Sanders Blog

Sunday, 28th September, 2025

It is a grey, overcast but rather warm day after a warm night which didn’t fall below 17C/63F. Didn’t sleep well last night and have woken tired. Out early to exercise while I’ve got the energy. The lack of sunshine is a bit depressing. Got to raise my spirits by focussing on happier things. Travel is in my mind. Seeing people.

It is the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool and it is at an important time for the Government. I have been a Labour supporter all my voting life. I have followed the history and the principles of Left Wing politics all my intellectual life. I used to think it was as a reaction to my Conservative voting, Daily Telegraph reading parents but the more I have thought about it, the more I see that it is as a response to the Social-Educational-Political milieu of the 1960s/70s in which I grew up.

There have only been 7 Labour Prime Ministers since it emerged on to the political stage in 1900 led by Keir Hardie and formed out of Left Wing groups such as the Workers’ Trades Unions and the more intellectual and middle class Fabian Society and the Methodist Church. Keir Hardie attempted to unite them under the banner of the Independent Labour Party and, subsequently, the Labour Representation Committee.

Like all political parties, Labour has always been a stiched together spectrum of views. Keir Hardie was trying to integrate the more militant Trades Unionists with the more gradualist and cerebral Fabians and the more philosophical Methodists. All wanted to achieve similar aims but in different ways and at different speeds.

Keir Hardie was a Methodist preacher. The British left owes more to Methodism than Marxism, it’s true. Even Corbyn himself is a teetotaler, embodying the values of the temperance movement and he embodies the dilemma – Methodism or Marxism.

It falls to the latest Keir (Starmer) to knot and hold together these relatively disparate groups in order to achieve the common goal of encouraging the social and Liberal Left while opposing the traditional Right and the current populist movements that are emerging so strongly. What has happened, particularly, is the swing from workers to intellectuals from industry to education. You are far more likely now to vote Labour, espouse Socialism if you are a Graduate rather than an Electrician or Mechanic. Labour support has drifted inexorably from Northern Towns to the Southern, Metropolitan Elites. It is this movement that has placed such challenges on both, major parties and given the rabid Right a chink of light to dive into.

Monday, 29th September, 2025

A glorious morning of blue sky and sunshine although there is a hint of sea mist out across the beach this morning. Reminds me of my drive to work each day across the Pennines as I descended through the mist over the moors and into the town.

Preparing the house and garden for cooler times, for Autumn and going away. Signs that time cannot be held back even with hair dye are everywhere.

Just been out for my walk in really hot sunshine. My phone says it is opnly 18C/65F but it feels so much warmer in direct sunshine.

Momentous occasion this week. The car is one year old and will go in for its first Service. It won’t have quite done 5000 miles although a trip to the North of England and another to France will soon put that total up. It’s been a really good car so far. I’m pleased I bought it. Be at least another twelve months before I consider trading it in. Really must move on to a Plug-in Hybrid next time. With so many of my journeys being short ones these days, I would be able to do most of my driving in full electric mode.

In this week in 2013, I was driving home from Greece stopping in Patras on the Peloponnese at the Poseidon Palace, in Parma, Italy at the Hotel Villa Ducale, in Mulhouse, Alsace and Reims near the Cathederal before driving to Coquelles and the Tunnel home to Surrey.

It is experiences like this that I need to get back to. We will be completely static much too soon. Now is the time to move while we still can.

Tuesday, 30th September, 2025

These are lovely times of warmth and sunshine before the Winter comes. We have to enjoy the seasons as they turn through the year. Yesterday, walking down at the beach, you could be forgiven for thinking Summer had returned. Warm and windless with sun shining on the sea and high cloud graduating the sky, the temperature reached 22C/70F

Today, I had to take the car in for its first service. Honda showrooms were gleaming in the sunlight with metal shone to perfection. The service takes about 2 hrs including a complimentary full valet.

Normally I would sit, drink coffee and read the newspapers on my iPad but the day was so beautiful that I went for a walk instead.

All around signs of Autum are showing. The lower sun across the fields that the community is resisting house building on, the Chestnut Trees being one of the first to shed their leaves and this year with a heavy crop of nuts.

I love Autumn in France. I have wonderful memories of kicking through the dead leaves on the streets of Lille in October sunshine. We are going back very soon to renew our experiences.

Really looking forward to going through the Tunnel and registering for the new EES – European entry/exit system as we do. Fingerprint scan and facial scan just as we do going into USA, proof accomodation and financial probity established once will allow us to cross borders quickly and easily on subsequent occasions – for example, going to Tenerife in November. It will allow us to digitise our passports at an early stage. Only 13% of UK citizens do not hold a passport so this process will make digital ID cards the norm as Labour bring them in.

Wednesday, 1st October, 2025

October has opened soft and warm with gentle colours of decay. I’m mowing grass through clouds of dying leaves. Feels a bit like an allegory for my life. Still tidying and reordering the world to suit my view of it.

Got to get the gardening done before Friday when we are said to be hit by gales and rain. At least it will blow the leaves away. It’s good exercise and keeps me in contact with the neighbours. It will be one of the last times this Autumn as I will be away a fair bit of the rest of the year.

Do you remember the observation: Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus. Did you read the book, Dear Reader? I didn’t but perhaps I should have. It could have saved a lot of trouble. It was published just over 30 years ago and was based on years of counselling of couples and individuals, helping men and women realise how different they can be in their communication styles, their emotional needs, and their modes of behaviour.

I have to admit I have never understood girls even though they have almost always understood me far too easily – to the point of embarrassment. An article I was reading in The Telegraph this morning addresses just this topic and says: in recent years, rigorous science has proven the stark differences in how men’s and women’s brains are wired. And it now seems that women are twice as likely as men to develop one of the most concerning of brain disorders: Alzheimer’s. Two in three people living with it are female, and after turning 60, women are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s than they are to get breast cancer, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

I knew men were the superior species although I’ve always worried that I have quite a lot of feminine traits. But help is at hand, Dear Reader. Women can at least reduce their risk by doing a number of things

1. You should continue to challenge you brain by exercising your intellect – study challenging ideas, follow politics, learn a language, read and write, argue and debate.
2. Make sure you exercise – women are less likely than men to do so.
3. Get enough omega-3s in your diet, through foods such as eggs and oily fish like salmon or mackerel.
4. Look after your mental health.
5. Consider HRT.

If only life was that easy, Dear Reader. I’ve been tasked with sorting out the Tenerife details. Car parking, Flight times, Arrival, Taxi, Apartment Address, etc. Do you know, it turns out to be cheaper to drive and park Long Stay for a month than to take a taxi. Amazing. Going to stay the night at the Sofitel because we fly early.

The only problem is the restaurant is rubbish. Pub meal quality at inflated prices. Anyway, we have a month to get over it. Looking forward to Oldham/Huddersfield + France in October and a month of sunshine in November. People to see and places to go.

Thursday, 2nd October, 2025

Another nice, warm day – bright but not sunny. At 6.30 am, I got a message from Michelle across the road thanking me for all the work I did on the street yesterday – mowing the grass and blowing off the dead leaves, taking up the dying flowers, strimming and cleaning the curbs. That’s why I do it. Not for the thanks but because I remember how stretched I was in a very busy, working week and how grateful I was to come home to find my neighbour had mowed the lawns for me. Now it’s my turn.

Of course, with age, other my turns will come. They’re all dying, you know, Dear Reader. A week ago, an old boyhood hero of mine, Ming Campbell died at the scarily young age of 84. I was a sprinter and my Grammar School’s Athletics Captain when Ming was running in the Tokyo Olympics and was being described as fastest white man in the world. I wanted to be that. Once, 84 would have seemed a good age but not now for a fit man who went on to become Leader of the Liberal Democrats, it feels cruelly short.

Another of those who I looked up to in the late 1960s/early 1970s was the poet, Brian Patten who died yesterday. He was one of the vaguely ‘hip’ Mersey Sound poets who came in on the tide of the Beatles success. I must admit that I haven’t returned to his work for many years but I was shocked to learn that he was only 79 – just 5 years older than me when he died. He hadn’t exactly lived a hard life of manual labour in his more gentle pursuit of writing poetry.

Whatever we do to mitigate our fates, some are just unfathomable. If we exercise and keep fit, we think that must help. If we work with our minds, testing to the limits words, phrases and ideas, we think that will ward off Dementia. If we keep a strong check on our physical health, we think we can can identify and erradicate things early.

I was struck by one more death this week of Professor Graham MacGregor at the age of 84. He was a renowned Specialist in Cardiovascular Medicine and a leading figure in the fight for healthy eating and reducing salt in foods to cut down on heart attacks and strokes. He died of cancer.

We can only do our best. Many of us can’t even do that but we can tell ourselves we are trying. It’s very worrying that intolerance and racism is on the rise across the country. This morning a stabbing/shooting incident has taken place on Middleton Road at a synagogue. Of course, not much good comes out of Middleton.

What is taking place in Gaza under the aegis of a Far Right Jewish government and the direction of a criminal prime minister trying to avoid his day of justice is appalling but Jews living in Machester can hardly be held to account. Unfortunately, the pronouncements of Farage and Trump have emboldened – even legitimised these sorts of crimes – and brought the rabble out of the dark to have their day in the sun. We must subdue them again with decency and tolerance.

Friday, 3rd October, 2025

Today was supposed to be awful – heavy rain and blowing a gale. What is the point in weather forecasting if it is so totally wrong. Warm and dry, I was out walking at 9.00 am and did a 90 mins session without problem. Got home with a number of planning jobs to complete in readiness for our month in Tenerife.

Check-in with our airline opens on-line this morning. I do it early and download Boarding passes from both flights to our digital wallets on our phones. Because I’m old, I also print out hardcopies as backup. I virtually never use them but it makes me feel better. I inform the property managers in Tenerife of our flights and arrival times so they can meet us. The taxi from the airport only takes about 20 mins. I have to make sure I have enough Warfarin with me to cover a month plus a month extra in case of emergencies so I’ve ordered that. What fun it is to be old, Dear old Reader! My annual travel insurance which comes ‘free’ with my Bank Account has been renewed.

Of course some people adopt a Faith as an insurance policy in Old Age. In God We Trust is their faith. My Mother did exactly that but I am shocked how many of my Generation do the same. I have no faith in anything other than myself. I believe in what I can see, touch, prove. I will never believe in fantasy, social construct, desire to imagine an alternative reality, fiction.

I am painfully aware of people who have treated me abominably while professing to be people of Faith, believers in a God who preached Love Thy Neighbour. I am aware of the sensitive and brittle egos under the majesty of their heaven. I am aware of the hypocrisy of a Faith which allows the Catholic Church to persecute the unmarried mothers, of the Jewish Faith which allows the extermination of the people of Gaza, of the Muslim Faith which allows the erradication of Jewish neighbours. Faith is blind and terrible. Only Science, Rationality, Empiricism can form a secure platform for advancement.

I’m going to have to go up and save the people of Manchester who are struggling with the multiplicities of Faith – all believing different Gods which, in itself points up the farce of Faith. My Mum, a staunch Catholic, would not allow me anywhere near a Church of England service. Everyone was struggling to establish the supremacy of their Gods.

The whole process points up the nonsense of the construct. People create Gods to construct an image outside themselves, above themselves to appeal to, to defer to, to rely on. Rather than looking out, they should be looking in on themselves for strength and sustenance. Humanitarianism is the only way. Forget candles to false gods and love thy neighbour like thyself.

Saturday, 4th October, 2025

Gloriously warm and sunny morning after a blustery night. I’m on duty this morning. Pauline has a birthday tomorrow so I am out early sourcing ingredients for a Birthday Meal. It will be Mezze which she enjoys. Lots of small, taster, sharing dishes emblematic of Greece. If you go into a Taverna, Kafenion, Ouzerie and order a glass of Ouzo – the clear, aniseed distilled alcohol drink which turns cloudy white with added water, the waiter will bring you an accompanying plate of Mezze. In that situation, it is usually bits of Feta Cheese, some Kalamata Olives and cubes of Cucumber and maybe some peanuts.

Of course, for a Birthday Supper, mine will be far more extensive but I can’t reveal that too soon. Expectation is all important, Dear Reader.

Its always nice when someone younger than me has a birthday. Gives one a slight feeling of retribution. I’ve been talking to friends across the North of England over the past few days. One in Rochdale who I’m going up to see soon is 85 which makes me feel absolutely great but all the others from my College are one or two years older and, suddenly, they all have Covid. Not a good thing to get at that age.

There are these new strains emerging rapidly and they are particularly virulent in the North of England. Gives me pause for thought about visiting. Hospital admissions and deaths are rising as they tend to do in the Winter months and we are not even there yet.

The football this afternoon is Chelsea v Liverpool. On this day 16 years ago, our car was packed, the ferry was booked and we were preparing to drive back to UK. The temperature was 85F and we swam in the sea. In the evening, I watched Chelsea v Liverpool before going to bed. Life is circular, Dear Reader. What goes around, comes around. It’s happening again today. I will always return.

Tragedy has struck on the edge of a 74th birthday celebration. The steam cleaner has packed up. I’ve had to order a replacement urgently. It will arrive tomorrow. Phew …

The Daily Telegraph featured an excellent Rioja at Aldi this morning. I nipped down to buy a dozen bottles. Only £5.99 a bottle. I’ve tried it already and it’s delicious.

Going out for my second long walk of the day. It’s stayed sunny and warm. The breeze is down. Can’t sit around all day. Man.Utd. are already winning 2.0 against Sunderland and Chelsea play Liverpool later. I have time on my hands. Must keep moving!!

Sunday, 21st September, 2025

Bloody Sunday … again. They don’t stop, do they? A bit like the rain in Manchester and Wales. Anyway, this morning is glorious with clear, blue skies and strong sunshine, warm and wonderful. Unlike in the 1950s, Sundays no longer represent slower times for most people. For the Retired, most days are slower times. In fact, the problem is challenging lethargy by moving around at all.

This article features in the morning’s Sunday Times. I must say it is years since I had a speeding fine. I’ve had two in my driving lifetime. Most young men are in a hurry to get there. With age, we learn to take our time and enjoy the ride.

If anything, the most significant element of driving back and forth across the Pennines each day, back and forth across Europe each year, always in a hurry to get to the next stage for work or pleasure, my eyes were always on alert for police and camera surveillance. I had a couple of speeding camera captures in the North of England and I was once stopped at a Toll Barrier by police as I was leaving France to enter Switzerland. They asked me if I realised I was doing 180km/h on a 130km/h motorway. I told them I was desperate to meet a ferry in Ancona and handed over 70 Euros for their Lunch which seemed to do the trick.

There has been a general toning down of speed limits here in UK as the density of vehicles on the roads has increased. You would be hard put to do the speed limit in many major cities now anyway and it would almost be quicker to walk. Even the little lane I drove up and down every week day for years near my school is going 20 mph. The increased housing and consequent car driving access has to be legislated for.

I no longer speed or even try to speed. I drive almost permanently on the setting of Adaptive Cruise Control set to the speed limit and adjusted to the car in front. With Lane Keep Assist on as well and Automatic Breaking, the only reason I hold the steering wheel at all is because it bleeps and flashes me if I let go for more than 30 secs. Driving is a much more relaxing activity. The roads around us are 20mph limits. The car just reads the signs and sets the speed. I know the Welsh have had a problem adjusting to that principle but, with all that rain, they must be very sad people anyway.

Rain cuts the place we tread,
A sparkling fountain for us
With no fountain boy but me
To balance on my palms
The water from a street of clouds.

Dylan Thomas - 1931

Soggy, Welsh and sad. No wonder Dylan Thomas turned to drink although I don’t think he could drive anyway.

Monday, 22nd September, 2025

The Autumn Equinox was ushered with magnificent skies last evening. The sea and sky across Littlehampton Beach were on fire.

Coincidentally, that Wordsworthian theme of Trailing clouds of glory do we come … was echoed in a photograph from 55 years ago that was sent to me by a friend yesterday. Certainly trailing lots of hair, anyway.

Almost cut my hair
It happened just the other day
It’s gettin’ kinda long
I coulda said it wasn’t in my way…

Well, I didn’t need to cut my hair in the end. It just fell out of its own accord. Trailing clouds of hairy did I come …. On this day in 2009 when I was just 58 years old I was recording the night sky from my Greek house:

Distinct change in overnight temperature is what the garden will be feeling. Although we’ve now got a completely dry and quite warm week ahead, the nights are cooler and the trees, plants, and animals will react and start to turn down, prepare for shut down, look to ensure their survival through the months of Winter. The one thing we are lucky with down here is that the extremes are far less than the further North one goes.

Tuesday, 23rd September, 2025

Another glorious morning – a bit cool but bright, clear blue skies and strong sunshine. It is our long term friend, Little Viv’s Birthday today and we wish her a happy day. She might be tiny but she’s 71 today. Unbelievable!

A big day today. Going to valet the car myself. Lovely day for doing it and I need the exercise. Every new Honda comes with an elaborate canvas bag full of maintenance products – leather polish for the seats, wax shampoo for the paintwork outside and another for the inside, glass cleaner for the windows and mirrors, vinyl & rubber care, wheel cleaner and tyre dresser. You have to be retired just to have the time or inclination to use them all.

