Goodbye 2011

And here we are in the last 10 hours leading up to the new year 2012. I will be glad to see the end of 2011 as in many ways it has been a traumatic year for me but in other ways it has had its moments.

2011 started with me being diagnosed as having a "twisted stomach" also known as a cup and spill stomach. the treatment prescribed by the GP was obviously not working and I was loosing a lot of weight, it was when my weight dropped to 8.5 stone from 13.5 stone that I managed to convince the GP that there were other issues with my health,

In April I was admitted to A&E after a fall where I was diagnosed with Dermatomyositis and the recovery started from there. as mentioned my weight at that point was 8.5 stone and I was on a feeding tube for 4 weeks, followed by a puree diet which I have only just come of off for a "Soft Lumps Diet.

Arron and Sarah holding me steady
for the Photograph

I attended my Nephews Arron,s wedding to Sarah at the end of may 1 week after being discharged from Hospital and it was one of the highlights of my year, it was so good to be back home, and it is thanks to my son Gervase and my good friends Pauline and Gordon that I managed to attend the ceremony. They made sure I was dressed and drove me there and pushed me in the wheelchair.

Gervase and leanne 2009

The next highlight was the Second anniversary of My son Gervase and Leanne,s Wedding they are a lovely couple and are doing so well in there lives, My late wife Chris would be so proud of Him.

By July I am having my Prednisolone tapered down and increasing the Methotrexate and am starting to put on a bit of weight.

Jodie and Dave Aug 2011

 I am also getting used to the 'Puree Diet and am looking forward to the Wedding of My Niece Jodie ( Arron,s sister) and her husband to be Dave. The problem is that they are getting married in kent  on the 13th August and I am not strong enough yet to travel there and back but am looking forward to seeing the Photograph,s, the rest of the family are going so they will keep me up to date via facebook.

Well I am still making progress and although I still have limited mobility I am feeling a lot better in my self. It is nearly a year since I first started to feel the weakness in my swallowing and I was diagnosed in November of 2010 with Dysphagia, a lot has happened since then.

Christine 1945 - 1993

On October the 4th it will be 17 years since my dear wife Christine passed away after fighting Breast Cancer for 8 years, and it is the memory of her courage that spurs me on to fight this Dermatomyositis.  Gervase was only 12 years old when Christine lost her fight and I know we both miss her very much and she is always in our thoughts.

Me November 2011

Well so here we are on the last day of 2011. Hopefully 2012 will be a better year for us all, I am now off of the Puree diet and have steadily been putting on weight and building up my strength, I still have a carer come in every morning to wash and groom me as  I still have some mobility problems but they are getting less,  most things I can do for myself. I have a good team of health professionals looking after me and my blood works seem to be improving I accept that there will be ups and downs on the Myositis Journey but hopefully we are moving in a positive direction. and I am now down to 10 mg of Prednisolone daily and 15 mg Methotrexate weekly on "Freaky Friday". I have tried to put some humour into my daily journal and will continue to do so next year as well as I find that writing this Journal helps me to put my life into perspective, it also keeps Family and friends  far and wide around the globe up to date with what is happening and I also know from feedback and emails that it helps other Myositis sufferers and puts a smile on a few face,s also I am now up to a weight of 10.5stone so that is 2 stone gained since the end of may.

So all that is left is to say Have a Happy New Year wherever you may be and I will be back again tomorrow with the normal Journal Format,

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Friday Comes, and Friday Goes.

Methotrexate Friday.

And another Friday creeps up behind me and bites me on the butt. I woke at 6.30 this morning and decided that it was a good time to take the Methotrexate, which I did and then went back to sleep until 8.00. At least this way I sleep for the first two hours of the reaction to the Methotrexate. anyway I go and make a coffee and back to bed with that to watch the TV news until 8.45 when I get up and go into the lounge.

Who is on Facebook.

Not feeling that good today, I think I ate to many Mr Kipling slices Yesterday, so need to cut down on them today, but I know that the yucky feeling is due to the Methotrexate, so I need to get some Breakfast and then get round to Tesco Express, and then back indoors and make sure I rest today until the effects of the Methotrexate eases of which hopefully will be early afternoon.

