.... is for those who might want to contact me about my diary.
Sarah's Transition Diary
.. weeks
357 - 360
Day 2493. Thursday 6th October
2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
08.35 .. I’m finally on the road ..
09.20 .. I’m in work ..
Fragmented lunch ..
17.35 .. I’m on my way home ..
18.42 .. I finally arrive at Waitrose ..
19.25 .. I’m home ..
19.35 .. Dinner .. Karen has made chicken biriani .. it’s lovely
..
00.05 .. I head for bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2494. Friday 7th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
23.02 .. I climb into bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2495. Saturday 8th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
03.20 .. I wake with a start .. company phone ringing .. it's
Paul in
Afghanistan .. they are off air.
04.30 I've exhausted all attempts from home, get dressed and hit
the
road, enroute my phone rings .. it's Cyprus .. they are off air
too,
that confirms my suspicion.
05.12 .. I'm in our CTA, 2nd call was clincher, one 4 channel
block of
our SoundWeb fibre optic link to Arquiva is down, but what end
.. and
WTF are the spares.
Found spares in warehouse ( were handy in workshop ) and as it's
easiest to swap our end first, I do .. success.
06.25 .. Paperwork done, head for home .. it's starting to get
light.
07.20 .. Climb back into bed ..
I sleep on and off .. but sadly mainly off.
10.30 .. I give up and get up ..
10.35 .. It’s the Saturday morning weigh in .. 14st 6 1/4lb ..
that’ll
be the soup and yoghurt diet.
12.00 .. I head for a shower ..
12.52 .. I head for Waitrose ..
14.15 .. Lunch .. French bread, pate, a little cheese and pickle
.. I
save some bread for a goos slick of two different honeys.
19.45 .. I do the soup .. what no Chinese .. nope.
22.05 .. I head for bed .. hopefully I’ll sleep tonight.
More to come ...
Day 2496. Sunday 9th October 2011. ( 29th Wedding Anniversary )
Memory Joggers ...
10.15 .. Karen gets up and returns with my wedding anniversary
gifts ..
2 bunches of roses, 8 red and 8 white, a card and a box of
chocolates.
10.20 .. I get up too and gather my gifts for Karen .. two
bunches of
flowers .. a dozen red roses and a large group of Freesias
.. her
favourite flowers, a mix of pure white, pure purple and some
variegated
ones that are purple and white and a heavy hand blown glass
paper
weight that looks a bit like a tear drop, in the centre is
swirls of
purple. We both like purple !!!
11.45 .. I head for a shower ..
12.25 .. I’m dressed and back downstairs ..
14.06 .. I head north to do an early drudgery .. need to clean
the
bathroom first ..
14.29 .. I’m in that position ..
15.23 .. I call it a day, and go do my cleanse ..
16.23 .. I head for Frimley Park Hospital for a scan on my
shoulder ..
16.51 .. I’ve booked in with the receptionist .. hmmm .. there’s
a few
people waiting ..
17.05 .. passes .. another flexible NHS appointment.
17.25 .. I question with the receptionist how late they are
running ..
“are we?” is the response. She makes a call and I’m told they
are just
about to collect me. While I wait two more patients arrive, the
receptionist tells them they are running “about ten minutes
late” ..
cobblers !!
17.32 .. I’m collected and taken out to a mobile unit in the car
park ..
17.43 .. I’m finally on the platform and motored down the tunnel
..
17.55 .. It’s all over, the operator says the clarity of the
images
they got are amazing, I kept so still .. well the drugs worked
then.
18.00 .. A chap who looks like a Nepalese, walks me back to the
main
building taking a short cut through “house services” .. I go pay
my car
park charge and head home ..
18.25 .. I’m home ..
17.25 .. I order a Chinese .. not the way I intended celebrating
today,
that’s on hold till we both feel better ..
20.05 .. I’m home with the food. The last couple of glasses of
Pouilly
Fumé wash our food down .. my glass goes straight to my
head ..
ho hum.
Main course consumed, time for the fortune cookies .. “ACCEPT
THE FIRST
PROPOSITION YOU HEAR” and “AN OLD FRIEND WILL CONTACT YOU WITH
GOOD
NEWS” .. the first .. I hope so, the second one raises a
question, so
who loves me ?!
21.20 .. Karen makes a cup of tea and I go sit with her for a
while,
massaging her feet, and I openn the box of chocolates she gave
me this
morning.
22.05 .. I head for bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2497. Monday 10th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
More to come ...
Day 2498. Tuesday 11th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
More to come ...
Day 2499. Wednesday 12th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
Off work ..
More to come ...
Day 2500. Thursday 13th October
2011.
!!!
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
Off work ..
More to come ...
