31st August 2024

On the final day of August, Sue drove me to Leicester General Hospital for an eye injection. On this occasion, the dosage was higher than usual and intended to extend the interval between future treatments. The only noticeable side effect was the appearance of numerous dark bubbles in my vision, although these had disappeared by the following morning.

That evening, Sue drove us to Brixworth to celebrate a friend’s 60th birthday. Although Frank’s actual birthday wasn’t until November, he and his wife had chosen to mark the occasion with a garden party while the weather was still (hopefully) agreeable. As it happened, the evening was unseasonably chilly, but we had been advised to dress accordingly, and most guests came well prepared. We spent much of the evening chatting with our friends Jeremy and Lynne before leaving around midnight and giving them a lift home.

September began with an invitation from Charlotte and Suraj to join them for a barbecue, cooked in their newly built garden kitchen using their new Ninja BBQ. It was also a chance to see the extensive garden remodelling currently underway. As always, the food was excellent, and the weather held, allowing us to sit outside and chat until it was time to head home.

Over the next few days, the overnight temperatures began to suggest that the year was rapidly drawing to a close, though daytime weather still called for shorts and t-shirts. I spent much of my time repairing the garden shed, which had started to rot and lean. Once that was completed, I set about chopping wood and filling five builder’s sacks in preparation for the winter. The garden and vegetable plots are full of ripening produce, much of which is steadily finding its way into the chest freezer.

On the evening of Saturday, the 7th of September, after attending the F1 Grand Prix in Italy, Jamie, Ruth, and Joey treated Sue and me to a lovely meal at The Little Thai restaurant in Market Harborough, a belated extra birthday gift for Sue. It was great to see all three of them together, especially as Joey is usually unavailable. We were surprised at how much he has grown since we last saw him. We also won’t be seeing much of Jamie for a while, as he has upcoming trips to Turkey and Dubai.

While sorting through the family videos, I realised I hadn’t yet shared the link to our recent trip to Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands in June, so here it is: Ecuador and the Galápagos.

On Monday, 16th September, I hosted a coffee and pool afternoon in the Garden Room. It was a lovely, warm and sunny day, although the quality of the pool playing left much to be desired, leading to plenty of amusement among the players. However, just after tea, I began to feel unwell and took to my bed, where I spent a very uncomfortable night. The following morning, I took a COVID test, which came back positive. I informed the others who had joined me the previous day via WhatsApp, then phoned Auntie Josie to explain that it was looking unlikely I’d be able to attend Auntie Doreen’s funeral on Thursday.

Sue contacted her friend, also called Sue, with whom she was due to go on a ramble that morning. She let her know that she felt absolutely fine, but that I had tested positive for COVID, and left it to her to decide whether to go ahead. They agreed to proceed with caution and wear masks. It turned out to be another beautiful day, and they enjoyed their walk around Ravensthorpe Reservoir, followed by lunch at The Chequers in the village. Fingers crossed they won’t regret the decision.

Earlier that morning, Sarah dropped off Mia to stay with us for a couple of weeks while the family enjoyed a much-needed holiday in Spain. I rang her to let her know the situation, and when she arrived, we kept a safe distance outside during the handover of the dog and equipment. A while later, Charlotte made her customary Tuesday visit, and I ushered her away as Sue had left on her walk.

On my third day in bed, I awoke with a sore back/kidneys. Thankfully, Sue still appeared to be fine, and after taking Mia for a poop walk, she left around mid-morning to do some shopping in Corby and afterwards stayed to watch a film at the cinema. Mia seemed to recognise that I was not well and kept me in constant company by lying alongside me on the bed. Mid-afternoon, we were disturbed from our sleep when the window cleaner arrived, forcing me to open a window to warn him of my predicament and left it to him to decide whether to go ahead. He was still cleaning the windows when Sue returned a short while later and paid him.

The day proved to be a notable one for the Palmer family. Jamie announced that he and Ruth would be getting married in May, before flying out to Turkey for a few days of rest and relaxation. Not to be outdone, Sarah and her family jetted off to Benidorm for two weeks of sunshine and fun. It was the first time their two little ones had flown. I just hope, for the sake of the other passengers, that they weren’t too excited!

Late that evening, while watching an episode of the superb series Monsters, which chronicles the case of real-life brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez, convicted in 1996 of murdering their parents, I received a push notification from my HSBC banking app regarding a potentially fraudulent transaction on my credit card. A payment of $0.00 had been attempted on a New York hotel minibar.

