MAINTENANCE WEEK

The week following the Pantomime focussed on maintenance of two kinds.

First - my health both present and future.....

Monday, I saw my nutritionist extraordinaire, Lisanne Davidson, and had my three monthly check-up. We tweaked the doses of supplements I am on now and planned ahead for what would be needed for India.

As you can imagine, at the top of my mind is how to stay WELL during the whole ten weeks I am in India. How to prevent Delhi belly and how to recover from it quickly if I am unlucky enough to succumb!
I can honestly say that, after our session, I feel totally confident that everything we discussed and all the advice I have had should see me through any rough patches. I have stocked up with all the right stuff and now face the fact that my luggage will be quite heavy in the way of pill pots! We are allowing for some local Ayurvedic remedies to be prescribed while I am there.

Wednesday, I saw my wonderful osteomyologost-coach Patrick Deguara who checked me over and gave my overall condition a pretty good rating. He is pleased (as am I) that the two hand surgeries I went through in August and October have healed up well and, more importantly, have resolved the original Carpal Tunnel problem. The rest of the body seems to have settled into place after the intervention. Patrick has been instrumental in helping me to focus on and clear out a lot of old mental rubbish during the past year and to close some important loops in my life. The effect has been felt at every tissue level.

Thursday, I went for my last travel inoculation: Cholera (second instalment) - a raspberry flavoured fizzy drink. Quite nice tasting actually.

Surprisingly, I was able to get all my jabs and potions from the Charlbury Medical Centre and only had to pay for one. Janet Monk the ace nurse there was amazing in providing full written information for me to keep, a high level of personal interest in my trip, very thorough checking that I was getting everything I needed and that I was fit and well enough to do so. She knows how to give you a needle so you don't feel a thing! She made such a pleasure out of something I was really dreading! I am relieved I am now through all those hoops. Thanks Janet!

And now about the Other Maintenance... the house of course!

Miracle of miracles - Carl Gorton arrived one evening and mended the boiler radio controlled thermostat. That was great!

Tuesday, I picked up my re-made and re-lined burgundy brocade curtains from Katie Townsend. And these are now hanging very smartly in the extension to keep out the winter darkness and create a rich snug interior. The material is older than I am, My mother had it hanging in every house we ever lived in while I was growing up and with very little alteration I have been able to keep the heirloom panels almost intact.This is very satisfying indeed.

Thursday Graham Palmer, my electrician, came along to fit the triple circuit track lighting to the ceiling of the extension. I was his assistant in holding the 3 meter long piece of metal up at the top of the second ladder. You get the visuals I am sure!

This job has been outstanding for over a year and no fault of Graham's. I had great difficulty sourcing the elements I needed and it was only recently I faced the fact that I couldn't have everything I wanted - low voltage AND dimmable AND triple circuit compatible light fittings. So - I compromised and let go of the low voltage! After much online searching, I also found a great (new-to-me) lighting distributor called NATIONAL LIGHTING, whom I recommend highly. The final cost was half of what I was quoted last year and the service was efficient and thorough.

So how do I feel after all that? Pretty marvellous actually!

The house has been a major concern for me as I get nearer to my departure date. I need to know everything is working smoothly, the fabric is in good nick and that I have closed as many loops as possible. There will be friends and family using the house while I am away and it all needs to be self explanatory!

I think I have mostly achieved this.