I started week 27 of 2021 with no phone, no money, & no Kindle but lots of hope.

Week 27 of 2021.

Friday, July 2nd.

This morning I was up early & had a tostada in my apartment for breakfast. Afterwards, I jump on my mobility scooter & go to my friends Martin & Kate. I got to their home just as Martin was leaving to go to work & picked up the mobile phone that they are lending me until I can get a replacement for mine. After I collect the phone I continue to a bar at the Oasis in Los Narejos to meet my friend Mike for a coffee.

After having coffee I go to Power Technology to get the phone unlocked. The man in the shop is very helpful telling me that the type of phone I have been given is never locked to one service provider. He fits the sim card that Avatel has given me & allows me to go through the setup of the phone in case I need his help. I can highly recommend this shop, I have been there several times & they are always very helpful. I leave & go home to set up the new phone completely.

This evening I watch both football matches in Euro 2020. Spain struggles to beat Switzerland but go through to the next round after a penalty shoot-out. The other game is a great game & Italy beat Belgium to go through to the semi-finals. After watching Italy play I think it will have to be a very good team to beat them.

Saturday, July 3rd.

I went for a swim in the Mar Menor this morning. The water is very warm but probably because it is so warm the green algae is growing quicker, affecting visibility & making my snorkelling less enjoyable. After my swim I go back to my apartment, have a shower & then go to Mercadona to get some food for the next few days, I can't get a full shop as I haven't received any replacement bank cards yet, I just get enough to keep me going at the start of next week. If my bank cards don't arrive soon I will have to go back to the bank in person & see if they will give me some cash without my bank cards again.

This afternoon I put some washing on as electricity is cheaper at the weekend. Then I watch the Czech Republic v Denmark football match on television, Denmark wins to go through to the next round. I think they are doing really well after the start they had to the competition when a player needed resuscitating on the pitch before being hospitalised. After this game, I watched the Ukraine v England game. England played really well & won 0 - 4 to go through to the semi-finals where they will meet Denmark. 

Sunday, July 4th.

I go for a swim this morning before stripping my bed & washing all the bed linen. I decide to go out for lunch today & decide to go to The Garrison on Rio Nalon as I have not been there before.  At lunchtime, I go on my mobility scooter to The Garrison & order Sunday lunch. I had roast beef & it came with all the trimmings, mashed potato, roast potato, peas, carrots, cauliflower cheese, broccoli & the price of 10 euros even included a bottle of San Miguel. The food was good & there was too much for me to eat all of the veg & potato, I will be going back again as cooking Sunday dinner for one at home, is just not worth the bother when I can get a good meal out for this price.

On my way home I stop off at the supermarket near my apartment to buy some ice cream. As I go in I am reprimanded for not wearing a mask, I quickly put it back on, I had forgotten to put it on when I got off my mobility scooter. I pick a tub of ice cream & go to the front of the store where there are large queues, as I walk towards the back of a queue the lady that reprimanded me earlier opens a new lane & beckons me through. I like to think it is my charm & good looks that make her open a new till for me but I think it is more likely the fact that I apologised for not having my mask on & put it on immediately that curried my good favour. It always pays to be polite & apologise if you have been in the wrong.

This afternoon was spent sheltering from the sun & binge-watching a TV series.

Monday, July 5th.

I have a pot of tea this morning & potter around on my computer before going to see my friend Mike in Los Narejos. When I meet Mike at Café Prensa I have a tostada & coffee for my breakfast. We chat for around 20 minutes before Mike rushes off to walk his dog. I sit & have another coffee before going round the corner to La Sombre Pizzeria (The Office) to meet my friend Martin.

The meeting goes very well & four or five very good points are raised, we are joined by another office worker called Ray who also raised a very good point. During our meeting, a local businessman, Mustafa came into the office & after some high level negotiating I was able to purchase a new leather wallet to replace the one that I had stolen last week.

With the business done we are joined by Martin's wife Kate & his daughter Aria, we have a quick pint before we all head off on our way home. Once I get home I try a new chicken curry & basmati rice that I bought at Mercadona for my tea. It was not huge but it tasted fantastic & I will definitely be getting it again & trying more of the different ones that they do. At only 2.5 euros it is very good value.

Tuesday, July 6th.

