Monday 17th February 2020

Zulu: UMsombuluko 17 ngoFebhuwari 2020

 01:05hrs: I woke to the sounds of the blowing winds, rain hitting the windows. And I could still hear the flipping ‘Hum’ from the inside at the same time! Oy-oy-oy! A wee-wee was needed, and it was growing more urgent second by second. The battle to get out of the second-hand, £300, c1968 recliner, was a struggle. During which it came to light that Back-Pain-Brenda and Anne Gyna were both going to be a hassle today. But thankfully, Arthur Itis seemed a lot easier on the knees! The toothache appears to have eased off a tad? I’m not complaining about that!

I grabbed the stick and utilised the GPWWB (Grey-Plastic-Wee-Wee-Bucket). It proved to be of the SSP (Short-Sharp-Painful) style. But with a high degree of splashback. Off to the wet room for a hand wash. I tried for a Porcelain Throne visit while in there, but no luck.

Off to the kitchen, where I was flabbergasted to find the cupboard doors open, and the medical drawers pulled out. With various bits and pieces of cutlery and pottery in different places than normal? What’s been going on here! I looked around at the disorganised mess, and for the life of me, couldn’t remember, understand or work-out what had happened! Ah, nocturnal meanderings perhaps? Baffled completely now! To a certain extent, I managed to ostracise my worries and concerns from my mind, which was a rarity indeed, an aberration, a deviation from normality and ordinariness in itself! Inwardly, my EQ gave me a smirk?

I got the camera to take a picture of the state of the place, and diverted to take a shot of my extraordinarily, ever-morphing legs!

Gone was the colouring of yesterday, the cadaverousness-bloodlessness had returned. With a few extra lumps, clumps and blood-papule growths more prominent today. The legs were of a different size to each other. The worrying signs of cramps around the shin area… but why can I not recall having any pains during the night? I pondered on trying to understand the when what and why for’s. Why should I go through the cupboards and draw, leave the mall open, and get my head down again? My IQ interrupted, with a sort of; “Forget it, at least whatever happened, you got through it uninjured!” He rounded off his statement with snide-snigger! Which made sense to me. 

I took my medications, made a mug of tea, and had to shoot off back to the wet room, which was done with ease, to use the Porcelain Throne. Argh! Squawk, caterwauling and ululations! Talk about pain! What in hell had I just passed? I wonder if I might have eaten a saucepan in my nocturnal wanderings! Hehehe!

I was most disturbed when I got the computer going to update yesterdays post. Battling for domination of the imperfect brain, was the ‘Hum’, the mystery of the night’s kitchen fiasco, and Back-Pain-Brenda and Anne Gyna’s unwelcome attentions. Then the toothache got a little worse. So, I got another codeine phosphate 60g down my gullet and carried on blogging.

I did the comments first. Then on the WordPress Reader section. Later on the TFZer Facebooking.

Eventually got round to updating the Sunday blog. Which was more relaxed than it has been for ages! Saccades-Sandra and Nicodemus Neurotransmitions were both being so kind to me! Yee-Ha!

Ablutions to be tackled! Off I limped to the wet-room. An amazing session! Dropsies were limited to the razor (3), toothbrush, and the showerhead (2).  

The pins (legs) looked a little changed, even from the early morning shot? The toes were curling a tad too. Gawd knows why? Still got some of the odd spots from yesterday, and maybe the ankle ulcer is having another go at coming back.

As I was putting the camera on floor-cabinet, I took an unintended picture. Huh! It came out betterer than some intended ones I’ve taken. Hahaha! While looking at the photo later when I got back home, I realised the chest hairs had gone again! No wonder I was getting confused at finding hairs in the sink earlier! This has happened three times since the stroke. Another mystery of my beloved Woodthorpe Court, that lies somewhere between the twilight zone and a wormhole slipping through a tear in the fabric of space & the spacetime continuum. With illusion, delusion, & hallucination, rife! Hey-ho!

I got dried, dressed, and tended to the handwashing. It was easier and quicker than yesterday, I only did a pair of socks and a long-sleeved t-shirt. I don’t recall spilling any water this time, either. Smug-Mode-Adopted!

Then after they were done, wrung and hung, I got a few bags taken to the chute, and one big one to take down with me for the skip.

The timing went well this Monday. As I set off, after a couple of pitiable returns to the flat to check the cooker, then the taps, I got the big bag in my hand and the three small black ones on top of the walker-guide.

Off to the waste room, then down and out to the new skip. I’m afraid the lid has been made a lot smaller on this one. With the strong winds wanting to blow me away from the skip, I had a job getting the bags in it!

Then, the planned amble to the bus stop became another challenge to overcome. The nasty winds did their best to send me back to Woodthorpe Court for a time, then fell-off as quickly as they had started! By the time, a few minutes only, that I got to the bus stop, the winds returned. Then packed in again?

