where art collides philosoperontap

Back on the 07.30. Sbeen a while. E5 booked but moved to E2 as the table is full and this first row is more comfortable and secluded. I try to avoid the 07.30 as it means getting up far too early but I have a board meeting in London at 10am so here I am. THG dropped me off and has now gone to the pool to continue her training. Worrawoman.

Brain is still somewhat frazzled. Will be another early night after the Christmas lunch (1 – 5pm). How early remains to be seen. CCUK always used to hold their lunch before trefbash and everyone would rock to the party up already paralytic. I couldn’t do that, what with responsibilities an all so I haven’t been for perhaps ten years. Looking forward to it especially as our Hannah will be there, being in the same line of business.

I have ordered a bacon roll with brown sauce and butter and my cup of tea has arrived. I may be slightly more compos mentis after that.

My phone, laptop and headphones are fully charged. I may not need to charge them again before I get home tomorrow lunchtime but probably will. Seehowitgoze. I also brought a book with me. Life and Tradition in Rural Wales by J. Geraint Jenkins. Read it before but it is v good, if yer interested in that sort of thing.

As the train speeds towards Newark, dawn pokes its nose through the trees that line the track. Up before dawn. The trees are really just overgrown saplings. No forest here. Tractor ruts gleam with low lying water in the fields we pass by.

One of the catering crew has just made an announcement. Unfortunately due to a power problem there are no catering facilities in standard class. However the free drinks and breakfast service in first class is unaffected. How to run their noses in it. It annoys me when I plan to have breakfast on the train but no breakfast is forthcoming. Once I joined the southbound Edinburgh service at Newark Northgate planning to have a full English. However the buggers travelling from Edinburgh had eaten it all. The steward said all they had left was a bit of toast which I grudgingly ordered only to find, when he checked, that that too had gone.

I mentioned that the train was speeding. Bit of artistic license involved there. It doesn’t speed between Lincoln and Newark but trundles along at a relatively sedate pace. I have normally finished breakfast by the time we get to Newark which is the case today. The carriage filled up a little at Newark but not enough to suggest there could be demand for the empty seat next to me. We are still at the platform but I am now on my second cup of tea (soz standard class peeps)

You will all want to know that I’m wearing my Christmas themed Tommy Bahama Hawaiian shirt today. Bought it in a Macys sale somewhere in Florida some years ago (you wouldn’t catch me going there nowadays). Not worn it much as it never seemed appropriate for the time of year one normally wears Hawaiian shirts. Especially when I have so many to choose from. I’ve never counted but it must be over twenty. I had seven made in one go at a tailors shop in Shanghai once. All Tommy Bahama copies with my own choice of material. The only problem with having shirts made in the far east is that the material is usually very light. Perfect if you live in a hot climate but no so much for the UK. I’m not complaining.

Anyway I’m gonna leave you for now. I have a book to read.

Takes two years to train to be a butcher. Apprenticeship. I was listening to “on your farm” on the wireless and the subject of butchery arose so I looked it up. Half thought of doing it as a hobby. “Half” somewhat overstates it. Fleetingly perhaps. Easier to nip to Fosters and ask them to do it. I do like the idea of having a proper set of knives though. We do have one Wustoff chefs knife but the others are not in the same league. I’ll get around to it one day. When the boat comes in.

Good phrase that. Just rolled off the tongue. Metaphorically. I don’t sit here mouthing every word I type. Would be a bit odd innit. For me anyway. Does anyone have a fave phrase I wonder? Or just another good phrase. Was hoping one would appear before me but the muse has gone out for the day. Skegness.  Why a muse would want to go to Skeggy on a wet and ‘orrible day like today escapes me. Butlins I suppose.

This being the sabbath I intend to do no jobs today. The one exception is that I’m making an aloo gobi which I don’t consider to be a job. It’s a labour of love. Had planned to do it yesterday but somehow ran out of time, and inclination. The rugby got in the way. At least it won’t take half the day. If I’m doing a sunday roast, for example, most of the morning seems to be consumed with prep. I do need to peel the spuds for the aloo gobi. And chop the onions and “floret” the cauli, if that is how you put it. Will do it when THG is out at church.

You don’t have to wind the clocks back all that far to be in a time when the sabbath was a v boring day. It’s all very well imposing a day of rest but people would look forward to Monday just to alleviate the tedium. It was like that as recently as my childhood, particularly in the winter. The highlights of the day would be the black and white cowboy film in the afternoon and the 30 min comedy on BBC Radio 2 at six thirty. Hello Cheeky springs to mind. At least these days we have fifty million TV channels to watch. Or not. There’s never anything on worth watching  🙂 Today we are going to watch the rugby round at Ajax n Sue’s.

