Cotswold countryside, quaint and quintessentially English!

Well, if you think that you have arrived at the blog version of General Hospital (those were the days!), with all the posts about hospital visits and medical mayhem(!), then welcome to our world!! Since arriving back in the UK we've done nothing much other than wait in doctor's surgeries, wait in hospital waiting rooms, nurse and be nursed etc etc! The unmistakable sterile smell of hospitals seems to have clung to our very being and we are not amused!! The UK is clearly very bad for our health!!



Still, things are looking up and this past weekend we started a week long house sit at a lovely property not a million miles from "home" located a stones throw from the Wiltshire village of Colerne and on the borders of the Cotswolds.

The views from "The Bakehouse" are stunning. The surrounding countryside is breathtakingly beautiful and it is very peaceful here. We have few plans for the coming week save for pottering in the garden and taking care of the two lovely Bengal cats with maybe a few walks along the numerous footpaths and the odd visit to the local for a real ale (or two!).

And the beat goes on

With Della's minor surgery over and Dad on the road to recovery it was time for me to get my heart checked out. Some of you may know that I have a (minor) heart murmur and am required from time to time to have the leaky valve checked.



This involves a trip to the Outpatients at the local hospital where I undergo a ECG and my Cardiologist (who is almost family now after 14 years of consultations!), asks me some questions, checks my blood pressure and proceeds to listen, intently, to the dodgy valve. This takes no longer than 30 minutes tops and away I go until the next time, usually around 18 months later.



However, this time there was the added complication of the palpitations I have been experiencing and it turns out that I am having ectopic heartbeats! It appears that these are common and benign. The sensation is of one's heart missing a beat or, of the heart momentarily stopping - not nice. There is no direct link with the murmur but it will need to be monitored.



I am scheduled for an ultrasound scan (me thinks that ectopic and ultrasounds are often associated with pregnancy.......should I be concerned??!!). I must also wear a holter monitor for 5 days and keep a diary of what I am doing when the heart misbehaves (could be interesting!).



Must confess when the Consultant told me the irregular rhythms were nothing to worry about I was relieved, so much so my heart almost skipped a beat!

Dysplastic nevus, pigmented lesion, a mole by any other name.....

So, the wife has had the "suspicious" mole on her right ear removed. She was very brave.


A brief appointment with the Laser clinic at the local hospital confirmed the GP's concerns and so, within the blinking of an eye (or the flapping of an ear!), she was booked in for surgery. (She prefers the term "procedure"), either way a visit to the Minor Plastic Surgery unit was required.


Attentive and very kind hospital staff booked her in, ticked her off a very long Admissions list and we made our way (accompanied by several other outpatients also requiring minor plastic surgery - I spent the time wondering what they were having removed/added!), and within the hour the "op" was over.



A painful weekend ensued but buoyed by packets of Paracetamol the girl done good. Stitches were removed a week ago and to see her little ear now, you'd never know.......we are now awaiting the Consultant's appointment and the results of the biopsy - fingers and toes all crossed for good news - ear ear!!

Ladies what lunch(!), dinner dates and super suppers!!

Whilst we have been very, very busy with our nursing, market researching and hanging out washing and bringing it in again(!) in between the torrential downpours we have found time (you will not be surprised to hear!), to fit in several scrumptious meals out and in with family and friends.

This past weekend was a real international extravaganza which kicked off with a Chinese meal with our dear friend (you know who you are!!), down in Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset. The restaurant offered a buffet of a wide variety of chinese goodies which we took no time to tuck in to!! Lousy grammar but we like the sound of that last sentence!!

We also had the opportunity to get together with the girls for an Indian meal at the local Taj Brasserie which was a real bonanza of poppadoms, dips, rogan josh, naans and aloo sag and gobi galore! Not to mention good old fashioned girlie chat!

The foodie fest reached its climax on Saturday evening when we entertained chez nous and, without blowing our own trumpet too much (oh well, alright then!), we did ourselves proud!

We started the evening with aperitifs of Cava, G & T's and warmed nuts (steady!). Our starter dish was wild scallops in a lime, chilli, ginger and coriander marinade on a bed of watercress and rocket leaves, accompanied by a Sauvignon Blanc to die for!
Our entree was organic salmon fillets which we served with baby salad potatoes and asparagus. A surprisingly "light" Shiraz went down extremely well with the salmon. We cheated with dessert and enjoyed individual shop-bought zesty lemon cheesecake. Yummy!! There were the obligatory after dinner chocs (Green & Black's), and some coffees to go with the single malts..............boozy yes, over-indulgent absolutely, brilliant.......without a doubt!!

Sunshine, showers and Swine flu!

Since arriving back here in the UK the weather has been a real mixed bag, as is typical of an English summer. Living out of a suitcase is not so easy when the weather won't play ball. We had packed for a summer in France and optimistically hoped that our selection of shorts and summer tops would suffice back here in Blighty - how wrong could we be? We have obviously been away far too long!

In early July we sweltered in summer gear, by the second week of Juillet our shorts were soggy and sandals were sodden! They, (whoever "they" are), say that "there is no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes". Well, we certainly have the wrong stuff packed!

We have been looking after "the Old's" place since returning to the UK whilst they holiday in the States and the sunshine and showers have kept us busy in the garden with hours of watering being replaced by hours of mowing and weeding!

You may know that Dad has had major surgery and unfortunately, had to spend much longer in hospital than expected due to post-op complications and, despite being discharged from hospital a week ago, he continues to have a number of problems and pain. We are hopeful that this coming week will see some significant improvement in his condition.

Our house and pet sitting "schedule" has, as a result of the above, been modified so that we can be around to help where and when needed. We have been very lucky and have organised house sits locally until almost the end of August.

We have also been busy "working" as freelance market researchers! Basically, eating, drinking and shopping and being paid to do so! Some of our "assignments" involve visiting pubs (oh, the hardships!), and sampling traditional real and cask ales.

Now, as a rule, we are committed wine and continental beer (lager!), drinkers by nature but, this introduction to all things hop-like has been a real revelation and we are becoming serious fans, we may even join the Campaigners for Real Ale gang! There will be a separate post(s), with more detail later. Della in particular, has discovered her hidden real ale side(!) and has vowed to try as many different types as her liver will allow! Bring on the "Fursty Ferret" is what I say!!

An unexpected yet very welcome "reunion" mid-July, with some familiar and not so familiar faces from our school days took place at the local pub (where else?), and a good time was had by all. It was really lovely to catch up with everyone.

Swine flu outbreaks here in the UK have now taken on pandemic proportions with most people having it or knowing someone that has had it. Tamiflu is readily available and most cases seem to be mild to moderate. Jokes abound mainly involving oinking, crackling and porky goings on! The English sense of humour at its best!!