2024 Diary (Page 49)

2024 Diary - Page 49

The pelicans have been in St. James's Park for as long as we can remember. As Gilda grew up in London, she can remember them from a lot further back than I can!

It was lovely to see a couple of black swans around (as well as a couple of white ones).

The real reason we were in London was to see David Essex in concert. He was very popular when we were teenagers (and seemed to still be very popular nowadays because there was a huge crowd at The London Palladium to see him.

I'm glad we've seen him but I don't think either of us is keen to see him again!

24 September

Back to gym and work today. The St. Mungo's pocket garden near HMS Belfast has settled in really well and looks good.

Liba was in the office so I sat next to her which made a nice change.

Met Mark at Cote for dinner and exchanged holiday stories.

25 September

Gym and work then Jonathon met me at the Gillian Lynne Theatre to see The Lehman Trilogy. It's the third time I've seen it (first time for this run) and it was just as brilliant as I remembered. Totally mesmerising.

26 September

With being so late home last night, I cancelled my space at Ela's class and had a bit of a sleep in then went to the gym and did my own thing.

Dog walking was cancelled at the last minute because Carol was also late up and had a headache.

We went for a drink at the Orpington then I went to meet Alicia, Lizzie and Michael at Priory Gardens to collect two copies of the 2025 calendar. It was drizzling on and off but we didn't get too wet.

I trawled the High Street on the way home looking for flamingo wrapping paper for Jo's birthday present but couldn't find any so will use dog patterned paper instead because there's a dog on it that reminds me of Coco. The frame I ordered from Etsy looks good and certainly qualifies as pink!

27 September

Gym first (no yoga because Kevin is still in South Africa and I don't like the way his stand-in person teaches).

I went to Jo's for morning coffee with her and Irene. Despite the rain, her balcony is still looking colourful. Jo reckons it's because I took good care of it for her through the summer. Irene seems to have had a lovely time in Turkey with her sister.

Jonathon and I went to London to meet Derek and Maureen for lunch at Obica - very tasty.

When we got back this fox was in the garden. Dare we hope that it's Whitelegs come "home".

28 September

I was supposed to be walking with Diane this morning but she wasn't well so I spent a while in the gym. I had a chat with a man called John because he'd just come back from Tenerife and had stayed in Riu Palace, same as us, so we compared notes. The main difference is he and his wife go there twice a year whereas it was just a one-off for us.

The rest of the day was garden related. Wendy came round to collect a whole load of plastic plant pots. She's a teacher and her classes are going to plant some trees (conkers, acorns etc) and she needed some decent sized pots. Happy to oblige because it's created quite a nice amount of space on the shelf in my shed.

I did a load of pruning and have just about tun out of bags now. I also tidied the path a bit so it looks a lot better now.

Had a Skype call with Mum - she seemed to be OK. She'd met Margaret from Ireland this week so she'd enjoyed that even though it tired her out.

29 September

The sunrise was amazing this morning!

Went to the gym and did a bit of this and a bit of that - not too much needed because I was leading a walk this afternoon.

Went to church - the service was in the Moreton Hall rather than the sanctuary today and was about the Jewish fesitval of Purim - very interesting.

Had a very "Shirley" lunch because Jonathon was out at a photo shoot. The runner beans were from our garden. I thought I had a crop failure this year but I managed to nurture them trhough and now I've got beans. Unlike the courgettes, they have done nothing!

Had a good turnout for today's walk - 12 people and 2 dogs. Coco and Benji hadn't met before but they got on really well together.

We went to South Norwood Country Park, South Norwood Lake and Grounds and then skirted Crystal Palace.

Jonathon had a tumble today so missed tonight's gig. As a result, he was on the same train as we were so he had a good Coco snuggle all the way home.

Caught up with Christine in the evening.

30 September

Ela's class first thing - it was good to have both Jo and Irene back. I reminded Ela that it's Jo's 80th birthday on Thursday so will now have to remember to take the bunting etc.

It was cold this morning so we bit the bullet and switched the heating on for the firest time this season. We now know what the switch in the den is for (we've always wondered and nobody seemed to work it out but it is for the heating pump etc.)

Gilda came and we went for a walk in Petts Wood / Hawkwood Estate. It was very muddy and slippery in places but we managed to find our way around and home again without incident. We were going to go to Fiesta Mexicana for lunch but it doesn't open until 4 p.m. on Mondays apparently so we went to Masala Dabbas instead - no hardship.

