In Week 32 of 2024, I thought my physiotherapy had stopped until my insurance company told me the clinic wondered where I was as they had booked me a course of ten sessions, not the two I thought I had. I worked at home a lot, went swimming and met a friend for dinner on Sunday.
Monday, 5th August.
When I woke up this morning, I got a coffee, sat at my computer and worked on my website for a while. I had a little pain in my knee, but not a lot. I had meant to go for a swim, but when I looked up, it was 11:30 am, so I turned the computer off and took some rubbish to the bins before continuing to meet Martin at La Sombre Pizzeria.
I got a bottle of water and sat chatting with Martin, Dave and Terry until 2:20 pm. I left and slowly rode back towards Los Alcazares on my disability scooter. I arrived at the doctor's clinic at about 2:45 pm and went inside. I sat down while the receptionist checked me in and then went in for my second lot of physio.
Today, the nurse started by giving my knee area a long massage with her hands. It felt very good and was only painful a couple of times. When she had finished this, she placed the electromagnets over my knee and plugged them in. This was not painful either, but it made my foot fall asleep. When it had finished, I lowered my foot to the cold floor, and my foot soon came back to life. Lastly, she attached the electrotherapy TENS machine to my knee. She turned it up until I said it was high enough and left it running till that, too, had finished.
She didn't give me another appointment, so I assume that is all the physiotherapy I will get. I hope it lasts because getting up in the morning and not being in instant pain is nice. When I left, I went to the Economy Cash store to get some groceries to eat tonight. I was soon back at my apartment, and although it was cooler than outside because I had pulled my curtains to block out the sun today, it was still warm, so I turned the air conditioning on, got a cold drink and sat at my computer for an hour to check my messages.
I watched TV for a while, but I couldn't keep my eyes open and went to bed at about 9:30 pm.
Tuesday, 6th August.
I woke up at about 4 am. I went to the bathroom, went back to bed, and fell asleep again. I woke up again at about 8:45 am. I was surprised I had slept so well and for so long, but my body must have needed it. When I got up, I was still a bit sleepy. I got myself a coffee, followed quickly by a second one.
I sat at my computer for a while, checking my email and surfing the Internet. At about 9:30 am, Martin messaged me, and I met him at Buena Vista Restaurant for coffee and a tostada. We sat talking for a short time before he left. I had to wait quite a while before I could get the waitress's attention to get the bill and pay. I love the coffee here, but the current staff are not quick and can only do one thing at a time. When they serve one person, they always walk back inside without looking around to see if anyone else is waiting. It would be better if they could at least acknowledge you so that you knew they would be back.
I eventually got the bill, paid it, and walked the short distance back to my apartment. When I got home, I went to the garage and took the battery off my electrically assisted bike to charge it. I took it back to my apartment and plugged it in so that I could start to use my bike. After ensuring the battery was charging, I went to my balcony to repair the hose I water my plants with.
The hose has a split in a section of it. I cut off the damaged section and reconnected the hose head and the tap connector on the other end. I tested it to ensure that it was all working correctly and that there were no leaks. I then washed some of the large pots I had on the balcony so I could use them and repot some of my plants.
Because it was getting hot, I returned to my apartment, closed all the doors and windows, put the air conditioning on and began editing more of my website pages. At 2:30 pm, I boiled some eggs, had them with some salad for lunch and then returned to work on my website. I worked most of the night on my website and went to bed at 10:30 pm.
Wednesday, 7th August.
I woke up at 6:45 am. I got a coffee, checked for messages on my computer and went to the Mar Menor for a swim. The sea was a bit cloudy today, but there were hardly any jellyfish. I swam to the rocks and back twice and then dried myself off while I sat on the wall along the beach. After drying off, I returned to my apartment, got a coffee, and then repotted some plants on my balcony. I used the stones from the top of the pots to place at the bottom of the pots to help with drainage. Then, I put soil on top, followed by cactus soil, before putting the cacti in their new pots. After repotting a few plants and cutting up a dead plant, I shaved my head before returning inside to get out of the heat.
