Today

I'm spending the weekend catching up on work, so that Monday won't catch me unawares.  I'm up with most of it now, but have run out of steam.  Still have a rousing hymn to choose for tomorrow,  Once I've got my piano back, I'll have no excuse not to practise.  Choosing hymns, I look at the type of service, the time of church year, the theme of the service, I look up the readings - I'm very conscientious.

I should have been going to a funeral on Monday, but I found out that I've been included in a lunch for 24 people, which will be on 3 tables and I'm supposed to be hosting one of the tables.  The organiser had forgotten to give me the date - it had been cancelled because of a power cut and rearranged, but I wasn't there when the others were told.  I feel badly about missing the funeral, but I did have a long chat with her son today and the Sage will go, you can't fit in everything and I don't want to disappoint my friend.

I also had a chat with my doctor, at the same social event.  He told me that he is retiring in November - he'd already told the Sage a while ago, but is politely telling each person that he can individually.  He's been my doctor for 25 years and I'll be sorry to see him go.  I like him very much, we understand each other.  He has high standards, which might seem an odd thing to say - that is, if I went along for a vague whinge, he'd be slightly disappointed, because he'd expect something more specific from me.  If I were needy or frail, he'd amend his expectations.  He said, if all his patients visited him as often as I did, he'd not have been very busy.  Once every five years is about the norm, which shows how fortunate I am with my health.  I did go more often for a couple of years about my hip, and it was actually quite hard not to whinge then, so I always made sure that I had something practical to suggest.  He has arthritis in his knees and was limping slightly but noticeably.  I'm glad I've got hips rather than knees - though would rather not have it at all, of course.  Bloody arthritis.  He asked me how my hip is (doctors usually avoid asking after one's health when off duty, I took it as a compliment, that he knew I wouldn't turn it into a consultation!) and I said it's fine.  "Glad you had it done?"  "Yes, I am,"  I said, simply.

I slept thoroughly last night and caught up on the previous night's insomnia.  It's a nuisance, though.  I'm drinking strong black coffee right now.  I hope that coffee doesn't start to affect me.  I don't mind decaff, but one doesn't normally have a choice of blend or roast and, although I don't have the number of coffees that I do of teas, I do like to choose what sort I feel like drinking.

I heard birds calling in a warning tone, looked out and there was a cat in the garden.  I went out to tell it to leave, and there was a branch of a broom lying on the ground, though still attached to the trunk.  I grew it from seed over 20 years ago and it grew unexpectedly tall, small tree sized rather than bushy.  I think that some major lopping will be needed.