Alma came so the house is all sparkly clean again.

1 October

Hard to believe it's already got to October - time flies!

Gym and work for me today.

My new passport arrived so I can travel again if I want / need to - doing it all on line really worked well.

Met up with a few friends for dinner at Browns in Covent Garden. Got there a bit early so had a nice walk around Trafalgar Square first and, luckily, managed to miss the rain.

Angela was really happy because Mexico now has its first female president so she brought me a lovely Mexican bag as a celebration present.

2 October

Gym then work. Today's treat was Mrs Doubtfire at the Shaftesbury Theatre with Gilda. We got an offer for cheaper tickets sotok advantage of it. It was really funny and the lead actor was amazingly versatile.

3 October

Jo is 80 today. I got to the gym early so I could put up some bunting. All the class were lovely, gave her lots of congratulations and sang a rousing version of happy birthday.

I scurried home straight after the class because James and his team were supposed to be coming to do the trees. Unfortunately, he had a migraine so the visit has been postponed to next week.

Jo had invited the flamingos and a few others (25 of us in total) to afternoon tea at Jenny's (her daughter's). Irene picked Veronica and me up and we met the other flamingos in Chelsfield before heading over to Well Hill. The tea itself was lovely - there was enough to feed an army.

Nick had baked a cake and Judy decorated it with flowers and a flamingo. She's so clever.

The flamingos did their song and dance act to great acclaim. Our song was sung to the tune of Frere Jacques (lyrics by Jane):

Chere Josephine
Bonne anniversaire
Voici les flamants roses
Sur une jambe.

Jo loved her elephant adoption and has promised to share the regular updates with us.

It was all great fun and Coco had a lovely time with all her friends for the whole of the afternoon.

4 October

I was tired when I went to bed last night so I cancelled my space at yoga, switched my alarm off and slept until 8.15 a.m. - very late for me to get up.

With dog walking cancelled, I let June know that I'd be joining her Friday walk the suggested we went to Goddington and Lilly's Wood because she mentioned that was somewhere she hadn't been before. There were only three of us (plus Benji) and we took advantage of the lovely weather. Benji really enjoyed playing with his ball in Goddington - plenty of room for him to run around.

We had dinner outside (amazing weather for October) then I spent some time pruning and doing yet more autumn tidying up). Jonathon went to town to get me some more pop up garden sacks because I was running out and he can't go to the tip tomorrow because we'll be away.

Javid brought us another bag of apples so I cooked some with sultanas and Janet popped round to collect the rest.

5 October

Up early to get to the gym and do as many steps as I could before we headed off to the AWGB Seminar in Stone, Staffordshire. We stopped at an OK Diner for lunch on the way and still arrived with plenty of time to enjoy the instant gallery. We chose 4 pieces to buy for The Daniel Collection - all new turners to the collection which is a good result. We didn't "win" any of the auction pieces despite Jonathon bidding against me at one point (don't think he's quite got this auction malarkey yet!) It gave the rest of the attendees something to laugh about.

6 October

I got up quite early and set off pre-dawn for a walk round the industrial estate we were staying on. Thankfully, there is a nature path around the estate that is quite nice to walk along.

My tummy was playing up before we set off after breakfast and didn't really settle down all day - one way to stop putting weight on I suppose.

We were due to go to Bromley to see the Illegal Eagles tonight but I wasn't really well enough so we put the tickets on our local Sharing WhatsApp group and another couple will go instead so at least the tickets won't be wasted.

7 October

Ela's class then over to BR6 Bakehouse for Janet's birthday breakfast. Nick made the cake - gin and tonic cake today. It was lovely and moist but tasted very rich.

I spent the rest of the day in the garden. I tidied up the veg beds and planted broad beans, closely monitored by my feathered friend.

I pruned the Cotinus and Judas Tree and only got rained off twice. Shadow, fox, was keeping a close eye on me. He's a little devil - he had found a way into the veg beds, despite it being double netted so I had to sort that out and he chewed through the string on my heavy duty tree pruners. I think they are still usable because of where he chewed but it's still annoying. I think White Legs must have taught him all her bad habits before she left us!

We went to A Mano for tea - yum!