I took a shower and sat in front of the TV for a while, looking to see if Arsenal had sold or bought any players before the new season in a couple of weeks. I hadn't got anything out of the freezer for dinner, so I walked to Thai Aroi to get a Menú del día. I sat outside and read my Kindle while I ate my food. I enjoyed the food but was disappointed that every dish was chicken. I was even more disappointed when they charged me €2 for a small bottle of water, though it was my only drink. I thought it was included in the price.
After finishing my meal, I walked home and sat in my massage chair with my feet raised. I was soon fast asleep and woke up a couple of hours later. I spent the evening looking at things to do locally. I wanted to go and see the Cirque de Soleil show in Alicante, so I looked at how expensive tickets were. A good ticket was about €100, which I didn't mind paying. I looked at how much the coach to Alicante was, and the return was less than €20. Because there were no late-night coaches back, it would mean staying over for a night. This was what stopped me from going to see the show. The cheapest price for one night in Alicante was nearly €300. This sort of thing makes me consider getting a car again, but for the few times I would use a car, it just isn't worth the expense. Instead of going, I will keep the money to spend on my holiday in Japan in a few months.
I went to bed at 11:00 pm and fell asleep quickly.
Thursday, 8th August.
When I woke up, I checked my messages on my computer. I attempted to do the Wordle puzzle and failed for the first time in 38 days. I walked to the Mar Menor and went for a swim. The sea was very clear today, but there were thousands of jellyfish floating around. They are harmless and beautiful to look at, but I don't like swimming through them when there are thousands of them in my way. Every time my hand brushes one of them, it makes me jump because I think I have touched someone. I take a roundabout route to the rocks, trying to avoid the large floating clumps of jellyfish and then swim back to the shore.
After my swim, I return to my apartment, take a shower and have ginger, peach and lemon tea. I had a second cup of tea, and once I finished it, I went down to the garage to get my disability scooter and went to a local store to get some milk and bread. It didn't take me long, and I was soon home again. When I had put my shopping away, I went onto my balcony, repotted another cactus and put shells around the base of another. I ran out of shells, so tomorrow, when I go swimming, I will have to start collecting shells again.
For lunch, I had a burger with the French stick I bought this morning. I continued working on my website, stopping in the evening to get something to eat. I wasn't very hungry; I just had some cereal before I sat in my massage chair and continued working on the code for my website. This time, details were added to the structured data for many of the pages.
I eventually stopped and went to bed around 11 pm.
Friday, 9th August.
I woke up a couple of times during the night but managed to get back to sleep quickly. I got up at about 7:30 this morning. I got a coffee, checked for messages on my computer and then went to the Mar Menor for a swim and to collect some more shells for my plant pots.
I swam around collecting shells for a while, and once the little pot I had was full, I put them on the beech before swimming out to the rocks and back. The water seemed cleaner today, and I saw some quite big fish swimming around, as well as a lot of beautiful jellyfish. Once I had finished, I went back to my apartment and showered.
When I showered, I got a protein and cherry drink, as well as some cereal. I was eating my cereal when my phone beeped. When I checked, I got an email from my health insurance agent saying the physio had called her to ask if I was going back for my physiotherapy. I told her that they had not given me any more appointments and that I thought I had only been given two sessions. I hoped she would get back to me, telling me that there were more sessions planned because the two I had helped with the pain in my knee and the swelling around the knee and leg had gone down considerably.
At around lunchtime, I had not heard from my insurance agent again, so I went to the clinic where I had my physiotherapy. When I got there, the receptionist found my appointment sheet and spoke to the physiotherapist. It turned out she was expecting me for physiotherapy every day but had forgotten to tell me. Luckily, I was able to cancel my lunch plans with Lisa and will be able to go this afternoon. I went back to my apartment and worked on my website for an hour before I got myself a chicken sandwich for lunch.
