Seeing old friends

It was good to see Margaret H. yesterday afternoon.  She is about my own age and manages to stimulate and relax me at the same time.  We had a good chat and she updated me with what is happening in the village but we were also able to talk more seriously about what is happening to me too and she is very helpful.  She stayed about two hours while Raymond was out.

I slept poorly last night and did some reading which stopped me from feeling too stressed or that I was going through the same old thoughts and ideas whilst getting nowhere – always worse at night.  Anna’s course at Exeter seems to be going well and her students are appreciative but I think the journey back to Wrexham was long and tiring.  She is having to work very hard at the moment.

Today has been lovely as Jola and Paddy visited arriving about 11.00 a.m., leaving just before 3.00 a.m.  We had an easy lunch and did lots of catching up as Jola is a friend from way back, student days in fact.    We thoroughly enjoyed the visit but I think I was just beginning to get tired when they left.  I think they timed it very well.

I shall try to have a rest this afternoon; I’d love to have the art of napping which Raymond has.  I don’t mean I have never fallen asleep during the day; I occasionally do in the early evening if the television is on, but I just can’t deliberately decide to have a nap.  I shall probably read and as we have eaten well at lunchtime, neither of us will be cooking this evening.  We have a tiler coming to look at the bathroom floors this evening.  I shall leave that in Raymond’s capable hands but I hope the job can be commenced soon.

Dr M, my oncologist, telephoned this morning to see how I had fared after the last chemo.  As it was quite mild, I don’t think I had any ill effects except extreme tiredness and I think in the last twenty four hours there has been a very slight improvement in my neck, but only very slight, nothing major.  We shall see him tomorrow when he will decide upon the next course of action, but he sounded quite cheerful.