✍Journal: Week 27, 2025.

In week 27 of 2025, I got too much sun at the start of the week and did too much walking in the heat. It really took it out of me, and I spent the rest of the week recovering.

📝Monday, 30th June.

I woke up later than normal today, and whilst I was in the shower, I heard my phone ringing. When I had finished my shower, I got dressed and checked my phone. I had a message from Lawrence, and he was on his way round to pick me up for coffee. A couple of minutes later, it beeped again, and it was a message from Lawrence telling me he was outside.

I went downstairs, and we went to Cafe Prensa for coffee. The usual people joined us: Christine, Theresa, Oyvind, Steve, and Bev. We talked until around 11:30, and then we all left. Lawrence drove me back to Rio Nalon, and I went to the No Name Cafe to meet Martin and Dave. 

Since Martin didn't have to pick Aria up from the school bus, it meant we could meet somewhere else for our drink and chat. The No Name Cafe was a nice change; the beer was the same price as at La Sombre Pizzeria, at only €2.50 a pint, and my bottle of water was less expensive than at La Sombre. We talked till around 2 pm, and when Martin remembered he had something for his dad at home, we went to Pizzeria la Sombre. We had one beer, and then Dave and I left. Dave stopped off at Consum, did some shopping and then dropped me off at Rio Nalon. 

I went back to No Name Cafe for a beer, and when I finished, I went to Harry's Bar, initially because it has the best air conditioning, which was much needed since it was too hot to sit outside. However, as I was sitting there, my friend Amanda arrived with a friend of hers, and we sat chatting and catching up. 

I left Harry's Bar and walked to Roccos Bar. I sat inside and saw my friend, the owner, Rachid. I had heard lots of rumours that he was moving from the bar again, so I asked him where he was moving to. I was surprised when he told me where he was going, but I'm pleased for him because it's a great little bar, and I think he'll do well there once people find out he's moved there. I seem to remember there is enough room for the pool table there, Rachid, so don't forget to take it with you.

When I left, I walked back to my apartment. It was still very hot, and I was glad to get home and out of the heat.

📝Tuesday, 1st July.

I got up at around 7 am this morning and got a coffee. As I sat drinking my coffee, I went to take my tablets and realised that, in my hurry to leave the apartment the previous day, I had forgotten to take them. I made a note on my Sintrom pill sheet that I hadn't taken them. I will have to give it to the phlebotomist next week so they can adjust my medication correctly.

I left home at about 9:45 to walk to the health clinic for my 10:10 appointment. I very quickly realised that it was a lot hotter out than I thought. By the time I got to the health clinic, I was puffed out and having trouble breathing. I was glad I got there on time because my walking had become slow and laboured in the heat. The nurse was running significantly behind schedule, and I had to wait for 40 minutes before I was seen. Even then, she was interrupted by other nurses. Luckily for me, the trainee nurse was able to remove the old dressing and clean the wound. Once the regular nurse had redressed it, she gave me another appointment for Thursday this week. This is a bit quicker than I am used to, and I hope it's not because they think the wound has worsened. 

When I left the clinic, I stopped outside to call Lawrence, who had phoned while I was with the nurse. I answered his question, and we arranged to meet later in the week. I then put my phone back in my pocket. Because I had been in the clinic longer than I expected, I decided to walk to Rio Nalon to meet Martin rather than go home and then go to meet Martin. I thought I would have breakfast at the Tipsy Thistle.

As I walked towards the Tipsy Thistle, I began to have trouble walking in the heat, and my breathing was becoming very laboured. As I walked, my phone rang, and it was Lawrence asking me what I had just sent him. I had no idea what he was talking about, so I said I would call him back later. I didn't get to the Tipsy Thistle before I had to sit down and get my breath back. After a short rest, I walked the short distance and sat in the shade at the Tipsy Thistle.

