Easy Does It

The garden was thrumming with birdlife yesterday morning, the activity hectic, and the singing .... ! What can be going on? Everyone seems to have an urgent purpose, except me, though getting better is my main focus. Ruth came over and we had lunch under the parasol - we simply could not tolerate the heat from the sun. She brought a bottle, but she drank alone, though in the evening I fortified myself with half a pint of Adnam's Broadside with my meagre supper. This consisted of slightly warmed, ready-cooked puy lentils, some leftover pasta, steamed spinach, a few walnuts, some pesto and a bit of parmesan. I was scraping the bottom of the fridge, and frankly it was a bit depressing, a collage of bits and pieces. I've refused offers of a serious shop, but today I see that Waitrose delivery is fully booked until Monday! There's nothing for it but a hasty visit to Fram Co-op to stock up. At least they have better chocolate cake.

I've sorted through my paperwork and made neat files of different categories, again. How does it get out of order when I never go near it, just top up the pile with the latest document through the post? I discovered that the car breakdown contact details which I only last week finally got around to putting in the car are out of date - I changed providers in January! How lucky that I haven't needed them. I've just blown my nose vigorously and I see that I've alarmed Hugo. The other evening I nearly choked on a huge glucosamine pill surely designed for a horse, and as I coughed and spluttered, trying to get some breath into my lungs, I saw that he had come over to me and was leaning his head against my leg, looking up at me with concern. I was very touched, but it also brought home to me how quickly life can be snuffed out if you get it wrong, make a little mistake.

Things not to do when you live alone:
Gallop up and down the stairs, especially carrying heavy things. Blessed are all bungalow dwellers
Eat anything hastily, especially pills or nuts
Leap out of the bath when your hands are wet and the bathmat is on a slippery floor
Dive for the phone when you have papers strewn on a tiled floor
Try to fix a wall light without first turning off the electricity
Do any work around a pond, especially when you're tired
Play mad chasing games around the house with a boistrous dog because sooner or later a limb is going to be broken, and it won't be his
Try to be too clever. This covers everything

These warnings are not confined to singletons, but at least you stand a chance of being saved if someone else is around. Outside the wind is howling, and it reminds me that I must cut the stray spurs of wisteria that hammered against my window last night. The persistant tapping didn't keep me awake but it entered my dreams, and I was at Snape and someone pushed me on stage to play the drums because they were a player short. I was torn between the thrill of showing off and the terror of the exposed wallflower, but before I could make my mind up I jerked awake. I'll never know how good I might have been.