Wednesday 7th March 2018

Sometimes, this flu/cold has felt like I am looking down a long tunnel, with no light in sight. I must stress, that today, Thursday, things are looking better, but it has been a long haul.

Wednesday was more of the same, meetings, mails, documents, all all whilst feeling like shit.

Outside it looks and feels like spring again, plants continue to recover from the cold snap, birds are hungrier than ever as the countryside has been stripped of food.

But two weeks of poor night's sleep, feeling run down, coughing and all the rest meant I was really run down, just how low I felt isn't clear until you start to feel better.

I cook scrambled eggs for lunch, made with eggs given to us by Jen. They had really bright yellow yolks, and were so nice, I though I would make Scotch Eggs with the other four for dinner. I get out some sausage meat to defrost.

It was announced during the day that the NME was to cease publication this week. Most people said they were surprised it was still going. I started reading it in 1982, and kept with it until I joined the RAF in 1990. It was difficult at times, as writers and music coped with the recession of the early 80s, what we now look back on as some kind of golden era for pop music. The NME was a style and trendsetter, its cover stars either famous or about to become famous. A favourable review could boost careers, a bad review make them crash and burn. Many DJs on 6 Music are former NME hacks, which shows that a passion for music can carry you a long way. The lest edition I subscribed to before joining the RAF, I finally managed to complete the crossword; a badge of honour.

Where once there was Sounds, Melody Maker, NME, Smash Hits, Record Mirror to name a few, now they are all gone. All gone.

At the end of the afternoon I went for a quick walk over the fields, just to stretch my legs and see how I really felt being u and about. Breathless and coughing was the result But it was good to be out too, under the big blue skies at the end of winter, not feeling too warm, but green growth visible everywhere, if no flowers out. And the ground was drying out, soon be time for some long walks.

I trudge back to boil the eggs, then mix spicy coating with the sausage meat and coating the hard boiled eggs, then pop them in the oven to finish. I was trying to use our customer's IT system at the time, and failing badly, which explained why 45 minutes later before I realised that there was something burning. Not quite burning, but they were very, very well done.

Jools comes home, we have dinner, but I am shattered, I think I would listen to the football in bed, and read at the same time, so I find myself climbing into bed at ten past seven, reading WSC. Within 20 minutes and just after the Spurs game kicks off, I am asleep.

I wake up a couple of times, and hear maybe half the game. Oh dear.

I go to brush my teeth and climb back into bed to try to sleep to morning.