I was served quickly and ordered a bottle of water and a small breakfast. The water turned up quickly with a glass of ice, and I was able to drink the iced water and start to cool off, but my heart was racing. My Fitbit watch informed me that my heart rate had increased to 147 bpm from my normal resting heart rate of around 57 bpm. I started to feel a bit better, and my breakfast arrived shortly after. I slowly ate my breakfast, and just as I finished, the owner of the restaurant, Bob, whom I had known since I originally moved to Los Alcazares in 2005, walked up and stood chatting with me. It was great to see him again, and we spent some time discussing our different experiences in Florida, as well as some of our celebrity encounters. By the time Bob left, I felt a lot better and had cooled off again. I paid for my breakfast and got up to meet Martin at No Name Cafe.

The very short walk down Rio Nalon had me puffing like a steam train again, and by the time I saw Martin sitting in the shade, I was out of breath and feeling ill again. Even Martin thought I looked a bit rough. He had already got a big bottle of water, and I was able to have a drink as soon as I sat down. A short time later, Dave joined us, and we sat chatting. 

I was still feeling unwell and went to the cafe's toilet, splashing water all over my head and face. It seemed to work a little, and I felt a bit better. When I went back to sit with Dave and Martin, I continued drinking water, and my heart rate went down, but only to around 97 bpm. At 1:45 pm, we were about to leave, and I asked Dave to drive me home because I didn't think I could walk home without collapsing in the heat. We all left, and Martin told me to stop trying to walk everywhere and to use my disability scooter while it is so hot. He is right. I find it challenging to stop trying to get some exercise and to rest more. I do minimal exercise because I'm out of condition, and the heat makes it even more challenging for me. It was a lot easier when I could go swimming as soon as I got up every morning. I hope my ankle heals soon so I can start swimming again.

When Dave dropped me off at my apartment, I turned on the air conditioning and collapsed into my armchair, where I stayed for the rest of the day before I went to bed. My heart rate slowed, but was still around 87 bpm when I checked it in the evening. Before going to bed, I checked my email and had a message from the people I had sent Georges' details to last week; they wanted more stuff from him. I sent George a message telling him, and then went to bed.

📝Wednesday, 2nd July.

I felt better when I woke up this morning. I had a cup of coffee and completed the Wordle puzzle online. I took my pills and did some work on my website.

While I was working on my website, George called me. He had found the details his Doctor required and asked me to scan, translate and email the documents to his Doctor. I told him to come round and he said he would come round today.

An hour and a half later, George and Yvonne arrived. It took me a while, but I was able to send the paperwork he needed to his doctor in Scotland. While they were in my apartment, Yvonne looked at my balcony and said it looked nice now that I had tidied it up. I showed her the cushions I had brought back from India with me and had got the filling for. George looked at the cushion with the stuck zip, and after a short time, he was able to unzip it and remove the cotton thread that had got caught in it. This was great for me as it meant I wouldn't have to take it to be repaired or have a new zip fitted.

When George and Yvonne left, I got myself a crab stick salad for a late lunch. It wasn't very nice, and I won't bother getting that particular salad again. After the salad, I had a banana, a Greek yoghurt and a couple of scoops of ice cream. I watched a film on TV and then resumed working on my website. I heard from my neighbour Liz in the afternoon. She asked how I was coping with the heat and said she hadn't been out at all due to the intense heat. George and Yvonne had said the same thing earlier. I have to remember that I am getting older and take better care of myself, not pushing myself too hard in the hot Spanish sun.

While I was watching TV tonight, I was contacted by another possible relative, and we had a brief chat via the Ancestry website. I was also able to order some coffee online from the coffee brand, FlordeJamaica, that I like in some of the local restaurants. It was significantly more expensive than the brand I had been buying, but I liked it, so I decided to purchase some anyway.

📝Thursday, 3rd July.

I woke up with family tree research possibilities going around in my head at 5:30 am. Unable to get back to sleep with the possibilities going around in my brain, firing up my brain's remaining cells, I got up, got a coffee and sat down at my computer to do some more research. As if by magic, I immediately discovered a war record for a person in my tree, which proves that the person in my tree was married to the lady I have him married to, and also confirms that he was alive after I had assigned his death date. After yesterday's conversation with someone else researching the tree, I believe that the record confirms that although Daniel Howard Morris in my tree is correct, it also indicates that the wife I have attached to him is the incorrect lady and that they all shared the same name. I attached a new wife to Daniel on the Ancestry website and hope that in the next few hours or days, I can find out who his wife was and when he died.