8 October

Not very much to report today - gym, work and a chat with Christine.

There was a large ship moored alongside HMS Belfast this morning but it had sailed away when I went back to the station to get home.

I was going to go for a walk at lunchtime but it was raining too hard when I peered out so I went up to the Sky Garden for a walk round instead. I dashed out for something to eat when the rain stopped.

9 October

Gym and work (busy again today).

Pub quiz in the evening. Jonathon was busy doing a photo shoot and Mark cancelled because he wasn't well (thinks it might be Covid) so there were only five of us. The picture round was films from the 1980s. We got 34 out of 80. The music round was "what year" - we got 1 out of 20! Needless to say, we didn't win this month.

10 October

At 2.21 this morning, the smoke alarms started going crazy. Worringly, Jonathon didn't hear it so I had to wake him up so he could stop it. The only way he could think of doing that was to take out the batteries of the one that was beepeing (loudly!). We checked there was no smoke anywhere first, of course. Jonathon now needs to work out what he needs to do to ensure he hears it in the case of a real problem.

Back to our normal day time and Ela's class then straight home to make sure I as here for when James and George arrived to do the annual tree work.

I had three jobs to do before dinner - cutting my nails (done), ironing (done) and dog walking. Mia could only have a short walk because she has a poorly leg (long term problem); Tisha is still suffering from her accident at the groomers but Nellie was fine so she and I went for a walk.

They were here all day and have done a great job. They've taken the tops out of all the huge sycamores between us and next door as well as tidying up teh pyracantha, taking out the apple tree (it was dead in the middle) and trimming the conifer hedge and corylus. They also took most of the garden rubbish I'd accumulated so that will save Jonathon going to the tip a few times.

James went round to see Peter when he left here because Peter wants them to do some work on his lime trees. They are now a lot higher than our sycamores so I'm hoping he's going to bring them down to the same level. We'll see.

I'm a bit worried about Oli - he seems to not be keeping any food in his tummy at the moment. He seems OK in himself but being sick on a regular basis isn't a great sign.

11 October

After the lovely colours of last night, there was a beautiful sunrise this morning. It was pretty chilly though - the first frost of the season.

After the gym, I joined June's Friday walk. It was a lovely autumn day and the colours shone in the sunshine.

I spent the afternoon working in the garden, tidying up some of the lower level hedge and beds (the tree work yesterday showed up the bits they didn't prune so I was spurred into action).

12 October

I decided to test out tomorrow's walk before doing anything else - mainly making sure it wasn't too muddy! It was fine.

By the time I'd done that and had a pot of green tea, it was time to go to my GP surgery and get my flu jab.

Dinner was a new recipe - chicken pilaff - very tasty.

Went to the gym after that had settled then Skype'd Mum (she seems OK) before recalculating Dad's financial assessment (still too early to talk to the local council about funding) but I filled in a form for NHS Continuing Health Care funding so I'll see where that goes (if anywhere).

13 October

A lovely sunrise this morning. Went to the gym but didn't do any weights because my arm was a bit sore from my flu jab yesterday.

No church because of my cough - thought it better to stay away in view of the age profile of the congregation.

Lead a Knoll Active walk in the afternoon (just about the same route as yesterday's test).The weather was a lot greyer today but at least it stayed dry.

Jonathon suddenly got a pain in his right hand side early evening so we applied heat to it and kept our fingers crossed that it got better.

Caught up with Christine.

14 October

Ela's class to start the day then I went to meet Mark at Cutty Sark DLR Station. From there, we walked through the tunnel under the Thames, through Mud Chute City Farm and through to the Nature Rising garden near the Jubilee Line tube station.

We had lunch at Obica (yummy) then I parted company.

I went to the West End to meet Jonathon, using the Elizabeth Line. I had a stroll from Tottenham Court Road station, admiring a light show en route, to the Rohan store where we each bought a waterproof jacket. I got a Microgrid top as well and Jonathon tried to buy trousers but they didn't have them in stock. He bought them on line on the train journey home.

Becky from Compass called me to talk through the NHS funding but I was about to get on a train so we've got a call in the diary for Thursday afternoon.

15 October

Gym and work today - usual Tuesday. It was quite foggy on my way to the gym.

The difference for today is that I didn't go out after work but came home instead and Jonathon was at home as well - most unusual!