Day 2501. Friday 14th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
07.38 .. Up and at it ..
08.38 .. I’m on the road ..
09.33 .. I’m in the office ..
Working with Matt, network guru .. trying to organise the
swapping out
of a switch in our Dalet Network ..
17.38 .. I head for home ..
18.33 .. I’m in Waitrose ..
19.08 .. I’m home ..
22.55 .. I head for bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2502. Saturday 15th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
It’s the Saturday morning weigh in .. 14st 8lb ...
More to come ...
Day 2503. Sunday 16th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
More to come ...
Day 2504. Monday 17th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
08.22 .. I’m late ..
09.14 .. I’m in the office ..
11.10 .. I’m in position to swap out our main Dalet network
switch, as
prepared with Matthew last Friday .. but there is a delay ..
News can’t
stop just now .. Radio 2 has gone to CD and Afghanistan is going
out
live, so all but News’s Dalet machine can be shut down.
11.30 ..ish .. Paul gives me the go ahead to do what I need to
do .. it
only takes 5 minutes .. then we have to restart all the Dalet
machines,
in CTA and the studio’s ..
17.44 .. I head for home ..
More to come ...
Day 2505. Tuesday 18th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
06.23 .. Up and at it ..
08.14 .. I head for work .. my “wonderful” Tomtom 950 live
doesn’t tell
me that the Egham bypass / M25 is at a standstill till I’ve
committed
to the A30 at Egham .. over 40 minutes to get to the roundabout
.. I
call Tracy at work to warn them.
09.40 .. I’m finally in the car park at work !!
17.48 .. I head for home ..
More to come ...
Day 2506. Wednesday 19th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
09.08 .. I’m in the office ..
13.25 .. I head for Gerrards Cross to get some Euro’s, just a
small
quantity to get us to France on Friday night .. I’m horrified at
the
“commission or profit” being asked by HSBC .. over 7.5% each way
.. so
If I bought £100 worth, then sold them back, I’d only get
£85 back. I turn down HSBC’s derisory 1.073 € for £1
and
head across the road to Nat West .. 1.087 .. still not good, but
better, I take €100 worth.
14.20 .. Later, back in the office, I check the “interbank” rate
..
1.141 .. RIP OFF BRITAIN !!!
17.33 .. I head for home .. the traffic is terrible ..
18.38 .. I’m home ..
19.26 .. I head for Theale and the group meal, the first time in
3
months ..
20.01 .. I’m in the pub, get myself a drink and join some
friends at a
table ..
The food is pretty good tonight .. a “course pate” starter, beef
bourguignon main and Bailey’s cheese cake for dessert, all
washed down
with a small lemonade and a cup of coffee.
Chat on our table is quite pleasant .. it’s a good evening ..
22.45 .. I pay my bill and leave ..
23.17 .. I’m home ..
00.02 .. I’m in bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2507. Thursday 20th October
2011.
Memory Joggers ...
04.50 .. I’m awake .. and soon aware that Karen is ..
05.50 .. Karen invites me for a cuddle .. purr, purr .. after a
while I
return the favour ..
06.10 .. The alarm ..
06.22 .. Up and at it .. then struggle to replace my beeper (
alarm
clock ) battery . .it’s been signalling low battery for the last
12
minutes ..
06.29 .. I finally head for the shower ..
07.07 .. I’m back in the bedroom ..
08.16 .. I’m on the road ..
09.02 .. I’m in the office ..
13.15 .. I finally get my lunch .. PAB.
17.53 .. I drive out of the gate ..
18.48 .. I’m home ..
19.10 .. I order a Chinese .. after asking for the 2 main
courses, Mary
tells me what I want .. “boiled rice ?” .. yes please .. “bean
sprouts
?” .. yes please .. “deep fried bean curd, garlic salt &
chilli ?”
.. yes please .. “15 minutes Sarah !” .. yes please.
Main course consumed, time for the fortune cookies .. “ YOU WILL
HAVE
SUCCESS IN EVERYTHING YOU DO NEXT SATURDAY” and “ FORTUNE
COOKIES WILL
GIVE YOU GOOD HEALTH” .. the first .. is that this coming
Saturday when
we’ll be in St Vaast La Hougue, in France, or the Saturday of
next week
when my bike gets it’s MOT ??, the second one .. hmmm .. I
always eat
mine but at the moment I’m not that healthy !!!
23.11 .. Heads for bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2508. Friday 21st October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
13.15 .. I head for home .. via my mothers and the chemist in
Lightwater.
13.50 .. I’m in my mum’s flat .. unannounced .. I’m highly
surprised to
find mother tucking into a lamb chop, roast potatoes and
broccoli.
