Lovely Sunday

Yesterday was Sunday. I tidied up the garden a bit, purchased a paper, and then Madeleine arrived. We experimented with various versions of iced coffee, and quickly agreed on a satisfactory version (lots of strong espresso, cooled with semi-skimmed milk and a small amount of single cream, poured over plenty of ice in the glass with a very small amount of sugar). We made a kind of salad Nicoise with tuna and anchovies, olives, potatoes and lettuce, a tomato salad with basil, and other bits and pieces. Madeleine had kindly provided new potatoes, masses of little gem lettuce, tomatoes and cream. We finished with a small bowl of cherries. It was so hot that we put up the sun umbrella for a bit. We drank Pimms and had a very relaxing day, chatting about family news and events.

Shortly after Madeleine left, Julian and Dorothy announced that they were bringing food and wanted to make a barbecue. So the evening went on with the most wonderful lamb kebabs made by Dorothy marinated in mint, garlic and harissa, with onion and baby tomatoes in the kebabs, accompanied by an elegant salad composed by Julian. We drank some excellent red wine from 1994, can't remember what it was. Finished with coffee from Dorothy's Nespresso machine. Dorothy purchased a solid state hard drive with my birthday money - 'like having a new computer' apparently, so a good buy. They are going to Barcelona on 17th for a well-earned break.

Altogether a most satisfactory Sunday. I feel a bit tired today, and mustn't forget to collect my Choose and Book forms. Dorothy and Julian think that my inability to deal with the Open MRI is attention-seeking behaviour rather than extreme claustrophobia. Julian tells me that if I were claustrophic I couldn't live in my flat, crowded as it is with possessions. Hmmm. Actually I am still very annoyed with myself about the MRI, and on reflection, I do think that the two hour tube journey in excessive heat, followed by the anxiety and lack of taxis at the other end, did not do much to put me in a positive frame of mind by the time I arrived, and may have contributed to the negative outcome. Still, I certainly don't think I could have done it anyway without some kind of heavy sedation.

Poor Romy is taking the punters to Bletchley Park today. I couldn't face it as there is a lot of walking, apparently. I do hope it all goes well. We were told that it was a very interesting place to visit. Romy then proposes to go to the office afterwards to finish the newsletter. Not sure this is a good idea at all.