Location: Los Alcázares, Murcia, Spain
Summary: A week of cold mornings, long waits for deliveries, good food, helpful friends, frustrating technology, and plenty of football. I spent most of the week indoors working on my website, learning new software, and keeping warm, but still managed coffees, meals out, and a great catch‑up with Gail and Rob.
Monday, 13th January
I woke feeling rested and ready for what I knew would be a long, dull day of waiting for my coffee machine. After porridge and a failed attempt at Wordle, I settled at my computer to work on my website. Wayne phoned asking if I could look at his laptop, so he came over with it. Whatever had happened to it was catastrophic, apps missing, settings gone, even Windows itself looked half‑erased. I found a Linux prompt, which made me suspect someone had overwritten the system. There was nothing I could do except send him to the Password shop.
After he left, I rearranged the kitchen to make space for the coffee machine that stubbornly refused to arrive. Later, I discovered what I thought was malware on my laptop. Bitdefender’s help desk reassured me it was only adware and told me how to remove it. I spent the rest of the day working on my website and watching OneNote tutorials. I went to bed at 23:00, couldn’t sleep, got up again, and carried on experimenting with OneNote until 02:00.
Tuesday, 14th January
I woke at 08:30, made a bacon sandwich and resigned myself to another day of waiting for the coffee machine. I found a free OneNote course on Udemy and spent the morning learning new tricks. Lunch was a ham sandwich with carrot and orange soup from the freezer. The delivery never came. I watched football in the evening and went to bed at 23:00.
Wednesday, 15th January
I woke at 05:30 and gave up trying to sleep. With a pot of tea and Radio 2 for company, I sent a message to Owain Wyn Evans, and he read it out on air. It made the early morning feel a little less lonely.
At 10:00, Lawrence picked me up for coffee at Café Prensa. A big group of us gathered, chatting away for a couple of hours. On the way home, Lawrence admitted he was hungry, so we stopped at Buena Vista for breakfast and a beer. I told him about a reclining chair I wanted to see in El Corte Inglés, and he immediately offered to drive me there tomorrow.
Back home, I researched the chair again and watched TV until the Arsenal vs Tottenham match. Arsenal dominated early but missed chance after chance. Tottenham scored first, but Arsenal turned it around and won 2-1. North London was red again. I was buzzing after the match and ended up working on my website until 02:00.
Thursday, 16th January
I woke tired but excited for the trip to Cartagena. After tea and a bit of website work, Lawrence picked me up. We stopped at Café Prensa again before heading to El Corte Inglés. The store reminded me of the old department stores back in England. The salesman showed me a sturdy recliner with all the features I needed, independent leg and back movement, lift function, and a size that would actually fit me. I chose the fabric and colour, paid for it, and was told it would arrive in early March, safely after my India trip.
We drove to Venta Simón for lunch. The menu of the day was excellent, salad, chicken and pasta soup, pork fillets in peppercorn sauce, chocolate flan and wine, all for €14. I treated Lawrence as thanks for the lift. Back home, I warmed the apartment and watched TV until I fell asleep around 22:00.
Friday, 17th January
I woke at 07:00 to a freezing 8°C apartment and put the heating on immediately. I cooked a full breakfast to warm myself up and spent the morning converting images on my website to WebP format. Liz popped in with her laptop, and I fixed it for her.
Still no coffee machine. When I contacted the delivery company, they told me it was sitting in their depot waiting for me to collect it, a 100 km round trip. I sent a strongly worded message explaining that I’m disabled and cannot collect it. I also contacted the manufacturer. With no hope of a delivery that day, I rode to Economy Cash for food and admired the newly remodelled Rio Nalon on the way back. That evening, I cooked spare ribs and finally received an email saying the machine should arrive Monday. Fingers crossed.
Saturday, 18th January
I woke to an email from the hotel I’m staying at before Heathrow, asking for payment, over €100 more than it should have been. I refused and messaged them. They later confirmed their system had been hacked. I was glad I checked.
In the afternoon, I walked along the beachfront to meet Gail and her boyfriend Rob. It was the first time I’d met him, and we got on immediately, two Arsenal fans together. After coffee at Estribor, I showed them my apartment and then we went to Buena Vista for food. Later, we walked to Harry’s Bar to watch Arsenal vs Aston Villa. Arsenal went 2-0 up, but both Rob and I knew they needed a third. Gail didn’t understand our nerves until Villa scored twice. The match ended 2-2.
We walked up Rio Nalon afterwards, stopped at The Celt, bumped into my cousin Jill, then finished the night at the 19th Hole. It was a brilliant evening, and it was great to see Gail again and finally meet Rob.
Sunday, 19th January
I woke with swollen legs and decided to rest all day. I kept the heating on, worked on my website, watched football and films, and kept my legs raised. A quiet end to a busy week.
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