sensors for just over five years to monitor and assist in the management of my diabetes. They are amazing and have transformed the control of my condition.

Well, they did, up until I updated the Android operating system on my Samsung A53 cell phone last week.  For the past week the Freestyle app has not worked properly and it may take seven or eight attempts to take a reading from the sensor that is affixed to my arm.  The app crashes repeatedly and on occasion goes in to a diagnostic mode and does nothing for twenty minutes or more. 

Taking a blood glucose reading has gone from just waving my phone over the sensor on my upper arm, to a frustrating rigmarole of beeps, button pressing and swearing.

An internet search has indicated that the app needs to be updated and there is no indication of when this will occur.  I contacted the Sensor and App provider today and reported the problems I am having. To be fair, they responded positively and advised that they would send a bespoke sensor reader and a spare sensor. The reader will take the place of my phone and will not have the Android O/S upgrade issues I am currently encountering.

This is great, BUT, Abbot diabetes care are not currently able to advise when their app will be updated to work with the new Android operating system.  It seems that after five years I now have to take the backwards step of carrying two devices around with me because the provider has failed to keep their app software current.  Surely it must be cheaper to maintain the app than issue, potentially, tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of bespoke sensor readers to Android users suffering the same problem?

So that was a very soggy Friday. The only other news is that TP arrived late in the evening in preparation for our annual pilgrimage to the National Exhibition Centre for Motorcycle Live.

Saturday, 15th November

As already mentioned, my plan for today was to wander around an exhibition hall at the Birmingham NEC, taking in the latest motorcycle models and associated paraphernalia.

TP and I started the day in a leisurely fashion and eventually headed out at about ten o'clock. We met up with TP's friend, Charlie and had a great time checking out the show.  I had intended to buy a replacement helmet, but didn't get as far as flexing the plastic. I did learn that the Arai Quantic is a lovely fit and that Shark helmets have completely changed their sizing.* 

I either need to find a bargain priced Quantic or commit to spending a tedious day trying on helmets at some "Motorcycle Mega Store."  I decided that I am in no rush as the weather will be far from clement for the next six months.

TP and I arrived home a little after six o'clock. Our timing was perfect, as B&H were coming over for supper and were due at around seven.

We had enough time to tidy ourselves up, before enjoying a boozy evening, featuring a rather fine lasagna, courtesy of 30%.

---

* I bought my first Shark lid back in 1995, and was very impressed by the quality, fit and look of the helmet. I have bought size L Shark helmets ever since.  Now I appreciate that it has been a while since my last purchase, hence the need for a new skid lid. Today I learnt that Shark have changed their designs and I can no longer get an L sized helmet on to my head... I'm absolutely certain that my head hasn't grown! 

Sunday, 16th November

After an evening with B&H, Sunday was always going to be a non-event.

They stayed over and, after tea, coffee and chatter, they headed off midway through the morning. TP stayed for lunch before heading home to Cardiff.

30% and I managed a bit of a walk with the dogs, but that was it. 

A lazy day!