Saturday, It was mostly football and preparing myself for my Monday operation. The preparation being the anti bacterial regime I’m doing of a pre shower body wash and a nasal gunk three times a day. As for the rest of the day I tinkered, moving the olive trees in their pots to their new positions at the front of the house and trying to get an old phone to work so that I do not have to take my good phone into hospital with me. Of course I have forgotten my unforgettable security number to unlock my old phone so I think I am doomed to failure there. After an evening of football and brain rotting S.W.A.T. I took my meds and head for bed once I had cleared the kitchen.

Sunday, its fathers day and I have slept in till late, I seem to have slept deeply last night, perhaps its the antibacterial nasal gunk I m shoving up my nose before going into hospital tomorrow I’ve no idea really. However today is fathers day and my son in Sweden has sent me a much appreciated box of chocolate bars and a lovely card signed by him and my Swedish grandchildren. There is also a lovely card from my youngest daughter that has a montage of four lovely photos of me with my youngest daughter and grand son, I am really touched by it, it is thoughtful and contains very good memories, especially the picture of me holding my newly born grandson for he first time. It lifts me just at the time I need it. My eldest daughter has also presented me with the wonderful gift of a new Japanese Acer tree, a dark variety which I shall find a special pot for and a place of pride in the newly organised garden. I feel loved and thought about and honoured that they have taken time to give me such thoughtful gifts.

Having breakfasted and taken my meds along with my anti bacterial stuff I set down to draft the blog to cover both yesterday and today so far. The sun shines and I have a number of things to attempt today, which include trying to fill the Hippo bag and more importantly packing and readying myself for tomorrows operation. That all important overnight bag has to have my essentials in it and enough for one or two possible nights in hospital. I am of course anxious but my vitals do not show that. I down a prophylactic pain killer (or am I addicted) and begin my tasks.

I set about filling the Hippo bag and it is clear early on that I will not get everything on my list into the bag so I go for the rubbish and broken things that are making the garden look a mess. Its hot and sweaty work, I’ve not put in this kind of physical effort for a while. I find that this is heavy on my spoons and I am soon finding the going hard. Eventually I have filled the Hippo bag and covered it over and tied off the lifting loops. All I can do now is tidy some garden stuff away and use the newly available shed space. With that done I retreat to the recliner in fresh lounge clothes to drink a lot of water and check what Amazon have bought me. The heavy physical effort has taken its toll and when I go for a piss there is a trace of blood but nothing that alarms me. I just drink a lot of fluid knowing that it will pass over the next few hours. I eat lunch and watch football while my new very cheap pay as you go phone charges up, I am hoping not to take my smart phone into hospital with me. I have lunch and book the Hippo bag to be collected while the phone charges. As the football trundles on I return to drafting the blog and making a mental list of what to take into hospital with me. The rest of the day is predestined for me. I will pack my overnight bag, shower, watch the England game and go to bed early in anticipation of my early start in the morning and the nil by mouth period prior to my operation. So I maybe quiet for a while. I will see you on the other side as the dialysis nurses used to say as they waved me off in the ambulance in Jamaica.