Friday 23rd June 2023

Last day of the week, and if I am honest, beginning to feel a little bit better after suffering more than I'd like to admit since knacking my back before going to Svalbard.

This was the first time I have felt sure on my feet since then, happy and confident as my brain ordered them plates to climb a down, and they obeyed and I didn't feel like I was going to come tumbling back down.

But before all that, there was work. And putting out the bins.

Jools went to yoga, so was on bin duty. Made a second coffee and made ready for work.

My colleagues are travelling this weekend, both going to Taiwan, meanwhile I will have an online audit on Tuesday. My audits are loaded to the second half of the year, so for now I try to make sense of our planning "tool", and try to make sense of the chaos.

Its different chaos from the usual general chaos.

I have chosen to pick a fight with someone two corporate levels above me, mainly because I am right and they're not. And because, what the fuck?

Anyway, the morning was spent swapping messages as they were too busy for a call. And is going on holiday at the end of the day.

So I throw a few grenades over the wall before signing off, and smiled to myself.

Jools returned at half one, changes and we go out. It was a glorious afternoon, she was going to go swimming in the harbour, and I was going to meet Graham and look for orchids.

An orchid.

Jools said not to hurry back, so I wouldn't. Within reason.

Drove to Wye where I was to meet Graham, before I got in his car and we drove to another down.

Last week two people posted shots of a rare "yellow" form of a Late Spider, and after some detective work, I decided it was at the site we were about to explore. I had not been here before, and Graham had found it only a few weeks back, where he saw maybe 15 spikes.

We had to limbo under a fence, go along a track then up the down, where we saw the first Late Spiders.

In huge numbers.

And monster spikes too, one with 10 (ten) flowers, and many with unusual lip markings, colouration and one with a yellow spike.

And the spikes kept showing all up to the top of the down, but the orchid we came to find, we did not see.

Two hours passed, and I had to go to pick up Jools, so we walked back down to Graham's car, so he could run me to ours, then back along lanes to Stone Street and the short run to the motorway and to home.

Jools had met an old friend and they had talked for over an hour, so no worries on keeping her waiting.

We went back home, getting back at quarter past five, so time to feed the cats, and get ready for the quiz. Meanwhile, Jools went to collect a Chinese takeaway, so that when the quiz was done, I would be collected and we would go to Jen's for dinner and cards.

Sylv is still here, and running interference. She means well, but chaos follows here. Everywhere.

We eat well, then after packing away, we play cards, taking two hours to get through a game of Meld, as Sylv is poorly organised she seems just to stare at her cards. Jools helps here twice, and she wins the hands as a result.

But no John, it was too late for a hand of Queenie. So we went home.