16 October

Gym and work as usual. It was really mild today (19C) so, as I had time because our main system crashed, I went for a walk about lunchtime.

17 October

Ela's class, treadmill and dog walking for this morning. Only two dogs to walk again today because Tisha's wound still hasn't healed properly yet. Our walk took us onto Broomhill Common (as always) and it was good to see the autumn crocuses in full bloom.

I had a call with Becky from Compass CHC to try and work out if Dad might be eligible for NHS funded continuing health care. However, I couldn't answer many of the medical and care questions so I've asked Carole and Pauloine if one of them can do that. Pauline has suggested we have a chat about it while we're in Yorkshire for Dad's birthday so it's on hold for now.

After yummy lunch at the Orpington, we scarified two parts of the grass and sowed some wildflower seeds. We have to be careful not to break our ankles in the numerous holes that the foxes have been digging.

18 October

Went back to yoga this morning because Kevin is back from South Africa then had a quick walk on the treadmill.

Joined June, Benji, Rubi (dog staying with June for a week) and a few others for the Friday walk. We went through Petts Wood, Hawkqood Estate and Jubilee Park today. The autumn colours were lovely.

Spent a bit of time gathering up fallen leaves in the garden in the afternoon and picked a few more runner beans (not many left now).

That's it for this page. On to the next ...

2024 Diary - Page 49
23 September Usual Monday start with Ela's class. I wasn't sure what Gilda and I were doing later in the day because the weather forecast was pretty awful so did some treadmill steps as well before delivering a Sunday Times Supplement to a neighbour. i did a bit of shopping on the way back from there then nothing much for the rest of the morning.		Gilda and I met at Victoria Station for a walk up to Buckingham Palace then around St. James's park and Green Park. The weather forecast was wrong. Had it been right, our Plan B was to visit one of the museums instead. It was fun being a tourist in our own city! St. James's Park looked lovely in the sunshine. The "people in the lake" are all people who have benefitted from National Lottery Money and used it for charity in one form or another.

	The pelicans have been in St. James's Park for as long as we can remember. As Gilda grew up in London, she can remember them from a lot further back than I can! It was lovely to see a couple of black swans around (as well as a couple of white ones).
One highlight of our wandering around was this relatively new memorial. It's in memory of The Bomber Command and each of the seven figures represents a different job on the Bombers.
		The real reason we were in London was to see David Essex in concert. He was very popular when we were teenagers (and seemed to still be very popular nowadays because there was a huge crowd at The London Palladium to see him. I'm glad we've seen him but I don't think either of us is keen to see him again!
24 September Back to gym and work today. The St. Mungo's pocket garden near HMS Belfast has settled in really well and looks good. Liba was in the office so I sat next to her which made a nice change. Met Mark at Cote for dinner and exchanged holiday stories.
25 September Gym and work then Jonathon met me at the Gillian Lynne Theatre to see The Lehman Trilogy. It's the third time I've seen it (first time for this run) and it was just as brilliant as I remembered. Totally mesmerising.
26 September With being so late home last night, I cancelled my space at Ela's class and had a bit of a sleep in then went to the gym and did my own thing. Dog walking was cancelled at the last minute because Carol was also late up and had a headache. We went for a drink at the Orpington then I went to meet Alicia, Lizzie and Michael at Priory Gardens to collect two copies of the 2025 calendar. It was drizzling on and off but we didn't get too wet. I trawled the High Street on the way home looking for flamingo wrapping paper for Jo's birthday present but couldn't find any so will use dog patterned paper instead because there's a dog on it that reminds me of Coco. The frame I ordered from Etsy looks good and certainly qualifies as pink!

27 September Gym first (no yoga because Kevin is still in South Africa and I don't like the way his stand-in person teaches). I went to Jo's for morning coffee with her and Irene. Despite the rain, her balcony is still looking colourful. Jo reckons it's because I took good care of it for her through the summer. Irene seems to have had a lovely time in Turkey with her sister. Jonathon and I went to London to meet Derek and Maureen for lunch at Obica - very tasty. When we got back this fox was in the garden. Dare we hope that it's Whitelegs come "home".

