A Glass Half Full Or Is It, an update on how my health has affected my life over the last few years. 21st of January 2014

Recently I read blogs by smallfry182 http://smallfry182.wordpress.com/author/smallfry182/ and her mother soxandcinders http://soxandcinders.wordpress.com/2014/01/18/i-was-once-normal-how-it-all-began, regarding their experiences with ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome,(I must apologise as I have not worked out how to post links yet) which have prompted me to post an article on here that I originally wrote back in 2006,(please see below) about how to cope with ME, based on my own experiences. After thinking about it I have now decided to provide an update of what has gone on since that time and how I am coping these days with the condition. Also how other health issues have impacted on my life in both positive and negative ways.

Back in 2006, I’d given up my job of 17 years and was working for a small charity part-time doing telephone advice on social and welfare issues, providing independent social work reports and acting as an advocate to a range of people through the organisation. I feel that my own history of health issues since the early 90s made it easier to assist people in the course of this work. Also at work I had gone through various assessments and provision of equipment to make it easier for me to carry out tasks, what is interesting when I look back is despite all of these assessments and equipment how often the experts got it wrong. I was supplied with a chair for work that I later discovered despite the fact is a cost of thousand pound it was not supporting my back correctly, the first set of computer equipment and voice recognition software never worked properly, it was only as I discovered more about my needs that I finally acquired the equipment that would help me best.

I had been treated by Raymond Perrin the osteopath since the year 2000 on a regular basis and my ME was much improved, many of the old symptoms disappeared, such as problems with perfumes, strong lighting, loud noise, also I was eating a more varied diet, unfortunately I started having problems due to arthritis of what I thought was sciatic pain. At some point in this period he referred me to the physio Gail Sumner, who also had ME, but who had managed to recover and now was treating people for the condition as well as for normal health issues. Because the sciatic pain did not cease my GP prescribed a drug called pregabalin, which seemed to ease the pain, unfortunately it seemed to dumb me down even more than the ME and I was constantly falling asleep, even at times whilst sat at the work computer. The GP referred me to physio at the local hospital, who put me through a four-week course for back problems then discharged me. Both the physio and osteopath were unhappy with this and felt I needed an MRI scan, I therefore paid for this privately after seeing a consultant also privately, he explained I had a condition called spinal stenosis as well as a prolapsed disc, that I should have been referred to him by the physiotherapist, so he was willing to treat me under NHS. He explained that he would try injections and if they did not work he could then operate on me to resolve the spinal stenosis He did injections that did not seem to work into the spine, on the second occasion these worked, but I was still having pain in my lower back he said this was to do with the disc but he was reluctant to operate on this because he could not guarantee the pain would disappear.

During this period I had realised that my marriage was not going on a path that I hope for, we were spending less and less time together and both of us were unhappy. Because it had worked in the past I decided to go for marriage counselling, my wife chose not to go down this path for whatever reason. One of the things that I took on board from the counsellor finally, was that the only person we can change is ourselves, for better or for worse, that by our making changes there was faint hope that the other person may also change but not to rely on this. I decided in the end for all sorts of reasons to move out of the family home, initially for a trial period of six months. I explained to my wife that this was no the person, that I felt the marriage was going nowhere and that may be having time away from each other would be helpful to both of us. Initially I went into lodgings which were not very successful. I actually found the quality of my life otherwise improved and in the end decided because my wife seem to be stuck in her lifestyle to seek a divorce. This was a painful experience for both of us I felt because we were both experiencing health problems. She stayed in the family home and I moved into a small council flat. My ME actually seemed better at this time, maybe because some of the stress had finally abated, but also because I was now seeing the physio Gail Sumner on a regular basis and she was also treating me for my arthritis which I had previously attributed the pain of to my ME.

It was during this period that I discovered a website called sagazone, it was for us over 50s to chat on, write blogs and share thoughts and feelings. I had never been into this sort of thing previously so was quite wary, I came across some quite unpleasant people early on, but through reassurance of other members of the site stuck with it, initially writing blogs as well as reading others, I came across this Scottish lady, who now lived in Holland who wrote under the name of honeycook, her blogs were a joy to read and we became cyber friends, as time went on I joined in various chat groups on the site and eventually even met up with some of the people, some who’ve become good friends. There was even a part of the site for those of us with ME and Fibromyalgia. I also got chatting to a lady in Hawaii of all places who also has ME and we have been in contact occasionally over the years.

I’ve actually found that this new cyber life opened all sorts of doors even when I feel not particularly well, that I can chat to people who are in a similar situation, where we can offer mutual support but also at times to meet in the real world, I have also met a range of people who don’t have health problems, where I can join in as and when I feel up to it but at other times resort to the websites such as Facebook to communicate with family and friends decreasing the social isolation. Sadly saga zone closed down, I was amazed how bereft so many people were at the loss, having said that new sites have been created and people fortunately had already often made contact outside the website already.

Around 2008 I was finding I was getting quite breathless but could not understand quite why, after extensive investigations it appears I had angina, I could not believe this is I have never had apart from one occasion any symptoms such as these headaches the people seem to suffer. When talking to my GP she explained because my exercise tolerance is so poor I was unlikely to ever do anything that would put my heart under that much pressure, not sure that says a lot about me. Eventually I had stents fitted to my main left artery, the problem was between my ME and arthritis I was unable to carry out the rehab programme so I have never been able to obtain a full recovery.