Anyway get some Wheatabix, for breakfast and then log on to the laptop to check who is on facebook and to check my emails, still more spam e-mails than anything else so they all get deleted from the spam folder, Go and make a coffee and then get dressed ready to go round to Tesco Express.

Portsmouth at 9.30 today.

The weather today is not great very cloudy as you can see by the picture of Portsmouth Harbour, taken from the live webcam at 9.30 this morning. They give rain coming in from the west later so I need to get round to Tesco Express and get what I want while it is still dry.

Well I get round to Tesco and get the bits that I want and then make my way back home, on the way back my mobile phone rings and it is Pauline, I text her when I got up and she is Phoning to see that I am OK and to say that Her and Gordon are at the Filling station getting Petrol as they are going up to Basingstoke to visit Gordon,s Sister.  Pauline asks if I want to go down to them Tomorrow (New Years Eve), I will think about it and probably will but I won't stay late.

So I am back indoors and it has just started to rain so timed that about right,  It is now 10.30 and I settle down with the laptop and the daytime TV and work on my "Myositis in Focus" website until 12.30 when I decide to get the washing up done and to make a nice cup of coffee. I settle with the coffee and read the Newspaper and do the crosswords and at 1.30 decide to have some chicken soup for lunch. the effects of the Methotrexate is wearing off so that is OK.

Well that was not the most exciting day I have had but the fact that it is Friday it went pretty well.  so now I am going to relax for the rest of the day and conserve my energy for tomorrow which I have a feeling is going to be busy, will probably go down to Pauline in the evening and then out into the street at midnight to see in the new year with the neighbour,s so a late night probably in  store .

Cast of "New Tricks"

So it is now an evening of Facebook and TV. the Film "The Christmas Carol" has just started on "5 USA + 1 and this evening it is Emmerdale and Coronation street and at 9.00 pm on BBC1 is "New Tricks which will take me up to bedtime.

So that is about it for today so until tomorrow and New Years Eve I will say Cheerio.

Another song to my repertoire

♫♪♫♪♫Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom,♫♪♫♪♫

 Another one bites the dust.

♫♪♫♪♫Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom,♫♪♫♪♫ 

Another one bites the dust

And another one gone, And another one gone

Another one bites the Dust,

Hey I'm Going to eat you to

Another one bites the dust 

A slight change to the words of the Queen Hit Song as I sing it to my Mr Kipling Slices, I can certainly get used to this eating Real food, mind you do not know what my Dietician will say when I see her in the new year, but then again do I really care "NO". I have just spent 10 months on a puree diet so give me a break LOL.

My Favourite Mr Kipling Slices.

Well so far so good the Dysphagia is certainly 100% better the last few weeks, I have managed a Christmas dinner and am eating more solid food than I have done for a long time, although  I have to be careful as there are still certain foods that I still cant swallow like beef, lamb and other fibrous foods and thinks like Beans are a No No, but the progress is there for all to see, I am also putting on weight as Pauline keeps pointing out.

Well another reasonable nights sleep last night and I was awake by 6.30 this morning, so after having a coffee or two in bed (With a Mr kipling Slice), I got up at 8.00 and went into the lounge to fire up the laptop and to check Facebook and my emails.

Portsmouth at 9.57 this morning.

I had a email via my Myositis in Focus site from a Lady in Canada ( Christine ) who also has Myositis as well as Systemic Sclerosis, I replied and we are now friends on facebook and hopefully she will join some of the Myositis groups on Facebook.

Well the weather is not that clever here in Portsmouth at the moment it is quite cloudy and windy and not that warm, it probably won't get any better as the day goes on and the forecast is for rain, anyway time to get some breakfast, Porridge today I think and then a short walk round to Tesco Express to get coffee, milk, Juice, I need to go Early as my brother Pat is coming down this morning to set up my wireless Router for the broadband. 

Expensive Coffee.