I bought my first new Honda – an Accord – in 1984. I found my bag of maintenance products in the boot and my wife had a bouquet of flowers on the back seat. Little has changed with each successive new car but attitudes have. Back then just over 40 years ago, I was busy working, occasionally took my car in for cleaning but had no time to do it myself and, when I took the car in for its first service, I knew it was going to be given a full, inclusive valet by Honda anyway so I didn’t bother myself. The Service Manager actually reprimanded me for bringing in a dirty car. It was bad for Honda’s image he said. He wouldn’t dare do that now.

Down at the beach this morning, Life was busy. No stone unturned. Mackerel cloud was starting to filter over from France. I will take it back with me when I go over shortly.

Wednesday, 24th September, 2025

A grey, overcast and quite chilly start compared with yesterday. It’s not cold but lack of sun makes it feeel so. Of course, living inland makes you far more susceptible to temperature extremes. Living on the coast mitigates those extremes.

The oceans mitigate global temperature by absorbing large amounts of the Earth’s heat, acting as a massive heat sink that distributes this energy through ocean currents and stabilizes climate. Water’s high heat capacity allows it to store and release heat slowly, preventing rapid temperature swings and moderating coastal climates, making them cooler in summer and warmer in winter compared to inland locations.

I haven’t done Geography since O Level in 1967. I knew the basic principle but wasn’t really understanding of the complexities. When you live in the North of England, in general, and on the Pennines, in particular, for decades, you take being cold and miserable in Winter for granted. It is an incentive to move South and to the coast. I was watching people living in Alaska and wondering, Why would you choose to do that? Move to Florida and enjoy your life.

Of course, some people just like the safety of the place they know. Some people live in the same house for most or all of their lives. It is unambitious but safe. I understand that even if I haven’t practised it myself. I belong nowhere. I have my foundations in nothing. I have no home. I am rootless. I have no affinity. I walk alone. It is a lonely, independent journey. Occasionally I regret it but wouldn’t change it at all. We grow through change and ambition, through new experiences and locations, through new ideas and challenging the old. And so it is just like you said it would be …

One of the downsides of living by the sea is that the demographic is much more concentratedly OLD. It is a popular place for people to retire to. Most of the people we come across out during the day are old people. They clog up the shops hunched over trolleys, they clog up the roads peering out for road signs, they clog up the doctors and hospitals desperate for healthcare. They are just there, silver haired and slow. Yes, I know I’m old as well but … not that old.

I love Data and Economics much more than Geography. I listen to a wonderful radio programme that combines the two – More or Less. It is a fact checking data analysis programme which is exactly what I like.

This morning it was examining a statement made by the Governor of the Bank of England about the viability of pensions as the proportion of elderly increased in the UK and across the world. What I found out was that by 2040, almost a quarter of the adult population will be over 65. What pensioners need to remember is that publically funded pensions, health services and social care are not funded out of some already established pot of savings. It is funded by current workers through their taxes. The Faragists who live long enough will suddenly realise why they need immigrants here working and paying taxes or the population pyramid will be so inverted , their very existence will be challenged. Assisted dying will be compulsory.

Thursday, 25th September, 2025

It’s funny how Nature knows the date. How does it know that the ‘official’ start of Autumn has begun? But it does. Suddenly, the nights have got a bit cooler. The skies are clearer. The stars are brighter and the morning’s blue skies are sharper. The trees have suddenly picked up on this and their leaves are beginning to turn from green to yellow with brown edges. One or two are falling and helicoptering down onto the grass below which is growing more slowly now. Even the squirrels are coming out in sympathy and streaking across the road.

The monthly village magazine delivered free to our door features one on its front cover as a symbol of the season. The national psyche still harbours cultural undertones of the harder times in the past when food had to be stored up in the good times for leaner times to come … squirreling it away to get through the Winter.

I live in a community and I have a conscience, I care for people less well off than myself but I’m really not a communitarian. I’ve always had a natural affinity with people who shied away from that style of living, who value their independence and separateness. The Germans have a phrase for it – Gemeinschaft und Gesellschaft – Community and (Association) Society. It is a dichotomy developed from Thomas Hobbes through Ferdinand Tonnes and then Max Weber. The village magazine continues to promulgate the traditional Gemeinschaft concept of cooperation. I am still firmly in the atomised Gesellschaft movement. I support in my own way on my own terms. I am not a natural joiner.

I suppose with old age, we see the need more for community and support. We anticipate our infirmity. There could be a time when we need people around us to care. In fact, I see my aging as a a juggler keeping the plates spinning by taking remedial action immediately on my material world maintaining the house and car and on my physical self by addressing health issues as they arise. Keeping at bay deterioration

Eating well, trying to keep fit, having regular health checks just like servicing the car and maintaining house services are all part of the plan. Currently, and I hate to admit it even to myself but, I have a bit of a hearing problem in my left ear. It has always been a little suspect but over the past three months has got seriously worse.

The one thing that my area has is great services for the elderly. Many of them are featured and advertised in our monthly magazine. Hearing deterioration is certainly a feature of aging. Looks like I may be visiting the Sussex Audiology Centre. I’m just happy that this day deep into September has reached 22C/70F with gorgeous sunshine. Reunification is at hand. The world is getting better. Time is cyclical as Einstein would tell you.

Friday, 26th September, 2025

Grey and cool start again. Hope the day turns round as it did yesterday. At least I don’t have to drive to the hairdresser’s this morning. Each morning at the moment, while other people are eating mueseli, I go out into the garden to pick tomatoes. I have picked so many cherry tomatoes from plants which accidentally seeded themselves from past plants that the freezer can’t take much more tomato and basil sauce. Still, it is nice to have.

I finished yesterday’s Blog acknowledging the great Health Services down here on the South Coast. It was ironic because yesterday marked the 60th year since my Dad died in hospital of a heart attack in 1965. He was in hospital in the first place for investigations on his heart. I have always been struck by the irony and angry that systems weren’t in place to save him.

Of course, now a simple stent would have solved the problem of blocked arteries so maybe there just wasn’t the knowledge and/or technology to save him. I’ve found that the first stent was not patented until 7 years after Dad died. Whatever, his death had a resounding effect on our lives, on Mum’s life for years afterwards and on my life in terms of career choice.

It was expected that I would go into the family Building firm – Sanders & Son and I was sent off to evening classes in the local Training College to do a Architect and Estimator module while, at the same time, also doing my O Levels at Grammar School. The original business was started in the 1880s and expanded from coffin-making to general carpentry and then to general building work. It was re-registered when my Grandfather bought out his father’s, my Great Grandfather’s partner and formally registered it as Builders & Contractors. When Dad died he was building numbers of houses and employed about 20 permanent skilled men along with many more from the ‘Lump’ – a form of labour-only subcontracting where workers are paid a lump sum of money for a job, often in cash-in-hand, rather than through PAYE. 

As it was, when Dad died I was just 14 years old and although Grandad stepped back in to keep the business going, it was only until it could be sold to a house building concern in Derby.

I would have been a rubbish Builder anyway although I would have been a good, Man-Manager. I would have been terrible as an Architect and a Constructor but I would have been good as an Estimator and Data Manager. It wouldn’t have been enough although I often thought that combining my brother, Bob’s skills with my own might have made a winning team. Still, it wasn’t to be. I turned to my Mother’s profession as a teacher.

I found that I was a natural educator. I was good at it and enjoyed my ability. I felt utterly at home in Education and in making reluctant kids want to learn. I loved to innovate and bring the age old process of teaching and learning into the modern world of the internet although in the final years I was becoming a bit disenchanted and ready to go. Even so, for many years in my dreams I walked the corridors of my history and continued to talk to and advise former pupils and staff still needing support.

In the past few days, I have been watching the Emmy winning, British psychological crime drama, Adolescence about a teeage boy who murders a girl in his school as he struggles to come to terms with personality development and his developing sexuality. Adolescence illustrates a classic dilemma that one saw time and time again over the years in school. It took me back to my early years of teaching and moved me greatly.

The drama was a slice-of-life style and the school scenes gave me the shivers they were so close to actuality. The poor, caring parents, uneducated but loving, thoughtful, caring people who had obviously worked hard at being good parents but were feeling blamed by the world for their son’s crime. They searched themselves in vain. How often did schools in working class areas constantly under the Oftsted cosh, search their consciences for the source of failure when the system built it in from the outset.

Saturday, 27th September, 2025

The rule is that, as the pips sound for the 7 o’clock News, I have to spring out of bed and get going. Just as I do, I ask Alexa, What’s on the calendar today? She will announce, John, you have four entries on your calendar today and then she will go on to list them and place in text scrolling across the screen. Great, I know how to plan out my day.

This morning, I got a glum, John, there is nothing on your calendar for today. When I was working, I would have rejoiced in having a free Saturday. Now not so.

It is a lovely day. After a warm night we have sunny skies. Might drive down to the beach. Might pick tomatoes. Might check the back garden for jobs. Might …. I hate drift.

I’ve visited Sifnos, Thessaloniki and Athens this morning by webcam. It is overcast and distinctly grey. That is what happens in the dog days of September. I recorded that on this day 16 years ago we lit the log fire for the first time and put on the underfloor heating in our Greek home. The next day, we were swimming across the bay in 30C/85F of sunshine. We had one more week before we left for the drive back to UK and I recorded that I was being forced to eat pork chops twice that week and Bolognese Sauce twice as well as we had to eat down the freezer prior to turning it off for six months.

Anyway, in the here and now, I’ve done a lovely 2hr walk in gorgeously warm sunshine and I’m going in the Gym to move while I watch the football rather than sit as a couch potato and vegetate. I looked at myself in the shower last night and I need to get a grip and work harder. Aging is a terrible thing. If the football is rubbish and it hasn’t been great recently, I’m watching a fantastic dramatisation of the phone hacking scandal that cost Murdoch so dearly. It is called The Hack and is brilliantly carried by Toby Jones as the famed editor, Alan Rusbridger and David Tennant as the intrepid Investigator/Reporter, Nick Davies.

The storyline is cleverly interwoven with Murder of Daniel Morgan, a private investigator who was found dead in a South London carpark with an axe in his head 38 years ago. Officially, the murder is still unsolved although police corruption and phone hacking seem to have been involved as well. The connection between the two stories is that both were linked to the now defunct Murdoch newspaper – The News of the World. It is a story that involves Journalism, Politics and Espionage and History. I am in heaven.

Sunday, 14th September, 2025

Sad Sunday. Never been keen on them. Especially as a child, I hated them. The routine was obligatory Church Service followed by a quite formal and obligatory Sunday Lunch followed by an obligatory Family Outing either driving or walking or both. I have been encouraged throughout my adult lifetime by the decline in formal religion, the opening up of the secular and commercial world into Sundays, making it rather more of a ‘normal’ day.

Only in separation – marriage, and birth,
And death, and thoughts of these – for which was built
This special shell?

Church Going – Philip Larkin, 1954

When Philip Larkin wrote his poem, Church Going, more than 70 years ago, the decline was barely under way. The title is deliberately double entendre. It implies that people are going to church while the church is leaving. And so they are although there has been an attempt to show that there is a resurgence. Recently, we have been told that Gen Z is returning to the church. I am sceptical but it has to be taken seriously.

I’ve spent a career of 40 years in Teaching telling pupils that god doesn’t exist and that they need to face reality. It is to be expected that there would be an equal and opposite reaction. The ‘Tommy Robinson‘ demonstration in London yesterday was ostensibly arguing that Britains should unite and become Christian again while beating up policemen. It always amuses/shocks me how right wing christians rarely espouse Christianity at all. I know of people who are self professed Christians but set out to hurt others in the most un-Christian way. For them, Christianity is more of a socio-politcal construct than a belief system. They use religion as a tool more than a support system.

My shadow is in need of Medical Investigation. Struggling to get the NHS to do it so we are on the verge of breaking our rules and seeking Private Health help. The nearest private hospital in Goring looks the most likely place. We are going to seek help from them. We are certainly not going to be looking for Divine Intervention or the solace of the promiscuous God Squadders.

Monday, 15th September, 2025

Happy Monday after a windy night. Warm and sunny with fast scudding clouds overhead. Out for an early walk where the debris from the night is scattered. In the park, the apple trees are scattered as wind falls.

Unfortunately, it is Bin Day and empty ones are dancing in the road. Well, it is Autumn. In fact, we are half way through September already. You can’t hold back time, Dear Reader, although a lot of us are trying to.

I get my Mobile and Broadband contracts from EE. I have two all-in smartphone contracts which allow me to use as much data, texts and phone calls as I like. I can use it in UK and right across Europe equally. Well, that’s whet I thought. Last month my bill showed one anomaly which was an extra charge for using emojis in texts from Abroad. I got my bill for this month and found another anomaly – an extra charge for phoning Athens from UK.

It feels strange because, when I asked them, they said I could have phoned London from Athens for free. I could phone Athens from Paris for free but I am charged for phoning Athens from UK. It’s not a big cost. I phoned my hotel for a couple of minutes and incurred a charge of 49p but I might have needed a much longer call and I need to find a work around. In the past it was to use Skype. I’ve eventually found a Voice Over Internet Protocol alternative called Yolla.

Out on my second walk of the day through the park and the Autumnal decaying of Nature, I came across this little chap scurrying through the tree’s debris. I photographed it with Google Lens which is an absolutely brilliant (and free) app which allows one to photograph anything and Google will identify it for you within seconds – trees, plants, birds, insects, cars, clothes, anything. Google is almost guarranteed to have a similar photograph in its image database of billions and billions of images.

Google Lens told me that it was called Calliteara pudibunda – a poisonous caterpillar which produces a poisonous moth which is pale in colour hence the name: Pale Tussock. It goes on to give more background than you could ever want. I particularly use it for identifying plants I want to grow. Well worth a look, Dear Reader … and free.

Tuesday, 16th September, 2025

Warm and sunny again but without the wind. Been out for an early walk and it is delightful to feel the sun on my limbs. While I’m walking, I’m tossing a couple of things around my head. I hate indecision and I can’t resolve these two very different but related things.

I have to pay an €800.00 deposit on a holiday rental in Spain next year. The problem is that I’m transferring money to a Spanish company’s account in a Spanish bank. There are two, basic methods I can use:

• IBAN – International Bank Account Number
• BIC / Swift – Business Identifier Code

These processes were every other day occurences when I was building in Greece but I feel so out of the the centre of this now. Maybe it is my age but I am far less confident of filing off £20,000.00 lumps of cash into the ether as I was doing most months 25 years ago.

Anyway, IBAN has done the trick this morning and the 28 night stay is secured in June-July next year. It allowed me to immediately buy return flights but this time to Alicante Airport. We loved Murcia Airport for being small and quiet and easy. Unfortunately, that scale means it has less flights from London each day and the timings just aren’t right for us next year. It will be interesting to see a new airport next year and at least it has an Executive Lounge which Murcia didn’t.

A 4 week stay in Spain will cost me £3,200.00 plus £500.00 for return flights. If I do it twice a year for 10 years, that would work out at something just under £80,000.00. This morning I received an invite from a Developer who has a small block of 8 new apartments in Torrevieja with a communal roof pool for £137,000.00. Property in Spain seems to be so cheap compared with Greece. So, while I am walking, I am tossing that around my head. Would it be cost effective? Am I too old? Would we use it enough knowing there are other places to go?

When I got home, reality bit back. A letter arrived from the Oncology Team in Worthing preparing me for my next set of Blood Tests and a CT Scan before meeting them for a Review at the end of the year. Everything is predicated on remaining alive, doesn’t it Dear Reader?

Wednesday, 17th September, 2025

Disappointingly drizzly and grey this morning. Not that warm either. Good to see we have set the scene well for Trump’s visit. Spending it preparing a guide for a girl to see as much of Athens in a two day visit. Fun but tricky. Google Maps is invaluable but I also took photos while we there in preparation.

I’ve tried to point out ways to move around the capital city, things worth seeing, places for eating and shopping. There is only so much you can do in 36 hours without killing yourself.

Having visited 80 times over the past 40 years and spent the equivalent of about a year and a half living there, my advice to newcomers with little time would be to find a central cafe, order some wine and just sit and watch and listen to the world around them. There is no better way to experience Athens than this.

Won’t be long before we can Check-in on line for our next trip to Tenerife. If the weather continues like this, I will be desperate for warm sunshine by then. First, however, we have some medical issues to sort out. My shadow is still not completely well and we are expecting further investigations. I’ve got my Oncology Review coming up at the end of the year and have to have blood tests for PSA and Testosterone plus a full body scan. They have just contacted me about it.

Thursday, 18th September, 2025

Very warm, grey day when the news is interesting. Today, the Bank of England held interest rates steady at 4% when there was clamour for a reduction and America had prefigured it by reducing their rate under pressure from Trump.

It may not mean much to the masses but it would if they realised its significance. We affluent oldies will gain. We don’t borrow money and pay interest. We tend to invest money and receive interest. Inflation attacks us and we need interest to counterbalance that. Inflation informs our pensions which we have no way to influence.