By 6:45, the sun had started to rise, and I began to think about getting ready to visit the health clinic later to have my ankle dressing changed. I took a shower, took my tablets, and continued my genealogy research until 9:15 am. Then, I got on my disability scooter and went to the health clinic. When I arrived, the nurses weren't there, so I sat reading my Kindle until the two nurses arrived and I was called in to see them. It didn't take long for them to clean the wound, and it appeared to be healing from the inside out at a slow pace. It doesn't seem as deep anymore, and the skin seems to be holding up better. Once it had been redressed, they scheduled a new appointment for me for next week. I told the nurse that I wouldn't be able to go from Thursday afternoon to Friday evening because I was going to Murcia for the night to see a show. They made me an appointment to have it redressed on Monday morning, and because they didn't want to leave it too long, they made me another appointment for Wednesday morning as well. I was given 9:30 am appointments on both days.

When I left, I returned to the apartment and parked my disability scooter in the garage. When I got to my apartment, I got a coffee and made a bacon and egg sandwich for breakfast. I indexed some pages from my website on Google and then conducted further research, adding more people to the "Great-Granduncles and Great-Grandaunties" section of my genealogy pages.

At 3 pm, I stopped working on my research and had a Texas wrap salad from Mercadona. It is my favourite salad from the store, and in the heat, it is easy to eat and healthy. After lunch, I sat in my armchair and checked the news to see if Arsenal had signed any new players. In sad news, it was reported that Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota and his brother had been killed in a car crash in Spain. All transfer news had been replaced with stories from Spain and footballers around the world talking about the loss of this great player.

Tonight, I played CIV VI and worked on my family tree until I went to bed around midnight.

📝Friday, 4th July.

I slept well last night and didn't wake up till around 07:00. I got up, got a coffee and checked my email. I had an email from a lady I had been talking to via the Ancestry website. She had kindly sent me a couple of newspaper cuttings about someone in my family tree. When I looked at the cutting about a funeral in Nantymoel, I was delighted to see that my great-grandfather's name, Benjamin Morris, was on the list of people attending. It was only a small clip, but it was another detail of my ancestral history.

I decided to go for a walk while it was still cooler out, and just before 9 am, I took some water and went for a walk along the Plaza de Espejo. I hadn't gone far when my knee popped. Luckily, I had taken my walking stick and stopped myself from falling over. It was a bit painful, but I decided to go for the walk anyway, albeit a very short one. I walked along the beachfront until I arrived at the monument to the fisherman. I turned right and walked to the Virgin of the Assumption Church, and then turned again and walked through the shaded back streets back to my apartment. It was already very hot, and I don't imagine I will be going very far again today. I will take note of local warnings to avoid the heat.

When I got back to my apartment block, there was some mail sticking out of the mailbox. I took it up to my apartment and was pleased to see a new PIN code for my bank card. I need the new bank card that goes with it now. When I got back to my apartment, I got some cold water, applied sun protection, and sat outside reading on my Kindle. I won't be able to sit out in the heat later, and it would be good to do it early while it's cooler and quieter outside. While I was reading, my neighbour, Liz, messaged me. She had been out in her car earlier, and when she came home, the car lift to the garage had broken down, leaving her car stuck in it. Luckily, she had been able to call the lift company, and they sent someone to her quite quickly, and she was soon rescued. I wouldn't want to be stuck in a lift in this heat, even a significantly sized car lift which was in the shade. I sat reading for a couple of hours till around 12:30, and when it got too hot, I moved back inside.

I turned on the air conditioning in the apartment and spent the afternoon, evening and night researching my family tree. I discovered a distant relative who was born in Cartagena, Murcia, around 25 km from where I now live. Her parents were both Welsh and her father was a merchant seaman. I am guessing he was based in Cartagena, as she was baptised in the British Consulate there. 

📝Saturday, 5th July.

I woke up around 7:30 this morning. I had a cup of coffee to wake me up, and then I went for a walk while it was still relatively cool outside. I walked along the beachfront to La Encarnación Hotel and then turned to walk to the Estribor café and bar, located next to the Los Alcazares town hall. I stopped for a coffee and a tostada and sat down outside. When the waiter came out, he told me the toaster wasn't working, but he did get me a coffee. I drank my coffee and wondered how he made a tostada for the man sitting next to me.