It is now 10.00 am so off I go round to Tesco express and this is the point where I detest the marketing ploys of these big Company,s. Normally I would be paying £1.35 for a 100 gm jar of coffee, this morning it is £1.65. I know why they do this, come the new year they will reduce the price back to the original £1.35 and say they are reducing the price as a saving to the customer. This is one marketing ploy that all the large stores participate in. anyway I am now back home and settling down with a coffee and the Daytime TV.   

My Brother Pat.

It is now 11.00 and pat phones to say he will be here about 11.30 and true to his word he arrives at 11.23. It is good to see him and he takes his Birthday card with him as it is his 65th Birthday on the 1st of January.  I make a coffee and we have that with some Mr Kipling Slices (Again) and Pat sets up the wireless broadband for me so that is OK and then he makes his way back home about 12.45. I get back on the laptop and at 1.45 decide to get some lunch so as I did yesterday I have some smoked Haddock with butter and a couple of crispbread.


Well I enjoyed lunch so now to get the lunchtime medication out of the way and get back to what I do best. ( Watch TV and Facebook) 


It is now approaching 3.20 and it is very cloudy outside and raining and starting to get dark so I will get todays Journal finished and posted onto my blog and then put on the heating, draw the curtains and settle to watch the film " On the Buses" at   3.55 on ITV3+1. so until tomorrow which is Methotrexate Friday" I will say Adios Amigo's.

The Wednesday Jaunt.

I really can tell the Time.

And so we go into Wednesday, Christmas bank holidays are over for another year and we are back to almost a normal couple of days until New Years Eve kicks in on Saturday. Had a good night last night, went down to my Son,s for a couple of hours yesterday evening, and his wife Leanne,s dad gave me a lift home about 9.15. it was a good evening and nice to see Gervase, Leanne and Dave. Got to bed about 10.45 and slept through until 4.30 when I got up to go to the bathroom then went back to bed and woke again at 8.00 am so pleased with that.

Got up at 8.30, made a coffee and went into  the lounge to watch the News on TV. Text Gervase and Pauline to let then know all is OK and then checked my emails and went to see who is on facebook.

Portsmouth at 9.30 this morning.

At 9.30 decide to get some breakfast and decided on Cocoa pops today, and very nice they are to, it is now 9.45 and had not heard from Pauline so Phone to see if she got my text and to check that she is ok, The lazy woman only had a lie in this morning, and has only just got up. "What is the world coming to"


Anyway I go and get dressed and have a quick shave and then get the washing up done and get the refuse bagged up ready to go out tonight as it is the Bin Men Tomorrow, I like to get it sorted early so I don,t forget tonight when I get tired, and forget, anyway the weather is very cloudy today so don't know if it is going to rain or not as there are a lot of grey clouds around this morning.

Paying the Bills.

The morning is going by quite quickly and it is now 10.00 and I decide I am going to go down to the Commercial road precinct to pay a cheque into the bank, I need to get it payed in today as it takes 5 working days to clear and next week is the main week of the month when all the direct debits go out to pay the bills "I hate the first week of the month", anyway I need to see if I can get down and back on my own as I am so determined to regain total independence back from this bloody Myositis.

Bus stop in Goldsmith avenue looking west.

So I get ready and decide I will go down by bus. that was "Mistake Number 1". went round to the bus stop in Goldsmith avenue only just round the corner from my house and wait for the number 17 bus. it is 10.20 and the bus is due at 10 26 so I wait, and wait, and wait, good job there is a bus shelter as it starts to rain, and I wait, and wait,................... eventually the bus comes at 10 50 "no that is wrong 2 number 17 buses come at 10.50" oh well its probably safer traveling in two,s. anyway the bus is pretty full but I find a seat, then at the next stop a few more people get on, now I make "Mistake no. 2", there are a couple of elderly ladies get on and have to stand, Where are peoples manners these days, not one person male or female offered them there seat, so I offer mine to one of the ladies and I stand, at least I have my cane for support, but by the time we get to town my legs are starting to hurt.

Commercial road Precinct today.

