This morning it was still 19° C at 7am, and it was raining. I was actually woken up by the sound of heavy rain on my bedroom window. There were a more heavy showers, but the forecast thunderstorm did not visit to within earshot of here. More rain is forecast, but it is either very, very light, or it has stopped for now. The next thunderstorm could happen in less than 30 minutes, but I have doubts about it, as I do for the prediction of another thunderstorm at 1pm. I can believe there will be more rain though. This afternoon should reach a mildly warm 23° C. A lot more rain is shown for the second half of the day, but the chances of it are shown as less than 45%, and them usually means it will be dry. As a matter of interest, the only thunderstorm predicted for today by the Met Office was at 6am, and no more are shown on the forecast, and it shows today as being mainly dry. Tomorrow, according to the BBC (Meteo) forecast, will be dry with sunny spells.

  Yesterday was another quite good day. After I finished writing I had a short rest followed by a shower. Then I waited until midday for my telephone appointment with the hospital, and they actually called about half an hour early. That was fine for me. The call was my "pre-assessment" for my combined colonoscopy and gastroscopy in a fortnight's time. It was nothing exciting because I had heard it all before.

  Once the call was over, and I had made another visit to the toilet (both pee and poo) I set out to first visit the pharmacy to order my next repeat prescription. I was told I should be able to pick it up early Friday afternoon. I then walked along the main road to, initially, the hospital where I hoped I could pick up a copy of The Metro so I could look at the crossword if I had a long wait in The Jolly Farmers - my next port of call.

  Unfortunately there seemed to be no copies of The Metro left. I asked the security guard if he knew of any copies else where, but he didn't. I did notice a copy on his table, and thought there would be no harm in asking if it was his, and if he might have finished it. He said yes, it was his, and no he had not finished reading it. I said no worries, and that I really only wanted it for the crossword. He said, "hold on", then told me he doesn't do the crosswords, and said he would rip out that page for me. What a wonderful gesture from a bloke who might otherwise be written off as a jobsworth, or other negative things associated with security guards.

  When I got to the pub I hoped I might see Ayse in there - I did, but it was the wrong Ayse. Apparently "my" Ayse is back in quarantine again because her husband has just had another radiotherapy session, and his immune system was suppressed again. It make me wonder if I will ever see Ayse again. It may be that even if he recovers from his stomach cancer she may not want to return to work again, and if he dies she may be too distraught to go back to work (even if it would probably be the best thing for her).

  It was at least 20 minutes before Kevin arrived in a very hot and sweaty state. He must have really rushed. After a while we went out to the garden for a bit more fresh air, but mostly so Kevin could have a cigarette. Half an hour or so later we were joined by Jodie - who had left her wallet at home, and had no money !  I bought her drinks, and she spent much of her time on her phone, like she always does, while Kevin and I talked.

  One topic of conversation was that Kevin was interested in a Diesel Gala being held on The Bluebell Railway - the preserved railway that used to boast it was 100% steam operated ! It sounded like it could be quite good, and a great time to use one of my best cameras to get loads of pictures. The catch is that a day ticket is almost £40. I think that is a bit steep, but worst of all is that it seems the railway do not offer and senior citizens concessions. I feel a lot less keen to go now, but I suppose I might still go depending on how I feel.

  After about 4 pints of Guinness (and possibly 5) it seemed time to drink up and head for home. Usually I would walk down the main road with Kevin, and I considered the possibility of walking all the way to The Noodle House to buy some of there delicious spare ribs with noodles, and probably a portion of Singapore style noodles. On the other hand I felt a duty to show Jodie the short cut to Ladywell station where she could get a train back to Clock House, and I could go to Catford Bridge.

  I was feeling very peckish after the beer, and thinking about what I might have bought from the Noodle House, left me feeling ravenous. I had stuff at home I could cook if I were patient enough.....but I think I had set my heart on a takeaway. The only trouble was that apart from the fried chicken shop which I seemed to forget about at the time, there are no takeaways I could buy from without making quite a diversion on my way home from the station. There was also the factor that I knew that sooner or later I would need to have a pee.

  Once home I decided I fancied a pizza. There is a place that I ordered from a couple of times after being transported home from Kings College Hospital, but later on they never seemed to be delivering when I fancied a pizza. Yesterday they were delivering, and I ordered two 12" pizzas plus a side of spicy wings. I think it was about 20 minutes later when they were delivered.

  I ate the whole of the "spicy seafood" 12 inch pizza, but nothing else. I thought I showed remarkable restraint ! Maybe it was not enough, and maybe it might have been better if I had had a portion of plain vanilla ice cream. The reasons will be apparent in another couple of paragraphs.

  As usual I ate while watching the BBC 6 O'clock news, and then went on to watch a couple more hours of TV. I was feeling quite sleepy towards the end, and I went to be soon after 9pm (but it may have been 10pm - I can't quite remember). I read in bed for quite a short while before turning out the light, and soon drifting into a pleasant, and uneventful sleep. I think I got up at least once for a pee, and at around 6am I was woken by the heavy rain hitting my bedroom window. I managed to get back to sleep again, and finally got up sometime after 8am. I can't recall having any dreams last night.

  This morning my blood glucose was terrible. I guess I have to blame it on the pizza, but I didn't think pizza was notable for it's sugar content. The average of my three blood glucose readings was a horrendous 9.67mmol/l. It is the highest reading I have had all month (although I did have two slightly higher readings in July).

  Once again the paradox has shown up again - terrible blood glucose readings that suggest I had a very bad diet yesterday, but since yesterday morning I have lost 900gm, and that is very good ! It also suggests that maybe my diet was not so bad.

  Today I could say I have a day off. I have no appointments. Jodie, who would usually be here in the afternoon for a beer tastings session has something else on. I could, and maybe will, invite Michael to pop in for a beer, but I must admit I may not enjoy it. I had been thinking I could go out for a bit of railway photography today, but the ever possible threat of rain suggests staying home might be the best option. Maybe I might do a bit of laundry or something.  In fact, as they used to say in the opening of the Stingray TV series, "anything could happen in the next half hour"....or next 4 or 5 hours in this case.