Wednesday 17th February 2021

At least the rain has stopped.

He said.

I knew there would be no excuse for not walking before work, doubly so with no early meetings at seven or half past.

Temperatures are twelve degrees warmer than a week ago, not so much urgency to turn the heating on in the mornings, but the waiting cup of coffee is always welcome.

Jools rushes arund to get ready and leave at half six, I follow her out having put on by shoes and coat, laden with cameras, I set off towards Station Road.

Its not quite light, but not dark either, light enough for photography though.

No traffic about, so I turn up the hill, going past Collingwood, instead heading to Hardy Road.

Not that's any more picturesque than Collingwood, but something different. People were leaving for work, hading off with lights ablazing, but indicators not working. I walk on.

At the end I turn down to Collingwood, and walk along to the first lane down and up to Windy Ridge. As expected it was impassable due to water and mud. And I didn't have my boots on either, so I turn back for home.

It was getting lighter by the minute, and arriving home at quarter past seven, the sun rose into a light couded sky, diffused byt he clouds.

Back inside, on the with the coffee pot, on with the kettle, and make the important second cuppa. On with the computer and find that the IT help desk hadn't being much help.

Well.

What is worse than one IT deprtment sorting issues out? Yes, two. Two is good so they can blame each other why fixes don't work. A third team in the new big company looks at the issue and says there is an expensive fix, and a really expensive fix. We go for the first, so just have to wait for the software to be ordered, approved and installed.

Should I point out that I expect to retire in four and a half years?

I keep quiet.

We have more meetings, follow up meetings on previous meetings, where we agree to have more meetings.

So it goes, so it goes.

Lunch is more salt beef snadwiches with mayo and mustard.

Still good.

I also start to make the soup for dinner; roasting some squash, frying onions and garlic, adding stock. And once roasted, adding he squash and leave it to ferment. I put in two spoonfulls of korma powder, which I jusdge to be not too strong.

At five I whiz it up, and warm though for when Jools comes home. We have the rest of the loaf I made to go with it, smothered in best New Zealand butter.

Yummy.

Norwich were on the tellybox that night, playing Coventry, in Birmingham (don't ask), on a paddy field of a pitch. Norwich scored with the two best moves of the game, but gave the ball away freely in the second half, but hung on to win 2-0.

I'll take it.