Day 3132 Bedside manner.

13th March 2026

Now I’m not superstitious, but I experienced a couple of events challenging that.

As I have mentioned I am looking after Ryan and Louise’s two dogs Bobby and Dexter.

I had a good sleep, what I had of it, I was awoken by Dexter wanting to go outside at 04.30am. I remember I got down the stairs, opened the back door, and then letting him back in and getting back to bed afterwards.

The first traumatic event happened when Bobby moved from the foot of the bed, where he normally sleeps, to laying on my chest in such a way that my arms we trapped. He then proceeded to lick my face from chin to forehead.

Now I don’t like my face being licked, not for any particular reason other than where he could have licked before, if you catch my drift?

That was the rude awakening I wasn’t expecting, but it motivated me to get up.

I wrestled with them to attach the harnesses, and made it through the door, ready for the early morning walk.

There had been heavy rain in the night, and the words that Louise spoke about it being muddy did ring my ears, but I obviously ignored that.

Reaching the entrance I could see what she meant. 

What happened next could be described as an Eddie the eagle Edwards moment.

The shoes I was wearing did not have much grip, correction, they had no grip. The dogs were pulling me, I then started to slide, the path was steep downhill, and I had no control.

I fought the forces that were trying to flip my legs up, and getting to the bottom was a miracle.

“Phew! That was close”

Then the path turned to the right, there was even more mud, that is where I lost it, my legs flipped sideways and I landed on my side, my feeble attempt to save myself from landing on my arse.

I managed to stand and survey the damage, there was mud all down my right side, if Kelli could see me now was my first thought.

I released the hounds, and off they went, I stood there for a minute making sure that nobody was around, and making up a plausible explanations for my fashion disaster.

We finished the walk, I hitched up the dogs, now they could pull me up the hill.

We got back and I gave them their breakfast, realising I didn’t have my glasses that were on my head before the accident. Panic stations, I ran back retracing my steps. Now I had to go back down the sloping path on my own, my shoes failing to grip, but somehow I made it without a repeat performance.

I reached the area where I could see my skid mark, there were my glasses sitting on the grass.

The relief was enormous.

I made sure the dog were settled before going back to the cottage, where I put my mud soiled clothes into the washing machine.

Next was lunch with my friend Rob in Bath at our favourite Indian Restaurant, and no, this time there was no Masala Dosa. Instead it was something different, don’t ask me what it was, I went along with Rob’s recommendation, and it was delicious.

At the start of my visit I heard that another of my old school friends was really ill , I found out that he was being treated in the RUH for sepsis.

Rob and myself had agreed to visit him at the Pulteney ward. We took him some grapes, we split them, I provided the grapes and Rob the stalks.

Rod parked a mile or so away from the hospital, to avoid the car park fees, which meant we had to walk.  Now I had decided to wear some boots that I had for a long time, this was a bad mistake.

I have been used to wearing wide shoes, so trying to squeeze my feet into more shaped footwear should have been avoided.

They were fine as long as I didn’t walk in them, but squeaky Rob forced me to do that.

Anyway, we found Pete our sick school friend, but he was being taken to have a CT scan, so we had to wait half an hour for him to be returned to his room.

We found a restaurant and made ourselves a cup of tea.

All this was eating into our two hour free parking time. By the time we actually got to spend time with Pete, we almost had to turn round and head back to the car, but not before he described what treatment he had underwent.

By the time he got to the three incisions he had on his tummy I thought I was going to faint.

He had all that, and could still smile about it.

By the time I got off the bus and walked back to the cottage, I was in agony, I was hobbling along. Both feet had different pain I could wait to take those bloody boots off, I could hear my toes celebrating.