Thursday 7th December 2017
Slovenian: Četrtek, 7. December 2017
0155hrs: I woke with a stomach ache, within seconds the need for the Porcelain Throne arose. Temerariously, I boldly exited the £300 second-hand recliner in one movement before it had lowered all the way and in a hurry. Over I went as I tripped over the small Ottoman. I got up with relative ease for me; due to no doubt, to the urgency of my requirement for the Porcelain Throne usage?; and proceeded to the wet room.
Things were different yet again this morning. Rock hard with accompanying clear liquid? No bleeding, though.
As I washed up afterwards, I found a decent bruise on the knee, and the right elbow had acquired a graze, both from the tumble I expect.
I collected together the second load of washing that I could not get in the machine yesterday, and went down and got them in the washer. Popped out of the foyer door to take this picture.
0220hrs: Up home, and got the updating of the Wednesday dairy.
Down to move the clobber from washer to dryer and back up again.
The stomach ache was getting worse as the morning progressed. I’ll be glad to get to see the Doctor about this. Might not make it to the Social Hour. Sorted the finishing off of yesterday’s dairy and started this one going.
To the laundry room to collect the things. Not a lot, just two dressing gowns, one shirt, one underpants and a pair of socks, oh, and the two towels.
But they took up all the room in the washer and the dryer.
Cleaned the filters and drums, packed the bag and off to the elevator.
The Caretakers are not a happy team at the moment with all the confusion over the upgrade, but when the poor devils see this on lift number one entrance on the ground floor… well!
I took this photograph to show off the Bates Motel towel than Sister Jane got me last year. When it came to putting it on here, it looked like some insects were in evacuation-mode near the left door? Hehe! If I go down later, I’ll have another look. It can’t be ants this time of year… or can it? Maybe the eggs or whatever they are were deposited by the well-known Woodthorpe Court Aliens? Just look at the pattern on those underpants! Haha!
I got the clothes stored away, and got the Health Checks done and medications were taken.
Off to the Porcelain Throne again. Wet and sludgy this time. No bleeding. Stomach still aching.
Did some WordPress Reading for an hour or so. Then, back to the toilet. Everything different again Tsk! Firmed up and bleeding. Stomach still giving me some bother, though.
Had a bash on Facebooking, then.
Started a TFZer graphic, well, the prep work for it.
To the Throne once again, and different still. Back to near normal – not that it usually is, very often. Only a tiny bit of bleeding.
Back to working on the TFZer ‘Nursery’ graphic. All the lads and some of the gals supervising?
.
Took a good while, but I hope they comment and like it, and, see the humour in it.
Got the ablutions done. Collated the raffle prizes and nibbles box and ready to set off.
I was going to the doctors, then to get some milk and bread. I needed to make sure the appointment with Doctor Vindla was still on, to get some help with the Trotsky-to-Diahorrea pattern I am suffering with. And stop the need for me wearing protection pants and getting caught out. So I missed the Tenants Hour, just called in and Jenny kindly took the gear off of me for distribution.
Met Roy in the queue and had a laugh and chinwag with him.
Then caught the bus into Arnold to get the shopping bits in.
I called into Chamber’s cooked foods shop to see if they had any of their homemade cooked belly pork slices. They had some in, but they were 80% fat, so I got some cooked pork instead, for tonight’s planned meal of 
sarnies with trimmings.
Called at Fulton Foods, and got some sterilised milk.
Then to Iceland, but came out without anything.
Up the road to Asda and spent a long time wandering around and buying little. They did have the small part-baked cobs, so I stocked up to last me over the holidays. An Irish Batch loaf, I’ll use this tonight, got it all panned now I’ve got some decent looking tomatoes. I’ll have three slices of buttered bread, sliced tomatoes on each, balsamic sauce, cheese slices and a slice of the cooked pork on each. Then fold them and have some extras added, red onion, pork and mushroom pate, frank, chestnuts and a lemon mousse?
Then I weakened as I passed by the fresh cream cake fridge.
As it happens, I was sorry I bothered. Never has a fresh cream cake before, ever tasted so cardboard and sugar-like! Eurgh!
Paid through the tills and out over the road back to the Shoe Zone. Plenty of time before the bus to Carrington was due, so I looked at the men’s slippers they had on offer. Spotted some that had velcro fasteners and searched for a size eight, without any luck. 6’s, 7’s, 9’s, 10’s, 11’s, yes. So I took a pair of size nines and paid the young lady.