I read my Kindle for a while and then left, walking along the main road and heading back to my apartment. When I returned, I sat down at my computer and began conducting further genealogical research. As I sat at my computer, my friend Pat rang me and told me he had seen our friend Sheila, who is visiting from New Zealand. She had been looking for me but got lost, and he had suggested we meet tomorrow for a drink. He arranged to pick me up at 8:45 pm, and we would meet at Zarcos Cocktail Bar.

I spent the entire afternoon and evening staying out of the heat. I checked the temperature around 10 pm, and it was still 32 °C on my little balcony in the shade. I hate to think how hot it got in the full force of the sun, out of the shade, which is a danger to health. And after my problems earlier in the week, I am glad I have finally seen sense and stayed out of the midday sun. After all, only "Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun."

Noel Coward, Mad Dogs and Englishmen.

📝Sunday, 6th July.

I was woken up at 3:45 am by a woman from England who was picking up her children from the beach. The kids hadn't woken me up, but the woman parked outside my bedroom put her hand on the car horn and screamed at her kids to "come on". Thank you, stupid English woman, you managed to wake the whole neighbourhood up. Why couldn't you park quietly and walk the few steps to the beach to tell them you had arrived?

I managed to fall asleep again and woke up at around 8:30 am. It was already 30°C on my balcony, and I decided not to go for a walk. I watered the plants on my balcony and couldn't help admiring one of the succulents I have growing there, Cotyledon orbiculata. The pink flowers looked beautiful, and I took a photo of them. When I went back inside, I got a coffee and designed a banner to be shared on the social media sites I use now: Bluesky, Mastodon, and Minds. I would have liked to share it on Farcebook for my hundreds of followers to see, but by now, my account will have been deleted by the powers that be, so they won't get to see it there. This is my website, though, and I can share it here. I hope anyone who sees it likes it. If you like it,  let me know.

Live, love, laugh banner by Alan Morris.

As I sat producing the image, I could hear a group of people singing and clapping in the square or on the beach outside my apartment. I went to my balcony to see them, but they were all obscured by the trees in Plaza de Espejo, and I couldn't make them out. They didn't stay long, and when they finished one or two songs, the atmosphere quietened again. I did wonder if they were on their way to church.

I got myself a coffee, did the Wordle puzzle and then thought about breakfast. I thought about breakfast, but as soon as I sat down with my coffee, I started working on my Genealogy research and got carried away with it. With the help of someone else who contacted me overnight, I am convinced that I may have found a link to the Davies family of my great-great-grandmother Maria Davies. I didn't stop working until 2:30 pm, and then only for an hour while I cooked myself sausage and mash for my dinner. As soon as I had eaten, I got straight back to my research.

I started an entirely separate tree tracing the people that I believe are related to her. I will build it up over time, hopefully with the help of some newly discovered lost cousins in Wales. With any luck, we will be able to place my great-great-grandmother in this new tree, which will allow me to connect them to my main tree. I finally stopped and took a break at 6 pm. I rested for a couple of hours and then got ready to go out with my friends Pat and Sheila.

Pat called me at 8:30 to tell me they were outside. I went outside, got in the car, and the three of us drove towards Rio Nalon, parked nearby and went to Willys Cocktail Bar. I had never been there before, so it was new for me. Pat, Sheila and I got a table and ordered cocktails. I had a Spiced Mojito, it was lovely. We all sat talking about Sheila's time in New Zealand and the holidays that Pat has booked, as well as the ones that I would like to go on. Sheila told me I could visit her anytime in New Zealand, but I'm not sure how close to her and her husband, Bernard, I would be going or how much free time I would have, if any when I'm in New Zealand.

We sat talking till around 11:30 pm. Pat and I walked Sheila to her car, and then Pat and I went to his car, and he drove me back to my apartment. As I got out, I could hear the Flamenco show still playing loudly in the square outside my apartment. I went inside, turned on my air conditioning, and turned on the TV to watch until I cooled off enough to go to bed.

This week's exercise.

This is the exercise I managed this week.

Walking is measured by the steps taken.