Week 20 of 2021 started with a bright blue sky, warm and with lots more sun predicted.
Friday, May 14th.
I pop along to buy some essentials at Mercadona this morning, I have worked out that if I don't get a huge shop, & go more often, it gives me an excuse to get out in the sun a bit more often. When I get home I update my website, water the plants on my balcony & do a bit of housework, just a bit though, housework should not be rushed.
This evening I watch the Newcastle v Manchester City football game on the television. For a neutral it was very good with City winning 3 - 4, I was pleased to see Joe Willock have a good game & hope that he can return to Arsenal & push on to get a place in the first team next year. He has scored six goals in his last five games for Newcastle, these goals would have been very welcome at Arsenal & I feel he could replace Dani Ceballos who will return to Real Madrid in the close season.
Saturday, May 15th.
When I woke up I have cornflakes for breakfast, start to tidy my messy kitchen & put the dishwasher on before I grab my kindle & go down to the chiringuito to read & sit in the sun.
I watch the Leicester v Chelsea cup final & like so many people around the world I become a Foxes fan for the day, cheering on Leicester. I am really happy for Leicester when they score & when in the last minutes of the game Chelsea's equaliser is ruled offside by VAR, I am cheering as loud as anyone at Wembley. It is great afterwards to see how emotional the Leicester owner is in the stands. As a fan of a team, whose owner is not a supporter of the club or football, I would love to see an Arsenal owner who can join his team in celebrating a win as the Leicester owner did.
Sunday, May 16th.
I woke up with backache this morning & feel very lethargic. I have not felt brilliant for a while, it seems I have no energy & am sleeping a lot more than normal. My friend Sheila sends me a message to say she is going to the San Juan bar with her husband Bernard for breakfast & wants me to join them for breakfast.
I walk to the San Juan bar but I am very breathless by the time I get there, the heat is already getting to me. Walking in this heat with a mask on is very difficult & one of the reasons I haven't been out as much as normal. I enjoy breakfast, it is very good, the company is great & we sit chatting before we walk back along the beachfront.
This afternoon I rest, the walk in the heat this morning really took any energy I had out of me. I watch football & films before having an early night.
Monday, May 17th.
This morning I still feel very lethargic but force myself out to go shopping. I don't need much but I want to get some bananas. For a change, I go to the Dial Prix supermarket. Maybe because of where it is, there is no one there & I have the shop almost to myself. I get the few things I want & head home on my mobility scooter. The wind along the beachfront is very strong today & I don't think it will be very busy today if the wind doesn't drop.
My friend Wayne calls to tell me that he isn't able to make the wooden trellis I wanted to keep my flower pots off the floor. I will have to find a different way to raise them. The flower pots are heavy & this is causing problems.
Tuesday, May 18th.
I woke up & feel a little bit better this morning although my leg still aches a little. I have some tea. then fry some bacon & make some scrambled eggs for my breakfast.
I have an appointment to see my friend Jo at the CISSMU today at 11 am. I set off on my mobility scooter to see her & notice the battery charge on it is very low. When I see Jo at my appointment, she goes online to make me an appointment to get copies of the documents that will show I am still the owner of the car I sold 14 years ago. After the appointment is made she calls her daughter Olivia who will take me there next Monday to collect the documents. Whilst I am talking to Jo she tells me that I can go along today to get my COVID jab at the sports hall this afternoon in Los Alcázares.
I leave Jo to head home hoping that the battery power will be enough to get me home as the red warning light for a low battery is flashing. I manage to get home & plug my scooter in straight away. As I go through my front door my phone begins to ring, I answer it & speak to my friend George. He is just calling to see how I am but luckily for me is not doing anything & can take me to have my COVID jab this afternoon at 1pm
George picks me up & drops me at the sports centre, where I queue up for a while in the line for the jab. When I get to the front of the queue I'm seen by a Spanish lady but can not understand what she is saying. I phone Jo & ask her to translate for me & she tells me she will be at the centre soon if I can wait. I wait for Jo & she explains that when they have done the people already booked in, they can fit me in, as people who were booked in have not turned up for their jab. I sit to the side of the room reading my kindle & when the people in the queue have all been seen I get my first COVID jab & an appointment for my second jab on June 8th. Luckily for me, Jo is still at the centre & gives me a lift home afterwards.