I am not sure quite what happened with my ME because the symptoms seem to of abated to a great degree and generally I do not now practice the exercises I used to do daily, instead I seem to have more and more exercises to help cope with my arthritis throughout my body, at present I am seeing to physio’s every 2 to 3 weeks privately, which fortunately I can afford because part of the cost is reimbursed through a scheme I belong to. When discussing with the physio about this I did ask where would I be now without the treatment, in her opinion my body would be much more locked up with much less movement and either more pain or increasing doses of painkillers, so I think I will continue with this treatment. What I struggle with is why I find it difficult to commit myself to the level of exercise that I know would improve me. At one time I saw someone who taught the Alexandra technique, everything he said about posture etc all made sense, I was seeing him weekly and paying for the privilege, why then did I choose not to go with his recommendations, I don’t know if it’s an ME thing or some other reason, but there does seem to be a consistency in this.

I finally gave up work in 2009, based on the orthopaedic surgeons recommendation, that sitting at the desk and using the computer was not helping my spine, because I had been placed on incapacity benefit for life back in the 1990s, despite the fact I had chosen to continue working, so was unable to receive this. My presumption was I would quickly be assessed then receive benefit to make up for my lack of wage. Sadly my timing was poor, a new benefit had been brought out called employment support allowance, with much stricter rules and poor assessment criteria. I will make a very long story short (quite unusual for me) and say eventually after lots of hard work I finally was paid the benefit until it reached retirement age. I do feel for those who are not used to the benefit system the endless paperwork and the poor decision-making that is taken causing much distress to many people who should qualify. It’s quite interesting that at a time when more and more people are struggling to claim money from the state that they are entitled to, that the funding to many organisations who would have provided help and advice has been cut so drastically and that now there seems to be an agenda in this country, that benefit claimants are fraudsters and should be sent out to work whatever their situation, let’s hope one day common sense will once again prevail. Most of the people I know who are ill would love to return to work but unable to do.

When I retired I continued to work with a number of clients who was still on my caseload until their are issues were finally resolved, it helped me in the transition and I was supported by my previous employer. At the same time I started to look for other things to do, and started to have more holiday breaks in pleasant surroundings where I could indulge my interest in photography and travel as well as working with the local shop mobility scheme. During this period in 2010 I started with another health problem, this was to do with kidney stones although I was not aware of this at the time, on the first occasion I experienced pain the like of which I had never had in my life, which resulted in me having a series of short stays in hospital over a number of weeks. Fortunately this eventually abated but resulted in further investigation by urologists, three years later I ended up having an operation on my prostate. I had felt that this was going to be an extremely painful ongoing issue, but amazingly I suffered no pain, apart from whilst in hospital when there was a blockage on a number of occasions finally all this calm down and I was discharged from the Ward. Unfortunately whilst I was on the Ward the man in the next bed who was elderly and had some form of dementia, had many problems mostly down to a lack of attention by the nursing staff, although I should have made a complaint whilst on the Ward I left it until after discharge, I do hope that by doing this it will have helped other people to receive a service.

I had been a member of the local ME/CFS group since the mid-1990s but had had a break for a number of years as I found it difficult to hold down a job and attend meetings. When I retired I started again attending and because there have been changes in the group decided to play a more active role, one of the difficulties about our sort of group is that there are few people who have the energy to carry out the tasks that make it successful. Fortunately over the years despite that much good work has been achieved, I decided that it was time that I gave something back to the organisation sort now have taken on more responsibility through the committee. I am not sure where this will lead yet, but is good in that it helps keep me motivated and involved in supporting others with the condition.

Three years ago I came across a former client who wanted advice from me about his mother and the fact she had been placed in care. I became involved thinking this would be quickly resolved, nearly 3 years on a decision was finally made by a court that she should stay in care, I have supported the young man as his advocate over this period, attending all meetings with him, solicitors and court hearings. There has also been issues regarding the funding of the placement, unfortunately this is still not been resolved fairly as far as we can see, so I am battling on with this element. What I had not realised was how much of a toll this would all take of me, part of me says it’s time to finish it and get on with my life, because the son has little involvement these days, but bloody mindedness says I should fight it through to the conclusion, at least for the benefit of other people in the future.

I find it harder these days to deal with tasks both physically and mentally, it is made even worse because I had always been independent and sorted out many things myself, whereas now things such as decorating I need others to do for me, but do struggle with the fact it is so hard to find a good reliable person to carry these tasks out however much they charge. I find things such as the TV and the recorder much harder to cope with, particularly when if I fast forward on occasions, the sound is lost for no apparent reason on the TV and there is no quick fix. I find the ever-changing things such as email on my computer harder to cope with, and this voice recognition I am using, due to poor short-term memory, that however clever it is, not being able to use it in the sophisticated manner it’s possible to do, quite frustrating, is it down to the ME, is it I am getting older and falling behind in technology or is it all part of life.

Despite all the above, I do feel my life is not so bad, in the last 12 months I have had a range of good holidays as you can see from my previous blogs and at present I am planning another two this year, my health is much better than some others and I have enough food and warmth at home, plus a range of friends and acquaintances to keep me occupied. More recently I have joined a new organization U3A and enjoy the mixture of people and experiences there, I have even joined their newly created photography group which is opening new experiences for me.

Therefore, where would I be if I had not had the ME, I just do not know, would I have been more successful, would I still been married, with my quality of life been even better, I’ve chosen in life not to look at these issues. Because what would I achieve, I have made mistakes along the way and presume I will continue to do so, at present life is not so bad. Let’s hope it continues to be so.

Thanks for taking the time to read this blog.

