Thursday and I wake earlyish. I start by thinking that I am feeling okay and I have a flush of optimism. My partner brings me hot water before she goes to have her hair done. I take my vitals, which are okay and then I do all my messages, emails and news feeds. I get up and make breakfast still feeling that I might be entering the “more chipper” phase of the chemo cycle. I head for the garden to do soem of the things on my “to do ” list. I Open up the Shed and get ready to write, lighting the candles and tidying the desk top. Before I settle down to something creative I re install the washing line that had been taken down to give the garden builder badgers free reign of the garden while putting in the decking. With that in place I fill the bird and squirrel feeders. I am now knackered and need to spend time on the swing seat to recover.

I go to the writing Shed and think about writing letters but I do not have the energy so I decide in stead to make notelets and draw ink pictures in them. I manage three of these before I run out of energy. I wrote a small poem while I rested between cards. My life is a patchwork of small endeavours at the moment.

525
So here I am
in my Shed.
A week into 
Cycle 7.
Its snail pace
for me.
Do a bit,
rest a while,
try a bit more,
definitely rest.
A life full
of small words,
try, rest, bit,
stitched together
by will to live.
Its a patchwork
of little acts
held by ditches
and sewn by hand,
guided by a mind
that will not go down. 
					255 07-05-2026

Amazon deliver my new silver chain for my “Backbone” pendant that I wear. I had ripped the pendant off in the middle of the night when it felt like it was restricting my neck so I needed to replace the chain. I was struggling putting it back on when my partner returned and put it on to me. We eat lunch together before she goes off with her brother to their mother in hospital. I lock up the garden shed and the writing Shed and retreat to the warmth of the sofa in the lounge where I do the days crosswords (without Google) and then draft the days blog so far. By four o’clock I am seriously flagging and think about a nap but do not. I feel I am thirsty but cannot face drinking, everything I try tastes foul.

My evening is going to be quiet, there is football to watch, books to read and numerous episodes of various dramas to be watched. All I need to do is eat, take my meds and sleep until I have enough energy to train again. I thought today might be that day but it was not to be, perhaps tomorrow.