Fortunately, I had already flagged my account a couple of weeks earlier, after a new case for my GPS unit, ordered online, failed to arrive. The tracking number provided turned out to be false, and I couldn’t find a phone number for the company on their website. Emails went unanswered, and when I checked the listed address on Google Maps, it turned out to be a large shopping mall in Birmingham. With my suspicions confirmed, I reported the incident to HSBC as a case of fraud. Although the amount lost was just £9, my statement also showed a foreign exchange fee of $2.63, and the transaction was credited to New York.

HSBC acted swiftly, refunding the defrauded amount, blocking the compromised card, and issuing a replacement. Full marks to HSBC for their efficiency.

On the fifth day of my isolation, I was disappointed to test positive for COVID-19 once again. This time, the symptoms were far milder than during the pandemic, and I can see why some now regard mask-wearing, isolation, and social distancing as unnecessary. That said, I don’t want to risk passing it on to Sue or anyone else. You can never be sure how severely it might affect someone. So it was another day confined to the bedroom, with the radio on and Netflix for company.

On the sixth morning (Saturday), I finally tested negative! At last free to leave the house, I drove with Mia to the allotment, where we picked carrots and sweetcorn and gave the vegetables a much-needed watering. On our return, while Sue was in town shopping, I harvested ripe figs and pears from the garden and replaced the covers on the awnings shading the south side of the house. I doubt we’ll see any more scorching days before next year.

Nevertheless, I continued to keep my distance indoors, wearing a mask when moving around the house to minimise any lingering risk to Sue. During the afternoon, I watched the rugby alone in the Garden Room. In a rather lacklustre performance, the Tigers somehow managed to snatch a 17–14 victory over Exeter in the dying seconds of the game. The match was accompanied by a tremendous thunderstorm that rumbled on well into the evening.

By Monday, although still feeling strangely tired after a week of enforced inactivity, I was pleased to see that Sue had successfully avoided catching the bug from me, and normal life resumed at Willow Bank. I resumed the dog-walking duties and began visiting the allotments when the weather allowed. Frustratingly, the sun had made a welcome appearance every day during my isolation, but now that I had regained my freedom, it was hiding behind thick rainclouds. To add to the gloom, the news was filled with reports of record rainfall and flood warnings across the country, mixed in with harrowing updates from Gaza, Lebanon, and Ukraine.

Jamie and Ruth had returned from their shopping trip to Marmaris in Turkey, and Sarah and her family were still enjoying glorious weather at their family-friendly hotel in Benidorm.

Meanwhile, Lucas has been turning his thoughts to life after A-levels and has begun exploring universities in the hope of securing a place if he achieves his predicted grades. So far, he has arranged visits to Royal Holloway, Exeter, and Manchester, and is leaning towards studying Geology. Charlotte and Suraj are just as excited about the prospect of him entering higher education and have booked nearby accommodation so they can accompany and support him on the open days.

Ellis has once again been nominated for an award at Brook Weston for his work in IT, the second year in a row he has been recognised, which is a real testament to his enthusiasm and aptitude.

Jamie’s hard work is also being acknowledged. His business has been shortlisted once more for an award: “The evaluation of FX Learning Ltd – Best Forex Education Provider UK 2024 has moved to the second round, and I will keep you updated as I receive further news from my evaluation team.”

On a more practical front, despite the atrocious weather, Charlotte and Suraj have pressed on with the landscaping of their garden. A final delivery of railway sleepers arrived to support a raised section of the patio and lawn. Undeterred by the rain, they restructured the garden paths and completed the job within a couple of days, impressive considering the conditions.

Sarah and her family returned from their Spanish break, stopping by briefly on their way home from the airport to collect Mia. They stayed for an hour before heading off, unfortunately, right into the Friday rush hour traffic.

On Saturday, for the first time this season, I met up with Jim Hankers and Jim Crawford at the rugby club to watch the first team take on league leaders Olney. It was a fiercely contested match, and Harborough emerged victorious. Sadly, earlier in the week, I learned of the passing of another of my old rugby teammates. Martin Dyke, a long-standing figure at Market Harborough RUFC, had been courageously battling a brain tumour for several years. Not only had we played together, but after hanging up our boots, we coached alongside one another, memories I will always cherish.