A Beginners Guide To ME 21 January 2013

This was originally written back in 2006,but updated with the help of Caroline Higson recently

I have read other peoples comments elsewhere & hope that my thoughts may help some who are new to the condition, having had ME for about 20 years & actually finding I have improved over the years, but am not fully recovered. I hope the information listed may help others along this difficult path.

Firstly try to find a sympathetic GP who has some interest & or insight into ME, I have learnt along with my GP over the years things that can be useful for me, the largest is that she is willing to listen and not write me off, remember you can change GPs if they are not helping, also it is possible to complain about poor service from them.

Accept that your life is going to change, often drastically, but that
ME will not kill you in itself.

Explore if you have other co-existing conditions that are treatable, I discovered as others have, that there are other health issues that could affect how ill we are and the pain and distress we deal with. I have arthritis of the neck & spine as well as RSI in my right hand & arm. Certain exercise & massage help to relieve the pain to do with the arthritis; the RSI I feel is made worse by using the computer so much. So please do think about the time you spend sat at a computer.

The new answer is technology & voice recognition. What a relief it was to find there
were other answers. Therefore this takes away some of the stress & pain that I related
inappropriately to ME, I struggle with remembering the more complex things it can do, but once set up it makes the task of writing so much easier. I use Dragon Naturally Speaking

Try to find some way to develop a more positive attitude, mine was to laugh at myself & the stupid things that I did & do even now, rather than withdraw even more, leading into greater unhappiness. Never forget that you are still a part of society and you still have a whole range of knowledge skill and experience to offer.

Be open with people about the condition & the effects it has on me, such as the fact that I need frequent breaks to rest & sleep even in my own home when we have visitors & that sometimes I cannot come out to play however much I want to. But also to allow me to decide as and when I want to test or ignore the boundaries.

To try to accept I cannot live life in the way I once did, setting myself impossible targets that others would never of expected in the first place of me.

To accept I have a disability, but then to obtain help to cope from all sorts of sources such as

Obtain a Blue Badge

Apply for a concessionary bus pass or taxi vouchers

Explore Shopmobility schemes

If employed apply to Access to Work for assistance as soon as possible, either directly or through your employer, even if self employed help is available

Claim PIP, Attendance Allowance & any other
benefits, but ideally let a professional assist with the filling in
of the form & the gathering of information to support the claim, but look at the Benefits and Work Guides

Ask for a Community Care assessment from social services, because you
are disabled & a Carers assessment for anyone who provides care to
you ( don't tell them initially what help you need that's their job &
you are entitled to the assessment by law).

Ask for an assessment by an occupational therapist or contact
Disabled Living Service in Manchester or the local branch where you live,to see what help is available in practical terms, such as bottle openers, chairs, bath aids ( don't
go out & spend lots of money when you may be entitled to these free
of charge)

Check out with others what sorts of treatments seem to work, beware
of expensive ones that nobody seems to improve from, or nobody else
has heard of. Personally I have been receiving treatment from Dr Raymond Perrin and Gail Sumner for some years and it has worked for me, but thats only my experiance

The biggy is try to PACE yourself & set realistic limits on what you
can do, yes you will have good days & sometimes get away with over
exertion, but if you have a relapse through bloody mindedness how
does that help how you feel ( boy do I know this one)

I found that a support network of people who I could ring & chat to even if I could not get out helped with the isolation, but also who would ring me made me feel valued.

Remember that you are still a person in your own right & not a victim, & are entitled to opinions & views about your life & society as well as the things that are important to you, despite the fact sometimes stringing a couple of sentences together may be difficult to do

I was reminded the other week that most of us did have a career & life before ME and some still do so we still have things to offer to our friends family work & society, although we have to sometimes pick when & where.

Obviously these are only some of my thoughts & may not be appropriate for others or maybe will provoke discussion, but at the same time I hope may ring a bell & help some along the path of coping with ME.

Guess what my back is now aching so will close but be interested in people’s comments.

Thanks For Following My Blog

Hi Folks just wanted to say thanks for tasking the time to read the blog about the trip to Spain, I have now split it up and added photos in case you wish to have a quick look through, hopefully your interest will spur me on to greater heights in the new year, please feel free to have a look at past ones also I am trying to sort them out to make them more easy to look at

2 January Our Last Day And A Walk Round The Port

Woke up early, but Zorro had already left, he had texted from the airport to say all had gone well with his trip to the airport apart from his case nearly getting squashed in the lift. No sign of Brian so had breakfast and did some cleaning in the kitchen, this was when I discovered my charger for the tablet was missing, I searched everywhere I could think of in my bedroom and the main room with no success, I had a special battery pack that was supposed to provide a charge in emergency, the only problem was it did not seem to be working the only time I needed it. I e mailed Zorro just in case he had picked it up by mistake. Then got on with some packing.

Brian got up had breakfast and we did some sorting out and cleaning in the flat, then decided to have a good walk down to the port before returning to the flat for the last time. We had a mixture of food left so decided we would use this up if possible at lunchtime, unfortunately my cold was taking more effect as the morning went on so I was not feeling that well but did not want to spend the last day inside.

So off we went, unfortunately the weather was cool and overcast, the streets were quieter today as we walked, and there was the odd drop of rain. The port had looked very impressive yesterday from up the hill but not so this morning, maybe it was all the clouds, there were plenty of small boats at the marina but no sign of life on them, the ferry was loading lots trailers on, there was an attractive roof which created an effect of waves, when we reached near the end of the harbour Brian noticed the sea was clear enough to see fish by the harbour wall, from small to at least three foot long in a range of colours,

We had planned on stopping for a drink or snack but suddenly there was the odd drop of rain, the area was very open and I had nothing to protect me from the weather so we decided to walk back, there rain never started although it did get cooler, when we got to the front door we struggled with opening the front door, eventually we managed, at least it was to be the final time we would have to do this.