28 September I was supposed to be walking with Diane this morning but she wasn't well so I spent a while in the gym. I had a chat with a man called John because he'd just come back from Tenerife and had stayed in Riu Palace, same as us, so we compared notes. The main difference is he and his wife go there twice a year whereas it was just a one-off for us. The rest of the day was garden related. Wendy came round to collect a whole load of plastic plant pots. She's a teacher and her classes are going to plant some trees (conkers, acorns etc) and she needed some decent sized pots. Happy to oblige because it's created quite a nice amount of space on the shelf in my shed. I did a load of pruning and have just about tun out of bags now. I also tidied the path a bit so it looks a lot better now. Had a Skype call with Mum - she seemed to be OK. She'd met Margaret from Ireland this week so she'd enjoyed that even though it tired her out.

29 September The sunrise was amazing this morning! Went to the gym and did a bit of this and a bit of that - not too much needed because I was leading a walk this afternoon.		Went to church - the service was in the Moreton Hall rather than the sanctuary today and was about the Jewish fesitval of Purim - very interesting. Had a very "Shirley" lunch because Jonathon was out at a photo shoot. The runner beans were from our garden. I thought I had a crop failure this year but I managed to nurture them trhough and now I've got beans. Unlike the courgettes, they have done nothing!
	Had a good turnout for today's walk - 12 people and 2 dogs. Coco and Benji hadn't met before but they got on really well together. We went to South Norwood Country Park, South Norwood Lake and Grounds and then skirted Crystal Palace. Jonathon had a tumble today so missed tonight's gig. As a result, he was on the same train as we were so he had a good Coco snuggle all the way home. Caught up with Christine in the evening.

30 September Ela's class first thing - it was good to have both Jo and Irene back. I reminded Ela that it's Jo's 80th birthday on Thursday so will now have to remember to take the bunting etc. It was cold this morning so we bit the bullet and switched the heating on for the firest time this season. We now know what the switch in the den is for (we've always wondered and nobody seemed to work it out but it is for the heating pump etc.) Gilda came and we went for a walk in Petts Wood / Hawkwood Estate. It was very muddy and slippery in places but we managed to find our way around and home again without incident. We were going to go to Fiesta Mexicana for lunch but it doesn't open until 4 p.m. on Mondays apparently so we went to Masala Dabbas instead - no hardship. Alma came so the house is all sparkly clean again.

1 October Hard to believe it's already got to October - time flies! Gym and work for me today. My new passport arrived so I can travel again if I want / need to - doing it all on line really worked well.		Met up with a few friends for dinner at Browns in Covent Garden. Got there a bit early so had a nice walk around Trafalgar Square first and, luckily, managed to miss the rain. Angela was really happy because Mexico now has its first female president so she brought me a lovely Mexican bag as a celebration present.

2 October Gym then work. Today's treat was Mrs Doubtfire at the Shaftesbury Theatre with Gilda. We got an offer for cheaper tickets sotok advantage of it. It was really funny and the lead actor was amazingly versatile.
3 October Jo is 80 today. I got to the gym early so I could put up some bunting. All the class were lovely, gave her lots of congratulations and sang a rousing version of happy birthday. I scurried home straight after the class because James and his team were supposed to be coming to do the trees. Unfortunately, he had a migraine so the visit has been postponed to next week.
Jo had invited the flamingos and a few others (25 of us in total) to afternoon tea at Jenny's (her daughter's). Irene picked Veronica and me up and we met the other flamingos in Chelsfield before heading over to Well Hill. The tea itself was lovely - there was enough to feed an army. Nick had baked a cake and Judy decorated it with flowers and a flamingo. She's so clever. The flamingos did their song and dance act to great acclaim. Our song was sung to the tune of Frere Jacques (lyrics by Jane): Chere Josephine Bonne anniversaire Voici les flamants roses Sur une jambe. Jo loved her elephant adoption and has promised to share the regular updates with us. It was all great fun and Coco had a lovely time with all her friends for the whole of the afternoon.


4 October I was tired when I went to bed last night so I cancelled my space at yoga, switched my alarm off and slept until 8.15 a.m. - very late for me to get up. With dog walking cancelled, I let June know that I'd be joining her Friday walk the suggested we went to Goddington and Lilly's Wood because she mentioned that was somewhere she hadn't been before. There were only three of us (plus Benji) and we took advantage of the lovely weather. Benji really enjoyed playing with his ball in Goddington - plenty of room for him to run around.