Anyway we arrive in town and it is still raining but thankfully it is only a light rain so get into the Bank and pay in the cheque and then decide to take a slow walk through the precinct to Marks and Spencer and get a nice ready meal for tonight. it is quite busy down here today, although i thought it would be busier as the schools are on holiday. but it is very nice to be out in the fresh air, and it has stopped raining although the ground is still very wet and the weather is quite mild, my  legs are aching so I don't think I will stay down here long.

Children,s rides and German Market.

anyway as I said I make my way to Marks and Spencer and get a nice Ready meal of Chicken breast in a bacon and cheese sauce with mashed Potato and Carrot so that will go down a treat, I love being of the Puree diet. well that is enough for me time to get home and rest before I over stretch myself so I make my way back to the Taxi rank near the bank as I am going to get a Taxi home, as I am starting to feel the strain on my upper legs and hips. I walk slowly down past the children.s rides which have been set up in the precinct over Christmas they are here every year along with a "German" Market as well, the rides are not busy due in part to the weather and partly to the economic climate.

Well I get to the Taxi rank and get a taxi home, glad to be back indoors so now I can settle down to a nice rest with a cup of coffee it is 12.30 so have been out for a good 2 hours in total  anyway time for some TV and Face book, I will get some lunch at 2.00 pm as I didn't have breakfast until late.

Time for a cat Nap

It is now 2.00 pm so I get some lunch of Smoked Haddock in butter with 2 crispbread followed by 2 Mr Kipling victoria jam slices, "YUM" "YUM", "sorry Pauline, More weight going on" anyway it is now 3.10 and I am getting to the stage where I need to have a lie down, I enjoyed today but after the last few days of Christmas and all the excitement, todays trip out was very exhausting still I Did It, and the legs are not to bad now so I will get this journal posted on my blog and then have a cat nap. so until tomorrow I will say Tatty Bye.

Back to Tuesday Shopping.

Not a Good Night Last Night.

Well there we go then, Christmas over for another year and Forward to the New Year Eve Celebrations on Saturday Night.
Not such a good night last night, went to bed about 11.00 and tossed and turned until about 3.30 this morning before eventually going to sleep and waking at about 8.30. still not feeling to bad today as I rested quite a bit yesterday and pauline will be round to take me shopping at Asda this morning so that will be OK.

Get dressed ready for Pauline.

Anyway make a coffee and go into the lounge to text Pauline and let her know that all is ok. Pauline phones back about 9.30 to say she will be booking a Taxi for 11.00 to come and collect me and we will go to Asda at Fratton to get the shopping, although it won,t be a big shop today, however before that I need to get some breakfast and then get dressed ready for when Pauline comes.
Decide to have Porridge for Breakfast and by now it is 10.00 am so go and get dressed and then fire up the laptop to check the emails and facebook.

Happy Checkout girl.

At 10.55 Pauline texts to say she is on the way so that is OK so get the wheelchair ready and about 11.10 the Taxi and Pauline arrive, so we get the wheelchair into the taxi and off we go to the Asda store at Fratton. We arrive and start to do the shopping. It is not very busy today so it does not take long to get around the store and get what we want  so it is soon time to get to the checkout,s and pay for the shopping.

Fratton Railway Bridge.

Pauline decides that as it has not taken us long to do the shopping today that it may be a good idea if she pushes me home in the wheelchair , rather than getting a Taxi. I am not sure , but she insists and said the fresh air will be good for me, actually she has a point so off we go, it is not that far and we do it in about 20 minutes, the only difficult part for pauline is the little hill by Fratton railway bridge but she manages it with words of encouragement from me like  " come on you are not trying " and " you are supposed to push not pull " and such like, anyway as I said we do it in 20 minutes so I think Pauline deserves a sit down and a nice cup of coffee.