For lunch I put together an unusual combination of food based on what we had left, which comprised of an omelette, accompanied by sardines and tomatoes with a banana and apple to follow, we finished off cleaning up the flat I went and had a bath to help with my cold then went to bed after searching again for the charger, we had heard back from Zorro to say all had gone well on his trip to the airport and he was relaxing in the lounge.

Brian rested until I got up, we discussed the holiday and things that had happened, felt that I had learnt some things about what I wanted from holidays but part of this was different to the others, From my understanding Brian preferred a more leisurely approach, whereas I wanted to see as much as possible in the time we had. We talked about the fact they wanted to talk about the Spanish language watch TV particularly the news and discuss this and also the culture of the country. I said my holidays were a mixture of wanting to see different places and record what I saw to look back on in the future. I did say I had surprised at how often we had spent eating pizza rather than native food, maybe some of that was down to being in a self catering accommodation.

We finished all our packing and waited for the arrival of the owners daughter, unfortunately she had not arrived at 5 as promised so rang brother who said she would be with us shortly, she came we presumed she would want to inspect the property, but just returned our deposit, we then left, only to remember after we had left some food in the kitchen but it was to late to do anything about it, we walked to the station, bought tickets for the last time and boarded the train.

At the airport it was a fair walk to the check in Brian mentioned how long we had to wait, we found the counter for the baggage drop, but there seemed to be only one desk for two flights, so it took quite time before we reached the front, I do wonder what it is that takes some do long to sort out, we decided to find somewhere to have a snack, unfortunately we discovered that the only place was Burger King which wad quite ironic after the discussions we had had about using fast food places. I joined the queue, but there seemed to be an issue about payment by the people at the front of the queue, time wad passing, also one counter closed so again there was a delay before we were served, finally we had our Whopper meal. When we finished I checked and it was time to proceed to the boarding gate.

When we got there it looked like we were at the end of the queue, but at least it was moving forward, Ryanair had recently announced that passengers could now bring an extra small bag on board, this was interesting because when we reached the boarding gate others before us and myself were told at the last minute that our hand luggage wad to go in the hold so we needed to remove any valuables from it, well I had all my papers money and large camera, luckily I had carrier bags but the indignity of having to sort it out did not help. I will be writing into complain, both to them and Travel Which on my return, what was odder wad that they did not bother with Brian.

The plane was full but we found aisle seats which are better for me and settled in for the flight. This was uneventful until shortly before we landed when the plane was buffeted by the high winds, but we landed and proceeded to collect our luggage, the only issue was that the screens were not working do we did not know where to expect our luggage, a little later it finally arrived and we went to seek out our taxi. There he was waiting so off we set, there was a pleasant surprise in that Kate our friend who is his neighbour had kindly given him two lots of bread rolls and milk for us, what a lovely person, first Brian was dropped off then myself.
It was now gone midnight we had left the flat 6 hours ago, I was not tired so decided to sort out my case and letters, my cold was much worse by now, I did not sleep well despite painkillers, the next morning back to reality, sorted out washing and other tasks, but also a lot of the day in bed, the weather is cold wet and miserable, a long way from that left behind. I sadly being addicted to Emmerdale and Corrie have been trying to watch this whilst falling asleep in the chair, hopefully I will soon be over this cold and back to normal.

1 January 2014 A Trip Up To The Castle

Well readers thats the end of 2013 a very mixed year with a very long different ending to that which I expected, but back to the plot and the latest episode of our trip to Malaga. When I eventually awoke nothing was different, Zorro was sat at his computer Brian in bed, so made my breakfast and discussed plans for today and tomorrow, because he leaves early tomorrow morning for a month in Tenerife. He said he had things he wanted to do today, so would not be joining us when we went out. Heard a noise outside, it was a small group of young people making their way home, they must of been to somewhere formal and the men were dressed in dinner suits but by the look of them still recovering from the night before. Checked Brian ok and eventually he appeared had breakfast, he was still not right with his cold or virus, but wanted to go out.

I was going to charge my mobile phone but the charger has disappeared despite looking everywhere it seems to of gone, so was unable to chance texting or phoning people to wish them a happy new year, because I felt it best to conserve the battery for emergencies, but where is it I have used it whilst on holiday, lets hope it turns up bego5re I go home or I will have to buy a replacement, maybe I can order one online when finished tonight so I will not be stuck
We decided to see if we could find the path up to the castle as it would give very good views and photo opportunities, so off we set. I noticed that the streets had all been cleaned quite different to back home also that the rubbish was being collected from the bins, so different to back home on a bank holiday.

It seemed a long walk to get there but it was a warm pleasant day. eventually we reached the path and started to climb, Brian mentioned that the last time we were here I was reluctant to try the trip up, I did say since then I had had a stent to help with breathing but also this morning a strong painkiller to help with my back pain. He was struggling but I think it was down to the infection he had, so we had frequent rests on the way up but also took plenty of photos on the way.
The views were great at each place we stopped and there were plentiful viewing areas and seats to rest, plus a mixture of people from different countries, we could see the port, the bullring and the bays we had walked along on previous days.

