Auld Lang Syne

I managed to get to choir tonight.
I've missed a few practices.
We sang a lovely a Capella version of Auld Lang Syne and nailed it completely.
It's one of our  songs for the Christmas performance in The Eagle and Child pub.
It was quite lovely

At the end of choir practice we have a tradition to sing an alternate version of  Happy Birthday for any members who are celebrating that week and tonight Albert, our oldest chorister was 90. His daughter brought in a candle festooned cake as we turned off the lights and sang and I caught myself shedding a tear at Albert's obvious joy at all of the attention.
Jamie the choirmaster, I think noticed that I was moved and made a bee line for me as everyone said their goodbyes. He's just got married to his husband a few months ago and I think likes another gay bloke in the choir......however because of that I couldn't quite tell him that I wasn't quite ok, and disappeared as the reminents of the cake were handed out.

I did a talk to occupational health staff on Samaritans today which went well, I had forgotten how easy I find public speaking.....must be the showgirl in me......I've been " booked" for a few similar gigs from now on.......


Mary's op tomorrow ...

Caught in Sexy Time

One of my commentators reminded me of something yesterday.
It was that somewhat  strange moment that you catch someone unexpected having sex.

Some years ago now a psychotherapy colleague and I went to visit a spinal patient in his home in Nottinghamshire. The patient had experienced many problems post injury which included the loss of his job, home and marriage yet after a somewhat robust struggle had been set up in his own bungalow with a care package in place which included a daily team of carers and all of the latest gadgets available .
The patient had been a fairly high up clergyman before his accident and although he was sweet he could be incredibly pious at times.
Now one of the problems this guy had was a repetitive and often dangerous rise in his blood pressure. This needed Judicious use of a low release medication which was administered as a daily GTN patch to his inner thigh.
Anyhow, the physio and I drove down from Sheffield for a visit and after we rang his doorbell we were surprised there was no answer.
We waited and waited at the front door for an absolute age, and eventually a busty breathless twenty something carer came to the door with her hair all over the place
" Sorry I didn't hear the doorbell I was just giving {name} a wash " she gushed, showing us both into the living room and she missed the slightly amused look on both of our faces before she raced to get the patient from out of the bedroom.
She had no clue that there was a GTN patch stuck to the side of her face.......

Just a quick thank you to Blog reader Libby who turned up this morning for coffee and cake.
It was lovely to see you, and thank you for the gifts....too kind!
Hey ho

A Little Squirt

You get a bit sweaty on night shifts.... and in a fit of tiredness I'd forgotten my clinique ." HAPPY" !!!!...and so perspiring like Blanche duBois I looked around the office and staff loo to see if I could find an suitable nice smelling squirty.
In the office I located a somewhat exotic sounding lady spray called "orchid myst" and gave myself and my uniform a good seeing to.
It didnt smell too perfumed I thought moments later only to realise that orchid myst was exactly that..an effing
mist for effing orchids!!!!
Pure nutrient solution, pest repellent, plant tonic and leaf conditioner ......for orchids !!!!!

Alun & Hattie

Two sets of thank you's today!...one from villager Alun who had spearheaded the restoration of the village war memorial ( see his Facebook entry below)
and the other to Hattie who lives in one of the cottages on London Road

"Alun Med Hughes

Occasionally, as we journey through life, we are sometimes bestowed with act's of great kindness. I have just received a gift from a lady who lives in Canada, and her name is Marjorie. Apparently my mate John Grayhad told her all about the work restoring our village war memorial. In appreciation of this she sent me a gift of a little box which , she's beautifully engraved with a poppy. The box also contained a collection of Canadian poppies. However, I feel this is a gift to all who worked on this project. I feel humbled by such kindness. A nice little story to warm our hearts." 

Hattie left me a bunch of flowers and a card yesterday. Both were perched on the kitchen wall

The card read ".........." I also want you to have these flowers to know that I have been thinking of you.....I hope they brighten up that darker side of your cottage" 

Marjorie's and Hattie's gestures have made two middle aged blokes very happy

Thanks to both! 

Now off to bed, I'm Effin knackered

South Facing

The living room and main bedroom of the cottage faces South.
So from morning to mid afternoon or so they stand robustly in full sun.
The front of the cottage feels warm...properly warm at these times as the thick stone walls and 17th century floorboards absorb the sun's energy and the animals celebrate this fact by stretching themselves in the square swimming pools of light in order to daydream.
The back of the cottage often feels cold during these winter days, and even when I leave every door open,the sun fails to warm the air.
I'm working tonight and tomorrow night and have an appointment meeting early this afternoon so, the dogs have already been walked and won't stir until I get home.
I've just closed the office door after sitting at the desk for a moment.
I painted the walls yellow a year or so ago but today the colour fails to lift the temperature
I can smell, paper and books, and files
....... and my husband 

