2024 Diary - Page 47

4 August

Gym first then I led a Knoll Active Group walk to Darrick and Newstead Woods / Tubbenden Meadows.

The weather was a bit cooler so a lot easier for walking.

5 August

Ela's class nearly killed me this morning - Covid has left me a bit breathless and 45 minutes of circuit training was a bit hard!

Oli tried his best to persuade me to stay in bed with him but I couldn't cancel the class so I had to get up instead of staying for a longer snuggle. He was still in the same place when I got back.

Alma is still in Albania so I cleaned the kitchen and bathrooms before Gilda arrived for our walk. She was 20 minutes late getting here because of traffic. I was beginning to wonder if she had forgotten.

We tested out Charity Walk 3 then joined Jonathon at Masala Dabbas for lunch - yummy as always.

I did Park Watch as usual. There was no trouble and a little girl presented me with a feather as a thank you for collecting litter.

Caught up with Christine who is busy harvesting.

Had a message from Marie Curie to advise that we collected an amazing £1,233.02 on Saturday. My contribution was £66.38 and Kerry's was £91.57 so not too bad.

6 August

Gym then work today so back to normal.

Work was pretty busy catching up from last week so the day flew by.

Thankfully, I went to get my lunch just after 12. If I'd waited until 1 p.m. I'd have got very wet - this was the view from our office window!

7 August

Not much to report today. It was good to see the sunshine lighting up Jonathon's car on my way to the gym.

I caught a slightly earlier (but faster) train today so had time to walk over Tower Bridge on the way to work.

Work was busy enough to keep me out of mischief but I found time to go for a wander at lunchtime.

8 August

Ela's class was a bit easier to cope with today so I must be getting back to normal. Did a load of steps on the treadmill before I went home so I could relax a bit this afternoon.

Took Mia, Tisha and Nellie for their weekly walk. The dog in the photo is Mia. They all seemed far more enthusiastic today - possibly because the weather was a bit cooler.

I have received a Special Award for helping Carol and her three dogs - it was a nice surprise to come home to.

Derek messaged to let me know that Maureen wasn't well so they wouldn't be able to join Gilda, Irene and me at Sadlers Wells tonight. Jonathon didn't want a ticket so I put the tickets on Knoll sharing and they were taken up by Dalaine and her daughter, Francesca. Francesca goes to Italia Conti drama school in Chislehurst and they had done some of the songs from "A Chorus Line" so she was very keen to see it. It was a good production with plenty of glitz and glamour at the end.

One of the reasons Jonathon didn't want to go was so that he could stay home with Oli who doesn't seem to be 100% at the moment. Hopefully, whatever he has eaten has worked its way through and he'll be feeling a bit better tomorrow.

9 August

Oli seems to be a bit brighter today which is good.

No yoga for me today - I cancelled it because of late night yesterday. Good job because I didn't wake up until 7.15 a.m. so there's no way I could have got to the gym by 7.30 a.m. for the start of the class!

Tested out the walk for tomorrow - one or two of the answers to the clues from the first charity walk have either changed or disappeared but we should still have a nice walk.

Met Anne to play tennis. She wanted to play a match today so we had two sets. I won 6-0 and 6-2 but she was delighted to win a couple of games so all good. Unfortunately, her job is changing a bit so she's not sure if she'll be able to play on Fridays in the future.

Had a Skype call with Mum - she seemed to be on good form.

Did about three hours of gardening so there's a whole load of bags for Jonathon to take to the tip now. I found another use for one of our surplus recycling bins (took the leeks out today) so there's a tub fullof lavender for Gilda to take home.

10 August

I've had a busy day today. Gym first with an errand or two on the way there. Oli decided sitting on his pile of leaves was much better than following me so I didn't have to play "catch a cat and bring him home" which saved me a bit of time.

Popped into Jo's to check all OK. The strong winds over the past couple of days meant her outside string curtain had got completely entangled in her tomato plant so that took a while to sort out. I cut her runner bean plant right back but had nothing to put the bits in to bring them home with me so I'll collect it all tomorrow.

