6 January 2016 (Wednesday) - Back to the Hospital

Another good night's sleep; I was out for the count for over eight hours last night. I like that.

Over brekkie my piss boiled somewhat as I looked on-line. Last year at the General Election several people of my acquiantance were perhaps a little vocal in standing up for their favoured political choice and quite condescending to anyone who thought otherwise. This morning the same people are rather outspoken about being very unhappy about the obvious consequences of the policies of the government that they (loudly) voted in.

Voting at elections *shouldn't* about voting for your mate, or about voting to send them all back on the next banana boat. It should be about making considered choices for a better future. And to make those choices people *really* need to consider all the options on offer and hear *all* the policies of each choice; not knee-jerk vote for the first pundit to offer you free fish in your hand up-front now.

I would say that that people have made their own bed, now they must lay in it, but I too am laying in that same uncomfortable bed. Did I ever mention that I don't beleive in democracy?

I put the leads onto the dogs; Sid first ran away, then with his lead having been forcibly attached he went to his basket. He *really* didn't want to go out. Fudge however was bouncing about like a thing possessed.

I intended to go to the park, but with two approaches flooded I changed tack and we walked round by the river. As we walked we saw something odd. Two tramps had obviously been sleeping rough under the bridge by the railway station. They were politely sharing a bottle of red wine for breakfast, and both had new bicycles. I wonder what that was all about.

At the earliest opportunity I let both dogs off of their leads. Fudge did his own thing. Sid stayed at heel until he needed a tiddle then (realising I'd walked on) refused to move until I went back for him. He does that; whenever he straggles (for whatever reason) he *really* doesn't want to catch up. He would much rather I went back for him at which point he walks perfectly at heel.

I noticed that the river was quite full this morning. I wonder if it will burst its banks. A few years ago there were floods in Cornwall. Last year floods in Somerset. Now floods in Yorkshire. However once there has been floods the rivers get dredged and all is (relatively) well. Does it really take a genius to realise that some relevent authority should be scraping out the downstream sections of the Great Stour now?

Once home I settled the dogs and then went to the local hospital. It is now four and a half years since it and I had a somewhat acrimonious parting of the ways and even after all this time it still rankles. But leaving all that aside I had to go there for the next stage of the ongoing saga of the lump in my neck. Last spring I was urgently referred to the hospital under the two-week cancer referral scheme. I did write quite a long and in-depth tale about what has been going on; but decided against posting it up here. I expect my loyal readers will understand why I am loathe to do so.

I went back today, and again I had my neck ultrasounded. Whatever it was they found over the summer hasn't grown at all but they performed another aspiration on the side of my neck. I go back to find out what this revealed (or didn't) in a few weeks time. It might be a lymphoma; it might not. Personally I doubt it is anything to worry about at all.

Time will tell. it always does...

I came home and spent much of the afternoon slobbing about. I had been rather dubious about taking a day's sick leave on the day of the first aspiration but in retrospect was glad that I had done so. I had no qualms about doing so today.

As the anaesthetic wore off it felt as though I'd been punched in the side of my neck, and so I sulked in front of the telly. Last night I'd recorded a film to watch. "The Girl Next Door" promised to be quite a raunchy saucy way to spend the afternoon. It wasn't. It was rather dull and despite several jubblies having been "flopped out" the film was probably about an hour longer than it needed to have been.

"er indoors ^TM" came home; her beano with the other candlemongers had been cancelled so we watched a film which wasn't entirely lame.

5 January 2016 (Tuesday) - Flooded Park

Despite being woken by the rain at some point in the night it didn't disturb me for long. I slept for over nine hours last night. Presumably the after-effect of two night shifts?

I put all the white landry into the washing machine and then fed the dogs. Sidney hoovered his food up; Fudge walked away, but at my insistence he came back and nibbled at it for a bit. He's been off his food for the last few days. I wonder what's bothering him. Mind you he's never been a greedy dog.