Eventually we reached the top and castle, after discussion we decided to go in, one if the joys of being pensioners was that we paid a much lower price. I forgot to say earlier I had realised very unusually for me I had forgotten my water bottle but was needing a drink with the heat, there was no facility to buy on site, the only water was a dribbling water fountain, today they would of made a lot of money selling soft drinks. We again took lots of photos before deciding to go back, my suggestion was to take the bus but Brian wanted to walk, we reached a compromise and went down the road rather than the path back to the main road.

We then set off towards the botanical gardens, we found a small supermarket and Brian kindly bought me a bottle of water and a Magnum ice cream, so I could take a further pain killer, to help me on the walk back to the flat. We came across 2 sets of cyclists, as at home they were totally oblivious to pedestrians although I felt it wad not an area they should be riding particularly in such large groups.

Eventually we reached the flat I had a sandwich, then a bath as I was exhausted and went to bed for a rest, when I woke Zorro was doing e mail I think whilst Brian cooked us a pleasant stew to use up some of the food we had left then I did another omelette for Brian and I Zorro settled for salmon sandwiches instead. After we say for a while the others watched TV whilst I caught up with things on the Internet. Shortly after Zorro said good night and good bye as he will be leaving before we get up in the morning. Then Brian said he was having an early night also leaving me on my own yet again, never mind, had a couple of e mails from Andy to day he is following my Blog, do that makes at least one reader LOL.

So here I am sat in the living area at the tablet, tonight listening to Nat King Cole as I one figured type this, its coming up to 11 here and there is nothing I can make sense of on the TV so I think shortly I will have an early night, as usual readers thanks for taking the time to read the story.

I must apologise readers for the delay in posting the end of the story, this is down to the fact that somehow I managed to mislay my charger for the tablet, I searched everywhere for it on the last day and again when I got home, plus my friends have checked they did not pick it up, also I did not have a spare charger or connection cable. Also I had acquired a full blown cold possibly the one Brian had and am finally feeling up to the task of writing up the end in the early hours of Sunday morning.

31 December 2013 New Years Eve A Different Beach To Explore

I will start at the end for a change today as its new years eve, I do realise when I am typing this its still not midnight back home, but here its 29 minutes past and I am sat here all on my own, bangers keep going off outside, the good news is that although its a quiet area there are two police cars outside a little down the street.
My two friends retired to bed earlier, I am not into Spanish TV and all my friends seem to of disappeared from the various websites. I would of gone out to see what the crowds are up to but we are still having issues with the lock on the outside door, so here I am sat at the table, at least its warm in here and I am listening to Burt Bacharach as I type.

Earlier I rang my friend Anne back in UK for a chat,(its times like these I really appreciate mobile phones) update and a bit of company, she unlike me wanted to be on her own over the holiday period, we talked about back in the 70s when we first knew each other and rang each other to cope with being on our own and how different it would be one day in the future, well here we both are 40 years on both on our own with nobody for company, well not quite true I suppose she has sleeping cats and I have sleeping friends LOL, where did I go wrong, or maybe this is as good as it gets, at least I am warm and health is not to bad, apart from the pain killers for my bad back

Back to the plot Zorro and I had a lie in no sign of Brian when we got up, had breakfast then checked at 10 he was ok, which resulted in him getting up, we decided to walk down to the port and have a walk along the front, since I was last here they have extended the port do was a longer distance before we reached the promenade.
I walked a little by the sea, it was so quiet without the traffic noise, eventually we came to an area for us oldies to exercise,

I should of used tablet to take photos of us children playing instead you will have to wait until I return home readers. Near to there was a very large high chimney, with an even larger one in the distance, we later learnt these were all that was left of a factory, the larger one had a device for measuring time inside.

The others felt they had walked long enough, plus they resisted my suggestion of a trip to the nearby Burger King for a Gigantic Whopper so we wandered down the backstreets seeking somewhere for a sandwich. By good luck we came across a small cafe that seemed to fit the bill, the young lady waitress spoke no English so between my sign language and Zorros Spanish we enjoyed drinks and sandwiches. From there I suggested we find somewhere that do cakes to finish off and or an ice-cream.

Zorro led us to the main supermarket where we stocked up with more food for tonight and possibly the rest of our stay, unfortunately we did not find cakes or ice-cream unless we bought a number. As we walked along we noticed a number of people lay down by one of the offices, Zorro mentioned the fact that none seemed to have alcohol, rather water milk or juice we carried on and eventually found a place, we each chose a different one, again there was a strange group of people near one of the churches, going by the mixture and clothing we wondered if they were waiting for some sort of food or other hand out, a sad sign of the times, as we were now tired we went back to the flat, I had a bath then a sleep, whilst the others did tasks on their computers. When I got up I assisted Brian with preparing the meal, which turned out a great success followed by our cream cakes, we then relaxed for a while before as already said they went to bed.

Its now 1.30 and bangers are going off still, its odd there seem to be no pretty fireworks lighting up the sky, I am not sure if we are over the worst or it will get noisier, so going to have a quick look at other sites before I try to sleep

I hope you are enjoying the read and I wish you all
A Happy New Year

30 December 2013 Our Trip To Alora

It was a bad nights sleep last night maybe due to having a late evening meal and a drink of coffee, had some strange dreams, isn't it odd readers how they are so vivid at the time but then so quickly forgotten when we wake and where do they come from.

Well I had better get back to the plot as I read elsewhere my readership may grow a little in the next day or two thanks to the interest of Misty and others on the Senior Friends website.