Breakfast today was a simple bacon sandwich and there is no fox news to report. Hiphop2 +26. Two days to go until I’m down to one crutch.

Hiphop2 +25. Good night out with the boys in the Strugs last night followed by food at the Duke. Didn’t think much of the nosh tbh but the place was rammed so that may not have been everyone’s view. Might just have been because they were so busy. Thick triple cooked chips ain’t really my thang and they had no alternative (ok I daresay they could have whipped together a bit more garnish and called it a salad but…). A trip to the pub is not that common these days.

Lots of lakeside action during the wee small hours. Muntjac at ten forty three, wildcat at eight minutes past midnight and Reynard the fox at oh one thirty six. I assume it was a wild cat, the lake being quite a remote body of water and all that. Unless it had wandered by from a log cabin somewhere. Wonder how Brian is getting on in da Caribbean maan. Usually you can rely on him to send a postcard but not heard owt recently. Maybe it’s the hurricane season and the planes can’t get out.

Away from the pressures of the week I sense a relaxed, take it easy kind of day ahead. I’ve nearly finished my Paul McCartney Wings book so will polish that one off. Watch a bit of rugby. Mighty Wales v the All Blacks. Wonder how that one will go. The criquet has taken a turn for the worse so I am avoiding that other than the occasional glance at the score. Cmon lads.

I am going to make some aloo gobi and saag aloo this afternoon as our contribution to the nosh when watching England v Argentina tomorrow. I like aloo gobi. I also like cauliflower bhaji. Both are on my list of side dishes to order with a curry main meal. Only problem is we always order too much food and one way of stopping this is to cut back on the sides. It is nice to have leftovers mind you. A curry tastes even better once the flavours have had time to mature, if that’s the right way of putting it. Infuse. THG makes a mean onion bhaji though it always works out better when friend rather than baked which is I suppose the “healthy option” <top tip.

THG has already donned her decorating gear to start painting the back hallway and I haven’t even had breakfast yet. Bit of cooked in prospect. No rush. Today is after all a day of rest. It’ll cook itself when it is ready. Still feel full after last night.

One thing I have noticed is that I need a hair cut. Can’t do a thing with it and have even found some tangled knots at the back. How does that happen?! Odd that it has taken until nearly the end of my sixty fourth year on the planet to have that as a problem. Had to borrow THG’s hairbrush yesterday! If your hair is long enough to need combing it needs a cut. My classic benchmark is whether I can grab hold of it at the back and I can certainly do that. I might go for a number two back and sides next time. It’s not as long as when I was growing a pony tail during lockdown but I’m never going to grow it that long again. Not my thang. I sense that a walk down to Antonio’s barbers on Wragby Road will be in the plan for next week. Not today though. They are usually busy on a Saturday.

My walking is getting better all the time and I could really go down to one crutch but the doctor’s orders are wait until Tuesday. Tbh he is such a brilliant surgeon why would I not just follow what he says. He knows best, probs 🙂 Not long now.

Hiphop2 +23 and all’s well, as it can be. Btw the hiphop2 hashtag gets retired after +28, time served. Not that it’s ever been used as a hashtag. That would imply a continued interest in using twitter which I stopped doing over a decade ago which in some respect was a bit of a shame as my handle was @tref. Still is, I suppose.

Slightly better night’s kip. Finally woke up at 06:28 which is good. The clock on the bedside table is currently fairly accurate since I reset it to Greenwich Mean Time and adjusted it a bit.

Thought for the day is on. Talking about Bach’s organ works, so to speak. I’m not finding this one bad enough to switch off. The religious bit was slipped in with great subtlety. In fact it’s not the religious aspect that makes me switch off thought for the day. I don’t mind that. It’s the fact that most speakers have a very dull delivery. Ya gotta make it interesting folks. 

My next task is to decide if it’s warm enough to get out of bed. The heating is on but it is v cosy under the duvet. I’m not in a particular rush especially as Thursdays are THG gym rest days and I know she is going to be here to help me put on my socks 🙂 I know that some people “in my condition” manage to do this on their own but it’s a lot of faff. I did spend good money before hiphop1 (or should it just be plain hiphop?) on a contraption that is supposed to help but it was a waste of good money. Would have been better spent on a nice bottle of plonk or something.