She’s been telling us for weeks she can’t eat solid food anymore
and
has to be on a liquid diet .. embarrassed, she tells me to take
the
remains away as she really can’t manage it .. yes right mother
!!!
14.47 .. As I’m about to leave, my company mobile rings, it’s
Melanie
from work .. a large box has arrived with my name on it,
containing a
large pinky red object .. that’ll be my new suitcase.
14.55 .. I head for Lightwater ..
15.15 .. ish .. I’m in the Chemists to get the remains of my
outstanding prescription ..
15.23 .. I’m home ..
16.15 .. ish .. Karen is home ..
18.45 .. I head for the shower ..
20.14 .. We are on the road for Portsmouth ..
21.22 .. We are in the ferry terminal ..
22.35 .. We are finally parked up on deck six of the Norman
Spirit
ferry to La Havre ..
22.45 .. We are settled in seats 71 & 72 in the Velvet Club
lounge
..
23.15 .. The ferry finally leaves .. late .. as this overnight
crossing
is a slow chug .. the time will easily be made up.
23.25 .. ish .. Karen and I head off to find a restaurant to get
a cup
of tea .. we end up in “la Bistro du Normand” restaurant. Seems
the
simple refreshment isn’t enough .. having gone for fruit juices
.. a
plate of chips is acquired .. that sort of fills a whole.
More to come ...
Day 2509. Saturday 22nd October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
Not sure if I slept much, Karen says I did for a while after I
went for
a comfort break about 02.00 .. Karen was purring away for
periods of
time before that ..
05.30 .. (06.30 French) .. The alarm comes in the form of
a
tannoy announcement .. we head for one of the ferry restaurants
for
breakfast .. back to “la Bistro du Normand” restaurant. I go for
what
they charge as full English, just the bits I want. Karen picks a
few
items and gets charged individually. We are heading back to our
seats
as the queue for the restaurant builds down the corridor.
It’s the Saturday morning weigh in .. not this week.
A quick freshen up, brush my teeth and it’s time to head back to
the
car ..
07.00 ( 08.00 French, the official disembark time ) .. comes and
goes
..
07.20 .. ish .. We finally roll off the ferry ..
The joy of French roads .. so smooth and so empty .. Violet hums
along
happily at 130KPH .. we have to pay 3 different tolls on or
trip,
€5.10, €1.00 and €3.90.
Just before Valogne I stop at an Esso garage on the motorway and
top
Violet up .. €1.63 for Esso Supreme .. a little more than it is
at home.
09.50 .. ish .. We arrive in St Vaast, and park up just short
and
opposite the hotel. We head around into the market to see what’s
there.
The market is more stretched out and organised differently to
how it
used to be done. One thing is missing .. the cheese wagon we
have
visited on every trip here on a Saturday isn’t here, there is
another
one, with different people, we do buy some cheese, but this one
doesn’t
do the stunning farm butter, which they used to cut from a big
slab, I
settle for a pack of pre packed butter.
After buying a few things in the market, I’ve acquired 3 more
nice hair
clips, we head into Gosselin’s where we are welcomed by
Bertran,
for a nosey around. I buy 6 slices of their fabulous Normandie
ham ..
for lunch, to go with the trenche of Brie du mer I bought from
the
cheese wagon.
We discover they aren’t open on Monday, so the wine shopping
will have
to happen tomorrow.
11.25 .. Next into the bakers to get some lunch time bread ..
11.55 .. We are back at the car, we drive round to the sea side
of the
Marina, parking up with a view across to Tatihou Island.
12.45 .. We are done eating, but what to do .. we head of into
Cherbourg .. for a little retail therapy ..
13.15 .. We are in Cherbourg, and initially totally confused as
to what
is happening with our favourite Hyper Market there, Carrfoure ..
and
get blocked on our normal route. What is happening, is that the
site is
being extended into the old car park .. and it’s going to have a
a new
name.
Eventually we find our way into the new / temporary car park ..
I get
myself another handbag .. from the same shop as before. Into the
supermarket section .. we are looking at various things, I’m
after some
car stuff. Again they don’t have any Mobil 1 that I like to use
in our
clutch of Jazz’s .. but they do have their 5 litre containers of
-30c
screen wash at just €5 a pack .. 2 of those go in the trolley,
with
hind site I should have got 3. Why do I have to pay £13 -
£14 pound in the UK for similar stuff ?!?.
We continue shopping, getting some food stuffs, including what
should
be a very nice little pack of “foie gras de canard” .. a luxury
for
Christmas .. if it survives till then !!
17.00 .. Car loaded, we head back to Saint Vaast ..