It was Priory Live today so Jonathon was on photo duty and had to be there from 11 a.m. I went down about 2.30 p.m. then left after Flo Gallop's set because I didn't fancy the rest of the acts (they were from the 1990s and I'd not even heard of most of them). The festival was running more than 30 minutes behind schedule by then so Jonathon was hoping they would cancel one of the DJ sets to catch up.

Fay was in the health and wellbeing section which was a very welcome addition to the festival - there was massage, yoga and Fay's sound bath. Her clients looked blissed out!

The birds didn't seem bothered by the noise at all!

11 August

Went via Priory Gardens to the gym this morning. There was quite a lot of litter from yesterday but the guys were already working there, breaking stuff down and generally clearing the site. They were scheduled to be there all day.

Went to church. Martin, former minister from Orpington Baptist Church, was today's service leader and, as expected, it was a great service. He had the kids eating out of his hand.

I collected a nice, bright pink storage box from Debs. Sonya was also getting some boxes from her so I picked those up as well and dropped them off on the way home. Mine will make a great lavender container - better than the recycling box that it's in at the moment because that has drainage holes and the pink one doesn't.

I did some litter picking at PG but there was hardly anything to pick up - the clearing up team had done a great job. One of the men even thanked me for helping by picking up litter.

Went to Jo's to collect the runner bean debris then watered out garden before coming inside for the evening.

12 August

Ela's class to start the week but no treadmill because Gilda and I were trying out a new walk so she came a bit earlier and off we went.

The start of the walk was nowhere near a bus stop that accommodated the routes from Orpington so we had to improvise a bit. We now know we'll need to get off at our usual stop for Keston and go across the common to the ponds then pick up part of the walk from there. It was a really interesting walk with plenty of shade for such a hot (30C+) day.

We met Jonathon at The Drawing Room for lunch. Gilda had her favourite salt beef and Jonathon had a special toasted sandwich made up for him. The chef took great pains to assure him that none of the ingredients had been anywhere near mustard - he was really spoilt!

Soon after we got home I had to go out again to do my Park Watch shift - it was lovely and quiet with not too much litter to collect. Diane was there so we walked round together for half an hour. The only downside was the ice cream van had disappeared after I'd done my first round of the ponds so I couldn't have my anticipated treat.

I popped into Jo's to water her plants then, after tea, Jonathon and I watered Peter and Jenny's garden.

Caught up with Christine who was busy harvesting.

13 August

Gym and work. The hours certainly fly by a lot faster when I'm busy!

I was surprised to see a swan cruising along the Thames - we don't often see them in The City.

Terry came and put new tubing in from the filter to the pond so, hopefully, we'll stop losing so much water.

Alma is back from Albania so she came and did the cleaning (phew!)

It was supposed to rain this afternoon/evening but we got a few spots of drizzle and that was was it so we popped round to Peter and Jenny's to water (I'd done the pots that needed it here before work).

14 August

Gym then work. I started work 46 years ago today - I've been working longer than most of my colleagues have been alive!!

Work was busy again today - some work for my "proper" team but most of the day spent working for the new one. Liba has spoken with Patricia (boss of new team) and asked if she can join us. Hope so - we work well together.

I was delighted to see one of my photos had made it into the local paper - it's been ages since the last one.

Janer came and gave our oven a spring clean - it looks like new!

It was pub quiz day. Most of our regulars seemed to be busy so I co-opted Mark and Gilda to join us. There was no music round so a lot less stressful. As the replacement was Dingbats we were a lot happier, not least because we got all of those correct.

Very pleased to report that we won!

15 August

Ela's class then dog walking was this morning. I shared a photo of Mia last week so I thought I'd share photos of Nellie and Tisha today. They are lovely dogs and all have their own characters.

We decided to go to Xi'an for lunch then I went to collect a car blanket that one of our neighbours was getting rid of (Jonathon wants it for some reason or other).

