The Bluestocking - your local women's pub, warm, friendly, and not at all unusual in any way.

[MarieDeGournay]

Welcome to The Bluestocking, the welcome is warm, the conversation is wide-ranging, the food and drink are delicious but magically free from anything they need to be free from, and the bar staff are highly-trained, professional, efficient and very friendly gerbils.

That's a very useful sentence!
This morning I have listened to rather more student presentations than I care to count, and had a meeting. Not sure I have accomplished anything useful.

Saw the surgeon, though actually his registrar as the surgeon himself was actually operating. (How very dare he!)

They think I've changed my gait and need orthotics but need an immediate x-ray to check.

I have been waiting in x-ray for 50 minutes and at this rate, waiting for this, and then to see the surgeon's registrar, may make me late for my infectious diseases appointment at 2pm...

Interrupted to have my x-ray.

Good luck with it all, Myrtle - hope you managed to get to the next appointment.

Good luck Myrtle.

Warm good wishes for health improvements to all afflicted Bluestockingers. I am writing this on my iPad while in the bath, and DH is making a large cup of tea for me. We're both up late this morning as it’s a public holiday here (Martin Luther King day) and it’s snowing again.

I read it first as 'I have washed the flat cap'😄

Hope you feel better soon, Damson, keep checking in and somebody here is bound to make you smile if not laugh out loud.

Myrtle I hope the ortho shows up soon, and it's a useful/positive interaction, ditto the second appt. And then the ENT one with your GP on Tues..

One day, you will look at your list of medical appointments, and there'll be nothing there - soon I hope

I have the dreaded 'And today it's all ladies with SMALL boobs' mammogram this week. Normally I'm pretty sanguine, but this year, for the first time, I'm a bit worried: getting a duff result would be entirely in keeping with the general shit-show that is life here at the moment. One of the DC was sideswiped by 4x4 at the weekend and the little car written off. DC thankfully fine if very shaken, but the 4x4 driver is of course rewriting history and denying any culpability. But we have witnesses...

Disastrous Diagnosis still in the hospice.
We have a blocked drain. Well, we had. I unblocked it a few days ago, fingers crossed it stays that way.
Big car functioning again after big bill.
Dysfunctional in-laws doing dysfunctional shit, some of it impacting us.

<breathes>

So, in the midst of all that, I keep reminding myself that our immediate family members are all fine, we have enough ££ to see us through the car crisis, and that we have very helpful friends and neighbours.

It is also genuinely happiness-making to know that the Adventures of Batshit make other people happy, and that she has her own little fan club (wrong sort of dog, Inky, but right sort of expression!). She surprised me yesterday by remembering, in a new context (a fence rail by the woods) a command I taught her years ago ('paws' i.e. put your front feet on this thing I tap/indicate) and have barely practised since. She also managed to do it without hesitation, deviation or otherwise cocking it up.

Perhaps there is hope for her after all.

I read it as 'washed the cat's flap'!🙀

You lot all need to read more carefully! 🤣

Oh Edith, it sounds like you have so many difficult things to deal with at the moment, I hope that at least the mammogram result comes out on the good side. What day is it? Keep us updated, won't you?

You are being very philosophical about what can be remedied with ££, and that it was only metal and not people that were damaged.

But much of what you are going through is just awful stuff you just have to get through somehow - I'm glad you feel supported by friends and neighbours.

Brains and Batshit and long walks have an important job to do in giving you breaks from the difficulties, I think Brains and Batshit are doing the job of gerbils here, maybe we can make them Honorary Gerbils so when they are lifting your spirits, they are partly doing so on our behalf💙

I think of Batshit as being a big-ish dog with long legs, so she can 'galumph' around excitedly on them😄

Take care of yourself

Xray was fine. Plan to get orthotics but the first joint of my big toe won't move when my brain asks it. Something to do with the FHL tendon.

Doctors are curious.

The February appointment still stands.

Blood pressure is high for me, but normal for the population.

Just seen the doctor. Sadly not the amazing female consultant but one of her very lovely minions.

Interestingly he said the antibiotics may have affected my tendons.

Funny you should say that...

It's usually the achilles, but potentially...

Now off for blood tests to check my inflammation and infection markers are normal because last time they were done in November they were high.

Then I can go home.

Still in the bath here… Transatlantic virtual hugs and sympathy for all who need it.

No, certainly not. As choirmistress (why???) I've got you marked in for a solo. I'm just hoping it's true that we all have wonderful voices. We'll find out.

.

Oops, I forgot...

Ahem

Still no puffin.
Am I invisible?

👋

Oi, Hedgy would you like to join my choir? We're invisible but brilliant.

I think I’m on the back row of the choir - altos usually end up on the back row or behind the sopranos at least - the woman with long dark hair and glasses.

Or am I missing because I forgot to turn up to rehearsals?

I'm going to assume I'm just out of shot. I am notoriously camera shy.

Oh THERE you are! I was wondering where you were, Puffers & Hedgy.

😃

😁

Ah, Cake! I didn't see you there the first time.

I'm sorry Edith, we can't let you have your dogs with you for the performance. They howled so much in the rehearsals.

Now, are we all here? taps baton on stand