Location: Los Alcázares, Región de Murcia, Spain.
Summary: A week of intense heat, nurse visits, website work, deliveries, PostCrossing postcards, meals with friends, and plenty of football. I continued improving my website, adjusted my routines, dealt with pharmacies and parcels, and tried to stay cool while keeping busy with genealogy, CIV VI, and long chats with friends.
Monday, 25th August
Today, for the first time in a long time, I didn't have to go to the health clinic on a Monday morning. When I woke up, I got up and sat at my computer, did the Wordle puzzle and relaxed. I did some work on my website, but had a quiet morning. At about 11:45, I took some rubbish to the recycling bin and to the normal waste bin and then continued on my disability scooter towards Los Narejos.
As I approached Pizzeria La Sombre, I saw my friend Christine walking her dog. I stopped to have a quick chat, and she told me that her husband Larry, who had been ill for some time, had passed away last week. RIP Larry, I didn't know you that well, but on the few occasions I had met you, I had enjoyed your company and talking to you about our love for Arsenal.
After leaving Christine, I crossed the road to Pizzeria La Sombre, ordered a large bottle of water and sat at a table. My friend Terry arrived a short time later and sat at another table, and Martin arrived with Aria and joined me. As we sat talking, we were joined by Dave, Sean and Viv. I felt very hot and sticky today; the humidity was horrible. At 13:30, I left the others to go home. On the way home, I stopped by Mercadona and purchased two Texas wrap salads and a pasta salad. I didn't want to have to cook anything when I got in, and I have come to enjoy the small salads and wraps since starting to change my diet a little.
When I arrived home, I turned on the air conditioning and ate one of the Texas wrap salads. The salad didn't fill me up, and I was still very hungry, so I ate the pasta salad as well. I sat in my armchair and began to watch the second film in the Hobbit trilogy. I soon fell asleep and slept for about an hour. When I woke up, I watched a bit more of the film before starting to play CIV VI on my laptop.
Tonight I watched bits of the Newcastle vs Liverpool football match out of the corner of my eye while playing my game on the laptop. Newcastle were soon losing 2-0, and when a player was sent off, the result looked like a foregone conclusion. It wasn't. Newcastle fought back to make it 2-2 and looked the better team, who were more likely to win the game. Until that is, a 16-year-old substitute came on for Liverpool and, with only seconds to go, scored a winner. What an amazing couple of days it has been for young boys in the Premier League for both Arsenal and Liverpool; their two young stars will probably be playing at the top level for many years to come.
Tuesday, 26th August
I woke up just after 7:00 and got up straight away. I completed the Wordle puzzle online and worked on my website before showering and heading to the health clinic to have my ankle redressed and checked. I arrived early at the health clinic, but I may have been the only patient being seen, and I was called in 20 minutes ahead of schedule. The male nurse was one I had seen before for a blood test and was very good.
We spoke for a short time, and it turned out he knew my apartment. He asked where I lived in Los Alcázares, and when I told him it was at the Plaza de Espejo, he asked if it was close to the apartment with the Welsh flag on the balcony. I told him that it was very close because that was my apartment, and he told me he had lived in Wales for a couple of years. He redressed my ankle and made me another appointment for Friday.
When I left the health clinic, I went to the No Name Cafe on Rio Nalon. I sat down, ordered a tostada and a coffee and just as it was brought to me, my friend Martin arrived and sat down with me. He had seen me as he bought his lottery tickets just up the road and came back for a quick chat. We finished our drinks and headed back to our own homes.
When I got home, I worked on redirecting links on my web server. My friends Frouk and Reeinder messaged me and then came to pick me up at about 12:45 to go to the Yamami Kitchen restaurant for lunch. We all ordered off the menu of the day, and I had chicken and corn soup, followed by duck in orange sauce with egg fried rice and chocolate ice cream for dessert. The soup was great, and the duck was fine, but it wasn't exceptional either. We sat talking about hospital appointments, horrible doctors who refused to speak English even though they speak perfect English, and our holiday plans. I had to laugh at Frouk when she complained about the awkward doctor she has, who refuses to speak English to her and only speaks Spanish. I find this hilarious because Frouk is Dutch.
When we had finished our meal, Frouk and Reeinder dropped me back at my apartment, and I went inside, ready for a siesta. I slept for an hour, and when I woke up, I did a little more work on my website before settling down to play CIV VI. I spent the entire evening playing the game and listening to football scores as the goals went in before going to bed around 23:00.
Wednesday, 27th August
I woke up around 7:00, got up, completed the Wordle puzzle, checked for emails, and worked on my website before having some cereal at about 10:30. The new shower seat I had ordered on Amazon was being delivered today, so I couldn't leave home until it arrived.