Triple Lock State Pensions will be uprated by Average Earnings at 4.7%. Teachers Pensions will be uprated by Consumer Price Index (CPI) which is predicted to be 4.0% for September. These are important factors for we poor people. It is important that Pensioners keep up with developing earnings in the real world.

Of course, for we poor Teacher pensioners, it’s equally important to maintain our position. After all, we’ve got our travel to pay for. We have a Juke to insure. Prices are rising and our pensions must rise with them. Fortunately, that’s what Teachers’ Pensions do. Index Linking is part of the gold plating we received to compensate for low salaries.

In these politically uncertain times, Keir Starmer has managed a wonderful American visit reaping £Billions in inward investment. I just hope I live to see the rewards. He is under pressure from his base and Andy Burnham, Greater Manchester Mayor and King across the Water, is being touted as an alternative with stronger left wing credentials. We will see.

If the unsophisticated, uncultured Northerners feel strongly enough maybe his case will be advanced. If Starmer produces the goods, maybe we will stick with the cultured intelligentsia from Highgate. I’m hoping Starmer can make it but Burnham would be an acceptable alternative.

Talking of sophistication, my sister in law is making her first trip to Athens as a prelude to a Mediterranean cruise. I was tasked to find her a hotel for a couple of nights and suggest how she might spend a couple of days exploring. For me, it was quite fun condensing over 40 years of experience into a few pages. I managed to produce a quick guide and fired it off today just as they were setting out for Croatia – which we are told is at an early Greek stage of development.

Friday, 19th September, 2025

Happy Hair Day Friday, Dear Reader. I am home alone and my wife has gone to the hairdressers again. She seems to go a bit more frequently these days. Probably trying too hard. Her hair has hardly changed over the past 50 years although it has always been fine, it is perhaps a little thinner now. Still, at £75.00 a go, it’s cheap compared with the old, Sassoon days in Manchester. I haven’t chauffeured her because I drank wine last night and she has a 9.00 am appointment.

I am outside mowing everyone’s lawns. Summer is well and truly back with blue skies, strong sunshine aand 25C/77F of joyous warmth. The birds are really confused. My huge crop of cherry tomatoes are taking every opportunity to ripen and the grass is green and luscious.

It’s always touch and go with outdoor tomatoes and we are usually left with lots of green ones at the end of the season.This year will be better than most but the slugs are really feasting on them as well.

I remember the ritual at home as a child when the country had just emerged from wartime economy and Dig for Victory movements. We grew large proportions of our household vegetables in our own garden with a waste-not-want-not theme. Mum always ended up making Green Tomato Chutney but I don’t know who ate it. I didn’t.

The end of the season and my mower is showing its age. Over five years old and bought in a time when I had real grass. Now I just do public areas. Will I buy another? The neighbours have said they will club together to buy me a sit-on tractor but that would defeat the fitness effort. Still shelling out £500.00 to help the neighbours feels a bit extreme.

Conversation today has turned to see places that we think we should. Destinations like Venice, Florence, Parma and Bologna were great but we haven’t been to Rome and feel we should. Just a short break of about 4 days would be enough to taste and decide if it merits a longer return.

And Madrid has rave reviews from our friends. Now we have got the Spanish vibe, a few days there and/or Barcelona would be a good thing to do. My 75 birthday in April could be the perfect opportunity/excuse. I think I fancy Barcelona. Any tips, Dear Reader?

Saturday, 20th September, 2025

A very warm but rather grey morning. Every morning starts at 5.45 am with Alexa announcing the time and playing BBC Radio 4. At that time, it is Farming Today. Not a natural interest of mine although it can be fascinating. I remember Margaret Thatcher saying her day began with that.

This week, the theme has been Rural Services and today it was bus services. I haven’t been on a bus for years other than the Long Stay Car Park Shuttle bus at the airport. I drive past people here standing at bus stops and I want to give them a lift. I can’t bear seeing people standing in the cold and wet for hours just because they can’t afford a car. Other than that, I didn’t think about it much until elderly relatives lost the use of their car and found bus services were appalling. They had to rely on taxis just to go to the doctors/dentist at a cost of £9.00 each way.

Down here, we have a Coastliner bus service that links Brighton & Portsmouth and many places in between. One goes every 20 minutes and a day ticket of unlimited travel costs £8.50. However, we would have to walk quite a way to a bus stop and getting anywhere would mean visiting many other places we didn’t want in between. It would be long winded and tiring. I certainly wouldn’t choose it.

This morning, I felt myself really moved by a girl in Hull who couldn’t afford a car. She said she couldn’t even afford the lessons to learn to drive a car and she had to travel from a rural village to Hull to work. The bus was infrequent and, when she finished her shift at 5.30 pm, she had to wait for the next bus which wasn’t until 7.10 pm. Totally unacceptable after a hard day’s work but what could she do? I tried to put myself in that situation and it upset me.

Despite a Labour Government reinstituting subsidies for bus companies to hold down fares it hasn’t encouraged the increase in services so working people can go about their lives. The problem is where to find the money. There just isn’t any to spare.

My eye sight has never been good and it has got marginally worse over the years. Although I am no longer Type 2 Diabetic, I still have Diabetic Retinopathy Eye Screen invitations twice a year at the local hospital. I take them up because my eyesight is so important. I can’t imagine what it woud be like to lose my driving licence because of my sight. My letter arrived this morning.

The day has turned out to be another lovely one. We got some sunshine and 22C/70F of warmth. My Gardener cut the hedge for one of the last cuts this year – well until we return from travels in December. Looking forward to seeing friends in the North and then sunning myself in the Canarian warmth for a month.

Home made pizzas for Supper tonight while watching Man.Utd. v Chelsea. Pauline’s made the dough. I’ve chosen the toppings. I want a Margharita and a Seafood one. That is prepared. The pizzas are in the ovens and take just 6 minutes at 300C. Absolutely gorgeous! And Man. Utd. won.

Sunday, 7th September, 2025

Gorgeous morning of blue sky and sunshine with a temperature of 22C/70F at 8.00 am after a really warm, moonlit night. Haircut day. At least I don’t need it dyeing. It’s dying of its own accord.

Yesterday, I had to chaffeur my Housekeeper in to Worthing to try on some shoes she had ordered. I am always asked for my opinion and I try to be optimistic. These are suede and I have a pathological dislike of suede. I have no idea why. I think these shoes were about £50.00 a pair so relatively cheap – giving me all the reason I needed to overcome my feelings about suede. I appealed for help to rescue me from this dilemma but no help came. However, reality was all it took to reject the cheap and nasty objects that even Housekeeper couldn’t accept.

Worthing had returned to holiday vibe as the weekend developed. Haven’t been down there for a bit and it was nice to be amongst people – young people, active and happy people enjoying the restaurants, coffee shops, wine bars and the beach. Even The Worthing Wheel was busy and moving.

I’m still reeling from the DVLA letter which arrived while I was out. My car is extremely fuel efficient being a petrol Hybrid. I am still being asked to pay a fortune for Road Fund Tax that the Tories brought in. I really don’t think I get what I’m paying for. Over £600.00 to tax the car is crazy and I have to pay it every year for 5 years when it reduces to the standard £180.00. Who can keep a car for 5 years? I will have traded it in long before that and be back on the high charge treadmill …. if I don’t die first.

I have done a 90 mins walk in the sunshine but I am feeling tired today. All the jobs I’ve planned are going to take mind over matter. I don’t feel as if I’ve got enough energy. I’m being told that it’s my age but I refuse to accept that. I was just 58 on this day 16 years ago as I lunched in a Vathy beach taverna. I was in the first Summer of Retirement and everything felt new, strange but exciting. The first year that school had gone back without me. I still get that feeling even now. School went back this week without me. Still feels a bit wrong.

Monday, 8th September, 2025

A warm clear night of stars and a Blood Moon last night. Were you looking at the moon last night, Dear Reader, because it was certainly looking at you.

You light the skies up above me
A star so bright, you blind me
Don’t close your eyes, don’t fade away ….

Deliciously warm night which didn’t fall below the palindromic 16C/61F. It will probably be one of the last of the season although we are forecast for a return down here at the end of the week.

Another week. Another week of Retirement. Another week of generating activity … for the sake of activity. Sometimes, I long to add meaning to the days. I talk to friends; I try to keep fit; I maintain my world as best I can but, so often, I think there has to be more to it than this. I’ve decided that I am going to major on travel.

I cannot trivialise my time. I am unfortunately unable to accept the simple, momentary pleasures of sparkling lights and popcorn. Ferris wheels and ‘Pop’ music leave me cold and feeling that there has to be something better than this. There is a Void that has to be filled with meaning that is deeper than the superficial. Not the enjoyment of the sunset but what it means.

This morning is bin day so one of high excitement and activity. Not only do I have to put them out but collect them and put them back – for myself and for my neighbour who is in Australia on business. What more could one want?

I am cooking tonight which will be fun. I am doing Roast Chicken Thighs with Garlic Parmesan White Beans which is billed as the SEXIEST white beans you’ll ever try! in this recipe. I’ll be the judge of that.

Tuesday, 9th September, 2025

Beautiful, warm and sunny morning. Promising to be a good day. Last night finished quite well. The meal I cooked was a success although I burnt my finger on a pan which put a bit of a dampener on it. Otherwise, the food was good. Just done an early walk in wonderful warmth. I’m looking forward to spending the whole of November doing that in the Canaries.

I was struck by a report in the M.E.N. this morning about the expansion of a windfarm in Rochdale. I’m all in favour of renewable energy. We should have been embracing it years ago. You know that Greeks have heated water by the sun almost since we started going their 45 years ago. In those days, it was really common to see solar heated water containers on the flat roofs of every house.

It made sense in Greece. In UK, we have more wind than sun so it makes sense to farm the wind in places renowned for it. Having lived on the edge of the Pennines for 40 years, I know it can be windy although I do fear for the compromise it brings to the stark beauty of the landscape and the report is that this site is going to be massively increased..

Where I live, the sea accompanies wind and we have a seascape involving turbines. I have no problem with that. They are far enough out to be inoffensive. I am happy for this to be expanded as is suggested but solar power down here is increasingly becoming a viable alternative. There is no reason why every house should not be clad with solar panels, no reason why every public building should not do the same. Electricity is clearly going to dominate the rest of my life. It’s going to power everything I use. It may well be that Fusion Power will eventually produce unlimited, cheap electricity in the future but for now, renewable energy will increasingly dominate.

This morning I’ve been booking flights for next year and Channel crossings for next month. Travel is certainly no longer cheap. Admittedly, we do choose the most expensive seats and services but Four flights (2 Returns) from Gatwick to Greece on a ‘Budget Airline’ now cost £1,500.00 and return tickets with Le Shuttle to France in October cost £210.00 whereas we used to get £20.00 promotions.

Wednesday, 10th September, 2025

A bit of Autumn arrives this morning. Still very warm but starting wet. One of us is visiting The Beauty Clinic this morning to give another woman £100.00 to help with her Groceries.

When you see what they do, I shudder. Can you imagine, Dear Reader, paying for this? What’s going on up there, goodness knows but I thought shock treatment (ECT) had been largely discredited even in treatment of mental patients.

Meanwhile, another Beauty Show was going on in Worcester. It was Graduation Day. Rather laughably, as a life long atheist, I am a God Father to a lovely girl called Julia. Yesterday, one of her three children graduated from Worcester University. I don’t have children of my own but can seen why old people feel a sense of pride when their offspring achieve. Rebecca-Jane would certainly have been brilliant.

It’s pouring with heavy rain again so I’m going in the Gym and I need something gripping to watch while I work.

While I am feeling sad, I just came across a holiday maker’s post of their beach photograph this morning. I wasn’t interested in that but I was when I saw our former house, the one we designed and built standing out in the background. Gone are the days … I can’t take my mind of of you.

Thursday, 11th September, 2025

Very warm but with frequent bouts of heavy rain this morning. I am driving up to Surrey to see C in his Dementia Facility. He loves Christmas cake and sweets. We are taking both.

C is a natural performer/entertainer. He loves to sing and entertain the crowds. His idol is Frank Sinatra and he reacts volubly to photos of him. His Facility really goes the extra mile for its residents with daily forms of entertainment. These are ideal for C who really gets involved. Could be a difficult drive in wet conditions today but it has to be done. …. Actually, the forecast turned out to be completely wrong and we had lovely, warm sunshine and gloriously clear roads for our trip. Even managed a 90 mins walk when I got home.

The new Energy Price Cap comes into force soon. October 1st – now I’ve got your riveted attention, Dear Reader! We buy our dual fuel energy from British Gas because that is what we inherited from the builders when we bought the house off-plan. The smart meter is set up for British Gas. My phone app is set up for British Gas and, every time I check there is very little to gain from leaving them. They are still a bit monolithic but we’ve used them in the last four properties before this so there didn’t seem much point in switching.

We hardly use any gas and most that we do is for cooking on a hob. The central heating is on so rarely down here. We are extremely electricity greedy with all the appliances/applications we use. Our bill is 15% gas to 85% electricity and will annualise at around £3000.00. Even so, I monitor our usage monthly and record it on a spreadsheet so I can compare it historically. I know how many units of gas/electricity we used each month of September since we moved into this house so we can see our trends. I follow whether it is better to fix our price for the following year or leave it floating until conditions improve and for a while now it has paid to fix.

While I was in Athens, British Gas contacted me and told me my contract was coming to a close and advising me to fix. I went on line and did that immediately. When I got home, they contacted me with the same advice. I phoned them and they insisted I had’t. They did it for me again there and then and reduced my unit price “as an apology for the error”. Two weeks later, they contacted me to say I really should fix before October 1st price rises. I went through the saga and they ‘fixed’ again for me – reducing the unit price again “as an apology”.

It’s a good game and saves me money but I do worry about the competence of UK’s foremost energy supplier and I’m writing to the Management to point that out. Their systems in general and their online systems in particular leave a lot to be desired. All a bit nerdy, I know, Dear Reader but why give them money when you could be spending it on yourself?

I’ve found the Dementia trip has affected me more than I expected. It has made me examine myself and my own human interrelationships, my memories of long and short term past. The human brain is such a scary engine.

Friday, 12th September, 2025

Glorious morning to be alive and mainly in full possession of most of my faculties. What yesterday underlined for me is that there is nothing more important than the present and delay is unacceptable. We have to sieze the day while it is still available. It also increased my determination to keep the context of my actions in all round focus – past, present, future – as much as possible.

Our grip on reality and imagination can be a tenuous one at times. I have strong abilities to remember and link events of Past & Present and interpret one in the light of another. It is what Historians do. Even then, there are debates and disputes over the empirical evidence set against the philosophical/political beliefs informing them. Where I have no abilities at all is in Geographical memory and direction. I have driven between Sussex & Surrey so many times over the past 15 years that you would think the car would almost drive itself. Actually, I would be absolutely lost without sat. nav..

I was amused and heartened by a story on the BBC webpage which could easily be about me. It features a wedding in Scotland and the photographs taken on the day revealed the presence of a very tall mystery man. Nobody invited him and nobody knew who he was. Only when it was uploaded to the web did someone solve the mystery and name the gatecrasher. Apparently, he was expected at another wedding a couple of miles away but didn’t realise he was at the wrong wedding until the bride walked down the aisle. Well, Dear Reader, I could have been the mystery man who nobody invited and nobody knew …. at the wrong wedding.

I don’t like to leave things to chance. I prefer to be in charge of my own destiny. I like to see my time ahead planned out and ordered. I am frustrated that the property I want to book in Spain for a month next June/July has not yet been released and I am having to wait to secure it. I made a contact in the company which Manages it so I’m hoping to pull a few strings to hurry it along this afternoon.

A bit cooler this morning. Just 16C/61F with clear blue skies and strong sunshine. It will soon warm up. The cherry tomatoes out in the garden are covered in fruit and it is still ripening. I suspect they will have another couple of weeks or so before I grub them up.

If you thought Greece was year round sunshine then this suggests not. Our first stay extended from April into October shocked us with the rapidity in which the Seasons changed as rain and low cloud obliterated the beach and the Port.

Saturday, 13th September, 2025

At least it’s Saturday. I was woken in the early hours by torrential rain and that has continued into the morning accompanied by loud cracks of thunder. It is dark and the whole atmosphere is very Shakespearian. The old world decays and dies and gives way to a new world with a bright, new future. We have to be optimistic.

The Tempest breaks up the old order and gives way to a fresh and shiny new beginning. Miranda, pictured here by one of my favourite artists, John William Waterhouse at the very time the storm of war was rending the world, finds love with Ferdinand and they inherit the new world. The older generation,in the form of her father, Prospero, leaves the stage just as in all our lives.

Occasionally, memories come back to bite us. And so it is, just like you said it would be ….. This morning my Digital Memory Box shocked me. It threw up pictures across the last two decades. Back in 2006, I was 55 and still working but walking around with our Greek home in my head as a retreat. In 2011, I was 60 and desperately trying to get fitter by swimming across the bay while living in Greece. In 2015, at the age of 64, I was homeless. Well, we were between houses and spending two months in a hotel in Tennerife while waiting for our new home to be ready. Just two years ago in 2023 I was 72, I had cancer and was undergoing Radiotherapy in Brighton. All events in the graduation of time.