As the buses both arrived, I went to the Winchester Foyer, to help Christine to the shelter in the high gusty wind, and it dropped again. Ah, well! A big crowd for the buses today, as is expected on a Monday, though. The City-bound bus arrived ahead of the Bestwood one. Surprisingly, only about four tenants got on it, including me. I had a bash at the crossword book to start with, and the trip was excellent and steady, no battling to stay in the side-saddle seat.

I arrived in town at the terminus on Queen Street, thanked the kind lady driver, and gave her a nibble bar.

The wind was evil in the City Centre as well when I got off the bus. I hobbled against the weather, down to the Slab Square. I took a series of photographs, left to right.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

I walked the periphery of the Square and crossed over South Parade on my way to the Poundland Shop. Where I had a sniff around, and arrived at the self-serve checkouts, with the following in my basket:

A pork Farms pork pie (well they are excellent value at a quid [Guilt-Mode-Adopted!]). A BLT brown bread ready-made sarnie. Kitchen roll (they are just the right size for blowing my nose on!) A beef pastie, Dettol plain and lavender disinfectants. Toothpaste. A toothbrush (to replace the one I broke in half in my gob on Saturday, Tsk!) Cashew nuts, razors (To replace the ones I broke on Friday). And, a spray of ‘For Man – Addiction Gold perfume spray! (Well, I can try! Hehehe!)

I had help from the same kind lady in putting them through for me. (I got a look from her when she put the ‘Man Perfume’ through the till, that said; Ah, bless him!) I gave her a can of Gin & Tonic in thanks. Then out back to the Slab Square. I took a zoomed-in shot of the flag pole on top of the Council House, that had been bent over in the high winds! Oh, dear!

I had an amble around the Square, snapping merrily away.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The winds seem to be dying down, but no! As I made my way up Queen Street to Parliament Street, they gusted again. I can’t remember winds doing this before – I blame Brexit, myself! Hehe!

A chappie had apparently been assigned to watch over some underground works taking place. But the girls trying on clothes in the White Rose 6 store that sells ladies handpicked recycled fashion and accessories in support of Aegis Trust, was too much of a distraction for him. You can’t blame him!

When I got up onto Parliament Street, to take a photo of the traffic, I noticed a right born pillock. I think he was a food delivery nit, judging by the box on his back. He rode the wrong way against the traffic, then road his moped whatever it was, over the pelican lights weaving between the crossing pedestrians! Terrible! Anyway, I took the snap along Parliament Street of the buses, in case any of my thousands of followers and reader from the USA, might find it of interest. I know they both like buses. Hehehe!

Then, as I hobbled down the hill to the bus stop, to take the last photo in town for the day, the wind got up again and the sun did a runner, luckily I caught it just right! Or I thought I had.

Ailing Nicodemus Neurotransmitters packed up as I was just pressing the button on the camera! Luckily, I have got into the habit of slipping my hand in the grab strap regularly nowadays, and this trait saved me dropping the Canon on the floor! Phew! Lucky!

I got on the bus, and immediately recognised the driver as being the Stirling Moss fan! I braced myself for a journey of battling to stay in the side-saddle seat. Just as well I did. By the time we got home to the falts, Back-Pain-Brenda and Arthur Itis had both started off! Humph! Still, I had a Chinwag with Christine on the bus.

We arrived back, and I made sure I was nearby her, in case the winds got blustery. We had a lovely natter as we walked through to Woodthorpe Court, and in the lift. Sadly I said my farewells as I got off the elevator.

I got in the flat, and no needs for any wee-weeing came. (A little unnerving that!) I got the purchases put away, and sliced some mushrooms and got them in the saucepan, with onion salt and balsamic vinegar.

There were noises I could not recognise, banging, rustling tapping coming from somewhere inside. The ‘Hum’ continues unabated and is joined by gusting, almost singing winds occasionally. Back-Pain-Brenda and Arthur Itis were both bothersome since the bus ride home. Thank heavens the toothache was not so bad, but it’s early yet.

I made a start on updating this blog, as the sky turned into what must have been a nephrologists delight. Beautiful!

But, when I opened the unwanted, light & view-blocking, thick-framed, disliked photographer-hating kitchen window, the howling wind blew through and spread about the kitchen towels, tea bag pots and oven mitts onto the floor. The window almost clouted me in the face! Cholericalisations!

I got to three hours past my usual head-down time. Gave up on the computerisationing, and got the nosh sorted out.

When I got it into the front room, I wondered why I left a gap in the middle of the plate? In this photo, I’d forgot to add the mushrooms. I went back to the kitchen and got them out of the saucepan and added them to the dish. Tsk!

Taste Rating of 7/10.

Got the TV on, an interesting program open the Smithsonian channel, about failed Moon missions. I thought I’ll watch that! Huh! Zzzz!