Village News

The village Hall's Grand opening 110 years ago 

Trendy Carol ( in a sporty blue and white number) called over the angry pumpkin on the kitchen wall to ask if she could put one of her old wardrobes on my bonfire.
I told her she could and minutes later there came a small feather light tap on the lane window which got the dogs barking all over again
The dogs have been on heightened alert mode since the Randa girls with a huge entourage of various ghosts and ghoulies appeared down the path last night with a beetle juice looking Jason in tow.
I love the way the affable despot always throws himself into his kid's activities, he has more gusto than any am-dram thespian and has provided those girls with thousands of family memories of an idyllic ever-so-sweet childhood.
Mrs Trellis was at the wall wearing her winter bobble hat.
She wanted to discuss a fellow villager who she was worried about.
Luckily I was able to reassure her that all was ok
She told me about the vicar retiring at the end of the month and said she didn't know who was eventually taking over the village parish.
The bishop will attend this week's Sunday service she informed me
I made a mental note of leaving a retirement card in the vestry .
I asked her if she was going to any of the new groups in the village. Apparently the WI and the art group are doing very well indeed and I told her so. The new youth club has over 40 members after just two weeks of opening too which is a great achievement
Sandra Cameron ( the village Hall's caretaker) is organising a massive Christmas Fayre in December which will apparently take over Chapel street ...I've been told a local cart horse will be made up as a reindeer for the day........
Oh and
Cameron the teenage boffin is working in the village pub...and now has a beard!

Trick Or Treat

If I wasn't so tired I'd laugh
Yesterday's post sort of proved a point
I just haven't got the energy to answer each comment on Going Gently..
If there is a question or a comment that needs or deserves an answer, I will endeavour to answer it.
If I banter with friends so be it
All I can really promise is that each comment will be read and thought about
If that upsets anyone so be it too.....
You can't keep everyone happy.
Everyone's a critic 

I worked last night and will be working Friday and Saturday nights too. So after a few hours in bed, and a dog walk it's almost dark again and the day seems lost.
I've made  Shepherds' pie, stocked up on sweets just in case the Randa girls call around and will settle down with a catch up edition of Bake Off.
I know who won because one of my patient's referred to that "irritating, funny little man winning the baking" before she went to bed.

An Apology

I'm working tonight, infact I'm working three nights this week, this is why I was so miffed with the vet cancellation....I'd picked Monday as an ideal day in which to sort things out.
Earlier I received an email from a follower of Going Gently 
Politely and with some feeling they informed me that they would no longer be following my blog and their reasons of unaknowledgement is understandable.

"they have made a difference by interacting in your day and you in theirs and isn’t that what a friendship is all about wether it is in person or virtual – being ignored is demoralising particularly when it matters."

I am aware that since Easter I have not been so robust in my answering of blog comments, and for this Basic lack of politeness I am sorry. I have tried to answer some comments but perhaps even this ad hoc nature of interaction could be seen as "favouring the few" so to speak, and so in the future I will try and be a little more proactive.

Tom Stephenson has told me off for similar offences before and I now hold my hands up for being remiss.
In my defence , all I can say that I have been remiss in many things over the past few months.
I haven't even read the correspondence I received from my solicitors two weeks ago.

Hey ho

Dark skies

The  dark nights of winter are here and my pumpkin faces down the lane, warding off bad karma and the ill will of strangers .

Les Choristes

Sometimes things conspire to make customer service a thing of rarity

Mary's operation was cancelled this afternoon and the attention I received by the practice receptionist after I had driven 17 miles to collect her was so atrocious I almost lost my temper in a packed waiting room.

I am glad I didn't, but  after a calming journey through the Welsh countryside on the way home I was still icy cold with the practice manager when I phoned up to " discuss the cock up"

This piece of music by Bruno Coulais from the French film Les Choristes helped my blood pressure return to normal.........it's quite lovely

My Little Girl

She's last on the surgical list today as her ear op is classed as a " dirty op" but I have to drop her off at 9am.....she doesn't do well without me
I've gone all a bit nervous about it all, which I recognise says more about my year than it does about her surgery, but I'm terrified at losing her.
All of my animals hold a special place in my heart but only Mary goes absolutely everywhere with me...I'm never a single with her on my arm
It's a stressful day today

Ps haven't I got small ears?

"DON'T !!!!!"

As it turned out " The Horne Section" proved to be a very amusing night. Little Alex Horne is one of my guilty man crushes so it was always going to be an entertaining evening, but having said this, I did have to negiotiate one rather sticky moment right at the start of the performance .

Chester Theatre Filling up

As many comics do, Horne organised an audience participation exercise in order to loosen everyone up. Now I have always hated this sort of activity. "Hysterical moments" with absolute strangers, I can do without, I really can , and so when Little Alex Horne suggested an audience wide game of twister, my blood ran just a bit cold.

