Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 10 January 2016

Thanks Brenda.   I'm on the list of people who Hope Things Will Go Away on Their Own, and hate to trouble the Doc.  But you do have to be sensible, sometimes.  She also told me off a little, as she pointed out that I could have rung 111 and got advice over the phone about whether I needed to see a Doc out of hours.  But I was resisting that, too, and hoping that it would sort itself out.

My OH has now collected my prescription as he had other errands in Town this morning.  So I have it to hand if needed which is reassuring.

Dry here again today: yesterday was bright in the morning so I washed some fleeces and also a couple of coats which I am donating to the Charity Shop as when I removed all of my various coats from the wardrobe, I seem to have quite a few!  :-D

Hope Everyone has a good day with no rain, today.  Love and Hugs to Margo.  I'm off to wash the kitchen floor:  such fun!

LINDY - I very rarely visit my GP but there are times when we have to seek advice if the local pharmacist can't help and we are worried about something. We have an NHS podiatrist here and I was referred easily, some years ago, for a problem that wouldn't clear with home treatments.

BRENDA - I share your frustration about unnecessary visits to A and E. A good friend of mine who is a Registrar in A and E in a busy London hospital says the pressure on his department is multifactorial. Partly due to difficulty in getting GP appointments, partly due to culture and education - he says that his catchment area covers both rich and poor geographical areas. There is still a huge tradition of residents 'owning' their local hospital in the sense that the older resident have great faith in it. He is passionate in his wish to make things better, stood as a candidate in a by election last year

I shouldn't laugh but apparently a newsreader accidentally announced David Cameron's death instead of David Bowie's.  I don't have words.....

Three down, twelve to go - hey, that's 20% done!  Treatment goes ahead as normal tomorrow despite the strike - hardly any junior doctors in that department.

Had a good lunch at OTB today - only wanted a sandwich (brie and cranberry, without the bacon)- but OH had tomato soup and prawn sandwich.  The bread was very thick, so I left my crusts (slapped wrist) - apparently they don't have a proper bread knife to cut the lovely local bread, so manager was going round to Pro-Cook in the shopping outlet to get one this afternoon!

Going to share cooking dinner tonight - I already made a cauliflower and broccoli cheese with frozen leftover veg and some lurking cheese ends, while OH went shopping!

Unknown said:

Three down, twelve to go - hey, that's 20% done!  Treatment goes ahead as normal tomorrow despite the strike - hardly any junior doctors in that department.

I'm relieved to hear that.  I hope it continues to go OK.

Well done, OG. You appear to be coping extremely well with the travelling and the treatment.

Good grief: WC went into overdrive today - such a lot of posts. Didn't realize David Bowie had been ill. He was featured on the Calendar section of yesterday's Los Angeles Times. From an editorial standpoint, I can imagine they were relieved about the timing. I did an interview once with the founder of the Gore-Tex company. We'd just finished with that issue of our magazine and were all relaxing when I got a call late on the Friday afternoon saying the gentleman had died suddenly. I had to leap back into action and come up with an entire new story for those pages in two days. 

Re television, I see that Wolf Hall  won a Golden Globe Award last night.

OG: Was re-reading my latest post and realized I'd told AQ I hoped her grandson's basement wasn't flooded. Clearly, I'd lost the plot!  Just looked at the OTB online - what a cozy little place.

Diane: Now we'll all be imagining you stuck in a ditch somewhere in the lower 40 with a broken leg if we don't hear from you! My grandson has a tough little flip phone that takes all kinds of abuse. Or maybe you could wear a whistle around your neck?

Lindybird: I love hearing about the "old days" of neighborhoods and agree someone should be recording the anecdotes. I'm another "give it a week or three and see if it goes away" person when it comes to ailments. Hope your toe will calm down. Any shoes going to the Charity  Shop with those coats? :-)

Brenda: Wonder if the NHS criteria for chiropodist treatment has anything to do with possible complications for diabetes?  Agree totally about ER visits; we have Urgent Care centers here for non-life threatening injuries and some of our big pharmacies (stores like Boots) now have a One-Minute Doc for very basic care and advice.

On the topic of old movies, I recently recorded Doctor Zhivago, Far from the Madding Crowd and The Godfather Parts 1 and 11, plus some 1950s film noire movies.  In the meantime, I'm enjoying watching Inspector George Gently, series 7.

Off to hose down and get organized. Take care all.

A Whale rescue story from Scotland for ANNETTE:

www.bbc.co.uk/.../uk-scotland-35281002

Thanks, folks.  Seem to be less tired - guess I just got used to it, and travelling is so good at that time of day, so much easier than when I went for first consultation there (at the time of the floods).  Next man in after me today said it was pouring with rain in Cockermouth - I do feel for the people of that lovely friendly wee town over in West Cumbria.

ANNETTE - pleased you researched the OTB as I kept forgetting to tell you it isn't a Bar called the Old Toll; the toll bar was where road tolls were collected - in this case from people crossing the Border, which in that position is the River Sark.  It is also known as the Last House in Scotland, or First House in Scotland, depending which way one is travelling - and was used as a quick marriage room for couples whose fathers were almost catching up with them as they eloped!  The nearby Gretna Chase Hotel is so named for the same reason.  NHS treatment for chiropody is available free if people have diabetes - but it varies from region to region, and also they leave too many weeks for comfort between appointments, so many people resort to private foot care.

About to go and wake up my brain watching University Challenge on the BBC - and that is one they are good at!

Margo – I love to hear from you however boring your days are. And of Billie too. {HUGS}}}

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Annette – Fleurieu Peninsula is just an hour’s drive from city. Holiday town Victor Harbor well-known as a town for retirees & then they have Schoolies Weekend for Year 12s at end of their schooldays. McLaren Vale wineries, Willunga, Yankalilla, Cape Jervis (ferry to Kangaroo Is), Port Elliot, Goolwa on lower River Murray. Lots to see, try Mr Google. Oh, do you get to see any of the Tour DownUnder? Starts next week. Stage 4 goes to Victor Harbor, Stage 5 is McLaren Vale to Willunga Hill (steep).

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Diane – You should carry your phone to call for help if you trip & hurt yourself. [Later] I see OG & Brenda say the same. Minus 13 !!! our min temp last night was 21 C. Well it can’t go far down with 38 C yesterday & again today.

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OG - I can nap anytime. Yesterday I nodded off around 4 pm when I was, er, supervising the twins. But of course I didn’t sleep through the night, wandering around at 2 am.

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Nanny day was fairly easy. Twins have a snack before nap. They slept from 11 am until we woke them at 3 pm for lunch. For some unknown reason they refused their boiled eggs. So Dau brought in the “big guns” – Miss4. Both little brats happily accepted spoonfuls of egg from Miss4. Once started, Dau & I could continue with the rest. At teatime I was supervising MissJ while Dau was encouraging MissL. Suddenly smiles all round, Daddy’s home. MissJ demanded a kiss (very sticky food-smeared kiss), then she pointed to MissL. Daddy obliged by kissing MissL. Then the finger is out, pointing to Mummy. Daddy obliged. Little Miss Bossy.