Saturday and it is the day the youngest grandsons are visiting. I get up and make breakfast and take my morning meds. All I have to do now is wait for the family to arrive. I go to the garden swing seat taking with me the new book that a friend has sent me. It is The Gospel according to BLINDBOY in 15 short stories. Blindboy Boatclub is an Irish satirist and one half of the Rubberbandits. I read the first four stories straight off and really like them. Disturbing and witty tales from someone who clearly has his moments of disturbance.

I also pen a new poem. I think it is my mind trying to rid itself of the nasty images I’ve recently read in a book.

550

I wonder if the flow of ink
might inspire me.
That the feel of the Montblanc
would make my juices run,
but alas it seems in vane.
I'm overwhelmed by Mishima's
description of a kitten sacrificed
to satisfy teenage needs
and then the sailor that fell
from grace with the sea.
A Samurai who suicides 
when the books are finished
is likely to have skinned 
a cat or two.
Left with his horrid vision
I'm pleased the author
had the decency to leave
by his own hand.

                                                             550 07-08-2026

At last the visitors arrive and my three year old grandson comes to find me on the garden swing. He sits beside me and tells me about the journey and that the flowers look pretty and how he helped plant some of them. He also finds his favourite three stones, which we have kept handy. After a while he goes off in search of toys. Everyone eats lunch and the paddling pool appears so there is much water fun. I return to reading my book on the swing seat. There is an afternoon of chat and play with the youngest grandson falling asleep on his aunts lap, this was her first nap trapping. On going inside I find the PDF of my next poetry collection is waiting for me. There are two poems missing so I send them off to the publishers. I’m waiting on the Forward to be written but in the meantime I’ve asked the publishers to consider being the people that send out the authors copies for review. I shall be interested in what they think of that.

Tea time arrives and the family gorge on steak pie and chips followed by chocolate cake. Everyone digs in and eats heartily. What follows is the “putting to bed” ritual once the elder grandson had helped his Nanny to water the garden. While this was going on I cleared away, stuffed Daisy (dishwasher) full and washed up the pots and pans. I returned to drafting the blog while the parents went into “settling down” mode. At last the boys are asleep and the adults clear away toys and settle down for an evening of chat and TV. Tomorrow is a car hunt, a comi con and entertaining grandchildren.