So I got up fairly early had breakfast, I am not sure if we are getting used to the temperature here as it did not seem that warm, although I am aware its in the 15s, whilst back home you are all suffering with the bad weather, but we put the heating on, oops all was ok until we put the hob and toaster on and the circuit breaker cut out plunging us into darkness, luckily Brian quickly sorted it out, no sign of Zorro yet so we continued with breakfast
Eventually he appeared, we discussed plans for the day and they decided to go shopping whilst I had a shower, then the plan was to go to a little village we had noticed(senior moment will have to name later )Alora which was in a picturesque setting and had a market, so off to the station, now we have the hang of obtaining tickets from machine so waited, train was on time and we had a pleasant trip there.

At the station there was a small bus that took us into the centre, which was just as well going by the winding roads and distance there. We went looking for the market down the narrow steep roads( hopefully when I return home I will put photos on which will show places better) the traffic did not seem interested generally that they nearly ran us over, unfortunately we never found the market but found a small square with the museum and tourist office which were both closed, whilst the others rested I went exploring up a step path finding views across the valley, people who live there must be very fit to cope with the incline and steps.

Next we tried another route that was further along the top of hill, down in the valley was a single horse and goat, I did mention that there was a path down to the rail line, I think the others thought I was serious but in reality you would need the ability of the goat to of coped, there was an old church here slowly being renovated, Zorro and I started back down the slope, whilst Brian stayed to take photos, when we reached the bottom I had a look a bar for drinks but going by the expressions of the old men thought better of it. Instead we went into a small shop and Zorro kindly bought me a drink and some local biscuits, we then sat and patiently waited until Brian joined us, watched by some of the locals.

We then retraced our steps back to the square where the bus had dropped us off, seemed we had a while to wait so had a drink and yet another pizza each, the bus came and went whilst waiting, I had a look at the timetable and said, not to worry there would be another in 30 minutes, when Brian looked I was wrong it was another hour, but we were not in a rush. Eventually it arrived and quickly we were back the train was waiting so we boarded and off we set, I slept most of the journey.

I forgot to say earlier Brian had been starting a cold over the last day or so, I am hoping its the same type as I had a few weeks ago ad could do without yet another, so he was tired and wanted to return to the flat which we did, I went to bed for an hour or do after catching up with FB and e mail, when I got up Zorro was on his computer with no sign of Brian, we decided to leave him to sleep, when I came to bed he had not appeared, hopefully he will be better in the morning.

We discussed what to eat, Zorro decided he only wanted sardines bread and fruit and I decided on eggs and tomatoes yet again but fried this time and to try one of Brian’s persimmons, unfortunately the non stick pan was not so not the most attractive meal I have ever eaten but at least it filled the gap, after Zorro continued with computer as did I for a while, then we chatted until he went to bed and I read the English version of the local paper, I was quite surprised how much the people from other countries put into the area financially and how many have homes here and that its only now that it is being recognised and local government and businesses are at long last doing more to encourage them.

Well as I said I am in bed typing, waiting for our nightly rubbish collection, wonder if I will miss it when I am back home, maybe I should record it to help , me sleep LOL, have put music on random so nice to hear some of my music I had forgotten about

29 December 2013 Another Wander Round The Sights Of Malaga

Got up late this morning, yet again air con man did not arrive, others still not up so first task breakfast, eventually they appeared, suggested that maybe Brian should be accommodated so asked what he wanted to do, seemed he wished an easy day, so relaxed in the morning, apart for brief trip by the other two to supermarket next door, decision eventually was to go out for walk possibly have sandwich for lunch, then meal later, many families yet again out today, more shops open than would of thought.

Seemed to be a problem finding place to eat so continued walking, had a look at cathedral heard woman’s voice singing wad not sure of location, eventually discovered was elderly lady near cathedral, she had a beautiful voice, shame we did not stop to listen, had a look round inside cathedral seems took over 2 centuries to build(sounds like typical British builders) then went to site of ancient ruins, wandered round, took photos, seemed very popular, the others decided to have a closer look, before that listened briefly to man playing his harp, whilst waiting people watched, back hurting so went for walk to ease it, noticed pleasant walk up hill so may go back and explore another day.
When others appeared carried on looking for elusive cafe in the end decision was to go to usual cafe, on arrival owner not there but pleasant young woman, seemed uncertain if would be open in the evening so pizza it was again with idea that we have something light in the evening
.

I mentioned whilst waiting for meal how in my marriage, often we would find a good restaurant, shop etc that seamed to tick all the boxes but so often, then for reasons I have never figured, we then had to explore everywhere else in case, but then ended up back at first place, in terms of food it usually meant I was famished when finally resolved and that this was part of why these days often it is easier for me to go to fast food places such as McDonald's, as I know what they sell, its consistent and quick, obviously its a personal point of view and for some the search is part of the task.

I also mentioned that I had realised the difference in the three of us when on holiday, which i had never thought of in the past in that Zorro and Brian loved to soak up the whole culture, including the language and buildings, whereas, I personally, preferred to people watch and often see places more as a photography opportunity, not that either was wrong just different, maybe when planning my holidays in the future it is something to consider regarding priorities
The young woman made the pizzas much quicker but just as enjoyable to eat. After the meal we made our way back to the apartment, I went for a lie down and a painkiller, it wad over 2 hours before I woke, Zorro was watching a film on his computer, Brian was watching TV, we chatted for some time on a range of topics, was still feeling dopey from the effect of medication and for time after. Later decided we would have a sandwich to eat as was getting late in the day, Zorro, spent the evenin

g watching movies, whilst chatting I caught up with e mail etc, seems from Facebook grand daughter had broken down in her car but eventually rescued, must check tomorrow what happened, also noticed younger one seeking a flat for herself in the new year, its amazing how I know more about their life through it than have ever known previously.
Brian eventually went to bed and Zorro quickly followed, I was going to stay up but back started aching again, so here I am listening first to Anita Harris, singing one of my favourite but with a reminder of a time in my life when I was saddest the song Sam, which still has an effect 40 years on, then Barbra Streisand with quite a different mixture of songs. Well so far have not heard the bin men not sure if have not heard due to music or have yet to have the pleasure, oh dear spoke to soon, they have just arrived, oh dear, so will find more lively music to drown them out so maybe a good time to finish the blog, goodnight readers.