What did shock me – and I won’t be sharing this naked image with you – was a short video recording that I made in Summer 2006 in the Greek house to remind us of things we had to return from UK with in 2007. The video caught a glimpse of me in one of the bathrooms in the mirror. As I played it back this morning, I found myself seriously asking, Who is that? before realising it was me nearly 20 years younger.

I go about my life thinking I haven’t changed much while everyone else has. Everybody we meet swears that Pauline is 20 years younger than her age and then says, Sorry about you, John. To see a live edition of a 55 year old me was shocking. My skin looked so Healthy, Smooth, Shiny and …. YOUNG! I am shocked! I’m not taking it well. At least I don’t need a wig!

I am consoling myself with more travel bookings. My contact girl in Spain has come through with an offer on the property we rented in June. Four weeks spanning June/July next year will cost me just €3,700.00. Fantastic value and I can’t wait to sign the contract. That’s something to anticipate across the Winter. Now, all I have to do is stay alive.

Sunday, 31st August, 2025

August is on its way out with warmth and sunshine. Didn’t drop below 18C/65F over night. The aim is to stay in shorts and tee shirts, to keep the window vents open and not to get the quilt on the bed until we return from Tenerife in December.

Don’t you just love human beings and their idiosyncrasies. We are all weird when you focus down on us. OK, I may be more weird than most but it is our differences as much as our similarities that make us what we are – human. The longer we live together, there is a chance our tastes become integrated but there are also many indivdual things we cling to and require negotiation.

We have done six flights so far this year and we’ve got a couple more (so far) which will be the longest by some mark. The Tenerife flights are 4hrs 35 mins which can get boring. I usually try to catch up on sleep but my travelling companion has decided she wants to watch a Netflix film to get her through the time. That means downloading it to her iPad and then wearing ear phones to listen silently. She hates ear buds so I’ve had to buy her noise cancelling, blue tooth Headphones. I am persisting with ear buds because I want to look young and cool!

I have an EE account with two smartphones on it. They are both Samsung S24 Ultra 5G on which I have a 2 year contract at 2 x £80.00 per month. It ends soon and I will be offered an upgrade for each phone to Samsung S25 Ultra 5G, each of which would cost me £1,250.00 to buy but will be free from EE on another two year contract at 2 x £90.00 per month. That contract gives me free roaming as if I was in UK where I have unlimited calls, texts and data. The difference is that the new phones come ‘free’ but the current ones remain my property and I can sell the two for £1000.00. Discussions suggest that one of us will require a transparent phone cover while I will be getting another new, green one

Feel really tired today. Had to really push myself to do stuff. My 90 mins walk felt like 90 hours. I have a cold and my ears are blocked. I’m very rarely ill but, when I am, I’m ILL and it affects everything.

Just to make things worse, the new artificial lawn sweeper arrived yesterday and I had the impossible job of constructing it this afternoon. Well, I must admit I was forced to watch a friend construct it for me while I supplied the brute force in screwing it together. Made in China guarantees the instructions are impossible to follow and we had to intuit the process. Intuition is my middle name, of course. Constructed and working, I’m pleased with my efforts and could get round to using it when I feel better.

M&K continue their road trip from Surrey to Florida via Newfoundland, New Jersey, Washington D.C., North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. It’s beginning to sound epic!

Monday, 1st September, 2025

And so it is just like you said it would be
Life goes easy on me
most of the time
And so it is the shorter story
No love, no glory
No hero in her sky

And so it is Time goes on. Summer morphs into Autumn. Warm fades out into cool. Youth fades into Age. And so it is. Yes, Life goes easy, maybe too easy because reality requires the rough edge of experience, abrasive and sharpening perspectives. And so it is.

It is has been a popular belief that time – day and night, Summer and Autumn, Waves and Tides, Life and Death are immutable truths. The movement of time weaves through them all so that poets, writers, artists, composers have used one to describe the other across the ages from Chaucer’s 14th Century Canterbury Tales: “Time and Tide wait for no Man” to Larkin’s 20th Century Days: “What are days for?
Days are where we live.“

The hypnotic to & fro of the metronome, the tick of the clock, the roar, crash and withdrawal of the waves on the shingle beach where the sea meets the sky and clouds bring winds and changing seasons from across the continents and the hemispheres of the globe.

The sea and the tides have always had a hypnotic attraction for human beings just as the changing skies, stars and moon have too. Nobody says it better than Eliot.

The menace and caress of wave that breaks on water,
The distant rote in the granite teeth,
And the wailing warning from the approaching headland
Are all sea voices, and the heaving groaner
Rounded homewards, and the seagull:
And under the oppression of the silent fog
The tolling bell
Measures time not our time, rung by the unhurried
Ground swell, a time
Older than the time of chronometers, older
Than time counted by anxious worried women
Lying awake, calculating the future,
Trying to unweave, unwind, unravel

T.S. Eliot – Four Quartets 3: The Dry Salvages

We may not all consciously think about it, reason it out but we all, at the very least, subconsiously feel the temporal nature of our existence and the circularity of our lives – Dust to Dust, Ashes to Ashes. The phrase born from the sea and return to die in the sea is a common metaphorical concept, especially in Buddhist philosophy, where a life is seen as a wave returning to the ocean.

Just as in the macrocosm, so we humans mirror that need to return in the microcosm. I see it in myself and the people of my life. After living and working a large, central part of my life I have spent recent times going back to people and places of earlier times. I’m not the only one. We all seek out and attempt to define the significance of our experiences, to reconnect, re-examine and re-evaluate.

I was amused and provoked by this group photo repeated almost 40 years apart. These people were standing where I stood but many years earlier. Their impulse, like mine and others of my experience is to do just that: to reclaim the past before we are all engulfed by the tsunami of time.

Tuesday, 2nd September, 2025

At 9.30 am on the second day of Meteorological Autumn, we’ve just had a incredible cloud burst. Everywhere, the trees are looking stressed and aging. We are told that they have advanced two months ahead of ‘normal’ seasons because this has been the hottest year on record and I remember the long, hot, lonely Summer of 1976. I spent it doing my English Degree, going to Keele University and running to get fit. It was long, hot and lonely but productive and effective. Just looking up the link for the university led me back into a longing for academic work again.

I looked up Research for a Doctorate in the History of Political Thought which I would have to do from a distance. There is no way I’m going to rough it on a student campus at my age. It would take 6 years. I would be 80 by then and it would cost a fortune although I could get a University grant if my topic hit the right spot. It certainly wouldn’t be from Keele. Anyway, I’m too old don’t you think, Dear Reader? Have to try and dismiss it from my mind. Maybe I could do it in Manchester ….

Actually, one of my tasks for this week is to prepare a starter pack for my sister in law who is going to Athens for the first time and will only be there for two days en route to a Cruise ship which she picks up in Piraeus. I found her a hotel and now need to give her advice on how to make the most of such a short time in the city. Wherever she goes in Athens, it will certainly be a culture shock.

As a long term Grecophile, I had grown up with the belief that, unlike UK, Greece lacked the variation of Seasons. Sixteen years ago, was the first time I could test that theory and it wasn’t true. Having retired and spent 6 months in our house, I recorded the last week of August with this photo from the patio on a hot, dark night across the port ….

…. and one week later, at the beginning of September, this scene quite shocked me as sea mist thickened and filled the valley, rain came and washed the island of its Summer dust.

Here the rain clouds scurry across the sky, occasionally choosing to douse us in showers and sometimes more. Our lovely neighbours, who have just returned from sunny Corfu, chose to day to hold a Coffee Morning in an aid of the local Hospice. It looks like they are rapidly trying to construct an awning in their garden for guests to shelter. Good luck with that. I’m going in the Gym.

Wednesday, 3rd September, 2025

A very warm but windy night. We didn’t drop below 18C/65F. It is grey and uninviting and rain is forecast. It will be a Gym day today. I’m quite happy about that because I’m watching a facinating serialisation of Joseph Conrad’s novel, The Secret Agent.

It was the sort of novel and novelist that was popular in my educational youth. Joseph Conrad was a Polish émigré born Józef Konrad Korzeniowski and is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language even though he did not speak English fluently until his twenties and he died in 1924 but his writing seems to have anticipated later world events reflecting aspects of a European-dominated world—including imperialism and colonialism.

I’m afraid, my experience of this novel goes back to a small, tutorial room in 1970. I was one of five students asked to read and discuss The Secret Agent and I had been given a week to do it. I am a very slow reader. I don’t read fiction out of choice and, to be honest with you, I had much more enjoyable things to do, Dear Reader. When it came to my turn, I just winged it. Remember, we had no internet to ask. I talked for about 10 mins about a book of which I had only read the blurb on the back. I came out quite pleased with myself. I thought I had got away with it and went back to enjoying myself. It was only on the day I left that my tutor confirmed she knew I hadn’t done the reading

I still haven’t but I am trying to make up for it by watching a dramatisation on Netflix while on the Treadmill in the Gym. It is quality Drama made by the BBC and doesn’t require the effort of reading. What it has done is transport me back to that Tutorial Room and my shallow sensation of deception and the callow arrogance of youth. Very little mattered back then. Now, everything matters desperately. I have to be honest, to be true to myself. Deception is no longer necessary. I wear my heart on my sleeve.

Outside the warm rain is falling already. The wind is blustering off the sea. Inside, the soft, warm memories of youth are folding over me. The Secret Agent is calling, searching, looking for me with gentle reproach. Can’t take my mind off of you. Can I rise to the challenge? I will not let it go by unanswered. Joseph Conrad has been dead for 100 years but I am still here.

I went down to the sea again, to the lonely sea and the sky. It was warm, windy and wet and very deserted.

Thursday, 4th September, 2025

The weather in September is certainly hitting back with variety. At 5.00 am, a cloudburst hit the house. Torrential rain bouncing on the earth. By 8.00 am, clear blue skies and strong uninterrupted sunshine bathed the earth in warm light. It is almost Mediterranean in its pattern.

This morning, I’ve been buying the Mediterranean in the form of a return to Athens for the 81st time. At the risk of sounding monotonous, I have secured a suite in Thessaloniki and a suite in Athens for 2026. It is important to keep in touch with old friends and that is a sign of optimism. I will book a month in Spain as soon as the bookings are released and then think about the later part of 2006 and where we want to be.

By 10.00 am and a trip to the beach for fresh fish, I parked up and remotely opened the tailgate so a shopping bag could be picked up. Before I could, the skies opened and a cloudburst deluged the area. I sat in the car. When it was over, I went to get the bag and realised I’d forgotten to close the boot. Looked almost as if I could catch my own fish in it.

About 40 years ago, I did the same in the school carpark. I parked up and forgot I had the sunroof open on a cold but sunny morning. I got back in the evening to find the seats covered in an avalanche of snow. Anyway, not a problem. I have a little woman for these crises. All sorted out. Even managed to walk along the Marina in the lovely warm sunshine before the next downpour.

One of my tasks today is to prepare a guide for an Athens novice who only has two days to see the sights. Impossible but I’m trying to help so I’m giving a number of suggestions to choose from. There are the formal places people like to say they’ve seen – The Acropolis and it’s new Museum, the Parliament Building, changing of the Guard and Syndagma Square and Metro.

Then, of course, there are the cultural places that really describe Athens like the Plaka (Flea Market), Ermou Street (Athens Oxford Road) and the Central Fish & Meat Market.

Finally, I am offering some eating places of differing types and prices. There is one, old style taverna opposite their hotel but the more ‘reliable’ ones are a short walk away in Mitropoleos Street. It is so difficult to recommend to other people.

There is one way they might ‘See Athens’ in a day and it would be to take the hop-on-hop-off Bus. I’ve not done it myself and it would be exhausting but, if you’re desperate to see everything, that would be it.

Friday, 5th September, 2025

Gorgeous morning as Summer returns for a few days. At 11.00 am, we are feeling warm and content with 22C/70F. Down at the sea, the scene is glorious … so I turned my camera the other way.

Of course, this is the best time to see the beach. All the little, noisy sods are back annoying teachers and the world is left to the adults to enjoy.

About 8 years ago, I had an automated garage door installed. The company tried to get me to sign a maintenance agreement but I resisted. What can go wrong with a garage door? Yesterday, I began to question the wisdom of that idea. We both have a remote control on our car fobs and neither worked. I had visions of major and costly refurbishment but my resident technical adviser suggested checking and replacing the batteries. The nearest place to get them from was Argos. I ordered and paid for them online to collect in my local store.

There is definitely something wrong with me at the moment. I presented my code at the Argos in Rusting Sainsburys/Argos only to be told I had ordered it from an Argos miles away in Littlehampton. Argos is inside Sainsburys there as well. It made quite a change to come down to this rather quaint, old fishing town and in such lovely weather. And it soon proved that new batteries were the solution. The whole problem solved at the cost of £5.00. My sort of solution!

At last this afternoon I can get on with some gardening. Today is public space day. I will mow the street’s lawns and tidy up the flower beds. Tomorrow will be private space day. I will tidy up the beds and sweep/renovate the lawn/carpet. It’s a pleasure to be active in the sunshine.

Saturday, 6th September, 2025

A lovely, warm morning and now we learn that this will go on until at least Wednesday so there is plenty of time to get garden jobs completed. What I do outside in the street; what I did yesterday mowing and tidying in the sunshine which does me good is so appreciated by my neighbours. They are lovely people and are constantly messaging with thanks. I would do it anyway but it is nice to be appreciated.

Fourteen years ago – can hardly believe that now – we were having a new pergola errected on our patio in Greece. The Mediterranean is famously mañana. Greece was at the extreme end of that. We had been asking the Woodman to come and fit a new pergola for us since the first week we arrived in April. Of course he would. He’ll be with us tomorrow. He wasn’t, of course. Nor was he there in May when we called round to talk to him.

A more lovely man you could not meet. We arrived at his workshop and he insisted we sit down with a glass of wine and some mezzedes – bread, cheese, tomatoes, olives. We would talk for an hour and then say we had to go. He swore he would be there tomorrow but this would happen every month for the next six. The shock was when he arrived at the start of our last month in October before we left for UK. He turned up with his brother without any warning and proceeded to fit the new structure.

After a couple of days and less than five days before we left, he told us that we must get it waterproofed against the winter rains by having a rubber solution installed on top. That was something he didn’t do. He suggested a friend who would do it at a price and we were left to organise it. Our new pergola also needed painting. Fortunately, the rubberisation was done and I had a resident painter to do the rest. It all got done at the last minute just as Greeks like it but a ‘planner’ like me was developing an ulcer with anxiety.

The other thing we were anxious about was the fact that we were leaving, driving home and not returning for 6 months. We had to appoint a caretaker to look after things. For a long period, our friend, Stavros, did that but, eventually, I had to pay people to take over. The other concern was the three ferral cats which had adopted us. They had to be left to cope in the Winter months. Little Ginge is just about 10 months old here with gorgeous, big eyes sent by the others to beg for food. They knew how to seduce me. She is almost certainly dead now, 14 years on.

Sunday, 24th August, 2025

Another week of Life begins. For me it is in the furnace and the bustling optimism of one of Europe’s most interesting capital cities. There is building and rebuilding going on everywhere. Building is a true sign of optimism, of investing capital in the Future.

And yet Greeks are well aware of the importance of their past. They refuse to forget it, to throw it away, to push it out of sight. They embrace ancient and modern with love.

Nothing is impossible. If your building excavation reveals an ancient past as so many do in Athens, there are ways around (or over ) it. In Stadiou Street as in so many others here, the present reveals the past at every turn. And it does not prevent business & commerce. Look at the floor of this well used shop.

I was thinking about past & present last night as we watched a Netflix political thriller – Designated Survivor. It is a substantial serialisation set in the Whitehouse which I’ve been watching for a couple of weeks. You don’t need to know the multi-stranded narrative in detail but last night the President’s wife died in a traffic ‘accident’. I try not to get involved but I am incredibly emotional and I found myself weeping silently in the darkness. A hardworking good man was deprived of the woman he loved.

Bereavement is a horribly difficult and cruel emotion – a state of intense grief after the loss of a loved one; desolation. It is another thing I don’t cope with well. I find it impossible to let go. That person lives on in my head forever almost as if they hadn’t gone. I talk to them as if they are in front of me. I think I know what they would say in certain circumstances and I supply them with the words. Often, for years afterwards, I seek them out in crowds sometime spotting them way off. Yes, Dear Reader, I know. I need locking up. It can’t be far away.

I blame the city. I am not generally a city person. I get lost too easily. It is amazing how lonely it is possible to feel while in a crowd.

Monday, 25th August, 2025

Lovely start to the day as the sun comes up over the hills surrounding Athens. Yesterday we relived all our yesterdays. Walked down through the Plaka to Monastiraki Metro Station to travel down to Piraeus.

As soon as you mix with The Great Unwashed of a city, you really see it in all its stark reality. Hawkers, Beggars, Chancers beseech you from every corner. There is one old man with a huge, shaggy, grey beard holding a placard saying in multiple languages that he has a brain tumour and needs help with medical bills as he holds out a tin of coins. I have seen that man with the same placard and tin every year for the past ten years. He never seems to grow older and his brain tumour clearly hasn’t affected him either.