Anyway I make a coffee and we have a sponge cake and then Pauline makes her way home and I get myself some chicken soup and Crispbread for lunch, it is now getting on for 2.00 pm, My son Gervase phones to see how I am and I am going round to them this evening for a couple of hours so i will be on the Laptop this afternoon and then for dinner tonight I have a lovely Turkey Casserole Elaine cooked for me, Elaine dropped it round to me yesterday so there is enough for dinner tonight at 6.00 and also for lunch tomorrow, so will enjoy that.
Anyway I will get this Edition of the Journal posted and then get the washing up done so until tomorrow I will say Adios.

And Boxing day arrives.

Well, Well, Well, Who would have thought 8 months ago that I would be sat down yesterday eating a Christmas Dinner, not just one helping but Two, "Yes Two"  mind you they were 2 very small helpings as I was not going to go silly but took it easy with lots of Gravy, Glasses of water, and short rests, but it was so good, I just hope the improvement continues into 2012, so thanks must go to my Speech Therapist, My Neurologist and my GP for getting me to where I am today, and god bless the National Health Service. also special thanks must go to My Son Gervase and his lovely Wife Leanne, to Pauline and Gordon, My Sister Eileen and my brother Pat  and brother Dave. for all the help and support they have given me this last year also to the rest of the family  in the UK, and Canada who have supported me, and also to all the Myositis friends that I have made on Facebook. "THANK YOU ONE AND ALL"

The Family and Friends.

I had a decent nights sleep again last night, went to bed at 10.30 after a really great day round with Gervase, Leanne, Elaine and Dave, Dave gave me a lift home at 7.30 so that was nice of him, I watched Coronation street and then Downton Abbey at 9.00. thought I would watch the last 30 mins in bed, but fell asleep before the end (Bummer) woke at about 4.30 went to the bathroom and then back to bed and woke again about 8.30, Made a coffee and went back to bed to watch the cartoon "The Gruffalo" and got up about 9.30 to get some wheatabix and to watch the "Gruffalo Child" in the lounge.

Today is going to be a very Lazy day (what is new you all shout) " Nothing I reply" I am going to spend the day and evening on Facebook and watching TV "Oh no your not" you all shout, "Oh Yes I am", " Oh no your not", "Oh yes I am" Oh come on, get in the pantomime spirit. so far I have also watched "Singing in the Rain" and am now watching " On the town" with Frank sinatra and Gene Kelly. I am having 3 crispbread with cream cheese for lunch, and then after I have finished I will take a slow stroll around the block before the rain sets in, I have just checked the live webcam overlooking Portsmouth Harbour and the rain clouds are gathering.

Portsmouth 2.20 pm 26-12-2011

Just been round to Tesco Express and got some fruit drink and some Skinless Sausages so will probably have a couple of Sausages with a burger and Mashed potato for dinner tonight with plenty of gravy and then I brought some Christmas pudding home from Gervase,s last night so will have that with some Custard for pudding. I think I ate to much yesterday so only small meals today (probably). anyway walked home the longer way round from Tesco,s and the clouds have seemed to have cleared and there is blue sky and sunshine now, anyway need to push on and get todays edition of the journal finished and then settle down with the paper and Crossword,s before emmerdale at 6.30 and dinner at 7.00 pm tonight. 

What a difference an hour makes.

Portsmouth Harbour 3.30 26-12-2011

Well I have just made a nice coffee and had with a couple of Biscuits, they are Foxes Biscuits, I do love a nice biscuit in the afternoon with a cup of Coffee, perhaps that is why I am putting on weight, apparently I am getting heavier to push in the wheelchair according to Pauline, so perhaps for easter I should buy her a subscription to a Gym. LOL. "bless her", hopefully if they can stabilize the medication and the inflammation then hopefully I can start Physio and wean myself of the wheelchair. that is going to be my new year resolution I think " to be able to take part in Next years 5k walk at the Great South Run next October. My son took part in the 10k run this year.

Am I really putting on weight.

If I can get to the stage where I can walk with the aide of a cane for 5 Km then I will be happy. I have my Tea shirt designed ready to wear and all donations will go to the Myositis support group here in the UK. Below is my T-Shirt Design.

