Hello again, from London UK

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Dear Readers, 

Hello again from London UK, and I hope you are managing to keep as well as any of us can expect to feel during these testing times. As if it were not bad enough that we are not out of the proverbial woods yet as far as the coronavirus is concerned, so many organizations still fail to take elderly folks into account.

I tried to book tickets for an exhibition today, struggled to use my pc and finally had a confirmation email... BUT.. I then needed to load the app to my phone. in order to get the tickets electronically.. There had been no warning about this on the booking site or I would not have attempted booking in the first place... as I do not have a smart phone! I have contacted the organization concerned and asked them to cancel the booking so I can ask a friend who has a smart phone to do it for me. Hopefully, they will get back to me within the next few days and agree to cancel/ refund as I cannot afford to lose nearly £50.  I suspect I am not the only elderly person to be caught out this way. 

Even just a few years ago, I could probably have managed to get the hang of using a smart phone, but - as regular readers well know - years of hormone therapy for my prostate cancer have played merry hell with my thought processes. I get easily confused now, even with simple everyday tasks, although I get by ok, so have no intention of  bringing myself to the attention of Social Services; no offence intended to Social Services staff as they are wonderful people. but some are inclined to think they know best for older folks like me, and I have no interest in going into a Care Home. True, I don't cope well on my own, but I cope well enough and can still look after myself ok. Maybe one day... but not yet awhile. Hopefully I can manage on my own for a few more years yet. 😉

I have started doing word puzzles again to help my ailing thought processes and memory generally; they are great fun too. A close friend bought me a word puzzle book called Wordsearch when I was ill after a bad fall some years ago, so I  have set myself the task of completing the puzzles I left unfinished. Maybe it is wishful thinking on my part, but  even after a few days I am starting to at least remember where I put things more easily. sometimes, I even forget what I am doing if I am interrupted, so the task in hand remains unfinished and that seems to be happening less too. So, fingers crossed...😉

A neighbour commented that I am only 77 years old and Her Majesty the Queen  is years older and looking wonderful. Well, I am a great admirer of Her Majesty and wish her a wonderful Platinum Jubilee, but I suspect she doe not have to wrestle with the household chores and other everyday tasks with which we ordinary mortals have to contend. I say this with some feeling, after just having made my bed and had to wrestle with a clean duvet cover...😉 Even so, I would not change my everyday  mundane tasks for royal duties; the stamina and sincerity Her Majesty has put into those  throughout her reign  is nothing less than awe-inspiring. I cannot imagine how tiring it must be to  be constantly in the public eye, not to mention an oppressive media gaze. 

Oh, well, c'est la vie - whoever we and wherever we are -and life is to precious to waste crying over spilt milk. If you have read my open letters in the past, you'll know what I am going to say... and you'll be spot on. Yes, we can but do our best to nurture a positive-thinking mindset and not allow ourselves to get close enough to The Abyss to peer over and... enough said.😉

I am working on a poem and hope to publish it here sometime this week; its provisional title is 'Empathy with a Camel'; is is a revised version of a poem that was first published in my collection, First Person Plural (2002) under the title 'Riddle of the Sands'; twenty years on, I re-read the poem and suspect it may have come close to saying what I meant to say at the time, but far less so now. I can but hope I am a better poet now... of which only you, dear readers,  can possibly comment...😉 

Take care, everyone, keep well, stay safe and I'll be back soon, camel too.... 😉

 Hugs,

 Roger