We had dinner outside (amazing weather for October) then I spent some time pruning and doing yet more autumn tidying up). Jonathon went to town to get me some more pop up garden sacks because I was running out and he can't go to the tip tomorrow because we'll be away. Javid brought us another bag of apples so I cooked some with sultanas and Janet popped round to collect the rest.		I stopped gardening when it got too dark to really see what I was doing then prowled the streets for a while to finish my steps etc. for the day. The sunset was really pretty.
5 October Up early to get to the gym and do as many steps as I could before we headed off to the AWGB Seminar in Stone, Staffordshire. We stopped at an OK Diner for lunch on the way and still arrived with plenty of time to enjoy the instant gallery. We chose 4 pieces to buy for The Daniel Collection - all new turners to the collection which is a good result. We didn't "win" any of the auction pieces despite Jonathon bidding against me at one point (don't think he's quite got this auction malarkey yet!) It gave the rest of the attendees something to laugh about.
		We had been invited as guests for the evening dinner but, when we got there, there had been a mix up in the adminstration so they weren't expecting us. We should have cut our losses at that point and said we'd eat elsewhere - the food was awful. It was self service (apparently the AWGB had asked for waiter service to be told no). My haddock was OK but the green beans were soft and mushy. There was no real choice for Jonathon and the puddings had just about run out even though we were on the top table. Not great!
6 October I got up quite early and set off pre-dawn for a walk round the industrial estate we were staying on. Thankfully, there is a nature path around the estate that is quite nice to walk along. My tummy was playing up before we set off after breakfast and didn't really settle down all day - one way to stop putting weight on I suppose. We were due to go to Bromley to see the Illegal Eagles tonight but I wasn't really well enough so we put the tickets on our local Sharing WhatsApp group and another couple will go instead so at least the tickets won't be wasted.


7 October Ela's class then over to BR6 Bakehouse for Janet's birthday breakfast. Nick made the cake - gin and tonic cake today. It was lovely and moist but tasted very rich.		I spent the rest of the day in the garden. I tidied up the veg beds and planted broad beans, closely monitored by my feathered friend. I pruned the Cotinus and Judas Tree and only got rained off twice. Shadow, fox, was keeping a close eye on me. He's a little devil - he had found a way into the veg beds, despite it being double netted so I had to sort that out and he chewed through the string on my heavy duty tree pruners. I think they are still usable because of where he chewed but it's still annoying. I think White Legs must have taught him all her bad habits before she left us! We went to A Mano for tea - yum!

8 October Not very much to report today - gym, work and a chat with Christine. There was a large ship moored alongside HMS Belfast this morning but it had sailed away when I went back to the station to get home. I was going to go for a walk at lunchtime but it was raining too hard when I peered out so I went up to the Sky Garden for a walk round instead. I dashed out for something to eat when the rain stopped.

9 October Gym and work (busy again today). Pub quiz in the evening. Jonathon was busy doing a photo shoot and Mark cancelled because he wasn't well (thinks it might be Covid) so there were only five of us. The picture round was films from the 1980s. We got 34 out of 80. The music round was "what year" - we got 1 out of 20! Needless to say, we didn't win this month.
10 October At 2.21 this morning, the smoke alarms started going crazy. Worringly, Jonathon didn't hear it so I had to wake him up so he could stop it. The only way he could think of doing that was to take out the batteries of the one that was beepeing (loudly!). We checked there was no smoke anywhere first, of course. Jonathon now needs to work out what he needs to do to ensure he hears it in the case of a real problem.		Back to our normal day time and Ela's class then straight home to make sure I as here for when James and George arrived to do the annual tree work. I had three jobs to do before dinner - cutting my nails (done), ironing (done) and dog walking. Mia could only have a short walk because she has a poorly leg (long term problem); Tisha is still suffering from her accident at the groomers but Nellie was fine so she and I went for a walk.