" Touch the head of the person sitting to your right" Alex ordered and plonk, the slightly drunk man next to me landed a sweaty palm on my crown
" Now reach forward and whisper something rude to the person in front of you"
Thankfully the hand disappeared but I did hear a young woman behind me say " Cock and Balls" to the back of my head.
"Now place your right leg in between the knees of the person on your right" Alex ordered..
Before anything moved, I hissed out a loud " DON'T!" at the drunk guy on my left  who thankfully complied with my request with an somewhat shocked look on his face.
Thank goodness the rest of the evening concentrated more on the performances than with the audience.
I even hate that moment in church when the vicar asks you to greet the people around you
It's a pet peeve that has never left me...
And it never will

Today is coldish but bright and Mary and I went to Colwyn Bay beach to have Brunch at the outside cafe on the Prom. Homemade chicken and sweet corn soup and fat bastered thick buttered toast.
I counted 15 dogs all sat with their owners at the cafe....it was a treat for both of us.....tomorrow Mary goes in for her ear operation 🙁

Alex Horne of the

Horne Section 

My guilty man crush

Who is your guilty crush????? 

Bra Straps

I started to write Going Gently twelve years ago
It was as I told in its " introduction" , a chronicle of how a city boy adapted to village life and this diary morphed over the years into a film review, animal update and dogsbody diary of sorts.
Recently it has ambled back into diary mode, where it has provided me with a safe haven, where some dark and sad thoughts are laid to rest.
Those thoughts, of course , have been sanitised too
The written word is not always the best places for soul searching , especially if it is in the public domain.

After a quiet but indulgent night with a bar of galaxy and a zombie movie, it's time for a bit of bra strap pulling. I took my Sally Field autobiography to the book swap his morning and swapped it for Paul O Grady 's .
There were a few sore heads drinking coffee at the hall this morning after the wine tasting evening  last night. I've promised to go to the next one .
I like the way the book swap coffee mornings have evolved into something more sociable.
Small groups of villagers were chatting, some standing some sitting and in one corner a group of kids were playing with a game or sorts.
Newspapers are provided for those who just want a drink and a read and Bethan's collection of books and dvds available for swapping would rival anything seen in WHSmiths .
I said hello to a few faces and chatted to Terry, Ann, Ian and Matriach Irene, all wanted to know how Winnie was doing.
I'll take her along next time.

I think I've told you before, that weekends are the hardest days to cope with when you are suddenly single. They are synonymous with couple activity whether it be banal, routine or social and often now on a Saturday especially I feel as though I am revving a car down a one way street with no where to go.
It's a strange feeling.
So today I've done something about it . I've been to the book swap, am just about to pile the dogs into Bluebell for a walk and tonight I am going to the Chester Storyhouse on my own to see The Horne Section, a musical comedy group headed by Alex Horne who co hosts one of my favourite tv shows Taskmaster. 
I don't want to be single, I don't want to do things on my own.
But I recognise that sitting in PJs, even if it is in front of a lovely log burning stove on a cold night , is not always the best course of action.
I also recognise too that I am responsible for not always initiating similar, more stimulating nights out before my marriage split, but it's easy to be wise after the event, especially when reminded by the pangs of loneliness.......
So...it's tits up and tits out!
Tighten bra straps!
And
Chocks away!

Not everything goes right in life

Hey ho

Home

There is a singer on at The Crown tonight, Boffin Cameron has been promoting them.
And in the Hall there is a wine tasting evening .
A friend invited me to the theatre
And The Wife is showing locally
But I just can't be arsed going out
It's cold outside and the log burner is roaring
And I think there's a small bar of chocolate in the back of the fridge.

Terracotta Army....

It's nice to be city bound occasionally
Lunch at the Indian street food restaurant Mowgli followed by a mooch around a nice museum with a squint at seven very handsome and smiley Chinese mausoleum guards to boot!
Too bad they were made from terracotta...they were seven big hunks of spunk

The exhibition at Liverpool's World Museum has been sold out throughout its run, which is a testament to how such a vast memorial has captured the imagination.
I see that a few bloggers have seen the original Army in situ which , I think must have been an amazing experience....

City Visit

Tell more later

Rehab and Other Stories

When it comes to rehabilitation I am a sort of a knowledgable pratitioner when it comes to motivation. For years I used a sort of pragmatic, warm and humorous approach when mobilising young people in their wheelchairs for the first time, a time which is fraught with issues that can zap the psychological strength out of even the most robust of characters. 

Rehab in animals can run on similar lines, but employing bribery and treats can work much quicker and more effectively than they do in their human counterparts.

Winnie's rehab after her stroke has been Bluebell.  Every day I have rattled the car keys by the back door ( a signal all of the dogs understand as " car trip")  and a minute later she has joined the pack, waiting patiently for leads to be put on. 

