Thursday and the 1st of October I wake up knowing I have to shift myself as I have jabs this morning. Breakfast is a quick toasted tea cake and orange juice to accompany my morning meds. I have time to check my messages and my emails before my partner gives me a lift to the GP surgery. I was going to walk but to be honest I do not feel great. My partner drops me off at the GP surgery, I am early but I get in straight away and in no time my usual nurse has stuck a needle in each upper arm with my COVID and FLU jabs. I am very quickly back in the car and on the way home.

I am just resting when my partner goes to the gym for an Aqua class so I decide to join her. It gets me out of the house. I throw a journal and some books into a bag and of we go. My partner goes to her class while I munch a bacon roll and drink dark black decaf coffee whilst reading Cicero’s essays on friendship and old age. I also start to read his collection of letters. Sending letters in the ancient Rome empire seemed to depend on having slaves you send, if in Rome, or knowing someone who might be going in the general direction of the intended recipient. I sent a letter on the 11th of September to a friend who lives a 25 minute drive from me which did not arrive until the 29th of September. Not good for a service that is supposed to deliver within at least two days of posting. Had I been in the Roman empire I would have sent a house slave off with it and it would have arrived the same day. Tell me again how modern technology is making my life better.

My partner reappears and we leave for home. On the journey I remember it is one of my grand children’s birthday is in mid October and the pharmacy has sent me a text to tell me that my prescription is ready to collect. Once home I get comfortable and start to draft the days blog listening to medication music.

As the afternoon progresses my partner start to plant out the winter pansies in the front door and drive way pots. I assist with getting the compost and preparing the pots. I leave my partner to plant the flowers while I clean up the block paving from the side of the house. There are a lot of small plants and weeds trying to establish themselves in the blocks but I get to them and then fil the gaps with salt and sweep it into the path. I have found that using salt in this way prevents weeds growing back, simple and easy. With the pots done and the garden tools packed away I return to the sofa and some big bang theory. I have an early tea as I am expecting a call from a friend who duly rings at the agreed time. It is a long time since we had a long chat so we catch up with what we have ben doing and how our respective families are. It is really good to have time to chat to someone who is not in my family and who is living a very different family life out in the world that I no longer have much dealings with. After my call I settle down with my partner to watch One Dollar. I have to say that the setting of the Rust Belt in America seems a grim place to be apart from the shows plot line. I am tired so go to bed relatively early having taken my night meds. As I go to bed I become aware that one of my arms is aching a bit from the COVID jab I had earlier in the day.