At the Metro Station, the first challenge is to buy a ticket. Most Greeks don’t bother but we tourists have more of a conscience. Greeks just wait for one of us to open the gates and then rush through behind us for free. The ticket machines are complicated enough in English but in Greek … The ticket offices have gone and it is all self service with payment by card/phone. Ten minutes later and with one ticket bought and another from a kind girl who still had an hour left on her ticket which she didn’t need, we go down to the crowded platform. I tell my wife to keep tight grip of her phone and bag and I hear myself sounding like an old man.

We find an empty carriage but soon realise why. It is disgusting – stinks of stale urine and looks like a hell hole. It takes 15 mins to Piraeus and we choose to stand by the doors all the way. Even in that time, a well dressed, middle aged woman came down the corridor shaking a box lid of coins and begging.

Down at the Port, everything has changed while everything stays the same. We have been travelling by ferry to Greek islands since 1981. In those days, the Port was fringed by the ticket offices selling places on certain sea lines to groups of islands. If you wanted a ticket and could pay, you got a place on the ferry with no head count. In busy Summers, ferries were packed to the point of being dangerous. These days, everything is computerised and ferries have control passenger lists. It is the law. In busy times you can’t just turn up and get a ticket. The sellers offices have been made largely redundant and are disappearing.

The routine would be that you turned up, bought a ticket for the ferry and then sat in a café for an hour or two until the ferry, which itself was often delayed by hours in peak season, turned up. Now, the computerised, pre-booked system means that ferries are on time, passengers already have tickets and don’t need cafes to wait in. They have almost entirely disappeared. People we knew and were friends with have gone. I remember in 1998 the one featured in the photo above was where we took refuge from a hail storm in late March – Easter Holiday trip to Sifnos. Couldn’t believe how cold it was. The once bustling area is now dead.

Being old means you can see these developments from both ends of the telescope. We caught the first ever Blue Star 1 ferry on its first journey from Ancona to Patras. Now that chain of ferries do island runs. Yesterday, a Blue Star was just docking as we arrived.

In 1982, a ferry from Piraeus to Sifnos took us 5hrs 30mins. The slow and noisy chug of the diesel engines went on for ever. You could even pay for a cabin and sleep away the time. Now, you can do that same journey in under 2hrs by taking the Hydrofoil although it is a bit more susceptible to sea conditions and is far less reliable in the Winter.

Tuesday, 26th August, 2025

An early start this morning because we are flying home after 8 delightful days. We don’t actually take off until mid day but there is a lot to do before. At least when we get to the airport there is an Airside Executive Lounge which is a big step forward. The new, Goldair Handling Lounge means we can go through Security early and retreat to the calm of the Lounge.

Yesterday we were out a bit later in the morning to do our 90 mins walk around the base of the Acropolis. By the time we got there bus-loads of tourists were being disgorged by tour guides often leading Cruise Ship audiences around a brief acquaintance with Athens. They will forget it as quickly as they meet it. When my Mother in Law died, we found in her records a cruise she went on which called in at Piraeus/Athens. She had never talked about it although we sent her cards from there for 40 years. We think it was a blink in the eye of a two week cruise and hardly registered. She quickly forgot it and never told us.

We made the customary visit to the Leather Shop in the Plaka this morning. Alternate years, we end up with belts or bags. Unfortunately for the leather shop, this year was belts. What I like about this shop is that it is owned and run by members of the same family who started it in 1936 and the quality is high.

Wednesday, 27th August, 2025

We are back in UK after a really good day yesterday … and you don’t always say that about a travelling day. Everything was packed Monday afternoon with a few exceptions.

We went out to our favourite Taverna for our final meal. Rough & Ready, island style food where we ate freshly baked bread with our current food-fad, Fava. It is an alternative to Houmous and made from yellow split peas puree with onion and garlic, olive oil and capers.

Always amuses me that we walk out of here ..

…. and just 200 metres around the corner, we sit here for our meal.

Roast Chicken with potatoes slow cooked in the oven made the whole meal wonderful. The meal for two with wine cost just £28.00. That’s island style. A similar meal two streets away the night before cost £100.00. That’s tourist style.

The Hotel called a taxi for us at at 9.00 am and we had another wonderful driver. It is one of the best improvements in our travelling history. In 1981, Athens taxi drivers were legendary for going the long way round, over charging, being unpleasant. I suppose it was made worse because that made us nervous and the tension was heightend. We weren’t as affluent and were keen on keeping costs down.

The government has taken charge in recent years. There is a set price from the airport to Athens Centre – €45.00/£39.00 – which should be paid electronically so that their earnings are measured, controlled and taxed. If the driver is good, we pay in cash with a bonus. Recently they have been wonderful. Yesterday, our driver, Dimitris, spent 30 mins navigating the Athens traffic while telling us his life story, all about his family and his love of the history of his city. He even suggested we might stop off for coffee en route. Lovely man but we declined. Still, we paid him €60.00/£52.00 so quite a good bonus.

Athens airport was busy even at 10.00 am because the Greek holidays were coming to an end and many were returning. Even so, we sailed through Security and up to the Lounge for an hour’s peace and quiet before going down to Gate. I love the efficiency and reliability of Easyjet. We took off on time again and 3hrs 35 mins later after a comfortable and quiet flight, we landed smoothly at Gatwick.

The airport was virtually empty. The E-Gates for passport checking were totally deserted. It was as if the whole place had been forcibly evacuated. Anyway, with no luggage to collect, we were on a shuttle bus to the Long Stay Carpark in minutes and soon driving home. It’s always nice to be in control after sitting in a plane for hours.

Back home, the garden had survived the hot, dry week. The tomatoes were ripe and ready for picking. The Basil had grown hedge-like. The flowers had survived and I set about watering them. A bottle of champagne to toast the end of another successful Athens trip and to look forward to a trip to France, another to Northern England and then a month in Tenerife. I cooked for once – prawn & pea rissotto. It’s one of the few things I do well and it was enjoyable to cook and eat.

Thursday, 28th August, 2025

The Summer is closing down. The Autumn is shuffling in. The kids go back to school next week. And it is raining at last. I go out into the garden first thing in the morning and before Breakfast to deadhead the flowers, to encourage them to keep going a bit longer. I’ve noticed that they feel chilled as if the night time is telling them to wrap up. Even the village magazine is turning its thoughts to John Keats’ Autumn and a Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.

Thoughts are turning to clearing up and closing down the beds and pots for the Winter. I’ve ordered a new sweeper and rejuvenator for the lawn carpet. It sweeps the detritus that gathers and raises the pile which walking and weather has flattened over the year.

The are two things I’ve noticed over the last couple of years. Firstly, we no longer see birds (Duh!) and secondly, lots of weeds find it the perfect environment to see and grow in. I should have anticipated the hydroponic effect. Pulling them out is quite difficult so we have to spray our false grass with weedkiller. These brushes should restore the original condition.

As the weather gets cooler and the days get shorter, my mind is turning to buying more sunshine and warmth. I’m determined to book a month next Summer in the Spanish property we rented this year. I’m so pleased I have a month of Canarian sunshine to look forward to this Winter.

Before that I have a lot of painting of roundabouts to do. The people of Sussex have already started.

Friday, 29th August, 2025

Just 3 days left of August 2025. Went to bed feeling quite sad at the disappearing year. Heavy rain over night much needed by the ground but it isn’t the changing weather – We can always mitigate that by buying sunshine. – but the loss of time. We can’t buy time.

This morning, after the rain had stopped, I slotted my walk in expecting more rain but the weather has just got warmer and sunnier as the day has developed. I’ve exchanged correspondence with the Manager of the hotel we stayed in in Athens.

We have stayed in 4 of the 6 hotels in the Electra Group but the Electra Palace Athens is our favourite for lots of reasons not least because the children’s author, Nina Bawden and her husband, the Head of BBC World Service, stayed there as they were building their home in Greece. Must try the Electra Palace Rhodes for a Winter Sun trip. Only ever called into the island of Rhodes en route to the island of Symi years go.

I’ve also been writing to my boyhood friend, Jonathan, who has lived in Boston, Massachusetts since 1968. He was always mad keen on sailing so he is in a good place for that. I certainly didn’t rise to the challenge. We spent much of our teenage years together and I’ve always intended to visit him but never got round to it. Another trip on my Before-I-Die List.

Loved this article in The Times this morning. It chimes so well with my (unreasonable) frustration. How often, at the age of 74, do I get frustrated with ‘old people’ crawling around completely unaware of those around them in the supermarket or an ‘old’ driver doing half the sppeed limit or someone suggesting they are far too old to use a smartphone or a computer. Often, I think they are probably younger than me. I try to stay up to date, physically fit, quick thinking and moving. So maybe I fit into this study’s findings. Where do you fit, Dear Reader?

Saturday, 30th August, 2025

A day of sunshine and showers – and a move towards Autumn. We haven’t got above 22C/70F today and the grass felt cold this morning. My next trip is the North of England so I wouldn’t expect to feel a lot of warmth there ….. unless it is the warmth of human kindness.

I finished yesterday’s Blog by saying I try to stay up todate and, at 5.00 am this morning, I was listening to reports of an AI Conference in America. Almost every aspect of our lives generates or uses data. From the phones in our pockets and the entertainment we stream online to the energy we consume in our homes, the data we help to produce is growing exponentially. So too is the ability to analyse it.

When used effectively, data can provide insights that can be used to improve healthcare, spot disease outbreaks or discover new treatments. It can be used to make journeys on our roads more efficient and can help manage critical infrastructure such as the energy network.

The vast data sets now available have also helped with the development of a form of artificial intelligence known as machine learning. These computer systems learn from data, examples and through experience rather than having to be pre-programmed to carry out complex tasks. Many of us now interact with a form of artificial intelligence every day through search engines, social media and voice recognition software. As the field develops, it is likely to percolate into our lives in ever more surprising ways

I’ve been using Artificial Intelligence for more than 20 years. Nice to see the world is catching up. Twenty years ago, I was writing online learning and testing programs. Essentially, they use artificial intelligence in their construction. We all use AI in our Google searches. I use AI in manipulating photographs. Look at this original photo of Becky on the left. The background distracts from her image so I asked my AI companion – Copilot which comes with Microsoft’s 365 Software – to soften the background out and warm the image overall. I think you’d agree, the result is quite wonderful.

My car uses AI in its sat.nav., intelligent driving aids, etc.. Our Washing Machine, Tumble Dryer and Dishwsher use AI in deciding for idiots like me which program to use. Even my Alexa Smartspeaker uses AI to select the right startup radio program for me in the morning and draws the day’s items from my calendar to announce; draws down the correct weather site to tell me how the day will go and remembers which podcasts I like to listen to.

Not sure AI could improve on these photos though. M returned to Florida yesterday but she took her dog with her. That meant going on a private jet from Luton to New Jersey stopping off in Newfoundland to refuel. She clearly can’t decide what to do first in Newfoundland. It’s a dog’s life, isn’t it.

Sunday, 17th August, 2025

A gorgeously warm and sunny morning. Woke up thinking about Solomon Street (If you read yesterday’s Blog post) and about History. Yesterday, I managed to get the Founder of and Lecturer at the Oldham Local History Centre and an old friend on the case. He was in France when I contacted him but has promised to provide the answer with evidence when he gets back. Actually, I’ve invited him to deliver it to our Hotel suite in Athens if he can make it. He might be 84 but he is in love again. His wife died a couple of years ago and he has reunited with an old girlfriend from pre-marriage days. They are deleriously happy and making the most of their final years.

History makes me happy. I think it always has. I woke this morning to a program about …. ossier harvesting and basket weaving. Yes, I know, you wish you’d been with me, Dear Reader, but you can’t have everything all at once. It took me back to my childhood in the village of Repton – in the High Street which was well known years before me as a place for the cottage industry of ossier harvesting and basket weaving. The brook running at the bottom of our garden and down to Main Street was the source of the willows that were the material harvested and dried for weaving those gorgeous baskets.

The man above is Seth Pearson. He and his wife lived in the cottage where the dark car is now parked on the upper right. This photograph was taken just before WW2 and probably marked the end stages of the industry.

His wife, Edith, ran a rubbish, grubby little shop selling chewing gum, sweets and tobacco right up to the late 1960s where she was virtually blind and the oldest person I ever met at the age of 107. They had a son, Thomas Seth Pearson, who in turn had a son Laurence Seth Pearson who only died just over 20 years ago and is buried in the local, Repton church yard. Neither followed in the trade of which there is no sign now.

Nothing remains the same. The tradition that I found evidence of going back over 250 years has gone completely in Repton but is being revived elsewhere because there is always nostalgia for the under-industrialised, pre-computerised past.

Well, today has been a lovely re-acclimatisation treat for Athens tomorrow. A hot and sunny 25C/77F will make Athenian 36C/97F seem a bit excessive.

Monday, 18th August, 2025

Quite a grey morning. We leave for Gatwick and Athens later but first, the Fainter is going back to the scene of her faint – the Dentist. She is now fully recovered so I expect things to go well. The bags are packed – just 4 carry-on bags, 2 large and 2 small, are packed. The house is set up but the car is filthy. We’ve had a dump of Saharan Dust over the past few days and black cars look terrible covered in that. I am desperate to clean it but just to stand in Gatwick Long Stay Carpark seems a bit of a waste. I’m certainly not going to spend £25.00 on it but I’m going to do it myself.

I was born and brought up in a small and fairly insular East Midlands village where quite conservative activities, emblematic of earlier times were pursued. The football team, Repton Casuals played on the Cow Pastures pitch. You can’t get much more pre-World War than that. Of course, the public school was significant in influencing that milieu but so was the burgeoning middle class of land and business owners, the retrospective influence of the Methodist church and the ancient influence of the CofE St Wystans church integrated with the school.

Things like the Scout Movement were integral to the post-war conservatism that I was born into. Of course, I was a cub and scout. My Mum was on the committee. I quite enjoyed the pre-pubescent camaraderie of it. I was an aggressive winner. I enjoyed the cut and thrust of scouting competitions.

While I was researching the basket weaving industry history of Repton, I came across this page about Boy Scouting in Repton. The photos take me back to the early 1960s. The workmen’s huts at the top were cast-offs from the building of Willington Power Station. The cooling towers could be seen from miles around across the countryside.

Finished in 1959, the huts were donated in 1963 with a plea from my long time friend, Dave Beasley who was scout leader. My friend, Jonathan and I were there when the panels were delivered on the backs of lorries to a field donated to the scouts by the Parish Council. We gave up hours of our time in their reconstruction and even more hours spray painting the walls inside. I spent hours of my early teenage years in those huts competing to be top dog. I am there in those black & white photos pulling the Trek Cart and sleeping in those awful 1950s tents. Happy, innocent days!

Little did I imagine that I would leave that village let alone live in Yorkshire or build a house in Greece. The boundaries of those hazy, innocent days were so narrow and soon began to feel like prison walls. Songs of Innocence & Experience. Experience brings joys and so much pain that I sometimes wonder what is best. See you in Athens, Dear Reader.

Tuesday, 19th August, 2025

Lovely process yesterday. Great drive to Gatwick – just 50mins. Perfect parking spot in the long stay car park. Airport Shuttle Bus arrived immediately and we were in the Security Clearance area in minutes. It was deserted. The staff were cheery and helpful. It went like a dream. Off to No 1 Gatwick North Executive Lounge for a bite to eat and then down to Gate. Speedy Boarding were boarded … speedily. Just 3 hrs 15 mins later we were in Athens Airport. It is a lovely place to be.

Our taxi driver, Giannis, had lived in England and spoke good if limited English. He knew immediately we spoke that I had Greek experience from the way I gave him the hotel’s address. The hotel is on Nikodimou Street. A taxi driver can tell instantly. If you say Ni ko di mo Street, you are tourist. If you say Nikod i mou and forget the street, you are Greek. He thought we were Greek. We had 40 mins where he practised his English on us and we practiced our Greek on him. The charge was the standard €45.00 but we gave him €60.00 for his interest.

At the hotel, we were a little early for our Suite to be ready. We were given free drinks vouchers for the rooftop bar and went up there to wait for the cleaners to prepare everything. As we sat there, the heavens opened and torrential rain fell on the capital.

Of course, at this time of year, nothing lasts long. The rain stopped. The sun came out. The sauna continued. We went out to shop for wine and nuts for a snack. I met a lovely man, Ναθαναήλ or Nathan who had worked in Birmingham in the past. He obviously wanted to practise his English on us and couldn’t stop talking. When we got back to our Suite, we found cake and an expensive bottle of Tsipouro as a gift on the table. Unfortunately, it does nothing for us but they believe that they are marking our long served loyalty.

You will know, Dear Reader, that Tsipouro is a traditional Greek distilled spirit drink. It’s a strong, clear spirit made from grape pomace. It is incredibly strong but is popular in Greece. I won’t be drinking (much of) it. We have found an interesting, new taverna called Symposio which serves modern, Greek cuisine. This evening, we have Dined out on a fruit flavoured, Green Leaf Salad with Pistachio crusted Pork Spare Ribs. Absolutely lovely.

