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Friday 31st
January 2020
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10:19 GMT
One of the odd things about yesterday was
that while it was almost mild outside, with the
afternoon reaching 13° C, it felt cold indoors
because there was no sunshine to warm the inside
of my house. Another thing was the forecast. It
changed a few times, but at worst it reckoned
there might be just one brief shower. In fact the
thick clouds provided several showers scattered
through the day. None were of any consequence
beyond proving the forecast was wrong again.
As usual, the forecast for today probably
has correctly predicted the temperature through
the day, but every other detail is subject to
hourly revision to make the forecast better fit
with reality. At the moment I agree that it is 11°
C, and most of the day may well be 12° C. However
I don't think I see thick dark clouds. It
certainly is cloudy, but it seems fairly bright
outside, and just now there was some very hazy,
and very diffuse sunshine - bright enough to cast
a dull shadow. The real unknown today is going to
be the rain. Yesterday it said there was
going to be several hours of rain near sunset.
This morning it shows rain for 3 and 4pm. The
latest revision shows just one light shower at
3pm By the end of the day I might well have
to admit that I was very wrong, but at the moment
it feels more like the forecast for tomorrow is
actually for today. Tomorrow may be mostly 11° C,
and the cloud will be light enough to permit a few
sunny spells at probably random times.
After a bad night's sleep I didn't feel
very good yesterday morning, and that feeling
continued for a lot of the day. In consequence I
hardly did anything all day. I'm sure I must have
done something of some importance, but I can't
remember what it was. All I remember was reading
and once or twice having a short snooze. In some
ways yesterday didn't start until mid afternoon
when I prepared to go out for my late Thursday
afternoon drink.
We were drinking in what is now our regular
pub - The Shortlands Tavern. I checked the trains
before going out, and noted that the 16:10 train,
the usual train I get, had been cancelled for an
unstated reason. Fortunately the next train is
just 10 minutes later at 16:20, but I didn't get
that one either. I started to relax a bit too
much, and didn't keep an eye on the time. Once I
realised what the time was I had 15 minutes to get
to the station, and that would have been easy if
it were not for two things. Firstly I didn't even
have any shoes on, and secondly I thought it would
be prudent to go to the toilet before going out -
and it was !
If I could have got to the station in 5
minutes I could have caught the 16:20 train, but
my fastest time is 8 minutes - and that is for
coming home from the station, and is mostly
downhill at first. I had no choice but to get the
16:40 train. In the meantime I dad been texted by
Michael, my neighbour from round the corner,
asking if I going for my normal drinking session.
I said yes, and that I was now expecting to get
the 16:40 train. It wasn't until Michael turned up
in the pub 5 minutes after me that I found out he
had been on the same train as me, but at the wrong
end of the train (plus I walk faster than him).
When I arrived at the pub I noticed an
unusual ale on one of the handpumps. It was
Narraburra - an Australian style pale ale. It was
brewed in the Southey Brewery which I later
discovered was in Penge - almost local to these
parts. It was quite a light taste - the sort of
beer that goes down very easily. At 4.2% it was a
tiny bit strong to be called a session ale, but it
slipped own like one. For every pint bought the
brewery was donating 20p to help the relief effort
after the devastating bush fires in Australia.
It was quite a lively evening with Michael
admonishing me for either not knowing of some
bands he likes, or for not liking some of the
bands he likes. At 75 years of experience I guess
he has a more extended knowledge than me.
The cancelled train at 16:10 would have
formed the 18:25 train I would have got home on,
but obviously if it hadn't run to Sevenoaks (it's
final destination) it couldn't run back from
there. There was nothing for it but to have
another pint of beer, and get the 18:55 train. Oh
dear, what a shame.
Michael caught the same train as me. I think
after the three pints he drank of the same beer,
he was feeling a bit drunk. Of course it may have
been me who was drunk, but whatever, some
confusion was caused. I was sure that Michael said
he wanted to buy some ginger on the way home, and
so I lead him into Sainsbury's by the station. We
found some ginger in there, but he didn't want to
buy it because he had bought some from Tesco in
the morning !
I walked home from the station, and Michael
drove home the quarter of a mile from where he
parked his car (near the fried chicken shop). I
have to admit that had I been on my own I might
have been tempted to buy some chicken and chips. I
decided that I ought to try and eat a bit better
than that - and I almost did. I had two ready made
bowls of salad with some ham, pickled onions and
mayonnaise. They were quite enjoyable, but I
probably should have only eaten one.
I was beginning to look forward to my bed
by 9pm, and I was actually in bed very soon after.
I felt a slight discomfort in the stomach area,
but thought it was probably just wind. So I turned
over, and eventually I was on the edge of sleep
when my phone bleeped. It was a message from Sue.
I haven't spoken to her for a few months, and so
it was a bit of a surprise. We exchanged a few
text messages, but that was getting tedious. I
knew it would end badly, but decided to phone her.
It was interesting catching up on the latest
gossip, and hearing more about her dreadful past
life.
Predictably enough the phone call went on
and on. I even had to go to the toilet in the
middle of the call because I wasn't suffering from
wind after all. As 1am approached I decided I
would have to end the call or Sue would keep
talking until 4 or 5am. I think we said our
goodbyes a few minutes after 1am, and I was
possibly asleep 5 minutes after that. I actually
slept quite well last night. The only bad thing,
if indeed it could be called bad, was that I
probably hoped to sleep through until 9 or even
10am, but waking up to find it was light seemed to
put an end to my sleep.
This morning I don't feel too bad. My
weight continues to disappoint, but is more or
less stable at the moment. The 4 pints of ale had
a predictable effect on my blood glucose level. It
was not as low as the previous couple of mornings,
but still only just over 7. I feel that today is
going to be another day when I am going to achieve
almost nothing until mid afternoon.
All being well I will be catching the
3.55pm train from Catford, but today I will be
heading into London instead of away from it.
Ultimately I will be heading away from London
again after having gone through the middle. I am
meeting my friend Aleemah, who I haven't seen for
several years, at West Hampstead to have a drink
together. She has selected a really weird
bar to drink in. It is a restaurant-bar
based in a large house that was once a meeting
point for Czechoslovakians during the cold war. I
expect I'll be drinking Pilsner Urquel.
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