Saturday 5th
Okay… enough of this shuffling around the flat like a man who’s just out of hospital, I need some food, the cupboards are bare. Well, bare of healthy stuff. And milk for my tea. But that’s the fridge, not a cupboard.
I digress. Anyway, it would good to get out today, go for a walk, hoik a bag of shopping back home and collapse in a heap (but not from a pain in my bladder). Simple things, and I ought to appreciate them a bit more. Then again, I was at work (from home) the last couple of days, so simply getting some fresh air is nice.
Tuesday 15th
Today is the 40th anniversary of my dad dying, suddenly, at home. It still hurts, and I know all of my older cousins miss him as well. He was just 47, and it was his second heart attack in less than 10 years.
In many ways I wish he was still around, but I don’t think he’d have been happy being 87 in much the same way as my mum wasn’t overjoyed at being 79 when she died a few years back. My own brush with death has made me wonder… when would be the best age to check out? When will I and my body have had enough?
Sunday 20th
That said, today is my 55th birthday. Hurrah! A few cards and well-wishes, tea and a drink with Charmaine last night. And I’m eligible to draw my workplace pension. Not just yet, I think… save it until I’m 60; if I’m still working then (if I’m working at all) I can step back to three days a week and be formally semi-retired for a while.
Wednesday 23rd
I got a call on Monday asking if I was free on Friday to discuss my test results. Yes, obviously! But then they called this afternoon instead. Low grade 2, superficial. No treatment needed yet, check-up in three months to see if it has come back. That’s way better than I thought it was going to be; I had been steeling myself for a round of chemo but that will be delayed, and might not be needed at all.
I joked with Charmaine that, as I’d bought a new TV when I got the initial diagnosis I might buy a new phone to celebrate not being too badly off. “Go for it,” she said. It arrives on Saturday…
Sunday 27th
This is going to take some getting used to… an iPhone without a home button. Only a Mini, but who needs more than that? Anyway, I only have small hands (it’s been commented upon before). So far it seems to be a lot faster than my iPhone SE first generation (no, really?) but I’ve not had a chance to use it in anger yet. Plus I need a case… or a slip case… or something. I prefer my phones to be naked but the damage potential is enormous here.
Oddly, Charmaine bought one from the same eBay supplier but in Midnight Black (mine’s the blue version). Last weekend she was telling me to save my cash…
Thursday 31st
Writing this diary is proving to be a bit of a struggle. I think of things, then forget to write them down. Then I try and do it all at the end of the month. Perhaps… perhaps I shouldn’t try to write when there’s nothing to write about. But then I might write nothing at all. But then, quality is better than quantity.
What I’m saying is, this might be the last such monthly round-up. We’ll see how it goes. I still have that photography post to sort, remember? But I’ve also the cadets finances to sort, plus my own, and the novel(s) to write. Something’s gotta give.