I spent the rest of the afternoon gardening - mainly getting rid of brambles and ivy. James came round mid way through to discuss what needs to be done with our trees this year.

16 August

I ached quite a lot from my mammoth gardening session when I went to bed last night and was still a bit achy when I got up but decided to go to yoga and stretch it out a bit. I think it helped.

I joined June's Knoll Active walk. She decided to do a different route to the one she'd "advertised" but it was a great walk through Crofton Woods and surrounding area.

We sorted out the coal pile after dinner - the foxes had had a field day with it so it was quite a job! It looks a lot tidier now but I'm not sure how long for.

I put some milk and juice into Jo's fridge ready for her home-coming tomorrow then went to Peter and Jenny's to water their pots and tomatoes (and get some raspberries for my tea). They are also due home tomorrow so we'll only have our own watering to do for a while.

17 August

No gym today - I had a short walk via Tescos (twice) instead. The first visit was to drop off the soft plastics in their recycling bin; the second to do some shopping.

Before all that, I carried all the garden rubbish bags through to the front of the house so Jonathon could take them to the tip while I was walking with the Knoll Active group. I'm doing the same walk Saturday and Sunday this weekend - it's the third charity clue hunt walk. I think Irene and Kerry enjoyed it but we took ages going round because Kerry was keen to know what each of the wild flowers were.

We saw a farmer hard at work. Last time I did this walk, the crop was still standing so they've made good progress in just over a week.

There was also some interesting fungi along the way.

Caught up with Mum on Skype - no real news today.

Moved the pigs off the grass in readiness for Jonathon to do the strimming on Monday / Tuesday.

Jo, Jenny and Peter are all back home as planned so only our own garden to water for now - saves a lot of time!

Sadly, I think we have to face the fact that this might be the last photo I take of Whitelegs (31 July). We've not seen her for a couple of weeks. It's dispersal time so, normally, the cubs would be booted out by their parents to find their own space but it seems Whitelegs has been "dispersed" by the cubs instead this year. We'll miss her and her funny ways.

18 August

Another non-gym day but my back / sciatic nerve are feeling a lot easier today so I dare say I'll be back at circuits tomorrow.

I still needed to do something exercise-y so decided to go for a walk and photograph orange, yellow and red things. There were plenty of flowers to choose from, along with traffic lights, a bus, a Pooh bear and lots of others.

Church was led by a minister from Brighton. He is the minister for the LBGQ++ people in that area and gave a very interesting talk.

Did the second stint of Charity Walk 3 with the Knoll Group - a few more walkers today.

As expected, the farmer was leading bales today so that gave them all someting different to talk about!

Delighted to report we collected £76.00 and the "winning" charity was Dementia UK. KRA has matched the donation so Dementia UK should be a happy charity tonight.

Caught up with Christine - they've finished harvesting, just waiting for the baler man to come and do the final two fields.

19 August

Having thought one of the cubs had left home, he/she must have come back for breakfast this morning because all three were there. Still no sign of Whitelegs though.

Went to the gym (Ela's class and treadmill) then Gilda came and we went for a local walk. She wasn't sure what time she'd get here so I hadn't planned where we were going - just made it up as we went along. As we had more time to walk than I expected, I finished this month's stretch target so I can relax now!

We met Jonathon at The Orpington for lunch - very tasty food.

I cut the cross in the grass for the last time this year and edged the grass near the beds. Jonathon will be strimming the long grass this week so I moved the bird feeder stands. I came across a massive ant nest - they seem to think the stones I use to weight the feeder stands down are good places to build their nest even though I move them reasonably often.

Did my usual stint for Park Watch - thankfully all quiet. I was stopped by a lady on the way there asking for the route from our walk yesterday - she now has a full set of all three charity clue walks to do at her leisure.

20 August

Gym then work as normal.

Gilda and I ventured to the Turbine Theatre at Battersea Power Station to see "Cockfosters" in the evening. It was completely barmy but quite good fun.