Over my own brekkie I saw three new geocaches had gone live nearby. The local "FTF-grabber" had been out and done the "FTF-happy-dance" on all three barely an hour after their publication and over an hour before I'd woken up. Whilst he is doing nothing at all wrong in charging out like that, I can't help but wonder if it would be good to give others a chance. Especially when the local "FTF-grabber" operates as a team of four. In many parts of the world many people enjoy the race for FTF; in these parts no one bothers trying any more.

Not much had happened on social media. A lot of people were sulking that the Christmas holidays were over. I must admit that I've had a rather good break; and (in many ways) what with a biopsy tomorrow and a night shift on Friday I've still got another week before I'm back to work "properly".

I then took my wolf pack (of two small dogs) for a walk round to the park. Today must have been "National Pick Up Your Dog Day"; everyone that we met who had a dog today picked their dog up as we approached. What was that all about?

We had to adjust our route through the park somewhat; everywhere we went was flooded.

We got home to find it was mid day already. Where had the morning gone? I popped up the road to the corner shop for a sandwich. Having looked at my blog archive yesterday I realised that my sandwich cost the same today as it did eight years ago.

As I scoffed my sandwich I watched the weekend's broadcast of "War and Peace". I've never read the book but what I saw was rather good. I quite liked the appearance of Adrian Edmonson as Count Rostov; it never fails to amaze me how the alternative comedians of the 1980s are actually rather good actors. Both Rik Mayal and Alexei Sayle have been excellent in straight roles. The actress playing Natasha looked very familiar; but it took an Internet search to show me she's actually been in Downton Abbey.

I got the second load of washing hung on to the clothes horse just as the torrential rain started and I then had (yet) another attempt to get proper maps working on my phone's geo-app. This is something I've been struggling with (on and off) for nearly a year. At Friday's geo-meet I met the chap who'd given me instructions to set it up in the first place, and he gave me one or two pointers. After a minute's twiddling I now have it working.

Now the burning question.... having got decent maps back on my phone do I still need a GPS unit? The geo-admin is easier with a GPS unit, and the GPS unit comes with a lanyard so it hangs round my neck. But with "proper" maps on my phone (and tablet) there *really* isn't much to choose between the phone and the GPS.

Whilst waiting for the laundry to dry I spent a little while solving geo-puzzles with a view to go for a walk at the weekend.

There's no denying that whilt the morning flew past, the afternoon dragged somewhat.

With the laundry basket *finally* emptied "er indoors ^TM" came home with a ton of washing generated by "Daddies Little Angel ^TM" and "Stormageddon - Bringer of Destruction ^TM".

What with the usual Tuesday crew being (nearly all) indisposed we had a rather good bit of scoff and watched "War and Peace". "er indoors ^TM" wanted to watch it, and I wanted to watch it again to figure out what had been going on...

4 January 2016 (Monday) - Laundry

We had some blue cheese over Christmas. Last night "er indoors ^TM" boiled the last of it into an omelette for tea. It was really good. I *love* blue cheese in an omelette. But it doesn't love me. Invariably it doesn't sit well, and I never remember this until it is too late. And so I spent much of last night with something of a guts ache.

As I worked on the night shift I listened to the radio. Regular readers of this drivel may recall that I commented on the sad death of Lemmy (of Motorhead fame) last week. There is a program on the radio every Sunday evening which runs features on the celebrities who have recently died. Obviously Lemmy was featured last night. I didn't know that he was sacked from the band "Hawkwind" having been caught smuggling drugs into America.

I know I'm getting old, but do we *really* make heroes out of drug smugglers?

I've found these last two night shifts quite tiring. I was glad when the relief arrived this morning. I came home and took the dogs for a walk. "Furry Face ^TM" was raring to go; Sid actually went and hid (again). Sid doesn't seem to want to go for walks but he had no choice today. We didn't go far; I was hoping to go round the park but a heavy rainstorm put paid to our plans. We cut our walk short and I went to bed. I slept like a log and was deeply engrossed in a dream about the importance of cartography in a post-apocalyptic nighmare when I was rudely awoken by the dogs barking. To hear the commotion you would think that it was the end of the world. Actually it was the postman.

