Wednesday 30th March 2022

Morning Thoughts Ode

A difficult day to navigate…
Thoughts, intentions I miscalibrate,
Mind-freezers and blanks dominate!
Confusion, memory-blanks delay…
Getting things done in a logical way…
Clear thinking, I was refused…
All day long, I felt I was reclused…
Not to mention mightily confused!

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

05:30hrs: I stirred back into the sad world of a lonely consciousness. Dispirited, low, not fully-with-it. My thoughts were vague, ambiguous even to me, and I thought them! Hehehe! This weird feeling of solitariness must have come for a reason? Mayhaps I’d had a dream of some sort?

Hello, Mr Nice from above has started early this morning. I reckon it is something heavy he’s making today. I hope he doesn’t hurt himself too much. Ahem! Cause the clunks and thuds were louder, a lot of drilling noises followed along with the usual tap-tapping and odd thunderclap clunk, here and there later on.

Carer Richard arrived. While he was doing my medications, the intercom burst forth and flashed. Thanks, Dementia Doreen! It was a J Sainsbury’s order that I thought was coming on Thursday? Hmm?

No bread was delivered, but as they pointed out, I requested no substitute. Like last time, they’d sent me potato pancakes in place of bread?

Two short date products as described on the right. The fishcakes were with use by today’s date! The salad was by tomorrow. As they say in their advert: Sainsbury’s: Helping everyone Eat better?

However, they did express that they hope I’ll be completely happy with my order, and I can return anything I’m not happy with, and I’ll get a refund within five working days! And Sainsbury’s is owned by Royalty, you know. It shows, dunnit?

Carer Richard took the boxes through into the kitchen, and I got them stored away. He also checked the dates on the stuff in the fridge for me. Finding a few items out of date, Ahem!

Richard departed, leaving a confused Inchcock, Perplexed;  ① as to how he thought they coming tomorrow, not today? ② How they could send something with a sell-by date of the same day? ③ The cream cakes were mashed up together in the box! ④ And the daffodils (Jenny and Francis treats) had petals knocked off of them! ⑤ And why had Little Inchies fungal lesion suddenly started spouting blood?

Off to the wet room and dug out the new ointment. This took a lot longer than expected. Cleaning things up and applying the cream was its usual painful experience. And by the time I’d finished, got new PPs on and dressed, Dizzy Dennis had joined me, and my vision was blurred for some reason?

So, I did the blood pressure to see if anything was out of sync. Well, the blood pressure was acceptable. The Pulse was a smidge high, but only a tiny bit so. The body temperature was lowish, 35°c is my target, and it was 33.7°c. Again, it was so low as to cause concern. I thought about it; what had caused this funny spell? Then gave up.

I spent hours and hours blogging, almost automatically, and now have many memory blanks. Reading my scribbled remember-it notes on the pad was impossible for hours, and I did start to get a little worried then.

I found myself sitting on the £300, c1968, second-hand, charity shop-bought, eyesorely-horrendously grungy coloured, haemorrhoid-testing, unfit-for-use, not working recliner, with the TV on? No idea? What happened during the intervening hours…

Initially, I panicked a bit, and got up, grabbed Metal Micky, and started having a search around Sherlockian style. Worried that any heat, taps (faucets), stove hobs or oven had been left on.

After a limp around, I found everything as it should be! There were no running taps, lights or heaters left on, windows closed, the cooker was cold all over to the touch, and the fridge-freezer doors shut. Plus, I was feeling a lot better in myself physically. Dizzy Dennis had departed, and my vision seemed to be normal again??? As normal as one can expect, with having cataracts, glaucoma and saccades. Even the kettles were both stone cold… that must be a first for me. I almost felt contended.

I was still mystified about where the hours had gone and what I had been doing… sleeping? Little Inchie was checked; all well, no bleeding now.

I felt hunger pangs brewing up. So off to the kitchenette and started on a had a cooking session. Noticing the beautiful evening, I got the Canon and took to picture of the blue hue of the evening.

It was turning dark quickly tonight. Ten minutes after taking the first shot, I took this second picture of the same scene.

Then I got the meal onto the plate and put the used oven tray and saucepan in the sink to soak while I ate the dinner…

I turned to put the saucepan on the draining board and gave myself one hell of toe-stubbing on the wheel of the server trolley! My language was a smidgeon blue and self derogatory in nature!