Well That is my Goal for 2012, and I have got 9 months to get ready  anyway back to today, It is now 4.00 pm and ready to settle down for an evening of High class Television Entertainment ( Ho Ho Ho ) if I can find where I have put the remote control that is  " all shout", "Its Behind You", Oh No don't start that again. anyway it had fallen of the coffee table " so There ". anyway the highlight of today is on BBC 1 at 10.00 pm its " Mrs Brown's boys Christmas special " so looking forward to that so Shrek 2 is on now and at 6.10 pm it is Madagascar : Escape 2 Africa" so a good afternoon /evening ahead.

Mrs Brown,s Boys Cast.

Well Time to get this edition posted and will be back to normal service (Nearly) tomorrow so until then I will say Have a good Evening/afternoon/morning. wherever you may be.

Santa Has Been

And a merry christmas one and all and so after 364 days Christmas day is here one again. Had a really good nights sleep last night, went to bed about 10.30 and got woken at about 2.00 am to the sound of the wind blowing the rain against the window, got up to use the bathroom and saw a light in the garden, thought that it was a bright moon,so looked out and saw some old fellow in a silly red suit trying to climb a ladder on to the roof. anyway he gave up after several attempt,s and left a sack of parcels outside the door. Thought it was the postman come early, anyway next thing is I see him climbing into a sleigh and then away it flies being pulled by 6 reindeer, so went back to be and woke up at 9.00 am. ( Yes Folks SANTA has been )

Well I go and make a coffee and then settle down with the TV and the Laptop for a lazy morning, I get some Breakfast at 10.00 and then phone my sister and text my brother and also Pauline. Gervase phones to say that they are aiming for a 3.00 pm dinner so I book a taxi for 1.45 to get round to them by 2.00 pm.
Pauline phones and we have a chat and then I check the emails and watch the film (Miracle on 34th street) one of my favourite Christmas films. once that is finished I go and get ready and changed for the Taxi to arrive.

Well Taxi duly arrives and off we go to Gervase and leanne,s. Dave is there when I arrive and Elaine arrives about 2.45 so we are all there.It is a super afternoon, I had a really good meal of (Turkey, Roast Potato, stuffing, roast Parsnip, Mashed Swede,  Honey Glazed Carrot, sprout,s and plenty of gravy) I only put up a small meal for me, and ate it all and had a second lot. it was goal achieved, I ate a Christmas dinner with not a blender in sight. Gervase and leanne had been up since 7.00 am preparing and cooking so Thank You Gervase and Leanne.

We spend the afternoon chatting and watching TV and at 7.30 Dave gives me a lift home and I settled down to get this journal done for today and then Downton Abbey on at 9.00 pm so a really good Christmas day.
Sorry this is so short today but I am all worn out after a very exciting day, normal service will resume tomorrow. Adios.

Christmas Eve Arrives.

Good Day and A Merry Christmas to you all, well here we are at Christmas Eve 2011 this time last year we had Snow and freezing temperatures this year we have cloudy skies, light rain showers and temperatures in double figures. below is a screen shot from the weather Observation centre at Langstone Harbour Marina at Portsmouth UK.

On the Laptop.

 Well I must say that I had a far better night last night and apart from waking at 2.00 am and 5.30 am for a few minutes i slept quite soundly and got up at 7.45 to make a coffee and then watched some TV News in bed until getting up and dressed at 8.45. There is no carer today so wash as best as I can and then get some breakfast ( Porridge) today before settling down with the Laptop to see who is around on facebook and also to check the e-mails.

Looking for last minute gifts.

At 9.15 I check the live webcam at Gosport, to see what it looks like over portsmouth and notice that there is a lot of activity in the skies over portsmouth today. It must be due to the amount of sales the shops are having and someone is out looking for last minute bargains, this depression the economy is in is affecting everyone.

On the way to Tesco.

Well the time is moving on and it is now 11.00 so time to go round to Tesco Express and get some milk and fruit drink for today and tomorrow, as most of the shops are shut tomorrow although i will be down with Gervase most of the afternoon. anyway I take a walk round to Tesco, and it is absolutely Manic, why are people buying so much , the shops are only closed for one day oh well never mind, get what I want and head back home.