I got up, put washing into the washing machine and then intended to look at the accounts but was unable to. The bank's on-line facility was kaput. I hope it is not serious. Instead I had a look at my plan to fill in my geo-calendar. I have some forty-two days (between now and 8 July) on which I need to log finds to complete this challenge. Due to the way in which my shifts work most of those days are days when I'm not working. Finding them on the days when I am not working shouldn't be too problematical.

However eighteen of these are days when I am working. Which means a cheeky find on the way to or from work. However over the last three and a half years I have pretty much found everything between home and work. I shall have to study that geo-map and see if I can't organise some circuitous drives to work.

Washing came out of the washing machine and onto the clothes horse; more washing went in, and I backed up December's blog entries. Followning the demise of my original storage I've set up a backup just in case the Blogger website goes west. Having backed up I then browsed some blog entries from eight years ago. In retrospect although life is a lot more peaceful now the fruits of my loin have left home, it is a lot less "danilicious".

I sorted my (washed and dried) undercrackers whilst watching "Upstairs Downstairs" until "er indoors ^TM" came home and boiled up some scran. And with her off bowling I made a start on the ironing. I got the ironing box empty, but realistically all that has done has made space to put the washed laundry. Once I've got it dry...

3 January 2016 (Sunday) - Goldfinger

Last night as I worked I listened to the radio. I do that on my way to and from work and on night shifts. I once found just how easy it was to get out of touch with current affairs so (much as it winds me up) I listen to the radio's news and current affairs programmes when I can.

Not having listened to any news for a week I was wondering what had happened in the wider world. It would seem the major event of news was the fact that the football team Manchester City had won a game. I heard about this in many reports and articles all night long. I was going to ask "who cares" but it is quite clear that a *lot* of people must care for it to have had such a high profile last night.

After a rather busy night I came home and went straight to bed. Despite endless phone calls and dogs barking I stayed there for seven hours until I gave up trying to sleep. Over a rather late brekkie I checked social media. My niece was hit by a car last night. The incident wasn't (quite) as serious as it sounds; she was walking along a lane and she was clipped on the hand by the car's wing mirror. Her hand was rather seriously bruised; the car's wing mirror didn't survive the impact.

It is a sign of our times that she was ranting about the matter within seconds of it having happened, but she didn't think to take the number of the car that hit her.

I also confirmed something I had suspected yesterday. Toward the end of last year in the company of several hunters of tupperware I'd started on the Essex Way series of geocaches; a guided walk of over four hundred geocaches along a route of over eighty miles. Yesterday I heard reports that this series was being archived.

My first reaction was disappointment; with other caches to be found on the way this was a series of over six hundred finds which could be done in smaller easy segments. I'd only done two of them. It looks like this series had only been out for one year. Much as I advocate not leaving caches out for ever I can't help but feel that one year was perhaps rather a short time.

Having said that it looks as though no one has been out along the second stretch since we walked it some six weeks ago. And it also looks as if no one had walked the first stretch since we walked it back in October. Realistically there are only so many people who will walk a linear route; they need some preparation as you need to have a car at each end. Perhaps the route really had run its course? It would have been good to have gone back to Essex to finish the walk but with this walk gone the area is now clear for others. People are already talking about putting out new series.

As I scoffed my toast (with my wolf pack on my lap) I watched the telly with half an eye. I had been hoping that "Upstairs Downstairs" might have been on. It wasn't, but the James Bond film "Goldfinger" was. I was surprised at just how much Sid was watching the film; he was growling at the screen at least once every five minutes. As the afternoon wore on I found myself more and more captivated by the film. For all that it is an iconic film (actually as old as I am), it is rather crap really. Would Goldfinger *really* not have shot Bond dead so much earlier. And would he *really* have put up with so much nonsense from him?

And now I'm off to another night shift. These days between the night shifts are rather dull....

