Thursday 16th December 2021

Fourth day home alone, and all things good. Not burned the house down, had a party and still have all cats.

And my slough of despond is over after the meeting with my boss on Wednesday, and now I am looking forward to the weekend and the start of my Christmas vacation.

The alarm on the phone goes off at half five, and Mulder is waiting at the bedroom door, waiting for breakfast. Downstairs, so is Scully, though her bed of choice overnight is the office shair I work from.

I feed the cats and pack away the dirty ones from the evening before, ready to start the fill-empty.clean cycle where I am her to serve the feline overlords. I would rebel, but they're so darn cute.

I make coffee, and take a deep breath and say I was going shopping.

I could wait to Friday, but I had an early meeting to attend to that day, so I gather the bags, shopping list and climb into the car to drive to Tesco.

Johnson's speech the night before might have triggered some panic buying, so wasn't sure if there would be crowds in the store when I got there. I wasn't panicking, just needed to get stuff for the weekend, as we have stuff planned, I hope. So, to Tesco.

I arrive and the car park is 90% empty, no crowds going in, so I get a cart and go inside, pick up a scanner and get hunting and gathering. Whch wasn't helped by me loosing the list within seconds of entering the store, so I grab random stuff, and for the most part I get it all, plus other stuff I thought would be handy: cheese, crackers and more cheese.

I go to check out and pay, and am back home in under an hour, in time to set up the laptop and screen to be logged on for seven. After checking mails I pack the shopping away and have some toast with second coffee. In the fridge there were five cold sausages from Wednesday, so I bought a small French baguette, and stuff half with half the sausages and will have the rest Friday. Unless they called me with their sausagy goodness later in the day.

But they don't.

It is very slow at work. Many have finished for Christmas even earlier than I, so to use up their paid vacation or they would have lost it. I think I could have taken Friday off too, I was owed it, officially, but I had taken liberties earlier in the year, I think we were even.

I heard the sausages calling me at half eleven, so I warm half up in the microwave, split half the roll and butter half up. I make a brew, and soon I am munching away. adio burbles away, there is no mail to answer, and all seems good.

Though outside it is very dull, it hardly seemed to get fully daylight. I ddn't go out, instead I found stuff to do. Mainly feed cats or move their bowls round to a place they would actually eat.

Come three in the afternoon, I was done, so watched a documentary on The Exorcist, a film I saw once, and despite buying it on DVD, I never watched it a second time, a very powerful film. But the backstory is every bit as compelling, and so the afternoon passed into evening.

Jools was in Leeds, she called and told me her plans for Friday, she should be home at half twelve or so, she said she was tired, but the break had been good.

I made breaded chicken for dinner, enough to have another meal when Jools came back, so I cooked one fillet and left the rest. Served with noodles and stir fry and a tripel. Cooking for one makes a lot of washing up, so its seven before I was done, Marc Riley on the wireless, playing great tunes and telling stories. There is football to follow, but on the BBC sports website, by text.

Another day down, and in the morning, six hours work and then Christmas.