Pauline, Gordon and Misty.

I then get back home and make a coffee and settle down to watch some TV, the film " Cats and Dogs II is on in half an hour at 12.10 so that is OK. Anyway at 12.00 I decide to get some scrambled egg for lunch, as I am doing that I get a phone call from Pauline to sat She and Gordon are on the way round to see me, and will be here in 10 minutes. so I finish getting my eggs scrambled and started eating when they both turn up and they have walked here with Misty.

Tesco Express

It is nice to see Pauline, Gordon and Misty, so we have a nice chat and a coffee, they stay for about an hour and then they make there way back home, misty is very excited as I think she is hoping Santa will pay her a visit tonight, I know he will as I have given pauline a christmas stocking for both Misty and Charlie the Cat. ( I must  be loosing my marbles). Anyway pauline and gordon make there way home and I now have been left with all the washing up to do (As Usual) and then I go back round to tesco express to get some Gravy Granules and some Mr Kipling sponge slices and then back home. to watch the christmas films on the TV.

An Evening of TV

Being a Glutton this afternoon as I have eaten 4 (YES 4) Mr Kipling slices with a coffee and it was really nice to be able to eat, although very slowly and lots of sips of liquid between bites but 100% better than a puree diet. however it is now 3,45 so time for another coffee, get this addition of the Journal posted and then settle back down for the evening with the Christmas programs on TV, and dinner at 6, I have a sainsburys ready meal tonight (Roast beef dinner) so will see how I get on with that, I may have to puree the beef but the rest should just mash down if required, so until tomorrow, and christmas day I will say Have a nice Christmas eve and Christmas day.

Not A good Night Last Night.

Well for some reason I woke at 4.00 am this morning and could not settle, no Idea why but at 4.15 this morning I was in the lounge with a coffee and on Facebook. Decided to take my Methotrexate and then at 5.00 am went back to bed fell asleep and woke at 7.30, but have felt tired all day , which I think is more to do with it being Methotrexate Friday rather than lack of sleep

♫♫♫ Don,t Blame it on Insomnia ♫♫♫

♫♫♫ Don't blame it on the Caffeine ♫♫♫ 

♫♫♫ Don't blame it on the Diet ♫♫♫

♫♫♫ Blame it on the steroids ♫♫♫

Mick the Carer.

Any way It is now 7.30 so go and make a coffee and then back to bed to watch the News on TV for half an Hour and then decide to get up and into the lounge.

I have no idea who the carer will be today or what time they will turn up but this is the last day a carer will be coming until after the New Year weekend. 

I go and get some Breakfast (Cornflakes) at 9.00 am and at 9.50 the carer arrives, It is mick today and he is moaning about the fact that they have let so many carers have the day of today that it has left them very short staffed, anyway he soon gets me washed and groomed and then he is on his way, 

Now that Mick has gone I get onto the laptop and see who is on face book and at 11.00 I decide to go round to the Tesco Express and get my milk and a Newspaper and then I can get back in the warm and settle down to rest today as it has been a busy week this week with Shopping, visits and assessments. anyway the weather is not to bad at the moment but it is going to deteriorate through the afternoon, before I go Pauline phones to make sure I am OK. 

Tesco Express.

Anyway go round to Tesco and it is very busy also a lot of traffic heading into the town centre, glad I am not having to go shopping down town today, anyway get what I need and get back home, 

well now I feel peckish so have a couple of crispbread with salmon pate, with a coffee and that goes down a treat, anyway back on the laptop for Family History research until 1.00 pm, when I get some chicken soup for lunch followed at 2.00 pm by a nice hot chocolate complan, no Idea why I feel so hungry today still at least I have my appetite back and I am beginning to eat real food again.

 

It is now 3.00 pm and the skies are getting really dark it is raining quite heavily and the wind speed is increasing so a wet and windy evening ahead I think ( Must not eat pickled eggs LOL). so I think I am lucky to be able to just relax in front of the TV tonight and not have to go out in this weather.