2 January 2016 (Saturday) - Joggers

After a rather good night's sleep I was woken by the noise of my CPAP device. It was rather noisy so I turned it off and then I got rather breathless. So I got up and (as "er indoors ^TM" and the dogs snored) had a mooch on-line over brekkie. Among other nonsense I'd had an email offering me a bargain; the option to buy an endoscope for only a tenner. With three and a half metres of cable I could shove the thing down the plug hole to have a good look at the inside of the drains and see the results on the screen of my phone.

Do people actually buy this stuff?

As I smurfed the net (!) "Furry Face ^TM" came and jumped up onto the sofa with me, plonked his chin on the hand I was using to type with, and went to sleep. For all that everyone else sees a noisy excitable little dog, he is actually rather soppy when he thinks no one else is watching.

With brekkie scoffed I took one half of our resident wolf pack for a walk (Sid was still asleep). What with one thing and another I'd rather forgotten about the joggers and their Saturday morning running round the park. As we dodged the joggers we met up with Orangehead and her Chunky Little Friend. Chunky Little Friend wasn't happy; she'd had a run-in with one of the joggers.

She'd been walking her dog through Victoria Park this morning as some of the joggers ran by six or seven abreast. The joggers swore at her for daring to be on the same path as they were. OrangeHead (being Queen Bee of the Viccie Park dog walking circuit) chirped up that all the other dog walkers also get verbal abuse on Saturday mornings from groups of joggers who insist on running together in such a way as to completely fill the paths and who expect everyone else to jump into the hedges to avoid them.

Apparently OrangeHead knows the particular jogger who had a go at her Chunky Little Friend, and OrangeHead is going to report said jogger to the authorities for child abuse. This jogger was forcing a small child to jog with him when clearly the child didn't want to.

I smiled politely and offered the observation that from what I'd seen over the last year or so I didn't think that people were allowed to jog round the park *unless* they were in groups six or seven abreast,(all with expressions showing they are in pain) swearing at passers by whilst forcing small children to run with them (whilst the children quietly cry that they want to go home).

We came home via Christchurch Road where something had happened. I don't know what it was, but there was a gaggle of people standing around asking each other if they knew what had happened. They asked me if I knew what had happened; I said that I didn't. They all started telling each other that I didn't know what had happened either. I asked what had happened to which a rather distraught woman exclaimed "we don't know".

I left them to it, came home and had a cuppa. My dog jumped onto the sofa with me and did something which amazed me, He stole one of my biscuits and munched it there and then. I didn't know what to say or do; he has *never* done anything like that before. I can't help but wonder if he was showing off in front of Sid.

"er indoors ^TM" wanted to do the weekly Tesco food shopping. I won't lie; I didn't. But the day before a night shift is often somewhat dull, so I went along on the off-chance that there might have been an adventure.

There wasn't.

As well as all the dull stuff we got Belgian buns for lunch. Not that I'm an expert on the subject, but Tesco's Belgian buns aren't a patch on the Co-op's ones. And with bun scoffed I took myself off to bed for the afternoon. It was as well I was down to be working tonight (and so needing an afternoon in bed) as it was raining outside. I don't mind the rain when it is not stopping me from doing outdoor stuff.

I slept surprisingly well..... I'm off to the night shift now.

1 January 2016 (Friday) - New Year's Day

At New Year it is traditional to reflect on what has gone before and what is to come. Realistically for me the last year has been pretty marvellous compared to how I thought things might have been. Things could have been better; they could have been considerably worse.

Looking at social media over brekkie gave me pause for thought on the matter, Everyone else has been making such reflections over the last day. There are those who feel they have had a really good year. There are those who feel they have had a terrible year. Admittedly much of what happens to us is beyond our control; who knows when the rug is going to be pulled (viciously and nastily) out from under us. But in many ways life is a frame of mind. Those who weren't happy with 2015 as a year also didn't much like 2014 either and (quite frankly) seem to have already decided against 2016.