As I pull up outside the hotel, there is adequate parking bays
available, I spy two other English cars, one is a Volvo XC90, a
4 x 4
.. and it of course in typical pig ignorant ( 95% of UK 4 x 4
drivers
fall into this category ) 4 x4 selfishness has driven onto the
pavement
where there isn’t a parking bay, just to be right by the hotel
gate. In
busier times I’ve parked 100m away to find a bay ..
grrrrrrrrrr.
17.25 .. We are in the hotel, the welcome is warm, even though
we
haven’t been back since Easter 2010.
18.42 .. We are late as we head for the restaurant ..
After some discussion, we settle on the €39 menu for tonight,
agreeing
we’ll have to go al ecarte tomorrow. I pick a bottle of half
decent St
Emilion wine to wash our food down. I go for the cheese course
too ..
which Karen has a pick at .. << smiles >>.
21.15 .. ish .. Coffee’s consumed, we head upstairs to our room
for a
quick change before heading out for a walk ..
21.25 .. It’s a bit breezy as we head outside, but it’s not that
cold.
We decide to do the short route up the “high street”, out of the
end
opposite the marina entrance then back towards the lock
alongside the
harbour. We do a bit of window shopping as we wander along.
22.00 .. ish .. We are back in our room .. Karen heads for the
bathroom
..
More to come ...
Day 2510. Sunday 23rd October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
07.00 .. (08.00 French) .. The alarm ..
Post shower,I sort out my meds for the day .. I start my new
oral
Oestrogen today .. out goes 6mg of Zumenon daily and in comes
6mg of
Elleste Solo ..
08.35 .. We head off and across to the breakfast room ..
10.00 .. We are in the car for the short drive around to
Gosselin’s to
fill the car a little with wine .. 30 bottles of our favourite
whites
.. Pouilly Fume, Pouilly sur Loire, Fontbonne ordinaire white ..
and a
selection of our favourite reds .. 18 Fontbonne “Cuvee Marie”,
all but
4 of his total stock, a nice St Emillion and a new Medoc that
Bertran
recommends as an old favourite has all gone. I pick up a double
bottle
of the Fontbonne “Cuvee Marie” .. later as we are paying Bertran
gives
us another as a gift. Karen gets a nice bottle of Armagnac VSOP
for her
brother’s 40th birthday which is gift wrapped for us.
Later, Karen spots that the double bottle of Fontbonne is
actually 3
times the price of a single .. DOH .. but we did get a second
free I
point out .. << lol >>.
11.10 .. Bill paid .. OUCH .. our trolley is wheeled out of the
side of
the shop and round to the front where our car is .. I pack the
boot as
usual .. I have a knack of maximising the space, really
important with
the Jazz .. our old Cavalier would have held all of this, and
more, and
all our luggage as well, the wine we have leaves little space
for much
else.
11.20 .. We nip into the bakers next door before they close ..
not
seeing a “tarte au pomme” on display I ask for one questioningly
.. a
phone call is made, and one of the girls disappears with a “deux
minute” .. a tarte has been bought around from their other shop
by the
church .. << BIG GRIN >>.
Karen suggests we try one of their whole meal baguettes .. and
we get a
couple of “tartellet au frais” .. glazed strawberry tarte .. we
pay and
leave.
11.40 .. Back in the car, the big decision .. what to do with
the rest
of the day .. I dismiss yesterday’s idea of a trip to St Malo as
to far
in the remaining time .. Karen’s decision is to head across to
Vauville
on the west side of the peninsular .. so we do.
It’s a nice drive .. across country via Valognes .. the roads
are just
so well maintained .. most of the time we rarely fell a bump.
12.45 .. We’ve landed in the middle of Vauville, TomTom powered
.. now
we need to go find somewhere to park up and enjoy a sea view
with our
lunch. Easier said than done. There’s clearly a lot of “privee”
beech
access.
12.55 .. Eventually I turn down a lane 2 or 3 Km from the
village and
end up in car park .. I’m able to park up facing straight
onto
the beach .. lovely !! It’s a lovely view, Jersey is visible
across the
sea, and on the long sandy beech people are land sailing, and
kite
“roller boarding”. On the sea, a couple of chaps are kite
surfing too
!!
Lunch .. Karen’s choice of bread was excellent, gosh it’s
lovely. It’s
light and airy like real French you cannot buy in England
.. but
it’s “Granary” with it. The remains of yesterdays cheese and ham
is our
filling .. lovely. Before eating our strawberry tarts we
demolish a bag
of French “party sausages” .. delicious !!!. Karen wasn’t wild
on the
tart .. she could taste a hint of almond, which isn’t on her
favourites
list .. but I loved mine and finished her base !!!