Then I missed the edge of the draining board with the saucepan, which now has a deep custom-designed dent it, as it fell off and landed right on the recently stubbed toe!

But I curbed my histrionics as the evening carer arrived. The Carer soon sorted the medications out in double time, I thanked her, and I got back and settled with the meal tray on my knee dining, and turned on the TV to watch the end of a ‘Heartbeat’ episode… regretfully, I managed neither of the planned activities!

Well, there was a single item on the J Sainsbury delivered fodder that was edible, really… Sorry, but it’s true! The cheese curls were really rock-hard outside and soft inside. The potatoes cakes had not an ounce of ant flavour or taste? The cobs were like cardboard. The fresh peas were bitter! A flavour Rating of 1/10! That was for the tasty lemon and lime cheesecake. Note To Self: Stop buying cheese curls, potato cakes, cobs, and fresh peas from J Sainsbury’s! The waste bin for 95% of that meal.

From then on, there is no sound memory of what happened. I think I slipped into sleep at about 22:00hrs and slept through until 05:40hrs… at least that’s when I woke up.

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Thursday 31st March 2022

Morning Thoughts Ode

A day that I anticipate,
There will be love & hate…
But neither of them will be very great…
I’ll try to not let today aggravate,
Good and evil will alternate,
Good fortune, I’ll not wait…
Thought-Storms to circumnavigate,
Worries and fears to collate…
Naturally, I’ll remain celibate,
Sanity, hopes, health to connotate…
Daily tasks I’ll try to coordinate,
As soon as I find the time and date…
Confusion’s just an everyday trait,
Mind-blanks, make me feel desperate,
Dizzy spells, none for a while, but I await…
Saccades, Cataracts Glaucoma, eyes dilate…
My vision and hearing began to absquatulate!
At least I haven’t started to hallucinate…
Note to self: Just give it time, mate…

05:40hrs: I blinked myself awake and waited for the eyesight to clear. And realised how good I felt this morning. Well, as good as I could manage. The brain fogginess and dizzies had departed! Yee-Ha! I’d had a decent kip for once and was with it more today. How long for, I didn’t want to go into!

I decided to make use of this moment, and I rose, caught my balance, and had a hobble with Metal Micky to the wet room to get the ablutions done. I managed to get a few nicks and cuts shaving in my over-confidence, nothing serious.

The toe from last night’s stubbing and falling saucepan landing on it had left me with a new limping style. Hahaha! Yet I still gave myself a toe-stubbing on the same digit as I left the wet room, against the doorframe edge. Humph! But it was not a bad one. I got dressed, put the kettle on, and had to go back to the wet room to visit and utilise the Porcelain Throne.

No doubt about it, Constipation Conrad was in full charge of the operation this morning! It was a long time before any activity started, and when it did, an awfully long and painful input from me was needed to literally force things out! So, I had a go at the crosswording, the old book.

I was running out of time to get things done on this blog, so something had to curtail things of detail. Everything takes so much longer, ever-increasingly longer, to do with the computer. Problems with the computer, Liberty-Global Virgin Media internet going down so often, the eyes and Neuropathy Pete… now the mind-blanks making it so difficult to get anything done. And always missing errors and mistakes… Sorry.

Went to make a brew of Glengettie tea in the kitchen.

Took this photo and added the ghost skull in the window for a bit of fun later. Hahaha!

Oh, my Jimminee, what a high SYS and low Pulse I’ve got this morning. Not that I’m surprised, I sort of expected it.

But at least the body temperature was a little higher this morning, close to its official target of 35°c for once.

I heard the wind blowing outside, which goes to show how strong it must have been for me to hear it.

I had a peep out of the balcony window, and blooming heck, it was snowing. Fine thin flakes, but large ones.

I took another photo to the right, of the end car park.

Rather comforting to see red-van-man back parked on the yellow no-parking chevrons.

Took a photo (All of these were taken through the glass... too cold to stick my head outside and get the flat filled with snowflakes). Hahaha! Of the front car park on Chestnut Walk.

Snowflake was my nickname in the Meadows boxing club. I’m not sure why I bothered mentioning that?

Then a shot that showed nothing through the left-hand window in the balcony.

I went back to the computer, finished the Snippets blog, and posted it to WordPress. It was a challenging, mistake-ridden, sanity-testing affair as  I got angrier with myself for my many stupid mistakes,

The snowing stopped, leaving a thin coating that gave the bottom field an eerie look, especially for April! (Nearly) Haha!