Tis cawd out there. The app says zero degrees but feels like minus four. Quite keen to get to the shed to see whether the lake has frozen over. I’ll hold off posting this until I’ve done so. When Reynard paid a visit at ten thirty last night it was already minus one out there so there is a chance. The metoffice weather map suggests that Lincoln will just miss out on snow. It’s a good job these forecasts are not 100% reliable. I like snow.

I also like the cold. Yesterday was one of those crisp winter days that bring a glow to your cheeks and clear the nostrils. Sunshine very much helps. Leaving the heating on in the shed also helps.

In other news THG came back from town yesterday with a big bag of tomatoes, two leeks and a large beetroot for three quid. Market stall. Also got a large cauli for 50p and some nice small carrots for the same money from the greengrocer in Mint Lane. The tomatoes were a fantastic bargain at only a pound for the bag. Makes you realise how expensive supermarkets are. People should support market stalls. I suspect that greengrocer is one of the few decent stalls left. The council has done a terrible job with the market and half the stalls are empty with very little there to attract you in. The tomatoes are being prepared for roasting as we speak. Nice tomato soup in the offing. Perfect for this cold weather. THG is a dab hand on the soup front.

…

The news from the lake is that yes, it is frozen over. What is more, it started to snow just as the camera was rolling to show the icy surface. Lets hope no one is daft enough to try skating on it. Brian the fishing gnomad knew what he was doing when he went off to St Lucia for the winter season. Blue marlin apaz.

The side effect of the snow, pictureskew as it is, is that the deck will be very slippery. Perhaps I should ask THG to come out and spread sand over it. Or salt but we’ve only for a bit of salt in the cupboard. We don’t have a bunker full of the stuff like they do on the side of the road. I’m pretty sure we have some sand. Maybe it would be pushing it a bit asking THG. Was only joking obvs 🙂 Anyway hooray for snow. The shed is nice and warm and having had a better night’s kip I feel a productive day ahead of me.

Hiphop2 +21. Three weeks in. One week to go to crutch removal, so to speak. Slightly better night’s sleep helped by being knackered. Listening to podcasts helps. I know they must get me back to sleep as I don’t think I’ve heard the end of any of them. Started listening to TMS in the run up to the Ashes on Friday. Last night’s was particularly boring as they just wheeled some commentators in, including Tuffers fresh off the plane, to talk about how lovely a place Perth is and the fact that England Captain Ben Stokes (Stokesey) was seen playing golf doesn’t mean the side isn’t completely focussed on winning. The TMS team is expert at chatting for hours about nothing but that almost made me switch off. As it is I nodded off which I guess was the whole point of listening. The cricket starts at one thirty am on Friday. If I am awake I’ll tune in but otherwise  twirly man twirly.

Back in the snug. It’s a more comfortable seat than the church pew in the kitchen. Quite a bit earlier than yesterday as there is no evidence of kids on their way to school and not much traffic. Yet. Ironically the end of the pew is everyone’s fave place to sit at the kitchen table. A seat bedded in over hundreds of years by faithful backsides. Just not enough padding for my current requirements. I also occasionally sit on the stool next to the butcher’s block. Sometimes have lunch there. Easier for me to put stuff out there than to carry it to the table when using crutches as I can reach the fridge, the sink and the cooker without having to move much.

The guys and gals from the metoffice tell me it is going to rain for most of today. This might put the mockers on the idea of another walk. Will have to see. Bit dodge trusting a wet pavement covered in leaves. I’m making excuses here. Walking is good. I still have to negotiate the wet deck en route to the shed. V slippy.

Three weeks in from hiphop2 I do feel as if life is starting to get back to normal, ish, notwithstanding the crutches and the sleeping on the back. Feel less of a need to eat comfort food. Although last night’s fishfinger sandwich might be put in the comfort food category all I had was two fingers and one slice of bread and butter. Felt too full to have anything more substantial so I didn’t. 

It used to be, I think, that you were expected to walk straight away after a hip replacement without the need for crutches. This might have been in the days when they cemented the new hip into the thighbone. Nowadays they just bang it in with a hammer and let the bone knit with the metal spike over time. The crutches are there to help keep the weight off the leg whilst metal and bone are getting to like each other. Sorry if I’m going on a bit here but this is my diary and it does reflect my life at the time it was written.

I don’t put everything on here. Especially nothing about,,,, oops nearly said it there 🙂 That were close.