14.00 .. ish .. We go onto the near deserted beech where the
tide is
coming in .. we take photo’s of each other, Karen goes for a
paddle
cause her shoes just slip off, my new trainers would be a fight
as they
were to get on this morning .. she says the water is
surprisingly warm.
The car was showing 20c as an outside temperature .. it’s
certainly
quite warm despite of the strong southerly breeze.
Did I mention that this idyllic little beach is between two of
Normandie’s nuclear power stations, about 5 Km from each, and
one is
clearly being expanded. I have no worries, the French mastered
nuclear
decades ago, forget wind power .. though you do see the odd wind
turbine in Normandie .. they won’t go powerless like Britain
will on
baking summer days !!!
14.30 .. ish .. we head north along the coast .. to Herqueville
then
later on to the very tip at Goury via a very scenic beech road
..
lovely.
16.20 .. ish .. We head back to St Vaast using the TomTom to
take us
the fastest route .. I’m going a little to quick and miss a turn
and
have to turn around .. DOH.
17.10 .. We are back at the hotel .. I go find my favourite step
at the
end of our corridor and check in on Facebook and Google plus,
18.30 .. We are the first into the restaurant tonight .. but it
soon
fills up.
We both have alcoholic aperitifs tonight, which we discover are
on the
bill tomorrow as gratis .. we order our food and the gastro
experience restarts. We are given a couple of small
appetizers
each before the meal proper starts. I also order a nice bottle
of
Margeoux wine, which is really nice.
We’ve both gone for yesterday’s starter .. the “foie gras de
canard”,
it was just amazing last night ..
Our “main course”, Karen’s is medium-rare, mine is blue .. in
French
reads “ Filet de boeuf / salisfy, trompettes de la mort / langue
de
boeuf et jus de viande” .. their English translation reads “Beef
fillet
/ salisfy, wild craterellus mushrooms / ox tongue and meat
juice” ..
there’s some finely chopped and cooked dark green stuff adorning
the
plate too .. not knowing what it is I do try and avoid eating
any,
knowing many dark green vege’s have high levels of Iodine in
them.
Next arrives my cheese course, which again Karen has a little
pick at
.. << smiles >>.
For desserts, we go different ways .. I go for “Ravioles citron
/
bouillon cacao amer / friand à la muscade” that’s “Lemon
small
ravioli / bitter cocoa soup / nutmeg puff pastry” .. it sounded
good,
but I was left disappointed .. Karen went for the “Clementine
marinated
in Grand-Marnier / flamed meringue / biscuit ice-cream and
pistachio”
.. she wasn’t overly impressed either !! While we were eating
Karen
noticed reception suddenly filled up, it’s a family mob of
English ..
21.01 .. We are back in our room .. I’m starting to feel unwell
..
maybe some fresh air would help me.
21.10 .. A change of shoes and top for me, we go for a walk, but
the
plan of doing the long one tonight is soon forgotten, I don’t
feel good
and the difficult part is that tonight the lock is open, where I
would
have thought given the tides earlier it would have still been
closed.
As we leave the hotel for our walk I notice that last night’s 4
x 4
English sinner has been replaced by another .. it must be the
mob that
just arrived, despite loads of free parking spaces just a few
metre’s
away, new English 4 x 4 man has decided to reverse his Mercedes
ML320
up onto the pavement leaving little space between his back
bumper and
my legally parked Jazz in a bay. I feel we sensible English car
drivers
should apologise to the French for the scourge and scum of the
earth
that is visiting English 4 x 4 man is .. arses .. 95% of them
!!!
21.35 .. We are back in our room .. time for bed, Karen heads
for the
bathroom, I soon forget about doing some diary and just lay
there .. my
face is feeling as if it’s swelling .. it is .. Karen gives me
one of
her anti histamines ..
22.45 .. I finally climb into bed .. Karen gives me a quick sort
of
cuddle .. well I lay n her arm .. I’m feeling unwell and might
need to
get up quickly ..
More to come ...
Day 2511. Monday 24th October
2011.
Memory Joggers ...
I have trouble getting off to sleep .. I’m boiling ..
I seem to be awake more than I’m a sleep ..
04.00 .. I’ve been awake for a while when I cough and am nearly
sick ..
I sit up on the side of the bed for a while after taking a
couple of
drinks of water..
07.00 .. (08.00 French) .. The alarm .. Karen gets up
first to
shower, my face is quite swollen, my head now feels like I’ve
got a
tight band around my forehead.
07.30 .. ish .. my turn for the bathroom .. a look in the mirror
confirms my face .. yes it is my face, just a lot fatter around
the
lower half .. up side .. I’ve got less wrinkles !!
Maybe washing my hair might make me feel better .. to be honest
it
doesn’t and now I need to dry it abit ..
08.30 .. We head for breakfast across in the annex .. I really
don’t
feel well .. maybe a good breakfast will help.