I'd not been to Battersea since the big development so I had a good wander around until I bumped into Gilda. We decided we had time for a snack so we went to Tasha's and had cauliflower salad - yum!

It was dark by the time we came out - the old power station looked stunning against the dark sky.

21 August

While I was busy at work and theatre yesterday, Jonathon had strimmed the grass. The foxes were really enjoying galloping around, chasing each other in the "hay" this morning after they'd been fed.

My day was a normal Wednesday - gym then work.

22 August

A bit of a varied day today. Ela's class first (with a quick detour to see the lovely mural that Beci has created for our town).

Dog walking for Carol (or more for Mia, Nellie and Tisha) was next. Thankfully it had stopped drizzling by then so we stayed dry. It was cooler so we went a tiny bit further than in earlier weeks. I think they enjoyed themselves.

I had an appointment in the afternoon with Our Future Health, a new health programme that a charity runs in partnership with the NHS. As that was in Bromley, Jonathon and I went to Etna for some yummy pasta first.

The health process went fine - usual general health check so blood taken, cholestrol tested (that was fine), blood pressure and heart rate (also fine). Weight - as normal it was a bit higher than it should be but not drastic.

My final "outside" job today was to deliver a jacket to Sonya - all done and I could settle down and put my feet up for the evening.

23 August

Another busy and varied day - no chance of getting bored!

Yoga and treadmill to start the day then home for a quick cuppa before getting my hair cut. Sarah has cut it quite short this time - she tells me she hasn't taken much length off it but has given it more shape so it will be interesting to see how it grows.

My dentist phoned to ask me to go in earlier for my check up so we had soup and croissants for "brunch" then Jonathon gave me a lift there. All good and I don't need to go back for 6 months.

I wasn't due to visit John and Margaret until 2.30 p.m. (after my original appointment time) so I went for a lovely walk in South Norwood Country Park.

I had a quick look at my old house and was pleased to see my stained glass window was still in place. They haven't done much with the garden and the wisteria is wild. Margaret now has a gardener so she has him keep the wisteria away from their roof.

John was a bit more chatty and with it today (he's 96 now) and it was lovely to see them both.

I had some food and a pot of green tea then decided to rake up the long grass that Jonathon had strimmed before the heavy rains come tomorrow. They are supposed to start just after midnight and peak around 6 a.m. so I hope Jonathon isn't too late tonight and I might have a bit of a sleep in tomorrow!

I was dark by the time I'd finished with the grass and I've got a nasty blister on one of my hands but it's a good job done and 3.5 more bags full of stuff for the tip.

24 August

A much quieter day today. I had my sleep in and it was raining as forecast when I got up. After a few household jobs, I spent the rest of the morning in the gym.

Oli, very sensibly, stayed in most of the day and we were really lucky because I needed to go to Boots for some bits and pieces so we went out after dinner (the rain had stopped), did the shopping and popped into Scotts for an Pimms Eton Mess (without the Pimms drizzle). It was still dry when we walked home but the heavens opened about 5 minutes after we shut the door - perfect timing!

Caught up with Mum on Skype - she was in good form. We noticed one of the downpipes was blocked so water wasn't getting into that water butt - it was relatively easy to clear out in a drier spell so all good now for the next shower.

Spent the rest of the day with my paper, TV etc. and generally relaxing.

25 August

Gym then church. Jonathon went to Essex for a one day festival today so I was home alone for the rest of the day.

Got a couple of loads of washing done and started the packing for our holiday on Friday but there's still more to do.

Led the Knoll Active group on a walk through Goddington Park and round Lilly's Wood. It was great weather for walking and it was nice to have a few new walkers with us.

Caught up with Christine. Harvest all done and not too much damage from Storm Lilian.

Today's walkers - Swati and a Dutch lady who joined us aren't in the photo. There were 14 of us in total.

26 August

Bank Holiday Monday so no class this morning. I did a few jobs and had a short treadmill in the gym.