The view from the live webcam overlooking portsmouth harbour and the spinnaker tower taken at 3.00 pm today Friday 23/12/2011.

It is now 4.33 and I am going to make a nice hot Coffee, grab a couple of malted milk biscuits,  get this edition of the journal posted and then settle down to watch Pointless on TV. My dinner tonight is Chicken breast with Mixed Vegetables and has been in the slow cooker since 9.00 am this morning, i will have this at 6.00 with some mashed potato so that will go down well, so until tomorrow and Christmas Eve I will say Tatty Bye.

another day, Another assessment.

A Restless night.

Good Day one and all and another Thursday is upon us, well after yesterday,s oversleeping last night was totally the reverse, I could not sleep at all last night, went to bed about 10.30 and tossed and turned all night long until 6.30 this morning, just could not settle so at 6.45 I went and got a coffee and went back to bed to watch the BBC news until 7.45 when I got up and made my way to the lounge to wait for Amanda the carer to arrive.

An Excited Amanda.

Amanda arrives at 8.20 and is excited as she finishes work today until after Christmas, she told me yesterday that she was off next week si I phoned the care agency and cancelled the home care for next week as I don't want to be sat around until lunchtime every day wondering when a carer will turn up, it will be interesting to see who, when or if anyone arrives tomorrow. however it is not long before I an washed and groomed and the Amanda is away and I text pauline to let her Know all is Ok and then get some Wheatabix for Breakfast.

Portsmouth 11.00 am Today.

After breakfast I settle down with the laptop and then Pauline phones to say that she is booking a Taxi for 12.00 to come round today, and then we can go over to B&Q and then to Macdonald,s for lunch before coming back home to await the Adult Social care to come and assess my needs for Direct Payments. anyway it is not a bad day weather wise so I now go round to Tesco Express to get some milk and fruit drink and a News Paper.

Hopefully the weather will stay nice for our walk with the Wheelchair over to B&Q at Lunch time today, anyway back indoors from Tesco Express so now to get shaved and changed ready for pauline to arrive.

Pauline arrives at about 12.15 so we set off over to B&Q, I push the wheelchair as far as the Pelican Crossing in Goldsmith avenue and then pauline pushes me the rest of the way to B&Q. It is nice to see some old workmates there today and then we look at roller blinds, Pauline needs a new blind for her Kitchen, she see,s one that she likes, and I say that I will get it for her for Christmas as I have not got her a present yet, so that is OK.

KFC Pompey Centre.

We go and pay for the blind and then head over to Macdonald,s for lunch, when we get there it is absolutely packed with people so decide that it is out of the question to try and get the wheelchair in there so we decide to go to KFC instead. that is a lot less busy so I have a breast fillet and fries with gravy and a coffee and Pauline gas 2 breast fillets with fries and Coffee, Not sure how I will get on with this but I will give it a try, well it was hard work , It went down OK but I don,t think I am quite ready for KFC Just yet a bit over enthusiastic so will leave it a couple of months before I try again, but I did enjoy the taste.

Well we make our way back home and it is now 2.00 pm, I have the Adult social care coming at 3.00 so I make a coffee and we sit and pauline wraps up some christmas presents for me that I need for the family and then at 3.00 pm  The lady,s from Portsmouth Adult social Care arrive. They are very nice people and ask if I can explain to them what Dermatomyositis is and what its effects are, this is the first time I have been asked that by anyone so I explain it to them and then they ask to see my sleeping arrangements and also my washing and toilet facilities,

It was a very good assessment, they ask about my care plan and are not impressed with the care company,s attitude to my care, thy explain Direct payments to me and give me the literature  on it and I said I will read through it and let them know, in the meantime they are going to ask questions of the Care company they use, so all in all the best assessment I have had so far, someone who listens to what I say and are going to act on it.

My Son Gervase.

Well they make a move at 4.00 and pauline makes her way home at 4.20. Gervase phones at 4.35 to say he is going to come in and see me on the way home from work, so all in all a very good productive day. so now to get this blog posted and then a bit of a rest until Gervase comes in , so until tomorrow I will say Good Bye.