Numbers

I have come to realise that we react emotionally to numbers. Heating energy in the UK is going up by 10% this October and this has caused vitriol in the media. Two months ago my direct debit for E-On – my supplier – went up by £12 a month. I fumed. It was the heat of summer and I was using very little fuel. In fact, when I received notification, I had just returned from my month-long holiday. Why on Earth would I need to pay more? Now I am in credit and that galls even more. Paying bills that are not optional engenders a worse reaction than choosing to buy something at a higher price.

My hand blender broke this week. This annoyed me too. They don’t make things like they used to. I decided I could live without a hand blender, but I only lasted without one for two days. Actually, my old one had lasted well over 10 years, and I was convinced by a couple of people who I had moaned to about things not lasting that it had had a good innings. In the end, I bought the same make. I could have bought a much cheaper one and saved well over the £12 added to my energy bill.

I shocked myself how lightly I have responded to only having another 3000 lengths left for my second challenge of the year. Only 3000! My logic is that I can do 500 a week and that is only 6 weeks swimming. No problem. I can still go on holiday and have time off for other bits and bods. Basically – no stress.

My Garmin watch has suddenly started highlighting my physical age and how I can reduce it still further. I am competitive. I want to get that age down a few more years so I am shifting my lifestyle just a bit more and eating smaller portions. So far I have lost 1/2 a kg. It is a start and I am going in the right direction.

This 66 year old, Old Dear is still standing so I must be doing a few things right and not bursting too many blood vessels over freaky numbers. With just 2% inflation now, a free bus pass and the appearance of a “blue moon” things don’t look too bad. There are even  just a few too many apples around this year - our orchard is trying to give them away! I am still getting ads for an IQ of 240 too - OTT

Apples outside the orchard. 100s of them

Blue Sky Thinking

I do my best thinking and planning with my face looking down at the bluish tiles in the swimming pool. Lately, I have been piling up the lengths and have got a quarter of the way through my second 75-mile challenge so I have lots of thinking time. Perhaps this is not quite blue-sky thinking although my mind does wander while I splash up and down. Here are some of my conclusions:

·                 I have itchy feet. There are so many places to go to and things I want to do. Part of me could pack a minimal bag and set off on a long trek with only a vague idea of where I want to go. At my current age, my father had a stroke that changed his life immeasurably. Bits of me don’t function as well as they did. How much time do I have left? If I I did set off I’d miss tennis, cycling and swimming so what compromises should I make? So many opportunities and so little time so for a start I find myself in Sheffield for the weekend. That’s a very good start!

·                I have a long set of things on my “to do” list. The kitchen needs a bit of TLC – actually it needs a lot of TLC – a lick of paint is a minimum requirement. I have promised to paint Ezra-Mae’s bedroom too. Then, there is always the garden that needs to be sorted. I have composted most of the soil in my courtyard with my home-produced stuff. I know people don’t admire crumbly hummus  but it is my favourite part of the garden. It is a miracle what little creatures do to breakdown “stuff” to make rich soil. I am proud of the quality of my soil and one day my plants will look better for it too. Meanwhile, I still need to tidy it up and plant some more… the list goes on and gets longer every time I think about it.

Mattaya at 4 weeks

·               Then there’s a social life. I managed to squeeze in a tennis team night out this week as well as a weekend away. Planning ahead I have fitted in a trip to Market Bosworth and to Rugby in the same weekend AND I brought my swimming stuff away with me so I can do a few lengths before I get home. There’s also two granddaughters to play with and any number of cups of coffee that need to be imbibed.

Anita and Mark

In search of Darcy!

     There are not enough hours in the day for me to do everything I want to do. I can only say things would be better if…. One can only dream!

Am I missing something?

Symbolic of my little world

This week in quite a few cities in the UK, there has been rioting by the far right to protest against immigration. The unrest was fomented by an horrific attack on young children by a young man whose family originates from Rwanda. News outlets reported that social media was responsible for this upsurge in wanton violence. I am on social media. Why didn’t I get to hear about it until after the effect?

My FB page is full of pictures of flowers and holiday scenes; celebrating birthdays and anniversaries; dead cats; Gary Larson cartoons, and ads I take no notice of. Nobody thought to tell me I could have a day out in some random city bashing police officers. Am I being cold shouldered?

While I can see why many people are disgruntled, there is a big difference between a right to protest and the opportunity to destroy neighbourhoods. One woman interviewed said she went along because she was angry that the government were spending millions on housing illegal migrants while she couldn’t afford food or get a dentist appointment – this is Britain! You don’t have to burn buildings to make a point. Fortunately, there are now thousands who are taking to the streets in opposition to these attitudes and we now have a voice that supports asylum seekers and British citizens of different ethnic backgrounds.

It is amazing how quickly we adapt to change. Since the Iphone came onto the market in 2007, we use our phones for almost everything. I read my newspaper on it, I do my sudoku and crosswords as well as sending emails. I would be lost without it. However, there is so much that really gets my goat. Targeted ads tell me to play words games to stop my brain addling – too late mate! One ad says that I could have an IQ of 240 if I play their game. Wow! And I thought there was a Bell curve with 100 being the midpoint. One particular ad says, “only 1% of poeple” can complete the task. Pity the makers can’t spell!

So in my little world, no one in my village has raised a pitchfork in anger. While the riots have made international news, they really are not that widespread. Perhaps I should be thankful that I am left out in the cold. Social media reckons I like pictures of flowers, and those ads tell me I need to exercise my brain. Probably the algorithms are not too far off the mark. So, it is even more surprising that my email junk box is full of ads for penis enlargements and “hot Ukraine girls”. 

Slugs and snails attacking blackberries

When it’s hot

Jackie's amazing sunflower

We have had a heatwave here in England. The newsman said we have had the hottest day of the year this week. It is not that sort of continental heatwave. Our temperatures have just topped 30c and when that happens British people behave differently. Automatically we assume holiday mode. Currently, deckchairs are positioned next to the boats along the canal and the masses stroll along the towpath. Everything slows down and becomes quite convivial. Even the lazy dogs from the narrow boats seek shade to loll in.

On my way to the pool, I saw an oldish man fishing on the towpath - the epitome of chill. He was resting on a reclining chair and had a wide-brimmed hat tipped forward covering most of his face. While his line dangled lifelessly in the water, he was smoking a joint. The world for him was a faraway place. He almost made fishing look tempting as a pastime – even if it meant having to handle grubs!

Some British people turn into lobsters when the sun shines! I can see the appeal but now that I have had a few skin cancers I cover up and lather on the sunscreen. I even wear the stuff when I play tennis in the evening – I have got a bit obsessive, even on dull days! Tennis matches in the warmth are also much nicer. We only battle the opposition and not the elements – long may it last.

In my upside down house, the living room was 28c at 7am in the mornings. I had left the windows open overnight, even so. Such an inviting space is my house now that it is warm, the spiders have moved in spinning cobwebs all over. The ones that are dotted with dead insects are doing a good job so I don’t clear them all away. In the garden I have bought a few plants to replace the dead ones. Sitting out in the garden, drinking the first coffee of the day, I notice these things. My poor plants! The blackberries are ripe for picking almost a month early and with a surfeit of apples from the orchard, I have got a freezer bulging with stewed fruit!

When the days are glorious and we are doing well with the Olympics, time slips by. I barely know where my week has gone. Retirement is one long, glorious summer!