Now initially she had to be lifted into and out of the car ( something that increased my flatulence quota considerably) but now with some thought, she can jump up into the back seat, always first, and always with a stupid grin on her big chops.

Winnie adores car trips.

She adores them with a passion only usually reserved for boiler suited workmen and it is this simple psychological feeding of a need not to be bored , which has given her an extra bounce in her step which has in turn overcome her previous odd gait and tilt of the head.

Last night I had a tv night in. I was tired after Monday's night shift and couldn't quite muster up the energy for Choir Practice. 

I needed comfort food , I needed a catch up with The Walking Dead and I needed The Bake Off semi finals.

And so with a homemade sausage casserole ( oh err missus) with mash

we all shared the couch and binge watched.

I am still obsessed with the Walking Dead but even I must admit that it has gone off the boil over the last couple of years . Season 9 still has a few problems , but the reboot by Showrunner Angela Kang ( when did producers become Showrunners btw?) has provided a much needed boost to the vitality and feel of the show.

My take on the downside of the new Walking Dead is the size of the cast. We now have five communities to deal with and a main cast of characters that number well over twenty. With new cast members arriving soon, it is clear that many of our old favourites with have less and less screen time and less and less scream time means less and less drama. 

It's a shame .....in the first three episodes Tara, Rosita , Jesus and Siddig hardly had one sentence to utter which seems such a shame given their popularity .......

Just a thought Angela ...please note

The Great British Bake Off however has gone from strength to strength, thanks as usual by the delightfully eclectic batch of contestants that were shortlisted. The quarter finalists are so sweet they are almost painful to watch. An effeminate and probably autistic scientist , a mental health worker who looks like a stereotypical mental health patient, a slightly disabled spunky mom, and a sassy wisecracking thirty something each character brings a great deal of joy to the bake off tent and I think is clear that they think of each other as a family rather than just friends.
This week the delightfully warm Birony left the competition which was fair but such a shame and I must admit when Sandy Toksvig tearfully announced her demise from the show there wasn't a dry eye in Chez Dog I can tell you .....

Susan J Hamilton

Of Canada...........thank you................

Who would you like to thank today?
And why?

Traditions

Those that " know" me on Going Gently will understand that I do like to maintain my traditions .
After all it one one of the best songs from Fiddler on the Roof!!!

Fresh Flowers in the cottage at all times
Proper trifle with cream and custard at Christmas
Pancakes on pancake day,
Sending Christmas decorations through the post.😢
Gawd we even flew a Union Jack from the windows on the Queen's Jubilee
Halloween is a fairly new tradition for me but for the past decade I have always carved a pumpkin which would sit happily on the kitchen wall of the lane.
I've been busy today, what with more vet visits,  and night shift tonight, but I've bought my pumpkin and will carve it tomorrow as I'm watching The Walking Dead  on catch up
You've just gotta keep the traditions going
Don't ya!

Charlie Cairoli

My new job is a short term solution to a few problems
It stops me from thinking too much.
It eases me back into the saddle of work ( without the considerable pressures of an Intensive Care Unit)
And hopefully fairly soon it will allow me to pay for the rapidly arriving  vets bills post ear infection, skin irritations, minor strokes and tumours!
Like I said, I'm not intending to stay very long,a better paid job is more the ticket..but who knows what is going to happen in the next few months.

I worked a twelve hour shift over Friday night and was in charge of 19 elderly residents. Now one lady I have gotten to know , knew my mother and father  many moons ago now. She is an old colonial sort who spent an idyllic childhood in India. Polite , positive, and a tiny bit gung ho, she is physically frail now , but retains a sort of robust lets-make-the-most of things attitude which is so common of her class and position.
I liked her immediately.
I'll call her Miriam
Now I respect the Care home as it is not one that insists that residents are woken up at some ungodly hour in the morning. Before we go off shift , it is only expected that perhaps a handful of early risers are helped to shower, so inbetween blood sugar checks and medications, I get to do some hands on care.
Now women's make up is an anathema to me. Me looking into a make up bag is like a man off the street twiddling the knobs of an itu ventilator , I haven't got a scooby do. And so when Miriam asked me to outline her eyebrows for her with what suspiciously looked like a child's crayon I balked slightly
" The carers usually help with with my eyebrows" Miriam instructed me " I do the rest"
I had parked Miriam's wheelchair in front of her vanity mirror with a huge selection of potions and brushes and powders in front of her and really needed to get on, so I took the pencil and asked what to do
" just outline my eyebrows" she instructed and taking a deep breath I did just that.
Moments later were were surveying my work in the mirror and thank goodness both of us burst out laughing like a pair of naughty schoolgirls
" I look like Charlie Cairoli " Miriam quipped
And agast I could see the resemblance
You have to be of a certain age to remember Charlie Cairoli