Still very warm but it has been a long day and these old people need some sleep. Well one of us does. I have some reading and writing to do first but it is an effort.

Wednesday, 20th August, 2025

It’s 2.00 pm (GT) / 12.00 pm (UKT) and we’ve had Breakfast, done an 8 mile walk in a gentle 30C/86F of sunshine. Of course, I had my Failsworth Cap on but the whole thing was lovely. Whenever I return to Athens and even though I have stayed here 79 times before, I always find something new. Sometimes it is genuinely new and sometimes I have just missed it in the past.

Today, I stumbled upon the European Distribution Centre for DHL parcels. Doesn’t look dynamic, does it, Dear Reader.

My friend, Kevin, thinks he is a Greek god. He is very old and wants to be eternal. He has had a statue of himself commissioned to be erected in his North Yorkshire village and he is crowd funding its construction. This is how he sees himself. It is apposite because I am staying in the Electra Palace Hotel. Electra in Greek means amber brightness, or shining. It is the root of our electricity which was first used to light our homes. I suspect Kevin has an inflated view of himself and his chances of being venerated.

My travelling companion has relapsed a bit with an upset stomach. She is rapidly losing weight. We have spent the morning discussing whether to return home immediately or wait until we get there to follow this up. We have decided to give it 24hrs and then make a decision.

For now, I am going out to do another walk as the temperature rises to 32C/91F. Before that, I have the standard problem to sort out. I use BT Email service which is very sensitive to compromise. At the first sign of stress, it is shut down. Here it happens because I am in a foreign country with an unprotected wifi.

I am grateful that they are so careful although it is annoying that I have to reset everything across three platforms each time. At least I’ve got used to it and managed to update password access across smartphone, iPad and Laptop fairly quickly.

I have no interest in religious symbols but the Greeks do and my old friend, the Greek God does – sad, old man. This is the Athens Cathedral – Mitropolous – in yesterday’s sunshine lighting up the marble paving.

A friend came to call at lunchtime. I suspect she wanted my oregano-flavoured peanuts. I told her she was sexy but the wrong friend. She seemed indifferent to the news and just ate the nuts.

Tonight we have eaten in the scruffiest, scariest streetside Taverna you can imagine. We are staying in a top Suite in a 5* Hotel and this taverna looks lucky to get 1* as it sits on the pavements between two bombed out parking lots as cars rush past through the narrow road at the side. Of course, appearances can be deceptive. The 5* Hotel is great but the 1* taverna just round the corner is wonderful. In fact it’s called Paradosiako Evgenia because it was started by Evgenia and her husband almost 40 years ago.

We have been eating there since it opened and the food is typically Greek island style. The prices are too. Tonight, we had Greek Salad, grilled Sea Bass and oven roast potatoes in olive oil and lemon sauce. You should have been here, Dear Reader. With a litre of white wine from the barrel and a plate of green grapes to finish, the whole bill came to just €60.00 / £52.00. Wonderful value.

A fascinating and typically Greek thing happened while we ate. A couple sitting near by went out of their way to attract our attention and engage us in conversation. They were Athenians and middle class professionals. She was a Lecturer in Economics from the local University and he was a Stockbroker on the Athens Stock Market – Χρηματιστήριο Αθηνών (A.S.E.). They spoke quite good English and clearly wanted to practise it. Nowhere else have I found people so willing to seek out and engage total strangers as the Greeks do. It made the meal even more enjoyable.

Thursday, 21st August, 2025

Gorgeous morning which started at 6.15 am (GT) / 4.15 am (UKT) with a political podcast followed by a lecture on Einstein’s concept of time-space relativity. By the time I got up, my head was exploding.

Outside on the terrace, even in the centre of this never-sleep city, little was stirring. It always shocks me that we walk through the grandeur of the hotel’s Lobby into a beautifully appointed Suite and then outside on to its terrace …

…. only to look over the chaos that is an ancient city in constant reconstruction. Everywhere, one sees the otherwise hidden bits that people down on the street never see, bits of buildings built at different points over the last few centuries, things planned in different times and things built under the radar of the Planners so as to avoid inspection and taxation.

For a posh hotel trying to control the environment for its guests who are paying a lot of money for luxury, it is difficult. The rooftop pool is one way to do it. An oasis of calm and enjoyment distracts from what’s below. Drinks are served by attentive staff, towels brought, even food on trays – anything to draw the eyes away from scaffolding cladding surrounding decay.

Going out to walk round the base of the Acropolis again this morning. The walk takes about 90 mins and is best done before we hit today’s predicted temperature of 34C/93F. Over night we didn’t fall below 24C/75F which is pleasant. Mid day is a time for air-conditioning and resting. Along the route, Greeks try to relieve tourists of their Euros. Music players with collection plates, cheap jewellery sellers, fake antiquities for sale and photographs with ancient Greek Soldiers.

Normally, it is the Americans who cough up willingly but there are a lot less around this year. Our hotel is usually a hotbed of Americans who can afford the inflated prices but the dollar is weak this year as Trumps tariff policy perversely hits his own people and they are not coming to Europe. Lots of Italian and a few English voices but the hotel is full of rich Greeks this year.

Supper tonight will be at an old favourite we used to frequent with Greek friends from Sifnos Ella on Mitropoleos Street. They even serve Sifnos Chickpea Soup (Σούπα Ρεβίθια Σίφνου) and my favourite Courgette Fritters (Κολοκυθοκεφτέδες). I dare you to ask for that in Greek after a glass of wine. After me, Dear Reader: Kollo Kithia Keftedes. You see it’s easy.

Friday, 22nd August, 2025

A hot night here. While the North of England fell to an Autumnal 10C/50F and Surrey to an amazing 6C/43F, we never dipped below 28C/83F and we are forecast for an extra hot 36C/97F today.

Walking will be a little more taxing in that heat. My Failsworth Cap will be working hard. My Mother never visited Failsworth. She moved from London to the Midlands and stopped.

A day after the world’s oldest person became a British woman aged 116, my Mum would be 102 today. Once again, as every year for the past 45 years, I am in Greece and not there to wish her Happy Birthday in person. We have to live our own lives, don’t we, Dear Reader, just as she did.

This will seem a strange topic for the Blog …. or maybe not if you’re a regular reader. It may just drop in alongside all the other strange topics. Today, I am discussing Personal Hygiene and changing the bed sheets.

I have to say at the outset that I am not the cleanest person you will meet. I am not averse to wearing the same T-shirt & shorts three days running. I am not big on hygiene products and have to be pinned down to stay fresh. You’ve probably already run a mile, Dear Reader but I am not as bad as it sounds.

Of course, I shower every day sometimes two or three times a day. I dress neatly and cleanly when the occasion demands and I am house trained. It just seems there are far more important things in life to worry about. But where this is leading is the important topic of …. (drum roll) …. bed linen. How often do you change it?

I once lived in a disgustingly scruffy flat as a student, which I shared with three others. I remember hitting a terrible low when I just couldn’t be bothered going to the laundrette with the bed linen so I slept on the bed in a sleeping bag for a week. I stress, that was a low point – a very low point for all sorts of reasons. At home, my Mother’s cleaner washed the linen every week – occasionally turfing me out of bed to strip it. I wasn’t trained in Laundry.

My wife has never failed to do the same throughout our married life. In fact, I am charged with stripping it and bringing the sheets down to the Utility Room every Wednesday. Do you know how I remember it’s Wednesday? She records it on the online calendar which Alexa reads out to me every Wednesday morning: John, it’s sheets day! it announces.

Here, in this 5* hotel, the bed is very comfortable and the Egyptian Cotton bed linen inspires confidence. Far from changing the bed once a week. Here it is changed every day. I suppose at £550.00 per day, one can expect that but it really isn’t necessary.

We have things like this placed on the pillows and even though we have tried to say it is not necessary, still they are changed every day. Guests are supposed to put the Feeling Green notice on the bed to keep the sheets on.

Saturday, 23rd August, 2025

Very hot night which didn’t dip below 29C/84F and an even hotter day is in prospect. We ate out a Mezze Restaurant last night and had a wonderful meal of different fishes – Octopus, Langoustine and Sea Bass.

I’ve been there many times before but I would never be able to find it again without my trusty Sherpa who has a photographic memory.

I’ve written about it before but it is worth repeating. I couldn’t find my way out of a paper bag. Satellite Navigation was specifically designed for me. I even struggle in a large hotel like this with numbered floors, lifts to each floor, numbered Suites and I still can’t find my way back from Breakfast. As we leave our Suite for the lift, invariably, I turn right into the Linen Cupboard as my Sherpa turns left and calls the lift. I am being taught to memorise the furniture outside the lift so I know where I am.

I rarely dream or remember them but I did last night. I was in the centre of an unknown city. I came upon my car in an open garage. I didn’t know how it got there or where it actually was. I didn’t have my key or my phone and couldn’t remember where my hotel was or even what it was called. The total lack of control and understanding virtually sums up my everyday state as I move around the world.

I have often thought about it because it has been a feature of my whole life. When I took my future wife home to meet my Mother, she had to take control of navigation because I got lost. It is embarrassing but I’ve grown to accept it. I have a good memory for facts, figures, faces, ideas but I cannot do directions. I can see the starting point in my mind’s eye and I can clearly see the destination BUT I cannot see the link between the two. Try as I might I even struggle with places I visit every week at home. Without a guide, I would definitely need the hop-on-hop-off sightseeing bus in Athens.

Venturing down to Piraeus today so I am going to need an extra long ball of string to find my way back. Actually, that’s old technology now. I’m going to use the sat nav on my phone to guide me. I’ll let you know how I get on …. if I get back.

…… Well, I didn’t get lost because I didn’t get to Piraeus at all. I did my 8 mile walk but the temperature really rose quickly. By the time I got back to my hotel, the temperature had reached an uncomfortable 35C/95F. It is not really the way to travel on a crowded Metro and to walk across the Port so I decided to stay and watch Man. City in the hotel while travelling in my mind instead. It’s amazing how you don’t need sat. nav. to travel in your mind. You can find yourself in some lovely places without need of a map.

Sunday, 10th August, 2025

Glorious morning, Dear Reader, and it’s going to be a glorious week. And then to Athens where the daytime temeperature will be 36C/97F. It won’t fall at night time much below 25C/77F except in an airconditioned hotel.

This morning, I’ve been out in the garden picking cherry tomatoes which is strange because I haven’t planted any this year. In fact, the last time I did was in 2022. They grew like mad and nearly knocked the fence over. When you grow and pick vegetables, it is almost impossible to make sure you collect every one and tomatoes are notorious for escaping to regenerate. The plants this year date back to seed from the fruit 3 years ago and they are just as vigorous.

Fruits of my past constantly seed my mind in the present and point to the future. It’s good to look back and take stock some times. Time can rush past without one realising unless we take the time to review and understand. Three years ago, I had raised beds installed and my lawn replaced with carpet-grass and I don’t regret it one bit. Maintenance has been made so much easier.

Now, we can go away and not worry about keeping the whole thing watered, fed and cut. It used to take hours of labour to keep it in a manner that I would like.

The one thing I can’t grow at home but which I love is Sweet Corn. They are not easy to grow and take up far too much room for my garden and are very cheap to buy. English Corn-on-the-Cob smothered in melting butter is a Summer delight.

They are on the menu this afternoon outside in the sunshine …. from Sainsburys at £1.00 for two. Unfortunately for me, the butter is essential and massively calorific so I an not allowed to eat many of these delicious treats. I’ve tried the Greek way which is to BBQ the cobs until well charred and then eat them dry but it just doesn’t cut it for me.

Monday, 11th August, 2025

Gloriously hot and sunny morning. It is only 10.00 am and two strange things have happened already. We both had Dental appointments – well, Hygenist. My wife loves going to the Hygenist so her teeth are expertly cleaned. I hate it because he always hurts me.

I always go in first to get it over with. After my torture is over, I go out into the waiting room to find my wife looking very pale. She says she feels nauseous. Over the next few minutes, she feels worse and says she can’t cope with the Hygenist and would I take her home. She holds my arm as I walk to the Desk to say we have to leave and we are just shuffling to the exit when my arm goes light and a pale faced girl falls lightly and daintily on the floor beside me – almost like a circling feather falls through the air

My first thought is, She’s Dead! She hasn’t done the ironing yet. When my Dad died, I was 14 and I remember distinctly saying out loud, Who will give me my pocket money on Saturday? I am blessed with this great sense of empathy, Dear Reader.

Anyway, help was at hand. Assistants and Dentists rushed to help. They are trained to deal with fainting after a patient’s treatment so at least they knew what to do. As my dead wife started to come round, they listed dehydration, heat exhaustion and lack of food as likely causes. She was given a glucose tablet for food, a glass of water and time to come round. I was useless! I walked her back to the car and drove home so she could carry on doing the washing and ironing.

Back home, much Googling of symptoms is carried out with increasing bouts of fear provoked by possible causes. Eventually, her colour comes back but not until I’ve given her a very strong cup of hot water. And life goes on. I go out to Sainsburys to buy Rehydration treatments and Glucose Tablets in case this happens again. The Laundry Woman must be kept alive!

The second strange thing to happen actually occurred at 1.00 am this morning. I didn’t realise until around 5.00 am when I woke and found I had a Whatsapp from an old friend, Anne-Marie, who I hadn’t heard from for about 5 years. My relationships are rather slow-burn, Dear Reader.

She and her husband live in Edinburgh. They are both Arty. Amazing how many of my friends lean that way. Anne Marie’s husband, Bjorn, taught Art at my school while she lectured at Manchester University. Bjorn left us to Lecture in Project Design at Edinburgh’s Napier University. Anne Marie, who trained at the Royal College of Art and went on to research at the School of Art, Edinburgh University, became Internationally renowned and specialised in Jewellery Design and 3D Printing. We went up to Edinburgh to see them about 5 years ago and have just exchanged Christmas cards since then.

Life throws curved balls at us all the time when we least expect it. That’s why it is so interesting and one should never give up hope. This afternoon, it has posted us a temperature of 32C/90F and it is wonderful.

Tuesday, 12th August, 2025

Another gorgeous morning – hot and sunny and good training for Athens. The English Patient is improving but not back to full strength and confidence yet. She did an E-Consult with the Surgery this morning and is awaiting advice.

When we fly to Athens next week, we will be entering the hot arena of something like 36C/97F so she’ll need to be fit for that.

It seems hard to believe but 10 years ago today we signed the sale of our Surrey Duplex and, within a couple of days, bought this current house on the South Coast off-plan. It would be 6 months until it was ready for us to move in.

The Duplex was enough for 6 months a year but too small for all year round living and we’d sold the Greek house a year before. We only had the Surrey property for 5 years and we were amazed to find it had almost doubled in value over that time. It was the best investment we ever made.

We sold to a lady who was relocating back from Australia. We kept in touch for about 6 years and then she developed dementia and died last year. What was shocking was the price the duplex fetched 9 years after we sold it was less than we got.

Suddenly the City commute was out of fashion as so many are working from home and need bigger properties. In fact, it is quite fashionable to live on the South Coast and just go up to the Office occasionally by train. It is fuelling a huge house building expansion plan. It is also spawning Working Hubs where fast IT connections and individual work stations are rented out along with hot desking meeting areas and, in some cases it includes complimentary coffee and craft beer on tap. That’s the way to work!

Wednesday, 12th August, 2025

A strangely overcast and much cooler morning. The North is basking in 27C of sunshine while we are just 20C and grey. Despite the wonderful weather yesterday, it wasn’t a good day. Pauline got an immediate Doctor’s appointment after her E-consult but the diagnosis was confused and confusing. She has had to provide blood and urine specimens today but our research already suggests she is suffering from Gastroenteritis which just needs rest and rehydration to irradicate.

I don’t know anything about anything medical so Google is my first port of call. It is full of brilliantly technical illustrations like this one isn’t. Anyway, we should know the results of her test this afternoon on the NHS/PKB app and we can move ahead from that.

I have bought about 25 cars in my adult life. I have never bought a second hand one. I have written off a few but at least they were all shiny, brand new ones from my first in 1974 – a sandglow orange Skoda Coupé which I wrapped round a tree in Bolton on my first lone drive to visit my sister to the pageant-blue Mini that Richard – an executive at British Leyland – helped get a discount on before someone drove through the middle of it and nearly killed us both before it was 12 months old. It was replaced with a pale blue Datsun Cherry which lasted a year before the wing mirror rotted off and was traded in for a dark green Nissan Stanza.

That was the end of one era and the start of the Honda bromance. In 1984, I bought a brand new Honda Accord and have only bought Hondas since. About 5 brand new Honda Preludes, 15 or so CRVs and so many of them silver. Of course, everyone said I was mad and spendthrift throwing away money on depreciating assets but I didn’t care. I loved new cars – the smell, the feel, the look – and I could afford them so I indulged myself.

