In week 5 of 2021, I did Genealogy research and had some new lights fitted in my apartment.

Week 5 of 2021.

Friday, January 29th. 

I woke up with bad back pain so after a massage, the day was spent sunbathing on the balcony whilst reading my Kindle or doing genealogy research. My promise to do more exercise seems to have slipped by again.

Saturday, January 30th.

This morning I woke up really early at about 5:30 am, I couldn't get back to sleep so I get up & stick on two lots of washing & sweep the floor in the apartment. I then sit down to do some genealogy research before my friend Reindeer comes round to take a look at a few odd jobs I need doing around the apartment. Many of the jobs that most people can do easily I find very difficult because of my eyesight so I would rather pay someone else to do them properly & quickly than attempt to do them myself, do them wrong & then have to get someone to put right my mistakes.

Reindeer came round to measure up for the headboard he is going to make for me & left me to have my dinner. I made a keto mess, tuna, avocado, beetroot, cucumber, cottage cheese & crab salad. It was a lot better than it sounds & is very filling. I will get my weight loss back on track. In the afternoon I watch Arsenal play in a battling 0 - 0 draw with the old foe, Manchester United. Like the food, the game was better than it sounds & it was probably a fair result.

Sunday, January 31st.

After not losing any weight for a couple of weeks I decided to cut out the bread & potato again. I haven't had a lot of it in the last few weeks but it is noticeable that my weight loss has stalled. This morning I have scrambled egg & mushrooms with bacon.

Lunch & dinner were the same things today. I had a large rack of ribs, ate half lunchtime & ate the other half for my evening meal. the day was spent on my genealogy research & watching various football matches. whilst I was delighted for Brighton to beat the Spurtz I couldn't believe how bad Tottenham played. It is probably too late for Moanio to dip into the transfer market I think, he will off course have time to buy a new super-powered hair dryer to blast the players he has got.

Monday, February 1st.

It has been a very quiet start to the year, I have only left my apartment a couple of times to do shopping, the last time I saw any friends was Christmas day at my friend Matts for Xmas dinner. I do worry about my health as I do have trouble with my breathing anyway, this makes me even more careful with COVID precautions, but I hope we can all start mixing safely again soon.

I went to the shop where I bought my LED lights from this morning to get a replacement LED bulb. Unfortunately, they don't sell the bulb separately & the whole light is around é60. So much for shopping locally, I look to see if I can order one on Amazon. After looking at them on Amazon I decided to upgrade the one light in my bedroom & to put in a fanlight. The extra cost could save me money in the summer if I don't have to have the air con for the whole apartment & can have a fan on for a time while I get to sleep. There are some nice ones that are allegedly silent fans with remote control & different settings for the light & fan. I ask an electrician friend for advice before ordering & wait for his response.

My eyes have been getting sore recently, maybe because of all the research work on the computer, but maybe because I need new reading glasses. I haven't had an eye test for 3 or more years & the cheap throw away glasses from the Chinese shops simply don't help.  I go to an optician in Los Alcázares, have an eye test & order some new reading glasses with a blue tint to prevent screen glare whilst I work on the laptop. Hopefully, they won't take too long to arrive. As my sister gave me some money for my birthday I will use it to buy my glasses. I wonder if other people find themselves getting more & more sensible things for their birthday as they get older.

Wondering what to have for my main meal today I decide to have a slow cooker lucky dip meal. I throw some chicken thighs, chorizo sausage, mushrooms, onion, a tin of chopped tomatoes & garlic in, turn it on & hope for the best. It turned out fantastic and I have leftovers. Tomorrow's food is sorted out as my friend Shellie also dropped a Tupperware box off with a dinner in it.

After getting advice from my electrician friend Derek I order a new fan & light off Amazon for my bedroom.

Tuesday, February 2nd.

I went out for a scoot around on my mobility scooter this morning as it was a nice morning but returned in time to take delivery of the final piece of the order I made with Asda 30 days ago, my dressing gown. It was worth the wait & is lovely & warm. For lunch, I have a Mediterranean Trifle, made with grilled chicken & mixed peppers layered with couscous & topped with crème Fraiche. I didn't make this, my friend Shellie made it & delivered it for me yesterday. This evenings meal was what was left of the slower cooker meal I made yesterday, looks like I will actually have to cook something tomorrow. 

This evening I watch the Wolves vs Arsenal game on television. Arsenal should have been 0 - 3 up before Wolves got near their goal. They had a goal given offside by a kneecap, Arsenal lose a player for not tackling in the area & they score the resultant penalty. Then in the second half, our goalkeeper who has been brilliant all season decides to throw the game away by handling outside his area & getting sent off, leaving us with 9 men on the pitch. Their winner was brilliant but I can't believe we were that good in the first half & lost 2-1.

Wednesday, February 3rd.

I ordered a new fan light for my bedroom from Amazon on Monday & it is being delivered today. I am always worried I will miss any deliveries if I don't hear the very loud doorbell or if I happen to be in the loo at the time they call.

I start the day watching some very good free training videos for photoshop composition that I was offered. They are really good & I immediately want to start taking photos & beginning to set up my digital art portfolio. I have a couple of things that whisk me away to a timeless space that nothing else seems able to penetrate, my photoshop digital art & my genealogy. Today I will alternate between the two whilst trying not to get to immersed in it, in case I miss the doorbell. I spend the morning listening to Ken Bruce on Radio Two, doing my digital art training & my genealogy research.

For a nice change, the delivery arrives midday, leaving me this afternoon to carry on with my digital art & genealogy research.

Thursday, February 4th.

This morning I began to set up a Facebook page to advertise my digital art on. This is something I hope to do more of in the coming years & hope that I may be able to start selling some of my images.

I had just set off for a walk along the promenade after my lunch when I saw my friend Shellie, we were having a chat from a distance when my phone rang. It was my friend Janet letting me know her husband Derek could come & fit my ceiling light & fan if I was in. I quickly walked the very short distance home & arrived seconds before Derek did. He fitted the new light & fan in my bedroom for me & he made a great job of it.

Not having had fans in my apartment before as it has air conditioning, I wasn't sure I would like it, but the model I bought is fantastic (fan, fantastic did you see what I did there?). The light has three different colour settings, a bright white light, a dim blue tint & a warmer dull yellow. It has 3 different speeds on the fan & most importantly to me, you can set it to go off after a certain time, one, two or three hours. This is great for me as I can put it on at night when I go to bed to cool the room down & it will turn off after a set time, rather than me waking up cold in the middle of the night. I can control it from my normal wall switches or use a remote that comes with it. It also looks really good & the fan is quiet so it will not disturb me when I am sleeping. I am hoping that being able to have the fan on in the bedroom, rather than having the air conditioning on throughout the apartment, will save money on electricity as well.