09.15 .. Back in our room .. it’s a quick clear up, pack up and
stagger
down to reception .. and try and find out what the white
vegetable
things were with my beef fillet last night .. we think it must
be the
mushrooms !!!
09.50 .. We are in the car, ready roll. I set the Tom Tom
for a
14.15 .. it says we have 1 hour 50 minutes spare .. we are
planning to
stop at a hypermarket en route.
11.05 .. ish .. We park up in the E.Leclerc hypermarket in
Bayeaux, we
grab a trolley and head in ..
14.23 .. We arrive in the ferry terminal .. once through check
in where
we are greeted by name ( isn’t number plate recognition good,
shame it
wasn’t working in Portsmouth when we came out ), then through
passport
control ( something new on the French side !! ), we join lane 3
and
wait.
14.35 .. Lunch, I’m starving .. Bayeaux bread, ham and cheese ..
followed by a pot of rice pudding .. lovely.
16.08 .. I’m aware the ferry is moving .. and head out on deck
to get
some pictures ..
On my return we move back one row of seats to 638 & 639 ..
my
laptop power cable is just long enough to run neatly along the
side of
the cabin, and now we can see out side. I’ll have to remember to
bring
my 13A mains lead this time .. this boat has 13A sockets not
“schumo”
sockets like other ferries we’ve been on before. However, I’m an
engineer .. been in this situation before .. out with the jazz
Ignition
key, it’s a nice fit in the earth pin hole so I can push the
safety
shutters down and insert my 2 pin European plug .. sorted .. for
5
hours or so of diary catch up time.
I take the SD card out of my camera and copy the weekend’s
pictures to
the laptop .. Karen and I do a quick review, after deleting a
few and
rotating many on the PC .. we are left with 184 !!!
16.25 .. Karen heads for a comfort break and then on to the
shop. As
she does, I’m heads down doing some diary when I sense the ship
rolling
slightly .. the safety announcement did suggest “there might be
some
movement due to sea conditions”.
18.35 .. ish .. We gather our valuables and head for “la Bistro
du
Normand” restaurant .. I need the loo first.
Well there’s a queue, not only to be served, but also to pay ..
hot
food .. read tepid once you’ve paid and got to an empty table.
19.25 .. I’m back in my seat .. Karen’s gone for another comfort
break,
back on with the laptop, more diary ..
20.15 .. With an hour to go I put my Vodafone 3G dongle on a
cable and
rest it against a window. Sadly this cabin is Starboard side,
and
though only an hour away from our arrival time, I can’t get into
the
network .. I’m sure the other side of the boat, the Isle of
Wight side
signals will be beaming in .. maybe I’ll go for a walk !!
21.15 .. We enter Portsmouth Harbour ..
22.52 .. We are home .. the cars done 515 miles since leaving
home
Friday evening .. it’s now a case of just getting the essentials
out of
the car and leaving the rest till tomorrow.
While waiting for the bathroom, I try the 2 watt ( 25 watt
tungsten
equivalent ) LED lamp in the little dome light behind the TV ..
it
produces a soft but quite white light .. I like it .. just need
some
50W & 100w equivalent. Was it worth £12.50 .. will it
last
the claimed 25000 hours .. the clock is ticking.
23.46 .. I climb into bed .. nightie night ..
More to come ...
Day 2512. Tuesday 25th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
Day off .. so no alarm ..
08.02 .. I wake with a start, very dry .. I take a large drink
from my
untouched water .. my head still hurts a little from yesterday,
but my
face feels good.
11.23 .. I’m on the road in the direction of work ..
11.55 .. I’m in Gerrards Cross .. I have some shopping to do ..
can’t
say what till after Thursday .. Karen’s birthday !!
12.16 .. I’m in the office at work .. some are a little
surprised ..
but I’m only in to collect my new suitcase ..
12.21 .. Back on the road ..
12.52 .. I’m in my mum’s flat .. no surprises this time ..
13.22 .. I’m home .. Karen’s sitting on the floor talking to a
friend
on a phone ..
13.35 .. Lunch is served .. bread, cheese and a lot of French
goodies
.. I finish off with a slice of Tarte au Pomme .. wow !!! Washed
down
with blueberry juice.
14.10 .. ish .. Karen disappears of to a friends house ..
Having been in conversation with a couple of folk on the Yahoo
Group
for the Westerly Owners Association about how best to put crimps
onto
wires .. so I do a demonstration crimp and take pictures of the
stages
with my little USB microscope .. after posting them to the site
I get
asked how I took them .. the detail is something else !!!
17.50 .. Karen is home ..