All the time I lived in Yorkshire, I bought from Hepworth Honda in Huddersfield. They moved to the outskirts of the area to brand new premises but my salesman who became a friend, Chris Woods, remained. It became so regular that I bought new cars – for one streak a new one every year – that it hardly cost me anything to trade in and get a new one. He knew it had been looked after and treated well (when I wasn’t writing them off) and he could resell them as ‘nearly new’.

This morning, I was shocked to read a notice on social media that Chris had died. He was younger than me at 72 but I had no idea he was ill. We kept in touch after I left Yorkshire for Surrey and subsequently Sussex but it was largely through Christmas cards although I did go back from Surrey to Huddersfield 10 years ago to buy one last car from him to help his pension fund.

The old Showroom was the place I confirmed the sale of my Helme house to my GP. I was buying a new car when he phoned to say he couldn’t raise the cash to buy the house because he was committed to the building of a big new surgery. I offered to let him pay in installments over the next year and the deal was done. The brand spanking new showrooms and garages were built on Honda‘s insistence and cost some couple of million pounds 25 years ago. What shocked me this morning was to find they had recently been bought up by a huge conglomerate and virtually no one could remember Chris Woods at all. I remember him with fondness.

Thursday, 13th August, 2025

Another warm but grey start to the day. The patient has had a bit of a relapse. It is beginning to cast some doubt on Athens next week at the moment. No point in going there to be ill when you can be ill at home in comfort. We will see.

While the patient is resting and being fed with continual cups of hot, strong water, I have been taking the chance to address some technical issues in the house which I haven’t thought about for a while. We have been using Sky for our TV services since the mid 1990s – about 30 years. In the early days it seemed quite expensive but has become almost dismissively cheap nowadays. Actually, I didn’t even know how much we paid each month until this morning. It turns out we have been paying £127.00 per month for a package which includes Sky Sports and Netflix as well as every other channel known to man other than children’s channels.

I have a Sky Q 2TB box plus 4 satellite mini boxes. I would prefer two more but 4 is the maximum allowed plus the main TV. It seems a long time since I had one television fed from a satellite dish in the garden. We had to have it there because we lived in a Conservation Area and were not allowed one on the house wall. I’ve been using Q Boxes since I moved here in 2016 and all the boxes are nearly 10 years old. One was playing up recently so I’ve finally got down to sorting it out.

I went on the Sky website to look for help and found that my 2yr contract had ended. I went to renew it and was given a reduction in subscription fees for loyalty. You see, there is some advantage in being faithful. I got the help I needed with my faulty box and had it upgraded remotely which was good but they are trying to tempt me with a new delivery system that I’ve been resisting for a couple of years Sky Glass. The TV sets don’t come big enough yet and mine are perfectly good for the moment but wifi delivery is definitely the way to go. All the properties we rent in Europe have been using it for quite a while.

The other thing I’ve been doing is restoring Alexa Echo Spot routines for my bedside. I have to program it to sound the alarm at 5.45 am with increasing volume until I tell it to stop. At that point, I have programmed it to announce the time, tell me what’s on the calendar for the day and then play BBC Radio 4 until I tell it to stop. I’ve also programmed it to pick up The Newsagents political podcast from Global Player which I listen to in the car and to just seamlessly carry on from where I left off.

How wonderfully life has moved on since I started out. I was jolted into this thought when a friend sent me a photo I haven’t seen before but which was taken in 1971.

Remarkably, all but one is still alive. The lad on the left with his head up died shortly after this but everyone else is still plugging on. Haven’t seen Christine, the girl on the left, since. She became an Art Adviser to Kent Education I think. The girl hiding at the back, Anne, has lived in Germany for years. David lives in Bolton but taught SEN in Salford. Peter behind David was a Primary Head in Yorkshire. Nigel (Head of Art) and Julie (Artist in Action) live in North East Yorkshire. Christopher, front right was a Deputy Head in Yorkshire. Tash/John was a Primary Teacher. The girl on the right, Liz, lived in Holmfirth all the time I lived within 3 miles but I didn’t realise until I had moved away. The girl on the far right, Carline Herbert, is an enigma.

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned

W. B. Yeats: The Second Coming

And yet, you know, everything is still there to be reclaimed by the memories of those people and those times.

Friday, 14th August, 2025

Talking about reclaiming memories. I moved to Oldham in 1972 and learned many weird and wonderful things. Some were to do with language like brew, ginnel, kecks but there were also grammatical reconstructions of the English language. One of the first teachers I met said on my first day: I’m going there me, down the ginnel and up that brew. I have a smattering of foreign languages but this was completely beyond me. They ate barm cakes for Lunch which they called Dinner. They thought I was ‘posh’ because of the way I spoke and because I didn’t want to drink from a mug but brought my own cup & saucer. I have never been able to use mugs.

The Northern stereotypes of women in curlers and men with whippets on strings really weren’t so far fetched at all. I mention this because Friday is hairdressing day ready for the big night out. After a week of long hours of the dust in the mill, girls had to look their best for the evening out in the pub/club with their boyfriend/husband. I must admit, I didn’t see many whippets but there is definitely a North/South cultural divide.

Sorry, musing on because Friday is Hairdresser day down here – at least this week. The patient has made a miraculous recovery in time to go to the Hairdressers’ – £85.00 for a minamalist trim. Mine is cut for free but, if I was paying, it would cost me £40.00 so I reduce the hairdresser’s bill by almost half – and there are no curlers, headscarves or whippets in sight.

It looks like Athens is back on, which is just as well because the hotel has taken £4,000.00 out of my account this morning and contacted me to say they look forward to welcoming us next week. I can’t wait. I’ve worked out that this must be about our 80th trip to Athens since 1981 and that we have actually lived in Athens for just over one year if you amalgamate the stays.

It is a city that has definitely improved over the 44 years we have been visiting. We have only missed Covid Year in that time when we didn’t visit at least once. It would feel wrong to stay away.

It will be hot in Athens and it will be fairly hot down here although the first signs of Autumn are appearing. The fruits of the Summer are well underway in ripening. Apples, Cherries, Pears, Blackberries are all being eaten. The trees are starting to show the brown-tinged stress of aging. The grass is slowing down its growth and the days are shortening.

In the 8 days that I am away in Athens, Sussex loses 46 minutes of daylight. That is a hell of a lot to lose in just over a week. Soon, we will be complaining of cool, Autumn evenings and chilly Winter mornings. And another year over, Dear Reader. Hang on, hang on.

So hang on, hang on
Hang on, hang on
Hang on, hang on
‘Cause you already come so far along …

Saturday, 15th August, 2025

Warm, grey morning. We are driving up to Surrey to visit M&K and possibly go to the Dementia Home to see C. It might even be a goodbye because he is refusing to eat which is very worrying. One of the interesting things about Dementia is how the present disappears almost immediately but the distant past remains imprinted on the memory banks quite vividly.

Last time I sat with C and talked about what he had just been through, he honestly could not recall it from three days previously. I then asked if he had ever played cricket and his face lit up as he told me about Waterhead Cricket Club in Oldham. He hasn’t lived up there for almost 30 years and hasn’t played cricket for 50 years.

Found this document in a box of old photographs. It is a reference for C written either by Pauline’s Dad or Grandad from his business premises in Solomon Street, Oldham in the 1960s. Magnificent handwriting. I couldn’t have done that in my prime writing days never mind now in computer land old age. I’m still trying to find where Solomon Street was. It doesn’t exist any more. Maybe it will jog his memory and C will look through the mists of time and tell me. I’ll let you know, Dear Reader.

The person this reference was written for cannot remember Solomon Street, Oldham. Fortunately, I have a resident Historian who will tell me within days and I will go up to see him after the Athens trip. I have a number of people to see. This will just be one more. I look forward to it, Dear Reader.

Athens calls. Do you want to come? It’s going to be hot but very luxurious. You would really enjoy it.

Sunday, 3rd August, 2025

Was feeling a bit empty and sad last night. Not sure what to do. I’d finished watching the cricket and a ridiculous spy thriller which didn’t thrill. Flicking the channels and some ‘music’ suddenly caught my attention.

It was a retrospective featuring a band who I knew nothing about and hadn’t heard when they were current. Dexys Midnight Runners was a band in the 1980s, as I understand it. Could explain why I never heard of it. I was just coming out of my Ivory Tower period and ‘pop music’ didn’t feature. I was playing Beethoven and Mahler and embracing self improvement through a crash course in Opera. Apparently Dexys Midnight Runners were New Wave which will mean something to somebody but goes completely over my head.

I was particularly drawn to the initiator and lead singer, Kevin Rowland, who came across as a very thoughtful, intelligent and charismatic man. He was of Irish origin as I suppose I partly was but he was born in the Midlands, as I was. I was amazed to find that he wrote Come On Eileen – which I had heard – and that it was not about a woman at all but a composite created to express Roman Catholic guilt and repression. By that stage, I was on the edge of my seat. I have written before of carrying around the stigmata of original sin derived from a Catholic upbringing. As the Jesuits say, “Give me the child for the first seven years, and I will give you the man.” I have fought against it all my adult life.

Come On Eileen is a song about youthful rebellion and the desire to escape the constraints of a traditional oppressive, society. It is James Joyce’s alter ego, Stephen Daedalus, growing up in the late 20th Century. I identify with both. Eileen represents desire and a yearning to break free from societal expectations and find something more exciting and fulfilling. How did I miss this first time round?

The new European Union Entry/Exit System – EES – comes into force later this year before we fly to Tenerife. It will be a nightmare for travellers establishing their digital identity for the first time but will greatly speed things up in future. We are flying from Gatwick early in the morning and don’t want it to be a hassle so I’ve decided to squeeze in a quick trip to France for a couple of nights in the weeks before so we can go through that painful process at leisure in the Tunnel Terminal. We can do a bit of early Christmas shopping at the same time.

Monday, 4th August, 2025

Regular readers will already know I am fairly weird. I shudder to think that this next Blog will serve to reinforce that judgement. I woke early and my phone, which sends me reading suggestions, sent me to an article by a Cindy Yu, who is a British-Chinese journalist and economist. She is a columnist at The Times. 

After trying to reduce the burgeoning birthrate with a one-child policy, China is finding itself unable to afford its aging population. It is paying young couples to make babies to support the older generations.

I often think in poetry – that I’ve read, learnt, quoted in my work – and the first lines that came to me immediately were the well known, comic-serious ones from Philip Larkin. You will almost certainly recall them, Dear Reader:

This Be The Verse

They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you …

… Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don’t have any kids yourself.

I have lots of regrets about my life and one that occasionally rears its head is not having a child. It obviously wasn’t to be. Perhaps I was thought to be an unreliable Father or, perhaps, it was nothing to do with me but the idea does deepen with age. Almost certainly it is different for women who want a career, a life unfettered by childcare. I understand that but our societies and economies have been predicated on intergenerational dependence.

You may be aware of the 18th-century British economist best known for his theory that human populations tend to outgrow their agricultural production capabilities, resulting in famines, wars and other disasters which redress the balance. Subsequent generations have countered this with increasingly scientic approaches to food production and Malthus’ failure to take poverty and inequality into account. Certainly, women weren’t seen as economically significant in 18th-century Britain. Now, that is being erradicated which puts childbirth into the shadows.

While it may be quite easy to see the reasons for population decline, it is not always obvious what the effects are. You see Malthusian Demographic Theory really hasn’t been proved by India or China. Population growth there has been exponential not organically regulated. But more importantly in Western countries, our economies are designed on a bottom heavy shape where births are outnumbered by deaths.

Improved health, increased longevity and a largely reduced birthrate mean Western demographics have inverted the shape. Small numbers of economically inactive older people supported by large numbers of economically active younger ones has now been completely upended.

The Ponzi Scheme of Pensions is suddenly exposed. Here we were thinking we’d paid into a National Insurance pot that would fund State Pensions, Health & Welfare whereas all the time it was earners tax paying for the Retirees’ Care. Now that there are more Retirees than economically active young, taxation is stretched to breaking. Of course, the answer to this problem is to recruit immigrants to come, work, pay tax and support pensioners. If we’re not going to “fuck them up”, we have to import them, Dear Reader.

Tuesday, 5th August, 2025

Gorgeous morning of warm sunshine and blue skies. Going to be another busy one but I first had to deal with congratulations to friends. July is such a popular month for weddings, isn’t it Dear Reader. Some of them even released children into the world.

My dear friend and former Digs-mate, John, was married on this day in 1978. A very good year. He has had a happy life, achieved a Doctorate and a successful career in Education plus producing two, lovely and successful kids.

On this exact same day but 6 years earlier in 1972, Kevin & Christine got married at Shadwell Church and we are all there now frozen in time. Both have gone on to successful and rewarding careers in Education while producing four lovely kids as well. 53 years does feel a very long time. Anyway, I wish them all a happy day.

I found some new trainers online. I’m becoming obsessed with trainers. I get through so many pairs each year. I am walking over 3000 miles a year. Still, I was shocked to find that I’ve still got 7 new and boxed pairs to get through first so I won’t be buying any more for a while.

My old College friends have been recalling the days when I owned Department Stores around London. I don’t like to admit to it really because it seems so common but it is a matter of historical record. I find it ironic that I went for a teaching job in Ealing in the 1970s. I got the job but my girlfriend didn’t so I gave it up and moved on …. to Oldham!

Wednesday, 6th August, 2025

Already well into August 2025 and you can sense the season moving on. Dusk is falling earlier and morning lighting up a little later already. Almost felt Autumnal this morning after a warm evening last night.

The coolest morning for months at only 15C/59F. The moon last night looked like end of season, harvest fading orange. Took this photo with zoom on my phone and lost the orange colour the closer I got but just love the detail it shows.

From celestial bodies … and I can think of a few … earthly matters dominate this morning. AEG are delivering and installing a new double oven. Chef will supervise that while I get the car cleaned. We are driving up to Surrey tomorrow morning and have to look our best.

Actually, two young and heavily tattooed lads arrived early. They had driven from Stevenage near Welwyn Garden City. Within two minutes, they had unscrewed the old appliance and lifted all 60kgs out without any stress. My Housekeeper looked on in anguish as nearly 10 years worth collection of dust and grime was clearly shown in the insert area. She insisted that they wait while she cleaned.

Now the learning process starts, It looks like the old appliance but, can you believe it, Dear Reader, things have moved on in ten years and ovens have so many more sophisticated functions now. What will she do. She may be trialling & erroring for a while.

Just in case there is a hiatus in oven cookery while chef gets to grips, I have ordered an electric pizza oven which even I can use.

Thursday, 7th August, 2025

Quite disappointingly grey this morning. Our Surrey trip has been postponed because of complications up there at the moment. We will go next week instead. Off to Athens very soon and lots to fit in before then. Might do lawn mowing today. I’m also looking at a travelling timetable for next year.

Fifteen years ago we were still in our Greek home and wouldn’t be travelling back to UK before the beginning of October. Now it feels like a lifetime ago and, although we still look back fondly on those times, we really are freed up for more experiences. This year, we’ve still got three more trips covering 6 weeks away – a week in Athens, a weeek in the Northern England and a month in Tenerife.

I so enjoyed our trip to Spain and the property we rented that I am currently planning to rent the same property for a month over June-July next year. It is almost the perfect solution.

Our Greek home cost us thousands of pounds a year to get to, service and maintain. Just the return drive across Europe and sending all the stuff that we needed to make life enjoyable cost a minimum of £3000.00 each year and that was 15 years ago. We were also constantly having to maintain and improve the place which involved building improvements, new machinery, furnishings, gardening, etc.. What we did have is a home of a quality we would expect in UK as well.

We have rented lots of properties abroad in the past ten years and a few have not lived up to expectations. There really is no point in leaving a nice home to stay in a shabby one however good the weather. The Spanish property really did fulfil my requirements for an extended stay and it is so cheap. A month next year will come in at less than €3,000.00 and that includes all services with air con. constantly running, the grounds and pools kept immaculately. I don’t know how they do it but I can leave and others are responsible for building maintenance. I don’t have to commit hundreds of thousands of Euros to own the property. It might become a regular on the timetable for a few years …. if I’m still alive.

Friday, 8th August, 2025

A warm but overcast morning. Quite a few jobs to get through but first the Sainsburys shop. I’ve got to finish the lawn mowing and edging. My neighbours are having a large, BBQ birthday bash tomorrow so I’m trying to make the area look its best for their visitors. We fly to Athens in a week and things in Surrey seem to be sorting themselves out so we will be going up there next week. Time is running out to get everything done.

In marriage, jobs tend to get divided and allocated. One gets to know the intracacies of the tasks through experience and repetition. It is a risky process should one partner disappear but it is also binding through dependence. I have never done washing or ironing. Well, not since that disatrous Saturday in 1973 when I visited a Laundrette, put my clothes into the washing machine and they all came out PINK – to the amusement of the women around the room. Fortunately, I looked so pathetic that they took pity on me and offered to do it for me in future. I did buy an iron and board but my attempts to produce smooth shirts and creases in my suit trousers were fairly disastrous.

My wife does the washing and ironing and has done for the past 47 years. Occasionally, I have a twinge of anxiety that I don’t know how to use the machines just as I do when she is making bread. I don’t know how to do that either. If her computer, iPad, phone, etc., has a problem, I sort it out. But now, these jobs have been integrated. Artificial Intellingence is taking over as it is integrated into the most mundane of activities. I am coming into my element. The washing machine and the heat pump tumble dryer both use AI. At last, I can do it. Just put the clothes in; choose AI program; go for a walk with your phone. Job done automatically.