The jab was painless, indeed I didn't realise she had injected me until she told me I could go & sit down. Being blind in my right eye, I hadn't seen her sneak up on me & jab me, with a huge needle in my right arm. Being a brave little soldier & a real Rufty tufty I didn't scream or cry but there were still no sweeties for me, just a bottle of water & a seat, where I sat stoically for the required 15 minutes before leaving.
After the jab, I rest for the evening watching television & flipping between football matches to check on the scores.
Wednesday, May 19th.
I woke early this morning & can not get back to sleep, I put some washing on, have a cup of tea & update my website. Last month I had bought a new watch from Amazon, I loved the watch but it has stopped working, this morning I box it up, print off all the return labels & get it ready to send back to Amazon later on.
After a cup of tea, I make sure I have the parcel to return to Amazon & go to the Correos (Post Office) on my mobility scooter. I ride along the beachfront & cut up past the town hall & drop off the parcel at the Correos then just go for a ride on the scooter. I pop in to see my friend Colin & arrange to see him at 3 pm. I go on a circular route back through Los Alcázares to have a coffee at the chiringuito outside my apartment. When I get there it is not open, so I go back to the Chino shop around the corner to buy some more flower pots, compost & a large plant for my bedroom.
When I get home I take all my purchases up to my apartment. I put the new large indoor plant in my bedroom then repot two of the plants I bought last week to put in my bedroom as well. The two plants I repot are Ageratum & are supposed to ward off mosquitoes, I only seem to get bitten by mosquitos when I am asleep, so I put one, either side of my bed. I still need a few more pots for my balconies plants but it is starting to look good. As I could not get a plant holder strong enough for my two large wooden planters I rearrange the dining table I have out there & put them on that. It is a large 6 seater table & raises the plants to the height I wanted, but still gives me plenty of room to eat my meals off of it if I want to sit outside in the sun. I am worn out after doing my jobs & get a sandwich for lunch & then rest for a few hours.
At about 3 pm I go to meet Colin but he is no longer where I arranged to meet him. I go to Rocco's bar for a bottle of beer & sit there for a while reading my kindle. When I finish my beer I go to La Zona bar where my friend Alan Bond is hosting his music bingo this afternoon. I really enjoy Alan's music bingo, it is good fun & a great way to spend a few hours, I will definitely be back more regularly now. Whilst there I also see my friend Ken whom I haven't seen for about a year, it was great to see him but I am sad to hear that he has not been well, I wish him all the best & hope to see him again next week if he goes to the music quiz.
This evening I watch the Crystal Palace v Arsenal game on the television. It is a game Arsenal must win if they are to have any chance of European football next season. Arsenal starts the game off very well & Pepe scores a great goal to give Arsenal a 0 - 1 lead at halftime. The second half starts & Crystal Palace have come out a changed team they start off as the better team & when Benteke scores to make it 1-1 they are the better team. Arsenal muster a late charge & in extra time, score two goals, one from Martinelli & a second brilliant goal from Pepe, to win the match 1-3. It is a great result that now leaves Arsenal a slim chance of qualifying for Europe next season.
Thursday, May 20th.
I get up this morning & have a bacon sandwich & a pot of tea before I go to the bank to get some money & then go to the local Chino to buy another flower pot & two pot stands to raise my plants off of the floor. When I get home I replant my Jade tree into a larger pot & place it in one of the raised stands I bought today, the other stand is used to raise my Christmas cactus off of the floor.
This afternoon I meet my friends John & Russ at the chiringuito & spend the afternoon at the beach, swimming, drinking & catching up. My friend Matt also joins us & we have way too much fun. I caught a jellyfish as people didn't believe me that they were harmless & don't sting, I brought it in, showed it to the non-believers & then released it back into the sea where it swam off to rejoin its mates.
When I go home I splash lots of after sun on myself before going to bed early to sleep off the effects of too much fun & too much sun.