Life *isn't* what you make it; but your own frame of mind is. And that will be this year's New Year Resolution; a lot less sulking and being a miserable old git..

We set off to Great Chart; having been asked to organise the New Year event I'd put a series of twenty geocaches out around the area for a walk this morning. I'd posted that anyone who fancies an early morning geo-wander might like to meet us in Great Chart this morning. I was expecting a dozen people; I was hoping for twenty. In all we had thirty-six people (and four dogs). I knew the terrain was muddy; but I didn't know it was going to be *that* muddy. It had certainly got a lot worse in the two weeks since I last walked the route

Three trial runs of this route had each taken me a shade over two hours; today we took two and a half hours. And once we'd walked we made our way to the pub where a dozen other friends (old and new) were waiting to meet us. We had a rather good spot of lunch and a few pints and spent time chatting. In retrospect it was perhaps a little cold to be sitting outside; perhaps the people at the pub had over-sung the praises of the patio heaters. But I had a good time. I think the final head count at the meet was over fifty; I was well impressed.

We walked home throuigh the park just as the rain started. I'd taken a few photos of the mud whilst we'd been out. Once home (and with dogs bathed) I put the photos on-line and then promptly fell asleep.

I woke a few hours later to find that "er indoors ^TM" had boiled up a rather good bit of scoff. We devoured it whilst watching the ITV2 channel. There were a couple of films on; "Despicable Me" and "Skyfall".

I rarely watch TV as it is broadcast - do normal people *really* put up with all these adverts?

31 December 2015 (Thursday) - New Year's Eve

I had a quick look-see on-line as I scoffed brekkie. Photos of yesterday's booze-up seemed to have been popular. I say "popular"; a lot of people had clicked the like button. Did they actually like them or was that just being polite..... this morning found me in a rather paranoid frame of mind. For example... many people don't realise that when they post something on social media it posts an approximate location of where you are at that time. So when someone tells me that they would be in central London at a certain time but actually seemed to be transmitting from just down the road I spent hours wondering if there has been a hiccup of technology or whether the talk of London was just a ruse, an oversight or a deliberate attempt to avoid me. Whichever it was I am sure it was of far less significance than I have taken it to be. I'm silly like that.

Perhaps it was the hangover? I like going for a booze-up. I do *not* like the general feeling of grottiness (and vague guilt) that follows it.

I must admit to a wry smile when I read that the fan-funded Star Trek movie project "Axanar" has been kiboshed by the people who own the copyrights to all things Star Trek. Much as I like watching the fan-made stuff there is a very fine line between making these fan movies for fun and making a mint out of them. And as Paramount are looking to release a new Star Trek film and a new Star Trek series in the near future is anyone really surprised that those withte legal right to make money from the franchise don't want anyone else dipping into their pot?

With toast scoffed I took "Furry Face ^TM" for a walk. He was full of enthusiasm to go out. Sid went and hid when he saw the leads so I left him at home. He didn't want to come out so I wasn't going to force him (today).

I'd had a report that one of my urban geo-hides had gone soggy and needed replacement, so we walked round the streets to Banks Road. Sure enough the thing was wringing wet; it was the work of a second to swap out the old sodden one for a new dry one. Mind you there was no need for the old one to have been wet. If only people put the things back with the open end facing down then the rain wouldn't fill them up.

Once home I got "Hannah" programmed for the day. For once we left the dogs at home and drove up to Faversham to meet out geo-buddies. Surprisingly the journey took rather longer than I expected, but soon enough ten of us were gathered together and we had a really good wander around Bysing Wood. Only about a mile; only about an hour. But still a good stroll with good company.

From the woods we made our way to Teynham where the county's hunters of tupperware were meeting up. We spent an couple of hours chatting, then went out for another little walk after lunch.

I then slept much of the way home.

I took a few photos whilst we were out. Once home I put them on-line and then dozed until Jimbo called to tek us round to Steve and Sarah. Chatting with friends, food and drink, ChromeCast quizzees and even a new card game to play.

Not a bad way to see in the New Year...