At 2:40 pm, I went to the clinic on my disability scooter. As I was passing ATime4AChange, I saw a child's toy dog on the floor, so I stopped, took it inside, and gave it to Kerry in case anyone came to look for it. While I was handing it over, my friend Deeana came in and invited me to go with her when she sings on Monday night. I will have to check if I can go, as I have a feeling it might be at the same time I am doing something else. As I was leaving, my friend Ali came in. I quickly said hello and goodbye to her, as I didn't want to be late for the physio now that I knew that I had the appointment.
When I went into the clinic, the receptionist quickly signed me in, and I went for my physiotherapy session. The nurse sat me down, and my first set of treatments today was the electrotherapy treatment. This was followed by electromagnetic therapy, cold gel, and gentle massage. When she finished, she cleaned my leg and told me she would see me on Monday at the same time. As I left the clinic, the receptionist said goodbye and said she would see me on Monday. At least I know I have 7 more physio sessions to go.
After leaving, I got back on my disability scooter and went straight home. It was lovely and cool when I got into the apartment because I had put the air conditioning on before I left. I spent the evening looking at different trips. I want to go away for my birthday in January but haven't made my mind up as to where I want to go yet. I looked at different cruises in lots of places around the world. I would like to go somewhere warmer so that I can get out and about easily.
Saturday, 10th August.
I woke up this morning and got up at about 7:45 am. I got a coffee, sat at my computer, and read a message from one of my cousins asking if I knew anything about the health of one of our other cousins. It appeared that one of our cousins had passed away a little while ago, but neither I nor my other cousins had heard about it. I hope it is a mistake, but it once again reminds me to enjoy my life as much as I can while I still can.
I worked on my website all day, stopping only for lunch and watching the Leeds vs Portsmouth football match on TV. I was pleased to see Portsmouth get a result when the match finished 3-3. Portsmouth were outplayed for most of the game but led twice and were only pegged back by a very late equalizer from Leeds. PUP.
I continued working on my website till around midnight, mainly because the loud music in Plaza de Espejo wouldn't allow me to sleep. It finished at 11:30 pm, and I went to bed when my ears stopped ringing.
Sunday, 11th August.
When I got up this morning, I put some washing in the washing machine and then started working on the Bucket List section of my website. I was able to update most of the pages, some with new images, and I was able to add some informative videos to other pages.
As I was working, I had a message that my cousin had passed away a few weeks ago. I hadn't seen him for a long while, but I remembered him coming to see an Arsenal game with me many years ago when we were both a lot younger. He bought an Arsenal scarf to put on while we watched the Arsenal vs Everton game. When we left, he gave me the scarf, and I asked him why he didn't want to keep it. He then told me he was an Everton fan and had only bought it to wear in case there was any trouble in the ground. You will always be in my memories. RIP in Michael.
I stopped work at around 12:30 and got ready to go out for dinner with my friend Debbie. I had a shower, and after my shower, as I walked into my lounge, I noticed my wall clock still said 12:30. When I looked at my other timepieces, I realised my clock had stopped, and it was already 2:13 pm. I was supposed to be at Campbell's in Roda to meet Debbie at 2 pm. I sent Debbie a message telling her I was on my way and also sent Mike, my friend who owns the bar, a message to say I was late but on my way as well. I cranked the Sharky Mobile up to racing speed, went at full pelt and arrived there just after 2:30 pm. Luckily, Debbie was still there, and we soon sat down for dinner.
I had the roast lamb and wolfed it down because I was starving. It was beautiful. Debbie and I chatted, and she told me about her trip to the UK over lunch. When we had finished, we sat in the garden of the bar, chatting for a while before leaving to go home. I trundled along with Debbie and left her when we got back nearer to her home, where I turned off to go the other way. I went straight home, and when I got home, I put my disability scooter on charge in the garage. I went back to my apartment and promptly fell asleep in my massage chair.
This evening, I worked on my website for a while and chatted via the computer with my sister in the UK, giving her the sad news about our cousin. I then spoke with my friend Lisa for a while about trips we wanted to take. I eventually went to bed around 1 am Monday morning.