Since I'll be having a couple of visitors this year and don't have any armchairs or sofas for them to use, I went on Amazon and ordered a new armchair. It is only a basic armchair, but at least my friends will have somewhere to sit other than the dining table or in my computer chair. It should arrive next week, fingers crossed. I wanted to take a break from the monotonous tasks I was doing on my website, so I decided to conduct some genealogy research.
I moved my printer from a coffee table to a drawer/cupboard set in the lounge. It was connected to the computer and laptop by WIFI, so I didn't have to worry about leads as long as there was a power socket nearby. When I moved it, I took the opportunity to clear some rubbish off the drawers/cupboard and dust it. I moved the rubbish to another pile, which I will sort through later. It seems that all I ever do with things I don't really need and should throw out is move them from one pile to another. I really need to be more decisive and just discard things.
When Amazon arrived and delivered my new shower chair, I sat in my armchair, unboxed the new chair and put it together. It was easy to build as the pieces were all numbered and the instructions were easy to follow. It didn't take long to build, and I soon had it sitting in the shower, replacing the old one. The old one was then moved to my balcony, where I could place a plant pot on it with a hanging plant.
The afternoon was spent in exactly the same way as the evening, playing CIV VI on my laptop while listening to the TV. Tonight I watched the Grimsby vs Manchester United football match in the slim hope that Grimsby would win. The game was great for Grimsby supporters; the team played brilliantly and led 2-0 at half-time, and it could have been a bigger score. At half time, Manchester United brought on some new players and, with only minutes left, had managed to get the game back to 2-2, despite, in my opinion, being the worst team. Grimsby had a third goal incorrectly ruled out for offside, and the game went to a penalty shootout. The penalties were brilliant, and after every player on both sides had taken a penalty, the game was still drawn, and they had to start again. Grimsby won when Bryan Mbeumo hit his second penalty against the crossbar, missed and sent Grimsby through to the next round.
I set my dishwasher to run overnight and then went to bed.
Thursday, 28th August
I woke up at 6:45 but tried to get back to sleep. I couldn't get back to sleep and got up just after 7:00. I made myself a cup of green tea and sat at my computer to check for messages. I had one from DHL to say the delivery I was expecting from Arsenal would be arriving today. I had just bought new football shirts and they would be here in time for the Liverpool vs Arsenal game at the weekend. After drinking my tea, I washed and then continued working on my website, adding a page about the Mendenhall Glacier.
At about 11:00, I remembered the dishes that needed to be put away from the dishwasher that had run overnight. I got up and put the dishes away, and then I began to do a little bit of work, cleaning the balcony that I use as my utility room, which houses my washing machine and water heater. For some reason, the small amount of work soon had my heart pounding in my chest, and I felt a little unwell, so I stopped, got a cold drink, took a few rolls out of the freezer to defrost for lunch and then sat in my armchair and put my feet up.
I had only been resting for about half an hour when the video intercom buzzed to tell me there was someone at the door. When I looked, it was a postman. I hadn't seen the postman in months and was planning to visit the post office to check for mail tomorrow, so I was pleased to see him, as it would save me a trip. I went downstairs to collect the mail he was delivering and met the postman. He spoke very good English, and I had never seen him before, either at my apartment or around Los Alcázares. I hope he will be added to the staff permanently and that I will start receiving mail on a regular basis.
My mail consisted of three postcards: one from Zigong, China, one from Berlin, Germany, and the third from Austin, Texas, in the USA. They were all sent to me by people using the PostCrossing website. It was very nice to receive mail that wasn't a bill or junk mail, and especially nice to have postcards from all over the world, including some places that I have travelled to. They were quickly added to the pinboard that I have started to put postcards on in the hallway of the lounge in my apartment.
After reading my postcards, I sent a quick note to the people who had sent them to me via the PostCrossing website and then made myself some ham and cheese rolls for lunch. Just as I finished lunch, my new Arsenal shirts arrived, and I tried them both on, and they fit, so I was happy. I now own Arsenal's Home, Away, and third strips, which are red, white, and blue.
After eating lunch, I put on a film, Secondhand Lions, which I had seen before but had forgotten. I also took a painkiller as I had a headache, as well as feeling a bit unwell. I remembered the film more or less straight away because it's a great film. The painkiller kicked in after about half an hour and put me to sleep. I woke up about 40 minutes later. I felt a lot better and rewound the film to watch the rest of it.