18.40 .. Dinner part 1 .. a French cheese and jambon twist ..
it’s
really nice. Dessert comes in two parts .. one can only be
described as
an Apricot Danish Pastry, the other is a bowl of St Vaast market
creme
rice pudding .. it’s stunning with a little strawberry jam.
23.30 .. Time to head to bed .. tonight I’m going to start my
new oral
progesterone ..
More to come ...
Day 2513. Wednesday 26th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
More to come ...
Day 2514. Thursday 27th October
2011.
( Karen’s birthday )
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
More to come ...
Day 2515. Friday 28th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
08.59 .. I’m in the office, only Callum has beaten me in.
I find an email from the Suporn clinic asking those booked for
revisions like I am to postpone their plans if possible. To make
life
more difficult they’ve withdrawn clinic transport for such cases
even
though it was a 1600 Baht each way deal.
I reply to it to ask that I might continue .. as I’ll lose my
£240 Air Asia flights as a loss, then have to trump up
another
£750 to fly back. It’s unlikely I’ll get another trip to
Brunei
in the current MOD contract .. if we don’t get the contract
renewed,
it’ll never happen, and we now know there are 4 other bidders
against
us.
17.34 .. I’m on the road for home .. Friday night hell on the
M25 has
the TomTom divert me down through Slough Windsor and
Sunninghill.
18.40 .. I’m home ..
19.10 .. Dinner .. spicy chicken soup followed by a load of
French
cheese on crackers followed by a slice of “tarte au pomme” ..
lovely ..
00.22 .. I finally climb into bed.
More to come ...
Day 2516. Saturday 29th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
07.10 .. The alarm ..
It’s the Saturday morning weigh in .. 14st 13lb .. ho hum the
price of
lovely cheese .. to think Tuesday when we got back from France
it was
just 14st 11lb.
09.20 .. We are in Egham, to fill up Sparkle .. she’s running on
vapours. However I’m going to play Shell at their own
game.
They’ve sent me some vouchers to use, one requires 3 20litre
plus fill
ups before 28/11/11 .. so rather than fill the car up, I just
put 25
litres in .. she’ll probably take another 20 litres later post
Claire
trip. Violet needs a fill up too .. so I’ll be able to “ker
chang” that
token by next weekend when I go Brunei.
09.29 .. We join the M25 .. it’s moving well.
09.55 .. We are on the M1 .. again everything is moving well.
Karen
gets cut up in road works by a German 4 x 4 towing a motorbike
trailer
.. as we’d just passed a Belgian camper I suspect there might be
a
motorcycle think going on at Silverstone.
10.44 .. We arrive at the services, Claire’s home car pulls in
moments
after us .. we bail out to help transfer Claire, she’s got a
long face
..
10.48.. Transfer done we are off .. Claire doesn’t seem overly
happy ..
ho hum.
11.05 .. After a period of silence on Claire’s part, she starts
to talk
about food .. more like her normal self. She’d like a BBQ ..
well the
weather isn’t too bad so that might be possible.
Claire’s crying from time to time, we don’t know why .. even her
favourite “Enigma” isn’t doing it for her.
11.25 .. We are back on the M25 ..
11.56 .. We leave the M25 at Egham .. it’s been a good run so
far today
..
12.14 .. We are home ..
21.53 .. I’m in bed !!!!
More to come ...
Day 2517. Sunday 30th October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
07.10 ( 08.10 BST ) .. Karen gets up to make a cup of tea and
get
Claire’s meds ..
07.15 .. As Karen returns Claire gets up .. well timed .. but
Claire
hasn’t been up all night, and she’s still got a dry nappy .. fab
!!!
07.22 .. Post comfort break Claire want’s to get up .. so we are
all up
..
Claire’s not a happy bunny .. seems to have a bit of a
temperature ..
09.50 .. I’m in the bathroom ..
10.35 .. I reset the bathroom clock from my little “radio clock”
and
head down stairs .. I dry my hair best I can ..
11.00 .. ish .. Robert arrives ..
13.47 .. We are on the road in Violet ..
13.59 .. We are at Waitrose .. I fly in for a few essentials ..
14.22 .. Back in the car, our progress is halted by closed
crossing
barriers ..
14.26 .. Barriers up .. we are off .. I’ve set the TomTom, seems
a 53
minute delay on the M25 / M1 route .. I accept the “faster
route” of
M25 / M40 ..
14.33 .. In Egham .. a frustating session with pump 8 .. takes a
trip
to the pay window to get it reset.
14.39 .. Back on the road ..
14.43 .. We are on the M25 .. the first overhead sign we come to
says
“M1 queues J11 - 14" .. so the TomTom is guiding us well ..