Today I have an appointment with Julie a reflexologist, she is coming to my apartment this afternoon to give me my first ever course of this type of treatment. I have had acupuncture before & it worked really well, I hope that this will work as well as the acupuncture. I really do believe that a lot of Western medicine treats the pain, not the cause. Medicine & treatments that are sometimes ignored here in the west treat the cause of a health problem as well as help with the pain.

I have a lazy morning, I have a bacon sandwich for breakfast potter about on my website & email the insurance company that is dealing with my mugging claim.

Julie arrives this afternoon for my reflexology session & sets up in the spare room of my apartment. She explains the process that she is going to go through & asks me some simple medical questions. Some soft background music is put on & Julie begins to massage & probe different areas on my feet. Some areas cause a small amount of pain in my feet & in other areas, I feel nothing. Julie explains better than I ever could, that the areas which have pain relate to areas in my body that she needs to concentrate more of her time on. It appears that I may have a problem in my kidney area & she will need to concentrate her efforts there. When she has finished she massages oils into my feet & they feel better than they have in a long time. I feel very relaxed & arrange for her to come back for more treatment in the areas she thinks I need it.

This evening I want to watch the Italy v Spain football match but the television has not been working all day. I get service back when the game has nearly finished. I do get to see the last five minutes of the game & the penalty shoot-out, which Italy win to go through to Sunday's final. After the game I go to bed, hoping that tomorrow the television is working when the England game is on & that England can beat Denmark to qualify to play Italy in the Final.

Wednesday, July 7th.

I woke up this morning feeling a lot more refreshed than I have for a long time, I have more energy & can't wait to go for a swim. I go for a swim & then have a couple of pancakes back at my apartment for breakfast. After breakfast, I check my email & have had an email from my insurance company telling me that I can send them the report from the police by email. I send them the report from the Spanish police but I am having trouble providing them with invoices for the items I lost as my amazon account has been suspended due to the credit cards associated with it being stolen. I attempt to contact amazon but the only way I can contact them is via my account which has been suspended or by a telephone system that is in Spanish.

I go to the bank after the morning rush to get some cash. I am told that I can get some cash by using the bank app on my phone, which was stolen, at the ATM with my debit cards, which were stolen or in the bank at the counter. I want to get money at the counter the same as I did last week but they can only issue money before 11 am as the teller machine that they use is locked at that time. I will have to go back again tomorrow morning.

This evening I watch the England v Denmark game & for the first time in my lifetime England win a semi-final to get to the Euro final. They won 2 - 1, but it was not easy going. Denmark scored a terrific free-kick to lead 0 - 1 before they then scored an own goal to put England level at 1-1. In extra-time England was awarded a very dodgy looking penalty but after a VAR check, it was given. England Captain Harry Kane stepped up to take the penalty but Kasper Schmeichel saved it, unfortunately for Denmark, Harry Kane followed up & scored from the rebound. The noise at Wembley was amazing & I can't imagine what the atmosphere will be like if England does win the final. I think there will be a lot of people calling work sick on Monday morning whether England wins or lose.

Thursday, July 8th.

I got up early this morning to go to the bank as I have run out of cash & my bank cards have still not arrived. I arrive at the bank just after 8 am & I am seen very quickly. I am surprised to be told I can not withdraw é300 as there is a minimum withdrawal of é600. They didn't mind last week when they let me have é200. I withdraw the minimum amount & I am back home by 8:30 am.

I had a message from ASSSA to say that my replacement health card is ready so after a bacon sandwich I set off on my mobility scooter to collect it. I call in at the office to collect my new card & then pop in to see my friend, Mike, just to make sure he is OK. He is always telling me, he expects to be found dead on the floor of his home, half-eaten by his dog. This worries me, I really don't want this to happen, his dog is lovely & I wouldn't want it getting food poisoning. I leave Mike after checking both he & his dog are well & go to the CISSMU in Los Narejos where there is a meeting about the local Padron, what it is, how to check it & info on digital ID & COVID jab certificates. I fill in the form to request my digital id & also the form to request my EU COVID certificate.

This evening I am picked up by my friend Pat & we go to the Massala Cottage restaurant to meet some other friends, James, Bernard, Bernard & Paul. We have a great evening chatting & laughing, the food was good & the company very good. We all enjoyed ourselves & hope to plan our next night out at the Chinese/Japanese restaurant, Jardin, in Los Narejos.