I got the daffodils and took them first to Francis. What a farce it was as well. Got to the elevators and had a while to wait to get one. Down to the eighth floor, and as the door opened, Francis was waiting to get in, to go out. I gave her the bag with flowers and some nibbles and got out to allow Francis and a bloke to get it, so they would not be delayed and possibly miss the bus. I waited for the next lift to go back up to the ninth floor and Jenny’s.

Three times the cage arrived, but always on the way down. It would have been quicker to have gone down and come back up again. Haha! Dropped off the bag at Jenny and Franks, left some drinkies with them for Frank and Doris. ♥

Back to the flat, and the weather looked slightly different when I got in. The wind seemed to have dropped, and the snow had melted away into the earth and ether.

I opened the window and am sure I could smell petrichor as if it had been raining?

I made an order for Iceland for the following Monday. I made sure I kept to the minimum order – but of course, knowing Iceland, there will be substitutes and out-of-stock items every week. Which nay make the order under the minimum, and cost me delivery charges.

After an hour or so of computing, well, I say computing? It was more like making errors, forgetting details, getting things wrong, hitting the wrong buttons, and getting even more wee’d off! The weather changed again.

Made a start on this blog at long last. I got carried away on WordHippo, updating my words to use list… Suddenly, my mind was full of Cognitive biases and guilt. Why?

: I have what I can only call a mind-blank. After hours of sorting out the new list, I closed the notepad without saving it, and I lost the lot! I’ll not repeat my thoughts on this.

Humph! I went to make another brew. I took another wee-wee… they have been persistent again today, even though I’ve cut down on my Glengettie drinking a lot today. No, honestly!

The skies had altered again and were blue with almost white small puffer clouds.

Bootiful sky! It’s been a changeable day.

Waiting for the kettle to boil, I took a clearer photo of the Chestnut Way end car park and red-van-mans parking. Well, he’s pretty consistent; you have to give him credit!

He’s been consistent today; although I’m worried about him now, he’s gone all quiet? Maybe he’s gone to an AA meeting? Or a Masonsonic Lodge meeting? Mafia get together? Or he is having a chat with Putin?

Well, I found I’d had three official-looking letters had been delivered. These make me nervous, you know. They always require me to make phone calls without considering my deafness or Doreen’s Dementia. Nottingham City Homes, Pegasus Police and Queens Medical Centre Eye clinic – Re Cataracts assessment! Two appointments for 3rd May! Now I’ll have to find out where and how to get there. But I was generally cheered by the news.

The Nottingham City Homes was about the rent payments.

I took a half-decent shot from the kitchen window. Showing the further change in the weather… it looked so pretty now.

Being perked up a bit with the news from the hospital seemed to inspire my taste buds. So I decided, after yesterday’s pathetic meal, to make sure this would be a good one! And it was, too!

The extra crispy chips were marvellous, sprinkled with spirit vinegar and Worcester sauce. But, nothing would make the last of the fresh garden peas taste any good, but I did add a bit of sugar while cooking them – it didn’t so much. The tomatoes went down okay. Each round of the cheapo beef slices was eaten within a portion of milk roll bread. I was so keen on consuming the unostentatious meal I forgot to photograph it. So I did part-way through eating it. Oh, I did enjoy it! Flavour Rating: 8/10; I’d have given it a higher score, but for the crap tasting Kenyan peas.

Doing the washing up, I was belching with delight. Haha!

I got the camera and took these photographicalisations of the eerie but fantastic night’s view.

Made up a bottle of spring water, added a drop of orange cordial to it, and whistled to myself; as I checked on the taps (faucets), I was tickled with the actioning of help with the cataracts. Albeit not for a few weeks yet. Checked the electrics and wet room. Then, I meandered almost casually with Metal-Mickey, to the £300, second-hand, c1968, charity shop-bought, eyesorely-horrendously grungy coloured, haemorrhoid-testing, easily-falloutable, unfit-for-use, not working, recliner. My intentions were to get in with Sweet Morpheus as soon as possible…

I should have known better. The Thought-Storms erupted. They gorgonised my tired brain, tormented, teased and put me in an uneasy state of mind. I had no idea when they relaxed their onslaught, but it was gone 23:00hrs cause I put the TV on then, hoping it would help me drift off… Humph!

Have a great day, Folks!