14.51 .. We peal off the M25 onto the M40 .. it goes really well
with
only a couple of slower patches .. hope there’s nothing on at
Silverstone to delay us ..
15.29 .. We leave the M40 and head across country on the A43 for
Northampton ..
15.58 .. We arrive at Northampton services .. the transfer is
soon
completed .. Claire gives us both a hug between cars then gives
us a
wave as the homes car drives off ..
16.03 .. Back on the M1 ..
16.15 .. ish .. At J14 we are pealed off by our TomTom to save 5
minutes .. it takes us back to J13 after a quick trip around
Milton
Keynes .. then it takes us over the M25 and takes us around
North
Watford before dropping us onto the M25 at J19 ..
17.15 .. We join the back of a slow moving queue just after M25
J16 ..
ho hum.
17.28 .. We leave the M25 .. soon to be home ..
17.44 .. We are home.
18.05 .. I call Mary for a take away ..
18.18 .. I’m in the Chinese .. only to find Ashleigh, our
hairdresser,
waiting there with her boy friend.
First fortune cookie "AN OLD FRIEND WILL CALL ON YOU" .. hmmm ..
I
wonder who that might be.
The second fortune cookie "YOU WILL HAVE SUCCESS IN EVERYTHING
YOU DO
NEXT MONDAY" .. if that's tomorrow (this Monday to my reckoning
) ..
I've booked another hour to try and crack what I failed with on
Friday
in a Studio at work .. If it's next Monday I'll be in transit to
Brunei
via Singapore, and need to blag some kit through Brunei customs
without
incurring their massive bribes, no I mean import duty ..
<< sighs
>>.
21.55 .. I head North ..
22.20 .. I climb into bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2518. Monday 31st October 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
08.11 .. I’m on the road .. where is everybody .. this is
supposed to
be Monday !!
08.53 .. I’m in the car park .. how odd.
I find an e-mail from the clinic in Thailand .. seems I can go
ahead as
planned .. phew !!
11.05 .. I head for Studio 1 to try and finally crack the issue
that
has been bugging me .. and all the DJ’s.
Initially there is a diversion from my task, in the guise of
Adam,
Vicky’s henchman whose come in part to moan about the new
processor
settings I’m pushing. He takes offence when exhausted, I reveal
some
home truths. He repeats some of the crap that Vicky has spread
as
negative propoganda.
I go get some of the documentation that Phil has got together
and show
Adam .. he’s silenced .. and after further discussion he agrees
to go
do some experiments.
11.35 .. I finally get to tackle the sound desk .. and I’ve
cracked it,
just in time for DJ Richard to enter to do his show. He tells me
the
fault I’ve just cracked “has always been like it” .. he does a
test
with me and confirms the fault has gone .. Yippee !!!
12.55 .. I head down into Chalfont St Peter .. I need to get
some light
bulbs for mother and do a bank raid .. I need to get a load of
Sterling
for my Thailand leg of my trip.
13.35 .. I’m back in the office .. mission completed.
17.35 .. I head for home ..
18.28 .. I’m home ..
18.45 .. Dinner is served .. Soup and garlic bread .. followed
by a
Jacket potato topped with Comte and a few tomato’s .. dessert is
a
slice of tarte au Pomme ..
23.40 .. I call it a day ..
00.12 .. I finally climb into bed ..
More to come ...
Day 2519. Tuesday 1st November 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
08.12 .. I’m on the road .. this isn’t yesterday .. the TomTom
is
showing a big problem on the A30 at Egham .. I start to deviate
my
route, then the TomTom takes over and takes me to Chertsey and
the M25
again ..
09.01 .. I’m in the car park .. I have a quick chat with the car
valet
man whose going to try and remove a patch of haze from Red ..
13.22 .. I manage to get away and head for town, first a chat
with the
valet man .. he’s failed .. he has some suggestions .. all seem
expensive .. Red will survive as she is.
In Gerrards Cross, parking is the usual lunch time pain ..
eventually I
find whole and head for the shops .. I need things from both
Boots and
Holland & Barratt. While I’m in town I get Melanie the lamp
bulb
she needs.
14.15 .. I’m back in the office ..
17.32 .. I head for home .. via Tesco’s in Gerrards Cross .. I
end up
calling mother twice to question things and offer something
extra ..
18.48 .. I’m in my mums .. she’s such hard work ..
19.16 .. I’m home ..
19.28 .. Dinner is served .. French duck casserole with mash
potato ..
gosh that is soooo good !!! Dessert is a bowl of strawberries
and ice
cream ..
21.25 .. Karen delivers me a cup of tea .. I soon go join her on
the
settee ..
More to come ...
Day 2520. Wednesday 2nd November 2011.
Memory Joggers ...
06.10 .. The alarm ..
More to come ...