	They were here all day and have done a great job. They've taken the tops out of all the huge sycamores between us and next door as well as tidying up teh pyracantha, taking out the apple tree (it was dead in the middle) and trimming the conifer hedge and corylus. They also took most of the garden rubbish I'd accumulated so that will save Jonathon going to the tip a few times. James went round to see Peter when he left here because Peter wants them to do some work on his lime trees. They are now a lot higher than our sycamores so I'm hoping he's going to bring them down to the same level. We'll see. I'm a bit worried about Oli - he seems to not be keeping any food in his tummy at the moment. He seems OK in himself but being sick on a regular basis isn't a great sign.
	A great surprise this evening as the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) was visible through our phones in Orpington! Such pretty colours.
11 October After the lovely colours of last night, there was a beautiful sunrise this morning. It was pretty chilly though - the first frost of the season.		After the gym, I joined June's Friday walk. It was a lovely autumn day and the colours shone in the sunshine. I spent the afternoon working in the garden, tidying up some of the lower level hedge and beds (the tree work yesterday showed up the bits they didn't prune so I was spurred into action).

12 October I decided to test out tomorrow's walk before doing anything else - mainly making sure it wasn't too muddy! It was fine. By the time I'd done that and had a pot of green tea, it was time to go to my GP surgery and get my flu jab. Dinner was a new recipe - chicken pilaff - very tasty. Went to the gym after that had settled then Skype'd Mum (she seems OK) before recalculating Dad's financial assessment (still too early to talk to the local council about funding) but I filled in a form for NHS Continuing Health Care funding so I'll see where that goes (if anywhere).
13 October A lovely sunrise this morning. Went to the gym but didn't do any weights because my arm was a bit sore from my flu jab yesterday. No church because of my cough - thought it better to stay away in view of the age profile of the congregation. Lead a Knoll Active walk in the afternoon (just about the same route as yesterday's test).The weather was a lot greyer today but at least it stayed dry. Jonathon suddenly got a pain in his right hand side early evening so we applied heat to it and kept our fingers crossed that it got better. Caught up with Christine.

14 October Ela's class to start the day then I went to meet Mark at Cutty Sark DLR Station. From there, we walked through the tunnel under the Thames, through Mud Chute City Farm and through to the Nature Rising garden near the Jubilee Line tube station. We had lunch at Obica (yummy) then I parted company.

I went to the West End to meet Jonathon, using the Elizabeth Line. I had a stroll from Tottenham Court Road station, admiring a light show en route, to the Rohan store where we each bought a waterproof jacket. I got a Microgrid top as well and Jonathon tried to buy trousers but they didn't have them in stock. He bought them on line on the train journey home. Becky from Compass called me to talk through the NHS funding but I was about to get on a train so we've got a call in the diary for Thursday afternoon.

15 October Gym and work today - usual Tuesday. It was quite foggy on my way to the gym. The difference for today is that I didn't go out after work but came home instead and Jonathon was at home as well - most unusual!
16 October Gym and work as usual. It was really mild today (19C) so, as I had time because our main system crashed, I went for a walk about lunchtime.

	A few of us visited our new office premises after lunch. We will be near St. Paul's Cathedral in a newly refurbished, listed office building. Floor 7 is the top floor, where we'll be based - very different to the 23rd floor of the Walkie Talkie where we are now. It still looks like a building site because the fitout is only part way through but the space is lovely and light so it should be a good place to work.
17 October Ela's class, treadmill and dog walking for this morning. Only two dogs to walk again today because Tisha's wound still hasn't healed properly yet. Our walk took us onto Broomhill Common (as always) and it was good to see the autumn crocuses in full bloom. I had a call with Becky from Compass CHC to try and work out if Dad might be eligible for NHS funded continuing health care. However, I couldn't answer many of the medical and care questions so I've asked Carole and Pauloine if one of them can do that. Pauline has suggested we have a chat about it while we're in Yorkshire for Dad's birthday so it's on hold for now. After yummy lunch at the Orpington, we scarified two parts of the grass and sowed some wildflower seeds. We have to be careful not to break our ankles in the numerous holes that the foxes have been digging.

18 October Went back to yoga this morning because Kevin is back from South Africa then had a quick walk on the treadmill. Joined June, Benji, Rubi (dog staying with June for a week) and a few others for the Friday walk. We went through Petts Wood, Hawkqood Estate and Jubilee Park today. The autumn colours were lovely. Spent a bit of time gathering up fallen leaves in the garden in the afternoon and picked a few more runner beans (not many left now).

	Joined the flamingos at Ephesus for dinner. We used it as an excuse to celebrate Jo being 80 (again). The belly dancer persuaded Jo to get up and dance with her (not much persuasion needed) and the musician led the restaurant in singing Happy Birthday to her. A really fun evening.	That's it for this page. On to the next ...
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