All this inactivity does make me realise how important it is to get off your bum and do stuff. In all fairness to me, pre hiphop2 I was doing a lot of swimming and also dividing my time between shed, kitchen and workshop. Need to get a second stool to leave permanently in the latter instead of having to move it back and forth from the kitchen which is impractical when using crutches.

Hiphop2 +20. Another week dawns. A cold one in prospect with the mercury dropping. Mind you I don’t think they’ve used mercury in thermometers for a v long time. I did once come across a mercury arc rectifier. V impressive. It was in the Regal cinema in Douglas, IoM. We had only just learned about it in school and, hey presto, I found one. They knocked down the Regal in 1984. Saw one of the Pink Panther movies there as I recall. When I were a lad Douglas used to have three cinemas not including the one in Summerland where I worked as a projectionist one summer. I saw “The Spy Who Loved Me” 50 times in a two week run. It’s all changed now. They don’t use reels of film anymore. One movie was six reels.

Traffic on the move outside our house and kids making their way to school. I’ve decided to have a leisurely start to the day as THG is not going out until ten. She is off walking around Navenby with her mates. I’m glad we don’t have the mad rush in the morning anymore trying to get four kids up, fed and out of the house.

Hiphop2 +20 is a point where light begins to appear at the end of the tunnel. At Hiphop2 +28 I get to put weight on the new hip and discard a crutch. Keeping one crutch will be mostly for balance so that one might well go before Hiphop2 +42 when I am officially “cured” 🙂 I’m off to London for lunch on Hiphop2 +30 which should represent a big step forward, so to speak.

The biggest difference this time around is that both hips are now fixed. After the first hiphop I still had a second dodgy hip with which to contend so I never achieved particularly good progress with my walking.

…

Beautiful crisp November morning here. I’m sat in the shed listening to an AI regulatory conference. A couple of magpies have just landed on the lawn and are turning over old leaves looking for nosh. I am wearing my thick Himalayan woolly pulley. Cold out.

Tuned out of the conference. Went for a walk to Queensway and back. Tried picking up the pace on the return leg. I could easily walk a lot further. Need a bit of company.

Hiphop2 +19 and we bask in the warm glow of a sporting success filled Saturday. I’ll need to tidy up the shed this morning. The Imps moved up to second place in the third division, Wales beat Japan with a high pressure penalty kick in overtime and Ireland walloped the Wallabies. Better night’s sleep though I did listen to the TMS podcast on the Ashes build up. THG is treating me to Avocado on toast for breakfast. Living the dream.

I have been informed that the order of the day is pottering. I am ok with this although my current mobility restrictions hamper the extent to which I can potter. This will change substantially on hiphop2 + 28. A bit like a 2 input NAND gate, the flick of a switch. That’s harking back to my CMOS days.

Tonight we are off out to see a Colin Dudman gig at the Labour Club. The only other time I’ve been there was another of his gigs. It was meant to be a pie and chips evening or simlar but the kitchen couldn’t cope with the volume of orders and it took ages for some people to get their nosh. Must have been a while ago as the MP at the time was there. Her name escapes me. She was a nurse I remember. Col taught two of our kids to play jazz. Piano and sax. May have been a trumpet in there somewhere. They still play.

I am sat in the window of the snug. The sound of frying onions emanates from the kitchen. A chicken casserole in preparation. One of the lights by our front door needs replacing. No idea how long that has been the case. Just noticed it. We left the lights on overnight obvs. One of them anyway. There are two. Immediately added to my jobslist don’t worry. It will be sorted within the SLA.

Sleepless in Lincoln. Musta been awake since 2am and it’s now 5.45. Bit annoying really. There’s no rhyme nor reason to it especially when I slept reasonably well the night before. I dunno. I’m not particularly tired but you do feel as if you should be asleep.

Big rugby day today. Got the gang coming round to watch in the shed. They are all England supporters. I just want an entertaining game. Wales play Japan later and then Ireland v the wallabies, if I can stay awake long enough.

Old Storm Claudia seems to have throttled back a bit. Tempered her ire. What struck me most about her this morning was nothing to do with her meteorological propensities but the pronunciation of her name on the beeb. It’s Cloudeya. Dunno about you but I would pronounce it Clawdeya. The beeb is very particular about these things. She blew in from foreign parts I suppose but there again they all do. We never get good home grown British storms. I’m surprised no one has made this an election issue.

