Peter's Hospital Diary

The lovely weather continues! I was in Wales over the weekend, a very pleasant drive across the second Severn Crossing. The weather was perfect – although I had to be careful not to overdo the exposure to the sun.

My contract ends tomorrow. Although there have been actions to try to renew it again, they have so far been unsuccessful, so it looks as if I might be spending a little time in the garden, and there are also some household jobs that need to be done.

Another sad note though. Those of you who know Simon (BT) will remember that he has also been fighting a cancer battle. Sadly, things are not going too well for him, so please remember him in your thoughts. While he was a strong proponent of ‘Onwards and Upwards’ I fear that is not an appropriate comment at the moment.

Comments Off

The Dental Access Centre seemed to have done a good job, but over the weekend, (lovely weather – just right for a Pimms and a BBQ) I got the feeling that the restoration had failed. I was able to make another appointment at the clinic, who reassured me that the filling was still in place, and that the bit that I thought had failed was just a bit of surplus flashing from the restoration margin. A relief, and I didn’t actually need any treatment – although I still had to pay another fee for the ‘time elment’ Ah well, I suppose it was worth it for the peace of mind.

I had meant to write this earlier in the week, but I received some sad news over the weekend when I learned that my friend Jane was about to be admitted to a hospice, having battled for over eighteen months against bowel (and subsequently liver) cancer. Her condition had suddenly deteriorated, and she died on Tuesday evening.
I had first met Jane at University, but we had lost touch in the intervening years, until she heard about this blog. Having read about my health problems, she asked a mutual friend if I would mind getting back in touch with her when her diagnosis was confirmed.

I was glad to do so, and we had many chats and three trips up to Yorkshire in the subsequent months. We knew some months ago that there was no cure, and at the last visit we both knew that it was the last meeting, although we spoke as recently as last Saturday, before she was admitted. It was a sad moment, but one tempered by that fact that all that had to be said had been. But she will be missed, not only be me and all her friends, but by her immediate family, Paul James and Michael.

But, as Jane would be one of the first to say, we continue – onwards and upwards.

1 Comment »

It was another good weekend, starting off with a chilli evening with Sue and Mark, and having a little play with Mark’s Ipad! Saturday was a bit of a DIY day, starting to put up some shelves for Katie, who having finished her finals is moving back home and starting a job in Basingstoke next week. It was also Katy’s birthday yesterday, but we celebrated it on Sunday with a beach hut party on the sands at Bournemouth. A bit breezy, but very sunny, as my sunburned knees showed when I got back to Corsham! Strange weather too – bright sunshine one moment, and torrential rain the next, and clearly an area of high pressure as French radio station burst through loud an clear at one point on the journey!

My contract ends in just over two weeks, and while there is the possibility of an extension, it isn’t certain, I hope I’ll know by the end of the week.

My tooth is starting to be troublesome, in that the edges are rough, but I have found a Dental Access Clinic in Chippenham, for those that either need emergency treatment or don’t have a dentist, so I hope they will fix the problem, and spur me into getting a more permanent arrangement.

But that apart, all seems to be well, so…Onwards and Upwards!

4 Comments »

Pity about the weather – too good to last! ECP went well, although the early Sunday morning start meant that I had to travel up on Saturday evening for two nights in Gassiot Hpouse at St Thomas’s. Not too bad although the street noise on a Saturday is pretty bad, and of couirse I lost an evening at home! But we did clean up BBQ for a bit of al fresco cooking! The ECP itself was uneventful, and on completion I nipped downstairs to the eye clinic.

The considered opinion is that I don’t have conjunctivitis in the infectious sense, but I am suffereing from mechanical abrasion caused by the dry eyes, another GvHd symptom. I have upped the artificial tear regime, and I also got a prescription for another artificial tear – eyelube which, I’m told, “stings a bit”. I’ll find out tomorrow when I collect the prescription from my GP, but the more frequent use of the artificial ears has helped. I have another appointment with my optician tomorro, so we’ll find out if there has been an improvement.

I was at a trade exhibition yesterday looking at shiny web applications – which was interesting, and back in the office today, and back home again tomorrow afternoon.

And I need to find a dentist. I seem to have lost a filling – but finding one is not easy .

Still – Onwards and upwards!

12 Comments »

Just realised that another ten days have passed – although I have enjoyed reading the comments on the last post – congratulations to Gilian!

The bank holiday weekend was a bit chilly – however I took Rachael into Southampton to book a six week adventure trip to Australia to round off her gap year, before she starts at Cardiff University in October. Sunday was a little damp, but the weather was a bit better on Monday when I took a quick trip up to Yorkshire with friend Faith to see Jane – our friend from University who is unwell. We had a good afternoon with her in Huddersfield, before nipping over to Harrogate to see other friends from that era, Dina and Chris. I finally dropped Faith off in Oxford at just before midnight, and got back to Corsham just under an hour later. A long but very good day.

This week has seen the weather improve – always uplifting! I am taking Rachael backpack buying this afternoon when I get home, and then I am off to London tomorrow evening for an ECP session on Sunday morning, with the second on Monday morning – before going to the opthalmic clinic on Monday afternoon.

I’m pleased that the conjunctivitis seems a lot better, but it will be something I want to discuss at the clinic. I hope I’ll be able to start wearing the contact lenses again soon!

So all ticking along quite nicely… onwards and upwards!

8 Comments »