The foxes have discovered the big fir tree! I was too slow to get a photo of two of them together there but they were having fun chasing each other around.

Gilda came and we did the second bear walk, including some newer ones, then met Jonathon for yummy lunch at Ole Kyiv.

Alma came a bit earlier today to do the cleaning.

Did my shift at Park Watch - there was loads of rubbish to pick up today but there was no trouble while I was there.

Caught up with a few more jobs then feet and and TV watching for the rest of the evening.

27 August

Gym and work today so all as usual. Still no news re the lease extension on our offices so I've no idea whether I'll have a desk from the 13th. Time will tell.

Met Mark at The Ivy for dinner - lovely as always. We weren't late leaving but it was already dark - the nights are really drawing in.

29 August

A jobs day today to get ready for holiday tomorrow so a couple of loads of washing and packing. Managed to fit a quick trip to the gym in and, with it being Thursday, took Carol's dogs out for their walk.

Gardening in the afternoon to tick a few jobs off that list, mainly tidying up the food beds and cutting some of the hydrangea heads ready to give to Linda when we're back. I was really pleased to see a couple of runner beans growing (having thought I'd lost all our beans earlier in the year). They should be ready for when we get home.

30 August

Travelling day but plenty to do before we set off. I woke up to find we'd had a milk delivery, despite Jonathon cancelling it so kept two pints back for Jo then advertised the rest on our local sharing app. They'd been "claimed" within seconds and Lorraine and her kids from round the corner collected it so at least it wasn't wasted.

Went to Jo's with milk, potatoes and raspberries from the garden then picked up some juice at Sainsbury's for her. Watered her plants and all done ready for her to come home on Sunday.

Went to the gym to get some steps done on the treadmill because I knew we'd be sitting down for most of the rest of the day either in airports, planes or coaches.

The plane was delayed so we had ages to waste at Gatwick. Had a nice lunch at Sanoma then an uneventful flight over to Tenerife.

By the time we'd got our luggage and the rest of the passengers had wandered over to the transfer coach we didn't get to the hotel until after midnight so a quick dump of our stuff in drawers and cupboards before collapsing into bed ready for our holiday to begin for real tomorrow.

31 August

Jonsthon's birthday (and the reason we're on holiday - more excuse than reason probably).

It was quite late (for me) when I woke up but the view from our balcony was lovely when I opened the curtains and the clouds were keeping the temperature at a very pleasant level.

Breakfast was up to Riu's usual standards, if not slightly better so we enjoyed that then, after the food had settled and I'd done a crossword or two, we went to see Aimee, our holiday rep for this week. She was lovely and really helpful. She even reminded us that we are half board rather than B&B this week so that was a nice surprise!

The hotel gave Jonathon a bottle of bubbly for his birthday but, as we don't drink it, he took it to Aimee when he booked a trip for later in the holiday.

A little while later, I took myself off for a walk. One aim was to try and find a restaurant that Jonathon had seen recommended before we came and the second was to try and find an ice cream parlour (or similar). Restaurant was duly located but I think it's a bit too far, up and down hills, for Jonathon to get there and back comfortably so that's a no.

I couldn't find any really good looking ice cream so that's a hunt for tomorrow.

We decided to have dinner at the hotel (as we'd paid for it apparently). The food selection was really good and Jonathon particularly enjoyed his puddings.

The sun was starting to set as we went back to our room and that was the end of the first day of holiday.

1 September

Early morning walk for me today to try and catch the sunrise (and find the elusive ice cream parlours). Two ice cream places found, one looks decidely better than the other, and sunrise photographed having walked quite a long way along the coast and climb a steep hill, only to find the view from a local "lookout" would have been just as good!

From the local lookout

Popped to the supermarket after breakfast to get some treats then to the gym to burn off a few calories.

My afternoon "job" was showing Jonathon the ice cream parlours and the view point - not too onerous.

That's all I have room for on this page so on to the next ...

To 2024 Diary (Page 48)