THG is off running. If it’s Saturday it must be Park Run. I’m building up to cooking brunch. No rush. Still full after last night’s beefburger and chips. Think I did the same thing last Saturday. Brunch. Won’t need lunch.

Classic British rainy day here in the shire. This I like. It’s ok when you are in a nice warm house looking out at the rain beating against the window. It is not horizontal driving rain which has its own, different, attraction. Just steady rain with a bit of wind to move it away from the vertical. The metoffice gives it two drops with greater than or equal to ninety five percent precipitation all day. They need a bit more confidence in their predictions. If they looked out of my window they would I’m sure be comfortable with upping it to 100%. You could still use an umbrella in this rain but were it horizontal and driving then I put it to you that an umbrella is not much use and you would be better staying at home than popping out to the shops. Waitrose delivers.

THG and I went shopping together in Waitrose yesterday. This a v rare occurrence. She pushed the trolley and did the scanning whilst I selected a few choice items for consumption over the next few days. Mostly my lunch. Anyway my point is that Waitrose is a far more pleasant shopping experience than the Tesco down the road. I like to have a bit of banter with the girl on the deli counter who is from South Wales and used to be a chef. Tesco doesn’t have a deli counter anymore. Also Tesco has a v poor selection of bacon and sausages. I normally buy such items from Fosters butchers but on occasion do bung em in the trolley when in Waitrose. I can push the trolley meself btw but THG wanted to help so I acquiesced.

I did not listen to the shipping forecast last night. This is likely to be the biggest non news you have heard today but it is better than having to hear all about war, famine and Donald. Donnie. I bet his wife calls him President, assuming she ever talks to him. I shudder when I think about Don. He is a worry.

A road sweeping vehicle is working its way down the other side of Wragby Road. It’s that time of year. I suppose it just stays in the shed the rest of the year.

Up at eight this morning. This isn’t news, particularly. Sometimes I get up a lot earlier, sometimes a little later though not much. Usually what triggers it “is thought for the day” coming on the wireless which is usually on at around twelve minutes to the hour so eight is comparatively late, but only a bit 🙂 None of it matters. It is a Thursday. Time moves on. Time to move on.

Breakfast this morning is a bacon sandwich made with one piece of bacon because that’s all we have in the fridge. Don’t worry there is more in the freezer. Phew eh? I sometimes buy a wodge of bacon and divvy it up into two slice portions for the freezer. Easy enough to dig out when needed and no need to defrost really.

Not thought as far as lunch yet but THG and I do have an arrangement to meet aged friend Phillip in the Waitrose caff at eleven so might have a stroll around the aisles and see what I can pick up fresh from the market innit. Not knowing what I’m having for lunch isn’t a big deal really. It’s called not planning ahead. Living life on the edge. 

I tend to plan holidays well in advance. Next August we are off to France for 2 ½ weeks. I’ve booked the ferry crossings and one week long stay in a farmhouse somewhere but nothing else as yet. Ordinarily I’d get this nailed soon but I’m half tempted to not book anywhere and see what happens when we just rock up on the day. Needs a bit of thought. If it’s peak season that might be easier said than done. I booked the farm over a year ahead as good places tend to sell out early and we have specific family size needs.

Thursdays are the most relaxed of weekdays in our house. No weight lifting classes booked etc. I didn’t walk to Tesco yesterday but I might do that today instead.

On the hip front I sense that having got over the first two weeks things are definitely starting to move ahead. Sleeping still not good due to the lying on the back thing but there is general progress. Won’t be long till I’m back walking properly.

No fox news, front or back. Wonder where it’s got to for fox sake?

…

Action packed day. Had my socks and stockings put on at around nine thirty, as you do, and left for Waitrose at ten fifteen. I’ve just discovered they now sell Carlos 1 Spanish brandy. One of my faves. I actually prefer Spanish brandy to the French variety. Well ok if you want to spend a lorra dosh then a Hennessy XO and its ilk are v nice but the Spanish stuff gets very good at much lower price points. V mellow, man. Forgot to get beer in for the weekend though. THG is off there tomorrow so she can top up the stocks.

Then had an appointment with the dentist. Ostensibly just to repair a small chunk of filling that had come out. When I got there he removed a big chunk of filling and took an xray. Soz Tref he says. If it was me I’d be looking at an implant. Hmm. Parked the decis  until February. Let’s get Christmas out of the way first.

Anyway this is a long way of getting to saying that I’m home now and back in the shed and can’t really be bothered to do anything. Any suggestions?