Artificial Intelligence runs my car. It senses the cars in front and moderates my speed automatically to suit. It reads the speed signs and sets my speed limit. It reads the road markings and keeps me within the white lines without steering. It brakes if it sees an obstruction and automatically puts on what used to be called the handbrake every time I stop. It downloads the traffic conditions on my Sat.Nav. route, calculating my driving time and suggesting alternatives to avoid problems.These things were unimaginble 5 years ago.

My computer offers me help with writing – bloody cheek – with photo enhancement, with information finding and much more using Copilot AI platform. Above, I asked it to help by making my original photo a bit more dramatic. Not sure about the result. It’s rival, Google Gemini is just beginning to offer the same. I am testing them out at the moment. Soon everything will utterly rely on AI and the old, wrinkly people will be left behind.

Saturday, 9th August, 2025

I apologise in advance because today’s Blog will be even more mundane than usual. In fact, I’m starting this gorgeously hot and sunny morning by …. going to the local Refuse Tip. I’ve been buying so much recently, I’m overwhelmed with cardboard packaging plus redundant outdoor ovens, etc.. Our nearest Tip site in Wick is fantastic. The workers are wonderful. They leap to help carry stuff, and advise where it should go. They do it with a friendly smile and make the experience happy.

It’s funny but the house always feels lighter when I have got rid of a lot of that old stuff. It included the huge boxes that packaged a new Pizza Oven which we tried yesterday and established was working really well. Chef made pizza dough in a matter of minutes and made it look so easy. I don’t even eat bread usually but had to test this process …. in the interests of science, of course.

It’s lovely to cook outside and this oven was bought to be used in the garden. You never know how good things are until you use them. Believe me, this oven is brilliant just as Chef’s pizza dough is unbelievably tasty. If you usually buy pizza, magnify the flavour by the power of 10 and imagine the quality – one Vegetarian and one Seafood – Even I was converted, Dear Reader.

The weather has been so lovely for months that I have spent very little time in the Gym. I am working outside most of the time instead although I am feeling fat this morning after that pizza last night. Anyway, I am watching far less Drama that I do exercising inside in the Winter but there is one thing I am loving and would recommend to anyone who enjoys political fiction. It was recommended to us by the young ones from Florida and is based on American politics but I’ve already got myself hooked on it.

I must admit I didn’t really know although I have a slight echo in my head from previous knowledge but the concept of a designated survivor is real and is part of the U.S. government’s Continuity of Government Plan. This plan ensures that the government can continue to function if a catastrophic event were to eliminate the line of succession. Each year, during events like the State of the Union address, a designated cabinet member is kept at a secure, undisclosed location, while the rest of the government attends the event. This person is prepared to assume the presidency if a disaster were to befall the other leaders. 

Of course, this Drama is predicated on the disaster that befalls the president and natural line of succession. On the night of the State of the Union, an explosion destroys the Capitol Building, killing the president and everyone in the line of succession except for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Thomas Kirkman, who had been named the Designated Survivor. And so it begins …

Sunday, 27th July, 2025

A dull morning but very warm. Political programmes over Breakfast. Good to see Bob Geldof sounding off about the Israeli genocide in Gaza. It needs the unelected to speak truth to power.

I have been scanning in the past. Photographs of a lost age. That is what my life is reduced to. Phyllis’s photograph store needs to be recorded for posterity although I have no idea who will be interested in twenty years from now. All I can do is record History. It took me more than two hours this morning to scan, edit and file a life time of images.

After a couple of hours of walking, the main task this morning was harvesting herbs from the garden. My job was the hard part – stripping the Parseley. It takes for ever. I have grown flat leaved and curly parsley. The former is said to provide the better flavour but my Chef prefers the latter. It produces one Freezer Bag of herb.

Today, a field of Basil has been cut, stripped, combined with Pine Nuts, Garlic, Oliver Oil and Lemon Juice in a Blender and is now in a plastic box waiting to be portioned for freezing. It is the second cutting of Basil. It is amazing how so much greenery can be reduced to so little space. There will be at least one and, hopefully two more cuttings. It will produce more than we need for the rest of the year.

Home grown new potatoes are delicious. The final act in the garden today was to lift another 2Kgs of potatoes that will be moist and delicate cooked less than 30 mins after growing in the soil. A bit of home grown mint and perfection awaits.

Monday, 28th July, 2025

Glorious morning. Blue sky and sunshine warm and positive. A lawn mowing and edge trimming morning for me. Go to stay active.

Fly to Athens in three weeks. Although I can’t say exactly, it will be about the 80th time I will have spent time there over the past 45 years. Must be more than a year of my life. I love it more each time I go.

My brother’s wife is going on a cruise with a childhood friend. They fly into Athens a couple of days before joining the ship. I had to advise her of a hotel for their first night and, while we are there, I will produce a brief, photo guide for someone who has little time to explore. I must admit, Athens can be a culture shock on a first visit. I hope she enjoys it.

Today, I have had to replace the legacy ice cream maker that I threw out the other day. It was nearly 50 years old. Time for something new. According to the reviews, it has to be Ninja and that is what will arrive later in the week. Might even have to try a bit myself. Chef makes it with double cream and real vanilla pod seeds which makes all the difference.

Retirement is for enjoyment or it’s pointless. It is for friendship and sharing or it is meaningless. It is for travelling and learning or we might as well be in the Care Home. I’ve already changed my mind about next year. I’m determined to go back to Spain for a month or six weeks June – July. I intend to book it early to make sure. Hope I live that long, Dear Reader.

So the Diary is already coming together. Obviously, I will be in the North of Engand again to visit friends, in Greece on at least two occasions to continue the tradition and, after a month in Tenerife this Winter, the decision will be Canaries or Florida next Winter.

The garden is in its full pomp at the moment. Might even get a bit of rain tomorrow. I’ve grown lots of stuff from seed this year both flowers and vegetables. I like the challenge. I’ve grown Zinnias for the first time this year. Before, I would have been hard pressed to identify them at all but I’m really pleased with the result.

Here is my favourite plant of the moment – a Houttuynia commonly know as the Harlequin Plant and the Zinnias are rising up behind it in a lovely echo of the colours. I shall try this again …. if I’m still alive.

Tuesday, 29th July, 2025

Warm, grey and overcast. Hoping for rain but it’s not looking too promising. The morning is at home today anyway. The Local Authority are coming to collect the old washing machine. Charge just £25.00. (Bargain!) We have a Tiler coming to re-grout one of the shower rooms.

After nearly 10 years, we have decided to replace the ovens. They are working perfectly but the grill element in the upper oven is a bit iffy. It would cost £150.00 to repair. A completely new replacement would only cost £550.00. Easy decision. A new one will be most cost effective and will do another 10 years. I will be 84, Dear Reader! I will start researching a new one for 2035.

Might have spoken too soon. No sooner than I’d suggested a new oven but my Housekeeper took advantage and started looking for an upgrade. Sounds expensive and I may live to regret it. It’s gone up to £750.00. Still, you only live once. No point in compromising. With installation and removal of the old one, the cost is £800.00 but at least it will be done.

I have to wish my World Champion Distance Runner sister, Jane BG, happy 73rd birthday. As I pointed out to her this morning, she has great legs for a 73 year old. Just wish she’d wash more often.

Of course, my legs are cleaner and older if not fitter. As you can see here, Jane’s thinner than my oven. Not sure she can cook as well. Actually, I’m not sure she can cook at all which is probably why she runs fast.

Done my 8 mile walk while our Tiler, who is actually a multi-skilled Project Manager and is being prepared for a series of jobs in our house, is working upstairs. He is local and can be trusted with a key. This morning we have been discussing with him an extension to the Kitchen. Who knows whether it will happen. Perhaps we’ll have an Orangery. They used to be all the rage you know. After 10 years, we need lots of renewal. He could be useful and seems to have the skills.

Our next door neighbour has invited us to a BBQ. It is in aid of a birthday but it is unlikely that we will be attending. We are going up to Surrey to say goodbye to M&K before they return to Forida and we fly off to Athens.

Was feeling emotional this afternoon as I reflected on my life and the sadness of life gone by. The combination of Sheeran & Bocelli reduced me to tears. I am a sad character.

Wednesday, 30th July, 2025

Was woken up at 4.30 am … by the washing machine phoning me to say it had finished washing and needed emptying. I resisted speaking to it but struggled to get back to sleep. Resolved to look at the smart control app and tone down the notifications.

It’s funny, I was talking to an old man the other day who couldn’t understand why you would bother controlling white goods remotely. I have a love of automation and the need to embrace the future. I have chosen to have the Laundry machines run by AI and made controllable from anywhere in the world …. just because I can but Artificial Intelligence mode solves so many problems of having to choose the correct program, duration, material and so on because it does it for you. I have never used a washing machine until now. Suddenly, I’m enjoying the challenge.

I run so many things around our house using a multitude of apps on my phone. The SmartThings app runs the Laundry machines and the Robot Vacuums. Hive runs the Downstairs Heating and the Upstairs Heating independently and the hot water. It switches on the lights around the house automatically and on a timer if I program it. It controls the garden lights, the exercise equipment in the Gym and the Radiator and Fan in the Gym as well. The Climate app controls the air conditioning in the house even though it is rarely more than a metre from me. Govee alerts me to the temperature in the Gym so I know when to turn on the heating or the cooling out there.

Groomtribe monitors and advises me on my shaving each morning. Alexa controls the smart speakers around the inside of the house and DMSS controls the CCTV cameras around the outside of the house. At some stage, I am going to have to bring all these functions under one controller but that is not available yet.

Thursday, 31st July, 2025

July is going out on a warm and humid day with heavy rain forecast. Please let it be so. Gatwick is only 33 miles away and it is raining heavily already. Really hope it knows which direction to blow down to us.

A week ago, I bought £20,000.00 of Premium Bonds. My reasons included the fact that I needed a place for Easy Access cash and the fact that it is tax-free is a bonus. Of course, I could get 4% + in a conventional account but tax would immediately reduce that and Premium Bonds are predicated on an average yield of 3.8%. That is the payout each month across the piece. Of course, it’s not guaranteed for any individual investor but I’m intending to be a ‘lucky one’. The first draw in which I will be included is September and I will keep you updated over a 12 month period to see if I make the 3.8% target. It should make the princely sum of £760.00 tax free. We will see.

Who’d have thought that washing clothes could be so much fun. I’m washing Colours this morning. Well, my Artificially Intelligent friend is. I’m doing it remotely by phone from my Office. What I love about it other than the IT challenge is the fact that the whole process is silent. You can’t tell the machines are on at all. It won’t disturb the cricket. I’m doing towels next. Pray for me, Dear Reader.

For years I collected, had framed and displayed Victorian art in my homes. I came to it from a Left Wing perspective particularly through the socialism of William Morris and John Ruskin but eventually found myself absorbed by the most unlikely images of Frederick Lord Leighton and Lawrence Alma Tadema.

When I get something, I don’t compromise. I go full in and so it was with the paintings. I had framed huge prints all over the houses. I even had them in my Greek home. Eventually, when we moved to a new-build house in the South, I gave them to a Hospice charity who sold them all off individually for quite a bit of cash.

This week, an exhibition at the G.F. Watts Gallery in Surrey was advertised and I was about to make a note before suddenly realising that time for me has gone. I really have moved on and need something new. Looking for suggestions, Dear Reader.

Well, it’s 1.00 pm and no sign of the rain. I’m going to be furious if we’re deprived again. My Housekeeper is continuing her quest to harvest and process all the herbs in the garden. Today it is Mint and Tarragon. She is also making Strawberry Jam and preparing to make ice cream when the machine is delivered this afternoon. At the same time, she is using/learning her new Laundry machines. It’s all go. I’m going in the Gym although it is so hot outside, it won’t be comfortable.

Praise be to the Fates. The Rain has come in torrents. I got soaked but at last I am clean. I won’t have to water for a few days and the green of the grass will return for a while. The Test Match has been sporadic because of rain but England are securing their lead and are likely to win the Series. Rain does so much!

Friday, 1st August, 2025

August 2025 …. already. Happy new month, Dear Reader, even though your Life is running away. Unfortunately, so is mine. My 74th August is going to be a good one. Optimism is important.

When we are young, optimism is the default position. We believe we can do anything and certainly better than our previous generations. We don’t consider death. That is something so far off, it’s not worth contemplating. Actually, we believe we will live forever. We can abuse our bodies because there is plenty of time to pull back. We don’t need to save money. There is a lifetime to get into that.

It’s hard to know when the pivotal point is reached and we start to view the Future as shorter than the past. I suspect it was in my early 50s. As a young man, I always pledged to not fall into some of those old person cliches one so regularly hears:

I like to think I have retained my optimism as long as possible although cancer does bring you up short. This morning, the news was full of items about Heathrow expansion and a new runway at Gatwick. I welcome it but realise I will be 84 before they are in action. Will I still be fit? Will I still be travelling? It is like so many of these things. I long to see all the technological advances over the next 50 years and force myself to get to grips with them. I’ll be happy just to see the introduction of Dementia-beating drugs which will be in use over the next 7 or 8 years.

This morning, I caught myself in optimistic mode as a delivery arrived from Amazon. I love my shaver. It is a Philips Series 7000. I’ve had it two years. Philips advise changing the heads every two years and I got my technician to do that for me this week because she has smaller hands. I immediately ordered replacement heads and put in my online calendar for July 2027 an entry reminder to change my shaver heads. The shaver has an automatic cleaning program which entails putting it headfirst into a pot which contains cleaning fluid and then telling it via my smartphone app to run the program. It takes 60 secs. Each pot does a month. Today, I received 6 more pots.

My wife pointed out that I’m not only expecting my shaver to last another two years but expecting myself to manage six more months as well. She’s a delightful old woman!

Saturday, 2nd August, 2025

By the start of August, nature is rampant. Full blown. Blousy! As a typical male approach, I want to control nature. I plant vegetables in straight lines. I cut back edges of grass and impose my idea on it not what it wants to do naturally – grow. I dead head flowers every morning to encourage continued flowering instead of allowing the plants to do what they want – produce seed and perpetuate the next generation. All around the area, gardeners have been doing the same thing – trimming, edging, pruning, etc.

By August, Nature is really fighting back. It is screaming Let me go. Let me procreate, Let me Live. The job of controlling growth within defined boundaries is becoming too time consuming and, of course, even we want the fruits of their loins. We live in an area that is built on former Horticultural sites. Salad Vegetables and Herbs were grown in vast areas of glasshouses. Fruit was grown in huge tracts of orchards. This apple tree is growing wild amid the hedgerow on Orchard Road that I go down on my walk each day. The orchards have gone and given way to housing but Nature has found a way to reassert itself and perpetuate the species – not in the straight rows of human planted orchard trees but the chaotic and haphazard hedgerows.

It seems Humans have an innate desire – need even – to control their environment, their world. I wonder what you think about the Online Safety law that has kicked in this week. It was proposed and drafted by the Tory government under Theresa May but it has only just become law this week. We are told it is intended to keep children safe from undesirable web content – sex and suicide. Few people would not want to protect their kids but it has a lot of unintended consequences – if they are unintended.

The sites that the government designate unsafe require age certification. This can be done by supplying credit card details, passport copies, etc.. Would you supply those, Dear Reader? Is supplying your identity-specific to unknown content providers safe? Is the reasoning behind the process acceptable and can it be manipulated by future governments? You see, the Authoritarian Chinese State does exactly this. It blocks what it sees as decadent Western ideology on the web. The Russians, the Iranians Islamist Leadership, the Afghan Taliban do the same. It is essentially Authoritarian.

It is typical, common control of the extreme Right and the extreme Left which exhibits this need to block alternative views. When I developed an intranet platform in school, a parent complained that his son had accessed pornography through the net. I bought website-blocking software to prevent it happening again. The kids were as furious as if I’d stopped them going behind the bikesheds to experiment. Within a week they’d found a way around it and I was back to square one. In just the same way now, I can get round this mediocre attempt at control by telling the web I am in Albania via a cheap VPN which also allows me to tell the web I am in London when actually I am in Europe so I can access UK media.

They won’t win but they keep trying and it is our responsibility to resist. I’m sorry if this Blog post is a bit too long today but this is important. Farage, who is more of a joke than a threat, suddenly has some traction in the democratic world. We had the hilarious occurence of Farage trying to silence a Democratic Senator who was attending a Free Speech conference and not seeing the irony in it. Imagine if Farage got into power and how he would use this media control.

Well you don’t have to imagine it because we only have to look across the pond where Trump has been agitating to have the Chairman of the Federal Reserve sacked for not reducing Interest Rates even though economic data doesn’t warrant it and, today, he has reacted to a report based on accurate data collected about the Jobs Market with increased Unemployment because of his Tariff Policy by shooting the messenger – firing the Head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for reporting this trend to the nation. He called it fake information to undermine him. We are already in Orwellian territory.