28 December 2013 Trip To Seville

Early start, this morning, man should of turned up before 9 30 to solve air con, still waiting. By the way as I type here, it is nearly midnight and the dustbin wagon is outside, just as well not asleep, I am listening to Barbra Streisand on headphones , others had an early night, I have been chatting with son on skype and catching up with e mail.
Back to the plot, we had breakfast then off on trip to Seville, first Brian went for bread and Zorro and I for cheese, mistake was ask them to slice, unfortunately he did it in nice little triangles which took forever, eventually sorted then off to station
.

We had reserved seats, Brian got chatting to man in next seat, Zorro and I got into reminisce, then had a read then I nodded off. On arrival noticed McDonald's so we had a coffee(first time have seen separate coffee bar in their places) and our rolls, then on the bus to town. It was very busy and the city was packed.
I wanted to take photos of cathedral and palace, after discussion I went off on own, went up to river and then pleasant walk alongside, got lost, then back on track, lots of tourists at cathedral, walked back to town, the others were already in bus queue, eventually it came was not sure really if it was safe for the number of people crammed on, but seemed to take for ever to get to station, was just enough time to get drink before boarding train.

Was tired now so had read of e book for little while then sleep, (am finding some of Andersons stories quite a heavy read), then read a little more then chat with Brian until we reached destination, back to flat in case man came, we decided to stay in and I made yet another omelette for us all, which seemed to be ok for the others, it would of worked better if I had sorted the grill out quicker.
Well thats the end of another busy day, it seems that we are having an easy day tomorrow or today as I now realise looking at the time, hope you are not to bored with reading the blog.

27 December Today The Beach

Had lie in, man did not come so we got ready for trip out, went to hotel to look into meal to celebrate trip, then, Hans Christian Anderson statue to get better photos, then on the bus to beach.

I was going to walk on gentle sand as advised by physio, other two sat relaxing found not much sand lots of pebbles, oh forgot had drink, place gave free cake to others with their coffee, crisps to me with my coke, my walk was brief but took photos instead, was very warm, wished had brought hat for protection, had walk then bus back to town.

Off to new favourite cafe for drink sandwich, I felt tired so after back to flat, went to bed as did Zorro, Brian went of on walk round town, man did not arrive, later Brian noticed fridge and freezer not working, man had still not arrived.
Tried to contact son on Skype with no success, managed to speak to grand daughter so said would contact on return from meal, was only Zorro and self, Brian had decided to stay, had another typical Spanish dish spaghetti bolognaise followed by apple cake, pleasant conversation with Zorro, returned to flat, had noticed that it was mainly family groups out, quiet and well behaved. Only noticed this evening that we had a sex shop next door hope Brian has not taken any photos or thats my reputation gone lol

Seems man came with heater and solved issue with fridge whilst out, just as well as it was turning cold out, checked information about Seville for tomorrow and weather, caught up with e mails and websites, the other two decided to go to bed, tried again contact son, no success, so went on fb again to grand daughter, had chat with her decided to leave skype until tomorrow evening, so now in bed listening to relaxing music whilst writing this up, isn’t technology great at its best

26 December 2013 Our Trip To Torrablanca

Hello folks well today has been quite different, I slept in after a bad nights sleep, back was playing up, others were up and ready, had breakfast then trip to station to buy oldies card to get discount on trains, plus booked trip to Seville on Saturday(later learnt is only day this week will rain)

Then off to Torrablanca by train, had a walk up to the hill where there is Black Bull on top then back down for rest and a drink, temperature was 18 so to warm given the amount of clothes we had one but locals dressed for winter, not sure why he was hangin g from a window he had a familiar red suit on I have seen somewhere else,

got bus to Fuengirola then went for a meal, after went do some shopping, then train back.


I forgot to mention earlier that the air con failed this morning, on return still would not work so called owners son, I went to bed for a sleep, he arrived some time later he could not solve it, luckily place was warm and he said would sort out later, so we changed our plans for the evening meal so could be back early.

Went to McDonald's for quick easy meal as was dark took plenty of photos of lights, plus could not believe how busy malaga was with lots of families out celebrating, I had a CBO and fries, the place was packed with families and very noisy so we were soon out

Returned to apartment settled down discussed plans for tomorrow, man never turned up, so hope arrives tomorrow just in case. Watched some TV had chats on range of subjects, Zorro went to bed an Brian also shortly after, I caught up with e mails and Facebook so just finishing this off before going to bed myself. I have started reading Hans Christian Anderson's fairy stories believe it or not they make good reading from an adult point of view

Christmas Day 25 December 2013

Did not get up until late, seems Brian had been up for some hours catching up with things on the Internet, it was raining quite hard outside seems Spanish people get as drunk as us British, going by the noise and behaviour he had noticed, had some breakfast, Zorro had got up also by now.
Chatted about plans for next few days and possible trips out, including visit to Porto Banus to see how the other half live, also to TorroBlanca where the advert with black bull stands on a hill overlooking the surrounding countryside giving stunning views