When the film finished, I ordered some rolled oats from Amazon. I have had them before, and not only did they help me lose weight, but they also gave me the energy I have been lacking recently. I hoped they would both help me lose weight and have more energy. I then had an early evening meal and conducted some research on my genealogy. I was tired early today and went to bed at 22:00.
Friday, 29th August
Probably because I went to bed so early last night, I was awake at 4:30 this morning. I tried to get back to sleep, but I couldn't, so I got up and began working on my website. I stopped at about 6:30 and had a shower. I was pleased that the new shower seat was comfortable and stable. After my shower, I got ready to visit the health clinic this morning and had some cereal for breakfast before going back to work on my website.
I left home at about 8:15 to go for a coffee on my way to the health clinic on my disability scooter. The cafe I originally went to was closed, but I saw a chiringuito in a nearby park that I pass every time I go to the health clinic, so I stopped there instead. I have never stopped there before; to be fair, I've never even noticed it before. I ordered a coffee and a tostada and sat down to read my Kindle. The service was very good, and the coffee and tostada were also excellent.
When I finished, I continued on my way to the health clinic. I was seen quite quickly, and the nurse I saw this week chatted to me as he cleaned the wound. The wound on my ankle does look better. It used to be quite deep but is now almost level with the rest of my leg, and I hope that new skin will soon start to form over it. When I left the clinic, I went straight home and plugged my disability scooter into the charger in the garage so that I could use it later to collect some parcels being delivered to the EuroChange and EconomyCash stores.
When I arrived at my apartment, I decided to transfer the money for my January holiday to CurrencyFair. I wanted to do it in advance, in case anything went wrong and I had to redo it. I logged onto my local bank account and transferred the money to my CurrencyFair account. It should arrive by tomorrow. I will just have to check to make sure it does, because it is a weekend, so it may not go through until next week.
I waited all afternoon for a call to say I could collect my Amazon delivery from the EconomyCash store. I had it delivered there because I have to pick up another parcel at the EuroChange store opposite, and could do both at the same time. Unfortunately, at 16:45, I received a message stating that it hadn't been delivered because there were no empty spaces available to place it in. How did they not know that beforehand? The delivery boxes can only be opened when you use an app on your phone, so they must have known they were all full. It seems to me that they must double-book delivery boxes, just as some airlines double-book flight seats. I was not impressed, and I hope it is delivered tomorrow morning. Either way, I will have to collect the parcel from EuroChange tomorrow.
I spent the night playing CIV VI and finally went to bed at midnight. I hadn't realised it was that late. Partly, I think, because I am so used to the noise made by all the local Spanish visitors to my little area of Los Alcázares, which doesn't start until very late, that now that they have all gone, it's very quiet outside, and I thought it was still early.
Saturday, 30th August
I woke up at 4:00, but after using the bathroom, I was able to get back to sleep. I didn't wake up again until 9:30, which is very late for me, but I felt better for it and was ready to start my weekend jobs. I first checked for any messages on my computer and then got some cereal and a cup of green tea.
I put a load of washing in the washing machine and then checked that the clothes horse that I had moved to the spare bedroom was put together correctly. I didn't want it to fall apart again while I was using it. After I had put my washing on, I had a message from my friend June. She has left Spain and gone back to England to live, but is visiting for a couple of days. We arranged to meet for a coffee at No Name Cafe at midday.
Just before midday, I left home on my disability scooter. I took a load of paper and cardboard recycling to one of the recycling bins and then continued to Rio Nalon to meet June. When I arrived at the cafe, June was already there, so I parked my scooter in the shade and sat down with her. We sat chatting for a couple of hours, had a couple of coffees, and June showed me images of the new mobile home she hopes to buy. It did look very nice and reminded me of the one I lived in, in Kissimmee, Florida, USA, back in the 1990s.
After saying goodbye to June, I went to the EuroExchange shop and collected the parcel I was expecting. The lady also helped me obtain a new VIP card for the money exchange shop, which will allow me to secure better rates for my holiday money. Since Amazon had still not delivered my parcel to EconomyCash, I couldn't collect it, but I did buy a couple of pasta salads before returning to my apartment.
This afternoon I spent all my time watching football and playing CIV VI.
Sunday, 31st August
I woke up at 6:45 and got up and got a cold drink before doing the Wordle puzzle online. After checking for messages and pottering around my apartment for an hour or so, I went out on my disability scooter to look in the local Chino shops to see how much their towels were.
When I arrived at the Mediterrano Chino shop, I went inside and examined the towels. I was surprised to see how expensive they were. They are significantly cheaper on Amazon and all the superstore websites I checked. I continued to the Mercadona store and got some groceries, and then returned to my apartment.
I had been planning to get a new kitchen because the one I have is looking very old and battered. It needs to
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