To the bus stop. When I got on, I realised I had not been to the Doctors surgery! What a Plonka!
So, I stayed on the bus into Sherwood and caught one to Carrington.
All was okay with the appointments on Monday. No Doctors or nurses were on site for me to ask advice of. My own silly fault for getting confused and not going earlier.
Caught a bus back to Sherwood, fell asleep and woke-up in Arnold, miles beyond where I meant to alight. I did feel a fool!
Got off at Croft Street, and as luck would have it, an L9 bus back to the flats was due. So I caught that one, the same driver, who gave me a funny sideways glance. Hehehe!
In Sherwood, Roy got on the bus and more banters ensued. Up to the flats and we still were laughing about something as we arrived at the foyer.
When I got into the flat, the noise from the winds was horrendous, yet on the ground, I had not noticed any wind.
I was well shattered with my self-imposed marathon runaround. To the Porcelain Throne, back to the spurting mode.
Did the Health Checks and made a brew. Then got the nosh prepared, no bother cause there was no cooking involved. A lot of crumbs to be located, though.
Apart from the terrible French Horns, everything went down, yes, I ate the lot! And, just as I had planned ingredients wise too!
The mind was a little confused, no, vague might be a better word.
As the darkness fell, the rain came with it. The winds still howling up here.
The sounds of emergency vehicle horns and klaxons were heard for ten minutes or so. I haven’t found out why yet.
Got the Boon DVD on and stayed awake for three episodes.
Put the TV on, and I was off into the land of Nod at the first set of commercials that came on. Early too, even for me.
Woke around midnight and lay there with no chance of getting back to sleep for hours. Nodded off again around 0200hrs, and woke up at 0400hrs.
Nice lot of photos today, and array of groceries. It’s a bit wet I see.
It’s clear, dry and cold here. It was so cold out here last night that after I extracted myself from a pile of cats at 5:30 this morning, I discovered the water to the house was frozen. We have our own well and part of the waterline under the house isn’t buried — I have heat tape and insulation on it which has worked well for the past 36 years. I figured the heat tape quit working, but after I crawled under the house later in the morning, I discovered critters have been stealing insulation off the pipe — the heat tape needs the insulation to heat the pipe. So I spent most of the day on my belly in the dirt replacing insulation on the pipe and repairing other things while I was at it. Fortunately, the water to my darkroom is on a separate line that runs underground all the way to the darkroom, so it doesn’t freeze. I was able to get water for the kitties and birds, and water to make coffee from the darkroom — no coffee this morning would have been a disaster with having to work under the house for much of the day. I directed heat under the house first thing this morning, and the pipe finally thawed around 10:30.
Looks like an interesting assortment of food.
Boy, you coped well with that disaster Sir.
Do the critters use the tape for nesting then, Tim? Testimony to what a good job you did in the first place, how long it’s lasted.
If I’d have woken up to find freezing pipes it would have been panic-stations for me. Hehe! Good work getting the coffee flowing again too.
So glad you sorted it and I bet the furries were too! Even if it meant most of the day on your belly in the dirt.
Best wishes on pipes front.
Cheers.
The squirrels and mice like the fiberglass insulation for nesting, but the insulation that was torn up and missing is dense styrofoam pipe wrap insulation. I’m starting to think the cats that we have letting out recently are clawing on it, given it hasn’t been bothered much for the past 36 years until now. You will like this story. The way I direct heat under the house is to open a hole I made in the ductwork many years ago to attach an 8 inch flexible duct that went to the room that has the darkroom in it to the central heating system. One day I noticed there was no heat coming out of the register in the spare room. I crawled under the house to discover the raccoons had disconnected the flexible duct from the register, and had it heating the den they and dug out under the house. I gave up at that point and plugged the hole in the main ductwork. Raccoons are too smart and industrious to keep them from disconnecting the duct and using the heat. I have used oil heaters in that room and the darkroom ever since.
You’re right, Tim. I did like that story. I’ve never seen a Raccoon, only on film and in books. Just looked them up. Seems like you made the right choice from what I read abotu the cunning things. Getting free central heating for their nest!
Hehe!
Wonder if it was the cats, your logic would indicate so.
Cheers Sir.