Rang son and family to wish happy Christmas also sent texts and e mails to friends checked Facebook and chatted to friends, at present there are very pleasant smells coming from the kitchen which bods well for our dinner later
Had a look at photos from last night, some are ok others at strange angles, at least I know its not down to, to much alcohol LOL, spent more time just chatting about life, eventually Brian served us a delicious meal, he also had washed most of the pots as well, but Zorro kindly did the rest, afterwards, had a look on TV, was surprised there were no English programmes at all, but lots and lots of Spanish, which were of interest to the other two but not me.
Did establish that weather will be better tomorrow so the plan is to get up 8ish have breakfast get ready then off to the station to find out about the services and possibly travel to TorraBlanca, a meal then make our way to Fuengirola or back to Malaga, do some shopping then back again to apartment

Spent the evening chatting about a range of subjects, including travels we had taken, Brian was tired after all the hard work and a long day so went off to bed, we continued chatting until late, tried to ring son on Skype with no success, will try again tomorrow, came to bedroom checked e mail and Facebook, whilst listening to music, shortly will have a read then off to sleep.
I must apologise readers that today has been so quiet and uneventful hopefully tomorrow I will have much more interesting tales to tell.

24 December Christmas Eve Exploring Malaga

For some reason had a very good sleep last night, so did not get up to early, others still fast asleep, so decided to have a relaxing bath did this rinsed some clothes through, by then Zorro awake so had breakfast, no sign of Brian for some time. Later discussed plans for day, decided we would go buy some more food and Brian would do Christmas lunch tomorrow.

So off to the shops, was much longer walk than thought, after lots of confusion I think we finally found all the ingredients we needed, not sure quite why but Brian seemed worried that we needed more water, we had agreed that we would buy from local supermarket rather than carry from across town, seemed an even longer walk back, got 2 lots of water so should be ok

After unpacking we had something light to eat, discussed plans for evening meal and decided we would return to cafe from last night.
Oh I forgot to say lock on door behaved itself but son of owner came with spare key which seemed better, I told others was tired so went to bed for a couple of hours, when got up the others were practising their computer skills, we chatted until went out.

It was quite dark so could see the Christmas lights which were pleasant so we spent time taking photos as we walked, all was well until Brian informed us we were lost, retraced our steps, only to find cafe as so many others was closed, owners son had mentioned that they owned a bar so we walked along to there hoping to find somewhere to eat, but without success. Reached bar but was packed out so decided we would try for Burger King on the main street.

Just before this we came across a statue of Hans Christian Anderson so posed for photos, then Zorro noticed, a McDonald's so we went to go in, sob, sob, they had just closed as had Burger King so we decided to return and make a meal back at the apartment.

I volunteered to do us an omelette so back we went.
Well theres nothing worse than when in a strange kitchen having a helpful person such as Brian, so banned him, eventually I worked out how to get everything working and found pans etc, outcome seemed to be suitable for the others but could just of them not wanting to upset me.

After we chatted until gone midnight, then off to bed for me to catch up with blog and e mails and wish friends a happy Christmas, bearing in mind they are an hour behind us here, listened to some music whilst typing
Well readers I suppose this is a good time to wish you all a happy Christmas and that you receive all you are hoping for when you wake in the morning

23 December We Start Our Adventure and Fly To Spain

Well last night I finally sorted out my case, its so hard when you are unsure of where you are staying or what the weather will be like, medication and adaptors packed as well as the scales, got some sleep then was time to get up have breakfast a shower and do all those last tasks.

Taxi arrived on time Brian was also ready so off to the airport, at 3.45 the roads were clear so we made good progress at airport no problems with check in or security, went to get our meal deals but they were sold out, eventually they arrived so bought one Brian had found something already. Soon was time to board the plane, we were on separate sides of the plane in window seats, had a read then nodded off for a while. Had sandwich etc then further sleep, eventually woke and looked at the mountains and valleys, they seemed so small from where we were.

Eventually landed, noticed man on aisle seat had rings made of sovereigns plus a couple of very thick gold chains on his wrist, most probably worth more than our holiday cost.No trouble getting through airport, not sure why but only a few with hold baggage, so off to meet Zorro who was waiting for us, on to the train to the centre and our apartment, it was lucky he knew his way through the back streets. First problem was when we got to the front door the key would not work whatever we did, luckily someone else was going out so let us in.

The apartment was spacious but cold, also it was as if nobody had been in for some time, we managed to find how to work most things, we were going to go shopping, but Zorro said we had to meet owners son to sort out payment and him have sight of our passports, we passed the time making a shopping list and getting the heating working.
Son duly arrived sorted out money etc, mentioned key to front door he was unable to do any better than us, we decided after discussion to do some food shopping then maybe go for a meal after, so emptied our small cases so we could use to transport food. Went on market first for vegetables, then found small local supermarket and bought most things we needed, returned to apartment to have more issues with door, in the end pressed other residents buzzer, unpacked shopping then off to find a meal.

We did not do very well with search for food and it was obvious Brian was getting very tired, fortunately in the end we found a small cafe and had a very enjoyable pizza each, afterwards we returned to the apartment, guess what stuck outside again, someone opened the door just as a young woman was coming in, she summoned someone to sort out the lock, he spent some time explaining to Zorro how to do it, we will see tomorrow, if it helps.
Brian went to bed whilst Zorro and I chatted till late about life, eventually we decided to call it a day, so here I am catching up at the end of a very busy day with the blog and listening to Mantovani, I wonder what new adventure tomorrow will bring.