under another sun

Felt significantly improved, after a good night's sleep. Have more energy, and the gloom with this bug has also lifted. Managed a walk this morning, walking into town with Lorraine, who had to collect antibiotics for Pat. I went on to walk along by the sea, which was lovely and enlivening. Dramatic skies, and I snapped the shot below of some hardy swimmers clambering out of the sea after being in the little sauna on the seafront.  Spoke to Anton and Mum. Home and having finished my Arthur Machen book, took delivery of another one, The Great God Pan and Other Horror Stories, published by Oxford Classics. There is some duplication, of stories with the other anthology, but this has some key stories Penguin's  The White People didn't contain.  Also delivered were new walking boots, again I used Chat GPT to request the best walking boots for people with overpronation, and it suggested a reasonably priced pair from Merrell, who I've had two lots of shoes from before. But the...

Up in the night, as Pat had slid out of bed again. We drove around, and we pulled him back into bed. I experienced a bit of a sense of humour failure having to drag myself out of bed in high alarm at two o'clock.  We weren't there long, and apart from the lifting from the floor I kept to the other room not wanting to share my lurgy. Home and nerves still jangling, we found it hard to go back to sleep. Tired all day from the night's shenanigans, but I felt like I had more life about me. Had to miss the final drawing class of the year. But I felt that I was Turning The Corner. So much so that I walked in the garden and once around the block, which by the time I got home was quite enough. I dozed and read Arthur Machen all day, and really enjoying it.  Beth and James took Maureen and a friend to see Fiddler on the Roof. Maureen absolutely loved it, and it was a much needed-break for her. Derek and Jason spent the day with Pat, and they are zooming off first thing tomorrow. A b...

Up surprisingly early for a Sunday, and we mooched into town. Lorraine was meeting Isy's teacher sister Lara for a coffee. I went to Waterstones and lurked happily there, trying to keep a lid on my spending, confining myself to a collection of stories by Arthur Machen , The White People as part of my quest to understand the roots of horror. The book has an introduction by Guillermo del Toro, maker of splendid films such as Pan's Labyrinth . In the afternoon I read,  The Inmost Light . Excellent.  I also take phone snaps of children's book covers that are in a genre similar genre to my own. Walking into town, we stopped to look at a pair for Jays on the pavement, hopping about and displaying to one another. I had never seen a Jay on a pavement, let alone two. Normally shy birds, the fact they did not fly away was unusual. Tangentally, this reminded me of a visit to Two Jays second hand bookshop in Edgware. Needing cash, I took in an obscure book on African philosophy, the...